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Updated: Apr 15, 2026

High-throughput Method for Observing Motility Phenotypes in Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Published on: June 20, 2025
Biogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa type IV pili and regulation of their function
Tiffany L Leighton1, Ryan N C Buensuceso1, P Lynne Howell2,3
1Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
Abstract:
Type IV pili (T4P) are bacterial virulence factors involved in a wide variety of functions including deoxyribonucleic acid uptake, surface attachment, biofilm formation and twitching motility. While T4P are common surface appendages, the systems that assemble them and the regulation of their function differ between species. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Neisseria spp. and Myxococcus xanthus are common model systems used to study T4P biology. This review focuses on recent advances in P. aeruginosa T4P structural biology, and the regulatory pathways controlling T4P biogenesis and function.
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