Contact- and Protein Transfer-Dependent Stimulation of Assembly of the Gliding Motility Machinery in Myxococcus xanthus.

ABSTRACT: Bacteria engage in contact-dependent activities to coordinate cellular activities that aid their survival. Cells of Myxococcus xanthus move over surfaces by means of type IV pili and gliding motility. Upon direct contact, cells physically exchange outer membrane (OM) lipoproteins, and this transfer can rescue motility in mutants lacking lipoproteins required for motility. The mechanism of gliding motility and its stimulation by transferred OM lipoproteins remain poorly characterized. We investigated the function of CglC, GltB, GltA and GltC, all of which are required for gliding. We demonstrate that CglC is an OM lipoprotein, GltB and GltA are integral OM β-barrel proteins, and GltC is a soluble periplasmic protein. GltB and GltA are mutually stabilizing, and both are required to stabilize

SUBMITTER: Jakobczak B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4488436 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature