In an article published in Nature Structural and Molecular Biology, scientists describe a new structural module at the heart of bacterial energy metabolism.
By combining bioinformatics approaches with cutting-edge structural biology techniques, the IBS researchers, in collaboration with the LCB (Bacterial Chemistry Laboratory, Marseille), were able to identify a new structural module : a surprising tubular structure that connects oxidoreductases to the bacterial membrane and thus to quinones, small membrane molecules that are essential electrochemical connectors for energy transfer in cells. This structural model is described for a metalloenzyme involved in carbon metabolism in the soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis, catalysing the conversion of formate into carbon dioxide.
In summary, this study reveals a novel mechanism for anchoring oxidoreductases to the membrane, at the heart of microbial energy metabolism. This discovery opens the way to new biotechnological applications.
A scaffold for quinone channeling between membrane and soluble bacterial oxidoreductases. M. Broc, M. V. Cherrier, A. Uzel, R. Arias-Cartin, P. Arnoux, G. Brasseur, F. Seduk, B. Guigliarelli, P. Legrand, F. Pierrel, G. Schoehn, M. J. Maté, L. Martin, S. Grimaldi, Y. Nicolet, A. Magalon & A. Walburger. Nature Structural Molecular Biology 2025 ; 10.1038/s41594-025-01607-4
Contact : Yvain Nicolet (IBS/Metalloproteins Group)