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Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) can be utilized as tools to control bacterial community interactions. However, identifying CAMs that target bacterial outer membrane proteins in their native form remains challenging. Dr. See-Yeun Ting's research team from the Institute of Molecular Biology has established a screening platform that effectively identifies CAMs targeting bacterial outer membrane proteins. This platform leverages the bacterial type IV secretion system, a contact-dependent DNA delivery nanomachine whose efficiency is enhanced by specific cell-cell interactions mediated by CAMs and their target antigens on cell surfaces. These stable linkages facilitate the transfer of antibiotic resistance markers, allowing for the selective enrichment of bacteria displaying target CAMs. Using this platform, the research team screened three CAMs that recognize different membrane proteins (TraN, OmpA, OmpC) and successfully applied them to regulate specific bacterial interactions.

This work was published on August 3, 2024, in Nature Communications. The first author is Po-Yin Chen, M.Sc., from the TIGP-MCB Ph.D. program. Collaborators include Dr. Chao-Ping Hsu at the Institute of Chemistry, Dr. Wei-Le Wang, and Dr. Kuo-Chiang Hsia at the Institute of Molecular Biology, at Academia Sinica. The study was sponsored by the Career Development Award from Academia Sinica and the Research Project for Newly-Recruited Personnel from the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), Taiwan.