Enzymatic Activity Profiling Using an Ultrasensitive Array of Chemiluminescent Probes for Bacterial Classification and Characterization.

Identification and characterization of bacterial species in clinical and industrial settings necessitate the use of diverse, labor-intensive, and time-consuming protocols as well as the utilization of expensive and high-maintenance equipment. Furthermore, while cutting-edge identification technologies such as mass spectrometry and PCR are highly effective in identifying bacterial pathogens, they fall short in providing additional information for identifying bacteria not present in the databases upon which these methods rely. In response to these challenges, we present a robust and general approach to bacterial identification based on their unique enzymatic activity profiles. This method delivers results within 90 min, utilizing an array of highly sensitive and enzyme-selective chemiluminescent probes. Leveraging our recently developed technology of chemiluminescent luminophores, which emit light under physiological conditions, we have crafted an array of probes designed to rapidly detect various bacterial enzymatic activities. The array includes probes for detecting resistance to the important and large class of ß-lactam antibiotics. The analysis of chemiluminescent fingerprints from a diverse range of prominent bacterial pathogens unveiled distinct enzymatic activity profiles for each strain. The reported universally applicable identification procedure offers a highly sensitive and expeditious means to delineate bacterial enzymatic activity fingerprints. This opens new avenues for characterizing and identifying pathogens in research, clinical, and industrial applications.

Biocompatible Flash Chemiluminescent Assay Enabled by Sterically Hindered Spiro-Strained-Oxetanyl-1,2-Dioxetane.

Chemiluminescence is the emission of light that occurs as a result of a chemical reaction. Depending on the rate of chemiexcitation, light emission can occur as a long-lasting, glow-type reaction or a rapid, highly intense flash-type reaction. Assays using a flash-type mode of action provide enhanced detection sensitivity compared to those using a glow-type mode. Recently, our group discovered that applying spiro-strain to 1,2-dioxetanes significantly increases their chemiexcitation rate. However, further examination of the structure-activity relationships revealed that the spiro-strain severely compromises the chemical stability of the 1,2-dioxetanes. We hypothesized that a combination of spiro-strain, steric hindrance, and an electron-withdrawing effect, will result in a chemically stable spiro-strained dioxetane with an accelerated chemiexcitation rate. Indeed, spiro-fused tetramethyl-oxetanyl exhibited a 128-fold faster chemiexcitation rate compared to adamantyl while maintaining similar chemical stability, with a half-life of over 400 hours in PBS 7.4 buffer at room temperature. Turn-on probes composed of tetramethyl-oxetanyl spiro-dioxetane exhibited significantly improved chemical stability in bacterial and mammalian cell media compared to previously developed dioxetane probes fused to a cyclobutyl unit. The superior chemical stability enables a tetramethyl-oxetanyl dioxetane probe to detect ß-galactosidase activity with enhanced sensitivity in E. coli assays and leucine aminopeptidase activity in cancer cells.

Reshaping Echinocandin Antifungal Drugs To Circumvent Glucan Synthase Point-Mutation-Mediated Resistance.

Echinocandins are a class of antifungal drugs that inhibit the activity of the ß-(1,3)-glucan synthase complex, which synthesizes fungal cell wall ß-(1,3)-glucan. Echinocandin resistance is linked to mutations in the FKS gene, which encodes the catalytic subunit of the glucan synthase complex. We present a molecular-docking-based model that provides insight into how echinocandins interact with the target Fks protein: echinocandins form a ternary complex with both Fks and membrane lipids. We used reductive dehydration of alcohols to generate dehydroxylated echinocandin derivatives and evaluated their potency against a panel of Candida pathogens constructed by introducing resistance-conferring mutations in the FKS gene. We found that removing the hemiaminal alcohol, which drives significant conformational alterations in the modified echinocandins, reduced their efficacy. Conversely, eliminating the benzylic alcohol of echinocandins enhanced potency by up to two orders of magnitude, in a manner dependent upon the resistance-conferring mutation. Strains that have developed resistance to either rezafungin, the most recently clinically approved echinocandin, or its dehydroxylated derivative RZF-1, exhibit high resistance to rezafungin while demonstrating moderate resistance to RZF-1. These findings provide valuable insight for combating echinocandin resistance through chemical modifications.

The relationship between the structure and toxicity of aminoglycoside antibiotics.

Aminoglycoside antibiotics, used to treat persistent gram-negative infections, tuberculosis, and life-threatening infections in neonates and patients with cystic fibrosis, can infer acute kidney injury and irreversible hearing loss. The full repertoire of cellular targets and processes leading to the toxicity of aminoglycosides is not fully resolved, making it challenging to devise rational directions to circumvent their adverse effects. As a result, there has been very limited effort to rationally address the issue of aminoglycoside-induced toxicity. Here we provide an overview of the reported effects of aminoglycosides on cells of the inner ear and on kidney tubular epithelial cells. We describe selected examples for structure-toxicity relationships established by evaluation of both natural and semisynthetic aminoglycosides. The various assays and models used to evaluate these antibiotics and recent progress in development of safer aminoglycoside antibiotics are discussed.