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Interactions between pili affect the outcome of bacterial competition driven by the type VI secretion system

Related publications (36)

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The type IV pilus protein PilU functions as a PilT-dependent retraction ATPase

Melanie Blokesch, Sandrine Stutzmann, Candice Stoudmann, David William Adams, Jorge André Matias Pereira

Type IV pili are dynamic cell surface appendages found throughout the bacteria. The ability of these structures to undergo repetitive cycles of extension and retraction underpins their crucial roles in adhesion, motility and natural competence for transfor ...

2019

Vibrio cholerae filamentation promotes chitin surface attachment at the expense of competition in biofilms

Alexandre Louis André Persat

Collective behavior in spatially structured groups, or biofilms, is the norm among microbes in their natural environments. Though biofilm formation has been studied for decades, tracing the mechanistic and ecological links between individual cell morpholog ...

PNAS2019

Mechanisms of DNA Uptake by Naturally Competent Bacteria

Melanie Blokesch

Transformation is a widespread mechanism of horizontal gene transfer in bacteria. DNA uptake to the periplasmic compartment requires a DNA-uptake pilus and the DNA-binding protein ComEA. In the gram-negative bacteria, DNA is first pulled toward the outer m ...

2019

Two nanomachines drive evolution in diverse Vibrio species

Noémie Matthey

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) has a major impact on bacterial evolution, leading to acquisition or deletion of genes and gene clusters, including those encoding antibiotic resistances and virulence factors. HGT therefore contributes to pathogen emergence, ...

EPFL2019

Ecological implications of gene regulation by TfoX and TfoY among diverse Vibrio species

Melanie Blokesch, Candice Stoudmann, Noémie Matthey, Lisa Christina Metzger, Esther Jeanne Collas

Bacteria of the genus Vibrio are common members of aquatic environments where they compete with other prokaryotes and defend themselves against grazing predators. A macromolecular protein complex called the type VI secretion system (T6SS) is used for both ...

2019

Prokaryotes have the ability to walk on surfaces using type IV pili (TFP), a motility mechanism known as twitching(1,2). Molecular motors drive TFP extension and retraction, but whether and how these movements are coordinated is unknown(3). Here, we reveal ...

NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP2019

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Natural competence for transformation is a widely used and key mode of horizontal gene transfer that can foster rapid bacterial evolution. Competent bacteria take-up DNA from their environment using Type IV pili, a widespread and multi-purpose class of cel ...

2018

Bacterial type VI secretion system facilitates niche domination

Melanie Blokesch, Natalia Carolina Drebes Dorr

Over the last few decades humanity has experienced a series of tremendous technological advances, especially in the realm of basic science. A plethora of new approaches has allowed us to appreciate life in previously unimaginable detail, prompting the real ...

2018

Chemical communication is the basis of host-microbe interaction. Insights into this communication will provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms that govern these complex associations, in beneficial as well as pathogenic contexts. In this dissertati ...

EPFL2017

Natural competence enables bacteria to take up exogenous DNA. The evolutionary function of natural competence remains controversial, as imported DNA can act as a source of substrates or can be integrated into the genome. Exogenous homologous DNA can also b ...

Nature Publishing Group2017