Conformational changes of the translocation pathway gates of the MetNIQ complex. Structure comparison of the MetI subunits in their outward-facing conformation (A and C) (colored forest and pale yellow) versus inward-facing conformation (B and D) (colored gray) reveals major rearrangements of the periplasmic gate residues, including Y177 and M163 (cyan; shown in ball-and-stick representation) (A and B), and of the cytoplasmic gate residues, including F103, M107, and Y160 (black; shown in ball-and-stick representation) (C and D).