Disarming E. coli (IMAGE)

Princeton University

Disarming E. coli

Caption

In Gram-negative bacteria, LPS and phospholipids are manufactured at the inner bacterial membrane and must be delivered across the cell wall to the outer membrane. The manufacture and delivery of LPS to the outer bacterial membrane is carefully balanced against phospholipid levels because imbalances can be lethal to the cell. Princeton University researchers have identified a new bacterial protein that assists in delivering components to the outer membrane of the Gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli, as they report in recent papers in PNAS and Trends in Microbiology.

Credit

Silhavy Lab, Princeton University

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