Structural basis of Gabija anti-phage defence and viral immune evasion.

ABSTRACT: Bacteria encode hundreds of diverse defence systems that protect them from viral infection and inhibit phage propagation^1-5. Gabija is one of the most prevalent anti-phage defence systems, occurring in more than 15% of all sequenced bacterial and archaeal genomes^1,6,7, but the molecular basis of how Gabija defends cells from viral infection remains poorly understood. Here we use X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to define how Gabija proteins assemble into a supramolecular complex of around 500 kDa that degrades phage DNA. Gabija protein A (GajA) is a DNA endonuclease that tetramerizes to form the core of the anti-phage defence complex. Two sets of Gabija protein B (GajB) dimers dock at opposite sides of the complex and create a 4:4 GajA-GajB

SUBMITTER: Antine SP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10781630 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature