Effect of polyamines on the inhibition of peptidyltransferase by antibiotics: revisiting the mechanism of chloramphenicol action

Chloramphenicol is thought to interfere competitively with the binding of the aminoacyl-tRNA 3′-terminus to ribosomal A-site. However, noncompetitive or mixed-noncompetitive inhibition, often observed to be dependent on chloramphenicol concentration and ionic conditions, leaves some doubt about the precise mode of action. Here, we examine further the inhibition effect of chloramphenicol, using a model system derived from Escherichia coli in which a peptide bond is formed between puromycin and AcPhe-tRNA bound at the P-site of poly(U)-programmed ribosomes, under ionic conditions (6 mM Mg(2+), 100 mM NH(4)(+), 100 µM spermine) more closely resembling the physiological status. Kinetics reveal that chloramphenicol (I) reacts rapidly with AcPhe-tRNA·poly(U)·70S ribosomal complex (C) to form the encounter complex CI which is then isomerized slowly to a more tight complex, C*I. A similar inhibition pattern is observed, if complex C modified by a photoreactive analogue of spermine, reacts in buffer free of spermine. Spermine, either reversibly interacting with or covalently attached to ribosomes, enhances the peptidyltransferase activity and increases the chloramphenicol potency, without affecting the isomerization step. As indicated by photoaffinity labeling, the peptidyltransferase center at which chloramphenicol binds, is one of the preferred cross-linking sites for polyamines. This fact may explain the effect of spermine on chloramphenicol binding to ribosomes

Ribosomes containing mutants of L4 ribosomal protein from Thermus thermophilus display multiple defects in ribosomal functions and sensitivity against erythromycin

Protein L4 from Thermus thermophilus (TthL4) was heterologously overproduced in Escherichia coli cells. To study the implication of the extended loop of TthL4 in the exit-tunnel and peptidyltransferase functions, the highly conserved E56 was replaced by D or Q, while the semiconserved G55 was changed to E or S. Moreover, the sequence -G55E56- was inverted to -E55G56-. When we incorporated these mutants into E. coli ribosomes and investigated their impact on poly(Phe) synthesis, high variations in the synthetic activity and response to erythromycin of the resulting ribosomes were observed. In the absence of erythromycin, ribosomes harboring mutations G55E and E56D in TthL4 protein were characterized by low activity in synthesizing poly(Phe) and decreased capability in binding tRNA at the A site. On the other hand, ribosomes possessing mutations G55E, G55S, G55E-E56G, or E56Q in TthL4 protein were unexpectedly more sensitive to erythromycin. Evidence in support of these findings was drawn by in vivo experiments, assessing the erythromycin sensitivity of E. coli cells expressing wild-type or mutant TthL4 proteins. Our results emphasize the role of the extended loop of L4 ribosomal protein in the exit-tunnel and peptidyltransferase center functions

Polyamines affect diversely the antibiotic potency: insight gained from kinetic studies of the blasticidin S and spiramycin interactions with functional ribosomes

The effects of spermine on peptidyltransferase inhibition by an aminohexosylcytosine nucleoside, blasticidin S, and by a macrolide, spiramycin, were investigated in a model system derived from Escherichia coli, in which a peptide bond is formed between puromycin and AcPhe-tRNA bound at the P-site of poly(U)-programmed ribosomes. Kinetics revealed that blasticidin S, after a transient phase of interference with the A-site, is slowly accommodated near to the P-site so that peptide bond is still formed but with a lower catalytic rate constant. At high concentrations of blasticidin S (>10 x Ki), a second drug molecule binds to a weaker binding site on ribosomes, and this may account for the onset of a subsequent mixed-noncompetitive inhibition phase. Spermine enhances the blasticidin S inhibitory effect by facilitating the drug accommodation to both sites. On the other hand, spiramycin (A) was found competing with puromycin for the A-site of AcPhe-tRNA·poly(U)·70 S ribosomal complex (C) via a two-step mechanism, according to which the fast formation of the encounter complex CA is followed by a slow isomerization to a tighter complex, termed C*A. In contrast to that observed with blasticidin S, spermine reduced spiramycin potency by decreasing the formation and stability of complex C*A. Polyamine effects on drug binding were more pronounced when a mixture of spermine and spermidine was used, instead of spermine alone. Our kinetic results correlate well with cross-linking and crystallographic data and suggest that polyamines bound at the vicinity of the antibiotic binding pockets modulate diversely the interaction of these drugs with ribosomes