Uptake of extracellular DNA: Competence induced pili in natural transformation of Streptococcus pneumoniae

Transport of DNA across bacterial membranes involves complex DNA uptake systems. In Gram‐positive bacteria, the DNA uptake machinery shares fundamental similarities with type IV pili and type II secretion systems. Although dedicated pilus structures, such as type IV pili in Gram‐negative bacteria, a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BioEssays 2015-04, Vol.37 (4), p.426-435
Main Authors: Muschiol, Sandra, Balaban, Murat, Normark, Staffan, Henriques‐Normark, Birgitta
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacteria
binding capacity
cell walls
competence pilus
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA
fimbriae
Fimbriae, Bacterial - genetics
Fimbriae, Bacterial - metabolism
Gram-negative bacteria
Gram-positive bacteria
Medicin och hälsovetenskap
pneumococci
Prospects & Overviews
Streptococcus infections
Streptococcus pneumoniae
Streptococcus pneumoniae - genetics
Streptococcus pneumoniae - metabolism
transformation
Transformation, Bacterial
type II secretion system
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Summary:Transport of DNA across bacterial membranes involves complex DNA uptake systems. In Gram‐positive bacteria, the DNA uptake machinery shares fundamental similarities with type IV pili and type II secretion systems. Although dedicated pilus structures, such as type IV pili in Gram‐negative bacteria, are necessary for efficient DNA uptake, the role of similar structures in Gram‐positive bacteria is just beginning to emerge. Recently two essentially very different pilus structures composed of the same major pilin protein ComGC were proposed to be involved in transformation of the Gram‐positive bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae – one is a long, thin, type IV pilus‐like fiber with DNA binding capacity and the other one is a pilus structure that was thicker, much shorter and not able to bind DNA. Here we discuss how competence induced pili, either by pilus retraction or by a transient pilus‐related opening in the cell wall, may mediate DNA uptake in S. pneumoniae.
ISSN:0265-9247
1521-1878
1521-1878
DOI:10.1002/bies.201400125