Mechanism for sortase localization and the role of sortase localization in efficient pilus assembly in Enterococcus faecalis.

ABSTRACT: Pathogenic streptococci and enterococci primarily rely on the conserved secretory (Sec) pathway for the translocation and secretion of virulence factors out of the cell. Since many secreted virulence factors in gram-positive organisms are subsequently attached to the bacterial cell surface via sortase enzymes, we sought to investigate the spatial relationship between secretion and cell wall attachment in Enterococcus faecalis. We discovered that sortase A (SrtA) and sortase C (SrtC) are colocalized with SecA at single foci in the enterococcus. The SrtA-processed substrate aggregation substance accumulated in single foci when SrtA was deleted, implying a single site of secretion for these proteins. Furthermore, in the absence of the pilus-polymerizing SrtC, pilin subunits also accumulate in

SUBMITTER: Kline KA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2687161 | biostudies-literature | 2009 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature