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Abstract
Coxiella burnetii is an obligate, intracellular bacterium that is the causative agent of Q fever. The bacterium uses a Type IV Dot/Icm secretion system to translocate an estimated 100 effectors into the host cell to manipulate the environment and favor bacterial growth. These effectors play many roles during infection, and one of these effectors, CBU0122, is not well characterized. In this study, determining the localization within the cell of CBU0122 by examining its recruitment to mitochondria and recycling endosomes was focused upon. The structure of the CBU0122 protein was also investigated, to determine if truncations of the protein could facilitate localization. CBU0122 co-localizes with the mitochondrial marker, CoxIV, more than with a recycling endosome marker, CD71. Truncations of the CBU0122 protein are sufficient to facilitate weak subcellular localization.
