Peptide-Based Covalent Inhibitors Bearing Mild Electrophiles to Target a Conserved His Residue of the Bacterial Sliding Clamp.

Peptide-based covalent inhibitors targeted to nucleophilic protein residues have recently emerged as new modalities to target protein-protein interactions (PPIs) as they may provide some benefits over more classic competitive inhibitors. Covalent inhibitors are generally targeted to cysteine, the most intrinsically reactive amino acid residue, and to lysine, which is more abundant at the surface of proteins but much less frequently to histidine. Herein, we report the structure-guided design of targeted covalent inhibitors (TCIs) able to bind covalently and selectively to the bacterial sliding clamp (SC), by reacting with a well-conserved histidine residue located on the edge of the peptide-binding pocket. SC is an essential component of the bacterial DNA replication machinery, identified as a promising target for the development of new antibacterial compounds. Thermodynamic and kinetic analyses of ligands bearing different mild electrophilic warheads confirmed the higher efficiency of the chloroacetamide compared to Michael acceptors. Two high-resolution X-ray structures of covalent inhibitor-SC adducts were obtained, revealing the canonical orientation of the ligand and details of covalent bond formation with histidine. Proteomic studies were consistent with a selective SC engagement by the chloroacetamide-based TCI. Finally, the TCI of SC was substantially more active than the parent noncovalent inhibitor in an in vitro SC-dependent DNA synthesis assay, validating the potential of the approach to design covalent inhibitors of protein-protein interactions targeted to histidine.

Correction: Antibacterial activity of a dual peptide targeting the Escherichia coli sliding clamp and the ribosome.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1039/D0CB00060D.].

Iterative Structure-Based Optimization of Short Peptides Targeting the Bacterial Sliding Clamp.

The bacterial DNA sliding clamp (SC), or replication processivity factor, is a promising target for the development of novel antibiotics. We report a structure-activity relationship study of a new series of peptides interacting within the Escherichia coli SC (EcSC) binding pocket. Various modifications were explored including N-alkylation of the peptide bonds, extension of the N-terminal moiety, and introduction of hydrophobic and constrained residues at the C-terminus. In each category, single modifications were identified that increased affinity to EcSC. A combination of such modifications yielded in several cases to a substantially increased affinity compared to the parent peptides with Kd in the range of 30-80 nM. X-ray structure analysis of 11 peptide/EcSC co-crystals revealed new interactions at the peptide-protein interface (i.e., stacking interactions, hydrogen bonds, and hydrophobic contacts) that can account for the improved binding. Several compounds among the best binders were also found to be more effective in inhibiting SC-dependent DNA synthesis.

Antibacterial activity of a dual peptide targeting the Escherichia coli sliding clamp and the ribosome.

The bacterial processivity factor, or sliding clamp (SC), is a target of choice for new antibacterial drugs development. We have previously developed peptides that target Escherichia coli SC and block its interaction with DNA polymerases in vitro. Here, one such SC binding peptide was fused to a Proline-rich AntiMicrobial Peptide (PrAMP) to allow its internalization into E. coli cells. Co-immunoprecipitation assays with a N-terminally modified bifunctional peptide that still enters the bacteria but fails to interact with the bacterial ribosome, the major target of PrAMPs, demonstrate that it actually interacts with the bacterial SC. Moreover, when compared to SC non-binding controls, this peptide induces a ten-fold higher antibacterial activity against E. coli, showing that the observed antimicrobial activity is linked to SC binding. Finally, an unmodified bifunctional compound significantly increases the survival of Drosophila melanogaster flies challenged by an E. coli infection. Our study demonstrates the potential of PrAMPs to transport antibiotics into the bacterial cytoplasm and validates the development of drugs targeting the bacterial processivity factor of Gram-negative bacteria as a promising new class of antibiotics.

Interaction of a Model Peptide on Gram Negative and Gram Positive Bacterial Sliding Clamps.

Bacterial sliding clamps control the access of DNA polymerases to the replication fork and are appealing targets for antibacterial drug development. It is therefore essential to decipher the polymerase-clamp binding mode across various bacterial species. Here, two residues of the E. coli clamp binding pocket, EcS346 and EcM362, and their cognate residues in M. tuberculosis and B. subtilis clamps, were mutated. The effects of these mutations on the interaction of a model peptide with these variant clamps were evaluated by thermodynamic, molecular dynamics, X-rays crystallography, and biochemical analyses. EcM362 and corresponding residues in Gram positive clamps occupy a strategic position where a mobile residue is essential for an efficient peptide interaction. EcS346 has a more subtle function that modulates the pocket folding dynamics, while the equivalent residue in B. subtilis is essential for polymerase activity and might therefore be a Gram positive-specific molecular marker. Finally, the peptide binds through an induced-fit process to Gram negative and positive pockets, but the complex stability varies according to a pocket-specific network of interactions.

Structural and biochemical analysis of sliding clamp/ligand interactions suggest a competition between replicative and translesion DNA polymerases.

Most DNA polymerases interact with their cognate processive replication factor through a small peptide, this interaction being absolutely required for their function in vivo. We have solved the crystal structure of a complex between the beta sliding clamp of Escherichia coli and the 16 residue C-terminal peptide of Pol IV (P16). The seven C-terminal residues bind to a pocket located at the surface of one beta monomer. This region was previously identified as the binding site of another beta clamp binding protein, the delta subunit of the gamma complex. We show that peptide P16 competitively prevents beta-clamp-mediated stimulation of both Pol IV and alpha subunit DNA polymerase activities, suggesting that the site of interaction of the alpha subunit with beta is identical with, or overlaps that of Pol IV. This common binding site for delta, Pol IV and alpha subunit is shown to be formed by residues that are highly conserved among many bacterial beta homologs, thus defining an evolutionarily conserved hydrophobic crevice for sliding clamp ligands and a new target for antibiotic drug design.

Differential modes of peptide binding onto replicative sliding clamps from various bacterial origins.

Bacterial sliding clamps are molecular hubs that interact with many proteins involved in DNA metabolism through their binding, via a conserved peptidic sequence, into a universally conserved pocket. This interacting pocket is acknowledged as a potential molecular target for the development of new antibiotics. We previously designed short peptides with an improved affinity for the Escherichia coli binding pocket. Here we show that these peptides differentially interact with other bacterial clamps, despite the fact that all pockets are structurally similar. Thermodynamic and modeling analyses of the interactions differentiate between two categories of clamps: group I clamps interact efficiently with our designed peptides and assemble the Escherichia coli and related orthologs clamps, whereas group II clamps poorly interact with the same peptides and include Bacillus subtilis and other Gram-positive clamps. These studies also suggest that the peptide binding process could occur via different mechanisms, which depend on the type of clamp.

Structure-based design of short peptide ligands binding onto the E. coli processivity ring.

The multimeric DNA sliding clamps confer high processivity to replicative DNA polymerases and are also binding platforms for various enzymes involved in DNA metabolism. These enzymes interact with the clamp through a small peptide that binds into a hydrophobic pocket which is a potential target for the development of new antibacterial compounds. Starting from a generic heptapeptide, we used a structure-based strategy to improve the design of new peptide ligands. Chemical modifications at specific residues result in a dramatic increase of the interaction as measured by SPR and ITC. The affinity of our best hits was improved by 2 orders of magnitude as compared to the natural ligand, reaching 10(-8) M range. The molecular basis of the interactions was analyzed by solving the co-crystal structures of the most relevant peptides bound to the clamp and reveals how chemical modifications establish new contacts and contributes to an increased affinity of the ligand.

Kinetics of deoxy-CTP incorporation opposite a dG-C8-N-2-aminofluorene adduct by a high-fidelity DNA polymerase.

The model carcinogen N-2-acetylaminofluorene covalently binds to the C8 position of guanine to form two adducts, the N-(2'-deoxyguanosine-8-yl)-aminofluorene (G-AF) and the N-2-(2'-deoxyguanosine-8-yl)-acetylaminofluorene (G-AAF). Although they are chemically closely related, their biological effects are strongly different and they are processed by different damage tolerance pathways. G-AF is bypassed by replicative and high-fidelity polymerases, while specialized polymerases ensure synthesis past of G-AAF. We used the DNA polymerase I fragment of a Bacillus stearothermophilus strain as a model for a high-fidelity polymerase to study the kinetics of incorporation of deoxy-CTP (dCTP) opposite a single G-AF. Pre-steady-state kinetic experiments revealed a drastic reduction in dCTP incorporation performed by the G-AF-modified ternary complex. Two populations of these ternary complexes were identified: (i) a minor productive fraction (20%) that readily incorporates dCTP opposite the G-AF adduct with a rate similar to that measured for the adduct-free ternary complexes and (ii) a major fraction of unproductive complexes (80%) that slowly evolve into productive ones. In the light of structural data, we suggest that this slow rate reflects the translocation of the modified base within the active site, from the pre-insertion site into the insertion site. By making this translocation rate limiting, the G-AF lesion reveals a novel kinetic step occurring after dNTP binding and before chemistry.