Lydiamycins A–D: Cyclodepsipetides with Antimycobacterial Properties

Serratiomycins D1-D3, Antibacterial Cyclic Peptides from a Serratia sp. and Structure Revision of Serratiomycin

Serratiomycin (1) is an antibacterial cyclic depsipeptide, first discovered from a Eubacterium culture in 1998. This compound was initially reported to contain l-Leu, l-Ser, l-allo-Thr, d-Phe, d-Ile, and hydroxydecanoic acid. In the present study, 1 and three new derivatives, serratiomycin D1-D3 (2-4), were isolated from a Serratia sp. strain isolated from the exoskeleton of a long-horned beetle. The planar structures of 1-4 were elucidated by using mass spectrometry (MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Comparison of the NMR chemical shifts and the physicochemical data of 1 to those of previously reported serratiomycin indeed identified 1 as serratiomycin. The absolute configurations of the amino units in compounds 1-4 were determined by the advanced Marfey's method, 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-β-d-glucopyranosyl isothiocyanate derivatization, and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometric (LC-MS) analysis. Additionally, methanolysis and the modified Mosher's method were used to determine the absolute configuration of (3R)-hydroxydecanoic acid in 1. Consequently, the revised structure of 1 was found to possess d-Leu, l-Ser, l-Thr, d-Phe, l-allo-Ile, and d-hydroxydecanoic acid. In comparison with the previously published structure of serratiomycin, l-Leu, l-allo-Thr, and d-Ile in serratiomycin were revised to d-Leu, l-Thr, and l-allo-Ile. The new members of the serratiomycin family, compounds 2 and 3, showed considerably higher antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella enterica than compound 1.

Identification of the Cirratiomycin Biosynthesis Gene Cluster in Streptomyces Cirratus: Elucidation of the Biosynthetic Pathways for 2,3-Diaminobutyric Acid and Hydroxymethylserine

Cirratiomycin, a heptapeptide with antibacterial activity, was isolated and characterized in 1981; however, its biosynthetic pathway has not been elucidated. It contains several interesting nonproteinogenic amino acids, such as (2S,3S)-2,3-diaminobutyric acid ((2S,3S)-DABA) and α-(hydroxymethyl)serine, as building blocks. Here, we report the identification of a cirratiomycin biosynthetic gene cluster in Streptomyces cirratus. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that several Streptomyces viridifaciens and Kitasatospora aureofaciens strains also have this cluster. One S. viridifaciens strain was confirmed to produce cirratiomycin. The biosynthetic gene cluster was shown to be responsible for cirratiomycin biosynthesis in S. cirratus in a gene inactivation experiment using CRISPR-cBEST. Interestingly, this cluster encodes a nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) composed of 12 proteins, including those with an unusual domain organization: a stand-alone adenylation domain, two stand-alone condensation domains, two type II thioesterases, and two NRPS modules that have no adenylation domain. Using heterologous expression and in vitro analysis of recombinant enzymes, we revealed the biosynthetic pathway of (2S,3S)-DABA: (2S,3S)-DABA is synthesized from l-threonine by four enzymes, CirR, CirS, CirQ, and CirB. In addition, CirH, a glycine/serine hydroxymethyltransferase homolog, was shown to synthesize α-(hydroxymethyl)serine from d-serine in vitro. These findings broaden our knowledge of nonproteinogenic amino acid biosynthesis.

Stereoselective synthesis of (R)- and (S)-1,2-diazetidine-3-carboxylic acid derivatives for peptidomimetics

The stereoselective synthesis of both enantiomers of N-protected 1,2-diazetidine-3-carboxylic acid (aAze) from homochiral glycidol is described. Orthogonal protection of this novel cyclic α-hydrazino acid allows for selective functionalisation at either Nγ or Nδ. This novel peptidomimetic building block was incorporated into the pseudotripeptides Gly-γaAze-Ala and Gly-δaAze-Ala.

Unlocking the potential of bacterial endophytes from medicinal plants for drug discovery

Among the plant-associated microorganisms, the so-called endophytes continue to attract much attention because of their ability not only to protect host plants from biotic and abiotic stress factors, but also the potential to produce bioactive secondary metabolites. The latter property can elicit growth-promoting effects on plants, as well as boost the production of plant-specific secondary metabolites with valuable pharmacological properties. In addition, endophyte-derived secondary metabolites may be a rich source for the discovery of drugs to treat various diseases, including infections and cancer. However, the full potential of endophytes to produce bioactive secondary metabolites is often not revealed upon conventional cultivation in the laboratory. New advances in genomics and metabolic engineering offer exciting opportunities for the exploration and exploitation of endophytes' biosynthetic potential. This review focuses on bacterial endophytes of medicinal plants, some of their secondary metabolites and recent advances in deciphering their biosynthesis. The latter may assist in genetic engineering efforts aimed at the discovery of novel bioactive compounds with the potential to be developed into drugs.

Bioactive Piperazic Acid-Bearing Cyclodepsipeptides, Lydiamycins E-H, from an Endophytic Streptomyces sp. Associated with Cinnamomum cassia

A chemical investigation of the endophytic Streptomyces sp. HBQ95, associated with the medicinal plant Cinnamomum cassia Presl, enabled the discovery of four new piperazic acid-bearing cyclodepsipeptides, lydiamycins E-H (1-4), and one known compound (lydiamycin A). Their chemical structures, including absolute configurations, were defined by a combination of spectroscopic analyses and multiple chemical manipulations. Lydiamycins F-H (2-4) and A (5) exhibited antimetastatic activity against PANC-1 human pancreatic cancer cells without significant cytotoxicity.

Compelling Cyclic Peptide Scaffolds for Antitubercular Action: An Account (2011-21) of the Natural Source

Natural cyclic peptide scaffolds are indispensable in medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, and drug discovery platforms due to their chemical diversity, structural integrity, proteolytic stability and biocompatibility. Historically, their isolation and profound understanding of target engagement have been identified as lead pharmacophore discovery. Natural cyclic peptides are the largest class of pharmacologically active scaffold, in which most show activity against drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Nevertheless, eight recently discovered cyclic peptide scaffolds exhibit promising antitubercular activity among numerous naturally occurring antitubercular peptides, and they are amenable scaffolds to drug development. We examined their biological origin, scaffolds, isolations, chemical synthesis, and reasons for biological actions against Mtb. Understanding these peptide scaffold details will further allow synthetic and medicinal chemists to develop novel peptide therapeutics against tuberculosis-infected deadly diseases. This review emphasizes these cyclic peptides' in vitro and in vivo activity profiles, including their structural and chemical features.

Anti-mycobacterial activity evaluation of designed peptides: cryptic and database filtering based approach

Worldwide, TB is one of the deadly airborne diseases, which accounts for 10.4 million deaths annually. Serious toxicity issue, prolonged treatment regimens of the current drugs, rise in multidrug-resistant strains, and the unique defensive mechanism makes the development of novel therapeutic molecules against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MT) an urgent need. As MT has a lengthy latent phase and unique cell wall architecture, a reasonable approach is needed to find molecules having a different killing mechanism rather than traditional approaches. Host defence peptides (HDPs) will be the most promising alternative, potential therapeutic candidates as they target the microbial membrane in particular and are an essential part of the innate immunity of humans. This works demonstrates the utility of "Database filtering" and three-dimensional (3D) modelling approach in finding novel AMPs with appreciable activity towards MT. Results of this study indicate that peptides with 70% hydrophobicity, but without hydrophobicity patches (> 4 hydrophobic amino acids in series) and charge of + 4 or + 5 are most likely to be good anti-tubercular candidates.

Pentaminomycins C-E: Cyclic Pentapeptides as Autophagy Inducers from a Mealworm Beetle Gut Bacterium

Pentaminomycins C–E (1–3) were isolated from the culture of the Streptomyces sp. GG23 strain from the guts of the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor. The structures of the pentaminomycins were determined to be cyclic pentapeptides containing a modified amino acid, N⁵-hydroxyarginine, based on 1D and 2D NMR and mass spectroscopic analyses. The absolute configurations of the amino acid residues were assigned using Marfey’s method and bioinformatics analysis of their nonribosomal peptide biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC). Detailed analysis of the BGC enabled us to propose that the structural variations in 1–3 originate from the low specificity of the adenylation domain in the nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) module 1, and indicate that macrocyclization can be catalyzed noncanonically by penicillin binding protein (PBP)-type TE. Furthermore, pentaminomycins C and D (1 and 2) showed significant autophagy-inducing activities and were cytoprotective against oxidative stress in vitro.

A review on anti-tuberculosis peptides: Impact of peptide structure on anti-tuberculosis activity

Antibiotic resistance is a major public health problem globally. Particularly concerning amongst drug-resistant human pathogens is Mycobacterium tuberculosis that causes the deadly infectious tuberculosis (TB) disease. Significant issues associated with current treatment options for drug-resistant TB and the high rate of mortality from the disease makes the development of novel treatment options against this pathogen an urgent need. Antimicrobial peptides are part of innate immunity in all forms of life and could provide a potential solution against drug-resistant TB. This review is a critical analysis of antimicrobial peptides that are reported to be active against the M tuberculosis complex exclusively. However, activity on non-TB strains such as Mycobacterium avium and Mycobacterium intracellulare, whenever available, have been included at appropriate sections for these anti-TB peptides. Natural and synthetic antimicrobial peptides of diverse sequences, along with their chemical structures, are presented, discussed, and correlated to their observed antimycobacterial activities. Critical analyses of the structure allied to the anti-mycobacterial activity have allowed us to draw important conclusions and ideas for research and development on these promising molecules to realise their full potential. Even though the review is focussed on peptides, we have briefly summarised the structures and potency of the various small molecule drugs that are available and under development, for TB treatment.

Piperazic acid-containing natural products: structures and biosynthesis

Piperazic acid is a cyclic hydrazine and a non-proteinogenic amino acid found in diverse non-ribosomal peptide (NRP) and hybrid NRP–polyketide (PK) structures.

Actinobacteria-Derived peptide antibiotics since 2000

Members of the Actinobacteria, including Streptomyces spp., Kutzneria sp. Actinoplanes spp., Actinomycete sp., Nocardia sp., Brevibacteriumsp.,Actinomadura spp., Micromonospora sp., Amycolatopsis spp., Nonomuraea spp., Nocardiopsis spp., Marinactinospora sp., Rhodococcus sp., Lentzea sp., Actinokineospora sp., Planomonospora sp., Streptomonospora sp., and Microbacterium sp., are an important source of structurally diverse classes of short peptides of ∼30 residues or fewer that will likely play an important role in new antibiotic development and discovery. Additionally, many have unique structures that make them recalcitrant to traditional modes of drug resistance via novel mechanisms, and these are ideal therapeutic tools and potential alternatives to current antibiotics. The need for novel antibiotic is urgent, and this review summarizes 199 Actinobacteria compounds published since 2000, including 35 cyclic lipopeptides containing piperazic or pipecolic acids, eight aromatic peptides, five glycopeptides, 21 bicyclic peptides, 44 other cyclic lipopeptides, five linear lipopeptides, six 2,5-diketopiperazines, one dimeric peptide, four nucleosidyl peptides, two thioamide-containing peptides, 25 thiopeptides, nine lasso peptides, and 34 typical cyclic peptides. The current and potential therapeutic applications of these peptides, including their structure, antituberculotic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anti-brugia, anti-plasmodial, and anti-trypanosomal activities, are discussed.

Svetamycins A-G, Unusual Piperazic Acid-Containing Peptides from Streptomyces sp

Seven new halogenated peptides termed svetamycins A-G (1-7) have been isolated from laboratory cultures of a Streptomyces sp. Svetamycins A-D, F, and G are cyclic depsipeptides, whereas svetamycin E is a linear analogue of svetamycin C. Their structures were determined using extensive spectroscopic analysis, and their stereochemical configuration was established by a combination of NMR data, quantum mechanical calculations, and chemical derivatizations. Svetamycins are characterized by the presence of a hydroxyl acetic acid and five amino acids including a rare 4,5-dihydroxy-2,3,4,5-tetrahydropyridazine-3-carboxylic acid, a γ-halogenated piperazic acid, and a novel δ-methylated piperazic acid in svetamycins B-C, E, and G. Moreover, isotope-labeled substrate feeding experiments demonstrated ornithine as the precursor of piperazic acid and that methylation at the δ position of the piperazyl scaffold is S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM)-dependent. Svetamycin G, the most potent antimicrobial of this suite of compounds, inhibited the growth of Mycobacterium smegmatis with an MIC₈₀ value of 2 μg/mL.

Natural antimicrobial peptides against Mycobacterium tuberculosis

TB, caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is one the leading infectious diseases worldwide. There is an urgent need to discover new drugs with unique structures and uncommon mechanisms of action to treat M. tuberculosis and combat antimycobacterial resistance. Naturally occurring compounds contain a wide diversity of chemical structures, displaying a wide range of in vitro potency towards M. tuberculosis. A number of recent studies have shown that natural antimycobacterial peptides can disrupt the function of the mycobacterial cell wall through different modes of action and thereafter interact with intracellular targets, including nucleic acids, enzymes and even organelles. More importantly, the probability of antimycobacterial resistance is low. This review presents several natural antimicrobial peptides isolated from different organism sources, including bacteria, fungi, plants and animals. In addition, the molecular features of these molecules are the subject of much attention. Such peptides have common traits among their chemical features, which may be correlated with their biological activities; hence, different parts of the molecular structures can be modified in order to increase penetration into the target cells. This review also summarizes the available information on the properties of antimycobacterial peptides associated with their biological activities.

Identification and characterization of the biosynthetic gene cluster of polyoxypeptin A, a potent apoptosis inducer

BACKGROUND

Polyoxypeptin A was isolated from a culture broth of Streptomyces sp. MK498-98 F14, which has a potent apoptosis-inducing activity towards human pancreatic carcinoma AsPC-1 cells. Structurally, polyoxypeptin A is composed of a C₁₅ acyl side chain and a nineteen-membered cyclodepsipeptide core that consists of six unusual nonproteinogenic amino acid residues (N-hydroxyvaline, 3-hydroxy-3-methylproline, 5-hydroxypiperazic acid, N-hydroxyalanine, piperazic acid, and 3-hydroxyleucine) at high oxidation states.

RESULTS

A gene cluster containing 37 open reading frames (ORFs) has been sequenced and analyzed for the biosynthesis of polyoxypeptin A. We constructed 12 specific gene inactivation mutants, most of which abolished the production of polyoxypeptin A and only ΔplyM mutant accumulated a dehydroxylated analogue polyoxypeptin B. Based on bioinformatics analysis and genetic data, we proposed the biosynthetic pathway of polyoxypeptin A and biosynthetic models of six unusual amino acid building blocks and a PKS extender unit.

CONCLUSIONS

The identified gene cluster and proposed pathway for the biosynthesis of polyoxypeptin A will pave a way to understand the biosynthetic mechanism of the azinothricin family natural products and provide opportunities to apply combinatorial biosynthesis strategy to create more useful compounds.

Hytramycins V and I, anti-Mycobacterium tuberculosis hexapeptides from a Streptomyces hygroscopicus strain

Thirty-five thousand actinomycete extracts were screened for anti-Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) activity, followed by C18 cartridge fractionation of 37 prioritized extracts. Based on MICs against replicating and nonreplicating M. tb, and IC50 values against Vero cells to generate selectivity indices, seven fractions from seven different strains were selected for further examination. When cultured in G.S.S. media and extracted with ethyl acetate, the Streptomyces hygroscopicus strain ECUM 14046 yielded an extract with promising anti-M. tb activity and a well-defined chromatographic profile. Fractionation by preparative HPLC and subsequent structure elucidation of two active fractions using 1D- and 2D-NMR and MS methods revealed the presence of two cyclohexapeptides, hytramycins V and I, each containing three unusual piperazic acid moieties. The use of (1)H iterative full spin analysis (HiFSA) on both hytramycins confirmed that quantum mechanics-simulated spectra match the experimental data, and all J(H,H) and δH values are consistent with the proposed structures. The absolute configuration of each amino acid moiety was determined by Marfey's method. The MICs against replicating and, more importantly, nonreplicating M. tb fall into the range of some existing second-line anti-TB drugs, such as streptomycin and capreomycin, respectively. The activities were maintained against M. tb strains that represent the major global clades, as well as H37Rv-isogenic strains that are resistant to individual clinical anti-TB drugs.

Biosynthetic chlorination of the piperazate residue in kutzneride biosynthesis by KthP

Kutznerides 2 and 8 of the cyclic hexadepsipeptide family of antifungal natural products from the soil actinomycete Kutzneria sp. 744 contain two sets of chlorinated residues, a 6,7-dichlorohexahydropyrroloindole moiety derived from dichlorotryptophan and a 5-chloropiperazate moiety, as well as a methylcyclopropylglycine residue that may arise from isoleucine via a cryptic chlorination pathway. Previous studies identified KtzD, KtzQ, and KtzR as three halogenases in the kutzneride pathway but left no candidate for installing the C5 chlorine on piperazate. On the basis of analysis of the complete genome sequence of Kutzneria, we now identify a fourth halogenase in the pathway whose gene is separated from the defined kutzneride cluster by 12 open reading frames. KthP (kutzneride halogenase for piperazate) is a mononuclear nonheme iron halogenase that acts on the piperazyl ring tethered by a thioester linkage to the holo forms of thiolation domains. MS analysis of the protein-bound product confirmed chlorination of the piperazate framework from the (3S)- but not the (3R)-piperazyl-S-pantetheinyl thiolation proteins. After thioesterase-mediated release, nuclear magnetic resonance was used to assign the free imino acid as (3S,5S)-5-chloropiperazate, distinct from the 3S,5R stereoisomer reported in the mature kutznerides. These results demonstrate that a fourth halogenase, KthP, is active in the kutzneride biosynthetic pathway and suggest further processing of the (3S,5S)-5-chloropiperazate during subsequent incorporation into the kutzneride depsipeptide frameworks.

Pitucamycin: structural merger of a phenoxazinone with an epoxyquinone antibiotic

Chemical profiling of a Streptomyces griseus strain isolated from an old building with moisture damage led to the discovery of two novel phenoxazinones, chandrananimycin D and pitucamycin , along with the known grixazone B. Pitucamycin represents an unprecedented hybrid molecule composed of a phenoxazinone and an enaminomycin-like epoxyquinone moiety.

Towards the stereochemical assignment of natural lydiamycin A

A convergent approach leading to the stereoselective synthesis of four diastereomers of lydiamycin A has been established and verified.

Antituberculosis drugs: ten years of research

Tuberculosis is today amongst the worldwide health threats. As resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis have slowly emerged, treatment failure is too often a fact, especially in countries lacking the necessary health care organisation to provide the long and costly treatment adapted to patients. Because of lack of treatment or lack of adapted treatment, at least two million people will die of tuberculosis this year. Due to this concern, this infectious disease was the focus of renewed scientific interest in the last decade. Regimens were optimized and much was learnt on the mechanisms of action of the antituberculosis drugs used. Moreover, the quest for original drugs overcoming some of the problems of current regimens also became the focus of research programmes and many new series of M. tuberculosis growth inhibitors were reported. This review presents the drugs currently used in antituberculosis treatments and the most advanced compounds undergoing clinical trials. We then provide a description of their mechanism of action along with other series of inhibitors known to act on related biochemical targets. This is followed by other inhibitors of M. tuberculosis growth, including recently reported compounds devoid of a reported mechanism of action.