Program
| MSG4d | |
|---|---|
| Harold Erickson | |
| Duke University | |
| Title | FtsZ bending membranes inside and outside liposomes |
| Abstract | We have created FtsZ-YFP-mts, where an amphipathic helix on the C-terminus tethers FtsZ to the membrane. When incorporated inside multilamellar tubular liposomes, FtsZ-YFP-mts can assemble Z rings that generate a constriction force. When added to the outside of liposomes, FtsZ-YFP-mts bound and produced concave depressions, bending the membrane in the same direction as the Z ring inside liposomes. Prominent membrane tubules were then extruded at the intersections of concave depressions. We tested the effect of moving the mts from the C terminus to the N terminus, which is approximately 180 degrees from the C-terminal tether. When mts-FtsZ-YFP was applied to the outside of liposomes it generated convex bulges, bending the membrane in the opposite direction to the concave depressions. We conclude that FtsZ protofilaments have a fixed direction of curvature, and the direction of membrane bending depends on which side of the bent protofilament the mts is attached to. This supports models in which the FtsZ constriction force is generated by protofilament bending. Coauthors: Masaki Osawa and David E. Anderson |
| Location | Woodward 4 |