BIOMAT Database Logo BIOMAT Database Logo

Imaging Bacterial Cell Wall Biosynthesis. 2018

Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, USA.

Peptidoglycan is an essential component of the cell wall that protects bacteria from environmental stress. A carefully coordinated biosynthesis of peptidoglycan during cell elongation and division is required for cell viability. This biosynthesis involves sophisticated enzyme machineries that dynamically synthesize, remodel, and degrade peptidoglycan. However, when and where bacteria build peptidoglycan, and how this is coordinated with cell growth, have been long-standing questions in the field. The improvement of microscopy techniques has provided powerful approaches to study peptidoglycan biosynthesis with high spatiotemporal resolution. Recent development of molecular probes further accelerated the growth of the field, which has advanced our knowledge of peptidoglycan biosynthesis dynamics and mechanisms. Here, we review the technologies for imaging the bacterial cell wall and its biosynthesis activity. We focus on the applications of fluorescent d-amino acids, a newly developed type of probe, to visualize and study peptidoglycan synthesis and dynamics, and we provide direction for prospective research.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008854 Microscopy, Electron Microscopy using an electron beam, instead of light, to visualize the sample, thereby allowing much greater magnification. The interactions of ELECTRONS with specimens are used to provide information about the fine structure of that specimen. In TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY the reactions of the electrons that are transmitted through the specimen are imaged. In SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY an electron beam falls at a non-normal angle on the specimen and the image is derived from the reactions occurring above the plane of the specimen. Electron Microscopy
D008856 Microscopy, Fluorescence Microscopy of specimens stained with fluorescent dye (usually fluorescein isothiocyanate) or of naturally fluorescent materials, which emit light when exposed to ultraviolet or blue light. Immunofluorescence microscopy utilizes antibodies that are labeled with fluorescent dye. Fluorescence Microscopy,Immunofluorescence Microscopy,Microscopy, Immunofluorescence,Fluorescence Microscopies,Immunofluorescence Microscopies,Microscopies, Fluorescence,Microscopies, Immunofluorescence
D010457 Peptidoglycan A structural polymer of the bacterial cell envelope consisting of sugars and amino acids which is responsible for both shape determination and cellular integrity under osmotic stress in virtually all bacteria. Murein,Pseudomurein
D002473 Cell Wall The outermost layer of a cell in most PLANTS; BACTERIA; FUNGI; and ALGAE. The cell wall is usually a rigid structure that lies external to the CELL MEMBRANE, and provides a protective barrier against physical or chemical agents. Cell Walls,Wall, Cell,Walls, Cell
D005456 Fluorescent Dyes Chemicals that emit light after excitation by light. The wave length of the emitted light is usually longer than that of the incident light. Fluorochromes are substances that cause fluorescence in other substances, i.e., dyes used to mark or label other compounds with fluorescent tags. Flourescent Agent,Fluorescent Dye,Fluorescent Probe,Fluorescent Probes,Fluorochrome,Fluorochromes,Fluorogenic Substrates,Fluorescence Agents,Fluorescent Agents,Fluorogenic Substrate,Agents, Fluorescence,Agents, Fluorescent,Dyes, Fluorescent,Probes, Fluorescent,Substrates, Fluorogenic
D000596 Amino Acids Organic compounds that generally contain an amino (-NH2) and a carboxyl (-COOH) group. Twenty alpha-amino acids are the subunits which are polymerized to form proteins. Amino Acid,Acid, Amino,Acids, Amino
D001419 Bacteria One of the three domains of life (the others being Eukarya and ARCHAEA), also called Eubacteria. They are unicellular prokaryotic microorganisms which generally possess rigid cell walls, multiply by cell division, and exhibit three principal forms: round or coccal, rodlike or bacillary, and spiral or spirochetal. Bacteria can be classified by their response to OXYGEN: aerobic, anaerobic, or facultatively anaerobic; by the mode by which they obtain their energy: chemotrophy (via chemical reaction) or PHOTOTROPHY (via light reaction); for chemotrophs by their source of chemical energy: CHEMOLITHOTROPHY (from inorganic compounds) or chemoorganotrophy (from organic compounds); and by their source for CARBON; NITROGEN; etc.; HETEROTROPHY (from organic sources) or AUTOTROPHY (from CARBON DIOXIDE). They can also be classified by whether or not they stain (based on the structure of their CELL WALLS) with CRYSTAL VIOLET dye: gram-negative or gram-positive. Eubacteria
D018625 Microscopy, Atomic Force A type of scanning probe microscopy in which a probe systematically rides across the surface of a sample being scanned in a raster pattern. The vertical position is recorded as a spring attached to the probe rises and falls in response to peaks and valleys on the surface. These deflections produce a topographic map of the sample. Atomic Force Microscopy,Force Microscopy,Scanning Force Microscopy,Atomic Force Microscopies,Force Microscopies,Force Microscopies, Scanning,Force Microscopy, Scanning,Microscopies, Atomic Force,Microscopies, Force,Microscopies, Scanning Force,Microscopy, Force,Microscopy, Scanning Force,Scanning Force Microscopies

Related Publications

Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Bacterial cell wall biosynthesis.
January 1972, Ciba Foundation symposium,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Biosynthesis: imaging cell-wall biosynthesis live.
January 2013, Nature chemistry,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
[Biosynthesis of the bacterial cell wall].
December 1967, Tanpakushitsu kakusan koso. Protein, nucleic acid, enzyme,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
[Biosynthesis in the bacterial cell wall].
September 1966, Tanpakushitsu kakusan koso. Protein, nucleic acid, enzyme,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Pulvinones as bacterial cell wall biosynthesis inhibitors.
January 2006, Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Bridging cell wall biosynthesis and bacterial morphogenesis.
December 2010, Current opinion in structural biology,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Taking shape: control of bacterial cell wall biosynthesis.
September 2005, Molecular microbiology,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Structure and biosynthesis of the bacterial cell wall.
January 1969, Annual review of biochemistry,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
[Bacterial membrane components associated with cell wall biosynthesis].
August 1972, Tanpakushitsu kakusan koso. Protein, nucleic acid, enzyme,
Atanas D Radkov, and Yen-Pang Hsu, and Garrett Booher, and Michael S VanNieuwenhze
Inhibitors of the bacterial cell wall biosynthesis enzyme MurD.
July 1998, Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters,
Copied contents to your clipboard!