Structure of the mycobacterial ESX-5 Type VII Secretion System hexameric pore complex

To establish an infection, pathogenic mycobacteria use the Type VII secretion or ESX system to secrete virulence proteins across their cell envelope. The five ESX systems (ESX-1 to ESX-5) have evolved diverse functions in the cell, with the ESX-5 found almost exclusively in pathogens. Here we present a high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy structure of the hexameric ESX-5 Type VII secretion system. This 2.1 MDa membrane protein complex is built by a total of 30 subunits from six protomeric units, which are composed of the core components EccB5, EccC5, two copies of EccD5, and EccE5. The hexameric assembly of the overall ESX-5 complex is defined by specific inter-protomer interactions mediated by EccB5 and EccC5. The central transmembrane pore is formed by six pairs of EccC5 transmembrane helices that adopt a closed conformation in the absence of substrate in our structure. On the periplasmic face of the ESX-5 complex, we observe an extended arrangement of the six EccB5 subunits around a central cleft. Our structural findings provide molecular details of ESX-5 assembly and observations of the central secretion pore, which reveal insights into possible gating mechanisms used to regulate the transport of substrates.