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-Structure paper
| Title | Convergent MurJ flippase inhibition by phage lysis proteins. |
|---|---|
| Journal, issue, pages | Nature, Year 2026 |
| Publish date | Feb 25, 2026 |
Authors | Yancheng E Li / S Francesca Antillon / Grace F Baron / Karthik Chamakura / Ry Young / William M Clemons / ![]() |
| PubMed Abstract | Antimicrobial drug resistance poses a global health challenge that necessitates the identification of new druggable targets. The essential lipid II flippase MurJ is a promising yet underexplored ...Antimicrobial drug resistance poses a global health challenge that necessitates the identification of new druggable targets. The essential lipid II flippase MurJ is a promising yet underexplored antimicrobial target in bacterial cell wall biosynthesis. The only known inhibitors of Gram-negative (diderm) MurJ are the single-gene lysis proteins (Sgls) from the lytic single-strand RNA phages M (Sgl) and PP7 (Sgl). Sgl and Sgl have distinct evolutionary origins and share no sequence similarity. Here we describe a common mechanism of MurJ inhibition by these phage-encoded Sgls. We determined the structures of MurJ-bound Sgl and Sgl and discovered a third distinct MurJ-targeting Sgl from the predicted phage Changjiang3 (Sgl) that we also characterized structurally. Our findings demonstrate that all three Sgls evolved convergently to trap MurJ in a periplasm-open conformation through a common MurJ interface, revealing a pathway for drug design. |
External links | Nature / PubMed:41741639 |
| Methods | EM (single particle) |
| Resolution | 3.6 - 3.7 Å |
| Structure data | EMDB-49796, PDB-9nu4: EMDB-49797, PDB-9nu5: EMDB-49798, PDB-9nu8: |
| Source |
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Keywords | TRANSPORT PROTEIN / lipid II flippase / phage single gene lysis proteins / peptidoglycan biosynthesis |
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enterobacteria phage m (virus)
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