1. Staphylococcus aureus SufT: an essential iron-sulphur cluster assembly factor in cells experiencing a high-demand for lipoic acid.
- Author
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Mashruwala, Ameya A., Roberts, Christina A., Bhatt, Shiven, May, Kerrie L., Carroll, Ronan K., Shaw, Lindsey N., and Boyd, Jeffrey M.
- Subjects
STAPHYLOCOCCUS aureus ,IRON proteins ,LIPOIC acid ,ENZYMES ,MOLECULAR microbiology - Abstract
Staphylococcus aureus SufT is composed solely of the domain of unknown function 59 (DUF59) and has a role in the maturation of iron-sulphur (Fe-S) proteins. We report that SufT is essential for S. aureus when growth is heavily reliant upon lipoamide-utilizing enzymes, but dispensable when this reliance is decreased. LipA requires Fe-S clusters for lipoic acid (LA) synthesis and a Δ sufT strain had phenotypes suggestive of decreased LA production and decreased activities of lipoamide-requiring enzymes. Fermentative growth, a null clpC allele, or decreased flux through the TCA cycle diminished the demand for LA and rendered SufT non-essential. Abundance of the Fe-S cluster carrier Nfu was increased in a Δ clpC strain and a null clpC allele was unable to suppress the LA requirement of a Δ sufT Δ nfu strain. Over-expression of nfu suppressed the LA requirement of the Δ sufT strain. We propose a model wherein SufT, and by extension the DUF59, is essential for the maturation of holo-LipA in S. aureus cells experiencing a high demand for lipoamide-dependent enzymes. The findings presented suggest that the demand for products of Fe-S enzymes is a factor governing the usage of one Fe-S cluster assembly factor over another in the maturation of apo-proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
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