title: Sensory transduction to the flagellar motor of Sinorhizobium meliloti.
abstract: Molecular mechanisms that govern chemotaxis and motility in the nitrogen-fixing soil bacterium, Sinorhizobium meliloti, are distinguished from the well-studied taxis systems of enterobacteria by new features. (i) In addition to six transmembrane chemotaxis receptors, S. meliloti has two cytoplasmic receptor proteins, McpY (methyl-accepting chemotaxis protein) and IcpA (internal chemotaxis protein). (ii) The tactic response is mediated by two response regulators, CheY1 and CheY2, but no phosphatase, CheZ. Phosphorylated CheY2 (CheY2-P) is the main regulator of motor function, whereas CheY1 assumes the role of a 'sink' for phosphate that is shuttled from CheY2-P back to CheA. This phospho-transfer from surplus CheY2-P to CheA to CheY1 replaces CheZ phosphatase. (iii) S. meliloti flagella have a complex structure with three helical ribbons that render the filaments rigid and unable to undergo polymorphic transitions from right- to left-handedness. Flagella rotate only clockwise and their motors can increase and decrease rotary speed. Hence, directional changes of a swimming cell occur during slow-down, when several flagella rotate at different speed. Two novel motility proteins, the periplasmic MotC and the cytoplasmic MotD, are essential for motility and rotary speed variation. A model consistent with these data postulates a MotC-mediated gating of the energizing MotA-MotB proton channels leading to variations in flagellar rotary speed.
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Genetik, Universität Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Birgit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Scharf
authors.forename: Rüdiger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schmitt
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D005407:Flagella / Q000502:physiology*; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D009068:Movement; D015398:Signal Transduction; D016962:Sinorhizobium meliloti / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins