Antimicrobial mechanism of theaflavins: They target 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase, the key enzyme of the MEP terpenoid biosynthetic pathway.

ABSTRACT: 1-Deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) is the first committed enzyme in the 2-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) terpenoid biosynthetic pathway and is also a validated antimicrobial target. Theaflavins, which are polyphenolic compounds isolated from fermented tea, possess a wide range of pharmacological activities, especially an antibacterial effect, but little has been reported on their modes of antimicrobial action. To uncover the antibacterial mechanism of theaflavins and to seek new DXR inhibitors from natural sources, the DXR inhibitory activity of theaflavins were investigated in this study. The results show that all four theaflavin compounds could specifically suppress the activity of DXR, with theaflavin displaying the lowest effect against DXR (IC₅₀ 16

SUBMITTER: Hui X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5150241 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature