Tuberculostearic Acid Controls Mycobacterial Membrane Compartmentalization.

ABSTRACT: The intracellular membrane domain (IMD) is a laterally discrete region of the mycobacterial plasma membrane, enriched in the subpolar region of the rod-shaped cell. Here, we report genome-wide transposon sequencing to discover the controllers of membrane compartmentalization in Mycobacterium smegmatis. The putative gene cfa showed the most significant effect on recovery from membrane compartment disruption by dibucaine. Enzymatic analysis of Cfa and lipidomic analysis of a cfa deletion mutant (Δcfa) demonstrated that Cfa is an essential methyltransferase for the synthesis of major membrane phospholipids containing a C_19:0 monomethyl-branched stearic acid, also known as tuberculostearic acid (TBSA). TBSA has been intensively studied due to its abundant and ge

SUBMITTER: Prithviraj M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10127668 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature