Proteolysis of the replication checkpoint protein Sda is necessary for the efficient initiation of sporulation after transient replication stress in Bacillus subtilis.

Cells of Bacillus subtilis actively co-ordinate the initiation of sporulation with DNA replication and repair. Conditions that perturb replication initiation or replication elongation induce expression of a small protein, Sda, that specifically inhibits the histidine kinases required to initiate spore development. Previously, the role of Sda has been studied during chronic blocks to DNA replication.