Screening for synthetic lethal mutants in Escherichia coli and identification of EnvC (YibP) as a periplasmic septal ring factor with murein hydrolase activity.

ABSTRACT: Bacterial cytokinesis is driven by the septal ring apparatus, the assembly of which in Escherichia coli is directed to mid-cell by the Min system. Despite suffering aberrant divisions at the poles, cells lacking the minCDE operon (Min(-)) have an almost normal growth rate. We developed a generally applicable screening method for synthetic lethality in E. coli, and used it to select for transposon mutations (slm) that are synthetically lethal (or sick) in combination with DeltaminCDE. One of the slm insertions mapped to envC (yibP), proposed to encode a lysostaphin-like, metallo-endopeptidase that is exported to the periplasm by the general secretory (Sec) pathway. Min(-) EnvC(-) cells showed a severe division defect, supporting a role for EnvC in septal ring function. Accordingly, we show

SUBMITTER: Bernhardt TG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4428336 | biostudies-literature | 2004 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature