Stochastic mechanisms of cell-size regulation in bacteria

Abstract

How bacteria are able to maintain their sizes remains an open question. It is believed that cells have narrow distributions of sizes as a consequence of a homeostasis that allows bacteria to function at the optimal conditions. Several phenomenological approaches to explain these observations have been presented, but the microscopic origins of the cell-size regulation are still not understood. Here, we propose a new stochastic approach to investigate the molecular mechanisms of maintaining the cell sizes in bacteria. It is argued that the cell-size regulation is a result of coupling of two stochastic processes, cell growth and division, which eliminates the need for introducing the thresholds. Dynamic properties of the system are explicitly evaluated, and it is shown that the model is consistent with the experimentally supported adder principle of the cell-size regulation. In addition, theoretical predictions agree with experimental observations on E. coli bacteria. Theoretical analysis clarifies some important features of bacterial cell growth