Fluorescent D-amino-acids reveal bi-cellular cell wall modifications important for Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation

Kuru, Erkin; Lambert, Carey; Jonathon, Rittichier; Till, Rob; Ducret, Adrien; Derouaux, Adeline; Gray, Joe; Biboy, Jacob; Vollmer, Waldemar; VanNieuwenhze, Michael; Brun, Yves; Sockett, Liz

Abstract

Modification of essential bacterial peptidoglycan (PG) containing cell walls can lead to antibiotic resistance, for example β-lactam resistance by L,D-transpeptidase activities. Predatory Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus are naturally antibacterial and combat infections by traversing, modifying and finally destroying walls of Gram-negative prey bacteria, modifying their own PG as they grow inside prey. Historically, these multi-enzymatic processes on two similar PG walls have proved challenging to elucidate. Here, with a PG labelling approach utilizing timed pulses of multiple fluorescent D-amino acids (FDAAs), we illuminate dynamic changes that predator and prey walls go through during the different phases of bacteria:bacteria invasion. We show formation of a reinforced circular port-hole in the prey wall; L,D-transpeptidaseBd mediated D-amino acid modifications strengthening prey PG during Bdellovibrio invasion and a zonal mode of predator-elongation. This process is followed by unconventional, multi-point and synchronous septation of the intracellular Bdellovibrio, accommodating odd- and even-numbered progeny formation by non-binary division.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: 2017-12
• Journal: Nature Microbiology
• Electronic ISSN: 2058-5276
• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 2
• Issue: 12
• Pages: 1648-1657
• APA6 Citation: Kuru, E., Lambert, C., Jonathon, R., Till, R., Ducret, A., Derouaux, A., …Sockett, L. (2017). Fluorescent D-amino-acids reveal bi-cellular cell wall modifications important for Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation. Nature Microbiology, 2(12), 1648-1657. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-017-0029-y
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-017-0029-y
• Publisher URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-017-0029-y
• Copyright Statement: Copyright information regarding this work can be found at the following address: http://eprints.nottingh.../end_user_agreement.pdf