Project Details
Projekt
Function of the ATP-dependent metalloprotease FtsH during sporulation of Bacillus subtilis
Applicant
Professor Dr. Wolfgang Schumann
Subject Area
Metabolism, Biochemistry and Genetics of Microorganisms
Term
from 2002 to 2010
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5361979
Under conditions of nutrient depletion at high cell density, Bacillus subtilis cells initiate the process of spore formation as the response of last resort. The sporulation programme is genetically regulated in a rather complex way to allow the integration of external and internal input signals. Work carried out over the last five years by three different laboratories has revealed that the ATP- and Zn2+-dependent FtsH protease is involved in three different checkpoints along the sporulation pathway, but in not a single case, its precise role has been defined. Therefore, this research project is aimed at the elucidation of (i) the function of FtsH during the synthesis of active Spo0A~P, (ii) the role of FtsH in the activation of SpoIVFB protease, and (iii) identification of the biological role of SpoVM, a 26-amino-acid peptide assumed to inhibit the protease domain of FtsH. In the first case, we assume that FtsH has to degrade a negative regulator to signal the cell the presence of sufficient amounts of the protease. In the second case, the complex activation pathway involving six identified proteins will be dissected to allow the definition of the role of FtsH. And in the last case, we will try to answer the question why SpoVM inhibits the proteolytic activity of FtsH.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
