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Mitra S, Chandersekhar B, Li Y, Coopershlyak M, Mahoney ME, Evans B, Koenig R, Hall SCL, Klösgen B, Heinrich F, Deslouches B, Tristram-Nagle S. Novel non-helical antimicrobial peptides insert into and fuse lipid model membranes. SOFT MATTER 2024; 20:4088-4101. [PMID: 38712559 PMCID: PMC11109824 DOI: 10.1039/d4sm00220b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
This research addresses the growing menace of antibiotic resistance by exploring antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) as alternatives to conventional antibiotics. Specifically, we investigate two linear amphipathic AMPs, LE-53 (12-mer) and LE-55 (16-mer), finding that the shorter LE-53 exhibits greater bactericidal activity against both Gram-negative (G(-)) and Gram-positive (G(+)) bacteria. Remarkably, both AMPs are non-toxic to eukaryotic cells. The heightened effectiveness of LE-53 is attributed to its increased hydrophobicity (H) compared to LE-55. Circular dichroism (CD) reveals that LE-53 and LE-55 both adopt β-sheet and random coil structures in lipid model membranes (LMMs) mimicking G(-) and G(+) bacteria, so secondary structure is not the cause of the potency difference. X-ray diffuse scattering (XDS) reveals increased lipid chain order in LE-53, a potential key distinction. Additionally, XDS study uncovers a significant link between LE-53's upper hydrocarbon location in G(-) and G(+) LMMs and its efficacy. Neutron reflectometry (NR) confirms the AMP locations determined using XDS. Solution small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) demonstrates LE-53's ability to induce vesicle fusion in bacterial LMMs without affecting eukaryotic LMMs, offering a promising strategy to combat antibiotic-resistant strains while preserving human cell integrity, whereas LE-55 has a smaller ability to induce fusion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saheli Mitra
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Bhairavi Chandersekhar
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Yunshu Li
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Mark Coopershlyak
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Margot E Mahoney
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Brandt Evans
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Rachel Koenig
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Stephen C L Hall
- ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK
| | - Beate Klösgen
- University of Southern Denmark, Dept. Physics, Chemistry & Pharmacy, PhyLife, Campusvej 55, Odense M5230, Denmark
| | - Frank Heinrich
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
- Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA
| | - Berthony Deslouches
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA
| | - Stephanie Tristram-Nagle
- Biological Physics Group, Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
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Wu Y, Liu P, Mehrjou B, Chu PK. Interdisciplinary-Inspired Smart Antibacterial Materials and Their Biomedical Applications. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2024; 36:e2305940. [PMID: 37469232 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202305940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023]
Abstract
The discovery of antibiotics has saved millions of lives, but the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria has become another problem in modern medicine. To avoid or reduce the overuse of antibiotics in antibacterial treatments, stimuli-responsive materials, pathogen-targeting nanoparticles, immunogenic nano-toxoids, and biomimetic materials are being developed to make sterilization better and smarter than conventional therapies. The common goal of smart antibacterial materials (SAMs) is to increase the antibiotic efficacy or function via an antibacterial mechanism different from that of antibiotics in order to increase the antibacterial and biological properties while reducing the risk of drug resistance. The research and development of SAMs are increasingly interdisciplinary because new designs require the knowledge of different fields and input/collaboration from scientists in different fields. A good understanding of energy conversion in materials, physiological characteristics in cells and bacteria, and bactericidal structures and components in nature are expected to promote the development of SAMs. In this review, the importance of multidisciplinary insights for SAMs is emphasized, and the latest advances in SAMs are categorized and discussed according to the pertinent disciplines including materials science, physiology, and biomimicry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuzheng Wu
- Department of Physics, Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Pei Liu
- Department of Physics, Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Babak Mehrjou
- Department of Physics, Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Paul K Chu
- Department of Physics, Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong, 999077, China
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Pourmasoumi F, Hengoju S, Beck K, Stephan P, Klopfleisch L, Hoernke M, Rosenbaum MA, Kries H. Analysing Megasynthetase Mutants at High Throughput Using Droplet Microfluidics. Chembiochem 2023; 24:e202300680. [PMID: 37804133 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300680] [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: 10/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 10/08/2023]
Abstract
Nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) are giant enzymatic assembly lines that deliver many pharmaceutically valuable natural products, including antibiotics. As the search for new antibiotics motivates attempts to redesign nonribosomal metabolic pathways, more robust and rapid sorting and screening platforms are needed. Here, we establish a microfluidic platform that reliably detects production of the model nonribosomal peptide gramicidin S. The detection is based on calcein-filled sensor liposomes yielding increased fluorescence upon permeabilization. From a library of NRPS mutants, the sorting platform enriches the gramicidin S producer 14.5-fold, decreases internal stop codons 250-fold, and generates enrichment factors correlating with enzyme activity. Screening for NRPS activity with a reliable non-binary sensor will enable more sophisticated structure-activity studies and new engineering applications in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Farzaneh Pourmasoumi
- Junior Research Group Biosynthetic Design of Natural Products, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (HKI), Beutenbergstr. 11a, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Sundar Hengoju
- Bio Pilot Plant, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (HKI), Beutenbergstr. 11a, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Katharina Beck
- Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Hermann-Herder-Str. 9, 79104, Freiburg i. Br., Germany
| | - Philipp Stephan
- Junior Research Group Biosynthetic Design of Natural Products, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (HKI), Beutenbergstr. 11a, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Lukas Klopfleisch
- Junior Research Group Biosynthetic Design of Natural Products, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (HKI), Beutenbergstr. 11a, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Maria Hoernke
- Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Hermann-Herder-Str. 9, 79104, Freiburg i. Br., Germany
- Faculty of Chemistry, Martin-Luther-Universität, Von-Danckelmann-Platz 4, 06108, Halle (S.), Germany
| | - Miriam A Rosenbaum
- Bio Pilot Plant, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (HKI), Beutenbergstr. 11a, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07743, Jena, Germany
| | - Hajo Kries
- Junior Research Group Biosynthetic Design of Natural Products, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (HKI), Beutenbergstr. 11a, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstrasse 30, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany
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Beck K, Nandy J, Hoernke M. Membrane permeabilization can be crucially biased by a fusogenic lipid composition - leaky fusion caused by antimicrobial peptides in model membranes. SOFT MATTER 2023; 19:2919-2931. [PMID: 37010846 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm01691e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Induced membrane permeabilization or leakage is often taken as an indication for activity of membrane-active molecules, such as antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). The exact leakage mechanism is often unknown, but important, because certain mechanisms might actually contribute to microbial killing, while others are unselective, or potentially irrelevant in an in vivo situation. Using an antimicrobial example peptide (cR3W3), we illustrate one of the potentially misleading leakage mechanisms: leaky fusion, where leakage is coupled to membrane fusion. Like many others, we examine peptide-induced leakage in model vesicles consisting of binary mixtures of anionic and zwitterionic phospholipids. In fact, phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylethanolamine (PG/PE) are supposed to reflect bacterial membranes, but exhibit a high propensity for vesicle aggregation and fusion. We describe the implications of this vesicle fusion and aggregation for the reliability of model studies. The ambiguous role of the relatively fusogenic PE-lipids becomes clear as leakage decreases significantly when aggregation and fusion are prevented by sterical shielding. Furthermore, the mechanism of leakage changes if PE is exchanged for phosphatidylcholine (PC). We thus point out that the lipid composition of model membranes can be biased towards leaky fusion. This can lead to discrepancies between model studies and activity in true microbes, because leaky fusion is likely prevented by bacterial peptidoglycan layers. In conclusion, choosing the model membrane might implicate the type of effect (here leakage mechanism) that is observed. In the worst case, as with leaky fusion of PG/PE vesicles, this is not directly relevant for the intended antimicrobial application.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Beck
- Chemistry and Pharmacy, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg i. Br., Germany.
| | - Janina Nandy
- Chemistry and Pharmacy, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg i. Br., Germany.
| | - Maria Hoernke
- Chemistry and Pharmacy, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg i. Br., Germany.
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