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The Molecular Basis of FimT-mediated DNA Uptake during Bacterial Natural Transformation

View ORCID ProfileSebastian A.G. Braus, View ORCID ProfileFrancesca L. Short, Stefanie Holz, Matthew J.M. Stedman, View ORCID ProfileAlvar D. Gossert, View ORCID ProfileManuela K. Hospenthal
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.08.16.456509
Sebastian A.G. Braus
1Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zürich, Otto-Stern-Weg 5, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
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  • ORCID record for Sebastian A.G. Braus
Francesca L. Short
2Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
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Stefanie Holz
1Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zürich, Otto-Stern-Weg 5, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
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Matthew J.M. Stedman
1Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zürich, Otto-Stern-Weg 5, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
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Alvar D. Gossert
1Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zürich, Otto-Stern-Weg 5, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
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Manuela K. Hospenthal
1Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zürich, Otto-Stern-Weg 5, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
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  • For correspondence: manuela.hospenthal@mol.biol.ethz.ch
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Abstract

Naturally competent bacteria encode sophisticated protein machineries for the uptake and translocation of exogenous DNA into the cell. If this DNA is integrated into the bacterial genome, the bacterium is said to be naturally transformed. Most competent bacterial species utilise type IV pili for the initial DNA uptake step. These proteinaceous cell-surface structures are composed of thousands of pilus subunits (pilins), designated as major or minor according to their relative abundance in the pilus. In this study, we show that the minor pilin FimT plays an important role in the natural transformation of Legionella pneumophila. We used NMR spectroscopy, in vitro DNA binding assays and in vivo transformation assays to understand the molecular basis of FimT’s role in this process. FimT directly interacts with DNA via an electropositive patch, rich in arginines, several of which are well-conserved and located in FimT’s conformationally flexible C-terminal tail. We also show that FimT orthologues from other γ-Proteobacteria share the ability to bind to DNA. Our functional characterisation and comprehensive bioinformatic analysis of FimT, suggest that it plays an important role for DNA uptake in a wide range of competent species.

Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

Copyright 
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 August 16, 2021.
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The Molecular Basis of FimT-mediated DNA Uptake during Bacterial Natural Transformation
Sebastian A.G. Braus, Francesca L. Short, Stefanie Holz, Matthew J.M. Stedman, Alvar D. Gossert, Manuela K. Hospenthal
bioRxiv 2021.08.16.456509; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.08.16.456509
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The Molecular Basis of FimT-mediated DNA Uptake during Bacterial Natural Transformation
Sebastian A.G. Braus, Francesca L. Short, Stefanie Holz, Matthew J.M. Stedman, Alvar D. Gossert, Manuela K. Hospenthal
bioRxiv 2021.08.16.456509; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.08.16.456509

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