Architecture and Self-assembly of the Jumbo Bacteriophage Nuclear Shell

Overview

Journal Nature

Specialty Science

Date 2022 Aug 3

PMID 35922510

Authors

Thomas G Laughlin

Amar Deep

Amy M Prichard

Christian Seitz

Yajie Gu

Eray Enustun

Sergey Suslov

Kanika Khanna

Erica A Birkholz

Emily Armbruster

J Andrew McCammon

Rommie E Amaro

Joe Pogliano

Kevin D Corbett

Elizabeth Villa

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Bacteria encode myriad defences that target the genomes of infecting bacteriophage, including restriction-modification and CRISPR-Cas systems. In response, one family of large bacteriophages uses a nucleus-like compartment to protect its replicating genomes by excluding host defence factors. However, the principal composition and structure of this compartment remain unknown. Here we find that the bacteriophage nuclear shell assembles primarily from one protein, which we name chimallin (ChmA). Combining cryo-electron tomography of nuclear shells in bacteriophage-infected cells and cryo-electron microscopy of a minimal chimallin compartment in vitro, we show that chimallin self-assembles as a flexible sheet into closed micrometre-scale compartments. The architecture and assembly dynamics of the chimallin shell suggest mechanisms for its nucleation and growth, and its role as a scaffold for phage-encoded factors mediating macromolecular transport, cytoskeletal interactions, and viral maturation.

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