Discovery and characterization of a novel family of prokaryotic nanocompartments involved in sulfur metabolism

Prokaryotic nanocompartments, also known as encapsulins, are a recently discovered proteinaceous organelle-like compartment in prokaryotes that compartmentalize cargo enzymes. While initial studies have begun to elucidate the structure and physiological roles of encapsulins, bioinformatic evidence s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:eLife 2021-04, Vol.10
Main Authors: Nichols, Robert J, LaFrance, Benjamin, Phillips, Naiya R, Radford, Devon R, Oltrogge, Luke M, Valentin-Alvarado, Luis E, Bischoff, Amanda J, Nogales, Eva, Savage, David F
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacterial Proteins - genetics
Bacterial Proteins - metabolism
Binding sites
Chromatography
cryo-EM
Cryoelectron Microscopy
Cysteine
Cytotoxicity
Electron microscopy
encapsulin
Enzymes
Genes
Metabolism
Microbiology and Infectious Disease
Molecular weight
nanocompartment
Oxidative stress
Phylogenetics
Physiology
Prokaryotes
prokaryotic organelle
Proteins
Structural Biology and Molecular Biophysics
Sulfur
Sulfur - metabolism
sulfur starvation
Synechococcus - genetics
Synechococcus - metabolism
Synechococcus elongatus
Transmission electron microscopy
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Summary:Prokaryotic nanocompartments, also known as encapsulins, are a recently discovered proteinaceous organelle-like compartment in prokaryotes that compartmentalize cargo enzymes. While initial studies have begun to elucidate the structure and physiological roles of encapsulins, bioinformatic evidence suggests that a great diversity of encapsulin nanocompartments remains unexplored. Here, we describe a novel encapsulin in the freshwater cyanobacterium PCC 7942. This nanocompartment is upregulated upon sulfate starvation and encapsulates a cysteine desulfurase enzyme via an N-terminal targeting sequence. Using cryo-electron microscopy, we have determined the structure of the nanocompartment complex to 2.2 Å resolution. Lastly, biochemical characterization of the complex demonstrated that the activity of the cysteine desulfurase is enhanced upon encapsulation. Taken together, our discovery, structural analysis, and enzymatic characterization of this prokaryotic nanocompartment provide a foundation for future studies seeking to understand the physiological role of this encapsulin in various bacteria.
ISSN:2050-084X
2050-084X
DOI:10.7554/eLife.59288