{
  "abstract": "The second messenger c-di-GMP plays a critical role in regulating cell size and growth in the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120. While all 16 c-di-GMP metabolic enzymes and the primary receptor CdgR have been identified, how metabolic enzyme activity is controlled to maintain c-di-GMP homeostasis remains largely unexplored. Here, using a suppressor-screening approach based on c-di-GMP-deficient mutants, we identify All0729 (CdgKA) as a regulator that orchestrates c-di-GMP homeostasis and cell size regulation. Genetic and quantitative analyses demonstrate that CdgKA acts upstream of All2306 (CdgSHA), the reported major c-di-GMP hydrolase, to modulate the activity of the latter. While c-di-GMP synthesis mutants displayed reduced c-di-GMP levels and decreased cell size, inactivation of cdgKA or cdgSHA in these mutant backgrounds rescued both the c-di-GMP levels and cell size. We propose that CdgKA and CdgSHA form a complex two-component system, and the phosphorylation of CdgSHA enhances its c-di-GMP-degrading activity. While the previously identified two-component system composed of CdgK-CdgS regulates c-di-GMP synthesis, the CdgKA-CdgSHA system controls its degradation. Together, they constitute a dual TCS network that precisely tunes c-di-GMP levels and cell size, establishing a regulatory link between two-component signaling and second messenger homeostasis in cyanobacteria.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences"
  ],
  "article_type": "New results",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Q.-X. Sun"
    },
    {
      "name": "Z.-R. Ding"
    },
    {
      "name": "C.-C. Zhang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "X. Zeng"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/dkper76se8zxv.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.64898/2026.09.11.750938",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.11.750938v1.full",
  "id": "dkper76se8zxv",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.11.750938v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "biorxiv",
      "microbiology"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1311|Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7212853247",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.11.750938v1.full.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-11",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/dkper76se8zxv.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:21:59Z",
      "native_id": "10.64898/2026.09.11.750938",
      "source": "biorxiv",
      "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.11.750938v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "biorxiv:microbiology",
      "subfield": "microbiology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "A complex two-component system CdgKA-CdgSH fine-tunes c-di-GMP homeostasis in a Cyanobacterium",
  "title_text": "A complex two-component system CdgKA-CdgSH fine-tunes c-di-GMP homeostasis in a Cyanobacterium",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:21:59Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/dkper76se8zxv",
  "venue": "bioRxiv",
  "versions": []
}