The crystal structure of the scaffolding protein CheW from Thermoanaerobacter tengcongensis (TtCheW) is reported with a resolution at 2.2A using molecular replacement. Based on the crystal structure TmCheA P4-P5-TmCheW from Thermotoga maritime reported by others, we modeled the TmCheA P4-P5-TtCheW complex and predicted that TtCheW is involved in a hydrophobic interaction with CheA, similar to t...

The signaling apparatus that controls bacterial chemotaxis is composed of a core complex containing chemoreceptors, the histidine autokinase CheA, and the coupling protein CheW. Site-specific spin labeling and pulsed dipolar ESR spectroscopy (PDS) have been applied to investigate the structure of a soluble ternary complex formed by Thermotoga maritima CheA (TmCheA), CheW, and receptor signaling...

Chemical signals sensed on the periplasmic side of bacterial cells by transmembrane chemoreceptors are transmitted to the flagellar motors via the histidine kinase CheA, which controls the phosphorylation level of the effector protein CheY. Chemoreceptor arrays comprise remarkably stable supramolecular structures in which thousands of chemoreceptors are networked through interactions between th...

The ability of attractants and repellents to affect the turnover of methyl groups on the methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins (MCPs) was examined for Bacillus subtilis. Attractants were found to cause an increase in the turnover of methyl groups esterified to the MCPs, while repellents caused a decrease. These reactions do not require CheW. However, a cheW null mutant exhibits enhanced turnover...