Tripartite Tc toxin complexes of bacterial pathogens perforate the host membrane and translocate toxic enzymes into the host cell, including in humans. The underlying mechanism is complex but poorly understood. Here we report the first, to our knowledge, high-resolution structures of a TcA subunit in its prepore and pore state and of a complete 1.7 megadalton Tc complex. The structures reveal that, in addition to a translocation channel, TcA forms four receptor-binding sites and a neuraminidase-like region, which are important for its host specificity. pH-induced opening of the shell releases an entropic spring that drives the injection of the TcA channel into the membrane. Binding of TcB/TcC to TcA opens a gate formed by a six-bladed β-propeller and results in a continuous protein translocation channel, whose architecture and properties suggest a novel mode of protein unfolding and translocation. Our results allow us to understand key steps of infections involving Tc toxins at the molecular level.

The prevailing hypothesis of lipid droplet biogenesis proposes that neutral lipids accumulate within the lipid bilayer of the ER membrane from where they are budded off, enclosed by a protein-bearing phospholipid monolayer originating from the cytoplasmic leaflet of the ER membrane. We have used a variety of methods to investigate the nature of the sites of ER–lipid-droplet association in order to gain new insights into the mechanism of lipid droplet formation and growth. The three-dimensional perspectives provided by freeze-fracture electron microscopy demonstrate unequivocally that at sites of close association, the lipid droplet is not situated within the ER membrane; rather, both ER membranes lie external to and follow the contour of the lipid droplet, enclosing it in a manner akin to an egg cup (the ER) holding an egg (the lipid droplet). Freeze-fracture cytochemistry demonstrates that the PAT family protein adipophilin is concentrated in prominent clusters in the cytoplasmic leaflet of the ER membrane closely apposed to the lipid droplet envelope. We identify these structures as sites at which lipids and adipophilin are transferred from ER membranes to lipid droplets. These findings call for a re-evaluation of the prevailing hypothesis of lipid droplet biogenesis.

Photorhabdus luminescens is an insect pathogenic bacterium that is symbiotic with entomopathogenic nematodes. On invasion of insect larvae, P. luminescens is released from the nematodes and kills the insect through the action of a variety of virulence factors including large tripartite ABC-type toxin complexes (Tcs). Tcs are typically composed of TcA, TcB and TcC proteins and are biologically active only when complete. Functioning as ADP-ribosyltransferases, TcC proteins were identified as the actual functional components that induce actin-clustering, defects in phagocytosis and cell death. However, little is known about the translocation of TcC into the cell by the TcA and TcB components. Here we show that TcA in P. luminescens (TcdA1) forms a transmembrane pore and report its structure in the prepore and pore state determined by cryoelectron microscopy. We find that the TcdA1 prepore assembles as a pentamer forming an α-helical, vuvuzela-shaped channel less than 1.5 nanometres in diameter surrounded by a large outer shell. Membrane insertion is triggered not only at low pH as expected, but also at high pH, explaining Tc action directly through the midgut of insects. Comparisons with structures of the TcdA1 pore inserted into a membrane and in complex with TcdB2 and TccC3 reveal large conformational changes during membrane insertion, suggesting a novel syringe-like mechanism of protein translocation. Our results demonstrate how ABC-type toxin complexes bridge a membrane to insert their lethal components into the cytoplasm of the host cell. We believe that the proposed mechanism is characteristic of the whole ABC-type toxin family. This explanation of toxin translocation is a step towards understanding the host-pathogen interaction and the complex life cycle of P. luminescens and other pathogens, including human pathogenic bacteria, and serves as a strong foundation for the development of biopesticides.

The molecular mechanism underlying milk fat globule secretion in mammary epithelial cells ostensibly involves the formation of complexes between plasma membrane butyrophilin and cytosolic xanthine oxidoreductase. These complexes bind adipophilin in the phospholipid monolayer of milk secretory granules, the precursors of milk fat globules, enveloping the nascent fat globules in a layer of plasma membrane and pinching them off the cell. However, using freeze-fracture immunocytochemistry, we find these proteins in locations other than those previously inferred. Significantly, butyrophilin in the residual plasma membrane of the fat globule envelope is concentrated in a network of ridges that are tightly apposed to the monolayer derived from the secretory granule, and the ridges coincide with butyrophilin labeling in the globule monolayer. Therefore, we propose that milk fat globule secretion is controlled by interactions between plasma membrane butyrophilin and butyrophilin in the secretory granule phospholipid monolayer rather than binding of butyrophilin-xanthine oxidoreductase complexes to secretory granule adipophilin.freeze-fracture immunocytochemistry ͉ lipid droplet-associated proteins ͉ mammary epithelial cells ͉ milk secretory granules