A fusion of the Bacteroides fragilis ferrous iron import proteins reveals a role for FeoA in stabilizing GTP-bound FeoB

Abstract

Iron is an essential element for nearly all organisms, and under anoxic and/or reducing conditions, Fe²⁺ is the dominant form of iron available to bacteria. The ferrous iron transport (Feo) system is the primary prokaryotic Fe²⁺ import machinery, and two constituent proteins (FeoA and FeoB) are conserved across most bacterial species. However, how FeoA and FeoB function relative to one another remains enigmatic. In this work, we explored the distribution of feoAB operons encoding a fusion of FeoA tethered to the N-terminal, G-protein domain of FeoB via a connecting linker region. We hypothesized that this fusion poises FeoA to interact with FeoB to affect function. To test this hypothesis, we cloned, expressed, purified, and characterized the soluble NFeoAB fusion protein from Bacteroides fragilis, a commensal organism implicated in drug-resistant peritoneal infections. Using X-ray crystallography, we determined the 1.50 Å resolution structure of BfFeoA, which adopts an SH3-like fold implicated in protein-protein interactions. Using a combination of structural modeling, small-angle X-ray scattering, and hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry, we show that FeoA and NFeoB interact in a nucleotide-dependent manner, and furthermore mapped the protein-protein interaction interface. Finally, using GTP hydrolysis assays, we demonstrate that BfNFeoAB exhibits one of the slowest known rates of Feo-mediated GTP hydrolysis that is not potassium-stimulated. Importantly, truncation of FeoA from this fusion demonstrates that FeoA-NFeoB interactions function to stabilize the GTP-bound form of FeoB. Taken together, our work reveals a role for FeoA function in the fused FeoAB system and suggests a function for FeoA amongst prokaryotes.