Bacterial Min proteins beyond the cell division

Min system in Escherichia coli is one of the well-studied phenomena of self-organization and spatial distribution of proteins. Several multidisciplinary approaches were used to study the oscillation phenomena of the Min system. The focus of most of these studies was to understand the role of Min system in placement of the Z-ring to the mid-cell and to characterize its interaction with divisome proteins. The involvement of Min system in other cellular processes is poorly characterized. Few recent studies have suggested that Min proteins play an important role in various cellular processes such as bacterial motility, colonization, and virulence. Similarly, MinD is reported to interact with RNaseE, which suggests the association of the Min system with RNA decay. Our Protein-Protein Interaction network analysis shows that MinD interacts with proteins from diverse cellular processes such as protein secretory pathway, chaperone system, and bacterial adhesion. These studies suggest that apart from its role in cell division, Min system also plays a key role in other essential cellular processes. In this review, we have discussed the role of the Min system in cellular processes other than the cell division, such as RNA decay, bacterial motility, and virulence.