<h1 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.5; font-size: 2.4em; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; color: var(--iq-title-text); letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff;">The Z Ring and Its Role in Cell Division</h1>
<p><img style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: middle; border-style: none; max-width: 34%; color: #585858; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff; height: auto; width: auto; max-height: 288px; margin: 0px 10px;" src="https://i.imgur.com/QfJA3Sm.jpg" alt="z ring" align="right" /></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1rem; color: #585858; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff;">During cell division, the Z ring organizes the division process. It provides direction to new wall formation and enhances turnover rates near the mid-cell. There are several regulatory proteins that render the Z ring responsive to changes in cell cycle.</p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1rem; color: #585858; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff;">There are two main positions for Z ring assembly. The mid-cell and poles. While Z rings can form at either of these locations, the position at the cell centre is the most common. In most prokaryotic cells, the Z ring is synthesized from the nucleoid, but it can also be produced from other positions.</p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1rem; color: #585858; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff;">The Z ring is composed of a polymer of the FtsZ protein. It is comprised of filaments that are oriented in a similar way, allowing them to crosslink together in bundles. These filaments are subject to GTPase activity, which allows them to explore intracellular space.</p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1rem; color: #585858; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff;">The replisome controls the Z ring assembly at the mid-cell. However, replisome-mediated checkpoints have been observed to interfere with the assembly. Inhibition of the peptidoglycan synthesis proteins (PGPs) prevents the formation of a new Z ring. The Min system may also have a role in the positioning of the Z ring at the division site.</p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1rem; color: #585858; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; background-color: #ffffff;">The position of the division site is highly precise in E. coli. The shape of the cell during contraction and growth is determined by the Z-ring force. The Z ring can produce a small force, as low as eight pN in E. coli. This force is accompanied by stretching, bending, and internal pressure.</p>