Bacterial cell division protein FtsZ complexes with a phage protein to activate bacterial immunity - PubMed
2 hours ago
- #phage defense
- #bacterial immunity
- #FtsZ complex
- CapRelEbc, an antiphage defense protein from Enterobacter chengduensis, senses the T7 phage protein Gp0.4 in complex with the host bacterial factor FtsZ to activate immunity.
- During T7 infection, Gp0.4 sequesters monomeric FtsZ, inhibiting its polymerization and blocking bacterial cell division, and only the Gp0.4-FtsZ complex triggers CapRelEbc activity.
- Structural modeling and hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry indicate that Gp0.4, FtsZ, and CapRelEbc form a ternary complex that activates phage defense.
- The work reveals that bacterial immune system activation can involve host factors targeted by phages, similar to effector-triggered immunity in eukaryotic innate immune systems.