Structural coordination of polymerization and crosslinking by a SEDS-bPBP peptidoglycan synthase complex

The Shape, Elongation, Division, and Sporulation (“SEDS”) proteins are a highly conserved family of transmembrane glycosyltransferases that work in concert with class B penicillin binding proteins (bPBPs) to build the bacterial peptidoglycan cell wall(1–6). How these proteins coordinate polymerization of new glycan strands with their crosslinking to the existing peptidoglycan meshwork remains unclear. Here, we report the crystal structure of the prototypical SEDS protein RodA from Thermus thermophilus in complex with its cognate bPBP at 3.3 Å resolution. The structure reveals a 1:1 stoichiometric complex with two extensive interaction interfaces between the proteins: one in the membrane plane and the other at the extracytoplasmic surface. When in complex with a bPBP, RodA shows a ~10 Å shift of transmembrane helix 7 that exposes a large membrane-accessible cavity. Negative-stain electron microscopy reveals that the complex can adopt a variety of different conformations. These data define the bPBP pedestal domain as the key allosteric activator of RodA both in vitro and in vivo, explaining how a SEDS:bPBP complex can coordinate its dual enzymatic activities of peptidoglycan polymerization and crosslinking to build the cell wall.