Structural and functional analyses reveal that Staphylococcus aureus antibiotic resistance factor HmrA is a zinc-dependent endopeptidase

J Biol Chem. 2011 Jul 22;286(29):25697-709. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M111.247437. Epub 2011 May 27.

Abstract

HmrA is an antibiotic resistance factor of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Molecular analysis of this protein revealed that it is not a muramidase or β-lactamase but a nonspecific double-zinc endopeptidase consisting of a catalytic domain and an inserted oligomerization domain, which probably undergo a relative interdomain hinge rotation upon substrate binding. The active-site cleft is located at the domain interface. Four HmrA protomers assemble to a large ∼170-kDa homotetrameric complex of 125 Å. All four active sites are fully accessible and ∼50-70 Å apart, far enough apart to act on a large meshwork substrate independently but simultaneously. In vivo studies with four S. aureus strains of variable resistance levels revealed that the extracellular addition of HmrA protects against loss of viability in the presence of oxacillin and that this protection depends on proteolytic activity. All of these results indicate that HmrA is a peptidase that participates in resistance mechanisms in vivo in the presence of β-lactams. Furthermore, our results have implications for most S. aureus strains of known genomic sequences and several other cocci and bacilli, which harbor close orthologs. This suggests that HmrA may be a new widespread antibiotic resistance factor in bacteria.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Bacterial Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Bacterial Proteins / chemistry*
  • Bacterial Proteins / metabolism*
  • Biophysical Phenomena
  • Catalytic Domain
  • Drug Design
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial*
  • Endopeptidases / chemistry*
  • Endopeptidases / metabolism*
  • Models, Molecular
  • Movement
  • Protease Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Protein Multimerization
  • Protein Structure, Quaternary
  • Staphylococcus aureus / drug effects
  • Staphylococcus aureus / enzymology*
  • Zinc / metabolism*

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • HmrA protein, Staphylococcus aureus
  • Protease Inhibitors
  • Endopeptidases
  • Zinc