Cyanobacterial heterocysts
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Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Generation of Marked and Markerless Mutants in Model Cyanobacterial Species
Published on: May 29, 2016
Krithika Kumar1, Rodrigo A Mella-Herrera, James W Golden
1Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, 77843, USA.
Abstract:
Many multicellular cyanobacteria produce specialized nitrogen-fixing heterocysts. During diazotrophic growth of the model organism Anabaena (Nostoc) sp. strain PCC 7120, a regulated developmental pattern of single heterocysts separated by about 10 to 20 photosynthetic vegetative cells is maintained along filaments. Heterocyst structure and metabolic activity function together to accommodate the oxygen-sensitive process of nitrogen fixation. This article focuses on recent research on heterocyst development, including morphogenesis, transport of molecules between cells in a filament, differential gene expression, and pattern formation.
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