Alpha-ketoglutarate oxidoreductase, an essential salvage enzyme of energy metabolism, in coccoid form of Helicobacter pylori.
In the Krebs cycle of Helicobacter pylori, the absence of alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase and succinyl CoA synthetase are shown. Instead, alpha-ketoglutarate is converted to succinyl CoA and succinate by alpha-ketoglutarate oxidoreductase (KOR) and CoA transferase (CoAT). In the present study, when H. pylori transformed to the coccoid form, a viable but non-culturable form of H. pylori with reduced metabolic activity, the KOR activity was enhanced while the CoAT activity was reduced. Direct inactivation of KOR could potently kill the bacteria without allowing conversion to the coccoid form, suggesting a novel treatment strategy for the eradication of H. pylori, especially in cases infected with multiple antibiotic-resistant strains.
Tsugawa
Hitoshi
H
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.
Suzuki
Hidekazu
H
Nakagawa
Izumi
I
Nishizawa
Toshihiro
T
Saito
Yoshimasa
Y
Suematsu
Makoto
M
Hibi
Toshifumi
T