Active Efflux Leads to Heterogeneous Dissipation of Proton Motive Force by Protonophores in Bacteria.

ABSTRACT: Various toxic compounds disrupt bacterial physiology. While bacteria harbor defense mechanisms to mitigate the toxicity, these mechanisms are often coupled to the physiological state of the cells and become ineffective when the physiology is severely disrupted. Here, we characterized such feedback by exposing Escherichia coli to protonophores. Protonophores dissipate the proton motive force (PMF), a fundamental force that drives physiological functions. We found that E. coli cells responded to protonophores heterogeneously, resulting in bimodal distributions of cell growth, substrate transport, and motility. Furthermore, we showed that this heterogeneous response required active efflux systems. The analysis of underlying interactions indicated the heterogeneous response results from efflux

SUBMITTER: Le D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8406135 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature