The putative Poc complex controls two distinct Pseudomonas aeruginosa polar motility mechanisms

Spatial, temporal and numerical regulation of polar flagella assembly in Pseudomonas putida

The Gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas putida bears a tuft of flagella at a single cell pole. New flagella must be assembled de novo every cell cycle to secure motility of both daughter cells. Here we show that the coordinated action of FimV, FlhF and FleN sets the location, timing and number of flagella assembled. The polar landmark proteins FimV and FlhF are independently targeted to the nascent new pole during or shortly after cell division, but FimV stabilizes FlhF association with the cell poles. FlhF determines the polar position of the flagella by targeting early flagellar components to the cell pole and preventing their nucleation at non-polar sites. FlhF also promotes efficient flagellar assembly and indirectly stimulates Class III flagellar promoter activation by promoting secretion of the anti-FliA anti-σ factor FlgM. The MinD-like ATPase FleN partitions between the cell poles and the cytoplasm. Cytoplasmic FleN regulates flagellar number by preventing excessive accumulation of FlhF at the cell poles that may otherwise lead to hyperflagellation, likely by antagonizing FleQ-dependent transcriptional activation. FimV is essential to FleN polar location. FimV and FleN temporally regulate the onset of flagellar assembly by preventing premature polar targeting of FlhF and the ensuing premature targeting of additional flagellar components. Our results shed new light on the mechanisms that ensure the timely assembly of the appropriate number of flagella at the correct polar location in polarly flagellated bacteria.

The mechanism for polar localization of the type IVa pilus machine in Myxococcus xanthus

IMPORTANCE

Type IVa pili (T4aP) are widespread bacterial cell surface structures with important functions in motility, surface adhesion, biofilm formation, and virulence. Different bacteria have adapted different piliation patterns. To address how these patterns are established, we focused on the bipolar localization of the T4aP machine in the model organism Myxococcus xanthus by studying the localization of the PilQ secretin, the first component of this machine that assembles at the poles. Based on experiments using a combination of fluorescence microscopy, biochemistry, and computational structural analysis, we propose that PilQ, and specifically its AMIN domains, binds septal and polar peptidoglycan, thereby enabling polar Tgl localization, which then stimulates PilQ multimerization in the outer membrane. We also propose that the presence and absence of AMIN domains in T4aP secretins contribute to the different piliation patterns across bacteria.

Thiocillin and micrococcin exploit the ferrioxamine receptor of Pseudomonas aeruginosa for uptake

BACKGROUND

Thiopeptides are a class of antibiotics that are active against Gram-positive bacteria and inhibit translation. They were considered inactive against Gram-negative bacteria due to their inability to cross the outer membrane. However, we discovered previously that a member of this class, thiostrepton (TS), has activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii under iron-limiting conditions. TS hijacks the pyoverdine siderophore receptors of P. aeruginosa to cross the outer membrane and synergizes with iron chelators.

OBJECTIVES

To test other thiopeptides for antimicrobial activity against P. aeruginosa and determine their mechanism of uptake, action and spectrum of activity.

METHODS

Eight thiopeptides were screened in chequerboard assays against a mutant of P. aeruginosa PA14 lacking both pyoverdine receptors. Thiopeptides that retain activity against a pyoverdine receptor-null mutant may use alternative siderophore receptors for entry. Susceptibility testing against siderophore receptor mutants was used to determine thiopeptide mechanism of uptake.

RESULTS

The thiopeptides thiocillin (TC) and micrococcin (MC) use the ferrioxamine siderophore receptor (FoxA) for uptake and inhibit the growth of P. aeruginosa at low micromolar concentrations. The activity of TC required the TonB-ExbBD system used to energize siderophore uptake. TC acted through its canonical mechanism of action of translation inhibition.

CONCLUSIONS

Multiple thiopeptides have antimicrobial activity against P. aeruginosa, countering the historical assumption that they cannot cross the outer membrane. These results demonstrate the potential for thiopeptides to act as antipseudomonal antibiotics.

Synthetic Antimicrobial Peptide Tuning Permits Membrane Disruption and Interpeptide Synergy

The ribosomally produced antimicrobial peptides of bacteria (bacteriocins) represent an unexplored source of membrane-active antibiotics. We designed a library of linear peptides from a circular bacteriocin and show that pore-formation dynamics in bacterial membranes are tunable via selective amino acid substitution. We observed antibacterial interpeptide synergy indicating that fundamentally altering interactions with the membrane enables synergy. Our findings suggest an approach for engineering pore-formation through rational peptide design and increasing the utility of novel antimicrobial peptides by exploiting synergy.

Structure and Stoichiometry of the Ton Molecular Motor

The Ton complex is a molecular motor that uses the proton gradient at the inner membrane of Gram-negative bacteria to generate force and movement, which are transmitted to transporters at the outer membrane, allowing the entry of nutrients into the periplasmic space. Despite decades of investigation and the recent flurry of structures being reported by X-ray crystallography and cryoEM, the mode of action of the Ton molecular motor has remained elusive, and the precise stoichiometry of its subunits is still a matter of debate. This review summarizes the latest findings on the Ton system by presenting the recently reported structures and related reports on the stoichiometry of the fully assembled complex.

A bacteriophage nucleus-like compartment shields DNA from CRISPR nucleases

All viruses require strategies to inhibit or evade the immunity pathways of cells they infect. The viruses that infect bacteria, bacteriophages (phages), must avoid nucleic-acid targeting immune pathways such as CRISPR-Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and CRISPR-associated genes) and restriction-modification (R-M) systems to replicate efficiently¹. Here, we show that jumbo phage ΦKZ, infecting Pseudomonas aeruginosa, segregates its DNA from immunity nucleases by constructing a proteinaceous nucleus-like compartment. ΦKZ resists many DNA-targeting immune systems in vivo, including two CRISPR-Cas3 subtypes, Cas9, Cas12a, and the restriction enzymes HsdRMS and EcoRI. Cas and restriction enzymes are unable to access the phage DNA throughout the infection, but engineered re-localization of EcoRI inside the compartment enables phage targeting and cell protection. Moreover, ΦKZ is sensitive to the RNA targeting CRISPR-Cas enzyme, Cas13a, likely due to phage mRNA localizing to the cytoplasm. Collectively, we propose that Pseudomonas jumbo phages evade a broad spectrum of DNA-targeting nucleases through the assembly of a protein barrier around their genome.

The TonBm-PocAB System Is Required for Maintenance of Membrane Integrity and Polar Position of Flagella in Pseudomonas putida

TonB-ExbB-ExbD-like energy transduction systems are widespread among Gram-negative bacteria. While most species have only one copy of tonB-exbBD genes, the Pseudomonas species possess more TonB-ExbBD homologues. One of them, the TonB3-PocA-PocB complex, was recently shown to be required for polar localization of FlhF and, thus, the flagella in Pseudomonas aeruginosa Here, we show that the orthologous TonB_m-PocA-PocB complex is important for polar localization of FlhF and flagella in Pseudomonas putida as well. Additionally, the system is necessary for maintaining membrane integrity, as the inactivation of the TonB_m-PocAB complex results in increased membrane permeability, lowered stress tolerance, and conditional cell lysis. Interestingly, the functionality of TonB_m-PocAB complex is more important for stationary than for exponentially growing bacteria. The whole-cell proteome analysis provided a likely explanation for this growth phase dependence, as extensive reprogramming was disclosed in an exponentially growing tonB_m deletion strain, while only a few proteomic changes, mostly downregulation of outer membrane proteins, were determined in the stationary-phase ΔtonB_m strain. We propose that this response in exponential phase, involving, inter alia, activation of AlgU and ColR regulons, can compensate for TonB_m-PocAB's deficiency, while stationary-phase cells are unable to alleviate the lack of TonB_m-PocAB. Our results suggest that mislocalization of flagella does not cause the membrane integrity problems; rather, the impaired membrane intactness of the TonB_m-PocAB-deficient strain could be the reason for the random placement of flagella.IMPORTANCE The ubiquitous Pseudomonas species are well adapted to survive in a wide variety of environments. Their success relies on their versatile metabolic, signaling, and transport ability but also on their high intrinsic tolerance to various stress factors. This is why the study of the stress-surviving mechanisms of Pseudomonas species is of utmost importance. The stress tolerance of Pseudomonads is mainly achieved through the high barrier property of their membranes. Here, we present evidence that the TonB-ExbBD-like TonB_m-PocAB system is involved in maintaining the membrane homeostasis of Pseudomonas putida, and its deficiency leads to lowered stress tolerance and conditional cell lysis.

A global genomic approach uncovers novel components for twitching motility-mediated biofilm expansion in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an extremely successful pathogen able to cause both acute and chronic infections in a range of hosts, utilizing a diverse arsenal of cell-associated and secreted virulence factors. A major cell-associated virulence factor, the Type IV pilus (T4P), is required for epithelial cell adherence and mediates a form of surface translocation termed twitching motility, which is necessary to establish a mature biofilm and actively expand these biofilms. P. aeruginosa twitching motility-mediated biofilm expansion is a coordinated, multicellular behaviour, allowing cells to rapidly colonize surfaces, including implanted medical devices. Although at least 44 proteins are known to be involved in the biogenesis, assembly and regulation of the T4P, with additional regulatory components and pathways implicated, it is unclear how these components and pathways interact to control these processes. In the current study, we used a global genomics-based random-mutagenesis technique, transposon directed insertion-site sequencing (TraDIS), coupled with a physical segregation approach, to identify all genes implicated in twitching motility-mediated biofilm expansion in P. aeruginosa. Our approach allowed identification of both known and novel genes, providing new insight into the complex molecular network that regulates this process in P. aeruginosa. Additionally, our data suggest that the flagellum-associated gene products have a differential effect on twitching motility, based on whether components are intra- or extracellular. Overall the success of our TraDIS approach supports the use of this global genomic technique for investigating virulence genes in bacterial pathogens.

Two pKM101-encoded proteins, the pilus-tip protein TraC and Pep, assemble on the Escherichia coli cell surface as adhesins required for efficient conjugative DNA transfer

Mobile genetic elements (MGEs) encode type IV secretion systems (T4SSs) known as conjugation machines for their transmission between bacterial cells. Conjugation machines are composed of an envelope-spanning translocation channel, and those functioning in Gram-negative species additionally elaborate an extracellular pilus to initiate donor-recipient cell contacts. We report that pKM101, a self-transmissible MGE functioning in the Enterobacteriaceae, has evolved a second target cell attachment mechanism. Two pKM101-encoded proteins, the pilus-tip adhesin TraC and a protein termed Pep, are exported to the cell surface where they interact and also form higher order complexes appearing as distinct foci or patches around the cell envelope. Surface-displayed TraC and Pep are required for an efficient conjugative transfer, 'extracellular complementation' potentially involving intercellular protein transfer, and activation of a Pseudomonas aeruginosa type VI secretion system. Both proteins are also required for bacteriophage PRD1 infection. TraC and Pep are exported across the outer membrane by a mechanism potentially involving the β-barrel assembly machinery. The pKM101 T4SS, thus, deploys alternative routing pathways for the delivery of TraC to the pilus tip or both TraC and Pep to the cell surface. We propose that T4SS-encoded, pilus-independent attachment mechanisms maximize the probability of MGE propagation and might be widespread among this translocation superfamily.

A Short Protocol for Gene Knockout and Complementation in Xylella fastidiosa Shows that One of the Type IV Pilin Paralogs (PD1926) Is Needed for Twitching while Another (PD1924) Affects Pilus Number and Location

Twitching motility is one of the major virulence factors of the plant-pathogenic bacterium Xylella fastidiosa, and it is mediated by type IV pili (TFP) that are present at one of the cell poles. Genome analysis of X. fastidiosa showed the presence of at least four paralogs of the gene pilA, which encodes the TFP major pilin subunit. However, whether all of these paralogs have a functional role in TFP structure and function is unknown. Here, using a short and reliable protocol based on overlap extension PCR and natural transformation, deletion mutants of two pilA paralogs (pilA1 PD1924 and pilA2 PD1926) were generated in two X. fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa strains, WM1-1 and TemeculaL, followed by assessment of twitching motility and biofilm formation. Deletion of pilA2 caused loss of twitching motility, whereas deletion of pilA1 did not influence twitching motility but caused hyperpiliation and extended distribution of TFP along the sides of the cell. Loss of twitching motility due to pilA2 deletion was restored when a wild-type copy of the pilA2 gene was added at a neutral site in the genome of mutants in both wild-type backgrounds. This study demonstrates that PCR templates generated by overlap extension PCR can be successfully used to rapidly generate gene knockouts and perform genetic complementation in X. fastidiosa, and that twitching motility in X. fastidiosa is controlled by regulating the transcription of the major pilin subunit, pilA2IMPORTANCE The bacterial plant pathogen Xylella fastidiosa causes incurable diseases in multiple hosts, including grape, citrus, and blueberry. Historically restricted to the Americas, it was recently found to cause epidemics in olives in Italy and to infect other hosts in Europe and Asia. In this study, we report a short protocol to create deletion and complemented mutants using fusion PCR and natural transformation. We also determined the distinct function of two pilin paralogs, the main structural component of TFP involved in twitching motility, which allows this bacterium to move inside the xylem vessels against the flow. One of the paralogs is needed for twitching movement, whereas the other does not have an effect on motility but influences the number and position of TFP. Since twitching motility is fundamental for the virulence of this xylem-limited bacterium, this study contributes to the understanding of the regulation of virulence by this pathogen.

Thioesterase YbgC affects motility by modulating c-di-GMP levels in Shewanella oneidensis

Because of ubiquity of thioesters, thioesterases play a critical role in metabolism, membrane biosynthesis, signal transduction, and gene regulation. In many bacteria, YbgC is such an enzyme, whose coding gene mostly resides in the tol-pal cluster. Although all other proteins encoded in the tol-pal cluster are clearly involved in maintaining cell envelope integrity and cell division, little is known about the physiological role of YbgC. In this study, we identify in Shewanella oneidensis, a γ-proteobacterium used as a research model for environmental microbes, YbgC as a motility regulator. The loss of YbgC results in enhanced motility, which is likely due to the increased rotation rate of the flagellum. The regulatory function of YbgC requires its thioesterase activity but could not be replaced by YbgC homologues of other bacteria. We further show that the regulation of YbgC is mediated by the second message c-di-GMP.

The Type IVa Pilus Machinery Is Recruited to Sites of Future Cell Division

Type IVa pili (T4aP) are ubiquitous microbial appendages used for adherence, twitching motility, DNA uptake, and electron transfer. Many of these functions depend on dynamic assembly and disassembly of the pilus by a megadalton-sized, cell envelope-spanning protein complex located at the poles of rod-shaped bacteria. How the T4aP assembly complex becomes integrated into the cell envelope in the absence of dedicated peptidoglycan (PG) hydrolases is unknown. After ruling out the potential involvement of housekeeping PG hydrolases in the installation of the T4aP machinery in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, we discovered that key components of inner (PilMNOP) and outer (PilQ) membrane subcomplexes are recruited to future sites of cell division. Midcell recruitment of a fluorescently tagged alignment subcomplex component, mCherry-PilO, depended on PilQ secretin monomers—specifically, their N-terminal PG-binding AMIN domains. PilP, which connects PilO to PilQ, was required for recruitment, while PilM, which is structurally similar to divisome component FtsA, was not. Recruitment preceded secretin oligomerization in the outer membrane, as loss of the PilQ pilotin PilF had no effect on localization. These results were confirmed in cells chemically blocked for cell division prior to outer membrane invagination. The hub protein FimV and a component of the polar organelle coordinator complex—PocA—were independently required for midcell recruitment of PilO and PilQ. Together, these data suggest an integrated, energy-efficient strategy for the targeting and preinstallation—rather than retrofitting—of the T4aP system into nascent poles, without the need for dedicated PG-remodeling enzymes.

The peptidoglycan (PG) layer of bacterial cell envelopes has limited porosity, representing a physical barrier to the insertion of large protein complexes involved in secretion and motility. Many systems include dedicated PG hydrolase components that create space for their insertion, but the ubiquitous type IVa pilus (T4aP) system lacks such an enzyme. Instead, we found that components of the T4aP system are recruited to future sites of cell division, where they could be incorporated into the cell envelope during the formation of new poles, eliminating the need for PG hydrolases. Targeting depends on the presence of septal PG-binding motifs in specific components, as removal of those motifs causes delocalization. This preinstallation strategy for the T4aP assembly system would ensure that both daughter cells are poised to extrude pili from new poles as soon as they separate from one another.

Penicillin-Binding Protein 3 Is Essential for Growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) function as transpeptidases, carboxypeptidases, or endopeptidases during peptidoglycan synthesis in bacteria. As the well-known drug targets for β-lactam antibiotics, the physiological functions of PBPs and whether they are essential for growth are of significant interest. The pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa poses a particular risk to immunocompromised and cystic fibrosis patients, and infections caused by this pathogen are difficult to treat due to antibiotic resistance. To identify potential drug targets among the PBPs in P. aeruginosa, we performed gene knockouts of all the high-molecular-mass (HMM) PBPs and determined the impacts on cell growth and morphology, susceptibility to β-lactams, peptidoglycan structure, virulence, and pathogenicity. Disruptions of the transpeptidase domains of most HMM PBPs, including double disruptions, had only minimal effects on cell growth. The exception was PBP3, where cell growth occurred only when the protein was conditionally expressed on an integrated plasmid. Conditional deletion of PBP3 also caused a defect in cell division and increased susceptibility to β-lactams. Knockout of PBP1a led to impaired motility, and this observation, together with its localization at the cell poles, suggests its involvement in flagellar function. Overall, these findings reveal that PBP3 represents the most promising target for drug discovery against P. aeruginosa, whereas other HMM PBPs have less potential.

The Diguanylate Cyclase HsbD Intersects with the HptB Regulatory Cascade to Control Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm and Motility

The molecular basis of second messenger signaling relies on an array of proteins that synthesize, degrade or bind the molecule to produce coherent functional outputs. Cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP) has emerged as a eubacterial nucleotide second messenger regulating a plethora of key behaviors, like the transition from planktonic cells to biofilm communities. The striking multiplicity of c-di-GMP control modules and regulated cellular functions raised the question of signaling specificity. Are c-di-GMP signaling routes exclusively dependent on a central hub or can they be locally administrated? In this study, we show an example of how c-di-GMP signaling gains output specificity in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We observed the occurrence in P. aeruginosa of a c-di-GMP synthase gene, hsbD, in the proximity of the hptB and flagellar genes cluster. We show that the HptB pathway controls biofilm formation and motility by involving both HsbD and the anti-anti-sigma factor HsbA. The rewiring of c-di-GMP signaling into the HptB cascade relies on the original interaction between HsbD and HsbA and on the control of HsbD dynamic localization at the cell poles.

Type IV pilins regulate their own expression via direct intramembrane interactions with the sensor kinase PilS

Type IV pili are important virulence factors for many pathogens, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa Transcription of the major pilin gene-pilA-is controlled by the PilS-PilR two-component system in response to unknown signals. The absence of a periplasmic sensing domain suggested that PilS may sense an intramembrane signal, possibly PilA. We suggest that direct interactions between PilA and PilS in the inner membrane reduce pilA transcription when PilA levels are high. Overexpression in trans of PilA proteins with diverse and/or truncated C termini decreased native pilA transcription, suggesting that the highly conserved N terminus of PilA was the regulatory signal. Point mutations in PilA or PilS that disrupted their interaction prevented autoregulation of pilA transcription. A subset of PilA point mutants retained the ability to interact with PilS but could no longer decrease pilA transcription, suggesting that interaction between the pilin and sensor kinase is necessary but not sufficient for pilA autoregulation. Furthermore, PilS's phosphatase motif was required for the autoregulation of pilA transcription, suggesting that under conditions where PilA is abundant, the PilA-PilS interaction promotes PilR dephosphorylation and thus down-regulation of further pilA transcription. These data reveal a clever bacterial inventory control strategy in which the major subunit of an important P. aeruginosa virulence factor controls its own expression.

Sensational biofilms: surface sensing in bacteria

The first step in the development of a bacterial biofilm is contact with the surface on which the microbe will form this community. We review recent progress on 'surface sensing', and engage the question of 'how does a microbe know it is on a surface?'

How Bacteria Use Type IV Pili Machinery on Surfaces

The bacterial type IV pilus (T4P) is a versatile molecular machine with a broad range of functions. Recent advances revealed that the molecular components and the biophysical properties of the machine are well conserved among phylogenetically distant bacterial species. However, its functions are diverse, and include adhesion, motility, and horizontal gene transfer. This review focusses on the role of T4P in surface motility and bacterial interactions. Different species have evolved distinct mechanisms for intracellular coordination of multiple pili and of pili with other motility machines, ranging from physical coordination to biochemical clocks. Coordinated behavior between multiple bacteria on a surface is achieved by active manipulation of surfaces and modulation of pilus-pilus interactions. An emerging picture is that the T4P actively senses and responds to environmental conditions.

Investigation into FlhFG reveals distinct features of FlhF in regulating flagellum polarity in Shewanella oneidensis

Rod-shaped bacterial cells are polarized, with many organelles confined to a polar cellular site. In polar flagellates, FlhF and FlhG, a multiple-domain (B-N-G) GTPase and a MinD-like ATPase respectively, function as a cognate pair to regulate flagellar localization and number as revealed in Vibrio and Pseudomonas species. In this study, we show that FlhFG of Shewanella oneidensis (SoFlhFG), a monotrichous γ-proteobacterium renowned for respiratory diversity, also play an important role in the flagellar polar placement and number control. Despite this, SoFlhFG exhibit distinct features that are not observed in the characterized counterparts. Most strikingly, the G domain of SoFlhF determines the polar placement, contrasting the N domain of the Vibrio cholerae FlhF. The SoFlhF N domain in fact counteracts the function of the G domain with respect to the terminal targeting in the absence of the B domain. We further show that GTPase activity of SoFlhF is essential for motility but not positioning. Overall, our results suggest that mechanisms underlying the polar placement of organelles appear to be diverse, even for evolutionally relatively conserved flagellum.

Biogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa type IV pili and regulation of their function

Type IV pili (T4P) are bacterial virulence factors involved in a wide variety of functions including deoxyribonucleic acid uptake, surface attachment, biofilm formation and twitching motility. While T4P are common surface appendages, the systems that assemble them and the regulation of their function differ between species. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Neisseria spp. and Myxococcus xanthus are common model systems used to study T4P biology. This review focuses on recent advances in P. aeruginosa T4P structural biology, and the regulatory pathways controlling T4P biogenesis and function.

Ras GTPase-like protein MglA, a controller of bacterial social-motility in Myxobacteria, has evolved to control bacterial predation by Bdellovibrio

Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus invade Gram-negative bacteria in a predatory process requiring Type IV pili (T4P) at a single invasive pole, and also glide on surfaces to locate prey. Ras-like G-protein MglA, working with MglB and RomR in the deltaproteobacterium Myxococcus xanthus, regulates adventurous gliding and T4P-mediated social motility at both M. xanthus cell poles. Our bioinformatic analyses suggested that the GTPase activating protein (GAP)-encoding gene mglB was lost in Bdellovibrio, but critical residues for MglA_Bd GTP-binding are conserved. Deletion of mglA_Bd abolished prey-invasion, but not gliding, and reduced T4P formation. MglA_Bd interacted with a previously uncharacterised tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domain protein Bd2492, which we show localises at the single invasive pole and is required for predation. Bd2492 and RomR also interacted with cyclic-di-GMP-binding receptor CdgA, required for rapid prey-invasion. Bd2492, RomR_Bd and CdgA localize to the invasive pole and may facilitate MglA-docking. Bd2492 was encoded from an operon encoding a TamAB-like secretion system. The TamA protein and RomR were found, by gene deletion tests, to be essential for viability in both predatory and non-predatory modes. Control proteins, which regulate bipolar T4P-mediated social motility in swarming groups of deltaproteobacteria, have adapted in evolution to regulate the anti-social process of unipolar prey-invasion in the “lone-hunter” Bdellovibrio. Thus GTP-binding proteins and cyclic-di-GMP inputs combine at a regulatory hub, turning on prey-invasion and allowing invasion and killing of bacterial pathogens and consequent predatory growth of Bdellovibrio.

Bacterial cell polarity control is important for maintaining asymmetry of polar components such as flagella and pili. Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus is a predatory deltaproteobacterium which attaches to, and invades, other bacteria using Type IV pili (T4P) extruded from the specialised, invasive, non-flagellar pole of the cell. It was not known how that invasive pole is specified and regulated. Here we discover that a regulatory protein-hub, including Ras-GTPase-like protein MglA and cyclic-di-GMP receptor-protein CdgA, control prey-invasion. In the deltaproteobacterium, Myxococcus xanthus, MglA, with MglB and RomR, was found by others to regulate switching of T4P in social ‘swarming’ surface motility by swapping the pole at which T4P are found. In contrast, in B. bacteriovorus MglA regulates the process of prey-invasion and RomR, which is required for surface motility regulation in Myxococcus, is essential for growth and viability in Bdellovibrio. During evolution, B. bacteriovorus has lost mglB, possibly as T4P-pole-switching is not required; pili are only required at the invasive pole. A previously unidentified tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) protein interacts with MglA and is essential for prey-invasion. This regulatory protein hub allows prey-invasion, likely integrating cyclic-di-GMP signals, pilus assembly and TamAB secretion in B. bacteriovorus.

A new route for polar navigation

Placement of motility structures at the poles of rod-shaped bacteria is a common engineering problem with a variety of potential solutions. While investigating the mechanisms for positioning of the single polar flagellum of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Cowles and colleagues discovered a new membrane-bound three-component system related to TonB-ExbB-ExbD that they named 'Poc' for polar organelle co-ordinator, which controls polar localization of both the flagellum and type IV pili. The Poc complex itself is not found at the poles, and is required for increased expression of pilus genes upon surface association, suggesting a new paradigm of localization control.