Cryo-EM structure of transcription termination factor Rho from Mycobacterium tuberculosis reveals bicyclomycin resistance mechanism.
Saridakis, E., Vishwakarma, R., Lai-Kee-Him, J., Martin, K., Simon, I., Cohen-Gonsaud, M., Coste, F., Bron, P., Margeat, E., Boudvillain, M.(2022) Commun Biol 5: 120-120
- PubMed: 35140348 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-03069-6
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
7OQH - PubMed Abstract: 
The bacterial Rho factor is a ring-shaped motor triggering genome-wide transcription termination and R-loop dissociation. Rho is essential in many species, including in Mycobacterium tuberculosis where rho gene inactivation leads to rapid death. Yet, the M. tuberculosis Rho [ Mtb Rho] factor displays poor NTPase and helicase activities, and resistance to the natural Rho inhibitor bicyclomycin [BCM] that remain unexplained. To address these issues, we solved the cryo-EM structure of Mtb Rho at 3.3 Å resolution. The Mtb Rho hexamer is poised into a pre-catalytic, open-ring state wherein specific contacts stabilize ATP in intersubunit ATPase pockets, thereby explaining the cofactor preference of Mtb Rho. We reveal a leucine-to-methionine substitution that creates a steric bulk in BCM binding cavities near the positions of ATP γ-phosphates, and confers resistance to BCM at the expense of motor efficiency. Our work contributes to explain the unusual features of Mtb Rho and provides a framework for future antibiotic development.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, NCSR "Demokritos", Ag. Paraskevi, 15310, Athens, Greece.