FlhE functions as a chaperone to prevent formation of periplasmic flagella in Gram-negative bacteria

Journal article

Abstract The bacterial flagellum, which facilitates motility, is composed of ~20 structural proteins organized into a long extracellular filament connected to a cytoplasmic rotor-stator complex via a periplasmic rod. Flagellum assembly is regulated by multiple checkpoints that ensure an ordered gene expression pattern coupled to the assembly of the various building blocks. Here, we use epifluorescence, super-resolution, and transmission electron microscopy to show that the absence of a periplasmic protein (FlhE) prevents proper flagellar morphogenesis and results in the formation of periplasmic flagella in Salmonella enterica. The periplasmic flagella disrupt cell wall synthesis, leading to a loss of normal cell morphology resulting in cell lysis. We propose that FlhE functions as a periplasmic chaperone to control assembly of the periplasmic rod, thus preventing formation of periplasmic flagella

Authors: Halte, M; Andrianova, EP; Goosmann, C; Chevance, FFV; Hughes, KT

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Nature Research
• Journal: Nature Communications
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 5921-5921
• Publication date: 2024-07-14
• Acceptance date: 2024-07-04
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50278-0
• EISSN: 2041-1723
• ISSN: 2041-1723
• Language: English
• Keywords: Cell biology; Biochemistry; Escherichia coli; Biology; Bacteria; Bacterial cell structure; Genetics; Flagellum; Cytoplasm; Periplasmic space; Chaperone (clinical); Gene; Microbiology; GroEL