The cell cycle of archaea

We are interested in regulatory, mechanistic and evolutionary aspects of the main cell cycle processes in organisms from the third domain of life, Archaea. Our main model species are extremophilic microorganisms that belong to the archaeal genus Sulfolobus. The organisms are hyperthermophiles that grow optimally in hot acid (80ºC and pH 3) and are found in geothermal hot spring areas all over Earth.

We explore the chromosome replication, genome segregation and cell division mechanisms, as well as the cytoskeleton, using a variety of strategies. The aims are to increase the understanding of the fundamental cell biology of archaea, and to gain insights into core aspects of the corresponding features of eukaryotic cells due to the extensive similarities between archaea and eukaryotes.

Keywords

Archaea, Chromosome replication, Cell division, Cell cycle, Cytoskeleton

Selected publications

Lindås, A.-C., & Bernander, R. (2013). The cell cycle of archaea. Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 11:627-38

Ettema, T.J.G., Lindås, A.-C., & Bernander, R. (2011). An actin-based cytoskeleton in archaea. Mol. Microbiol. 80: 1052-61

Lindås, A.-C., Karlsson, E., Lindgren, M.F., Ettema, T.J.G., & Bernander, R. (2008). A unique cell division machinery in the archaea. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 105:18942-46

Lundgren, M., & Bernander, R. (2007). Genome-wide transcription map of an archaeal cell cycle. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 104: 2939-44

Lundgren, M., Andersson, A., Chen, L., Nilsson, P., & Bernander, R. (2004). Three replication origins in Sulfolobus species: Synchronous initiation of chromosome replication and asynchronous termination. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 101:7046-51