Analysis of the about the Circadian Oscillator Located in the Prokaryotic Cyanobacterium - Article Example

The purpose of the research article was informed by the fact that cell division cycles and circadian rhythms play an important role in cyclic biological systems. Moreover, among unicellular eukaryotic organisms, the rhythmic mechanism exhibited in most cases is non-independent whenever cell division timing is controlled by the circadian system. The control phenomenon is attributed to a gating system of cell division within eukaryotic organisms. Consequently, the purpose of the research was to ascertain whether prokaryotes would also manifest circadian control in the period of cell division timing. To achieve this, the authors measured cultures of DNA content, cell division rate, gene expression, and cell size.

This measurement was carried out on the prokaryotic cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC 7942. The results indicated that populations were rapidly dividing at 10h periods of circadian gating of cell division. The experiment proved Synechococcus cells, with extensive circadian rhythms of gene expression and cell division, exhibited double growth rates that were significantly greater than once per 24h. Another new and important finding by the research article showed that Synechococcus cells could simultaneously sustain double circuit timings that exhibited different timing periods.