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    Pili and flagella biology, structure, and biotechnological applications

    Van Gerven, N. and Waksman, Gabriel and Remaut, H. (2011) Pili and flagella biology, structure, and biotechnological applications. Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science 103 , pp. 21-72. ISSN 1877-1173.

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    Abstract

    Bacteria and Archaea expose on their outer surfaces a variety of thread-like proteinaceous organelles with which they interact with their environments. These structures are repetitive assemblies of covalently or non-covalently linked protein subunits, organized into filamentous polymers known as pili ("hair"), flagella ("whips") or injectisomes ("needles"). They serve different roles in cell motility, adhesion and host invasion, protein and DNA secretion and uptake, conductance, or cellular encapsulation. Here we describe the functional, morphological and genetic diversity of these bacterial filamentous protein structures. The organized, multi-copy build-up and/or the natural function of pili and flagella have lead to their biotechnological application as display and secretion tools, as therapeutic targets or as molecular motors. We review the documented and potential technological exploitation of bacterial surface filaments in light of their structural and functional traits.

    Metadata

    Item Type: Article
    School: Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science > School of Natural Sciences
    Research Centres and Institutes: Structural Molecular Biology, Institute of (ISMB)
    Depositing User: Sarah Hall
    Date Deposited: 20 Jan 2014 14:52
    Last Modified: 02 Aug 2023 17:09
    URI: https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/9022

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