Metal Response in Cupriavidus metallidurans, Volume II: Insights into the Structure-Function Relationship of Proteins

Bacteria such as Cupriavidus metallidurans have developed different strategies for tolerating toxic levels of metal ions. Metal ion resistance requires the contribution of multiple layers of mechanisms, the most efficient being the efflux of the noxious cations out of the cell regulated by transport systems. Structural and functional data from bacterial primary and secondary transporters are outlined and detailed for the corresponding C. metallidurans proteins. Next, the available high-resolution threedimensional structures of C. metallidurans proteins involved in metal resistance mechanisms are reviewed and their structure-function relationship is discussed.