Pathfinders and trailblazers: a prokaryotic targeting system for transport of folded proteins.
The twin-arginine (Tat) protein translocase is a highly unusual protein transport machine that is dedicated to the movement of folded proteins across the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane. Proteins are targeted to the Tat pathway by means of N-terminal signal peptides harbouring a distinctive twin-arginine motif. In this minireview, we describe our current knowledge of the Tat system, paying particular attention to the function of the TatA protein and to the often overlooked step of signal peptide cleavage.
Sargent
Frank
F
School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK. f.sargent@uae.ac.uk
Berks
Ben C
BC
Palmer
Tracy
T
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011387:Prokaryotic Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D017510:Protein Folding; D021381:Protein Transport
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; C408585:twin-arginine translocase complex, E coli