KpsS1 Mediates the Glycosylation of Pseudaminic Acid in Acinetobacter Baumannii.

Pseudaminic acid (Pse) is found in the polysaccharide structures of the cell surface of various Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria including Acinetobacter baumannii and considered as an important component of cell surface glycans including oligosaccharides and glycoproteins. However, the glycosyltransferase that is responsible for the Pse glycosylation in A. baumannii remains unknown yet. In this study, through comparative genomics analysis of Pse-positive and negative A. baumannii clinical isolates, we identified a potential glycosyltransferase, KpsS1, located right downstream of the Pse biosynthesis genetic locus. Deletion of this gene in an Pse-positive A. baumannii strain, Ab8, impaired the glycosylation of Pse to the surface CPS and proteins, while the gene knockout strain, Ab8ΔkpsS1, could still produce Pse with 2.86 folds higher amount than that of Ab8. Furthermore, impairment of Pse glycosylation affected the morphology and virulence potential of A. baumannii, suggesting the important role of this protein. This study will provide insights into the further understanding of Pse in bacterial physiology and pathogenesis.

Discovery of a Monoclonal Antibody That Targets Cell-Surface Pseudaminic Acid of Acinetobacter baumannii with Direct Bactericidal Effect.

The therapeutic effects of antibodies include neutralization of pathogens, activation of the host complement system, and facilitation of phagocytosis of pathogens. However, antibody alone has never been shown to exhibit bactericidal activity. In this study, we developed a monoclonal antibody that targets the bacterial cell surface component Pseudaminic acid (Pse). This monoclonal antibody, Pse-MAB1, exhibited direct bactericidal activity on Acinetobacter baumannii strains, even in the absence of the host complements or other immune factors, and was able to confer a protective effect against A. baumannii infections in mice. This study provides new insight into the potential of developing monoclonal antibody-based antimicrobial therapy of multidrug resistant bacterial infections, especially those which occurred among immunocompromised patients.

Revealing the extracellular function of HMGB1 N-terminal region acetylation assisted by a protein semi-synthesis approach.

HMGB1 (high-mobility group box 1) is a non-histone chromatin-associated protein that has been widely reported as a representative damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) and to play a pivotal role in the proinflammatory process once it is in an extracellular location. Accumulating evidence has shown that HMGB1 undergoes extensive post-translational modifications (PTMs) that actively regulate its conformation, localization, and intermolecular interactions. However, fully characterizing the functional implications of these PTMs has been challenging due to the difficulty in accessing homogeneous HMGB1 with site-specific PTMs of interest. In this study, we developed a streamlined protein semi-synthesis strategy via salicylaldehyde ester-mediated chemical ligations (Ser/Thr ligation and Cys/Pen ligation, STL/CPL). This methodology enabled us to generate a series of N-terminal region acetylated HMGB1 proteins. Further studies revealed that acetylation regulates HMGB1-heparin interaction and modulates HMGB1's stability against thrombin, representing a regulatory switch to control HMGB1's extracellular activity.

LncRNA FOXCUT Stimulates the Progression of Endometrial Cancer.

Endometrial cancer (EC) is a common gynecological tumor and the third leading cause of cancer-related death in women. Previous research has proved that long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) FOXCUT acts as an oncogene in several cancers. This study ascertained that lncRNA FOXCUT was highly expressed in endometrial cancer cells. Overexpression of lncRNA FOXCUT promoted EC cell proliferation, invasion, and migration, as well as epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). In addition, overexpression of lncRNA FOXCUT could inhibit the apoptosis of cancer cells and block EC cells in S phase, whereas silencing lncRNA FOXCUT had the opposite effect. Thus, lncRNA FOXCUT had a regulatory effect on promoting the progression of EC cells, which might provide novel potential targets for research on targeted therapy of EC.

Synthetic Pseudaminic-Acid-Based Antibacterial Vaccine Confers Effective Protection against Acinetobacter baumannii Infection.

Acinetobacter baumannii exhibits resistance to most first-line antibiotics; thus, development of new antibacterial agents is urgently required. Pseudaminic acid exists as the surface glycan of A. baumannii. In this study, we chemically synthesized pseudaminic acid, conjugated it to carrier protein CRM197 using the OPA (ortho-phthalaldehyde) chemistry, and obtained three Pse-CRM197 conjugates with different Pse loadings. These Pse-CRM197 conjugates were found to stimulate high immune responses in mice, which protected the vaccinated mice from infections caused by Pse-producing A. baumannii. Our data indicate that chemically synthesized Pse-CRM197 conjugates can be developed into vaccines against Pse-bearing pathogens, thus offering a feasible alternative for the control of clinical infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) A. baumannii, for which current treatment options are extremely limited.

Construction of diverse peptide structural architectures via chemoselective peptide ligation.

Herein, we report the development of a facile synthetic strategy for constructing diverse peptide structural architectures via chemoselective peptide ligation. The key advancement involved is to utilize the benzofuran moiety as the peptide salicylaldehyde ester surrogate, and Dap-Ser/Lys-Ser dipeptide as the hydroxyl amino functionality, which could be successfully introduced at the side chain of peptides enabling peptide ligation. With this method, the side chain-to-side chain cyclic peptide, branched/bridged peptides, tailed cyclic peptides and multi-cyclic peptides have been designed and successfully synthesized with native peptidic linkages at the ligation sites. This strategy has provided an alternative strategic opportunity for synthetic peptide development. It also serves as an inspiration for the structural design of PPI inhibitors with new modalities.

A Solution to Chemical Pseudaminylation via a Bimodal Glycosyl Donor for Highly Stereocontrolled α- and ß-Glycosylation.

A robust methodology for the stereocontrolled chemical glycosylation of pseudaminic acid has been developed to afford both α- (axial) and ß- (equatorial) glycosides reliably with complete stereoselectivity, using a common glycosyl donor (7 N-Cbz/5 N-azido Pse thioglycoside) simply by changing the reaction conditions. In the CH2Cl2/MeCN cosolvent, highly ß-selective pseudaminylation was observed, while addition of 5.0 equiv DMF in CH2Cl2 gave the α-pseudaminosides.

De novo synthesis of novel bacterial monosaccharide fusaminic acid.

Fusobacterium nucleatum is an oral bacteria related to various types of diseases. As Gram-negative bacteria, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of Fusobacterium nucleatum could be a potential virulence factor. Recently, the structure of O-antigen in LPS of Fusobacterium nucleatum strain 25586 was elucidated to contain a trisaccharide repeating unit -(4-ß-Nonp5Am-4-α-L-6dAltpNAc3PCho-3-ß-D-QuipNAc)-. The nonulosonic acid characterized as 5-acetamidino-3,5,9-trideoxy-L-glycero-L-gluco-non-2-ulosonic acid (named as fusaminic acid), and 2-acetamido-2,6-dideoxy-L-altrose are the novel monosaccharides isolated. Herein we report the de novo synthesis of 5-N-acetyl fusaminic acid and the thioglycoside derivative in order to further investigate the biological significance of nonulosonic acids for bacterial pathogenesis.

Metabolic Labeling of Pseudaminic Acid-Containing Glycans on Bacterial Surfaces.

The rise in antibiotic-resistant bacteria is causing worldwide concerns. The urgent need for new antibacterial drugs calls for new thinking and strategies to explore novel, narrow-spectrum, and pathogen-specific antibacterial targets. Legionaminic acid (Leg) and pseudaminic acid (Pse) are nonulosonic acid carbohydrates with structural similarity to eukaryotic sialic acid, and are distributed in numerous pathogenic Gram-negative bacteria as components of cell surface-associated glycans. They are involved in the host interaction, pathogenicity, antiphage defense mechanism, and immune escape mechanism. To further explore their biological significance, we developed a synthesis of 2-acetamido-4-azidoacetamido-2,4,6-trideoxy-l-altrose (Alt-4NAz) and 2-azidoacetamido-4-acetamido-2,4,6-trideoxy-l-altrose (Alt-2NAz), among which Alt-4NAz served as an effective chemical reporter to realize bacterial Pse metabolic labeling. The effectiveness of this chemical reporter has been demonstrated in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Vibrio vulnificus, and Acinetobacter baumannii strains. Expectedly, this strategy can provide a useful assay to detect phenotypic presence of Pse biosynthesis and screen for agents targeting this pathway.

Total Synthesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa 1244 Pilin Glycan via de Novo Synthesis of Pseudaminic Acid.

Pseudaminic acid (Pse) is a nonulosonic acid unique to bacterial species, found as a component of important cell surface glycans and glycoproteins in various pathogenic species, such as the critical hospital threat Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Herein we present the development of a facile and scalable de novo synthesis of Pse and its functionalized derivatives from easily available Cbz-l-allo-threonine methyl ester (16 steps in 11% yield). The key reactions in our de novo synthesis involve the diastereoselective glycine thioester isonitrile-based aldol-type reaction to create the 1,3-anti-diamino skeleton, followed by the Fukuyama reduction and the indium-mediated Barbier-type allylation. Moreover, we have studied the glycosylation of the Pse glycosyl donors and identified the structural determinants for its glycosylation diastereoselectivity, which enabled us to complete the total synthesis of P. aeruginosa 1244 pilin trisaccharide α-5NßOHC47NFmPse-(2→4)-ß-Xyl-(1→3)-FucNAc.