Recombinant Porphyromonas gingivalis Major fimbrium subunit FimA type-1 (fimA)

Function

Structural subunit of the major fimbriae (PubMed:1987052). These long, filamentous pili are attached to the cell surface; they mediate biofilm formation, adhesion onto host cells and onto other bacteria that are part of the oral microbiome. They play an important role in the invasion of periodontal tissues (PubMed:11748193, PubMed:1987052). Fimbriae and their constituents are major virulence factors. FimA proteins from different strains have highly divergent sequences, and this has been used for classification. The sequence-based classification correlates with pathogenicity

Subcellular Location

Fimbrium; Cell outer membrane

Subunit

Fimbriae are composed of a major, structural subunit (FimA) and the minor components FimC, FimD and FimE (By similarity). Head-to-tail oligomerization of FimA molecules mediates assembly of the fimbrium stalk, while the minor components probably form the fimbrium tip. Linear, head-to-tail oligomerization of FimA is mediated by a conformation change, facilitating the insertion of a C-terminal beta-strand into a groove in the N-terminal domain of the following subunit (By similarity)

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