Interaction of nuclease colicins with membranes: insertion depth correlates with bilayer perturbation

Protein transport across cellular membranes is an important aspect of toxin biology. Escherichia coli cell killing by nuclease colicins occurs through DNA (DNases) or RNA (RNases) hydrolysis and to this end their cytotoxic domains require transportation across two sets of membranes. In order to begin to unravel the molecular mechanisms underlying the membrane translocation of colicin nuclease domains, we have analysed the membrane association of four DNase domains (E9, a charge reduction E9 mutant, E8, and E7) and one ribosomal RNase domain (E3) using a biomembrane model system.

We demonstrate, through the use of large unilamellar vesicles composed of synthetic and E. coli lipids and a membrane surface potential sensor, that the colicin nuclease domains bind anionic membranes only, with micromolar affinity and via a cooperative binding mechanism. The evaluation of the nuclease bilayer insertion depth, through a fluorescence quenching analysis using brominated lipids, indicates that the nucleases locate to differential regions in the bilayer. Colicin DNases target the interfacial region of the lipid bilayer, with the DNase E7 showing the deepest insertion, whereas the ribosomal RNase E3 penetrates into the hydrophobic core region of the bilayer. Furthermore, the membrane association of the DNase E7 and the ribosomal RNase E3 induces vesicle aggregation, lipid mixing and content leakage to a much larger extent than that of the other DNases analysed.

Our results show, for the first time, that after the initial electrostatically driven membrane association, the pleiotropic membrane effects induced by colicin nuclease domains relate to their bilayer insertion depth and may be linked to their in vivo membrane translocation.