title: Vancomycin resistance VanS/VanR two-component systems.
abstract: Vancomycin is a member of the glycopeptide class of antibiotics. Vancomycin resistance (van) gene clusters are found in human pathogens such as Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium and Staphylococcus aureus, glycopeptide-producing actinomycetes such as Amycolotopsis orientalis, Actinoplanes teichomyceticus and Streptomyces toyocaensis and the nonglycopeptide producing actinomycete Streptomyces coelicolor. Expression of the van genes is activated by the VanS/VanR two-component system in response to extracellular glycopeptide antibiotic. Two major types of inducible vancomycin resistance are found in pathogenic bacteria; VanA strains are resistant to vancomycin itself and also to the lipidated glycopeptide teicoplanin, while VanB strains are resistant to vancomycin but sensitive to teicoplanin. Here we discuss the enzymes the van genes encode, the range of different VanS/VanR two-component systems, the biochemistry of VanS/VanR, the nature of the effector ligand(s) recognised by VanS and the evolution of the van cluster.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
authors.forename: Hee-Jeon
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Matthew I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Hutchings
authors.forename: Mark J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Buttner
mesh_terms: D039903:Actinobacteria / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D016983:Enterococcus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology*; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D005810:Multigene Family; D010458:Peptidyl Transferases / Q000378:metabolism; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D017334:Teicoplanin / Q000494:pharmacology; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D020713:Vancomycin Resistance / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C073902:VanR protein, bacteria; C073901:VanS protein, Enterococcus; D017334:Teicoplanin; D010458:Peptidyl Transferases; D011494:Protein Kinases