The constrained hoop: an explanation of the overshoot in cell length during a shift-up of Escherichia coli.

Abstract

This review presents an explanation of length overshoot in light of a recent explanation of cell wall synthesis during the division cycle. First, our current understanding of murein structure and synthesis in gram-negative bacteria will be described. This forms the basis of the explanation of how the cell wall increases in area during the division cycle. This will be followed by a discussion of the steady-state shapes of bacteria at different growth rates. Once the shapes and sizes of bacteria at different growth rates and how these shapes are produced during steady-state growth are understood, the length overshoot during a shift-up can be explained