title: Identification of Escherichia coli ZapC (YcbW) as a component of the division apparatus that binds and bundles FtsZ polymers.
abstract: Assembly of the cell division apparatus in bacteria starts with formation of the Z ring on the cytoplasmic face of the membrane. This process involves the accumulation of FtsZ polymers at midcell and their interaction with several FtsZ-binding proteins that collectively organize the polymers into a membrane-associated ring-like configuration. Three such proteins, FtsA, ZipA, and ZapA, have previously been identified in Escherichia coli. FtsA and ZipA are essential membrane-associated division proteins that help connect FtsZ polymers with the inner membrane. ZapA is a cytoplasmic protein that is not required for the fission process per se but contributes to its efficiency, likely by promoting lateral interactions between FtsZ protofilaments. We report the identification of YcbW (ZapC) as a fourth FtsZ-binding component of the Z ring in E. coli. Binding of ZapC promotes lateral interactions between FtsZ polymers and suppresses FtsZ GTPase activity. This and additional evidence indicate that, like ZapA, ZapC is a nonessential Z-ring component that contributes to the efficiency of the division process by stabilizing the polymeric form of FtsZ.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, 10900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106-4960, USA.
authors.forename: Cynthia A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Hale
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Shiomi
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Thomas G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Bernhardt
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Margolin
authors.forename: Hironori
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Niki
authors.forename: Piet A J
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: de Boer
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D002455:Cell Division; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000502:physiology*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D011485:Protein Binding; D055503:Protein Multimerization
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; C071525:FtsZ protein, Bacteria; C557498:ZapC protein, E coli