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Novobiocin is an orally active antibiotic that inhibits DNA gyrase by binding the ATP-binding site in the ATPase subunit. Although effective against Gram-positive pathogens, novobiocin has limited activity against Gram-negative organisms due to the presence of the lipopolysaccharide-containing outer membrane, which acts as a permeability barrier. Using a novobiocin-sensitive Escherichia coli strain with a leaky outer membrane, we identified a mutant with increased resistance to novobiocin. Unexpectedly, the mutation that increases novobiocin resistance was not found to alter gyrase, but the ATPase that powers lipopolysaccharide (LPS) transport. Co-crystal structures, biochemical, and genetic evidence show novobiocin directly binds this ATPase. Novobiocin does not bind the ATP binding site but rather the interface between the ATPase subunits and the transmembrane subunits of the LPS transporter. This interaction increases the activity of the LPS transporter, which in turn alters the permeability of the outer membrane. We propose that novobiocin will be a useful tool for understanding how ATP hydrolysis is coupled to LPS transport.

The surface of most Gram-negative bacteria is covered with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), creating a permeability barrier against toxic molecules, including many antimicrobials. To assemble LPS on their surface, Gram-negative bacteria must extract newly synthesized LPS from the inner membrane, transport it across the aqueous periplasm, and translocate it across the outer membrane. The LptA to -G proteins assemble into a transenvelope complex that transports LPS from the inner membrane to the cell surface. The Lpt system powers LPS transport from the inner membrane by using a poorly characterized ATP-binding cassette system composed of the ATPase LptB and the transmembrane domains LptFG. Here, we characterize a cluster of residues in the groove region of LptB that is important for controlling LPS transport. We also provide the first functional characterization of LptFG and identify their coupling helices that interact with the LptB groove. Substitutions at conserved residues in these coupling helices compromise both the assembly and function of the LptB2FG complex. Defects in LPS transport conferred by alterations in the LptFG coupling helices can be rescued by changing a residue in LptB that is adjacent to functionally important residues in the groove region. This suppression is achieved by increasing the ATPase activity of the LptB2FG complex. Taken together, these data identify a specific binding site in LptB for the coupling helices of LptFG that is responsible for coupling of ATP hydrolysis by LptB with LptFG function to achieve LPS extraction., IMPORTANCE Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is synthesized at the cytoplasmic membrane of Gram-negative bacteria and transported across several compartments to the cell surface, where it forms a barrier that protects these organisms from antibiotics. The LptB2FG proteins form an ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter that uses energy from ATP hydrolysis in the cytoplasm to facilitate extraction of LPS from the outer face of the cytoplasmic membrane prior to transport to the cell surface. How ATP hydrolysis is coupled with LPS release from the membrane is not understood. We have identified residues at the interface between the ATPase and the transmembrane domains of this heteromeric ABC complex that are important for LPS transport, some of which coordinate ATPase activity with LPS release.

Escherichia coli directs the assembly of functional amyloid fibers termed “curli” that mediate adhesion and biofilm formation. We discovered that E. coli exhibits a tunable and selective increase in curli protein expression and fiber assembly in response to moderate concentrations of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and ethanol. Furthermore, the molecular alterations resulted in dramatic functional phenotypes associated with community behavior, including (i) cellular agglutination in broth, (ii) altered colony morphology, and (iii) increased biofilm formation. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of intact pellicles formed in the presence of [ 13 C 2 ]DMSO confirmed that DMSO was not being transformed and utilized directly for metabolism. Collectively, the chemically induced phenotypes emphasize the plasticity of E. coli 's response to environmental stimuli to enhance amyloid production and amyloid-integrated biofilm formation. The data also support our developing model of the extracellular matrix as an organized assembly of polymeric components, including amyloid fibers, in which composition relates to bacterial physiology and community function.

The peptidoglycan precursor, Lipid II, produced in the model Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis differs from Lipid II found in Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli by a single amidation on the peptide side chain. How this difference affects the cross-linking activity of penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) that assemble peptidoglycan in cells has not been investigated because B. subtilis Lipid II was not previously available. Here we report the synthesis of B. subtilis Lipid II and its use by purified B. subtilis PBP1 and E. coli PBP1A. While enzymes from both organisms assembled B. subtilis Lipid II into glycan strands, only the B. subtilis enzyme cross-linked the strands. Furthermore, B. subtilis PBP1 catalyzed the exchange of both D-amino acids and D-amino carboxamides into nascent peptidoglycan, but the E. coli enzyme only exchanged D-amino acids. We exploited these observations to design a fluorescent D-amino carboxamide probe to label B. subtilis PG in vivo and found that this probe labels the cell wall dramatically better than existing reagents.

The soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis forms biofilms on surfaces and at air-liquid interfaces. It was previously reported that these biofilms disassemble late in their life cycle and that conditioned medium from late-stage biofilms inhibits biofilm formation. Such medium contained a mixture of D-leucine, D-methionine, D-tryptophan, and D-tyrosine and was reported to inhibit biofilm formation via the incorporation of these D-amino acids into the cell wall. Here, we show that L-amino acids were able to specifically reverse the inhibitory effects of their cognate D-amino acids. We also show that D-amino acids inhibited growth and the expression of biofilm matrix genes at concentrations that inhibit biofilm formation. Finally, we report that the strain routinely used to study biofilm formation has a mutation in the gene (dtd) encoding D-tyrosyl-tRNA deacylase, an enzyme that prevents the misincorporation of D-amino acids into protein in B. subtilis. When we repaired the dtd gene, B. subtilis became resistant to the biofilm-inhibitory effects of D-amino acids without losing the ability to incorporate at least one noncanonical D-amino acid, D-tryptophan, into the peptidoglycan peptide side chain. We conclude that the susceptibility of B. subtilis to the biofilm-inhibitory effects of D-amino acids is largely, if not entirely, due to their toxic effects on protein synthesis.

The bacterial cell wall precursor, Lipid II, has a highly conserved structure among different organisms except for differences in the amino acid sequence of the peptide side chain. Here, we report an efficient and flexible synthesis of the canonical Lipid II precursor required for the assembly of Gram-negative peptidoglycan (PG). We use a rapid LC/MS assay to analyze PG glycosyltransfer (PGT) and transpeptidase (TP) activities of Escherichia coli penicillin binding proteins PBP1A and PBP1B and show that the native m-DAP residue in the peptide side chain of Lipid II is required in order for TP-catalyzed peptide cross-linking to occur in vitro. Comparison of PG produced from synthetic canonical E. coli Lipid II with PG isolated from E. coli cells demonstrates that we can produce PG in vitro that resembles native structure. This work provides the tools necessary for reconstituting cell wall synthesis, an essential cellular process and major antibiotic target, in a purified system.