title: A bacteriophage tubulin harnesses dynamic instability to center DNA in infected cells.
abstract: Dynamic instability, polarity, and spatiotemporal organization are hallmarks of the microtubule cytoskeleton that allow formation of complex structures such as the eukaryotic spindle. No similar structure has been identified in prokaryotes. The bacteriophage-encoded tubulin PhuZ is required to position DNA at mid-cell, without which infectivity is compromised. Here, we show that PhuZ filaments, like microtubules, stochastically switch from growing in a distinctly polar manner to catastrophic depolymerization (dynamic instability) both in vitro and in vivo. One end of each PhuZ filament is stably anchored near the cell pole to form a spindle-like array that orients the growing ends toward the phage nucleoid so as to position it near mid-cell. Our results demonstrate how a bacteriophage can harness the properties of a tubulin-like cytoskeleton for efficient propagation. This represents the first identification of a prokaryotic tubulin with the dynamic instability of microtubules and the ability to form a simplified bipolar spindle.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, United States.
authors.forename: Marcella L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Erb
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States.
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Kraemer
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, United States.
authors.forename: Joanna K C
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Coker
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, United States.
authors.forename: Vorrapon
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chaikeeratisak
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, United States.
authors.forename: Poochit
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nonejuie
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Agard
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, United States.
authors.forename: Joe
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pogliano
mesh_terms: D001435:Bacteriophages / Q000378:metabolism*; D004261:DNA Replication; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000378:metabolism*; D006868:Hydrolysis; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D008954:Models, Biological; D009711:Nucleotides / Q000378:metabolism; D058105:Polymerization; D008941:Spindle Apparatus / Q000378:metabolism; D059008:Time-Lapse Imaging; D014404:Tubulin / Q000378:metabolism*; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral; D009711:Nucleotides; D014404:Tubulin; D014764:Viral Proteins
keywords: bacteriophage; cell biology; cytoskeleton; dynamic instability; pseudomonas; spindle; tubulin