Bacterial cell death: Atomistic simulations reveal pore formation as a mode of action of structurally nano engineered star peptide polymers

Fuente: arXiv
Salvato in:
Dettagli Bibliografici
Autori principali: Jayawardena, Amal, Hung, Andrew, Qiao, Greg, Hajizadeh, Elnaz
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2024
Soggetti:
Accesso online:
Tags: Aggiungi Tag
Nessun Tag, puoi essere il primo ad aggiungerne!!
_version_ 1866909163802591232
author Jayawardena, Amal
Hung, Andrew
Qiao, Greg
Hajizadeh, Elnaz
author_facet Jayawardena, Amal
Hung, Andrew
Qiao, Greg
Hajizadeh, Elnaz
contents Multidrug resistance (MDR) to conventional antibiotics is one of the most urgent global health threats, necessitating the development of effective and biocompatible antimicrobial agents that are less inclined to provoke resistance. Structurally Nanoengineered Antimicrobial Peptide Polymers (SNAPPs) are a novel and promising class of such alternatives. These star-shaped polymers are made of a dendritic core with multiple arms made of co-peptides with varying amino acid sequences. Through a comprehensive set of in vivo experiments, we (Nature Microbiology, 1, 16162, 2016) showed that SNAPPs with arms made of random blocks of lysine (K) and valine (V) residues exhibit sub-micron M efficacy against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria tested. Cryo-TEM images suggested pore formation by SNAPP with random block co-peptide arms as one of their mode of actions. However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for this mode of action of SNAPP were not fully understood. To address this gap, we employed atomistic molecular dynamics simulation technique to investigate the influence of three different sequences of amino acids, namely 1) alternating block KKV 2) random block and 3) di-block motifs on secondary structure of their arms and SNAPP's overall configuration as well as their interactions with lipid bilayer. We, for the first time identified a step-by-step mechanism through which alternating block and random SNAPPs interact with lipid bilayer and leads to pore formation, hence cell death. These insights provide a strong foundation for further optimization of the chemical structure of SNAPPs for maximum performance against MDR bacteria, therefore offering a promising avenue for addressing antibiotic resistance and development of effective antibacterial agents.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2404_02501
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Bacterial cell death: Atomistic simulations reveal pore formation as a mode of action of structurally nano engineered star peptide polymers
Jayawardena, Amal
Hung, Andrew
Qiao, Greg
Hajizadeh, Elnaz
Soft Condensed Matter
Materials Science
Multidrug resistance (MDR) to conventional antibiotics is one of the most urgent global health threats, necessitating the development of effective and biocompatible antimicrobial agents that are less inclined to provoke resistance. Structurally Nanoengineered Antimicrobial Peptide Polymers (SNAPPs) are a novel and promising class of such alternatives. These star-shaped polymers are made of a dendritic core with multiple arms made of co-peptides with varying amino acid sequences. Through a comprehensive set of in vivo experiments, we (Nature Microbiology, 1, 16162, 2016) showed that SNAPPs with arms made of random blocks of lysine (K) and valine (V) residues exhibit sub-micron M efficacy against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria tested. Cryo-TEM images suggested pore formation by SNAPP with random block co-peptide arms as one of their mode of actions. However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for this mode of action of SNAPP were not fully understood. To address this gap, we employed atomistic molecular dynamics simulation technique to investigate the influence of three different sequences of amino acids, namely 1) alternating block KKV 2) random block and 3) di-block motifs on secondary structure of their arms and SNAPP's overall configuration as well as their interactions with lipid bilayer. We, for the first time identified a step-by-step mechanism through which alternating block and random SNAPPs interact with lipid bilayer and leads to pore formation, hence cell death. These insights provide a strong foundation for further optimization of the chemical structure of SNAPPs for maximum performance against MDR bacteria, therefore offering a promising avenue for addressing antibiotic resistance and development of effective antibacterial agents.
title Bacterial cell death: Atomistic simulations reveal pore formation as a mode of action of structurally nano engineered star peptide polymers
topic Soft Condensed Matter
Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.02501