The flagellar motor as a sensor

描述（由申请人提供）：作为传感器的鞭毛马达细菌使用螺旋鞭毛的旋转来推动自己通过大量液体（游泳），或通过 固体表面上的液体薄膜（群集）。化学感受通路通常将环境信息传递给双向旋转马达，调节其CW/CCW偏差以优化细菌向有利位置的迁移。这些途径是很好理解的。在大肠大肠杆菌和其他细菌，马达本身也是一个感觉细胞器，允许细菌适应化学信号，直接响应增加的c-di- GMP，并机械地“感觉”固体表面。这些途径，特别是机械感应，还不清楚。鉴于最近的证据表明，电机重组其定子和转子组件在两个chemosensing和mechanosensing，我们提出了一个新的可测试的模型如何电机作为一个mechanosensor。该模型将转子-定子界面识别为电机的感觉中枢。我们考虑了有限数量的结构组件，可以接收和接收来自这个枢纽的感觉信号。它们是：MotA/B、FliG、FliM、FliL、YcgR和H-NS。该建议的前两个目的是研究在运动对两种内部信号- CheY~P和c-di-GMP产生不同反应的情况下这些组件的子集的重塑。第三个目标受益于这种知识，以监测这些组件响应于机械信号的重塑。从这些研究中获得的见解预计最终将追踪电机处的输入信号到促进运动性或无柄性（生物膜）的输出响应，这两者在细菌感染、表面定殖、发病机制和持久性中起关键作用。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Flagellar Motor as a Sensor Bacteria use rotation of helical flagella to propel themselves either through bulk liquid (swimming), or through a thin film of liquid on a solid surface (swarming). Chemosensory pathways normally communicate environmental information to the bidirectional rotary motor, modulating its CW/CCW bias to optimize bacterial migration towards favorable locales. These pathways are well-understood. In E. coli and other bacteria, the motor is also itself a sensory organelle, allowing bacteria to adapt to chemical signals, respond directly to increased c-di- GMP, and mechanically 'sense' a solid surface. These pathways, particularly mechanosensing, are not understood. In light of recent evidence showing that the motor restructures its stator and rotor components during both chemosensing and mechanosensing, we propose a new testable model for how the motor acts as a mechanosensor. The model identifies the rotor-stator interface as the sensory hub of the motor. We consider a finite number of structural components that could receive and transduce sensory signals from this hub. These are: MotA/B, FliG, FliM, FliL, YcgR and H-NS. The first two aims of this proposal investigate remodeling of a subset of these components under situations where the motor elicits a distinct response to two internal signals - CheY~P and c-di-GMP. The third aim benefits from this knowledge to monitor remodeling of these components in response to mechano-signals. The insights derived from these studies are expected to eventually trace the input signal(s) at the motor to output responses that promote either motility or sessility (biofilms), both of which play critical roles i bacterial infection, surface colonization, pathogenesis, and persistence.