Structural characterization of native autoinducing peptides and abiotic analogues reveals key features essential for activation and inhibition of an AgrC quorum sensing receptor in Staphylococcus aureus.

ABSTRACT: Staphylococcus aureus is a major human pathogen that uses quorum sensing (QS) to control virulence. Its QS system is regulated by macrocyclic peptide signals (or autoinducing peptides (AIPs)) and their cognate transmembrane receptors (AgrCs). Four different specificity groups of S. aureus have been identified to date (groups I-IV), each of which uses a different AIP:AgrC pair. Non-native ligands capable of intercepting AIP:AgrC binding, and thereby QS, in S. aureus have attracted considerable interest as chemical tools to study QS pathways and as possible antivirulence strategies for the treatment of infection. We recently reported a set of analogues of the group-III AIP that are capable of strongly modulating the activity of all four AgrC receptors. Critical to the further development of

SUBMITTER: Tal-Gan Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3887510 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature