ErpA, an iron–sulfur (Fe–S) protein of the A-type essential for respiratory metabolism in Escherichia coli

Understanding the biogenesis of iron–sulfur (Fe–S) proteins is relevant to many fields, including bioenergetics, gene regulation, and cancer research. Several multiprotein complexes assisting Fe–S assembly have been identified in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Here, we identify in Escherichia coli an A-type Fe–S protein that we named ErpA. Remarkably, erpA was found essential for growth of E. coli in the presence of oxygen or alternative electron acceptors. It was concluded that isoprenoid biosynthesis was impaired by the erpA mutation. First, the eukaryotic mevalonate-dependent pathway for biosynthesis of isopentenyl diphosphate restored the respiratory defects of an erpA mutant. Second, the erpA mutant contained a greatly reduced amount of ubiquinone and menaquinone. Third, ErpA bound Fe–S clusters and transferred them to apo-IspG, a protein catalyzing isopentenyl diphosphate biosynthesis in E. coli. Surprisingly, the erpA gene maps at a distance from any other Fe–S biogenesis-related gene. ErpA is an A-type Fe–S protein that is characterized by an essential role in cellular metabolism.