The bacterial chromosome is both highly supercoiled and bound by an ensemble of proteins and RNA, causing the DNA to form a compact structure termed the nucleoid. The nucleoid serves to condense, protect, and control access to the bacterial chromosome through a variety of mechanisms that remain incompletely understood. The nucleoid is also a dynamic structure, able to change both in size and composition. The dynamic nature of the bacterial nucleoid is particularly apparent when studying the effects of various stresses on bacteria, which require cells to protect their DNA and alter patterns of transcription. Stresses can lead to large changes in the organization and composition of the nucleoid on timescales as short as a few minutes. Here, we summarize some of the recent advances in our understanding of how stress can alter the organization of bacterial chromosomes.

中文翻译：

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活着再战：压力下的细菌核

细菌染色体高度超螺旋，并由蛋白质和 RNA 结合在一起，导致 DNA 形成称为核的紧凑结构。类核通过多种尚未完全了解的机制来压缩、保护和控制对细菌染色体的访问。类核也是一种动态结构，能够改变大小和组成。在研究各种应激对细菌的影响时，细菌核的动态性质尤其明显，这需要细胞保护其 DNA 并改变转录模式。压力可以在短至几分钟的时间内导致类核的组织和组成发生巨大变化。在这里，我们总结了我们对压力如何改变细菌染色体组织的理解的一些最新进展。