BamA is required for autotransporter secretion

In Gram-negative bacteria, type Va and Vc autotransporters are proteins that contain both a secreted virulence factor (the “passenger” domain) and a β-barrel that aids its export. While it is known that the folding and insertion of the β-barrel domain utilize the β-barrel assembly machinery (BAM) complex, how the passenger domain is secreted and folded across the membrane remains to be determined. The hairpin model states that passenger domain secretion occurs independently through the fully-formed and membrane-inserted β-barrel domain via a hairpin folding intermediate. In contrast, the BamA-assisted model states that the passenger domain is secreted through a hybrid of BamA, the essential subunit of the BAM complex, and the β-barrel domain of the autotransporter. To ascertain the models' plausibility, we have used molecular dynamics to simulate passenger domain secretion for two autotransporters, EspP and YadA. We observed that each protein's β-barrel is unable to accommodate the secreting passenger domain in a hairpin configuration without major structural distortions. Additionally, the force required for secretion through EspP's β-barrel is more than that through the BamA β-barrel. Secretion of autotransporters most likely occurs through an incompletely formed β-barrel domain of the autotransporter in conjunction with BamA. Secretion of virulence factors is a process used by practically all pathogenic Gram-negative bacteria. Understanding this process is a necessary step towards limiting their infectious capacity.