Remodelling the FtsZ network

Du Toit, Andrea

doi:10.1038/nrmicro3196

Research Highlight
Published: 16 December 2013

Bacterial physiology

Remodelling the FtsZ network

Andrea Du Toit

Nature Reviews Microbiology volume 12, page 77 (2014)Cite this article

1573 Accesses
Metrics details

Subjects

Access through your institution

Buy or subscribe

The authors used fluorescently labelled FtsZ and FtsA proteins, and reconstituted FtsZ polymerization on supported bilayers in vitro. They found that, in the presence of FtsA, GTP (which induces FtsZ polymerization) and ATP (which is required for FtsA–FtsZ interaction), FtsZ filaments attached to the membrane. At low protein concentrations, the authors observed individual, short filaments, which grew at one end and shortened at the opposite end — that is, they showed treadmilling behaviour, similar to actin filaments. At higher protein concentrations, FtsZ filaments formed dynamic filament bundles that self-organized into chirally rotating rings. Although the FtsZ filament network was continuously remodelling itself and seemed to be moving, the authors found that single subunits remained static, which supports the idea that remodelling of the filament network is driven by polymerization dynamics.

Next, the authors asked whether these observed dynamics are an intrinsic feature of FtsZ or whether they emerge from a complex interaction with FtsA. They show that a version of FtsZ that binds autonomously to the membrane also formed a network of filament bundles on the membrane; however, these bundles were stationary. Moreover, FtsZ filaments recruited to the membrane by the alternative membrane-anchor ZipA also assembled into a stationary network, which suggests that the interaction of FtsZ and FtsA is required for rapid and dynamic FtsZ filament reorganization.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Access through your institution

Buy this article

Purchase on SpringerLink
Instant access to full article PDF

Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

Loose, M. & Mitchison, T. J. The bacterial cell division proteins FtsA and FtsZ self-organize into dynamic cytoskeletal patterns. Nature Cell Biol. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncb2885 (2013)

Download references

Authors