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Journal of Bacteriology, April 2003, p. 2611-2617, Vol. 185, No. 8
0021-9193/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JB.185.8.2611-2617.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Three-Dimensional Structure of the Neisseria meningitidis Secretin PilQ Determined from Negative-Stain Transmission Electron Microscopy

Richard F. Collins,1 Robert C. Ford,1 Ashraf Kitmitto,1 Ranveig O. Olsen,2 Tone Tønjum,2 and Jeremy P. Derrick1*

Department of Biomolecular Sciences, UMIST, Manchester M60 1QD, United Kingdom,1 Centre for Molecular Biology and Neuroscience and Section of Molecular Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, National Hospital, University of Oslo, N-0027 Oslo, Norway2

Received 21 October 2002/ Accepted 27 January 2003

The PilQ secretin from the pathogenic bacterium Neisseria meningitidis is an integral outer membrane protein complex which plays a crucial role in the biogenesis of type IV pili. We present here the first three-dimensional structure of this type of secretin at 2.5-nm resolution, obtained by single-particle averaging methods applied to the purified protein complex visualized in a negative stain. In projection, the PilQ complex is circular, with a donut-like appearance. When viewed from the side it has a rounded, conical profile. The complex was demonstrated to have 12-fold rotational symmetry, and this property was used to improve the quality of the density map by symmetry averaging. The dominant feature of the structure is a cavity, 10 nm deep, within the center of the molecule. The cavity is funnel-shaped in cross section, measures 6.5 nm in diameter at the top of the complex, and tapers to a closed point, effectively blocking formation of a continuous pore through the PilQ complex. These results suggest that the complex would have to undergo a conformational change in order to accommodate an assembled pilus fiber of diameter 6.5 nm running through the outer membrane.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biomolecular Sciences, UMIST, P.O. Box 88, Manchester M60 1QD, United Kingdom. Phone: 44-0161-200-4207. Fax: 44-0161-236-0409. E-mail: Jeremy.Derrick{at}umist.ac.uk.

Journal of Bacteriology, April 2003, p. 2611-2617, Vol. 185, No. 8
0021-9193/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JB.185.8.2611-2617.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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