The Biology of Colicin M and Its Orthologs.

The misuse of antibiotics during the last decades led to the emergence of multidrug resistant pathogenic bacteria. This phenomenon constitutes a major public health issue. Consequently, the discovery of new antibacterials in the short term is crucial.

Impact of FiuA Outer Membrane Receptor Polymorphism on the Resistance of toward Peptidoglycan Lipid II-Targeting PaeM Pyocins.

Certain strains produce a homolog of colicin M, namely, PaeM, that specifically inhibits peptidoglycan biosynthesis of susceptible strains by hydrolyzing the lipid II intermediate precursor. Two variants of this pyocin were identified whose sequences mainly differed in the N-terminal protein moiety, i.e.

Pectocin M1 (PcaM1) Inhibits Escherichia coli Cell Growth and Peptidoglycan Biosynthesis through Periplasmic Expression.

Colicins are bacterial toxins produced by some strains. They exhibit either enzymatic or pore-forming activity towards a very limited number of bacterial species, due to the high specificity of their reception and translocation systems. Yet, we succeeded in making the colicin M homologue from , pectocin M1 (PcaM1), capable of inhibiting cell growth by bypassing these reception and translocation steps.