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In vivo structures of an intact type VI secretion system revealed by electron cryotomography

Yi-Wei Chang, Lee A. Rettberg, Grant J. Jensen
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/108233
Yi-Wei Chang
1California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
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Lee A. Rettberg
2Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
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Grant J. Jensen
1California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
2Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
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  • For correspondence: jensen@caltech.edu
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SUMMARY

The type VI secretion system (T6SS) is a versatile molecular weapon used by many bacteria against eukaryotic hosts or prokaryotic competitors. It consists of a cytoplasmic bacteriophage tail-like structure anchored in the bacterial cell envelope via a cytoplasmic baseplate and a periplasmic membrane complex. Rapid contraction of the sheath in the bacteriophage tail-like structure propels an inner tube/spike complex through the target cell envelope to deliver effectors. While structures of purified contracted sheath and purified membrane complex have been solved, because sheaths contract upon cell lysis and purification, no structure is available for the extended sheath. Structural information about the baseplate is also lacking. Here we use electron cryotomography to directly visualize intact T6SS structures inside Myxococcus xanthus cells. Using sub-tomogram averaging, we resolve the structure of the extended sheath and membrane-associated components including the baseplate. Moreover, we identify novel extracellular bacteriophage tail fiber-like antennae. These results provide new structural insights into how the extended sheath prevents premature disassembly and how this sophisticated machine may recognize targets.

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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
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Posted February 14, 2017.
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In vivo structures of an intact type VI secretion system revealed by electron cryotomography
Yi-Wei Chang, Lee A. Rettberg, Grant J. Jensen
bioRxiv 108233; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/108233
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In vivo structures of an intact type VI secretion system revealed by electron cryotomography
Yi-Wei Chang, Lee A. Rettberg, Grant J. Jensen
bioRxiv 108233; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/108233

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