Specific location of penicillin-binding proteins within the cell envelope of Escherichia coli.

This communication deals with the location of penicillin-binding proteins in the cell envelope of Escherichia coli. For this purpose, bacterial cells have been broken by various procedures and their envelopes have been fractioned. To do so, inner (cytoplasmic) and outer membranes were separated by isopycnic centrifugation in sucrose gradients. Some separation methods (Osborn et al., J. Biol. Chem. 247:3962-3972, 1972; J. Smit, Y. Kamio, and H. Nikaido, J. Bacteriol. 124:942-958, 1975) revealed that penicillin-binding proteins are not exclusively located in the inner membrane. They are also found in the outer membrane (A. Rodríguez-Tébar, J. A. Barbas, and D. Vásquez, J. Bacteriol. 161:243-248, 1985). Under the milder conditions for cell rupture used in this work, an intermembrane fraction, sedimenting between the inner and outer membrane, can be recovered from the gradients. This fraction has a high content of both penicillin-binding proteins and phospholipase B activity and may correspond to the intermembrane adhesion sites (M. H. Bayer, G. P. Costello, and M. E. Bayer, J. Bacteriol. 149:758-769, 1982). We postulate that this intermembrane fraction is a labile structure that contains a high amount of all penicillin-binding proteins which are usually found in both the inner and outer membranes when the adhesion sites are destroyed by the cell breakage and fractionation procedures.     

Isolation of the outer membranes from Treponema pallidum and Treponema vincentii.

The outer membranes from Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum and Treponema vincentii were isolated by a novel method. Purified outer membranes from T. pallidum and T. vincentii following sucrose gradient centrifugation banded at 7 and 31% (wt/wt) sucrose, respectively. Freeze fracture electron microscopy of purified membrane vesicles from T. pallidum and T. vincentii revealed an extremely low density of protein particles; the particle density of T. pallidum was approximately six times less than that of T. vincentii. The great majority of T. vincentii lipopolysaccharide was found in the outer membrane preparation. The T. vincentii outer membrane also contained proteins of 55 and 65 kDa. 125I-penicillin V labeling demonstrated that t. pallidum penicillin-binding proteins were found exclusively with the protoplasmic cylinders and were not detectable with purified outer membrane material, indicating the absence of inner membrane contamination. Isolated T. pallidum outer membrane was devoid of the 19-kDa 4D protein and the normally abundant 47-kDa lipoprotein known to be associated with the cytoplasmic membrane; only trace amounts of the periplasmic endoflagella were detected. Proteins associated with the T. pallidum outer membrane were identified by one- and two-dimensional electrophoretic analysis using gold staining and immunoblotting. Small amounts of strongly antigenic 17- and 45-kDa proteins were detected and shown to correspond to previously identified lipoproteins which are found principally with the cytoplasmic membrane. Less antigenic proteins of 65, 31 (acidic pI), 31 (basic pI), and 28 kDa were identified. Compared with whole-organism preparations, the 65- and the more basic 31-kDa proteins were found to be highly enriched in the outer membrane preparation, indicating that they may represent the T. pallidum rare outer membrane proteins. Reconstitution of solubilized T. pallidum outer membrane into lipid bilayer membranes revealed porin activity with two estimated channel diameters of 0.35 and 0.68 nm based on the measured single-channel conductances in 1 M KCl of 0.40 and 0.76 nS, respectively.     

Mutants of Caulobacter crescentus resistant to beta-lactam antibiotics

A number of mutants of Caulobacter crescentus CB15 resistant ot ampicillin were isolated. The mutants differred in their resistance to several beta-lactam antibiotics. No differences in composition of the penicillin-binding proteins of the mutants compared to the parental strain, or in the affinity of these proteins to penicillin or ampicillin were found. The mutants were found to differ from the parent and also in many cases from each other in outer membrane protein composition.     

New ways to make old walls: bacterial surprises

Two papers in this issue of Cell (Paradis-Bleau et?al., 2010 and Typas et?al., 2010) report that the lipoproteins LpoA and LpoB are required for the synthesis of cell walls in Escherichia coli. Attached to the bacterial outer membrane, these new cell wall components regulate penicillin-binding proteins located at the inner membrane.     

Sensitivity of Escherichia coli to various beta-lactams is determined by the interplay of outer membrane permeability and degradation by periplasmic beta-lactamases: a quantitative predictive treatment

In Gram-negative bacteria, beta-lactam antibiotics must overcome two barriers, the outer membrane and the periplasmic beta-lactamase, before they reach the targets of their action, penicillin-binding proteins. Although the barrier property of the outer membrane and catalytic property of the beta-lactamases have been studied and their significance in creating beta-lactam resistance emphasized, the interaction between these two barriers has not been treated quantitatively. Such treatment shows that the sensitivity, to a variety of beta-lactams, of the Escherichia coli K-12 cells containing very different levels of chromosomally coded AmpC beta-lactamase, or a plasmid-coded TEM-type beta-lactamase, can be predicted rather accurately from the penetration rate through the outer membrane and the hydrolysis rate in the periplasm. We further propose a new parameter, 'target access index', which is a quantitative expression of the result of interaction between the two barriers, and reflects the probability of success for the antibiotic to reach the targets.     

Localization of GerAA and GerAC germination proteins in the Bacillus subtilis spore.

The GerAA, -AB, and -AC proteins of the Bacillus subtilis spore are required for the germination response to L-alanine as the sole germinant. They are likely to encode the components of the germination apparatus that respond directly to this germinant, mediating the spore's response; multiple homologues of the gerA genes are found in every spore former so far examined. The gerA operon is expressed in the forespore, and the level of expression of the operon appears to be low. The GerA proteins are predicted to be membrane associated. In an attempt to localize GerA proteins, spores of B. subtilis were broken and fractionated to give integument, membrane, and soluble fractions. Using antibodies that detect Ger proteins specifically, as confirmed by the analysis of strains lacking GerA and the related GerB proteins, the GerAA protein and the GerAC+GerBC protein homologues were localized to the membrane fraction of fragmented spores. The spore-specific penicillin-binding protein PBP5*, a marker for the outer forespore membrane, was absent from this fraction. Extraction of spores to remove coat layers did not release the GerAC or AA protein from the spores. Both experimental approaches suggest that GerAA and GerAC proteins are located in the inner spore membrane, which forms a boundary around the cellular compartment of the spore. The results provide support for a model of germination in which, in order to initiate germination, germinant has to permeate the coat and cortex of the spore and bind to a germination receptor located in the inner membrane.     

Quantitative proteomic analysis of cell wall and plasma membrane fractions from multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii

Acinetobacter baumannii is a Gram-negative, nonmotile aerobic bacterium that has emerged as an important nosocomial pathogen. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) A. baumannii is difficult to treat with antibiotics, and treatment failure in infected patients is of great concern in clinical settings. To investigate proteome regulation in A. baumannii under antibiotic stress conditions, quantitative membrane proteomic analyses of a clinical MDR A. baumannii strain cultured in subminimal inhibitory concentrations of tetracycline and imipenem were performed using a combination of label-free (one-dimensional electrophoresis-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry) and label (isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation) approaches. In total, 484 proteins were identified, and 302 were classified as outer membrane, periplasmic, or plasma membrane proteins. The clinical A. baumannii strain DU202 responded specifically and induced different cell wall and membrane protein sets that provided resistance to the antibiotics. The induction of resistance-nodulation-cell division transporters and protein kinases, and the repression of outer membrane proteins were common responses in the presence of tetracycline and imipenem. Induction of a tetracycline resistant pump, ribosomal proteins, and iron-uptake transporters appeared to be dependent on tetracycline conditions, whereas β-lactamase and penicillin-binding proteins appeared to be dependent on imipenem conditions. These results suggest that combined liquid chromatography-based proteomic approaches can be used to identify cell wall and membrane proteins involved in the antibiotic resistance of A. baumannii.     

Loss of O-antigen increases cell shape abnormalities in penicillin-binding protein mutants of Escherichia coli

Escherichia coli mutants lacking multiple penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) produce aberrantly shaped cells. However, most of these experiments have been performed in E. coli K12 strains, which do not attach a complete O-antigen to their outer membrane lipopolysaccharide. We constructed mutants in different genetic backgrounds and found that the frequency of morphological deformities was higher in strains lacking the O-antigen. Also, complementing O-negative mutants with a heterologous O-antigen from Klebsiella returned a substantial fraction of misshapen cells to a normal morphology. Thus, the O-antigen contributes to cell shape in E. coli, perhaps by reducing the number of ectopic poles, which may be the proximal cause of shape abnormalities.     

The nucleotide sequences of the ponA and ponB genes encoding penicillin-binding protein 1A and 1B of Escherichia coli K12

Penicillin-binding proteins 1A and 1B of Escherichia coli are the major peptidoglycan transglycosylase-transpeptidases that catalyse the polymerisation and insertion of peptidoglycan precursors into the bacterial cell wall during cell elongation. The nucleotide sequence of a 2764-base-pair fragment of DNA that contained the ponA gene, encoding penicillin-binding protein 1A, was determined. The sequence predicted that penicillin-binding protein 1A had a relative molecular mass of 93 500 (850 amino acids). The amino-terminus of the protein had the features of a signal peptide but it is not known if this peptide is removed during insertion of the protein into the cytoplasmic membrane. The nucleotide sequence of a 2758-base-pair fragment of DNA that contained the ponB gene, encoding penicillin-binding protein 1B, was also determined. Penicillin-binding protein 1B consists of two major components which were shown to result from the use of alternative sites for the initiation of translation. The large and small forms of penicillin-binding protein 1B were predicted to have relative molecular masses of 94 100 and 88 800 (844 and 799 amino acids). The amino acid sequences of penicillin-binding proteins 1A and 1B could be aligned if two large gaps were introduced into the latter sequence and the two proteins then showed about 30% identity. The amino acid sequences of the proteins showed no extensive similarity to the sequences of penicillin-binding proteins 3 or 5, or to the class A or class C beta-lactamases. Two short regions of amino acid similarity were, however, found between penicillin-binding proteins 1A and 1B and the other penicillin-binding proteins and beta-lactamases. One of these included the predicted active-site serine residue which was located towards the middle of the sequences of penicillin-binding proteins 1A, 1B and 3, within the conserved sequence Gly-Ser-Xaa-Xaa-Lys-Pro. The other region was 19-40 residues to the amino-terminal side of the active-site serine and may be part of a conserved penicillin-binding site in these proteins.     

Sensitivity of Escherichia coli to various β-lactams is determined by the interplay of outer membrane permeability and degradation by periplasmic β-lactamases: a quantitative predictive treatment

In Gram-negative bacteria, β-lactam antibiotics must overcome two barriers, the outer membrane and the periplasmic β-lactamase, before they reach the targets of their action, penicillin-binding proteins. Although the barrier property of the outer membrane and catalytic property of the β-lactamases have been studied and their significance in creating β-lactam resistance emphasized, the interaction between these two barriers has not been treated quantitatively. Such treatment shows that the sensitivity, to a variety of β-lactams, of the Escherichia coli K-12 cells containing very different levels of chromosomally coded AmpC β-lactamase, or a plasmid-coded TEM-type β-lactamase, can be predicted rather accurately from the penetration rate through the outer membrane and the hydrolysis rate in the periplasm. We further propose a new parameter,‘target access Index', which is a quantitative expression of the result of interaction between the two barriers, and reflects the probability of success for the antibiotic to reach the targets.     

Fractionation of the Providencia stuartii cell envelope

Cell envelopes (i.e. unfractionated inner and outer membranes) were obtained from Providencia stuartii by following procedures previously applied to the isolation of envelopes from Escherichia coli. The P. stuartii envelopes contained known inner membrane enzymes that included a variety of dehydrogenases and ATPase. The catalytic activity of the ATPase depended upon the concentration of magnesium ions, the substrate (ATP) level and the ratio of magnesium ions to ATP. Cell envelopes from P. stuartii were further fractionated to recover inner and outer membrane polypeptides by treatment with the detergent Sarkosyl. Proteins from the periplasmic region were recovered by a simple osmotic shock procedure also previously applied to E. coli. The purity of the various P. stuartii cell envelope fractions was assessed by a combination of techniques that included one- and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of proteins, enzyme assays and detection of penicillin-binding proteins.     

Branching sites and morphological abnormalities behave as ectopic poles in shape-defective Escherichia coli

Certain mutants in Escherichia coli lacking multiple penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) produce misshapen cells containing kinks, bends and branches. These deformed regions exhibit two structural characteristics of normal cell poles: the peptidoglycan is inert to dilution by new synthesis or turnover, and a similarly stable patch of outer membrane caps the sites. To test the premise that these aberrant sites represent biochemically functional but misplaced cell poles, we assessed the intracellular distribution of proteins that localize specifically to bacterial poles. Green fluorescent protein (GFP) hybrids containing polar localization sequences from the Shigella flexneri IcsA protein or from the Vibrio cholerae EpsM protein formed foci at the poles of wild-type E. coli and at the poles and morphological abnormalities in PBP mutants. In addition, secreted wild-type IcsA localized to the outer membrane overlying these aberrant domains. We conclude that the morphologically deformed sites in these mutants represent fully functional poles or pole fragments. The results suggest that prokaryotic morphology is driven, at least in part, by the controlled placement of polar material, and that one or more of the low-molecular-weight PBPs participate in this process. Such mutants may help to unravel how particular proteins are targeted to bacterial poles, thereby creating important biochemical and functional asymmetries.     

Classification of phospholipases A2 according to sequence. Evolutionary and pharmacological implications

The inhibition of elongation of Bacillus megaterium KM growing in the presence of low concentrations of nocardicin A resulted in the production of osmotically stable, actively dividing coccal-shaped cells. Saturation of penicillin-binding proteins 3a and 3b with nocardicin A in vivo at these concentrations was correlated with the inhibition of cell elongation. Analysis of the DD-carboxypeptidase activity of isolated vegetative membranes of B. megaterium KM in vitro indicated that penicillin-binding protein 4 is not a DD-carboxypeptidase under the assay conditions used. Penicillin-binding proteins were analysed by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and the suitability of lysozyme treatment of cells as a method of membrane preparation was investigated with regard to the detection of proteins with highly labile penicillin-binding activities in vitro.     

Cephalosporin-sensitive penicillin-binding proteins of Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis active in the conversion of [14C]penicillin G to [14C]phenylacetylglycine.

Breakdown of the covalent complex formed between [14C]penicillin G and higher molecular weight, cephalosporin-sensitive penicillin-binding proteins was studied using mixtures of the purified proteins isolated from membranes of Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis. These penicillin-binding proteins were found to release the bound 14C label in a first order process characterized by half-lives of 10 to 300 min at 37 degrees C. Denaturation of the penicilloyl.penicillin-binding proctein complex prevented this release, indicating that the process is enzyme-catalyzed. [14C]Phenylacetylglycine was identified as the major labeled fragmentation product, indicating that these cephalosporin-sensitive penicillin-binding proteins, for which no in vitro transpeptidase or carboxypeptidase activity has been found, catalyze the same fragmentation of the bound penicilloyl moiety previously described for several penicillin-sensitive D-alanine carboxypeptidases.     

Insertion of newly synthesized proteins into the outer membrane of Escherichia coli.

The insertion of newly synthesized proteins into the outer membrane of Escherichia coli has been examined. The results show that there is no precurser pool of outer membrane proteins in the cytoplasmic membrane because first, the incorporation of a [35S]methionine pulse into outer membrane proteins completely parallels its incorporation into cytoplasmic membrane proteins, and second, under optimal isolation conditions, no outer membrane proteins are found in the cytoplasmic membrane, even when the membranes are analysed after being labeled for only 15 s. The [35S]methionine present in the outer membrane after a pulse of 15 s was found in protein fragments of varying sizes rather than in specific outer membrane proteins. This label could however be chased into specific proteins within 30--120 s, depending on the size of the protein, indicating that although unfinished protein fragments were present in the outer membrane, they were completed by subsequent chain elongation. Thus, outer membrane proteins are inserted into the outer membrane while still attached to ribosomes. Since ribosomes which are linked to the cell envelope by nascent polypeptide chains are stationary, the mRNA which is being translated by these ribosomes moves along the inner cell surface.     

Insertion of newly synthesized proteins into the outer membrane of Escherichia coli

The insertion of newly synthesized proteins into the outer membrane of Escherichia coli has been examined. The results show that there is no precursor pool of outer membrane proteins in the cytoplasmic membrane because first, the incorporation of a [³⁵S]methionine pulse into outer membrane proteins completely parallels its incorporation into cytoplasmic membrane proteins, and second, under optimal isolation conditions, no outer membrane proteins are found in the cytoplasmic membrane, even when the membranes are analysed after being labeled for only 15 s.The [³⁵S]methionine present in the outer membrane after a pulse of 15 s was found in protein fragments of varying sizes rather than in specific outer membrane proteins. This label could however be chased into specific proteins within 30–120 s, depending on the size of the protein, indicating that although unfinished protein fragments were present in the outer membrane, they were completed by subsequent chain elongation.Thus, outer membrane proteins are inserted into the outer membrane while still attached to ribosomes. Since ribosomes which are linked to the cell envelope by nascent polypeptide chains are stationary, the mRNA which is being translated by these ribosomes moves along the inner cell surface.     

Nature of the regions involved in the insertion of newly synthesized protein into the outer membrane of Escherichia coli.

Outer membrane proteins are synthesized by cytoplasmic membrane-bound polysomes, and inserted at insertion sites which cover about 10% of the total outer membrane when cells grow with a generation time of 1 h. A membrane fraction enriched in outer membrane insertion regions was isolated and partly characterized. The rat at which newly inserted proteins are transferred from such insertion regions into the rest of the outer membrane was found to be very fast; the new protein content of insertion regions and that of the remaining outer membrane equilibrate completely within about 20 s at 25 degrees C. Given the rather rigid structure of the outer membrane and the multiple interactions between outer membrane components and the murein layer, lateral diffusion of newly inserted proteins from insertion sites to the remaining outer membrane is not likely to explain this rapid equilibration. Instead, the data support a model in which insertion regions move along the cell surface, leaving behind stationary, newly inserted outer membrane proteins.     

Molecular architecture and function of the Omp85 family of proteins

Omp85 is a protein found in Gram-negative bacteria where it serves to integrate proteins into the bacterial outer membrane. Members of the Omp85 family of proteins are defined by the presence of two domains: an N-terminal, periplasmic domain rich in POTRA repeats and a C-terminal beta-barrel domain embedded in the outer membrane. The widespread distribution of Omp85 family members together with their fundamental role in outer membrane assembly suggests the ancestral Omp85 arose early in the evolution of prokaryotic cells. Mitochondria, derived from an ancestral bacterial endosymbiont, also use a member of the Omp85 family to assemble proteins in their outer membranes. More distant relationships are seen between the Omp85 family and both the core proteins in two-partner secretion systems and the Toc75 family of protein translocases found in plastid outer envelopes. Aspects of the ancestry and molecular architecture of the Omp85 family of proteins is providing insight into the mechanism by which proteins might be integrated and assembled into bacterial outer membranes.     

Nature of the regions involved in the insertion of newly synthesized protein into the outer membrane of Escherichia coli

Outer membrane proteins are synthesized by cytoplasmic membrane-bound polysomes, and inserted at insertion sites which cover about 10% of the total outer membrane when cells grow with a generation time of 1 h. A membrane fraction enriched in outer membrane insertion regions was isolated and partly characterized. The rate at which newly inserted proteins are transferred from such insertion regions into the rest of the outer membrane was found to be very fast; the new protein content of insertion regions and that of the remaining outer membrane equilibrate completely within about 20 s at 25°C.Given the rather rigid structure of the outer membrane and the multiple interactions between outer membane components and the murein layer, lateral diffusion of newly inserted proteins from insertion sites to the remaining outer membrane is not likely to explain this rapid equilibration. Instead, the data support a model in which mobile insertion regions move along the cell surface, leaving behind stationary, newly inserted outer membrane proteins.     

Selective release of the Treponema pallidum outer membrane and associated polypeptides with Triton X-114.

The effects of the nonionic detergent Triton X-114 on the ultrastructure of Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum are presented in this study. Treatment of Percoll-purified motile T. pallidum with a 1% concentration of Triton X-114 resulted in cell surface blebbing followed by lysis of blebs and a decrease in diameter from 0.25-0.35 micron to 0.1-0.15 micron. Examination of thin sections of untreated Percoll-purified T. pallidum showed integrity of outer and cytoplasmic membranes. In contrast, thin sections of Triton X-114-treated treponemes showed integrity of the cytoplasmic membrane but loss of the outer membrane. The cytoplasmic cylinders generated by detergent treatment retained their periplasmic flagella, as judged by electron microscopy and immunoblotting. Recently identified T. pallidum penicillin-binding proteins also remained associated with the cytoplasmic cylinders. Proteins released by Triton X-114 at 4 degrees C were divided into aqueous and hydrophobic phases after incubation at 37 degrees C. The hydrophobic phase had major polypeptide constituents of 57, 47, 38, 33-35, 23, 16, and 14 kilodaltons (kDa) which were reactive with syphilitic serum. The 47-kDa polypeptide was reactive with a monoclonal antibody which has been previously shown to identify a surface-associated T. pallidum antigen. The aqueous phase contained the 190-kDa ordered ring molecule, 4D, which has been associated with the surface of the organisms. Full release of the 47- and 190-kDa molecules was dependent on the presence of a reducing agent. These results indicate that 1% Triton X-114 selectively solubilizes the T. pallidum outer membrane and associated proteins of likely outer membrane location.