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Explore a fascinating lecture by Rosemary Braun examining how cyanobacteria maintain accurate circadian rhythms despite cellular fluctuations. Discover the remarkable simplicity of Synechococcus elongatus' circadian clock, which operates through a three-protein molecular oscillator where KaiC cycles through phosphorylation states with a 24-hour period. Learn about the puzzling synchronization mechanism that allows these bacteria to maintain consistent timekeeping despite cell division and the synthesis of new KaiC molecules. The presentation proposes models explaining how cells manage heterogeneity in KaiC concentrations while maintaining rhythmic precision, and investigates the energetic costs and fundamental limits that growth places on cellular timekeeping abilities.
