for the ESX-5 core complex [14 (link)]. In
brief, mycobacterial membranes were isolated as described in the purification
section, resuspended in PBS-250 mM sucrose, and incubated with 1 mM DSS
(disuccinimidyl suberate) or dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO; control) for 30 min on
ice. The cross-linking reaction was quenched by addition of 100 mM glycine, 10
mM Na2HPO4 (pH 8.5) for 30 min. The cross-linked proteins
were extracted from the membrane by detergent-solubilization with 0.5 %
n-dodecyl β-D-maltoside (DDM) for 1 h on ice. Aggregates and insoluble
material were removed by ultracentrifugation (100 000 x g, 1 h). The solubilized
membrane proteins were separated by BN-PAGE using NativePAGE Novex 3–12%
BisTris gels followed by Western Blot analysis using antibodies against the
Strep-tag II (StrepMAB-Classic HRP conjugate, IBA life-sciences, Germany)
according to the manufacturer's protocol (Invitrogen).