Figure 6
An ignition key mechanism for flagellar protein export.
ATP hydrolysis by the FliI6 ring induces the FliJ rotation within the ring to cause a conformational change of the export gate to activate it, allowing rapid and efficient entry of the substrates into the gate. The export gate then efficiently utilizes the membrane potential component (Δψ) of proton motive force across the cytoplasmic membrane to unfold and transport the substrates into the central channel of the growing flagellar structure.
