Jan Löwe, Linda A. Amos
Helical Tubes of FtsZ from Methanococcus jannaschii
Bacterial cell division depends on the formation of a
cytokinetic ring structure, the Z-ring. The bacterial
tubulin homologue FtsZ is required for Z-ring formation.
FtsZ assembles into various polymeric forms in
vitro, indicating a structural role in the septum of bacteria.
We have used recombinant FtsZ1 protein from
M. jannaschii to produce helical tubes and sheets with
high yield using the GTP analogue GMPCPP [guanylyl-(?,?)-methylene-diphosphate]. The sheets appear
identical to the previously reported Ca++-induced
sheets of FtsZ from M. jannaschii that were shown to
consist of ‘thick’-filaments in which two protofilaments
run in parallel. Tubes assembled either in Ca++
or in GMPCPP contain filaments whose dimensions indicate
that they could be equivalent to the ‘thick’-filaments
in sheets. Some tubes are hollow but others are
filled by additional protein density. Helical FtsZ tubes
differ from eukaryotic microtubules in that the filaments
curve around the filament axis with a pitch
of ~ 430 ? for Ca++-induced tubes or 590–620 ? for
GMPCPP. However, their assembly in vitro as well-ordered
polymers over distances comparable to the
inner circumference of a bacterium may indicate a role
in vivo. Their size and stability make them suitable for
use in motility assays.
Biological Chemistry, Walter de Gruyter
Print ISSN: 1431-6730
Volume: 381, 09/2000
Pages: 993 - 999
Show full article (external site)
Show all available items of this journal
Search
