Abstract
Nisin inhibits murein synthesis with concomitant accumulation of undecaprenyl-pyrophospho-MurNAc(pentapeptide) (lipid intermediate I). This inhibition is caused by the formation of a complex between the antibiotic and lipid intermediate I. Undecaprenyl-pyrophospho-MurNAc(pentapeptide)-GlcNAc (lipid intermediate II) also forms a complex with nisin. However, when murein synthesis is inhibited by nisin, this latter complex is not formed since lipid intermediate II is no longer synthesized.
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Abbreviations
- GlcNAc:
-
N-acetylglucosamine
- MurNAc:
-
N-acetylmuramyl
- Pentapeptide:
-
Ala-γ-DGlu-Lys-DAla-DAla
- C55 :
-
undecaprenol
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Dedicated to Professor Otto Kandler on occasion of his 60th birthday
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Reisinger, P., Seidel, H., Tschesche, H. et al. The effect of nisin on murein synthesis. Arch. Microbiol. 127, 187–193 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00427192
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00427192