Magnetosomes are cell membrane imaginations organized by the actin-like protein MamK

Abstract

Magnetosomes are membranous bacterial organelles sharing many features of eukaryotic organelles. Using electron cryotomography, we found that magnetosomes are invaginations of the cell membrane flanked by a network of cytoskeletal filaments. The filaments appeared to be composed of MamK, a homolog of the bacterial actin-like protein MreB, which formed filamer in vivo. In a mamK deletion strain, the magnetosome-associated cytoskeleton was absent and individual magnetosomes were no longer organized into chains. Thus, it seems that prokaryote: can use cytoskeletal filaments to position organelles within the cell.