Type IV pili are strong, flexible filaments with varied roles in bacterial pathogenicity. Pilin structures and models are integrated here in a comprehensive review of the molecular basis of the ...

Although pathogenic bacteria often rely on a specialized molecular motor to retract their pili, a new study reveals that a minor pilin protein elicits pilus retraction in the cholera bacterium, Vibrio ...

Slender bacterial nanowires require certain key amino acids in order to conduct electricity, according to a new study. Slender bacterial nanowires require certain key amino acids in order to conduct ...

Type IV pili, essential for many pathogens to cause disease, are hair-like appendages that grow out of and are retracted back into bacteria cells, enabling them to move and adhere to surfaces.