Binding and action of CEM-101, a new fluoroketolide antibiotic that inhibits protein synthesis.

We characterized the mechanism of action and the drug-binding site of a novel ketolide, CEM-101, which belongs to the latest class of macrolide antibiotics. CEM-101 shows high affinity for the ribosomes of Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria. The ketolide shows high selectivity in its inhibitory action and readily interferes with synthesis of a reporter protein in the bacterial but not eukaryotic cell-free translation system.

Selection of small peptides, inhibitors of translation.

Identification of small molecular weight compounds targeting specific sites in the ribosome can accelerate development of new antibiotics and provide new tools for ribosomal research. We demonstrate here that antibiotic-size short peptides capable of inhibiting protein synthesis can be selected by using specific elements of ribosomal RNA as a target. The 'h18' pseudoknot encompassing residues 500-545 of the small ribosomal subunit RNA was used as a target in screening a heptapeptide phage-display library.

Fluorescently labeled ribosomes as a tool for analyzing antibiotic binding.

Measuring the binding of antibiotics and other small-molecular-weight ligands to the 2.5 MDa ribosome often presents formidable challenges. Here, we describe a general method for studying binding of ligands to ribosomes that carry a site-specific fluorescent label covalently attached to one of the ribosomal proteins.

Aminoglycosides modified by resistance enzymes display diminished binding to the bacterial ribosomal aminoacyl-tRNA site.

Understanding the basic principles that govern RNA binding by aminoglycosides is important for the design of new generations of antibiotics that do not suffer from the known mechanisms of drug resistance. With this goal in mind, we examined the binding of kanamycin A and four derivatives (the products of enzymic turnovers of kanamycin A by aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes) to a 27 nucleotide RNA representing the bacterial ribosomal A site. Modification of kanamycin A functional groups that have been directly implicated in the maintenance of specific interactions with RNA led to a decrease in affinity for the target RNA.

Design of novel antibiotics that bind to the ribosomal acyltransfer site.

The structure of neamine bound to the A site of the bacterial ribosomal RNA was used in the design of novel aminoglycosides. The design took into account stereo and electronic contributions to interactions between RNA and aminoglycosides, as well as a random search of 273 000 compounds from the Cambridge structural database and the National Cancer Institute 3-D database that would fit in the ribosomal aminoglycoside-binding pocket. A total of seven compounds were designed and subsequently synthesized, with the expectation that they would bind to the A-site RNA.