Academic Journal

Structures of λ-like phage A8 tail tip bound to OmpC provide insight into receptor recognition.

Λεπτομέρειες βιβλιογραφικής εγγραφής
Τίτλος: Structures of λ-like phage A8 tail tip bound to OmpC provide insight into receptor recognition.
Συγγραφείς: Deng T; State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structure, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, P.R. China., Ge X; Health and Wellness, City University of Macau, Macau 999078, P.R. China. Electronic address: gxf16@tsinghua.org.cn., Wang J; State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structure, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, P.R. China. Electronic address: jwwang@tsinghua.edu.cn.
Πηγή: Structure (London, England : 1993) [Structure] 2026 May 07; Vol. 34 (5), pp. 790-797.e3. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Feb 27.
Τύπος έκδοσης: Journal Article
Γλώσσα: English
Στοιχεία περιοδικού: Publisher: Cell Press Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101087697 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1878-4186 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 09692126 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Structure Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s): Publication: 2000- : Cambridge, Mass. : Cell Press
Original Publication: London : Current Biology, c1993-
Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): Porins*/metabolism , Porins*/chemistry , Porins*/genetics , Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins*/metabolism , Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins*/chemistry , Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins*/genetics , Viral Tail Proteins*/metabolism , Viral Tail Proteins*/chemistry , Viral Tail Proteins*/genetics , Bacteriophage lambda*/metabolism , Bacteriophage lambda*/chemistry, Escherichia coli/metabolism ; Escherichia coli/virology ; Cryoelectron Microscopy ; Models, Molecular ; Protein Binding ; Binding Sites
Περίληψη: Bacteriophage infection begins with the specific recognition of bacterial surface receptors by tail tip proteins, a decisive event that determines host specificity and triggers genome delivery. However, the structural principles underlying this process remain poorly understood. Here, we determined high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of the engineered λ-like bacteriophage A8 gpJ713 in the unbound form and bound to the outer membrane porin OmpC. Comparisons with our previously determined structures of wild-type λ gpJ alone and bound to LamB reveal conserved receptor binding-induced conformational transitions across λ-like siphoviruses, defining a general mechanistic framework for tail-tip recognition. Guided by this framework, we restored stable binding to the previously incompatible OmpC G40 variant and converted OmpF into a functional receptor through a minimal loop deletion. These proof-of-concept receptor reprogramming experiments demonstrate the predictive power of our structural model and illustrate how targeted receptor engineering can complement directed evolution in developing therapeutic phages.
(Copyright © 2026 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
Competing Interests: Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests.
Contributed Indexing: Keywords: LamB; OmpC; OmpF; bacteriophage; cryo-EM; receptor recognition mechanisms; tail spike
Substance Nomenclature: 0 (Porins)
0 (Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins)
0 (OmpC protein)
0 (Viral Tail Proteins)
0 (OmpF protein)
Entry Date(s): Date Created: 20260228 Date Completed: 20260710 Latest Revision: 20260710
Update Code: 20260711
DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2026.02.002
PMID: 41763202
Βάση Δεδομένων: MEDLINE