The bio-physics of condensation of divalent cations into the bacterial wall has implications for growth of Gram-positive bacteria
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Background The anionic-polyelectrolyte nature of the wall of Gram-positive bacteria has long been suspected to be involved in homeostasis of essential cations and bacterial growth. A better understanding of the coupling between the biophysics and the biology of the wall is essential to understand some key features at play in ion-homeostasis in this living system. Methods We consider the wall as a polyelectrolyte gel and balance the long-range electrostatic repulsion within this structure against the penalty entropy required to condense cations around wall polyelectrolytes. The resulting equations define how cations interact physically with the wall and the characteristic time required for a cation to leave the wall and enter into the bacterium to enable its usage for bacterial metabolism and growth. Results The model was challenged against experimental data regarding growth of Gram-positive bacteria in the presence of varying concentration of divalent ions. The model explains qualitatively and quantitatively how divalent cations interact with the wall as well as how the biophysical properties of the wall impact on bacterial growth (in particular the initiation of bacterial growth). Conclusion The interplay between polymer biophysics and the biology of Gram positive bacteria is defined for the first time as a new set of variables that contribute to the kinetics of bacterial growth. General significance Providing an understanding of how bacteria capture essential metal cations in way that does not follow usual binding laws has implications when considering the control of such organisms and their ability to survive and grow in extreme environments.
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The thick cell walls of Gram-positive bacteria have an enormous ion-binding capacity, with near equal contributions from peptidoglycan and teichoic acids.
“Similarly, the thick cell walls of Gram-positive bacteria have an enormous ion-binding capacity,61 with near equal contributions from peptidoglycan and teichoic acids.62”
From Metals in Motion: Understanding Labile Metal Pools in Bacteria (2025) · cites this paper as [61]
Citation 62 is attached specifically to the claim of near-equal ion-binding contributions from peptidoglycan and teichoic acids. The Introduction says teichoic acids may constitute up to 60% of the wall’s mass and describes their role in binding cations, but neither that passage nor the passages retrieved for equal contributions and binding capacity compares the two components’ ion-binding contributions. (LLM, conf=0.74)
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- M.T. Naik, N. Suree, U. Ilangovan, C.K. Liew, W. Thieu, D.O. Campbell, J.J. Clemens, M.E. Jung, R.T. Clubb, Staphylococcus aureus Sortase A transpeptidase. Calcium promotes sorting signal binding by altering the mobility and structure of an active site loop, The Journal of biological chemistry, 281 (2006) 1817-1826.
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Metals in Motion: Understanding Labile Metal Pools in Bacteria
Helmann, J. D. (2025) · Biochemistry · doi:10.1021/acs.biochem.4c00726 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
- Authors
- Rauch, C., Cherkaoui, M., Egan, S., & Leigh, J.
- Affiliations
- University of Nottingham (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Rauch, Cyril
- Venue
- Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2017-02
- Volume
- 1859
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 282-288
- ISSN
- 0005-2736 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2560783062
- Cited by
- 12
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 1 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 2 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 0.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Repository@Nottingham (University of Nottingham) (acceptedVersion, other-oa)
- Repository@Nottingham (University of Nottingham) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Nottingham ePrints (University of Nottingham) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Funders
- University of Nottingham
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Physical and Theoretical Chemistry › Electrostatics and Colloid Interactions
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology
- Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Organic Chemistry › Antimicrobial agents and applications
- Keywords
- Gram-positive bacterial cell wall, divalent cations, polyelectrolyte gels, electrostatic repulsion, entropy penalty, ion homeostasis, bacterial growth kinetics, cation binding, growth initiation
- MeSH terms
- Polyelectrolytes, Biophysics, Cations, Divalent, Cell Wall, Gram-Positive Bacteria, Homeostasis, Metals, Polymers, Static Electricity
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