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Discovery of a Cyclic Choline Analog That Inhibits Anaerobic Choline Metabolism by Human Gut Bacteria.

ABSTRACT: The anaerobic conversion of choline to trimethylamine (TMA) by the human gut microbiota has been linked to multiple human diseases. The potential impact of this microbial metabolic activity on host health has inspired multiple efforts to identify small molecule inhibitors. Here, we use information about the structure and mechanism of the bacterial enzyme choline TMA-lyase (CutC) to develop a cyclic choline analog that inhibits the conversion of choline to TMA in bacterial whole cells and in a complex gut microbial community. In vitro biochemical assays and a crystal structure suggest that this analog is a competitive, mechanism-based inhibitor. This work demonstrates the utility of structure-based design to access inhibitors of radical enzymes from the human gut microbiota.

SUBMITTER: Bollenbach M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7549264 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Discovery of a Cyclic Choline Analog That Inhibits Anaerobic Choline Metabolism by Human Gut Bacteria.

Bollenbach Maud M Ortega Manuel M Orman Marina M Drennan Catherine L CL Balskus Emily P EP

ACS medicinal chemistry letters 20200325 10

The anaerobic conversion of choline to trimethylamine (TMA) by the human gut microbiota has been linked to multiple human diseases. The potential impact of this microbial metabolic activity on host health has inspired multiple efforts to identify small molecule inhibitors. Here, we use information about the structure and mechanism of the bacterial enzyme choline TMA-lyase (CutC) to develop a cyclic choline analog that inhibits the conversion of choline to TMA in bacterial whole cells and in a co ...[more]

PMID: 33062182

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Project description:Elucidation of the molecular mechanisms underlying the human gut microbiota's effects on health and disease has been complicated by difficulties in linking metabolic functions associated with the gut community as a whole to individual microorganisms and activities. Anaerobic microbial choline metabolism, a disease-associated metabolic pathway, exemplifies this challenge, as the specific human gut microorganisms responsible for this transformation have not yet been clearly identified. In this study, we established the link between a bacterial gene cluster, the choline utilization (cut) cluster, and anaerobic choline metabolism in human gut isolates by combining transcriptional, biochemical, bioinformatic, and cultivation-based approaches. Quantitative reverse transcription-PCR analysis and in vitro biochemical characterization of two cut gene products linked the entire cluster to growth on choline and supported a model for this pathway. Analyses of sequenced bacterial genomes revealed that the cut cluster is present in many human gut bacteria, is predictive of choline utilization in sequenced isolates, and is widely but discontinuously distributed across multiple bacterial phyla. Given that bacterial phylogeny is a poor marker for choline utilization, we were prompted to develop a degenerate PCR-based method for detecting the key functional gene choline TMA-lyase (cutC) in genomic and metagenomic DNA. Using this tool, we found that new choline-metabolizing gut isolates universally possessed cutC. We also demonstrated that this gene is widespread in stool metagenomic data sets. Overall, this work represents a crucial step toward understanding anaerobic choline metabolism in the human gut microbiota and underscores the importance of examining this microbial community from a function-oriented perspective. Anaerobic choline utilization is a bacterial metabolic activity that occurs in the human gut and is linked to multiple diseases. While bacterial genes responsible for choline fermentation (the cut gene cluster) have been recently identified, there has been no characterization of these genes in human gut isolates and microbial communities. In this work, we use multiple approaches to demonstrate that the pathway encoded by the cut genes is present and functional in a diverse range of human gut bacteria and is also widespread in stool metagenomes. We also developed a PCR-based strategy to detect a key functional gene (cutC) involved in this pathway and applied it to characterize newly isolated choline-utilizing strains. Both our analyses of the cut gene cluster and this molecular tool will aid efforts to further understand the role of choline metabolism in the human gut microbiota and its link to disease.

Project description:Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been linked to animal-based diets, which are a major source of trimethylamine (TMA), a precursor of the proatherogenic compound trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO). Human gut bacteria in the genus Bilophila have genomic signatures for genetic code expansion that could enable them to metabolize both TMA and its precursors without production of TMAO. We uncovered evidence that the Bilophila demethylation pathway is actively transcribed in gut microbiomes and that animal-based diets cause Bilophila to rapidly increase in abundance. CVD occurrence and Bilophila abundance in humans were significantly negatively correlated. These data lead us to propose that Bilophila, which is commonly regarded as a pathobiont, may play a role in mitigating cardiovascular disease. Human gut microbiomes have been shown to affect the development of a myriad of disease states, but mechanistic connections between diet, health, and microbiota have been challenging to establish. The hypothesis that Bilophila reduces cardiovascular disease by circumventing TMAO production offers a clearly defined mechanism with a potential human health impact, but investigations of Bilophila cell biology and ecology will be needed to fully evaluate these ideas.IMPORTANCE Links between trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) have focused attention on mechanisms by which animal-based diets have negative health consequences. In a meta-analysis of data from foundational gut microbiome studies, we found evidence that specialized bacteria have and express a metabolic pathway that circumvents TMAO production and is often misannotated because it relies on genetic code expansion. This naturally occurring mechanism for TMAO attenuation is negatively correlated with CVD. Ultimately, these findings point to new avenues of research that could increase microbiome-informed understanding of human health and hint at potential biomedical applications in which specialized bacteria are used to curtail CVD development.

Dataset Information

Discovery of a Cyclic Choline Analog That Inhibits Anaerobic Choline Metabolism by Human Gut Bacteria.

Publications

Discovery of a Cyclic Choline Analog That Inhibits Anaerobic Choline Metabolism by Human Gut Bacteria.

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