title: Planctomycetes do possess a peptidoglycan cell wall.
abstract: Most bacteria contain a peptidoglycan (PG) cell wall, which is critical for maintenance of shape and important for cell division. In contrast, Planctomycetes have been proposed to produce a proteinaceous cell wall devoid of PG. The apparent absence of PG has been used as an argument for the putative planctomycetal ancestry of all bacterial lineages. Here we show, employing multiple bioinformatic methods, that planctomycetal genomes encode proteins required for PG synthesis. Furthermore, we biochemically demonstrate the presence of the sugar and the peptide components of PG in Planctomycetes. In addition, light and electron microscopic experiments reveal planctomycetal PG sacculi that are susceptible to lysozyme treatment. Finally, cryo-electron tomography demonstrates that Planctomycetes possess a typical PG cell wall and that their cellular architecture is thus more similar to that of other Gram-negative bacteria. Our findings shed new light on the cellular architecture and cell division of the maverick Planctomycetes.
authors.affiliation: Independent Junior Research Group Microbial Cell Biology and Genetics, Leibniz Institute-DSMZ, Inhoffenstraße 7b, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Jeske
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biochemistry, Am Klopferspitz 18, Martinsried 82152, Germany.
authors.forename: Margarete
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schüler
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Leibniz Institute-DSMZ, Inhoffenstraße 7b, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Schumann
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, Tübingen 72076, Germany.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.affiliation: Independent Junior Research Group Microbial Cell Biology and Genetics, Leibniz Institute-DSMZ, Inhoffenstraße 7b, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Boedeker
authors.affiliation: Independent Junior Research Group Microbial Cell Biology and Genetics, Leibniz Institute-DSMZ, Inhoffenstraße 7b, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Mareike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jogler
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biochemistry, Am Klopferspitz 18, Martinsried 82152, Germany.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bollschweiler
authors.affiliation: Research Group Molecular Mechanisms of Streptococci, Helmholtz Center for Infection Research GmbH, Inhoffenstraße 7, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Manfred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rohde
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, Tübingen 72076, Germany.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mayer
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biochemistry, Am Klopferspitz 18, Martinsried 82152, Germany.
authors.forename: Harald
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Engelhardt
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Leibniz Institute-DSMZ, Inhoffenstraße 7b, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Spring
authors.affiliation: Independent Junior Research Group Microbial Cell Biology and Genetics, Leibniz Institute-DSMZ, Inhoffenstraße 7b, Braunschweig 38124, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jogler
mesh_terms: D000117:Acetylglucosamine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D009112:Muramic Acids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D010457:Peptidoglycan / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D010802:Phylogeny; D061328:Planctomycetales / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D001618:beta-Lactamases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D009112:Muramic Acids; D010457:Peptidoglycan; C031651:N-acetylmuramic acid; D001618:beta-Lactamases; D000117:Acetylglucosamine