{"database":"biostudies-literature","file_versions":[],"scores":null,"additional":{"submitter":["Kattan J"],"funding":["Dutch Research Council (NWO)"],"pagination":["2447-2455"],"full_dataset_link":["https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC8524656"],"repository":["biostudies-literature"],"omics_type":["Unknown"],"volume":["10(10)"],"pubmed_abstract":["Genetic control over a cytoskeletal network inside lipid vesicles offers a potential route to controlled shape changes and DNA segregation in synthetic cell biology. Bacterial microtubules (bMTs) are protein filaments found in bacteria of the genus <i>Prosthecobacter</i>. They are formed by the tubulins BtubA and BtubB, which polymerize in the presence of GTP. Here, we show that the tubulins BtubA/B can be functionally expressed from DNA templates in a reconstituted transcription-translation system, thus providing a cytosol-like environment to study their biochemical and biophysical properties. We found that bMTs spontaneously interact with lipid membranes and display treadmilling. When compartmentalized inside liposomes, <i>de novo</i> synthesized BtubA/B tubulins self-organize into cytoskeletal structures of different morphologies. Moreover, bMTs can exert a pushing force on the membrane and deform liposomes, a phenomenon that can be reversed by a light-activated disassembly of the filaments. Our work establishes bMTs as a new building block in synthetic biology. In the context of creating a synthetic cell, bMTs could help shape the lipid compartment, establish polarity or directional transport, and assist the division machinery."],"journal":["ACS synthetic biology"],"pubmed_title":["Shaping Liposomes by Cell-Free Expressed Bacterial Microtubules."],"pmcid":["PMC8524656"],"funding_grant_id":["024.003.019"],"pubmed_authors":["Danelon C","Kattan J","Doerr A","Dogterom M"],"additional_accession":[]},"is_claimable":false,"name":"Shaping Liposomes by Cell-Free Expressed Bacterial Microtubules.","description":"Genetic control over a cytoskeletal network inside lipid vesicles offers a potential route to controlled shape changes and DNA segregation in synthetic cell biology. Bacterial microtubules (bMTs) are protein filaments found in bacteria of the genus <i>Prosthecobacter</i>. They are formed by the tubulins BtubA and BtubB, which polymerize in the presence of GTP. Here, we show that the tubulins BtubA/B can be functionally expressed from DNA templates in a reconstituted transcription-translation system, thus providing a cytosol-like environment to study their biochemical and biophysical properties. We found that bMTs spontaneously interact with lipid membranes and display treadmilling. When compartmentalized inside liposomes, <i>de novo</i> synthesized BtubA/B tubulins self-organize into cytoskeletal structures of different morphologies. Moreover, bMTs can exert a pushing force on the membrane and deform liposomes, a phenomenon that can be reversed by a light-activated disassembly of the filaments. Our work establishes bMTs as a new building block in synthetic biology. In the context of creating a synthetic cell, bMTs could help shape the lipid compartment, establish polarity or directional transport, and assist the division machinery.","dates":{"release":"2021-01-01T00:00:00Z","publication":"2021 Oct","modification":"2025-04-20T02:02:26.705Z","creation":"2025-04-20T02:02:26.705Z"},"accession":"S-EPMC8524656","cross_references":{"pubmed":["34585918"],"doi":["10.1021/acssynbio.1c00278"]}}