Structures of aminoarabinose transferase ArnT suggest a molecular basis for lipid A glycosylation

Abstract

Polymyxins are antibiotics that disrupt the bacterial cell membrane and are used to treat multidrug-resistant infections. A bacterial enzyme called ArnT can mediate resistance to polymyxins by transferring a sugar group from a lipid carrier to lipid A, a component of the bacterial outer membrane. Petrou et al. described structures of ArnT alone and in complex with a lipid carrier and identified a cavity where lipid A probably binds. Insights into the enzyme mechanism could be exploited to design drugs that combat polymyxin resistance.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Feb 05, 2016
Source ID
10.1126/science.aad1172

Entities

People

  • Brian Kloss
  • Burkhard Rost
  • Candice S. Klug
  • Carmen M Herrera
  • David Tomasek
  • Edda Kloppmann
  • Filippo Mancia
  • Jérémie Vendome
  • Kanagalaghatta R. Rajashankar
  • Kathryn M. Schultz
  • Lawrence Shapiro
  • M Stephen Trent
  • Meagan Belcher Dufrisne
  • Oliver B. Clarke
  • Surajit Banerjee
  • Vasileios I. Petrou

Organizations

  • Army Research Office
  • Columbia University
  • Cornell University
  • Medical College of Wisconsin
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences
  • National Institutes of Health
  • Technical University of Munich
  • University of Georgia

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology
  • Chemistry

Readers

  • Microbial Pathology
  • Molecular Biology and Genetics
  • Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry