Pertactin β-helix folding mechanism suggests common themes for the secretion and folding of autotransporter proteins

摘要

Many virulence factors secreted from pathogenic Gram-negative bacteria are autotransporter proteins. The final step of autotransporter secretion is C → N-terminal threading of the passenger domain through the outer membrane (OM), mediated by a co-translated C-terminal porin domain. The native structure is formed only after this final secretion step, which requires neither ATP nor a proton gradient. Sequence analysis reveals that, despite size, sequence, and functional diversity among autotransporter passenger domains, > 97% are predicted to form parallel β-helices, indicating this structural topology may be important for secretion. We report the folding behavior of pertactin, an autotransporter passenger domain from Bordetella pertussis. The pertactin β-helix folds reversibly in isolation, but folding is much slower than expected based on size and native-state topology. Surprisingly, pertactin is not prone to aggregation during folding, even though folding is extremely slow. Interestingly, equilibrium denaturation results in the formation of a partially folded structure, a stable core comprising the C-terminal half of the protein. Examination of the pertactin crystal structure does not reveal any obvious reason for the enhanced stability of the C terminus. In vivo, slow folding would prevent premature folding of the passenger domain in the periplasm, before OM secretion. Moreover, the extra stability of the C-terminal rungs of the β-helix might serve as a template for the formation of native protein during OM secretion; hence, vectorial folding of the β-helix could contribute to the energy-independent translocation mechanism. Coupled with the sequence analysis, the results presented here suggest a general mechanism for autotransporter secretion.