TY - JOUR
T1 - Assembly of complex organelles
T2 - Pilus biogenesis in gram-negative bacteria as a model system
AU - Thanassi, David G.
AU - Hultgren, Scott J.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank members of the Hultgren laboratory for helpful discussions and suggestions, and Frederic G. Sauer for providing Fig. 4. This work was supported by National Institutes of Health Grants R01AI29549 and R01DK51406 to S.J.H., and National Institutes of Health Fellowship GM18201 to D.G.T.
PY - 2000/1
Y1 - 2000/1
N2 - Pathogenic bacteria assemble a variety of adhesive structures on their surface for attachment to host cells. Some of these structures are quite complex. For example, the hair-like organelles known as pili or fimbriae are generally composed of several components and often exhibit composite morphologies. In Gram-negative bacteria assembly of pili requires that the subunits cross the cytoplasmic membrane, fold correctly in the periplasm, target to the outer membrane, assemble into an ordered structure, and cross the outer membrane to the cell surface. Thus, pilus biogenesis provides a model for a number of basic biological problems including protein folding, trafficking, secretion, and the ordered assembly of proteins into complex structures. P pilus biogenesis represents one of the best understood pilus systems. P pili are produced by 80-90% of all pyelonephritic Escherichia coli and are a major virulence determinant for urinary tract infections. Two specialized assembly factors known as the periplasmic chaperone and outer membrane usher are required for P pilus assembly. A chaperone/usher pathway is now known to be required for the biogenesis of more than 30 different adhesive structures in diverse Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria. Elucidation of the chaperone/usher pathway was brought about through a powerful combination of molecular, biochemical, and biophysical techniques. This review discusses these approaches as they relate to pilus assembly, with an emphasis on newer techniques. (C) 2000 Academic Press.
AB - Pathogenic bacteria assemble a variety of adhesive structures on their surface for attachment to host cells. Some of these structures are quite complex. For example, the hair-like organelles known as pili or fimbriae are generally composed of several components and often exhibit composite morphologies. In Gram-negative bacteria assembly of pili requires that the subunits cross the cytoplasmic membrane, fold correctly in the periplasm, target to the outer membrane, assemble into an ordered structure, and cross the outer membrane to the cell surface. Thus, pilus biogenesis provides a model for a number of basic biological problems including protein folding, trafficking, secretion, and the ordered assembly of proteins into complex structures. P pilus biogenesis represents one of the best understood pilus systems. P pili are produced by 80-90% of all pyelonephritic Escherichia coli and are a major virulence determinant for urinary tract infections. Two specialized assembly factors known as the periplasmic chaperone and outer membrane usher are required for P pilus assembly. A chaperone/usher pathway is now known to be required for the biogenesis of more than 30 different adhesive structures in diverse Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria. Elucidation of the chaperone/usher pathway was brought about through a powerful combination of molecular, biochemical, and biophysical techniques. This review discusses these approaches as they relate to pilus assembly, with an emphasis on newer techniques. (C) 2000 Academic Press.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0034051753&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1006/meth.1999.0910
DO - 10.1006/meth.1999.0910
M3 - Article
C2 - 10610809
AN - SCOPUS:0034051753
SN - 1046-2023
VL - 20
SP - 111
EP - 126
JO - Methods
JF - Methods
IS - 1
ER -