Characterization of the Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter from Yersinia pestis.

Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that historically accounts for the Black Death epidemics, has nowadays gained new attention as a possible biological warfare agent. In this study, its Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter is investigated for the first time, by a combination of experimental and computational methodologies...

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Autores principales: Assaf Ganoth, Raphael Alhadeff, Dovrat Kohen, Isaiah T Arkin
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2011
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Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/9377b0edc1904d80b066ec144b7d1476
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Sumario:Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that historically accounts for the Black Death epidemics, has nowadays gained new attention as a possible biological warfare agent. In this study, its Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter is investigated for the first time, by a combination of experimental and computational methodologies. We determined the protein's substrate specificity and pH dependence by fluorescence measurements in everted membrane vesicles. Subsequently, we constructed a model of the protein's structure and validated the model using molecular dynamics simulations. Taken together, better understanding of the Yersinia pestis Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter's structure-function relationship may assist in studies on ion transport, mechanism of action and designing specific blockers of Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter to help in fighting Yersinia pestis -associated infections. We hope that our model will prove useful both from mechanistic and pharmaceutical perspectives.