Development of Class IIa Bacteriocins as Therapeutic Agents

Class IIa bacteriocins have been primarily explored as natural food preservatives, but there is much interest in exploring the application of these peptides as therapeutic antimicrobial agents. Bacteriocins of this class possess antimicrobial activity against several important human pathogens. Therefore, the therapeutic development of these bacteriocins will be reviewed. Biological and chemical modifications to both stabilize and increase the potency of bacteriocins are discussed, as well as the optimization of their production and purification. The suitability of bacteriocins as pharmaceuticals is explored through determinations of cytotoxicity, effects on the natural microbiota, and in vivo efficacy in mouse models. Recent results suggest that class IIa bacteriocins show promise as a class of therapeutic agents

Cyclic Boronates Inhibit All Classes of β-Lactamase

β-Lactamase-mediated resistance is a growing threat to the continued use of β-lactam antibiotics. The use of the β-lactam-based serine-β-lactamase (SBL) inhibitors clavulanic acid, sulbactam, tazobactam, and, more recently, the non-β-lactam inhibitor avibactam has extended the utility of β-lactams against bacterial infections demonstrating resistance via these enzymes. These molecules are, however, ineffective against the metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs), which catalyse their hydrolysis. To date, there are no clinically available metallo-β-lactamase inhibitors. Co-production of MBLs and SBLs in resistant infections is, thus, of major clinical concern. The development of ‘dual-action' inhibitors, targeting both SBLs and MBLs, is of interest, but these are considered difficult to achieve due to the structural and mechanistic differences between the two enzyme classes. We recently reported evidence that cyclic boronates can inhibit both serine- and metallo-β-lactmases. Here we report that cyclic boronates are able to inhibit all four classes of β-lactamase, including the class A extended spectrum β-lactamase, CTX-M-15, the class C enzyme, AmpC from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and class D OXA enzymes with carbapenem-hydrolysing capabilities. We demonstrate that cyclic boronates can potentiate the use of β-lactams against Gram-negative clinical isolates expressing a variety of β-lactamases. Comparison of a crystal structure of a CTX-M-15:cyclic boronate complex with structures of cyclic boronates complexed with other β-lactamases reveals remarkable conservation of the small molecule binding mode, supporting our proposal that these molecules work by mimicking the common tetrahedral anionic intermediate present in both serine- and metallo-β-lactamase catalysis

Crotonases: Nature’s exceedingly convertible catalysts

YesThe crotonases comprise a widely distributed enzyme superfamily that has multiple roles in both primary and secondary metabolism. Many crotonases employ oxyanion hole-mediated stabilization of intermediates to catalyze the reaction of coenzyme A (CoA) thioester substrates (e.g., malonyl-CoA, α,β-unsaturated CoA esters) both with nucleophiles and, in the case of enolate intermediates, with varied electrophiles. Reactions of crotonases that proceed via a stabilized oxyanion intermediate include the hydrolysis of substrates including proteins, as well as hydration, isomerization, nucleophilic aromatic substitution, Claisen-type, and cofactor-independent oxidation reactions. The crotonases have a conserved fold formed from a central β-sheet core surrounded by α-helices, which typically oligomerizes to form a trimer or dimer of trimers. The presence of a common structural platform and mechanisms involving intermediates with diverse reactivity implies that crotonases have considerable potential for biocatalysis and synthetic biology, as supported by pioneering protein engineering studies on them. In this Perspective, we give an overview of crotonase diversity and structural biology and then illustrate the scope of crotonase catalysis and potential for biocatalysis.Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, the Medical Research Council, and the Wellcome Trus

A New Mechanism for β‐Lactamases: Class D Enzymes Degrade 1β‐Methyl Carbapenems through Lactone Formation

β‐Lactamases threaten the clinical use of carbapenems, which are considered antibiotics of last resort. The classical mechanism of serine carbapenemase catalysis proceeds through hydrolysis of an acyl‐enzyme intermediate. We show that class D β‐lactamases also degrade clinically used 1β‐methyl‐substituted carbapenems through the unprecedented formation of a carbapenem‐derived β‐lactone. β‐Lactone formation results from nucleophilic attack of the carbapenem hydroxyethyl side chain on the ester carbonyl of the acyl‐enzyme intermediate. The carbapenem‐derived lactone products inhibit both serine β‐lactamases (particularly class D) and metallo‐β‐lactamases. These results define a new mechanism for the class D carbapenemases, in which a hydrolytic water molecule is not required.FWN – Publicaties zonder aanstelling Universiteit Leide

Mechanistic Insights into β-Lactamase-Catalysed Carbapenem Degradation Through Product Characterisation

β-Lactamases are a major threat to the clinical use of carbapenems, which are often antibiotics of last resort. Despite this, the reaction outcomes and mechanisms by which β-lactamases degrade carbapenems are still not fully understood. The carbapenem bicyclic core consists of a β-lactam ring fused to a pyrroline ring. Following β-lactamase-mediated opening of the β-lactam, the pyrroline may interconvert between an enamine (2-pyrroline) form and two epimeric imine (1-pyrroline) forms; previous crystallographic and spectroscopic studies have reported all three of these forms in the contexts of hydrolysis by different β-lactamases. As we show by NMR spectroscopy, the serine β-lactamases (KPC-2, SFC-1, CMY-10, OXA-23, and OXA-48) and metallo-β-lactamases (NDM-1, VIM-1, BcII, CphA, and L1) tested all degrade carbapenems to preferentially give the Δ2 (enamine) and/or (R)-Δ1 (imine) products. Rapid non-enzymatic tautomerisation of the Δ2 product to the (R)-Δ1 product prevents assignment of the nascent enzymatic product by NMR. The observed stereoselectivity implies that carbapenemases control the form of their pyrroline ring intermediate(s)/product(s), thereby preventing pyrroline tautomerisation from inhibiting catalysis.FWN – Publicaties zonder aanstelling Universiteit Leide

A New Mechanism for β‐Lactamases: Class D Enzymes Degrade 1β‐Methyl Carbapenems through Lactone Formation

β‐Lactamases threaten the clinical use of carbapenems, which are considered antibiotics of last resort. The classical mechanism of serine carbapenemase catalysis proceeds through hydrolysis of an acyl‐enzyme intermediate. We show that class D β‐lactamases also degrade clinically used 1β‐methyl‐substituted carbapenems through the unprecedented formation of a carbapenem‐derived β‐lactone. β‐Lactone formation results from nucleophilic attack of the carbapenem hydroxyethyl side chain on the ester carbonyl of the acyl‐enzyme intermediate. The carbapenem‐derived lactone products inhibit both serine β‐lactamases (particularly class D) and metallo‐β‐lactamases. These results define a new mechanism for the class D carbapenemases, in which a hydrolytic water molecule is not required.FWN – Publicaties zonder aanstelling Universiteit Leide

Mechanistic Insights into β-Lactamase-Catalysed Carbapenem Degradation Through Product Characterisation

β-Lactamases are a major threat to the clinical use of carbapenems, which are often antibiotics of last resort. Despite this, the reaction outcomes and mechanisms by which β-lactamases degrade carbapenems are still not fully understood. The carbapenem bicyclic core consists of a β-lactam ring fused to a pyrroline ring. Following β-lactamase-mediated opening of the β-lactam, the pyrroline may interconvert between an enamine (2-pyrroline) form and two epimeric imine (1-pyrroline) forms; previous crystallographic and spectroscopic studies have reported all three of these forms in the contexts of hydrolysis by different β-lactamases. As we show by NMR spectroscopy, the serine β-lactamases (KPC-2, SFC-1, CMY-10, OXA-23, and OXA-48) and metallo-β-lactamases (NDM-1, VIM-1, BcII, CphA, and L1) tested all degrade carbapenems to preferentially give the Δ² (enamine) and/or (R)-Δ¹ (imine) products. Rapid non-enzymatic tautomerisation of the Δ² product to the (R)-Δ¹ product prevents assignment of the nascent enzymatic product by NMR. The observed stereoselectivity implies that carbapenemases control the form of their pyrroline ring intermediate(s)/product(s), thereby preventing pyrroline tautomerisation from inhibiting catalysis

Non-Hydrolytic β-Lactam Antibiotic Fragmentation by l,d-Transpeptidases and Serine β-Lactamase Cysteine Variants

Enzymes often use nucleophilic serine, threonine, and cysteine residues to achieve the same type of reaction; the underlying reasons for this are not understood. While bacterial d,d‐transpeptidases (penicillin‐binding proteins) employ a nucleophilic serine, l,d‐transpeptidases use a nucleophilic cysteine. The covalent complexes formed by l,d‐transpeptidases with some β‐lactam antibiotics undergo non‐hydrolytic fragmentation. This is not usually observed for penicillin‐binding proteins, or for the related serine β‐lactamases. Replacement of the nucleophilic serine of serine β‐lactamases with cysteine yields enzymes which fragment β‐lactams via a similar mechanism as the l,d‐transpeptidases, implying the different reaction outcomes are principally due to the formation of thioester versus ester intermediates. The results highlight fundamental differences in the reactivity of nucleophilic serine and cysteine enzymes, and imply new possibilities for the inhibition of nucleophilic enzymes

Ferroptosis in health and disease.

Ferroptosis is a pervasive non-apoptotic form of cell death highly relevant in various degenerative diseases and malignancies. The hallmark of ferroptosis is uncontrolled and overwhelming peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids contained in membrane phospholipids, which eventually leads to rupture of the plasma membrane. Ferroptosis is unique in that it is essentially a spontaneous, uncatalyzed chemical process based on perturbed iron and redox homeostasis contributing to the cell death process, but that it is nonetheless modulated by many metabolic nodes that impinge on the cells susceptibility to ferroptosis. Among the various nodes affecting ferroptosis sensitivity, several have emerged as promising candidates for pharmacological intervention, rendering ferroptosis-related proteins attractive targets for the treatment of numerous currently incurable diseases. Herein, the current members of a Germany-wide research consortium focusing on ferroptosis research, as well as key external experts in ferroptosis who have made seminal contributions to this rapidly growing and exciting field of research, have gathered to provide a comprehensive, state-of-the-art review on ferroptosis. Specific topics include: basic mechanisms, in vivo relevance, specialized methodologies, chemical and pharmacological tools, and the potential contribution of ferroptosis to disease etiopathology and progression. We hope that this article will not only provide established scientists and newcomers to the field with an overview of the multiple facets of ferroptosis, but also encourage additional efforts to characterize further molecular pathways modulating ferroptosis, with the ultimate goal to develop novel pharmacotherapies to tackle the various diseases associated with - or caused by - ferroptosis