Chromosome segregation in bacteria

Segregation of replicated sister chromosomes within the crowded bacterial nucleoid is a vital biophysical process ensuring proper cell division. Structural Maintenance of Chromosome (SMC) proteins play an important role in organizing and segregating chromosomes during replication. In this talk, I will present our energy-landscape-based polymer model of the bacterial nucleoid, which learns chromosome architecture from Hi-C experiments and predicts the structural ensemble of sister chromosomes as replication progresses. By analyzing data from SMC mutants, our study reveals how SMC-mediated structural reorganization effectively drives sister chromosome segregation in rod-shaped bacteria. The model validates the existing observations well and makes new predictions testable via imaging and Hi-C experiments.