Cited by 131Biochemical and Structural CharacterizationMicrobial infections and disease researchBacterial Genetics and Biotechnology

Elongation factor Tu is a multifunctional and processed moonlighting protein

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Widjaja, Michael, Harvey, Kate Louise, Hagemann, Lisa, Berry, Iain James, Jarocki, Veronica Maria, Raymond, Benjamin Bernard Armando, Tacchi, Jessica Leigh, Gründel, Anne +5 more·2017·Scientific Reports

Abstract

Many bacterial moonlighting proteins were originally described in medically, agriculturally, and commercially important members of the low G + C Firmicutes. We show Elongation factor Tu (Ef-Tu) moonlights on the surface of the human pathogens Staphylococcus aureus (Sa Ef-Tu) and Mycoplasma pneumoniae (Mpn Ef-Tu), and the porcine pathogen Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (Mhp Ef-Tu). Ef-Tu is also a target of multiple processing events on the cell surface and these were characterised using an N-terminomics pipeline. Recombinant Mpn Ef-Tu bound strongly to a diverse range of host molecules, and when bound to plasminogen, was able to convert plasminogen to plasmin in the presence of plasminogen activators. Fragments of Ef-Tu retain binding capabilities to host proteins. Bioinformatics and structural modelling studies indicate that the accumulation of positively charged amino acids in short linear motifs (SLiMs), and protein processing promote multifunctional behaviour. Codon bias engendered by an A + T rich genome may influence how positively-charged residues accumulate in SLiMs.

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  • Mycoplasmas are known for having moonlighting proteins, i.e., multifunctional proteins that are not the result of gene fusions.

    “Because of evolutionary pressure to delete nonessential genes, mycoplasmas are known for having such multifunctional proteins.114−117”

    From Toward the Complete Functional Characterization of a Minimal Bacterial Proteome (2022) · cites this paper as [117]

    The Results identify multifunctional EF-Tu proteins in mycoplasmas, and the Discussion says protein processing can expand moonlighting functions (page unavailable). The cited paper does not link those functions to evolutionary pressure to delete nonessential genes, and the passages found do not address gene fusions. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. [35]Viale MN Description of a novel adhesin of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis BioMed research international 2014 2014 729618 25136616 PMC4130151
  2. [85]Tacchi JL Post-translational processing targets functionally diverse proteins in Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae Open biology 2016 6 150210 10.1098/rsob.150210 26865024 PMC4772806 · DOI · Paper page
  3. [148]P, H. Diploma thesis, Technische Universität München, (2012).

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Authors
Widjaja, M., Harvey, K. L., Hagemann, L., Berry, I. J., Jarocki, V. M., Raymond, B. B. A., Tacchi, J. L., Gründel, A., Steele, J. R., Padula, M. P., Charles, I. G., Dumke, R., & Djordjevic, S. P.
Affiliations
  • University of Technology Sydney (AU)
  • Technische Universität Dresden (DE)
  • Norwich Research Park (GB)
Corresponding author
Djordjevic, Steven Philip
Venue
Scientific Reports
Published
2017-09-11
Volume
7
Issue
1
Pages
11227-11227
ISSN
2045-2322 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2750987002
Cited by
131
References
154
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 17
FWCI
4.92
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Scientific Reports (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • UEA Digital Repository (University of East Anglia) (acceptedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
  • UTS ePRESS (University of Technology Sydney) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation
  • Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (1280/1-1, DU 1280/1-1)
  • University of Technology Sydney
  • NSW Department of Primary Industries
  • Australian Research Council (LE130100096)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Biochemical and Structural Characterization
  • Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Microbiology › Microbial infections and disease research
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology
Keywords
elongation factor Tu, moonlighting proteins, protein processing, Staphylococcus aureus, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, plasmin, short linear motifs, positively charged amino acids, codon usage bias, AT-rich genome, host-pathogen interaction, bacterial cell surface, N-terminomics
MeSH terms
Fibrinolysin, Membrane Proteins, Models, Molecular, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Peptide Elongation Factor Tu, Plasminogen, Protein Binding, Staphylococcus aureus, Computational Biology, Virulence Factors, Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, Host-Pathogen Interactions

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