Intrinsic timekeeping in Escherichia coli
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A. A. Crofts, A. Bates, J. S. Takahashi, L. V. Hooper · DOI: 10.64898/2026.11.03.761655 · Summary page
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A familiar bacterium keeps its own time
Escherichia coli biofilms can anticipate daily temperature changes, according to a preprint that places an internal timing system in an unexpectedly familiar microbe. After exposure to daily temperature shifts, the biofilms produced rhythms in curli plaque formation that continued at constant temperature. Curli are protein fibres involved in bacterial attachment and biofilm structure.
Genetic experiments traced the autonomous timing machinery to the Rcs phosphorelay, a cellular signalling system. A sensory pathway called BluFR connected temperature and blue-light cycles to rhythmic curli production. Activity of a flagellar promoter peaked at the opposite time from curli production, suggesting temporal coordination between movement and attachment. The work broadens the search for biological clocks beyond established model systems, although the abstract does not report whether the rhythm maintains its timing across different constant temperatures—a useful test of a circadian clock.
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