The molecular action of polyene macrolides with antifungal activity, amphotericin B and natamycin, involves recognition of sterols in membranes. Physicochemical and functional studies have contributed details to understanding the interactions between amphotericin B and ergosterol and, to a lesser extent, with cholesterol. Fewer molecular details are available on interactions between natamycin with sterols. We use solid state (13)C MAS NMR to characterize the impact of amphotericin B and natamycin on mixed lipid membranes of DOPC/cholesterol or DOPC/ergosterol. In cholesterol-containing membranes, amphotericin B addition resulted in marked increase in both DOPC and cholesterol (13)C MAS NMR linewidth, reflecting membrane insertion and cooperative perturbation of the bilayer. By contrast, natamycin affects little either DOPC or cholesterol linewidth but attenuates cholesterol resonance intensity preferentially for sterol core with lesser impact on the chain. Ergosterol resonances, attenuated by amphotericin B, reveal specific interactions in the sterol core and chain base. Natamycin addition selectively augmented ergosterol resonances from sterol core ring one and, at the same time, from the end of the chain. This puts forward an interaction model similar to the head-to-tail model for amphotericin B/ergosterol pairing but with docking on opposite sterol faces. Low toxicity of natamycin is attributed to selective, non-cooperative sterol engagement compared to cooperative membrane perturbation by amphotericin B.
Keywords: 13C solid state MAS NMR; antifungals; antimicrobials; cholesterol; ergosterol; membranes; receptor recognition.