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Nygaard R, Graham CLB, Belcher Dufrisne M, Colburn JD, Pepe J, Hydorn MA, Corradi S, Brown CM, Ashraf KU, Vickery ON, Briggs NS, Deering JJ, Kloss B, Botta B, Clarke OB, Columbus L, Dworkin J, Stansfeld PJ, Roper DI, Mancia F. Structural basis of peptidoglycan synthesis by E. coli RodA-PBP2 complex. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5151. [PMID: 37620344 PMCID: PMC10449877 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40483-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Peptidoglycan (PG) is an essential structural component of the bacterial cell wall that is synthetized during cell division and elongation. PG forms an extracellular polymer crucial for cellular viability, the synthesis of which is the target of many antibiotics. PG assembly requires a glycosyltransferase (GT) to generate a glycan polymer using a Lipid II substrate, which is then crosslinked to the existing PG via a transpeptidase (TP) reaction. A Shape, Elongation, Division and Sporulation (SEDS) GT enzyme and a Class B Penicillin Binding Protein (PBP) form the core of the multi-protein complex required for PG assembly. Here we used single particle cryo-electron microscopy to determine the structure of a cell elongation-specific E. coli RodA-PBP2 complex. We combine this information with biochemical, genetic, spectroscopic, and computational analyses to identify the Lipid II binding sites and propose a mechanism for Lipid II polymerization. Our data suggest a hypothesis for the movement of the glycan strand from the Lipid II polymerization site of RodA towards the TP site of PBP2, functionally linking these two central enzymatic activities required for cell wall peptidoglycan biosynthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rie Nygaard
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Chris L B Graham
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Meagan Belcher Dufrisne
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22904, USA
| | - Jonathan D Colburn
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Joseph Pepe
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Molly A Hydorn
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Silvia Corradi
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Chelsea M Brown
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Khuram U Ashraf
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Owen N Vickery
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Nicholas S Briggs
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - John J Deering
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Brian Kloss
- New York Consortium on Membrane Protein Structure, New York Structural Biology Center, 89 Convent Avenue, New York, NY, 10027, USA
| | - Bruno Botta
- Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Oliver B Clarke
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Linda Columbus
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22904, USA.
| | - Jonathan Dworkin
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
| | - Phillip J Stansfeld
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
| | - David I Roper
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
| | - Filippo Mancia
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
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Benfield AH, Henriques ST. Mode-of-Action of Antimicrobial Peptides: Membrane Disruption vs. Intracellular Mechanisms. FRONTIERS IN MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY 2020; 2:610997. [PMID: 35047892 PMCID: PMC8757789 DOI: 10.3389/fmedt.2020.610997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2020] [Accepted: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides are an attractive alternative to traditional antibiotics, due to their physicochemical properties, activity toward a broad spectrum of bacteria, and mode-of-actions distinct from those used by current antibiotics. In general, antimicrobial peptides kill bacteria by either disrupting their membrane, or by entering inside bacterial cells to interact with intracellular components. Characterization of their mode-of-action is essential to improve their activity, avoid resistance in bacterial pathogens, and accelerate their use as therapeutics. Here we review experimental biophysical tools that can be employed with model membranes and bacterial cells to characterize the mode-of-action of antimicrobial peptides.
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Vaiwala R, Sharma P, Puranik M, Ayappa KG. Developing a Coarse-Grained Model for Bacterial Cell Walls: Evaluating Mechanical Properties and Free Energy Barriers. J Chem Theory Comput 2020; 16:5369-5384. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.0c00539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Rakesh Vaiwala
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Pradyumn Sharma
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Mrinalini Puranik
- Unilever Research & Development, 64 Main Road, Whitefield, Bangalore 560066, India
| | - K. Ganapathy Ayappa
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
- Centre for BioSystems Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
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Abstract
Gram-negative bacteria are protected by a multicompartmental molecular architecture known as the cell envelope that contains two membranes and a thin cell wall. As the cell envelope controls influx and efflux of molecular species, in recent years both experimental and computational studies of such architectures have seen a resurgence due to the implications for antibiotic development. In this article we review recent progress in molecular simulations of bacterial membranes. We show that enormous progress has been made in terms of the lipidic and protein compositions of bacterial systems. The simulations have moved away from the traditional setup of one protein surrounded by a large patch of the same lipid type toward a more bio-logically representative viewpoint. Simulations with multiple cell envelope components are also emerging. We review some of the key method developments that have facilitated recent progress, discuss some current limitations, and offer a perspective on future directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wonpil Im
- Departments of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA
- School of Computational Sciences, Korea Institute for Advanced Study, Seoul 02455, Republic of Korea
| | - Syma Khalid
- School of Chemistry, University of Southampton, Southampton S017 1BJ, United Kingdom
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Copoiu L, Malhotra S. The current structural glycome landscape and emerging technologies. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2020; 62:132-139. [PMID: 32006784 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2019.12.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Revised: 12/23/2019] [Accepted: 12/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Carbohydrates represent one of the building blocks of life, along with nucleic acids, proteins and lipids. Although glycans are involved in a wide range of processes from embryogenesis to protein trafficking and pathogen infection, we are still a long way from deciphering the glycocode. In this review, we aim to present a few of the challenges that researchers working in the area of glycobiology can encounter and what strategies can be utilised to overcome them. Our goal is to paint a comprehensive picture of the current saccharide landscape available in the Protein Data Bank (PDB). We also review recently updated repositories relevant to the topic proposed, the impact of software development on strategies to structurally solve carbohydrate moieties, and state-of-the-art molecular and cellular biology methods that can shed some light on the function and structure of glycans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liviu Copoiu
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1GA, United Kingdom
| | - Sony Malhotra
- Institute of Structural and Molecular Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, Birkbeck College, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, United Kingdom.
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