peptidoglycan
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologySeptal Class A Penicillin-Binding Protein Activity and ld-Transpeptidases Mediate Selection of Colistin-Resistant Lipooligosaccharide-Deficient Acinetobacter baumanniiThe increasing prevalence of antibiotic treatment failure associated with Gram-negative bacterial infections highlights an urgent need to develop new alternative therapeutic strategies. The last-line antimicrobial colistin (polymyxin E) targets the ubiquitous outer membrane lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/LOS membrane anchor, lipid A, which is essential for viability of most diderms.
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologySPOR Proteins Are Required for Functionality of Class A Penicillin-Binding Proteins in Escherichia coliEscherichia coli has four SPOR proteins that bind peptidoglycan, of which FtsN is essential for cell division. DamX and DedD are suggested to have semiredundant functions in cell division based on genetic evidence. Here, we solved the structure of the SPOR domain of DedD, and we show that both DamX and DedD interact with and stimulate the synthetic activity of the...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyA CozE Homolog Contributes to Cell Size Homeostasis of Streptococcus pneumoniaePenicillin-binding proteins (PBPs), the proteins catalyzing the last steps of peptidoglycan assembly, are critical for bacteria to maintain cell size, shape, and integrity. PBPs are consequently attractive targets for antibiotics. Resistance to antibiotics in Streptococcus pneumoniae (the pneumococcus) are often associated with mutations in the PBPs. In this work, we...
Minireview | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyBacterial Cell Wall Quality Control during Environmental StressNearly all bacteria are encased in a peptidoglycan cell wall, an essential polysaccharide structure that protects the cell from osmotic rupture and reinforces cell shape. The integrity of this protective barrier must be maintained across the diversity of environmental conditions wherein bacteria replicate. However, at the cell surface, the cell wall and its synthesis machinery face unique challenges that threaten their integrity....
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyRoles of ATP Hydrolysis by FtsEX and Interaction with FtsA in Regulation of Septal Peptidoglycan Synthesis and HydrolysisCytokinesis in Gram-negative bacteria requires coordinated invagination of the three layers of the cell envelope; otherwise, cells become sensitive to hydrophobic antibiotics and can even undergo cell lysis. In E. coli, the ABC transporter FtsEX couples the synthesis and hydrolysis of the stress-bearing peptidoglycan layer at the septum by interacting with...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyThe NtrYX Two-Component System Regulates the Bacterial Cell EnvelopeThe bacterial cell envelope provides many important functions. It protects cells from harsh environments, serves as a selective permeability barrier, houses bioenergetic functions, defines sensitivity to antibacterial agents, and plays a crucial role in biofilm formation, symbiosis, and virulence. Despite the important roles of this cellular compartment, we lack a detailed understanding of the biosynthesis and remodeling of the cell...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyThe Min System Disassembles FtsZ Foci and Inhibits Polar Peptidoglycan Remodeling in Bacillus subtilisMany bacteria grow and divide by binary fission in which a mother cell divides into two identical daughter cells. To produce two equally sized daughters, the division machinery, guided by FtsZ, must dynamically localize to the midcell each cell cycle. Here, we quantitatively analyzed FtsZ dynamics during growth and found that the Min system of Bacillus subtilis is...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyChlamydial MreB Directs Cell Division and Peptidoglycan Synthesis in Escherichia coli in the Absence of FtsZ ActivityThe study of Chlamydia growth and cell division is complicated by its obligate intracellular nature and biphasic lifestyle. Chlamydia also lacks the universal division protein FtsZ. We employed the cell division system of Escherichia coli as a surrogate to identify chlamydial cell division proteins. We demonstrate that chlamydial MreB, together with...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyBacterial Swarming Reduces Proteus mirabilis and Vibrio parahaemolyticus Cell Stiffness and Increases β-Lactam SusceptibilityProteus mirabilis and Vibrio parahaemolyticus are bacteria that infect humans. To adapt to environmental changes, these bacteria alter their cell morphology and move collectively to access new sources of nutrients in a process referred to as “swarming.” We found that changes in the composition and...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyA SpoIID Homolog Cleaves Glycan Strands at the Chlamydial Division SeptumChlamydiales species are obligate intracellular bacteria and important human pathogens that have a minimal division machinery lacking the proteins that are essential for bacterial division in other species, such as FtsZ. Chlamydial division requires synthesis of peptidoglycan, which forms a ring at the division septum and is rapidly turned over. However, little is known of peptidoglycan degradation, because many peptidoglycan-...