Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2025
11:45
Fluorescence Live-cell Imaging of the Complete Vegetative Cell Cycle of the Slow-growing Social Bacterium Myxococcus xanthus
Published on: June 20, 2018
9.6K
The ClpX chaperone and a hypermorphic FtsA variant with impaired self-interaction are mutually compensatory for
Camilla Henriksen1, Kristoffer T Baek1, Katarzyna Wacnik2
1Department of Veterinary and Animal Disease, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark.
Molecular Microbiology
|December 2, 2023
Summary
Molecular chaperones like ClpX are crucial for bacterial cell division. ClpX regulates the FtsA protein, ensuring proper divisome assembly and preventing cell division errors.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Molecular Biology
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Bacterial cell division relies on the divisome, a complex protein machinery.
- The precise function of molecular chaperones in this process is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of ClpX unfoldase activity in bacterial cell division coordination.
- To elucidate the interaction between ClpX and the FtsA cell division protein.
Main Methods:
- Genetic analysis of Staphylococcus aureus clpX mutants.
- Characterization of FtsA G325V substitution and its effects on protein interactions and cell division.
- Phenotypic analysis of wild-type and mutant strains under various stress conditions.
Main Results:
- A clpX mutation's growth defect was rescued by an FtsA G325V substitution.
- FtsA G325V showed reduced self-interaction and altered dynamics, impacting septum synthesis.
- This FtsA variant mimicked superfission phenotypes and increased cell lysis risk, heat, and antibiotic sensitivity.
Conclusions:
- ClpX activity is essential for coordinating bacterial cell division by modulating FtsA interactions.
- ClpX promotes septum synthesis by antagonizing FtsA interactions.
- Protein unfoldases play a critical role in regulating bacterial cell division.
Related Concept Videos
02:20Cohesins
4.5K
Cohesin protein complexes are a molecular glue that holds two sister chromatids together. They play an important role both in mitosis and meiosis. In mitosis, all cohesin complexes present on the chromosomes are removed before the start of the anaphase stage.
Cohesin complexes in Meiotic Division
Meiosis involves two distinct rounds of chromosomal segregation and cell divisions— Meiosis I followed by Meiosis II – producing four daughter cells. Meiosis I includes the separation of...
Cohesin complexes in Meiotic Division
Meiosis involves two distinct rounds of chromosomal segregation and cell divisions— Meiosis I followed by Meiosis II – producing four daughter cells. Meiosis I includes the separation of...
4.5K
02:17Separation of Sister Chromatids
3.7K
At the transition from prophase to metaphase, there is a reduction in cohesion along the chromosomal arms, resulting in the resolution of sister chromatids. However, residual cohesin connections remain to hold the sister chromatids together until the transition from metaphase to anaphase. The residual connection prevents any premature separation of sister chromatids, blocking the risks of aneuploidy within the daughter cells.
At the onset of anaphase, separase, a proteolytic enzyme, is...
At the onset of anaphase, separase, a proteolytic enzyme, is...
3.7K
02:57Attachment of Sister Chromatids
3.3K
As cells progress into mitosis, the nuclear envelope breaks down, and the condensed chromosomes are exposed to the array of bipolar microtubules of the mitotic spindle. The kinetochore, a large, disc-shaped protein complex, is present at the centromere region of the sister chromatids and acts as a binding site for the microtubules. Usually, the plus-end of a single microtubule is embedded within the kinetochore. However, some kinetochores first establish lateral contact with the side-wall...
3.3K
02:19The Spindle Assembly Checkpoint
3.2K
The spindle assembly checkpoint is a molecular surveillance mechanism ensuring the fidelity of chromosome segregation during anaphase. The checkpoint monitors the completion of all the prerequisite steps before chromosome segregation to determine whether the segregation process should proceed or be delayed.
Many proteins function together to control the spindle assembly checkpoint. Mutations affecting these proteins may allow cells to proceed into anaphase prematurely, resulting in the...
Many proteins function together to control the spindle assembly checkpoint. Mutations affecting these proteins may allow cells to proceed into anaphase prematurely, resulting in the...
3.2K
01:29Cytoskeletal Proteins in Bacteria
3.4K
Bacterial cells were initially considered simple, randomly organized structures lacking a cytoskeleton. However, the discovery of cytoskeleton homologs in bacteria led to the change of this opinion. Bacterial cytoskeletal filaments regulate the cell shape, cell polarity, cell division, and partitioning of plasmids during cell division. It was later discovered that bacterial cytoskeletal proteins, mainly actin and tubulin homologs, are diverse compared to their eukaryotic counterparts. On the...
3.4K
00:50Anaphase Promoting Complex
2.9K
The stepwise destruction of specific proteins is necessary for the progression and completion of the cell cycle. Such proteins are ubiquitinated by ubiquitin ligases and then subsequently destroyed by the proteasome. The SCF (Skp1/Cullin/F-box) and the anaphase-promoting complex (APC) are two important ubiquitin ligases involved in cell cycle progression. While SCF is active throughout the cell cycle, APC gets activated during metaphase to anaphase transition. Cdc20 or Cdh1 binds to APC and...
2.9K