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Chabalier M, Doan T, Cascales E. Probing Protein Topology and Conformation by Limited Proteolysis. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2715:111-119. [PMID: 37930525 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3445-5_8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
Proteases are enzymes that catalyze the hydrolytic degradation of other proteins into peptides or amino acids through the digestion of the peptide bond. Promiscuous proteases that target a wide range of proteins are distinguished from specific proteases that have a narrow range of substrates. In terms of activity, endoproteases cleave their substrates at specific residues within the target proteins, whereas exoproteases cleave from one extremity and may have processive activities. Proteases are therefore very useful tools to study proteins, notably their structure or conformation. In addition, proteases can be used to probe the topology of bacterial membrane proteins. Here, we describe limited protease accessibility assays to define inner membrane protein topology and conformational changes based on digestion profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maïalène Chabalier
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Macromoléculaires, UMR7255, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, Aix-Marseille Univ - CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Thierry Doan
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Macromoléculaires, UMR7255, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, Aix-Marseille Univ - CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Eric Cascales
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Macromoléculaires, UMR7255, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, Aix-Marseille Univ - CNRS, Marseille, France.
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Miletic S, Goessweiner-Mohr N, Marlovits TC. The Structure of the Type III Secretion System Needle Complex. Curr Top Microbiol Immunol 2020; 427:67-90. [PMID: 31667599 DOI: 10.1007/82_2019_178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The type III secretion system (T3SS) is an essential virulence factor of many pathogenic bacterial species including Salmonella, Yersinia, Shigella and enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC). It is an intricate molecular machine that spans the bacterial membranes and injects effector proteins into target host cells, enabling bacterial infection. The T3SS needle complex comprises of proteinaceous rings supporting a needle filament which extends out into the extracellular environment. It serves as the central conduit for translocating effector proteins. Multiple laboratories have dedicated a remarkable effort to decipher the structure and function of the needle complex. A combination of structural biology techniques such as cryo-electron microscopy (cryoEM), X-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and computer modelling have been utilized to study different structural components at progressively higher resolutions. This chapter will provide an overview of the structural details of the T3SS needle complex, shedding light on this essential component of this fascinating bacterial system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean Miletic
- Center for Structural Systems Biology, Institute for Structural and Systems Biology, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, 85 Notkestraße, Hamburg, 22607, Germany
| | | | - Thomas C Marlovits
- Center for Structural Systems Biology, Institute for Structural and Systems Biology, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, 85 Notkestraße, Hamburg, 22607, Germany.
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3
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Singh N, Wagner S. Investigating the assembly of the bacterial type III secretion system injectisome by in vivo photocrosslinking. Int J Med Microbiol 2019; 309:151331. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmm.2019.151331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2019] [Revised: 07/09/2019] [Accepted: 07/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
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Abstract
Type III protein secretion systems (T3SSs), or injectisomes, are multiprotein nanomachines present in many Gram-negative bacteria that have a sustained long-standing close relationship with a eukaryotic host. These secretion systems have evolved to modulate host cellular functions through the activity of the effector proteins they deliver. To reach their destination, T3SS effectors must cross the multibarrier bacterial envelope and the eukaryotic cell membrane. Passage through the bacterial envelope is mediated by the needle complex, a central component of T3SSs that expands both the inner and outer membranes of Gram-negative bacteria. A set of T3SS secreted proteins, known as translocators, form a channel in the eukaryotic plasma membrane through which the effector proteins are delivered to reach the host cell cytosol. While the effector proteins are tailored to the specific lifestyle of the bacterium that encodes them, the injectisome is conserved among the different T3SSs. The central role of T3SSs in pathogenesis and their high degree of conservation make them a desirable target for the development of antimicrobial therapies against several important bacterial pathogens.
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Wagner S, Grin I, Malmsheimer S, Singh N, Torres-Vargas CE, Westerhausen S. Bacterial type III secretion systems: a complex device for the delivery of bacterial effector proteins into eukaryotic host cells. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2018; 365:5068689. [PMID: 30107569 PMCID: PMC6140923 DOI: 10.1093/femsle/fny201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 08/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Virulence-associated type III secretion systems (T3SS) serve the injection of bacterial effector proteins into eukaryotic host cells. They are able to secrete a great diversity of substrate proteins in order to modulate host cell function, and have evolved to sense host cell contact and to inject their substrates through a translocon pore in the host cell membrane. T3SS substrates contain an N-terminal signal sequence and often a chaperone-binding domain for cognate T3SS chaperones. These signals guide the substrates to the machine where substrates are unfolded and handed over to the secretion channel formed by the transmembrane domains of the export apparatus components and by the needle filament. Secretion itself is driven by the proton motive force across the bacterial inner membrane. The needle filament measures 20-150 nm in length and is crowned by a needle tip that mediates host-cell sensing. Secretion through T3SS is a highly regulated process with early, intermediate and late substrates. A strict secretion hierarchy is required to build an injectisome capable of reaching, sensing and penetrating the host cell membrane, before host cell-acting effector proteins are deployed. Here, we review the recent progress on elucidating the assembly, structure and function of T3SS injectisomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Wagner
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), partner-site Tübingen, Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Iwan Grin
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Silke Malmsheimer
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Nidhi Singh
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Claudia E Torres-Vargas
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sibel Westerhausen
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Elfriede-Aulhorn-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
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The Third Transmembrane Domain of EscR Is Critical for Function of the Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli Type III Secretion System. mSphere 2018; 3:3/4/e00162-18. [PMID: 30045964 PMCID: PMC6060343 DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00162-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens that cause life-threatening diseases employ a type III secretion system (T3SS) for their virulence. The T3SS comprises several proteins that assemble into a syringe-like structure dedicated to the injection of bacterial virulence factors into the host cells. Although many T3SS proteins are transmembrane proteins, our knowledge of these proteins is limited mostly to their soluble domains. In this study, we found that the third transmembrane domain (TMD) of EscR, a central protein of the T3SS in enteropathogenic E. coli, contributes to protein self-oligomerization. Moreover, we demonstrated that a single aspartic acid residue, located at the core of this TMD, is critical for the activity of the full-length protein and the function of the entire T3SS, possibly due to its involvement in mediating TMD-TMD interactions. Our findings should encourage the mapping of the entire interactome of the T3SS components, including interactions mediated through their TMDs. Many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens utilize a specialized protein delivery system, called the type III secretion system (T3SS), to translocate effector proteins into the host cells. The translocated effectors are crucial for bacterial infection and survival. The base of the T3SS transverses both bacterial membranes and contains an export apparatus that comprises five membrane proteins. Here, we study the export apparatus of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) and characterize its central component, called the EscR protein. We found that the third transmembrane domain (TMD) of EscR mediates strong self-oligomerization in an isolated genetic reporter system. Replacing this TMD sequence with an alternative hydrophobic sequence within the full-length protein resulted in a complete loss of function of the T3SS, further suggesting that the EscR TMD3 sequence has another functional role in addition to its role as a membrane anchor. Moreover, we found that an aspartic acid residue, located at the core of EscR TMD3, is important for the oligomerization propensity of TMD3 and that a point mutation of this residue within the full-length protein abolishes the T3SS activity and the ability of the bacteria to translocate effectors into host cells. IMPORTANCE Many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens that cause life-threatening diseases employ a type III secretion system (T3SS) for their virulence. The T3SS comprises several proteins that assemble into a syringe-like structure dedicated to the injection of bacterial virulence factors into the host cells. Although many T3SS proteins are transmembrane proteins, our knowledge of these proteins is limited mostly to their soluble domains. In this study, we found that the third transmembrane domain (TMD) of EscR, a central protein of the T3SS in enteropathogenic E. coli, contributes to protein self-oligomerization. Moreover, we demonstrated that a single aspartic acid residue, located at the core of this TMD, is critical for the activity of the full-length protein and the function of the entire T3SS, possibly due to its involvement in mediating TMD-TMD interactions. Our findings should encourage the mapping of the entire interactome of the T3SS components, including interactions mediated through their TMDs.
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HpaB-Dependent Secretion of Type III Effectors in the Plant Pathogens Ralstonia solanacearum and Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria. Sci Rep 2017; 7:4879. [PMID: 28687734 PMCID: PMC5501821 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-04853-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2017] [Accepted: 05/10/2017] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Plant pathogenic bacteria exerts their pathogenicity through the injection of large repertoires of type III effectors (T3Es) into plant cells, a mechanism controlled in part by type III chaperones (T3Cs). In Ralstonia solanacearum, the causal agent of bacterial wilt, little is known about the control of type III secretion at the post-translational level. Here, we provide evidence that the HpaB and HpaD proteins do act as bona fide R. solanacearum class IB chaperones that associate with several T3Es. Both proteins can dimerize but do not interact with each other. After screening 38 T3Es for direct interactions, we highlighted specific and common interacting partners, thus revealing the first picture of the R. solanacearum T3C-T3E network. We demonstrated that the function of HpaB is conserved in two phytopathogenic bacteria, R. solanacearum and Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria (Xcv). HpaB from Xcv is able to functionally complement a R. solanacearum hpaB mutant for hypersensitive response elicitation on tobacco plants. Likewise, Xcv is able to translocate a heterologous T3E from R. solanacearum in an HpaB-dependent manner. This study underlines the central role of the HpaB class IB chaperone family and its potential contribution to the bacterial plasticity to acquire and deliver new virulence factors.
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Probing Inner Membrane Protein Topology by Proteolysis. Methods Mol Biol 2017. [PMID: 28667606 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7033-9_8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
Abstract
Inner membrane proteins are inserted into the membrane via α-helices. These helices do not only constitute membrane anchors but may mediate specific interactions with membrane protein partners or participate in energetic processes. The number, location, and orientation of these helices is referred to as topology. Bitopic membrane proteins that consist of a single membrane-embedded domain connecting two soluble domains are distinguished from polytopic ones that consist of multiple membrane-spanning helices connected by extramembrane domains. Defining inner membrane protein topology could be achieved by different methods. Here we describe a protease accessibility assay that makes it possible to define topology based on digestion profiles.
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The Ruler Protein EscP of the Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli Type III Secretion System Is Involved in Calcium Sensing and Secretion Hierarchy Regulation by Interacting with the Gatekeeper Protein SepL. mBio 2017; 8:mBio.01733-16. [PMID: 28049143 PMCID: PMC5210495 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01733-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The type III secretion system (T3SS) is a multiprotein complex that plays a central role in the virulence of many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens. To ensure that effector proteins are efficiently translocated into the host cell, bacteria must be able to sense their contact with the host cell. In this study, we found that EscP, which was previously shown to function as the ruler protein of the enteropathogenic Escherichia coli T3SS, is also involved in the switch from the secretion of translocator proteins to the secretion of effector proteins. In addition, we demonstrated that EscP can interact with the gatekeeper protein SepL and that the EscP-SepL complex dissociates upon a calcium concentration drop. We suggest a model in which bacterial contact with the host cell is accompanied by a drop in the calcium concentration that causes SepL-EscP complex dissociation and triggers the secretion of effector proteins. IMPORTANCE The emergence of multidrug-resistant bacterial strains, especially those of pathogenic bacteria, has serious medical and clinical implications. At the same time, the development and approval of new antibiotics have been limited for years. Recently, antivirulence drugs have received considerable attention as a novel antibiotic strategy that specifically targets bacterial virulence rather than growth, an approach that applies milder evolutionary pressure on the bacteria to develop resistance. A highly attractive target for the development of antivirulence compounds is the type III secretion system, a specialized secretory system possessed by many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens for injecting virulence factors (effectors) into host cells. In this study, we shed light on the molecular mechanism that allows bacteria to sense their contact with the host cell and to respond with the timed secretion of effector proteins. Understanding this critical step for bacterial virulence may provide a new therapeutic strategy.
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10
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Dietsche T, Tesfazgi Mebrhatu M, Brunner MJ, Abrusci P, Yan J, Franz-Wachtel M, Schärfe C, Zilkenat S, Grin I, Galán JE, Kohlbacher O, Lea S, Macek B, Marlovits TC, Robinson CV, Wagner S. Structural and Functional Characterization of the Bacterial Type III Secretion Export Apparatus. PLoS Pathog 2016; 12:e1006071. [PMID: 27977800 PMCID: PMC5158082 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2016] [Accepted: 11/17/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Bacterial type III protein secretion systems inject effector proteins into eukaryotic host cells in order to promote survival and colonization of Gram-negative pathogens and symbionts. Secretion across the bacterial cell envelope and injection into host cells is facilitated by a so-called injectisome. Its small hydrophobic export apparatus components SpaP and SpaR were shown to nucleate assembly of the needle complex and to form the central “cup” substructure of a Salmonella Typhimurium secretion system. However, the in vivo placement of these components in the needle complex and their function during the secretion process remained poorly defined. Here we present evidence that a SpaP pentamer forms a 15 Å wide pore and provide a detailed map of SpaP interactions with the export apparatus components SpaQ, SpaR, and SpaS. We further refine the current view of export apparatus assembly, consolidate transmembrane topology models for SpaP and SpaR, and present intimate interactions of the periplasmic domains of SpaP and SpaR with the inner rod protein PrgJ, indicating how export apparatus and needle filament are connected to create a continuous conduit for substrate translocation. Many Gram-negative bacteria use type III secretion systems to inject bacterial proteins into eukaryotic host cells in order to promote their own survival and colonization. These systems are large molecular machines with the ability to transport proteins across three cell membranes in one step. It is believed that the only gated barrier of these systems lies in the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane but it was unclear so far how this gate looks like and of which components it is composed. Here we present evidence based on in depth biochemical and genetic characterization that an assembly of five SpaP proteins forms this gate in the cytoplasmic membrane of the type III secretion system of Salmonella pathogenicity island 1. We further show that one subunit each of the proteins SpaQ, SpaR, and SpaS are closely associated to the SpaP gate and may function in the gating mechanism, and that the protein PrgJ is attached to this gate on the outside to connect it to the hollow needle filament projecting towards the host cell. Our findings elucidate a hitherto ill-defined aspect of type III secretion systems and may help to develop novel antiinfective therapies targeting these virulence-associated molecular devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobias Dietsche
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Section of Cellular and Molecular Microbiology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Mehari Tesfazgi Mebrhatu
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Section of Cellular and Molecular Microbiology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Matthias J. Brunner
- Center for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB), University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) and German Electron Synchrotron Centre (DESY), Hamburg, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Vienna, Austria
- Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Vienna, Austria
| | - Patrizia Abrusci
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Jun Yan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | | | | | - Susann Zilkenat
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Section of Cellular and Molecular Microbiology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Iwan Grin
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Section of Cellular and Molecular Microbiology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jorge E. Galán
- Yale University School of Medicine, Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
| | - Oliver Kohlbacher
- University of Tübingen, Center for BioinformaticsTübingen, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Biomolecular Interactions, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Susan Lea
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Boris Macek
- University of Tübingen, Proteome Center Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Thomas C. Marlovits
- Center for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB), University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) and German Electron Synchrotron Centre (DESY), Hamburg, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Vienna, Austria
- Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Vienna, Austria
| | - Carol V. Robinson
- Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Samuel Wagner
- University of Tübingen, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Section of Cellular and Molecular Microbiology, Tübingen, Germany
- German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Partner-site Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- * E-mail:
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McNally RR, Zeng Q, Sundin GW. HrcU and HrpP are pathogenicity factors in the fire blight pathogen Erwinia amylovora required for the type III secretion of DspA/E. BMC Microbiol 2016; 16:88. [PMID: 27206522 PMCID: PMC4875606 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-016-0702-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2015] [Accepted: 05/10/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens mediate host-microbe interactions via utilization of the type III secretion (T3S) system. The T3S system is a complex molecular machine consisting of more than 20 proteins. Collectively, these proteins translocate effectors across extracellular space and into the host cytoplasm. Successful translocation requires timely synthesis and allocation of both structural and secreted T3S proteins. Based on amino acid conservation in animal pathogenic bacteria, HrcU and HrpP were examined for their roles in regulation of T3S hierarchy. Results Both HrcU and HrpP were shown to be required for disease development in an immature pear infection model and respective mutants were unable to induce a hypersensitive response in tobacco. Using in vitro western blot analyses, both proteins were also shown to be required for the secretion of DspA/E, a type 3 effector and an important pathogenicity factor. Via yeast-two hybridization (Y2H), HrpP and HrcU were revealed to exhibit protein-protein binding. Finally, all HrcU and HrpP phenotypes identified were shown to be dependent on a conserved amino acid motif in the cytoplasmic tail of HrcU. Conclusions Collectively, these data demonstrate roles for HrcU and HrpP in regulating T3S and represent the first attempt in understanding T3S heirarchy in E. amylovora. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12866-016-0702-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Ryan McNally
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, 55108, USA.,Department of Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA
| | - Quan Zeng
- Department of Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA.,Department of Plant Pathology and Ecology, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, CT, 06504, USA
| | - George W Sundin
- Department of Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA.
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Login FH, Wolf-Watz H. YscU/FlhB of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis Harbors a C-terminal Type III Secretion Signal. J Biol Chem 2015; 290:26282-91. [PMID: 26338709 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m114.633677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2014] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
All type III secretion systems (T3SS) harbor a member of the YscU/FlhB family of proteins that is characterized by an auto-proteolytic process that occurs at a conserved cytoplasmic NPTH motif. We have previously demonstrated that YscUCC, the C-terminal peptide generated by auto-proteolysis of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis YscU, is secreted by the T3SS when bacteria are grown in Ca(2+)-depleted medium at 37 °C. Here, we investigated the secretion of this early T3S-substrate and showed that YscUCC encompasses a specific C-terminal T3S signal within the 15 last residues (U15). U15 promoted C-terminal secretion of reporter proteins like GST and YopE lacking its native secretion signal. Similar to the "classical" N-terminal secretion signal, U15 interacted with the ATPase YscN. Although U15 is critical for YscUCC secretion, deletion of the C-terminal secretion signal of YscUCC did neither affect Yop secretion nor Yop translocation. However, these deletions resulted in increased secretion of YscF, the needle subunit. Thus, these results suggest that YscU via its C-terminal secretion signal is involved in regulation of the YscF secretion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frédéric H Login
- From the Department of Molecular Biology and The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR), Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Hans Wolf-Watz
- From the Department of Molecular Biology and The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR), Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
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13
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Vander Broek CW, Chalmers KJ, Stevens MP, Stevens JM. Quantitative proteomic analysis of Burkholderia pseudomallei Bsa type III secretion system effectors using hypersecreting mutants. Mol Cell Proteomics 2015; 14:905-16. [PMID: 25635268 PMCID: PMC4390269 DOI: 10.1074/mcp.m114.044875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2014] [Revised: 01/07/2015] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Burkholderia pseudomallei is an intracellular pathogen and the causative agent of melioidosis, a severe disease of humans and animals. One of the virulence factors critical for early stages of infection is the Burkholderia secretion apparatus (Bsa) Type 3 Secretion System (T3SS), a molecular syringe that injects bacterial proteins, called effectors, into eukaryotic cells where they subvert cellular functions to the benefit of the bacteria. Although the Bsa T3SS itself is known to be important for invasion, intracellular replication, and virulence, only a few genuine effector proteins have been identified and the complete repertoire of proteins secreted by the system has not yet been fully characterized. We constructed a mutant lacking bsaP, a homolog of the T3SS "gatekeeper" family of proteins that exert control over the timing and magnitude of effector protein secretion. Mutants lacking BsaP, or the T3SS translocon protein BipD, were observed to hypersecrete the known Bsa effector protein BopE, providing evidence of their role in post-translational control of the Bsa T3SS and representing key reagents for the identification of its secreted substrates. Isobaric Tags for Relative and Absolute Quantification (iTRAQ), a gel-free quantitative proteomics technique, was used to compare the secreted protein profiles of the Bsa T3SS hypersecreting mutants of B. pseudomallei with the isogenic parent strain and a bsaZ mutant incapable of effector protein secretion. Our study provides one of the most comprehensive core secretomes of B. pseudomallei described to date and identified 26 putative Bsa-dependent secreted proteins that may be considered candidate effectors. Two of these proteins, BprD and BapA, were validated as novel effector proteins secreted by the Bsa T3SS of B. pseudomallei.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles W Vander Broek
- From the ‡The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, Scotland, UK
| | - Kevin J Chalmers
- §Dundee Cell Products, James Lindsay Place, Dundee Technopole, Dundee, DD1 5JJ, Scotland, UK
| | - Mark P Stevens
- From the ‡The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, Scotland, UK
| | - Joanne M Stevens
- From the ‡The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, Scotland, UK.;
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14
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Galán JE, Lara-Tejero M, Marlovits TC, Wagner S. Bacterial type III secretion systems: specialized nanomachines for protein delivery into target cells. Annu Rev Microbiol 2014; 68:415-38. [PMID: 25002086 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-micro-092412-155725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 367] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
One of the most exciting developments in the field of bacterial pathogenesis in recent years is the discovery that many pathogens utilize complex nanomachines to deliver bacterially encoded effector proteins into target eukaryotic cells. These effector proteins modulate a variety of cellular functions for the pathogen's benefit. One of these protein-delivery machines is the type III secretion system (T3SS). T3SSs are widespread in nature and are encoded not only by bacteria pathogenic to vertebrates or plants but also by bacteria that are symbiotic to plants or insects. A central component of T3SSs is the needle complex, a supramolecular structure that mediates the passage of the secreted proteins across the bacterial envelope. Working in conjunction with several cytoplasmic components, the needle complex engages specific substrates in sequential order, moves them across the bacterial envelope, and ultimately delivers them into eukaryotic cells. The central role of T3SSs in pathogenesis makes them great targets for novel antimicrobial strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge E Galán
- Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06536;
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15
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Diepold A, Wagner S. Assembly of the bacterial type III secretion machinery. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2014; 38:802-22. [PMID: 24484471 DOI: 10.1111/1574-6976.12061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2013] [Revised: 01/02/2014] [Accepted: 01/13/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Many bacteria that live in contact with eukaryotic hosts, whether as symbionts or as pathogens, have evolved mechanisms that manipulate host cell behaviour to their benefit. One such mechanism, the type III secretion system, is employed by Gram-negative bacterial species to inject effector proteins into host cells. This function is reflected by the overall shape of the machinery, which resembles a molecular syringe. Despite the simplicity of the concept, the type III secretion system is one of the most complex known bacterial nanomachines, incorporating one to more than hundred copies of up to twenty different proteins into a multi-MDa transmembrane complex. The structural core of the system is the so-called needle complex that spans the bacterial cell envelope as a tripartite ring system and culminates in a needle protruding from the bacterial cell surface. Substrate targeting and translocation are accomplished by an export machinery consisting of various inner membrane embedded and cytoplasmic components. The formation of such a multimembrane-spanning machinery is an intricate task that requires precise orchestration. This review gives an overview of recent findings on the assembly of type III secretion machines, discusses quality control and recycling of the system and proposes an integrated assembly model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Diepold
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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16
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Identification of secreted bacterial proteins by noncanonical amino acid tagging. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 111:433-8. [PMID: 24347637 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1301740111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Pathogenic microbes have evolved complex secretion systems to deliver virulence factors into host cells. Identification of these factors is critical for understanding the infection process. We report a powerful and versatile approach to the selective labeling and identification of secreted pathogen proteins. Selective labeling of microbial proteins is accomplished via translational incorporation of azidonorleucine (Anl), a methionine surrogate that requires a mutant form of the methionyl-tRNA synthetase for activation. Secreted pathogen proteins containing Anl can be tagged by azide-alkyne cycloaddition and enriched by affinity purification. Application of the method to analysis of the type III secretion system of the human pathogen Yersinia enterocolitica enabled efficient identification of secreted proteins, identification of distinct secretion profiles for intracellular and extracellular bacteria, and determination of the order of substrate injection into host cells. This approach should be widely useful for the identification of virulence factors in microbial pathogens and the development of potential new targets for antimicrobial therapy.
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Functionally essential interaction between Yersinia YscO and the T3S4 domain of YscP. J Bacteriol 2013; 195:4631-8. [PMID: 23935040 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00876-13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The type III secretion (T3S) system is essential to the virulence of a large number of Gram-negative bacterial pathogens, including Yersinia. YscO is required for T3S in Yersinia and is known to interact with several other T3S proteins, including the chaperone SycD and the needle length regulator YscP. To define which interactions of YscO are required for T3S, we pursued model-guided mutagenesis: three conserved and surface-exposed regions of modeled YscO were targeted for multiple alanine substitutions. Most of the mutations abrogated T3S and did so in a recessive manner, consistent with a loss of function. Both functional and nonfunctional YscO mutant proteins interacted with SycD, indicating that the mutations had not affected protein stability. Likewise, both functional and nonfunctional versions of YscO were exclusively intrabacterial. Functional and nonfunctional versions of YscO were, however, distinguishable with respect to interaction with YscP. This interaction was observed only for wild-type YscO and a T3S-proficient mutant of YscO but not for the several T3S-deficient mutants of YscO. Evidence is presented that the YscO-YscP interaction is direct and that the type III secretion substrate specificity switch (T3S4) domain of YscP is sufficient for this interaction. These results provide evidence that the interaction of YscO with YscP, and in particular the T3S4 domain of YscP, is essential to type III secretion.
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18
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Dewoody RS, Merritt PM, Marketon MM. Regulation of the Yersinia type III secretion system: traffic control. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2013; 3:4. [PMID: 23390616 PMCID: PMC3565153 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2013.00004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2012] [Accepted: 01/16/2013] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Yersinia species, as well as many other Gram-negative pathogens, use a type III secretion system (T3SS) to translocate effector proteins from the bacterial cytoplasm to the host cytosol. This T3SS resembles a molecular syringe, with a needle-like shaft connected to a basal body structure, which spans the inner and outer bacterial membranes. The basal body of the injectisome shares a high degree of homology with the bacterial flagellum. Extending from the T3SS basal body is the needle, which is a polymer of a single protein, YscF. The distal end of the needle serves as a platform for the assembly of a tip complex composed of LcrV. Though never directly observed, prevailing models assume that LcrV assists in the insertion of the pore-forming proteins YopB and YopD into the host cell membrane. This completes a bridge between the bacterium and host cell to provide a continuous channel through which effectors are delivered. Significant effort has gone into understanding how the T3SS is assembled, how its substrates are recognized and how substrate delivery is controlled. Arguably the latter topic is the least understood; however, recent advances have provided new insight, and therefore, this review will focus primarily on summarizing the current state of knowledge regarding the control of substrate delivery by the T3SS. Specifically, we will discuss the roles of YopK, as well as YopN and YopE, which have long been linked to regulation of translocation. We also propose models whereby the YopK regulator communicates with the basal body of the T3SS to control translocation.
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Abstract
Yersinia pestis, the causative agent of plague, uses a type III secretion system (T3SS) to inject cytotoxic Yop proteins directly into the cytosol of mammalian host cells. The T3SS can also be activated in vitro at 37°C in the absence of calcium. The chromosomal gene rfaL (waaL) was recently identified as a virulence factor required for proper function of the T3SS. RfaL functions as a ligase that adds the terminal N-acetylglucosamine to the lipooligosaccharide core of Y. pestis. We previously showed that deletion of rfaL prevents secretion of Yops in vitro. Here we show that the divalent cations calcium, strontium, and magnesium can partially or fully rescue Yop secretion in vitro, indicating that the secretion phenotype of the rfaL mutant may be due to structural changes in the outer membrane and the corresponding feedback inhibition on the T3SS. In support of this, we found that the defect can be overcome by deleting the regulatory gene lcrQ. Consistent with a defective T3SS, the rfaL mutant is less virulent than the wild type. We show here that the virulence defect of the mutant correlates with a decrease in both T3SS gene expression and ability to inject innate immune cells, combined with an increased sensitivity to cationic antimicrobial peptides.
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20
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Frost S, Ho O, Login FH, Weise CF, Wolf-Watz H, Wolf-Watz M. Autoproteolysis and intramolecular dissociation of Yersinia YscU precedes secretion of its C-terminal polypeptide YscU(CC). PLoS One 2012; 7:e49349. [PMID: 23185318 PMCID: PMC3504009 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2012] [Accepted: 10/08/2012] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Type III secretion system mediated secretion and translocation of Yop-effector proteins across the eukaryotic target cell membrane by pathogenic Yersinia is highly organized and is dependent on a switching event from secretion of early structural substrates to late effector substrates (Yops). Substrate switching can be mimicked in vitro by modulating the calcium levels in the growth medium. YscU that is essential for regulation of this switch undergoes autoproteolysis at a conserved N↑PTH motif, resulting in a 10 kDa C-terminal polypeptide fragment denoted YscU(CC). Here we show that depletion of calcium induces intramolecular dissociation of YscU(CC) from YscU followed by secretion of the YscU(CC) polypeptide. Thus, YscU(CC) behaved in vivo as a Yop protein with respect to secretion properties. Further, destabilized yscU mutants displayed increased rates of dissociation of YscU(CC)in vitro resulting in enhanced Yop secretion in vivo at 30°C relative to the wild-type strain.These findings provide strong support to the relevance of YscU(CC) dissociation for Yop secretion. We propose that YscU(CC) orchestrates a block in the secretion channel that is eliminated by calcium depletion. Further, the striking homology between different members of the YscU/FlhB family suggests that this protein family possess regulatory functions also in other bacteria using comparable mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Frost
- Department of Molecular Biology and The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Oanh Ho
- Department of Chemistry, Chemical Biological Center, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Frédéric H. Login
- Department of Molecular Biology and The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Christoph F. Weise
- Department of Chemistry, Chemical Biological Center, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Hans Wolf-Watz
- Department of Molecular Biology and The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Magnus Wolf-Watz
- Department of Chemistry, Chemical Biological Center, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
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21
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Protein export according to schedule: architecture, assembly, and regulation of type III secretion systems from plant- and animal-pathogenic bacteria. Microbiol Mol Biol Rev 2012; 76:262-310. [PMID: 22688814 DOI: 10.1128/mmbr.05017-11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 304] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Flagellar and translocation-associated type III secretion (T3S) systems are present in most gram-negative plant- and animal-pathogenic bacteria and are often essential for bacterial motility or pathogenicity. The architectures of the complex membrane-spanning secretion apparatuses of both systems are similar, but they are associated with different extracellular appendages, including the flagellar hook and filament or the needle/pilus structures of translocation-associated T3S systems. The needle/pilus is connected to a bacterial translocon that is inserted into the host plasma membrane and mediates the transkingdom transport of bacterial effector proteins into eukaryotic cells. During the last 3 to 5 years, significant progress has been made in the characterization of membrane-associated core components and extracellular structures of T3S systems. Furthermore, transcriptional and posttranscriptional regulators that control T3S gene expression and substrate specificity have been described. Given the architecture of the T3S system, it is assumed that extracellular components of the secretion apparatus are secreted prior to effector proteins, suggesting that there is a hierarchy in T3S. The aim of this review is to summarize our current knowledge of T3S system components and associated control proteins from both plant- and animal-pathogenic bacteria.
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22
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Diepold A, Wiesand U, Amstutz M, Cornelis GR. Assembly of theYersiniainjectisome: the missing pieces. Mol Microbiol 2012; 85:878-92. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2012.08146.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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23
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Shen DK, Moriya N, Martinez-Argudo I, Blocker AJ. Needle length control and the secretion substrate specificity switch are only loosely coupled in the type III secretion apparatus of Shigella. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2012; 158:1884-1896. [PMID: 22575894 PMCID: PMC3542141 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.059618-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The type III secretion apparatus (T3SA), which is evolutionarily and structurally related to the bacterial flagellar hook basal body, is a key virulence factor used by many Gram-negative bacteria to inject effector proteins into host cells. A hollow extracellular needle forms the injection conduit of the T3SA. Its length is tightly controlled to match specific structures at the bacterial and host-cell surfaces but how this occurs remains incompletely understood. The needle is topped by a tip complex, which senses the host cell and inserts as a translocation pore in the host membrane when secretion is activated. The interaction of two conserved proteins, inner-membrane Spa40 and secreted Spa32, respectively, in Shigella, is proposed to regulate needle length and to flick a type III secretion substrate specificity switch from needle components/Spa32 to translocator/effector substrates. We found that, as in T3SAs from other species, substitution N257A within the conserved cytoplasmic NPTH region in Spa40 prevented its autocleavage and substrate specificity switching. Yet, the spa40N257A mutant made only slightly longer needles with a few needle tip complexes, although it could not form translocation pores. On the other hand, Δspa32, which makes extremely long needles and also formed only few tip complexes, could still form some translocation pores, indicating that it could switch substrate specificity to some extent. Therefore, loss of needle length control and defects in secretion specificity switching are not tightly coupled in either a Δspa32 mutant or a spa40N257A mutant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Da-Kang Shen
- Schools of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Biochemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
| | - Nao Moriya
- Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, 1-3 Yamadoaka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan.,Schools of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Biochemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
| | - Isabel Martinez-Argudo
- Schools of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Biochemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
| | - Ariel J Blocker
- Schools of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Biochemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
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24
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EscI: a crucial component of the type III secretion system forms the inner rod structure in enteropathogenic Escherichia coli. Biochem J 2012; 442:119-25. [PMID: 22087554 DOI: 10.1042/bj20111620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The T3SS (type III secretion system) is a multi-protein complex that plays a central role in the virulence of many gram-negative bacterial pathogens. This apparatus spans both bacterial membranes and transports virulence factors from the bacterial cytoplasm into eukaryotic host cells. The T3SS exports substrates in a hierarchical and temporal manner. The first secreted substrates are the rod/needle proteins which are incorporated into the T3SS apparatus and are required for the secretion of later substrates, the translocators and effectors. In the present study, we provide evidence that rOrf8/EscI, a poorly characterized locus of enterocyte effacement-encoded protein, functions as the inner rod protein of the T3SS of EPEC (enteropathogenic Escherichia coli). We demonstrate that EscI is essential for type III secretion and is also secreted as an early substrate of the T3SS. We found that EscI interacts with EscU, the integral membrane protein that is linked to substrate specificity switching, implicating EscI in the substrate-switching event. Furthermore, we showed that EscI self-associates and interacts with the outer membrane secretin EscC, further supporting its function as an inner rod protein. Overall, the results of the present study suggest that EscI is the YscI/PrgJ/MxiI homologue in the T3SS of attaching and effacing pathogens.
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25
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Chen Y, Anderson DM. Expression hierarchy in the Yersinia type III secretion system established through YopD recognition of RNA. Mol Microbiol 2011; 80:966-80. [PMID: 21481017 PMCID: PMC4128491 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2011.07623.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The Yersinia type III secretion system (T3SS) is environmentally responsive to enable its rapid induction upon contact with host cells and is necessary for Yersiniae to establish a replicative niche and cause disease. YopD, a translocator protein, represses the expression of T3SS genes until signalled by environmental cues, a mechanism known as the low calcium response. In this work, we investigated recognition of target genes by Yersinia pestis YopD. Expression of all genes of the T3SS was induced in a yopD mutant, though not to the same degree, with effector Yops most affected. Two, short AU-rich sequence elements up- and downstream of start codons of target genes were necessary but not sufficient for YopD mediated repression. Purified YopD-LcrH bound specifically to target RNAs in vitro with different relative affinities, with effector Yops having greater affinity. Together, the data suggest YopD binds to T3SS transcripts where it may prevent ribosome binding causing accelerated mRNA degradation. This regulatory mechanism may ensure an expression hierarchy during the low calcium response as low affinity YopD targets such as chaperones would be translated prior to high affinity targets such as effector Yops allowing the bacteria another layer of control over Yop translocation during infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqing Chen
- Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine, Columbia, MO 65211
| | - Deborah M. Anderson
- Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine, Columbia, MO 65211
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26
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Structure-function analysis of the HrpB2-HrcU interaction in the Xanthomonas citri type III secretion system. PLoS One 2011; 6:e17614. [PMID: 21408079 PMCID: PMC3052322 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0017614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2010] [Accepted: 02/01/2011] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacterial type III secretion systems deliver protein virulence factors to host cells. Here we characterize the interaction between HrpB2, a small protein secreted by the Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri type III secretion system, and the cytosolic domain of the inner membrane protein HrcU, a paralog of the flagellar protein FlhB. We show that a recombinant fragment corresponding to the C-terminal cytosolic domain of HrcU produced in E. coli suffers cleavage within a conserved Asn264-Pro265-Thr266-His267 (NPTH) sequence. A recombinant HrcU cytosolic domain with N264A, P265A, T266A mutations at the cleavage site (HrcUAAAH) was not cleaved and interacted with HrpB2. Furthermore, a polypeptide corresponding to the sequence following the NPTH cleavage site also interacted with HrpB2 indicating that the site for interaction is located after the NPTH site. Non-polar deletion mutants of the hrcU and hrpB2 genes resulted in a total loss of pathogenicity in susceptible citrus plants and disease symptoms could be recovered by expression of HrpB2 and HrcU from extrachromossomal plasmids. Complementation of the ΔhrcU mutant with HrcUAAAH produced canker lesions similar to those observed when complemented with wild-type HrcU. HrpB2 secretion however, was significantly reduced in the ΔhrcU mutant complemented with HrcUAAAH, suggesting that an intact and cleavable NPTH site in HrcU is necessary for total functionally of T3SS in X. citri subsp. citri. Complementation of the ΔhrpB2 X. citri subsp. citri strain with a series of hrpB2 gene mutants revealed that the highly conserved HrpB2 C-terminus is essential for T3SS-dependent development of citrus canker symptoms in planta.
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27
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Cornelis GR. The type III secretion injectisome, a complex nanomachine for intracellular 'toxin' delivery. Biol Chem 2011; 391:745-51. [PMID: 20482311 DOI: 10.1515/bc.2010.079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The type III secretion injectisome is a nanomachine that delivers bacterial proteins into the cytosol of eukaryotic target cells. It consists of a cylindrical basal structure spanning the two bacterial membranes and the peptidoglycan, connected to a hollow needle, eventually followed by a filament (animal pathogens) or to a long pilus (plant pathogens). Export employs a type III pathway. During assembly, all the protein subunits of external elements are sequentially exported by the basal structure itself, implying that the export apparatus can switch its substrate specificity over time. The length of the needle is controlled by a protein that it also secreted during assembly and presumably acts as a molecular ruler.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guy R Cornelis
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland.
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28
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Lorenz C, Büttner D. Secretion of early and late substrates of the type III secretion system from Xanthomonas is controlled by HpaC and the C-terminal domain of HrcU. Mol Microbiol 2011; 79:447-67. [PMID: 21219463 PMCID: PMC3040844 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2010.07461.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/05/2010] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The plant pathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria utilizes a type III secretion (T3S) system to inject effector proteins into eukaryotic cells. T3S substrate specificity is controlled by HpaC, which promotes secretion of translocon and effector proteins but prevents efficient secretion of the early substrate HrpB2. HpaC and HrpB2 interact with the C-terminal domain (HrcU(C) ) of the FlhB/YscU homologue HrcU. Here, we provide experimental evidence that HrcU is proteolytically cleaved at the conserved NPTH motif, which is required for binding of both HpaC and HrpB2 to HrcU(C) . The results of mutant studies showed that cleavage of HrcU contributes to pathogenicity and secretion of late substrates but is dispensable for secretion of HrpB2, which is presumably secreted prior to HrcU cleavage. The introduction of a point mutation (Y318D) into HrcU(C) activated secretion of late substrates in the absence of HpaC and suppressed the hpaC mutant phenotype. However, secretion of HrpB2 was unaffected by HrcU(Y318D) , suggesting that the export of early and late substrates is controlled by independent mechanisms that can be uncoupled. As HrcU(Y318D) did not interact with HrpB2 and HpaC, we propose that the substrate specificity switch leads to the release of HrcU(C) -bound HrpB2 and HpaC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Lorenz
- Institute of Biology, Department of Genetics, Martin-Luther University Halle-WittenbergD-06099 Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Daniela Büttner
- Institute of Biology, Department of Genetics, Martin-Luther University Halle-WittenbergD-06099 Halle (Saale), Germany
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29
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Septic shock and nonpulmonary organ dysfunction in pneumonic plague: The role of Yersinia pestis pCD1− vs. pgm− virulence factors. Crit Care Med 2010; 38:1574-83. [DOI: 10.1097/ccm.0b013e3181de8ace] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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30
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Berger C, Robin GP, Bonas U, Koebnik R. Membrane topology of conserved components of the type III secretion system from the plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria. Microbiology (Reading) 2010; 156:1963-1974. [DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.039248-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Type III secretion (T3S) systems play key roles in the assembly of flagella and the translocation of bacterial effector proteins into eukaryotic host cells. Eleven proteins which are conserved among Gram-negative plant and animal pathogenic bacteria have been proposed to build up the basal structure of the T3S system, which spans both inner and outer bacterial membranes. We studied six conserved proteins, termed Hrc, predicted to reside in the inner membrane of the plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria. The membrane topology of HrcD, HrcR, HrcS, HrcT, HrcU and HrcV was studied by translational fusions to a dual alkaline phosphatase–β-galactosidase reporter protein. Two proteins, HrcU and HrcV, were found to have the same membrane topology as the Yersinia homologues YscU and YscV. For HrcR, the membrane topology differed from the model for the homologue from Yersinia, YscR. For our data on three other protein families, exemplified by HrcD, HrcS and HrcT, we derived the first topology models. Our results provide what is believed to be the first complete model of the inner membrane topology of any bacterial T3S system and will aid in elucidating the architecture of T3S systems by ultrastructural analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolin Berger
- Institute of Biology, Department of Genetics, Martin-Luther-University, 06099 Halle, Germany
| | - Guillaume P. Robin
- Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes, Université de Perpignan via Domitia–CNRS–IRD, UMR 5096, IRD Montpellier, France
| | - Ulla Bonas
- Institute of Biology, Department of Genetics, Martin-Luther-University, 06099 Halle, Germany
| | - Ralf Koebnik
- Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes, Université de Perpignan via Domitia–CNRS–IRD, UMR 5096, IRD Montpellier, France
- Institute of Biology, Department of Genetics, Martin-Luther-University, 06099 Halle, Germany
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31
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Botteaux A, Kayath CA, Page AL, Jouihri N, Sani M, Boekema E, Biskri L, Parsot C, Allaoui A. The 33 carboxyl-terminal residues of Spa40 orchestrate the multi-step assembly process of the type III secretion needle complex in Shigella flexneri. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2010; 156:2807-2817. [PMID: 20507885 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.039651-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
The type III secretion apparatus (T3SA) is a central virulence factor of many Gram-negative bacteria. Its overall morphology consists of a cytoplasmic region, inner- and outer-membrane sections and an extracellular needle. In Shigella, the length of the needle is regulated by Spa32. To understand better the role of Spa32 we searched for its interacting partners using a two-hybrid screen in yeast. We found that Spa32 interacts with the 33 C-terminal residues (CC*) of Spa40, a member of the conserved FlhB/YscU family. Using a GST pull-down assay we confirmed this interaction and identified additional interactions between Spa40 and the type III secretion components Spa33, Spa47, MxiK, MxiN and MxiA. Inactivation of spa40 abolished protein secretion and led to needleless structures. Genetic and functional analyses were used to investigate the roles of residues L310 and V320, located within the CC* domain of Spa40, in the assembly of the T3SA. Spa40 cleavage, at the conserved NPTH motif, is required for assembly of the T3SA and for its interaction with Spa32, Spa33 and Spa47. In contrast, unprocessed forms of Spa40 interacted only with MxiA, MxiK and MxiN. Our data suggest that the conformation of the cytoplasmic domain of Spa40 defines the multi-step assembly process of the T3SA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Botteaux
- Laboratoire de Bactériologie Moléculaire, Faculté de Médecine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Route de Lennik, 808, 1070 Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Christian A Kayath
- Laboratoire de Bactériologie Moléculaire, Faculté de Médecine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Route de Lennik, 808, 1070 Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Anne-Laure Page
- INSERM U786, 25 rue du Dr Roux, F-75724 Paris Cedex 15, France.,Laboratoire de Pathogénie Microbienne, Institut Pasteur, 27-28 Rue du Dr Roux, 75725 Paris Cedex 15, France
| | - Nouredine Jouihri
- Laboratoire de Bactériologie Moléculaire, Faculté de Médecine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Route de Lennik, 808, 1070 Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Musa Sani
- Biophysical Chemistry, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Egbert Boekema
- Biophysical Chemistry, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Latéfa Biskri
- Laboratoire de Bactériologie Moléculaire, Faculté de Médecine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Route de Lennik, 808, 1070 Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Claude Parsot
- INSERM U786, 25 rue du Dr Roux, F-75724 Paris Cedex 15, France.,Laboratoire de Pathogénie Microbienne, Institut Pasteur, 27-28 Rue du Dr Roux, 75725 Paris Cedex 15, France
| | - Abdelmounaaïm Allaoui
- Laboratoire de Bactériologie Moléculaire, Faculté de Médecine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Route de Lennik, 808, 1070 Bruxelles, Belgium
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32
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Lountos GT, Austin BP, Nallamsetty S, Waugh DS. Atomic resolution structure of the cytoplasmic domain of Yersinia pestis YscU, a regulatory switch involved in type III secretion. Protein Sci 2009; 18:467-74. [PMID: 19165725 DOI: 10.1002/pro.56] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Crystal structures of cleaved and uncleaved forms of the YscU cytoplasmic domain, an essential component of the type III secretion system (T3SS) in Yersinia pestis, have been solved by single-wavelength anomolous dispersion and refined with X-ray diffraction data extending up to atomic resolution (1.13 A). These crystallographic studies provide structural insights into the conformational changes induced upon auto-cleavage of the cytoplasmic domain of YscU. The structures indicate that the cleaved fragments remain bound to each other. The conserved NPTH sequence that contains the site of the N263-P264 peptide bond cleavage is found on a beta-turn which, upon cleavage, undergoes a major reorientation of the loop away from the catalytic N263, resulting in altered electrostatic surface features at the site of cleavage. Additionally, a significant conformational change was observed in the N-terminal linker regions of the cleaved and noncleaved forms of YscU which may correspond to the molecular switch that influences substrate specificity. The YscU structures determined here also are in good agreement with the auto-cleavage mechanism described for the flagellar homolog FlhB and E. coli EscU.
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Affiliation(s)
- George T Lountos
- Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory, National Cancer Institute at Frederick, Frederick, Maryland 21702-1201, USA
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33
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Autoproteolysis of YscU of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis is important for regulation of expression and secretion of Yop proteins. J Bacteriol 2009; 191:4259-67. [PMID: 19395493 DOI: 10.1128/jb.01730-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
YscU of Yersinia can be autoproteolysed to generate a 10-kDa C-terminal polypeptide designated YscU(CC). Autoproteolysis occurs at the conserved N downward arrowPTH motif of YscU. The specific in-cis-generated point mutants N263A and P264A were found to be defective in proteolysis. Both mutants expressed and secreted Yop proteins (Yops) in calcium-containing medium (+Ca(2+) conditions) and calcium-depleted medium (-Ca(2+) conditions). The level of Yop and LcrV secretion by the N263A mutant was about 20% that of the wild-type strain, but there was no significant difference in the ratio of the different secreted Yops, including LcrV. The N263A mutant secreted LcrQ regardless of the calcium concentration in the medium, corroborating the observation that Yops were expressed and secreted in Ca(2+)-containing medium by the mutant. YscF, the type III secretion system (T3SS) needle protein, was secreted at elevated levels by the mutant compared to the wild type when bacteria were grown under +Ca(2+) conditions. YscF secretion was induced in the mutant, as well as in the wild type, when the bacteria were incubated under -Ca(2+) conditions, although the mutant secreted smaller amounts of YscF. The N263A mutant was cytotoxic for HeLa cells, demonstrating that the T3SS-mediated delivery of effectors was functional. We suggest that YscU blocks Yop release and that autoproteolysis is required to relieve this block.
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Lorenz C, Büttner D. Functional characterization of the type III secretion ATPase HrcN from the plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria. J Bacteriol 2009; 191:1414-28. [PMID: 19114489 PMCID: PMC2648192 DOI: 10.1128/jb.01446-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2008] [Accepted: 12/16/2008] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Many gram-negative plant and animal pathogenic bacteria employ a type III secretion (T3S) system to inject effector proteins into the cytosol of eukaryotic host cells. The membrane-spanning T3S apparatus is associated with an ATPase that presumably provides the energy for the secretion process. Here, we describe the role of the predicted ATPase HrcN from the plant pathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pathovar vesicatoria. We show that HrcN hydrolyzes ATP in vitro and is essential for T3S and bacterial pathogenicity. Stability of HrcN in X. campestris pv. vesicatoria depends on the conserved HrcL protein, which interacts with HrcN in vitro and in vivo. Both HrcN and HrcL bind to the inner membrane protein HrcU and specifically localize to the bacterial membranes under T3S-permissive conditions. Protein-protein interaction studies revealed that HrcN also interacts with the T3S substrate specificity switch protein HpaC and the global T3S chaperone HpaB, which promotes secretion of multiple effector proteins. Using an in vitro chaperone release assay, we demonstrate that HrcN dissociates a complex between HpaB and the effector protein XopF1 in an ATP-dependent manner, suggesting that HrcN is involved in the release of HpaB-bound effectors. Effector release depends on a conserved glycine residue in the HrcN phosphate-binding loop, which is crucial for enzymatic activity and protein function during T3S. There is no experimental evidence that T3S can occur in the absence of the ATPase, in contrast to recent findings reported for animal pathogenic bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Lorenz
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Saale, Germany
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35
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Wiesand U, Sorg I, Amstutz M, Wagner S, van den Heuvel J, Lührs T, Cornelis GR, Heinz DW. Structure of the Type III Secretion Recognition Protein YscU from Yersinia enterocolitica. J Mol Biol 2009; 385:854-66. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2008.10.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2008] [Revised: 10/06/2008] [Accepted: 10/08/2008] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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36
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Wang Y, Zhang L, Picking WL, Picking WD, De Guzman RN. Structural dissection of the extracellular moieties of the type III secretion apparatus. MOLECULAR BIOSYSTEMS 2008; 4:1176-80. [PMID: 19396380 DOI: 10.1039/b808271p] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Many Gram-negative bacterial pathogens use type III secretion systems (TTSSs) for subverting the normal cellular functions of their target eukaryotic cells. The type III secretion apparatus (TTSA) functions like a syringe to inject proteins through an external needle and into a target cell's membrane and cytosol. The TTSA basal body spans the bacterial inner and outer membranes, and the external needle is topped with a tip complex that controls the secretion and delivery of translocator and effector proteins. Recently solved structures of TTSA proteins have greatly advanced our understanding of shared themes in apparatus assembly and function. In this highlight, the structure-function of TTSA needle and tip complex proteins are described and common themes discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Wang
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
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37
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Deane JE, Graham SC, Mitchell EP, Flot D, Johnson S, Lea SM. Crystal structure of Spa40, the specificity switch for the Shigella flexneri type III secretion system. Mol Microbiol 2008; 69:267-76. [PMID: 18485071 PMCID: PMC2615192 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2008.06293.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/08/2008] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
The pathogenic bacterium Shigella flexneri uses a type III secretion system to inject virulence factors from the bacterial cytosol directly into host cells. The machinery that identifies secretion substrates and controls the export of extracellular components and effector proteins consists of several inner-membrane and cytoplasmic proteins. One of the inner membrane components, Spa40, belongs to a family of proteins proposed to regulate the switching of substrate specificity of the export apparatus. We show that Spa40 is cleaved within the strictly conserved amino acid sequence NPTH and substitution of the proposed autocatalytic residue abolishes cleavage. Here we also report the crystal structure of the cytoplasmic complex Spa40(C) and compare it with the recent structures of the homologues from Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. These structures reveal the tight association of the cleaved fragments and show that the conserved NPTH sequence lies on a loop which, when cleaved, swings away from the catalytic N257 residue, resulting in different surface features in this region. This structural rearrangement suggests a mechanism by which non-cleaving forms of these proteins interfere with correct substrate switching of the apparatus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janet E Deane
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, South Parks Rd, University of OxfordOX1 3RE, UK
| | - Stephen C Graham
- Division of Structural Biology, Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, Roosevelt Drive, University of OxfordOX3 7BN, UK
| | - Edward P Mitchell
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility6 Rue Jules Horowitz, 38043 Grenoble, France
- EPSAM, Keele UniversityStafforshire, ST5 5BG, UK
| | - David Flot
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory6 Rue Jules Horowitz, 38042 Grenoble, France
| | - Steven Johnson
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, South Parks Rd, University of OxfordOX1 3RE, UK
| | - Susan M Lea
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, South Parks Rd, University of OxfordOX1 3RE, UK
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38
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Lorenz C, Schulz S, Wolsch T, Rossier O, Bonas U, Büttner D. HpaC controls substrate specificity of the Xanthomonas type III secretion system. PLoS Pathog 2008; 4:e1000094. [PMID: 18584024 PMCID: PMC2427183 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1000094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2007] [Accepted: 05/28/2008] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The Gram-negative bacterial plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria employs a type III secretion (T3S) system to inject bacterial effector proteins into the host cell cytoplasm. One essential pathogenicity factor is HrpB2, which is secreted by the T3S system. We show that secretion of HrpB2 is suppressed by HpaC, which was previously identified as a T3S control protein. Since HpaC promotes secretion of translocon and effector proteins but inhibits secretion of HrpB2, HpaC presumably acts as a T3S substrate specificity switch protein. Protein–protein interaction studies revealed that HpaC interacts with HrpB2 and the C-terminal domain of HrcU, a conserved inner membrane component of the T3S system. However, no interaction was observed between HpaC and the full-length HrcU protein. Analysis of HpaC deletion derivatives revealed that the binding site for the C-terminal domain of HrcU is essential for HpaC function. This suggests that HpaC binding to the HrcU C terminus is key for the control of T3S. The C terminus of HrcU also provides a binding site for HrpB2; however, no interaction was observed with other T3S substrates including pilus, translocon and effector proteins. This is in contrast to HrcU homologs from animal pathogenic bacteria suggesting evolution of distinct mechanisms in plant and animal pathogenic bacteria for T3S substrate recognition. The Gram-negative plant pathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria is the causal agent of bacterial spot disease in pepper and tomato. Pathogenicity of X. campestris pv. vesicatoria depends on a type III protein secretion (T3S) system that injects bacterial effector proteins directly into the host cell cytosol. The T3S system is a highly complex nanomachine that spans both bacterial membranes and is associated with an extracellular pilus and a translocon that inserts into the host cell membrane. Given the architecture of the secretion apparatus, it is conceivable that pilus formation precedes effector protein secretion. The pilus presumably consists of two components, i.e., the major pilus subunit HrpE and HrpB2, which is required for pilus assembly. Secretion of HrpB2 is suppressed by HpaC that switches substrate specificity of the T3S system from secretion of HrpB2 to secretion of translocon and effector proteins. The substrate specificity switch depends on the cytoplasmic domain of HrcU, which is a conserved inner membrane protein of the T3S apparatus that interacts with HrpB2 and HpaC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Lorenz
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Steve Schulz
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Thomas Wolsch
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Ombeline Rossier
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Ulla Bonas
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Daniela Büttner
- Institut für Biologie, Bereich Genetik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
- * E-mail:
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39
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Riordan KE, Schneewind O. YscU cleavage and the assembly of Yersinia type III secretion machine complexes. Mol Microbiol 2008; 68:1485-501. [PMID: 18452514 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2008.06247.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
YscU, a component of the Yersinia type III secretion machine, promotes auto-cleavage at asparagine 263 (N263). Mutants with an alanine substitution at yscU codon 263 displayed secretion defects for some substrates (LcrV, YopB and YopD); however, transport of effector proteins into host cells (YopE, YopH, YopM) continued to occur. Two yscU mutations were isolated that, unlike N263A, completely abolished type III secretion; YscU(G127D) promoted auto-cleavage at N263, whereas YscU(G270N) did not. When fused to glutathione S-transferase (Gst), the YscU C-terminal cytoplasmic domain promoted auto-cleavage and Gst-YscU(C) also exerted a dominant-negative phenotype by blocking type III secretion. Gst-YscU(C/N263A) caused a similar blockade and Gst-YscU(C/G270N) reduced secretion. Gst-YscU(C) and Gst-YscU(C/N263A) bound YscL, the regulator of the ATPase YscN, whereas Gst-YscU(C/G270N) did not. When isolated from Yersinia, Gst-YscU(C) and Gst-YscU(C/N263A) associated with YscK-YscL-YscQ; however, Gst-YscU(C/G270N) interacted predominantly with the machine component YscO, but not with YscK-YscL-YscQ. A model is proposed whereby YscU auto-cleavage promotes interaction with YscL and recruitment of ATPase complexes that initiate type III secretion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly E Riordan
- Department of Microbiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
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40
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Quenee LE, Schneewind O. Ubiquitin-Yop hybrids as probes for post-translational transport by the Yersinia type III secretion pathway. Mol Microbiol 2007; 65:386-400. [PMID: 17587230 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2007.05793.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Yersinia enterocolitica uses type III secretion to transport Yop proteins into the cytoplasm of host cells. Previous work generated hypotheses for both co- and post-translational transport mechanisms in the Yersinia type III pathway. Here, we used ubiquitin (Ub) and UBP1, the Ub-specific protease, to examine whether Yops can be secreted when synthesized prior to recognition by the type III machinery. Fusion of Ub to the N-terminus of Yops blocked substrate recognition and secretion of hybrids generated with YopE, YopQ or YopR. UBP1 removed Ub from the N-terminus of these hybrids and allowed YopE, YopQ or YopR cleavage products to enter the secretion pathway. Following the release of Ub, Yersinia type III machines also transported the YopE cleavage product into the cytosol of tissue culture cells. Minimal secretion signals were also examined with the Ub/UBP1 system and some, but not all, of these signals promoted type III secretion even after polypeptides had been freed from Ub. These results suggest that recognition and secretion of Yop substrates by the type III machinery can occur by a post-translational mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauriane E Quenee
- Department of Microbiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
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41
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Silver AC, Kikuchi Y, Fadl AA, Sha J, Chopra AK, Graf J. Interaction between innate immune cells and a bacterial type III secretion system in mutualistic and pathogenic associations. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2007; 104:9481-6. [PMID: 17517651 PMCID: PMC1890520 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0700286104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2007] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals house a community of bacterial symbionts in their digestive tracts that contribute to their well being. The medicinal leech, Hirudo verbana, has a remarkably simple gut population carrying two extracellular microbes in the crop where the ingested blood is stored. This simplicity renders it attractive for studying colonization factors. Aeromonas veronii, one of the leech symbionts, can be genetically manipulated and is a pathogen of mammals. Screening transposon mutants of A. veronii for colonization defects in the leech, we found one mutant, JG752, with a transposon insertion in an ascU homolog, encoding an essential component of type III secretion systems (T3SS). Competing JG752 against the wild type revealed that JG752 was increasingly attenuated over time (10-fold at 18 h and >10,000-fold at 96 h). This colonization defect was linked to ascU by complementing JG752 with the operon containing ascU. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis revealed that at 42 h 38% of JG752 cells were phagocytosed by leech macrophage-like cells compared with <0.1% of the parental strain. Using mammalian macrophages, a lactate dehydrogenase release assay revealed that cytotoxicity was significantly reduced in macrophages exposed to JG752. In a mouse septicemia model, JG752 killed only 30% of mice, whereas the parent strain killed 100%, showing the importance of T3SS for both pathogenesis and mutualism. Phagocytic immune cells are important not only in defending against pathogens but also in maintaining the mutualistic symbiont community inside the leech, demonstrating that animals use similar, conserved mechanisms to control bacterial populations, even when the outcomes differ dramatically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam C. Silver
- *Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269
| | - Yoshitomo Kikuchi
- *Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269
- Institute for Biological Resources and Functions, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba 305-8566, Japan; and
| | - Amin A. Fadl
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555
| | - Jian Sha
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555
| | - Ashok K. Chopra
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555
| | - Joerg Graf
- *Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269
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42
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Sorg I, Wagner S, Amstutz M, Müller SA, Broz P, Lussi Y, Engel A, Cornelis GR. YscU recognizes translocators as export substrates of the Yersinia injectisome. EMBO J 2007; 26:3015-24. [PMID: 17510628 PMCID: PMC1894769 DOI: 10.1038/sj.emboj.7601731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 92] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2007] [Accepted: 04/27/2007] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
YscU is an essential component of the export apparatus of the Yersinia injectisome. It consists of an N-terminal transmembrane domain and a long cytoplasmic C-terminal domain, which undergoes auto-cleavage at a NPTH site. Substitutions N263A and P264A prevented cleavage of YscU and abolished export of LcrV, YopB and YopD but not of Yop effectors. As a consequence, yscU(N263A) mutant bacteria made needles without the LcrV tip complex and they could not form translocation pores. The graft of the export signal of the effector YopE, at the N-terminus of LcrV, restored LcrV export and assembly of the tip complex. Thus, YscU cleavage is required to acquire the conformation allowing recognition of translocators, which represent an individual category of substrates in the hierarchy of export. In addition, yscU(N263A) mutant bacteria exported reduced amounts of the YscP ruler and made longer needles. Increasing YscP export resulted in needles with normal size, depending on the length of the ruler. Hence, the effect of the yscU(N263A) mutation on needle length was the consequence of a reduced YscP export.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Sorg
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Shirley A Müller
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
- ME Müller Institute for Structural Biology, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Petr Broz
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Yvonne Lussi
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Engel
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
- ME Müller Institute for Structural Biology, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Guy R Cornelis
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
- Biozentrum, Universität Basel, Infection Biology, Klingelbergstrasse 50-70, Basel, CH 4056, Switzerland. Tel.: +41 61 267 21 10; Fax: +41 61 267 21 18; E-mail:
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43
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Fälker S, Schmidt MA, Heusipp G. Altered Ca(2+) regulation of Yop secretion in Yersinia enterocolitica after DNA adenine methyltransferase overproduction is mediated by Clp-dependent degradation of LcrG. J Bacteriol 2006; 188:7072-81. [PMID: 17015646 PMCID: PMC1636222 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00583-06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
DNA methylation by the DNA adenine methyltransferase (Dam) interferes with the coordinated expression of virulence functions in an increasing number of pathogens. While analyzing the effect of Dam on the virulence of the human pathogen Yersinia enterocolitica, we observed type III secretion of Yop effector proteins under nonpermissive conditions. Dam alters the Ca(2+) regulation of Yop secretion but does not affect the temperature regulation of Yop/Ysc expression. The phenotype is different from that of classical "Ca(2+)-blind" mutants of Yersinia, as Dam-overproducing (Dam(OP)) strains still translocate Yops polarly into eukaryotic cells. Although transcription of the lcrGV and yopN-tyeA operons is slightly upregulated, LcrG is absent from lysates of Dam(OP) bacteria, while the amounts of YopN and TyeA are not changed. We present evidence that clpXP expression increases after Dam overproduction and that the ClpP protease then degrades LcrG, thereby releasing a block in type III secretion. This is the first example of posttranslational regulation of type III secretion by the Clp protease and adds a new flavor to the complex regulatory mechanisms underlying the controlled release of effector proteins from bacterial cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Fälker
- ZMBE, Institut für Infektiologie, von-Esmarch-Str. 56, 48149 Münster, Germany
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44
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Cornelis GR, Agrain C, Sorg I. Length control of extended protein structures in bacteria and bacteriophages. Curr Opin Microbiol 2006; 9:201-6. [PMID: 16458574 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2006.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2005] [Accepted: 01/23/2006] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The length of the tail of bacteriophages is controlled by a protein which acts as a molecular ruler. The needle of the injectisome, which is assembled by the polymerization of subunits that are exported through the nascent injectisome, is functionally related to the tail of bacteriophages. Interestingly, its length is controlled by a protein, which is itself exported and acts as a molecular ruler that is coupled to a substrate specificity switch. The bacterial flagellum is evolutionarily related to the injectisome. The length of the hook is also controlled by a secreted protein. This protein acts as a substrate specificity switch and, possibly, also as a ruler.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guy R Cornelis
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 50/70, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland.
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45
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Agrain C, Sorg I, Paroz C, Cornelis GR. Secretion of YscP from Yersinia enterocolitica is essential to control the length of the injectisome needle but not to change the type III secretion substrate specificity. Mol Microbiol 2005; 57:1415-27. [PMID: 16102009 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2005.04758.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
The length of the needle of the Yersinia Ysc injectisome is determined by a protein called YscP. This protein, which acts both as a molecular ruler and as a substrate-specificity switch for type III secretion is itself secreted by the injectisome. In this report, we address the question why YscP is secreted. By a systematic deletion analysis and by fusing different parts of the molecule to the adenylate cyclase reporter, we identified two independent secretion signals. One of them is encompassed within the 35 N-terminal residues while the second one spans residues 97-137. These two signals are functionally different from Yop secretion signals. When both secretion signals were removed, Yops could still be secreted but the needle length control was lost. YscP possessing only one signal did not control needle length properly but the control was improved when more YscP was produced and secreted. YscP deprived of both signals could not control length, even when overproduced. We conclude from this that YscP needs to be secreted to exert its length control function but not its substrate-specificity switch function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Céline Agrain
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
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46
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Marketon MM, DePaolo RW, DeBord KL, Jabri B, Schneewind O. Plague bacteria target immune cells during infection. Science 2005; 309:1739-41. [PMID: 16051750 PMCID: PMC3210820 DOI: 10.1126/science.1114580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 264] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The plague is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Plague bacteria are thought to inject effector Yop proteins into host cells via the type III pathway. The identity of the host cells targeted for injection during plague infection is unknown. We found, using Yop beta-lactamase hybrids and fluorescent staining of live cells from plague-infected animals, that Y. pestis selected immune cells for injection. In vivo, dendritic cells, macrophages, and neutrophils were injected most frequently, whereas B and T lymphocytes were rarely selected. Thus, it appears that Y. pestis disables these cell populations to annihilate host immune responses during plague.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Kristin L. DeBord
- Department of Microbiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Bana Jabri
- Department of Pathology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Olaf Schneewind
- Department of Microbiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
- To whom correspondence should be addressed.
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Warawa J, Woods DE. Type III secretion system cluster 3 is required for maximal virulence of Burkholderia pseudomallei in a hamster infection model. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2005; 242:101-8. [PMID: 15621426 DOI: 10.1016/j.femsle.2004.10.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2004] [Revised: 10/19/2004] [Accepted: 10/25/2004] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Burkholderia pseudomallei, the etiological agent of melioidosis, is an animal pathogen capable of inducing a highly fatal septicemia. B. pseudomallei possesses three type III secretion system (TTSS) clusters, two of which (TTSS1 and TTSS2) are homologous to the TTSS of the plant pathogen Ralstonia solanacearum, and one (TTSS3) is homologous to the Salmonella SPI-1 mammalian pathogenicity island. We have demonstrated that TTSS3 is required for the full virulence of B. pseudomallei in a hamster model of infection. We have also examined the virulence of B. pseudomallei mutants deficient in several putative TTSS3 effector molecules, and found no significant attenuation of B. pseudomallei virulence in the hamster model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Warawa
- Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, University of Calgary Health Sciences Centre, 3330 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary, Alta., Canada T2N 4N1
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Agrain C, Callebaut I, Journet L, Sorg I, Paroz C, Mota LJ, Cornelis GR. Characterization of a Type III secretion substrate specificity switch (T3S4) domain in YscP from Yersinia enterocolitica. Mol Microbiol 2005; 56:54-67. [PMID: 15773978 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2005.04534.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The length of the needle ending the Yersinia Ysc injectisome is determined by YscP, a protein acting as a molecular ruler. In addition, YscP is required for Yop secretion. In the present paper, by a systematic deletion analysis, we localized accurately the region required for Yop secretion between residues 405 and 500. As this C-terminal region of YscP has also been shown to control needle length it probably represents the substrate specificity switch of the machinery. By a bioinformatics analysis, we show that this region has a globular structure, an original alpha/beta fold, a P-x-L-G signature and presumably no catalytic activity. In spite of very limited sequence similarities, this structure is conserved among the proteins that are presumed to control the needle length in many different injectisomes and also among members of the FliK family, which control the flagellar hook length. This region thus represents a new protein domain that we called T3S4 for Type III secretion substrate specificity switch. The T3S4 domain of YscP can be replaced by the T3S4 domain of AscP (Aeromonas salmonicida) or PscP (Pseudomonas aeruginosa) but not by the one from FliK, indicating that in spite of a common global structure, these domains need to fit their partner proteins in the secretion apparatus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Céline Agrain
- Biozentrum der Universität Basel, Basel, Switzerland
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Abstract
The type III secretion system (TTSS) of gram-negative bacteria is responsible for delivering bacterial proteins, termed effectors, from the bacterial cytosol directly into the interior of host cells. The TTSS is expressed predominantly by pathogenic bacteria and is usually used to introduce deleterious effectors into host cells. While biochemical activities of effectors vary widely, the TTSS apparatus used to deliver these effectors is conserved and shows functional complementarity for secretion and translocation. This review focuses on proteins that constitute the TTSS apparatus and on mechanisms that guide effectors to the TTSS apparatus for transport. The TTSS apparatus includes predicted integral inner membrane proteins that are conserved widely across TTSSs and in the basal body of the bacterial flagellum. It also includes proteins that are specific to the TTSS and contribute to ring-like structures in the inner membrane and includes secretin family members that form ring-like structures in the outer membrane. Most prominently situated on these coaxial, membrane-embedded rings is a needle-like or pilus-like structure that is implicated as a conduit for effector translocation into host cells. A short region of mRNA sequence or protein sequence in effectors acts as a signal sequence, directing proteins for transport through the TTSS. Additionally, a number of effectors require the action of specific TTSS chaperones for efficient and physiologically meaningful translocation into host cells. Numerous models explaining how effectors are transported into host cells have been proposed, but understanding of this process is incomplete and this topic remains an active area of inquiry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Partho Ghosh
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0314, USA.
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50
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Abstract
The type III secretion system (TTSS) of gram-negative bacteria is responsible for delivering bacterial proteins, termed effectors, from the bacterial cytosol directly into the interior of host cells. The TTSS is expressed predominantly by pathogenic bacteria and is usually used to introduce deleterious effectors into host cells. While biochemical activities of effectors vary widely, the TTSS apparatus used to deliver these effectors is conserved and shows functional complementarity for secretion and translocation. This review focuses on proteins that constitute the TTSS apparatus and on mechanisms that guide effectors to the TTSS apparatus for transport. The TTSS apparatus includes predicted integral inner membrane proteins that are conserved widely across TTSSs and in the basal body of the bacterial flagellum. It also includes proteins that are specific to the TTSS and contribute to ring-like structures in the inner membrane and includes secretin family members that form ring-like structures in the outer membrane. Most prominently situated on these coaxial, membrane-embedded rings is a needle-like or pilus-like structure that is implicated as a conduit for effector translocation into host cells. A short region of mRNA sequence or protein sequence in effectors acts as a signal sequence, directing proteins for transport through the TTSS. Additionally, a number of effectors require the action of specific TTSS chaperones for efficient and physiologically meaningful translocation into host cells. Numerous models explaining how effectors are transported into host cells have been proposed, but understanding of this process is incomplete and this topic remains an active area of inquiry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Partho Ghosh
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0314, USA.
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