N-acylethanolamines (NAEs) are a lipid class present in brain and other animal tissues and contains anandamide (an endocannabinoid) and other bioactive substances. NAEs are formed from N-acylphosphatidylethanolamines (NAPEs) by a phospholipase D (PLD)-type enzyme abbreviated to NAPE-PLD. Although this enzyme has been recognized for more than 20 years, its molecular cloning has only recently been achieved by us. We highly purified NAPE-PLD from the particulate fraction of rat heart, and on the basis of peptide sequences with the purified enzyme cloned its cDNA from mouse, rat and human. The deduced primary structures revealed no homology with any PLDs so far reported, but was suggested to belong to the beta-lactamase fold family. When overexpressed in COS-7 cells, the NAPE-PLD activity increased about 1000-fold in comparison with the endogenous activity. The recombinant enzyme generated various long-chain NAEs including anandamide from their corresponding NAPEs at similar rates. However, the enzyme was inactive with phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine and did not catalyze transphosphatidylation, a reaction characteristic of PLD. The enzyme was widely expressed in murine organs with higher levels in brain, testis and kidney. The existence of NAPE-PLD specifically hydrolyzing NAPEs to NAEs emphasizes physiological significance of NAEs including anandamide in brain and other tissues.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lfs.2005.05.018 | DOI Listing |
FEMS Microbiol Lett
January 2025
Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur-721302, West Bengal, India.
Verona-integron-metallo-β-lactamase (VIM-2) is one of the most widespread class B β-lactamase responsible for β-lactam resistance. Although active-site residues help in metal binding, the residues nearing the active-site possess functional importance. Here, to decipher the role of such residues in the activity and stability of VIM-2, the residues E146, D182, N210, S207, and D213 were selected through in-silico analyses and substituted with alanine using site-directed mutagenesis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Med Chem
January 2025
Laboratory for Marine Drugs and Bioproducts, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, School of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266071, China. Electronic address:
The emergence of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) poses a significant threat to the clinical application of antibiotics, as it possesses the ability to hydrolyze nearly all β-lactam antibiotics. Regrettably, there are currently no clinical drugs targeting NDM-1, making it imperative to develop highly potent and minimally toxic NDM-1 inhibitors. Herein, a series of molecular Trojan horses targeting NDM-1 were synthesized by introducing ebselen into 7-aminocephalosporanic acid derivatives via a C-Se bond.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRes Microbiol
January 2025
Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, San Nicolás de los Garza, Nuevo León, México 66455. Electronic address:
Little is known about how subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics to which bacteria are resistant affect bacterial virulence. In this study, the effect of subinhibitory concentrations of ampicillin on the virulence of E. coli O104:H4 was analyzed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAntibiotics (Basel)
December 2024
Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Bio/Molecular Informatics Center, Konkuk University, Hwayang-dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul 143-701, Republic of Korea.
Previously, we reported that 3--alkyl difluoroquercetins (di-F-Q) potentiates the antimicrobial activity of aztreonam (ATM) against metallo-β-lactamase (MBL)-producing through simultaneous inhibition of MBLs and efflux pumps. However, the ATM-potentiating activity of the 3--alkyl di-F-Q was observed only at high and potentially toxic concentrations (32 mg/L). As both MBLs and efflux pumps reside in the periplasm of Gram-negative bacteria, their inhibitors should accumulate in the periplasmic space.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNat Chem Biol
January 2025
Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Virtual ligand libraries for ligand discovery have recently increased 10,000-fold. Whether this has improved hit rates and potencies has not been directly tested. Meanwhile, typically only dozens of docking hits are assayed, clouding hit-rate interpretation.
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