Control of cell division in Escherichia coli: effect of amino acid starvation

The effect of amino acid starvation on cell division was studied in cells of Escherichia coli B. In this bacterial strain, deprivation of a required amino acid resulted in synchronous cell division upon restoration of the amino acid. This synchronization was apparently due to a shift forward in the cell cycle during the starvation. As a consequence, the cells divided at a size that was smaller than normal.