Differential gene expression in Bacillus subtilis

Sporulation in Bacillus subtilis serves as a paradigm for the development of two different cell types (mother cell and prespore) from a single cell. The mechanism by which the two different developmental programs are initiated has been much studied but is not well understood. With the help of existing and new experimental results, a mathematical model has been developed that reproduces all published in vitro experiments and makes new predictions about the properties of the system in vivo.