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The shape, elongation, division and sporulation (SEDS) proteins are a highly conserved family of transmembrane glycosyltransferases that work in concert with class B penicillin-binding proteins (bPBPs) to build the bacterial peptidoglycan cell wall1–6. How these proteins coordinate polymerization of new glycan strands with their crosslinking to the existing peptidoglycan meshwork is unclear. Here, we report the crystal structure of the prototypical SEDS protein RodA from Thermus thermophilus in complex with its cognate bPBP at 3.3 A resolution. The structure reveals a 1:1 stoichiometric complex with two extensive interaction interfaces between the proteins: one in the membrane plane and the other at the extracytoplasmic surface. When in complex with a bPBP, RodA shows an approximately 10 A shift of transmembrane helix 7 that exposes a large membrane-accessible cavity. Negative-stain electron microscopy reveals that the complex can adopt a variety of different conformations. These data define the bPBP pedestal domain as the key allosteric activator of RodA both in vitro and in vivo, explaining how a SEDS–bPBP complex can coordinate its dual enzymatic activities of peptidoglycan polymerization and crosslinking to build the cell wall. The crystal structure of the RodA–PBP2 complex from Thermus thermophilus elucidates how binding between these two proteins regulates their abilities to polymerize and crosslink peptidoglycan during bacterial cell wall synthesis.

The peptidoglycan cell wall is essential for the survival and morphogenesis of bacteria.1 For decades it was thought that only class A penicillin-binding proteins (aPBPs) and related enzymes effected peptidoglycan synthesis. Recently, it was shown that RodA, a member of the unrelated SEDS protein family, also acts as a peptidoglycan polymerase.2–4 Not all bacteria require RodA for growth; however, its homologue, FtsW, is a core member of the divisome complex that appears to be universally essential for septal cell wall assembly.5,6 FtsW was previously proposed to translocate the peptidoglycan precursor Lipid II across the cytoplasmic membrane.7,8 We report here that purified FtsW polymerizes Lipid II into peptidoglycan, but show that its polymerase activity requires complex formation with its partner class B PBP (bPBP). We further demonstrate that the polymerase activity of FtsW is required for its function in vivo. Thus, our findings establish FtsW as a peptidoglycan polymerase that works with its cognate bPBP to produce septal peptidoglycan during cell division.