In:
Scientific Reports, Springer Science and Business Media LLC, Vol. 5, No. 1 ( 2015-10-15)
Abstract:
Yersinia pestis , the causative agent of bubonic, pneumonic and septicaemic plague, remains a major public health threat, with outbreaks of disease occurring in China, Madagascar and Peru in the last five years. The existence of multidrug resistant Y. pestis and the potential of this bacterium as a bioterrorism agent illustrates the need for new antimicrobials. The β-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthases, FabB, FabF and FabH, catalyse the elongation of fatty acids as part of the type II fatty acid biosynthesis (FASII) system, to synthesise components of lipoproteins, phospholipids and lipopolysaccharides essential for bacterial growth and survival. As such, these enzymes are promising targets for the development of novel therapeutic agents. We have determined the crystal structures of the Y. pestis β-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthases FabF and FabH and compared these with the unpublished, deposited structure of Y. pestis FabB. Comparison of FabB, FabF and FabH provides insights into the substrate specificities of these enzymes and investigation of possible interactions with known β-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthase inhibitors suggests FabB, FabF and FabH may be targeted simultaneously to prevent synthesis of the fatty acids necessary for growth and survival.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
2045-2322
Language:
English
Publisher:
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Publication Date:
2015
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2615211-3
