2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
T4P dynamics in response to mechanosensing system
| Project/Area Number |
16H06230
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Research Field |
Bacteriology (including mycology)
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| Research Institution | Gakushuin University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Research Collaborator |
Nishizaka Takayuki
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| Project Period (FY) |
2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
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| Keywords | シアノバクテリア / 動態計測 / 走光性 / 表面運動 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Type IV pili (T4P) are cell-surface appendages observed in prokaryotes that perform critical functions in cell motility, surface adhesion, virulence, and biofilm formation. Although the architecture of T4P has already been determined, the dynamics resulting from the response to various environmental signals remain unclear. Here we demonstrated the sequential process of T4P dynamics from stimulus to taxis at the single-cell level in a model cyanobacterium, which can recognize light direction. We directly visualized that T4P filaments dominantly appeared from the side of the cell opposite the illumination. This asymmetric activation is regulated on a timescale of minutes, and the process was transitioned between three sequential phases. These findings provide clues toward a general regulation mechanism of the T4P system.
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| Free Research Field |
細菌学・生物物理学
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
これは「視覚を備えたバクテリア」という点でも画期的です。光を感知するだけでなく、光の向きを認識するという事実は、単純な生命体が、高度な情報処理を達成していることをあらわしています。スパイダーマンのようなバクテリアは、非常に単純ではあるが初歩的な視覚を備えることで、自身の持つ「糸」を伸縮させる方向を自由自在に制御していると考えられます。この成果は、同様の「糸」を持つ病原菌の制御にも応用できる可能性があります。
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