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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Laurent Kremer, Professor Del Besra
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The long-chain α-alkyl-β-hydroxy fatty acids, termed mycolic acids, which are characteristic components of the mycobacterial cell wall are produced by successive rounds of elongation catalyzed by a multifunctional (type I) fatty acid synthase complex followed by a dissociated (type II) fatty acid synthase. In bacterial type II systems, the first initiation step in elongation is the condensation of acetyl-CoA with malonyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) catalyzed by β-ketoacyl-ACP III (FabH). An open reading frame in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis genome (Rv0533c), now termed mtfabH, was 37.3% identical to Escherichia coli ecFabH and contained the Cys-His-Asn catalytic triad signature. However, the purified recombinant mtFabH clearly preferred long-chain acyl-CoA substrates rather than acyl-ACP primers and did not utilize acetyl-CoA as a primer in comparison to ecFabH. In addition, purified mtFabH was sensitive to thiolactomycin and resistant to cerulenin in an in vitro assay. However, mtFabH overexpression in Mycobacterium bovis BCG did not confer thiolactomycin resistance, suggesting that mtFabH may not be the primary target of thiolactomycin inhibition in vivo and led to several changes in tile lipid composition of the bacilli. The data presented is consistent with a role for mtFabH as the pivotal link between the type I and type II fatty acid elongation systems in M. tuberculosis. This study opens up new avenues for the development of selective and novel anti-mycobacterial agents targeted against mtFabH.
Author(s): Choi K-H, Kremer L, Besra GS, Rock CO
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Journal of Biological Chemistry
Year: 2000
Volume: 275
Issue: 36
Pages: 28201-28207
ISSN (print): 0021-9258
ISSN (electronic): 1083-351X
Publisher: American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
URL: http://dxd.oi.org/10.1074/jbc.M003241200
DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M003241200
PubMed id: 10840036
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