Crystal structure and mechanism of the Staphylococcus cohnii virginiamycin B lyase (Vgb).
ABSTRACT The semisynthetic streptogramin antibiotic quinupristin/dalfopristin (trade name Synercid, Aventis Pharma) is a mixture of the A-type streptogramin dalfopristin and the B-type streptogramin quinupristin, a capped hexapeptide macrolactone. Quinupristin/dalfopristin was developed to combat multidrug resistant pathogens, but suffers from its own problems with drug resistance. Virginiamycin B lyase (Vgb) inactivates the quinupristin component of Synercid by lactone ring opening. Remarkably, the enzyme promotes this reaction by intramolecular beta-elimination without the involvement of a water molecule. Recently, structures of S. aureus Vgb in the presence and absence of substrate were reported and used together with detailed mutagenesis data to suggest a catalytic mechanism. Here, we report an independent determination of the S. cohnii Vgb crystal structure and a biochemical characterization of the enzyme. As expected, the S. cohnii and S. aureus Vgb structures and active sites are very similar. Moreover, both enzymes catalyze quinupristin lactone ring opening with similar rate constants, albeit perhaps with different dependencies on divalent metal ions. Replacement of the conserved active site residues His228, Glu268, or His270 with alanine reduces or abolishes S. cohnii Vgb activity. Residue Lys285 in S. cohnii Vgb is spatially equivalent to the S. aureus Vgb active site residue Glu284. A glutamate but not an alanine residue can substitute for the lysine without significant loss of activity.
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ABSTRACT: The need for new antibiotic therapies is acute and growing in large part because of the emergence of drug-resistant pathogens. A vast number of resistance determinants are, however, found in nonpathogenic micro-organisms. The resistance totality in the global microbiota is the antibiotic resistome and includes not only established resistance genes but also genes that have the potential to evolve into resistance elements. We term these proto-resistance genes and hypothesize that they share common ancestry with other functional units known as housekeeping genes. Genomic enzymology is the study of protein structure-function in light of genetic context and evolution of protein superfamilies. This concept is highly applicable to study of antibiotic resistance evolution from proto-resistance elements. In this review, we summarize some of the genomic enzymology evidence for resistance enzymes pointing to common ancestry with genes of other metabolic functions. Genomic enzymology plays a key role in understanding the origins of antibiotic resistance and aids in designing strategies for diagnosis and prevention thereof.Annual Review of Genetics 12/2010; 44:25-51. · 18.12 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The biosynthesis of several classes of ribosomally synthesized and posttranslationally modified peptides involves dehydration of serine and threonine residues. For class I lantibiotics, thiopeptides, and goadsporin, this dehydration is catalyzed by lanthionine biosynthetic enzyme B (LanB) or LanB-like proteins. Although LanB proteins have been studied since 1992, in vitro reconstitution of their dehydration activity has been elusive. We show here the in vitro activity of the dehydratase involved in the biosynthesis of the food preservative nisin (NisB). In vitro, NisB dehydrated its substrate peptide NisA eight times in the presence of glutamate, ATP, Mg(2+), and the ribosomal/membrane fraction of bacterial cell extract. Mutation of 23 highly conserved residues of NisB identified a number of amino acids that are essential for dehydration activity. In addition, these mutagenesis studies identified three mutants, R786A, R826A, and H961A, that result in multiple glutamylations of the NisA substrate. Glutamylation was observed during both Escherichia coli coexpression of NisA with these mutants and in vitro assays. Treatment of the glutamylated substrate with WT NisB results in dehydrated NisA, suggesting that the glutamylated peptide is an intermediate in dehydration. Collectively, these studies suggest that dehydration involves glutamylation of the side chains of Ser and Thr followed by elimination. The latter step has precedent in the virginiamycin resistance protein virginiamycin B lyase. These studies will facilitate investigation of other LanB proteins involved in the biosynthesis of lantibiotics, thiopeptides, and goadsporin.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 04/2013; · 9.81 Impact Factor