CdbA is a DNA-binding protein and c-di-GMP receptor important for nucleoid organization and segregation in Myxococcus xanthus

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-15628-8

Authors: Dorota Skotnicka (Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology) , Wieland Steinchen (Philipps-Universität Marburg) , Dobromir Szadkowski (Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology) , Ian T. Cadby (University of Birmingham) , Andrew L. Lovering (University of Birmingham) , Gert Bange (Philipps-Universität Marburg) , Lotte Søgaard-andersen (Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology)
Co-authored by industrial partner: No

Type: Journal Paper
Journal: Nature Communications , VOL 11

State: Published (Approved)
Published: April 2020

Abstract: Cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP) is a second messenger that modulates multiple responses to environmental and cellular signals in bacteria. Here we identify CdbA, a DNA-binding protein of the ribbon-helix-helix family that binds c-di-GMP in Myxococcus xanthus. CdbA is essential for viability, and its depletion causes defects in chromosome organization and segregation leading to a block in cell division. The protein binds to the M. xanthus genome at multiple sites, with moderate sequence specificity; however, its depletion causes only modest changes in transcription. The interactions of CdbA with c-di-GMP and DNA appear to be mutually exclusive and residue substitutions in CdbA regions important for c-di-GMP binding abolish binding to both c-di-GMP and DNA, rendering these protein variants non-functional in vivo. We propose that CdbA acts as a nucleoid-associated protein that contributes to chromosome organization and is modulated by c-di-GMP, thus revealing a link between c-di-GMP signaling and chromosome biology.

Journal Keywords: Bacterial genomics; Bacterial structural biology; Cellular microbiology; Chromosomes

Subject Areas: Biology and Bio-materials


Instruments: I02-Macromolecular Crystallography , I03-Macromolecular Crystallography

Documents:
s41467-020-15628-8.pdf