title: LeoA, B and C from enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) are bacterial dynamins.
abstract: Escherichia coli (ETEC) strain H10407 contains a GTPase virulence factor, LeoA, which is encoded on a pathogenicity island and has been shown to enhance toxin release, potentially through vesicle secretion. By sequence comparisons and X-ray structure determination we now identify LeoA as a bacterial dynamin-like protein (DLP). Proteins of the dynamin family remodel membranes and were once thought to be restricted to eukaryotes. In ETEC H10407 LeoA localises to the periplasm where it forms a punctate localisation pattern. Bioinformatic analyses of leoA and the two upstream genes leoB and leoC suggest that LeoA works in concert with a second dynamin-like protein, made up of LeoB and LeoC. Disruption of the leoAB genes leads to a reduction in secretion of periplasmic Tat-GFP and outer membrane OmpA. Our data suggest a role for LeoABC dynamin-like proteins in potentiating virulence through membrane vesicle associated toxin secretion.
authors.affiliation: MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Structural Studies Division, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Katharine A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Michie
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark.
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Boysen
authors.affiliation: MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Structural Studies Division, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Harry H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Low
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark.
authors.forename: Jakob
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Møller-Jensen
authors.affiliation: MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Structural Studies Division, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Löwe
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D034281:Dynamins / Q000235:genetics*; D054307:Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D044404:Genomic Islands / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000379:methods; D014774:Virulence / Q000235:genetics; D037521:Virulence Factors / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D037521:Virulence Factors; D034281:Dynamins