Lysocin E is a new antibiotic that targets menaquinone in the bacterial membrane.

To obtain therapeutically effective new antibiotics, we first searched for bacterial culture supernatants with antimicrobial activity in vitro and then performed a secondary screening using the silkworm infection model. Through further purification of the in vivo activity, we obtained a compound with a previously uncharacterized structure and named it 'lysocin E'. Lysocin E interacted with menaquinone in the bacterial membrane to achieve its potent bactericidal activity, a mode of action distinct from that of any other known antibiotic, indicating that lysocin E comprises a new class of antibiotic. This is to our knowledge the first report of a direct interaction between a small chemical compound and menaquinone that leads to bacterial killing. Furthermore, lysocin E decreased the mortality of infected mice. To our knowledge, lysocin E is the first compound identified and purified by quantitative measurement of therapeutic effects in an invertebrate infection model that exhibits robust in vivo effects in mammals.

Membrane dynamics in mammalian embryogenesis: Implication in signal regulation.

Eukaryotes have evolved an array of membrane compartments constituting secretory and endocytic pathways that allow the flow of materials. Both pathways perform important regulatory roles. The secretory pathway is essential for the production of extracellular, secreted signal molecules, but its function is not restricted to a mere route connecting intra- and extracellular compartments. Post-translational modifications also play an integral function in the secretory pathway and are implicated in developmental regulation. The endocytic pathway serves as a platform for relaying signals from the extracellular stimuli to intracellular mediators, and then ultimately inducing signal termination. Here, we discuss recent studies showing that dysfunction in membrane dynamics causes patterning defects in embryogenesis and tissue morphogenesis in mammals.

Total Synthesis and Functional Evaluation of Fourteen Derivatives of Lysocin†E: Importance of Cationic, Hydrophobic, and Aromatic Moieties for Antibacterial Activity.

Lysocin E (1) is a structurally complex 37-membered depsipeptide comprising 12 amino-acid residues with an N-methylated amide and an ester linkage. Compound 1 binds to menaquinone (MK) in the bacterial membrane to exert its potent bactericidal activity. To decipher the biologically important functionalities within this unique antibiotic, we performed a comprehensive structure-activity relationship (SAR) study by systematically changing the side-chain structures of l-Thr-1, d-Arg-2, N-Me-d-Phe-5, d-Arg-7, l-Glu-8, and d-Trp-10. First, we achieved total synthesis of the 14 new side-chain analogues of 1 by employing a solid-phase strategy. We then evaluated the MK-dependent liposomal disruption and antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus by 1 and its analogues. Correlating data between the liposome and bacteria experiments revealed that membrane lysis was mainly responsible for the antibacterial functions. Altering the cationic guanidine moiety of d-Arg-2/7 to a neutral amide, and the C7-acyl group of l-Thr-1 to the C2 or C11 counterpart decreased the antimicrobial activities four- or eight-fold. More drastically, chemical mutation of d-Trp-10 to d-Ala-10 totally abolished the bioactivities. These important findings led us to propose the biological roles of the side-chain functionalities.

Induction of virulence gene expression in Staphylococcus aureus by pulmonary surfactant.

We performed a genomewide analysis using a next-generation sequencer to investigate the effect of pulmonary surfactant on gene expression in Staphylococcus aureus, a clinically important opportunistic pathogen. RNA sequence (RNA-seq) analysis of bacterial transcripts at late log phase revealed 142 genes that were upregulated >2-fold following the addition of pulmonary surfactant to the culture medium. Among these genes, we confirmed by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR analysis that mRNA amounts for genes encoding ESAT-6 secretion system C (EssC), an unknown hypothetical protein (NWMN_0246; also called pulmonary surfactant-inducible factor A [PsiA] in this study), and hemolysin gamma subunit B (HlgB) were increased 3- to 10-fold by the surfactant treatment. Among the major constituents of pulmonary surfactant, i.e., phospholipids and palmitate, only palmitate, which is the most abundant fatty acid in the pulmonary surfactant and a known antibacterial substance, stimulated the expression of these three genes. Moreover, these genes were also induced by supplementing the culture with detergents. The induction of gene expression by surfactant or palmitate was not observed in a disruption mutant of the sigB gene, which encodes an alternative sigma factor involved in bacterial stress responses. Furthermore, each disruption mutant of the essC, psiA, and hlgB genes showed attenuation of both survival in the lung and host-killing ability in a murine pneumonia model. These findings suggest that S. aureus resists membrane stress caused by free fatty acids present in the pulmonary surfactant through the regulation of virulence gene expression, which contributes to its pathogenesis within the lungs of the host animal.

Serum apolipoprotein A-I potentiates the therapeutic efficacy of lysocin E against Staphylococcus aureus.

Lysocin E is a lipopeptide with antibiotic activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. For unclear reasons, the antibacterial activity of lysocin E in a mouse systemic infection model is higher than expected from in vitro results, and the in vitro activity is enhanced by addition of bovine serum. Here, we confirm that serum from various species, including humans, increases lysocin E antimicrobial activity, and identify apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I) as an enhancing factor. ApoA-I increases the antibacterial activity of lysocin E when added in vitro, and the antibiotic displays reduced activity in ApoA-I gene knockout mice. Binding of ApoA-I to lysocin E is enhanced by lipid II, a cell-wall synthesis precursor found in the bacterial membrane. Thus, the antimicrobial activity of lysocin E is potentiated through interactions with host serum proteins and microbial components.

Odorant-binding proteins OBP57d and OBP57e affect taste perception and host-plant preference in Drosophila sechellia.

Despite its morphological similarity to the other species in the Drosophila melanogaster species complex, D. sechellia has evolved distinct physiological and behavioral adaptations to its host plant Morinda citrifolia, commonly known as Tahitian Noni. The odor of the ripe fruit of M. citrifolia originates from hexanoic and octanoic acid. D. sechellia is attracted to these two fatty acids, whereas the other species in the complex are repelled. Here, using interspecies hybrids between D. melanogaster deficiency mutants and D. sechellia, we showed that the Odorant-binding protein 57e (Obp57e) gene is involved in the behavioral difference between the species. D. melanogaster knock-out flies for Obp57e and Obp57d showed altered behavioral responses to hexanoic acid and octanoic acid. Furthermore, the introduction of Obp57d and Obp57e from D. simulans and D. sechellia shifted the oviposition site preference of D. melanogaster Obp57d/e(KO) flies to that of the original species, confirming the contribution of these genes to D. sechellia's specialization to M. citrifolia. Our finding of the genes involved in host-plant determination may lead to further understanding of mechanisms underlying taste perception, evolution of plant-herbivore interactions, and speciation.

A critical role of mevalonate for peptidoglycan synthesis in Staphylococcus aureus.

3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase, a mevalonate synthetase, is required for the growth of Staphylococcus aureus. However, the essential role of the enzyme in cell growth has remained unclear. Here we show that three mutants possessed single-base substitutions in the mvaA gene, which encodes HMG-CoA reductase, show a temperature-sensitive phenotype. The phenotype was suppressed by the addition of mevalonate or farnesyl diphosphate, which is a product synthesized from mevalonate. Farnesyl diphosphate is a precursor of undecaprenyl phosphate that is required for peptidoglycan synthesis. The rate of peptidoglycan synthesis was decreased in the mvaA mutants under the non-permissive conditions and the phenotype was suppressed by the addition of mevalonate. HMG-CoA reductase activities of mutant MvaA proteins in the temperature sensitive mutants were lower than that of wild-type MvaA protein. Our findings from genetic and biochemical analyses suggest that mevalonate produced by HMG-CoA reductase is required for peptidoglycan synthesis for S. aureus cell growth.

Evolution of expression patterns of two odorant-binding protein genes, Obp57d and Obp57e, in Drosophila.

Odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) function in the perception of chemical signals together with odorant and taste receptors. Genes encoding OBPs form a large family in insect genomes. In Drosophila, the evolution of OBP gene repertoire has been well studied by comparisons of the whole genome sequences from 12 closely related species. In contrast, their expression patterns are known only in Drosophila melanogaster. Two OBP genes, Obp57d and Obp57e, arose by gene duplication at the early stage of D. melanogaster species group evolution, followed by the divergence of open reading frame (ORF) sequences from each other. While most species in the melanogaster group maintain both Obp57d and Obp57e, some species have lost either gene, suggesting that the birth-and-death process is a dominating pattern of evolution at the Obp57d/e locus. However, it has not been explored whether the expression patterns of these two OBP genes are diverged or conserved among species. Here, we examined the expression patterns of Obp57d and Obp57e in the selected species from the melanogaster group using a combination of reporter analysis, RNA in situ hybridization, and quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis. As previously reported for D. melanogaster, expression in the chemosensilla on the legs was observed in all the species examined. Unlike in D. melnanogaster, however, additional expression in the chemosensilla on the mouthparts was observed in some species including Drosophila pseudoobscura, which maintains an ancestral OBP gene at the Obp57d/e locus. This result shows that, as well as their ORF sequences, the expression patterns of Obp57d and Obp57e have diverged substantially between closely related Drosophila species.