The metal-binding GTPases CobW2 and CobW3 are at the crossroads of zinc and cobalt homeostasis in Cupriavidus metallidurans.

ABSTRACT: The metal-resistant beta-proteobacterium Cupriavidus metallidurans is also able to survive conditions of metal starvation. We show that zinc-starved cells can substitute some of the required zinc with cobalt but not with nickel ions. The zinc importer ZupT was necessary for this process but was not essential for either zinc or cobalt import. The cellular cobalt content was also influenced by the two COG0523-family proteins, CobW2 and CobW3. Pulse-chase experiments with radioactive and isotope-enriched zinc demonstrated that both proteins interacted with ZupT to control the cellular flow-equilibrium of zinc, a central process of zinc homeostasis. Moreover, an antagonistic interplay of CobW2 and CobW3 in the presence of added cobalt caused a growth defect in mutant cells devoid of the

SUBMITTER: Galea D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11340326 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature