title: Structure-activity relationships in the peptide antibiotic nisin: role of dehydroalanine 5.
abstract: A mutant of the peptide antibiotic nisin in which the dehydroalanine residue at position 5 has been replaced by an alanine has been produced and structurally characterized. It is shown to have activity very similar to that of wild-type nisin in inhibiting growth of Lactococcus lactis and Micrococcus luteus but is very much less active than nisin as an inhibitor of the outgrowth of spores of Bacillus subtilis. These observations, which parallel those of W. Liu and J. N. Hansen (Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 59:648-651, 1993) on the corresponding mutant of the related antibiotic subtilin, are discussed in terms of the mechanism(s) of action of these antibiotics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: W C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Dodd
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Horn
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maclean
authors.forename: L Y
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Lian
authors.forename: B W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Bycroft
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Gasson
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Roberts
mesh_terms: D000409:Alanine; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009561:Nisin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D009561:Nisin; D000409:Alanine