Article
Microbiology
Chihiro Kadooka, Yutaka Tanaka, Daisuke Hira, Jun-ichi Maruyama, Masatoshi Goto, Takuji Oka
Summary: This study confirms the presence of D-galactofuranose-containing glycans in Aspergillus oryzae and shows that they play an important role in cell wall integrity. Deletion of the ugmA gene affects mycelial elongation and the structure of the cell wall.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Jian Fu, Huixiao Fu, Yufen Xia, Ines N'Go, Jun Cao, Weidong Pan, Stephane P. Vincent
Summary: An in situ screening assay has been developed to discover novel inhibitors of UDP-galactopyranose mutase, a key enzyme in Mycobacterium tuberculosis cell wall biosynthesis. This technology allows for high-throughput synthesis and screening of enzyme inhibitors in a 384-well plate format, leading to the successful identification of UGM ligands and determination of their inhibition levels. This study provides a blueprint for designing enamide structures as new UGM inhibitors and anti-mycobacterial agents.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Dalia M. Ahmed, David A. R. Sanders
Summary: In this study, an integrated biophysical approach was used to investigate the aggregation behavior of MS208 and its analogues against MtUGM, revealing unexpected aggregation behavior.
BIOORGANIC & MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xueqing Du, Xuan Chu, Ning Liu, Xiaoyu Jia, Hui Peng, Yazhong Xiao, Lin Liu, Haizhu Yu, Fudong Li, Chao He
Summary: Members of GT75 family catalyze autoglycosylation and exhibit NDP-pyranose mutase activity. Crystal structures of MtdL in complex with Mn2+ and GDP reveal key residues involved in substrate binding and catalytic reactions. Our results provide insights into the mechanism of NDP-pyranose mutase and highlight the importance of this enzyme family in furanose biosynthesis.
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Shulin Cao, Wenqiang Jiang, Yan Shu, Wei Li, Yani Zhang, Aixiang Zhang, Huaigu Chen
Summary: In this study, the CHY1-interacting protein UGMA was identified and confirmed with yeast two-hybrid assays. Deletion of UGMA led to significant defects in growth, reproduction, cell wall integrity, and pathogenicity in F. graminearum. UGMA is unique to fungi and bacteria and plays an important role as a pathogenic factor, required for cell wall architecture, radial growth, and caspofungin tolerance, making it a promising target for antifungal agent development.
APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yusen Zhou, Tian Zhang, Xiaocui Wang, Wenqiang Wu, Jingjing Xing, Zuliang Li, Xin Qiao, Chunrui Zhang, Xiaohang Wang, Guangshun Wang, Wenhui Li, Shenglong Bai, Zhi Li, Yuanzhen Suo, Jiajia Wang, Yanli Niu, Junli Zhang, Chen Lan, Zhubing Hu, Baozhu Li, Xuebin Zhang, Wei Wang, David W. Galbraith, Yuhang Chen, Siyi Guo, Chun-Peng Song
Summary: The researchers identified a maize gene, BZU3, that regulates the synthesis of UDP-glucose during grass guard cell wall formation and is involved in protein glycosylation. The findings shed light on the dual role of BZU3 in controlling stomatal morphogenesis and provide insights into the mechanisms of grass stomata formation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hui Zhou, Yueqiang Xu, Frank Ebel, Cheng Jin
Summary: The study investigated the impact of ugmA, ugmB, and gfsB gene mutations in F. oxysporum f.sp. cucumerinum on its morphogenesis and pathogenicity. Results showed that deletion of the ugmA gene led to various phenotypic abnormalities, including reduced galactofuranose content, slowed growth, impaired conidiation, and loss of pathogenicity in cucumber plantlets.
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Dalia M. Ahmed, Jeffrey M. Chen, David A. R. Sanders
Summary: UDP-galactopyranose mutase (UGM) is an essential enzyme involved in bacterial cell wall synthesis. A compound called MS208, which acts as a mixed inhibitor of MtbUGM, has been identified as a potential drug target for developing antituberculosis agents. Further studies were conducted to analyze the structure-activity relationship of MS208 and its analogues, and it was found that while most compounds showed inhibitory activity against MtbUGM, they did not inhibit the growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Changbiao Chi, Run Xu, Qianqian Chen, Xiaohui Zhang, Xiaomeng Shi, Hongwei Jin, Fuling Yin, Hongli Jia, Liangren Zhang, Donghui Yang, Jianhua Ju, Qinglian Li, Ming Ma
Summary: In this study, the crystal structure of metal-dependent mutase MtdL is reported, which shows poor similarity to other known enzymes. Molecular dynamics simulations, site-directed mutagenesis, and proteomics analysis were used to identify key catalytic residues and support an Arg159-covalently mediated catalytic mechanism. Sequence alignment reveals conserved key residues in other metal-dependent mutases, suggesting a common catalytic paradigm. These results enhance our understanding and facilitate the use of metal-dependent mutases in the generation of furanose-containing molecules.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jian Fu, Ziyao He, Huixiao Fu, Yufen Xia, Ines N'Go, Huayong Lou, Jinglan Wu, Weidong Pan, Stephane P. Vincent
Summary: The lack of effective TB treatments due to drug-resistant TB has led to limited drug development activity in this area. This study focuses on the inhibition of the UGM enzyme, which is involved in the biosynthesis of galactan. The synthesized amides derived from rosmarinic acid showed a higher affinity for UGM compared to the corresponding esters. In particular, compound 5h demonstrated interesting binding affinity values. A new UGM SPR assay was also established to confirm the binding of compound 5h to UGM. Overall, this study validates the use of amide bioisosteric strategy for the development of UGM inhibitors from rosmarinic acid.
BIOORGANIC & MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Lei Sun, Gil Rogiers, Chris W. Michiels
Summary: This study investigated the antimicrobial mechanisms of trans-cinnamaldehyde (t-CIN) in Listeria monocytogenes, revealing that the YvcK protein plays a crucial role in diverting substrates to UDP-GlcNAc biosynthesis, and t-CIN interferes with this pathway, leading to a peptidoglycan synthesis defect. Complementation with wild-type yvcK gene restored tolerance to t-CIN, and evolutionary experiments identified suppression mutations related to UDP-GlcNAc biosynthesis that partially reversed t-CIN sensitivity. Feeding N-acetylglucosamine or increasing UDP-GlcNAc synthetic enzymes restored t-CIN tolerance in the yvcK mutant.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Katherine R. Hummels, Samuel P. Berry, Zhaoqi Li, Atsushi Taguchi, Joseph K. Min, Suzanne Walker, Debora S. Marks, Thomas G. Bernhardt
Summary: Gram-negative bacteria have a complex envelope that is a major factor in their inherent antibiotic resistance and drug entry. The coordination of the biogenesis of essential surface layers, such as peptidoglycan (PG) and outer membrane (OM), is still poorly understood. In this study, a regulatory interaction between the committed enzymes for PG and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) synthesis pathways in Pseudomonas aeruginosa was discovered.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jessica A. Wyllie, Mirrin V. McKay, Andrew S. Barrow, Tatiana P. Soares da Costa
Summary: This review explores the enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of UDP-N-acetylglucosamine, an essential component in bacterial peptidoglycan, and compares the differences and similarities between bacterial and eukaryotic enzymes. Additionally, it summarizes the recent advances in developing inhibitors that target bacterial enzymes.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Baocai Zhang, Yihong Gao, Lanjun Zhang, Yihua Zhou
Summary: The plant cell wall, composed of multiple biopolymers, is one of the most complex structural networks in nature. Through advancements in plant functional genomics, significant progress has been made in understanding cell wall biosynthesis, construction, and functions, as well as utilization of cell wall materials. Cutting-edge technologies have provided new insights into the intricate nanoscale network of the plant cell wall, opening up unprecedented possibilities for research.
JOURNAL OF INTEGRATIVE PLANT BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Peng-Fei Jiang, Xiao-Yang Lin, Xiu-Yan Bian, Qing-Yin Zeng, Yan-Jing Liu
Summary: PtoMYB10, an R2R3-MYB transcription factor, positively regulates SCW thickening in xylem fiber cells and redirects metabolic flux from anthocyanin biosynthesis to monolignol biosynthesis.
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ankita Chadda, Alexander G. Kozlov, Binh Nguyen, Timothy M. Lohman, Eric A. Galburt
Summary: In this study, it was found that the DNA damage response in Mycobacterium tuberculosis differs from well-studied model bacteria. The DNA repair helicase UvrD1 in Mtb is activated through a redox-dependent process and is closely associated with the homo-dimeric Ku protein. Additionally, Ku protein is shown to stimulate the helicase activity of UvrD1.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2024)