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The catalytic efficiency of the class D beta-lactamase OXA-10 depends critically on an unusual carboxylated lysine as the general base residue for both the enzyme acylation and deacylation steps of catalysis. Evidence is presented that the interaction between the indole group of Trp154 and the carboxylated lysine is essential for the stability of the posttranslationally modified Lys70. Substitution of Trp154 by Gly, Ala, or Phe yielded noncarboxylated enzymes which displayed poor catalytic efficiencies and reduced stability when compared to the wild-type OXA-10. The W154H mutant was partially carboxylated. In addition, the maximum values of k(cat) and k(cat)/K(M) were shifted toward pH 7, indicating that the carboxylation state of Lys70 is dependent on the protonation level of the histidine. A comparison of the three-dimensional structures of the different proteins also indicated that the Trp154 mutations did not modify the overall structures of OXA-10 but induced an increased flexibility of the Omega-loop in the active site. Finally, the deacylation-impaired W154A mutant was used to determine the structure of the acyl-enzyme complex with benzylpenicillin. These results indicate a role of the Lys70 carboxylation during the deacylation step and emphasize the importance of Trp154 for the ideal positioning of active site residues leading to an optimum activity.

The serine penicillin-recognizing proteins have been extensively studied. They show a wide range of substrate specificities accompanied by multidomain features. Their adaptation capacity has resulted in the emergence of pathogenic bacteria resistant to beta-lactam antibiotics. The most divergent enzymatic activities in this protein family are those of the Ochrobactrum anthropi D-aminopeptidase and of the Streptomyces R61 D,D-carboxypeptidase/transpeptidase. With the help of structural data, we have attempted to identify the factors responsible for this opposite specificity. A loop deletion mutant of the Ochrobactrum anthropi D-aminopeptidase lost its original activity in favor of a new penicillin-binding activity. D-aminopeptidase activity of the deletion mutant can be restored by complementation with another deletion mutant corresponding to the noncatalytic domain of the wild-type enzyme. By a second step site-directed mutagenesis, the specificity of the Ochrobactrum anthropi D-aminopeptidase was inverted to a D,D-carboxypeptidase specificity. These results imply a core enzyme with high diversity potential surrounded by specificity modulators. It is the first example of drastic specificity change in the serine penicillin-recognizing proteins. These results open new perspectives in the conception of new enzymes with nonnatural specificities. The structure/specificity relationship in the serine penicillin-recognizing proteins are discussed.

In efforts to find new bioactive β-lactamase inhibitors, this study investigated 16 Cameroonian plants belonging to 10 families which were evaluated for anti-β-lactamase activity. The investigation showed that extracts 2, 6, 3 and 5 of the 16 plants investigated presented interesting in vitroβ-lactamase inhibition (over 90%), respectively, of the β-lactamases TEM-1, OXA-10, IMP-1 and P99. These extracts were from Mammea africana (all β-lactamases), Garcinia lucida, G. kola (OXA-10, IMP-1 and P99), Bridelia micrantha (OXA-10, P99), Ochna afzelii (OXA-10, P99), Prunus africana (IMP-1) and Adenia lobata (TEM-1). After elimina tion of tannins (according to the European Pharmacopoeia) the extracts from B. micrantha, G. lucida and M. africana were tested further for their anti-β-lactamase activity. The extracts from B. micrantha and G. lucida exhibited potent inhibitory activity, respectively, of β-lactamase OXA-10 (IC50 = 0.02 mg/mL) and P99 (IC50 = 0.01 mg/mL). The anti-β-lactamase activity of M. africana extract was weak. The isolation and the structural elucidation of the active constituents of G. lucida and B. micrantha will provide useful leads in the development of β-lactamase inhibitors. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The susceptibility of typical class D β-lactamases to inhibition by acyl phosph(on)ates has been determined. To a large degree, these class D enzymes behaved very similarly to the class A TEM β-lactamase towards these reagents. Dibenzoyl phosphate stood out in both cases as a lead compound towards a new class of effective inhibitors.

TheybxIgene ofBacillus subtilis168 encodes a preprotein of 267 amino acid residues, including a putative signal peptide of 23 residues. The YbxI primary structure exhibits high similarity scores with two members of the superfamily of the serine penicillin-recognizing enzymes: the class D β-lactamases and the hydrophilic carboxy-terminal domains of the BlaR and MecR penicillin receptors. To determine the function and the activity of this putative penicillin-recognizing enzyme, we have subcloned theybxIgene in the pET-26b expression vector. Transformation ofEscherichia coliBL21(DE3) by the recombinant plasmid pCIP51 resulted in the export of the mature YbxI in the periplasm as a water-soluble protein. The recombinant protein was purified to 95% homogeneity. YbxI interacts with several β-lactam antibiotics and can hydrolyze some of them. YbxI is not inactivated by clavulanic acid. The YbxI function and its enzymatic activity inB. subtilisremain unknown. The acyl-enzyme obtained after incubation of YbxI with a fluorescent derivative of ampicillin can be detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, confirming that YbxI can be acylated by β-lactam antibiotics. YbxI does not hydrolyze some of the standard substrates ofd-alanyl-d-alanine peptidases, the targets of penicillin. YbxI belongs to the penicillin-recognizing enzyme family but has an activity intermediate between those of a penicillin-binding protein and a β-lactamase.