Structures of FolT in substrate-bound and substrate-released conformations reveal a gating mechanism for ECF transporters

Energy-coupling factor (ECF) transporters are a new family of ABC transporters that consist of four subunits, two cytoplasmic ATPases EcfA and EcfA' and two transmembrane proteins namely EcfS for substrate-specific binding and EcfT for energy coupling. Here, we report the 3.2-Å resolution crystal structure of the EcfS protein of a folate ECF transporter from Enterococcus faecalis - Ef FolT, a close homologue of FolT from Lactobacillus brevis - Lb FolT. Structural and biochemical analyses reveal the residues constituting the folate-binding pocket and determining the substrate-binding specificity. Structural comparison of the folate-bound Ef FolT with the folate-free Lb FolT contained in the holotransporter complex discloses significant conformational change at the L1 loop, and reveals a gating mechanism of ECF transporters in which the L1 loop of EcfS acts as a gate in the substrate binding and release.