Quantitative Analysis of Filament Branch Orientation in Listeria Actin Comet Tails.

ABSTRACT: Several bacterial and viral pathogens hijack the host actin cytoskeleton machinery to facilitate spread and infection. In particular, Listeria uses Arp2/3-mediated actin filament nucleation at the bacterial surface to generate a branched network that will help propel the bacteria. However, the mechanism of force generation remains elusive due to the lack of high-resolution three-dimensional structural data on the spatial organization of the actin mother and daughter (i.e., branch) filaments within this network. Here, we have explored the three-dimensional structure of Listeria actin tails in Xenopus laevis egg extracts using cryo-electron tomography. We found that the architecture of Listeria actin tails is shared between those formed in cells and in cell extracts. Both contained nanoscopi

SUBMITTER: Jasnin M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4775838 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature