ESX/type VII secretion systems and their role in host-pathogen interaction
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2026

A Visual Assay to Monitor T6SS-mediated Bacterial Competition
Published on: March 20, 2013
Roxane Simeone1, Daria Bottai, Roland Brosch
1Institut Pasteur, UP Pathogénomique Mycobactérienne Intégrée, 25 Rue du Dr. Roux, 75724 Paris, France.
Abstract:
The ESX-1 system is responsible for the secretion of the prototypic ESX proteins, namely the 6 kDa early secreted antigenic target (ESAT-6) and the 10 kDa culture filtrate protein (CFP-10). These two proteins, which form a 1:1 heterodimeric complex, are among the most important proteins of Mycobacterium tuberculosis involved in host-pathogen interaction. They induce a strong T cell mediated immune response, are apparently involved in membrane and/or host-cell lysis and represent key virulence factors. There are four other paralogous ESX systems in M. tuberculosis, some of which are essential for in vitro growth. ESX systems also exist in many other actinobacteria and Gram-positive bacteria, and have recently been suggested to be named type VII secretion systems.
Related Concept Videos
Gram-negative Bacterial Protein Secretion Systems
Regulation of Bacterial Virulence
Determinants of Bacterial Pathogenicity and Virulence
Colonisation of Pathogens
Bacterial Gastroenteritis
Gene Regulation in Microbial Communities: Quorum Sensing

