The Escherichia coli DNA translocase FtsK

2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 395-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Sherratt ◽  
Lidia K. Arciszewska ◽  
Estelle Crozat ◽  
James E. Graham ◽  
Ian Grainge

Escherichia coli FtsK is a septum-located DNA translocase that co-ordinates the late stages of cytokinesis and chromosome segregation. Relatives of FtsK are present in most bacteria; in Bacillus subtilis, the FtsK orthologue, SpoIIIE, transfers the majority of a chromosome into the forespore during sporulation. DNA translocase activity is contained within a ~ 512-amino-acid C-terminal domain, which is divided into three subdomains: α, β and γ. α and β comprise the translocation motor, and γ is a regulatory domain that interacts with DNA and with the XerD recombinase. In vitro rates of translocation of ~ 5 kb·s−1 have been measured for both FtsK and SpoIIIE, whereas, in vivo, SpoIIIE has a comparable rate of translocation. Translocation by both of these proteins is not only rapid, but also directed by DNA sequence. This directionality requires interaction of the γ subdomain with specific 8 bp DNA asymmetric sequences that are oriented co-directionally with replication direction of the bacterial chromosome. The γ subdomain also interacts with the XerCD site-specific recombinase to activate chromosome unlinking by recombination at the chromosomal dif site. In the present paper, the properties in vivo and in vitro of FtsK and its relatives are discussed in relation to the biological functions of these remarkable enzymes.

2013 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 595-600 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Grainge

FtsK is a multifunctional protein, which, in Escherichia coli, co-ordinates the essential functions of cell division, DNA unlinking and chromosome segregation. Its C-terminus is a DNA translocase, the fastest yet characterized, which acts as a septum-localized DNA pump. FtsK's C-terminus also interacts with the XerCD site-specific recombinases which act at the dif site, located in the terminus region. The motor domain of FtsK is an active translocase in vitro, and, when incubated with XerCD and a supercoiled plasmid containing two dif sites, recombination occurs to give unlinked circular products. Despite years of research the mechanism for this novel form of topological filter remains unknown.


2003 ◽  
Vol 185 (10) ◽  
pp. 3076-3080 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominic Esposito ◽  
Gary F. Gerard

ABSTRACT The Escherichia coli nucleoid-associated protein Fis was previously shown to be involved in bacteriophage lambda site-specific recombination in vivo, enhancing the levels of both integrative recombination and excisive recombination. While purified Fis protein was shown to stimulate in vitro excision, Fis appeared to have no effect on in vitro integration reactions even though a 15-fold drop in lysogenization frequency had previously been observed in fis mutants. We demonstrate here that E. coli Fis protein does stimulate integrative lambda recombination in vitro but only under specific conditions which likely mimic natural in vivo recombination more closely than the standard conditions used in vitro. In the presence of suboptimal concentrations of Int protein, Fis stimulates the rate of integrative recombination significantly. In addition, Fis enhances the recombination of substrates with nonstandard topologies which may be more relevant to the process of in vivo phage lambda recombination. These data support the hypothesis that Fis may play an essential role in lambda recombination in the host cell.


mBio ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilien Nicolas ◽  
Amy L. Upton ◽  
Stephan Uphoff ◽  
Olivia Henry ◽  
Anjana Badrinarayanan ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTTheEscherichia colistructuralmaintenance ofchromosome (SMC) complex, MukBEF, and topoisomerase IV (TopoIV) interactin vitrothrough a direct contact between the MukB dimerization hinge and the C-terminal domain of ParC, the catalytic subunit of TopoIV. The interaction stimulates catalysis by TopoIVin vitro. Using live-cell quantitative imaging, we show that MukBEF directs TopoIV toori, with fluorescent fusions of ParC and ParE both forming cellular foci that colocalize with those formed by MukBEF throughout the cell cycle and in cells unable to initiate DNA replication. Removal of MukBEF leads to loss of fluorescent ParC/ParE foci. In the absence of functional TopoIV, MukBEF forms multiple foci that are distributed uniformly throughout the nucleoid, whereas multiple catenatedoris cluster at midcell. Once functional TopoIV is restored, the decatenatedoris segregate to positions that are largely coincident with the MukBEF foci, thereby providing support for a mechanism by which MukBEF acts in chromosome segregation by positioning newly replicated and decatenatedoris. Additional evidence for such a mechanism comes from the observation that in TopoIV-positive (TopoIV+) cells, newly replicatedoris segregate rapidly to the positions of MukBEF foci. Taken together, the data implicate MukBEF as a key component of the DNA segregation process by acting in concert with TopoIV to promote decatenation and positioning of newly replicatedoris.IMPORTANCEMechanistic understanding of how newly replicated bacterial chromosomes are segregated prior to cell division is incomplete. In this work, we providein vivoexperimental support for the view that topoisomerase IV (TopoIV), which decatenates newly replicated sister duplexes as a prelude to successful segregation, is directed to the replication origin region of theEscherichia colichromosome by the SMC (structuralmaintenance ofchromosome) complex, MukBEF. We providein vivodata that support the demonstrationin vitrothat the MukB interaction with TopoIV stimulates catalysis by TopoIV. Finally, we show that MukBEF directs the normal positioning of sister origins after their replication and during their segregation. Overall, the data support models in which the coordinate and sequential action of TopoIV and MukBEF plays an important role during bacterial chromosome segregation.


mBio ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Bisicchia ◽  
Bradley Steel ◽  
Mekdes H. Mariam Debela ◽  
Jan Löwe ◽  
David Sherratt

ABSTRACTBacterial FtsK plays a key role in coordinating cell division with the late stages of chromosome segregation. The N-terminal membrane-spanning domain of FtsK is required for cell division, whereas the C-terminal domain is a fast double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) translocase that brings the replication termination region of the chromosome to midcell, where it facilitates chromosome unlinking by activating XerCD-difsite-specific recombination. Therefore, FtsK coordinates the late stages of chromosome segregation with cell division. Although the translocase is known to act as a hexamer on DNA, it is unknown when and how hexamers form, as is the number of FtsK molecules in the cell and within the divisome. Using single-molecule live-cell imaging, we show that newbornEscherichia colicells growing in minimal medium contain ~40 membrane-bound FtsK molecules that are largely monomeric; the numbers increase proportionately with cell growth. After recruitment to the midcell, FtsK is present only as hexamers. Hexamers are observed in all cells and form before any visible sign of cell constriction. An average of 7 FtsK hexamers per cell are present at midcell, with the N-terminal domain being able to hexamerize independently of the translocase. Detergent-solubilized and purified FtsK N-terminal domains readily form hexamers, as determined byin vitrobiochemistry, thereby supporting thein vivodata. The hexameric state of the FtsK N-terminal domain at the division site may facilitate assembly of a functional C-terminal DNA translocase on chromosomal DNA.IMPORTANCEIn the rod-shaped bacteriumEscherichia coli, more than a dozen proteins act at the cell center to mediate cell division, which initiates while chromosome replication and segregation are under way. The protein FtsK coordinates cell division with the late stages of chromosome segregation. The N-terminal part of FtsK is membrane embedded and acts in division, while the C-terminal part forms a hexameric ring on chromosomal DNA, which the DNA can translocate rapidly to finalize chromosome segregation. Using quantitative live-cell imaging, which measures the position and number of FtsK molecules, we show that in all cells, FtsK hexamers form only at the cell center at the initiation of cell division. Furthermore, the FtsK N-terminal portion forms hexamers independently of the C-terminal translocase.


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Dworkin ◽  
Goran Jovanovic ◽  
Peter Model

ABSTRACT In Eubacteria, expression of genes transcribed by an RNA polymerase holoenzyme containing the alternate sigma factor ς54 is positively regulated by proteins belonging to the family of enhancer-binding proteins (EBPs). These proteins bind to upstream activation sequences and are required for the initiation of transcription at the ς54-dependent promoters. They are typically inactive until modified in their N-terminal regulatory domain either by specific phosphorylation or by the binding of a small effector molecule. EBPs lacking this domain, such as the PspF activator of the ς54-dependent pspA promoter, are constitutively active. We describe here the in vivo and in vitro properties of the PspA protein of Escherichia coli, which negatively regulates expression of the pspA promoter without binding DNA directly.


1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (19) ◽  
pp. 6053-6062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen A. Sciochetti ◽  
Patrick J. Piggot ◽  
David J. Sherratt ◽  
Garry Blakely

ABSTRACT The Bacillus subtilis ripX gene encodes a protein that has 37 and 44% identity with the XerC and XerD site-specific recombinases of Escherichia coli. XerC and XerD are hypothesized to act in concert at the dif site to resolve dimeric chromosomes formed by recombination during replication. Cultures of ripX mutants contained a subpopulation of unequal-size cells held together in long chains. The chains included anucleate cells and cells with aberrantly dense or diffuse nucleoids, indicating a chromosome partitioning failure. This result is consistent with RipX having a role in the resolution of chromosome dimers inB. subtilis. Spores contain a single uninitiated chromosome, and analysis of germinated, outgrowing spores showed that the placement of FtsZ rings and septa is affected in ripXstrains by the first division after the initiation of germination. The introduction of a recA mutation into ripXstrains resulted in only slight modifications of the ripXphenotype, suggesting that chromosome dimers can form in a RecA-independent manner in B. subtilis. In addition to RipX, the CodV protein of B. subtilis shows extensive similarity to XerC and XerD. The RipX and CodV proteins were shown to bind in vitro to DNA containing the E. coli dif site. Together they functioned efficiently in vitro to catalyze site-specific cleavage of an artificial Holliday junction containing adif site. Inactivation of codV alone did not cause a discernible change in phenotype, and it is speculated that RipX can substitute for CodV in vivo.


Author(s):  
Ирина Владимировна Акулина ◽  
Светлана Ивановна Павлова ◽  
Ирина Семеновна Степаненко ◽  
Назира Сунагатовна Карамова ◽  
Александр Владиславович Сергеев ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  

Проведено токсикологическое исследование соединений с антибактериальными свойствами из группы терпенов ментанового ряда в условиях in vitro и in vivo: лимонена (B34), его производного (+)-1,2-оксида лимонена (B60) и серосодержащего монотерпенового соединения 2-(1’-гидрокси-4’-изопренил-1’-метилциклогексил-2’-тио)метилэтаноата (B65). В условиях in vitro (культура опухолевых клеток HeLa) изучаемые монотерпены в диапазоне концентраций 2 – 200 мкг/мл обладали цитотоксичностью. Ингибирующая концентрация (ИК50) для B34 составила 231 (167 – 295) мкг/мл, для B60 – 181 (105 – 257) мкг/мл, ИК50 B65 – 229 (150 – 308) мкг/мл. Исследование генотоксичности показало, что B34 и B65 в диапазоне концентраций 50 – 1000 мкг/мл не индуцируют SOS мутагенез в клетках Escherichia coli PQ37, тогда как B60 в концентрациях 500 и 1000 мкг/мл проявляет генотоксичность. In vivo в остром эксперименте на беспородных мышах установлена низкая токсичность B34 и его производных при различных путях введения. Наименьший показатель острой токсичности имеет B65, в связи с чем дополнительно на крысах проведено изучение его хронической токсичности. Ежедневное внутрижелудочное введение B65 в разовых дозах, составляющих 1/10 и 1/20 ЛД50 (1000 мг/кг и 500 мг/кг), в течение 1 мес не вызывало гибели животных, значимых нарушений общего состояния, изменения динамики массы тела, морфопатологических изменений. Внутрижелудочное введение B65 крысам в высокой токсической дозе 2000 мг/кг (1/5 ЛД50) в течение месяца вызывает патоморфологические изменения структуры печени.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 87-90
Author(s):  
S.V. Nikulin ◽  
V.A. Petrov ◽  
D.A. Sakharov

The real-time monitoring of electric capacitance (impedance spectroscopy) allowed obtaining evidence that structures which look like intestinal villi can be formed during the cultivation under static conditions as well as during the cultivation in microfluidic chips. It was shown in this work via transcriptome analysis that the Hh signaling pathway is involved in the formation of villus-like structures in vitro, which was previously shown for their formation in vivo. impedance spectroscopy, intestine, villi, electric capacitance, Hh The study was funded by the Russian Science Foundation (Project 16-19-10597).


Genetics ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 154 (2) ◽  
pp. 503-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hongbo Liu ◽  
Stephen R Hewitt ◽  
John B Hays

Abstract Previous studies have demonstrated that the Escherichia coli MutHLS mismatch-repair system can process UV-irradiated DNA in vivo and that the human MSH2·MSH6 mismatch-repair protein binds more strongly in vitro to photoproduct/base mismatches than to “matched” photoproducts in DNA. We tested the hypothesis that mismatch repair directed against incorrect bases opposite photoproducts might reduce UV mutagenesis, using two alleles at E. coli lacZ codon 461, which revert, respectively, via CCC → CTC and CTT → CTC transitions. F′ lacZ targets were mated from mut+ donors into mutH, mutL, or mutS recipients, once cells were at substantial densities, to minimize spontaneous mutation prior to irradiation. In umu+ mut+ recipients, a range of UV fluences induced lac+ revertant frequencies of 4–25 × 10−8; these frequencies were consistently 2-fold higher in mutH, mutL, or mutS recipients. Since this effect on mutation frequency was unaltered by an Mfd− defect, it appears not to involve transcription-coupled excision repair. In mut+ umuC122::Tn5 bacteria, UV mutagenesis (at 60 J/m2) was very low, but mutH or mutL or mutS mutations increased reversion of both lacZ alleles roughly 25-fold, to 5–10 × 10−8. Thus, at UV doses too low to induce SOS functions, such as Umu2′D, most incorrect bases opposite occasional photoproducts may be removed by mismatch repair, whereas in heavily irradiated (SOS-induced) cells, mismatch repair may only correct some photoproduct/base mismatches, so UV mutagenesis remains substantial.


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