Abstract
The largest circular protein structures discovered define a class of transfer proteins acting in bacterial conjugation and type IV secretion. Proteins ranging from 73 to 78 residues with head-to-tail peptide bonds constitute the major subunit of conjugative pili of some type IV secretion systems. Their plasmid-encoded precursors are enzymatically processed and cyclized before being assembled into pili. These extra-cellular surface filaments mediate physical contact between donor and recipient cell or pathogen and host cell. Pili are essential prerequisites for DNA and protein transfer. A membrane-bound signal peptidase-like enzyme is responsible for the circularization reaction. Site-directed mutagenesis and mass spectrometry has been used extensively to unravel the mechanism of the enzyme-substrate interaction of the pilin maturation process.
Keywords: protein circlets, sex pilus subunits, type IV secretion systems, enzyme-substrate interaction
Current Protein & Peptide Science
Title: Protein Circlets as Sex Pilus Subunits
Volume: 5 Issue: 5
Author(s): Markus Kalkum, Ralf Eisenbrandt and Erich Lanka
Affiliation:
Keywords: protein circlets, sex pilus subunits, type IV secretion systems, enzyme-substrate interaction
Abstract: The largest circular protein structures discovered define a class of transfer proteins acting in bacterial conjugation and type IV secretion. Proteins ranging from 73 to 78 residues with head-to-tail peptide bonds constitute the major subunit of conjugative pili of some type IV secretion systems. Their plasmid-encoded precursors are enzymatically processed and cyclized before being assembled into pili. These extra-cellular surface filaments mediate physical contact between donor and recipient cell or pathogen and host cell. Pili are essential prerequisites for DNA and protein transfer. A membrane-bound signal peptidase-like enzyme is responsible for the circularization reaction. Site-directed mutagenesis and mass spectrometry has been used extensively to unravel the mechanism of the enzyme-substrate interaction of the pilin maturation process.
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Cite this article as:
Kalkum Markus, Eisenbrandt Ralf and Lanka Erich, Protein Circlets as Sex Pilus Subunits, Current Protein & Peptide Science 2004; 5 (5) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1389203043379639
DOI https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1389203043379639 |
Print ISSN 1389-2037 |
Publisher Name Bentham Science Publisher |
Online ISSN 1875-5550 |
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