title: Structure and biological activity of chemically modified nisin A species.
abstract: Nisin, a 34-residue peptide bacteriocin, contains the less common amino acids lanthionine, beta-methyl-lanthionine, dehydroalanine (Dha), and dehydrobutyrine (Dhb). Several chemically modified nisin A species were purified by reverse-phase HPLC and characterized by two-dimensional NMR and electrospray mass spectrometry. Five constituents, [2-hydroxy-Ala5]nisin, [Ile4-amide,pyruvyl-Leu6]des-Dha5-nisin, [Met(O)21]nisin, [Ser33]nisin, and nisin-(1-32)-peptide amide, were found in a commercial nisin sample. A further species, [2-hydroxy-Ala5]nisin-(1-32)-peptide amide, was obtained by freeze drying an acidic nisin solution. These compounds are formed by chemical modification of nisin: the addition of a water molecule to the dehydroalanine residues, which can lead to the cleavage of the polypeptide chain, or the oxidation of methionine residues. The 2-hydroxyalanine-containing products have a limited stability; they are spontaneously converted into the corresponding des-dehydroalanine derivatives. The growth-inhibiting activity of the modified nisins towards different bacteria was determined. The 2-hydroxyalanine-containing species and the des-dehydroalanine derivative show a strong reduction in biological activity as compared to native nisin. [Met(O)21]nisin and [Ser33]nisin show moderate or no reduction in biological activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysical Chemistry, Netherlands Institute for Dairy Research, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Rollema
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Metzger
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Both
authors.forename: O P
authors.initials: OP
authors.lastname: Kuipers
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Siezen
mesh_terms: D000409:Alanine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000737:chemistry; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004355:Drug Stability; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009561:Nisin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: C102525:2-hydroxyalanine; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D009561:Nisin; C102526:nisin A; D000409:Alanine