Iron is an essential nutrient that is actively acquired by bacterial pathogens during infections. Clinically important Staphylococcus aureus obtains iron by extracting heme from hemoglobin (Hb) using the closely related IsdB and IsdH surface receptors. In IsdH, extraction is mediated by a conserved tridomain unit that contains its second (N2) and third (N3) NEAT domains joined by a helical linker, called IsdH^N2N3. Leveraging the crystal structure of the IsdH^N2N3:Hb complex, we have probed the mechanism of heme capture using NMR, stopped-flow transfer kinetics measurements, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. NMR studies of the 220 kDa IsdH^N2N3:Hb complex reveal that it is dynamic, with persistent interdomain motions enabling the linker and N3 domains in the receptor to transiently engage Hb to remove its heme. An alanine mutagenesis analysis reveals that two receptor subsites positioned ~20 Å apart trigger heme release by contacting Hb's F-helix. These subsites are located within the N3 and linker domains and appear to play distinct roles in stabilizing the heme transfer transition state. Linker domain contacts primarily function to destabilize Hb-heme interactions, thereby lowering ΔH^‡, while contacts from the N3 subsite play a similar destabilizing role, but also form a bridge through which heme moves from Hb to the receptor. Interestingly, MD simulations suggest that within the transiently forming interface, both the F-helix and receptor bridge are in motion, dynamically sampling conformations that are suitable for heme transfer. Thus, IsdH triggers heme release from Hb via a flexible, low-affinity interface that forms fleetingly in solution.

Clostridium thermocellum is actively being developed as a microbial platform to produce biofuels and chemicals from renewable plant biomass. An attractive feature of this bacterium is its ability to efficiently degrade lignocellulose using surface-displayed cellulosomes, large multi-protein complexes that house different types of cellulase enzymes. Clostridium thermocellum tailors the enzyme composition of its cellulosome using nine membrane-embedded anti-σ factors (RsgI1-9), which are thought to sense different types of extracellular carbohydrates and then elicit distinct gene expression programs via cytoplasmic σ factors. Here we show that the RsgI9 anti-σ factor interacts with cellulose via a C-terminal bi-domain unit. A 2.0 Å crystal structure reveals that the unit is constructed from S1C peptidase and NTF2-like protein domains that contain a potential binding site for cellulose. Small-angle X-ray scattering experiments of the intact ectodomain indicate that it adopts a bi-lobed, elongated conformation. In the structure, a conserved RsgI extracellular (CRE) domain is connected to the bi-domain via a proline-rich linker, which is expected to project the carbohydrate-binding unit ~160 Å from the cell surface. The CRE and proline-rich elements are conserved in several other C. thermocellum anti-σ factors, suggesting that they will also form extended structures that sense carbohydrates.

Pathogenic Staphylococcus aureus actively acquires iron from human hemoglobin (Hb) using the IsdH surface receptor. Heme extraction is mediated by a tri-domain unit within the receptor that contains its second (N2) and third (N3) NEAT domains joined by a helical linker domain. Extraction occurs within a dynamic complex, in which receptors engage each globin chain; the N2 domain tightly binds to Hb, while substantial inter-domain motions within the receptor enable its N3 domain to transiently distort the globin's heme pocket. Using molecular simulations coupled with Markov modeling, along with stopped-flow experiments to quantitatively measure heme transfer kinetics, we show that directed inter-domain motions within the receptor play a critical role in the extraction process. The directionality of N3 domain motion and the rate of heme extraction is controlled by amino acids within a short, flexible inter-domain tether that connects the N2 and linker domains. In the wild-type receptor directed motions originating from the tether enable the N3 domain to populate configurations capable of distorting Hb's pocket, whereas mutant receptors containing altered tethers are less able to adopt these conformers and capture heme slowly via indirect processes in which Hb first releases heme into the solvent. Thus, our results show inter-domain motions within the IsdH receptor play a critical role in its ability to extract heme from Hb and highlight the importance of directed motions by the short, unstructured, amino acid sequence connecting the domains in controlling the directionality and magnitude of these functionally important motions.

Streptococcus pyogenes (group A Streptococcus) is a clinically important microbial pathogen that requires iron in order to proliferate. During infections, S. pyogenes uses the surface displayed Shr receptor to capture human hemoglobin (Hb) and acquires its iron-laden heme molecules. Through a poorly understood mechanism, Shr engages Hb via two structurally unique N-terminal Hb-interacting domains (HID1 and HID2) which facilitate heme transfer to proximal NEAr Transporter (NEAT) domains. Based on the results of X-ray crystallography, small angle X-ray scattering, NMR spectroscopy, native mass spectrometry, and heme transfer experiments, we propose that Shr utilizes a "cap and release" mechanism to gather heme from Hb. In the mechanism, Shr uses the HID1 and HID2 modules to preferentially recognize only heme-loaded forms of Hb by contacting the edges of its protoporphyrin rings. Heme transfer is enabled by significant receptor dynamics within the Shr-Hb complex which function to transiently uncap HID1 from the heme bound to Hb's β subunit, enabling the gated release of its relatively weakly bound heme molecule and subsequent capture by Shr's NEAT domains. These dynamics may maximize the efficiency of heme scavenging by S. pyogenes, enabling it to preferentially recognize and remove heme from only heme-loaded forms of Hb that contain iron.

Gram-positive bacteria assemble pili (fimbriae) on their surfaces to adhere to host tissues and to promote polymicrobial interactions. These hair-like structures, although very thin (1 to 5 nm), exhibit impressive tensile strengths because their protein components (pilins) are covalently crosslinked together via lysine-isopeptide bonds by pilus-specific sortase enzymes. While atomic structures of isolated pilins have been determined, how they are joined together by sortases and how these interpilin crosslinks stabilize pilus structure are poorly understood. Using a reconstituted pilus assembly system and hybrid structural biology methods, we elucidated the solution structure and dynamics of the crosslinked interface that is repeated to build the prototypical SpaA pilus from Corynebacterium diphtheriae We show that sortase-catalyzed introduction of a K190-T494 isopeptide bond between adjacent SpaA pilins causes them to form a rigid interface in which the LPLTG sorting signal is inserted into a large binding groove. Cellular and quantitative kinetic measurements of the crosslinking reaction shed light onto the mechanism of pilus biogenesis. We propose that the pilus-specific sortase in C. diphtheriae uses a latch mechanism to select K190 on SpaA for crosslinking in which the sorting signal is partially transferred from the enzyme to a binding groove in SpaA in order to facilitate catalysis. This process is facilitated by a conserved loop in SpaA, which after crosslinking forms a stabilizing latch that covers the K190-T494 isopeptide bond. General features of the structure and sortase-catalyzed assembly mechanism of the SpaA pilus are likely conserved in Gram-positive bacteria.

Wall teichoic acid (WTA) polymers are covalently affixed to the Gram-positive bacterial cell wall and have important functions in cell elongation, cell morphology, biofilm formation, and β-lactam antibiotic resistance. The first committed step in WTA biosynthesis is catalyzed by the TagA glycosyltransferase (also called TarA), a peripheral membrane protein that produces the conserved linkage unit, which joins WTA to the cell wall peptidoglycan. TagA contains a conserved GT26 core domain followed by a C-terminal polypeptide tail that is important for catalysis and membrane binding. Here, we report the crystal structure of the Thermoanaerobacter italicus TagA enzyme bound to UDP-N-acetyl-d-mannosamine, revealing the molecular basis of substrate binding. Native MS experiments support the model that only monomeric TagA is enzymatically active and that it is stabilized by membrane binding. Molecular dynamics simulations and enzyme activity measurements indicate that the C-terminal polypeptide tail facilitates catalysis by encapsulating the UDP-N-acetyl-d-mannosamine substrate, presenting three highly conserved arginine residues to the active site that are important for catalysis (R214, R221, and R224). From these data, we present a mechanistic model of catalysis that ascribes functions for these residues. This work could facilitate the development of new antimicrobial compounds that disrupt WTA biosynthesis in pathogenic bacteria.