Architecture of the type II secretion system

Abstract

The virulence of emerging Gram-negative pathogens frequently arises from toxins delivered by the type II secretion system1. Cryo-EM single particle analysis and cryo-electron tomography and have defined the outer membrane secretin pore in detail, but the organisation of proteins within the periplasm and inner membrane that form the pilus assembly platform is not well resolved2,3. Here we combine AlphaFold4 models with single particle cryo-EM to define the organisation of the pilus assembly platform. We show that CLM heterotrimers form a continuous link from the cytoplasmic ATPase, across the inner membrane and periplasm, to the base of the secretin channel. AlphaFold models of the inner membrane spanning rotor and cytoplasmic ATPase fit readily within the cryo-EM density. The resolved secretion system exhibits an offset between the inner membrane assembly platform and the outer membrane secretin pore, together with profound asymmetry and an unexpectedly open periplasmic architecture. This architecture provides a route by which large, folded proteins access the secretion channel from the periplasm and suggests that substrate engagement may trigger the final steps in secretion system assembly leading to secretion.