Reconstitution of a minimal machinery capable of assembling periplasmic type IV pili [Microbiology]
![Reconstitution of a minimal machinery capable of assembling periplasmic type IV pili [Microbiology]](/image/eyJ1cmkiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBuYXMub3JnL2NvbnRlbnQvZWFybHkvMjAxNy8wNi8wNS8xNjE4NTM5MTE0L0YxLm1lZGl1bS5naWYiLCJmb3JtYXQiOiJ3ZWJwIiwicXVhbGl0eSI6MTAwLCJub0NhY2hlIjp0cnVlfQ==.webp)
Type IV pili (Tfp), which are key virulence factors in many bacterial pathogens, define a large group of multipurpose filamentous nanomachines widespread in Bacteria and Archaea. Tfp biogenesis is a complex multistep process, which relies on macromolecular assemblies composed of 15 conserved proteins in model gram-negative species. To improve our limited understanding of the molecular mechanisms of filament assembly, we have used a synthetic biology approach to reconstitute, in a nonnative heterologous host, a minimal machinery capable of building Tfp. Here we show that eight synthetic genes are sufficient to promote filament assembly and that the corresponding proteins form a macromolecular complex at the cytoplasmic membrane, which we have purified and characterized biochemically. Our results contribute to a better mechanistic understanding of the assembly of remarkable dynamic filaments nearly ubiquitous in prokaryotes.
Publisher URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Pnas-RssFeedOfEarlyEditionArticles/~3/e7o9p5GrgYM/1618539114.short
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1618539114
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