Modulation of Aß42 Aggregation Kinetics and Pathway by Low-Molecular-Weight Inhibitors.

The aggregation of amyloid-ß 42 (Aß42) is directly related to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. Here, we have investigated the early stages of the aggregation process, during which most of the cytotoxic species are formed. Aß42 aggregation kinetics, characterized by the quantification of Aß42 monomer consumption, were tracked by real-time solution NMR spectroscopy (RT-NMR) allowing the impact that low-molecular-weight (LMW) inhibitors and modulators exert on the aggregation process to be analysed. Distinct differences in the Aß42 kinetic profiles were apparent and were further investigated kinetically and structurally by using thioflavin T (ThT) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), respectively. LMW inhibitors were shown to have a differential impact on early-state aggregation. Insight provided here could direct future therapeutic design based on kinetic profiling of the process of fibril formation.

Structure of Staphylococcus aureus adenylosuccinate lyase (PurB) and assessment of its potential as a target for structure-based inhibitor discovery.

The medium-resolution structure of adenylosuccinate lyase (PurB) from the bacterial pathogen Staphylococcus aureus in complex with AMP is presented. Oxalate, which is likely to be an artifact of crystallization, has been modelled in the active site and occupies a position close to that where succinate is observed in orthologous structures. PurB catalyzes reactions that support the provision of purines and the control of AMP/fumarate levels. As such, the enzyme is predicted to be essential for the survival of S. aureus and to be a potential therapeutic target. Comparisons of this pathogen PurB with the enzyme from Escherichia coli are presented to allow discussion concerning the enzyme mechanism. Comparisons with human PurB suggest that the close similarity of the active sites would make it difficult to identify species-specific inhibitors for this enzyme. However, there are differences in the way that the subunits are assembled into dimers. The distinct subunit-subunit interfaces may provide a potential area to target by exploiting the observation that creation of the enzyme active site is dependent on oligomerization.