Mukherjee A, Dai K, Lutkenhaus J
Department of Microbiology, Molecular Genetics and Immunology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City 66103.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1993 Feb 1;90(3):1053-7. doi: 10.1073/pnas.90.3.1053.
FtsZ is an essential cell division protein in Escherichia coli that forms a ring structure at the division site under cell cycle control. The dynamic nature of the FtsZ ring suggests possible similarities to eukaryotic filament forming proteins such as tubulin. In this study we have determined that FtsZ is a GTP/GDP binding protein with GTPase activity. A short segment of FtsZ is homologous to a segment in tubulin believed to be involved in the interaction between tubulin and guanine nucleotides. A lethal ftsZ mutation, ftsZ3 (Rsa), that leads to an amino acid alteration in this homologous segment decreased GTP binding and hydrolysis, suggesting that interaction with GTP is essential for ftsZ function.
FtsZ是大肠杆菌中一种必需的细胞分裂蛋白，在细胞周期控制下于分裂位点形成环状结构。FtsZ环的动态性质表明它可能与真核生物中形成细丝的蛋白质（如微管蛋白）存在相似之处。在本研究中，我们确定FtsZ是一种具有GTP酶活性的GTP/GDP结合蛋白。FtsZ的一小段与微管蛋白中一个被认为参与微管蛋白与鸟嘌呤核苷酸相互作用的片段同源。一个导致该同源片段氨基酸改变的致死性ftsZ突变体ftsZ3（Rsa）降低了GTP结合和水解能力，这表明与GTP的相互作用对ftsZ功能至关重要。
