Distinct filament morphology and membrane tethering features of the dual FtsZ paralogs in Odinarchaeota
The Asgard phylum has emerged as a model to study eukaryogenesis because of their close relatedness with the eukaryotes. In this study, we use FtsZ proteins from a member of the class Odinarchaeia as representatives to investigate the probable origin, evolution, and assembly of the FtsZ/tubulin protein superfamily in Asgard archaea. We performed a comparative analysis of the biochemical properties and cytoskeletal assembly of FtsZ1 and FtsZ2, the two FtsZ isoforms in the Odinarchaeota metagenome. Our electron microscopy analysis reveals that OdinFtsZ1 assembles into curved single protofilaments, while OdinFtsZ2 forms stacked spiral ring-like structures. Upon sequence analysis, we identified an N-terminal amphipathic helix in OdinFtsZ1, which mediates direct membrane tethering. In contrast, OdinFtsZ2 is recruited to the membrane by the anchor OdinSepF via OdinFtsZ2's C-terminal tail. Overall, we report the presence of two distant evolutionary paralogs of FtsZ in Odinarchaeota, with distinct filament assemblies and differing modes of membrane targeting. Our findings highlight the diversity of FtsZ proteins in the archaeal phylum Asgardarchaeota, providing valuable insights into the evolution and differentiation of tubulin-family proteins.
Authors
- Srijita Roy (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6695-3496)
- Soumyajit Dutta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0709-5706)
- Jayanti Kumari (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-5442-8058)
- Abhishek Dhar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6723-0087)
- Animesh Kundu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4975-4797)
- Samay Pande (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4897-3923)
- Saravanan Palani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1893-6777)
- R. Srinivasan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8071-6110)
- Vaibhav Sharma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4471-9546)
- Pananghat Gayathri (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2242-4619)
- Kutti R. Vinothkumar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6746-5684)
- Sucharita Bose (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4617-0577)
- Akhilesh Uthaman
Institutions
- National Institute of Science Education and Research (IN)
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune (IN)
- National Centre for Biological Sciences (IN)
- Homi Bhabha National Institute (IN)
- Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine (IN)
- Indian Institute of Science Bangalore (IN)
- Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (IN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The EMBO Journal
- Published
- 2025-08-08
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s44318-025-00529-7
- Primary Topic
- Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, India
- Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India
- The Wellcome Trust DBT India Alliance
- Science and Engineering Research Board