Signalling inhibitors against Mycobacterium tuberculosis--early days of a new therapeutic concept in tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis causes nearly two million deaths per year world-wide. In addition multidrug-resistant mycobacterial strains rapidly emerge so novel therapeutic approaches are needed. Recently, several promising mycobacterial target molecules were identified, which are involved in bacterial or host cell signalling e.g. the serine/threonine protein kinases, PknB and PknG, NAD kinase and the NAD synthetase. Here we describe some early efforts in the development of novel signal transduction inhibitory anti-mycobacterial drugs using a multiple target approach, with special emphasis on the kinase inhibitory field. Initially, we are using the Nested Chemical Library (NCL) technology and pharmacophore modelling. A hit-finding library, consisting of approximately 19000 small molecules with a bias for prototypic kinase inhibitors from our NCL library and commercial sources was virtually screened against these validated target molecules. Protein structures for the virtual screening were taken from the published three dimensional crystal structures of the enzymes. The hits from the virtual screening were subsequently tested in enzymatic assay systems. Potent hits were then tested for biological activity in macrophages, infected with mycobacteria. The final goal of this exercise is not only to identify potent anti-mycobacterial substances, but also a common pharmacophore for the mycobacterial target PknG in combination with PknB, NAD kinase and/or NAD synthetase. This common pharmacophore still needs to be a unique pharmacophore for the mycobacterial target proteins over human off-targets. Such a pharmacophore might then drive the optimization of a completely new profile of an antibiotic agent with activity against latent mycobacteria and resistance mycobacterial strains.

A role for myosin-I in actin assembly through interactions with Vrp1p, Bee1p, and the Arp2/3 complex.

Type I myosins are highly conserved actin-based molecular motors that localize to the actin-rich cortex and participate in motility functions such as endocytosis, polarized morphogenesis, and cell migration. The COOH-terminal tail of yeast myosin-I proteins, Myo3p and Myo5p, contains an Src homology domain 3 (SH3) followed by an acidic domain. The myosin-I SH3 domain interacted with both Bee1p and Vrp1p, yeast homologues of human WASP and WIP, adapter proteins that link actin assembly and signaling molecules. The myosin-I acidic domain interacted with Arp2/3 complex subunits, Arc40p and Arc19p, and showed both sequence similarity and genetic redundancy with the COOH-terminal acidic domain of Bee1p (Las17p), which controls Arp2/3-mediated actin nucleation. These findings suggest that myosin-I proteins may participate in a diverse set of motility functions through a role in actin assembly.

Protein oxidation, tyrosine nitration, and inactivation of sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase in low-frequency stimulated rabbit muscle.

Sustained contractile activity by chronic low-frequency stimulation in rabbit fast-twitch muscle causes a partial (40-50%) inactivation of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+-ATPase and, with prolonged stimulation, a SERCA1a to SERCA2a transition. To investigate the underlying mechanism of the inactivation which precedes the isoform transition, we analyzed SR from 4-day stimulated muscles for Ca2+-ATPase activity, lipid peroxidation, SH and carbonyl groups, and nitrotyrosine. At unaltered SH group and malondialdehyde contents, carbonyl groups were elevated 50% in the SR from stimulated muscles. Immunoblotting with anti-dinitrophenyl and anti-nitrotyrosine antibodies revealed strong labeling of the Ca2+-ATPase, suggesting the inactivation of the enzyme to result from protein oxidation and peroxynitrite-mediated tyrosine nitration.

Specificity and target proteins of arginine-specific mono-ADP-ribosylation in T-tubules of rabbit skeletal muscle.

In order to specify that protein labeling is the result of mono-ADP ribosylation, a careful evaluation of the reaction conditions and products is necessary. To investigate the specificity and target proteins of the arginine-specific mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase (mADP-RT) in rabbit skeletal muscle T-tubules (TT) biotin- or digoxigenin-coupled NAD-derivatives were synthesized. They were used for the nonradioactive labeling of proteins and compared with radioactive mono-ADP-ribosylation. According to the results of our studies, they cannot be used as substrates to detect arginine-specific or pertussis toxin-dependent mono-ADP-ribosylation of target proteins in skeletal muscle. In contrast, radioactive NAD can be used to monitor these reactions. Under the appropriate reaction conditions, the radioactive [adenylate-14C]NAD and [32P]NAD were found to be solely consumed by the arginine-specific mADP-RT of skeletal muscle TT. The incorporation studies confirmed earlier data on the localization of the mADP-RT and its targets in TT. The T-tubular targets were purified in a single-step procedure using phenylboronate affinity chromatography. Of 18 target proteins delineated by autoradiography of electrophoretically separated T-tubular proteins, a 42-kDa protein was suggested to be the stimulatory G protein (Gsalpha). Mono-ADP-ribosylation of Gsalpha resulted in an inhibition of the T-tubular adenylate cyclase activity as proven by the suppression of this inhibition using novobiocin as a specific inhibitor of mADP-RT.

A fluorometric assay for measurement of mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase activity.

Using 1,N6-etheno NAD, a fluorescent analog of NAD, we extended an existing assay for NAD glycohydrolase to the measurement of mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase (mADP-RT) activity using agmatine as acceptor for ADP-ribose. The reaction products were analyzed by reversed-phase chromatography. In the presence of agmatine two newly formed fluorescent products were tentatively identified as ADP-ribosylagmatine anomers. Fluorescence intensity increased upon splitting the N-glycoside bondage of 1,N6-etheno NAD. Therefore, 1, N6-etheno AMP could be used for calibration. The nonradioactive assay yielded values nearly identical to those obtained with the [carbonyl-14C]NAD method. It proved to be highly reproducible, rapid, and suitable for an improved purification protocol yielding a 76,000-fold enriched mADP-RT preparation from rabbit skeletal muscle. The identity and high purity of the enzyme were confirmed immunochemically. The assay served to determine the pH optimum of the enzyme (pH 9.0) and its KM for 1,N6-etheno NAD (287 microM).

Localization of an arginine-specific mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase in skeletal muscle sarcolemma and transverse tubules.

The precise localization of a membrane-bound, arginine-specific mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase (mADP-RT) was assessed in rabbit skeletal muscle by studying membrane fractions isolated by successive sucrose density gradient centrifugations. mADP-RT activity was 10-fold enriched in sarcolemmal and T-tubular membranes. The catalytic activity, determined in preparations with mainly right-side-out vesicles, was found to be on the cytoplasmic face. As revealed by SDS-PAGE and autoradiography endogenous mADP-RT activity labeled several proteins in the range between 15 kDa and 250 kDa. T-tubules contained the highest number of [32P]ADP-ribose-labeled proteins.