In the last two decades it has become increasingly clear that the efficacy of antibiotics for the treatment of infectious diseases is in jeopardy due to the common appearance of drug resistant strains of microorganisms. Understanding the mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance is crucial for effective patient care in the clinic and essential for developing strategies to enhance biodefense against intentionally disseminated of pathogens. Fosfomycin is a potent, broad-spectrum antibiotic effective against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative microorganisms. A decade after its introduction plasmid-mediated resistance to fosfomycin was observed in the clinic. Investigations supported by this project have established that the resistance is due to a metalloenzyme (FosA) that catalyzes the addition of glutathione to the antibiotic, rendering it inactive. Similar resistance elements have now been shown to exist in the genomes of several pathogenic microorganisms including, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus anthrasis, Brucella melitensis, Listeria monocytogenes and Clostridium botulinum. Genomic and biochemical analysis from this project suggest that there are three distinct subgroups of metalloenzymes, termed FosA, FosB and FosX, that confer resistance through somewhat different chemical mechanisms. The objectives of this research project are to identify plasmid and genomically encoded proteins involved in microbial resistance to fosfomycin and to elucidate the underlying structural and mechanistic enzymology of resistance. These objectives will be accomplished by integrating enzymological, biophysical and genomic analyses of the resistance problem. The three-dimensional structures of the FosA from Pseudomonas aeruginosa and its relatives FosB and FosX will be determined by X-ray crystallography. The chemical mechanisms of catalysis will be elucidated by: (i) examination of the inner coordination sphere of Mn 2+ in FosA and FosX by EPR and ENDOR spectroscopy; (ii) a steady state kinetic analysis of the thiol selectivity of FosA and FosB, and (iii) a mechanistic study of the unique hydration reaction catalyzed by FosX. Potential transition state inhibitors will investigated by structural, spectroscopic and kinetic techniques. The thermodynamics of the interaction of substrates and inhibitors with the enzymes will be examined by isothermal titration calorimetry Particular emphasis will be placed on the enzymes from the pathogens Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes and Clostridium botulinum. The intent of this investigation is to establish the mechanistic and structural bases for the design of drugs to counter both plasmid borne and genomically encoded resistance to fosfomycin.
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