Abstract
The first committed step of lipid A biosynthesis is catalyzed by UDP-(3-
O
-(
R
-3-hydroxymyristoyl))-
N
-acetylglucosamine deacetylase, a metal-dependent deacetylase also known as LpxC. Because lipid A is essential for bacterial viability, the inhibition of LpxC is an appealing therapeutic strategy for the treatment of Gram-negative bacterial infections. Here we report the 1.79 Å resolution X-ray crystal structure of LpxC from
Yersinia enterocolitica
(YeLpxC) complexed with the potent hydroxamate inhibitor CHIR-090. This enzyme is a nearly-identical orthologue of LpxC from
Yersinia pestis
(99.7% sequence identity), the pathogen that causes bubonic plague. Similar to the inhibition of LpxC from
Escherichia coli
, CHIR-090 inhibits YeLpxC via a two-step slow, tight-binding mechanism with an apparent
K
i
of 0.54 ± 0.14 nM followed by conversion of the E•I to E•I* species with a rate constant of 0.11 ± 0.01 min
−1
. The structure of the LpxC complex with CHIR-090 shows that the inhibitor hydroxamate group chelates the active site zinc ion, and the “tail” of the inhibitor binds in the hydrophobic tunnel in the active site. This hydrophobic tunnel is framed by a βαβ subdomain that exhibits significant conformational flexibility as it accommodates inhibitor binding. CHIR-090 displays a 27 mm zone of inhibition against
Y. enterocolitica
in a Kirby-Bauer antibiotic assay, which is comparable to its reported activity against other Gram-negative species including
E. coli
and
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
. This study demonstrates that the inhibition of LpxC should be explored as a potential therapeutic and/or prophylatic response to infection by weaponized
Yersinia
species.