Structured clustering of the glycosphingolipid GM1 is required for membrane curvature induced by cholera toxin
Abir Maarouf Kabbani, Krishnan Raghunathan, Wayne I. Lencer, Anne K. Kenworthy, Christopher V. Kelly
Abstract
Significance Membrane-binding toxins demonstrate both a public health challenge and a bioengineering opportunity due to their efficient internalization into cells. These toxins multivalently bind to naturally occurring lipid receptors at the plasma membrane and initiate endocytosis. This manuscript reports the importance of structured lipid receptor clustering for the induction of membrane bending. We also observed that the magnitude of membrane curvature was correlated to the stoichiometry of toxin-bound receptors. By identifying how these bacterial proteins initiate membrane curvature, these findings provide mechanistic insights into the early steps of pathogenic endocytosis.