An Irreversible Inhibitor to Probe the Role of Streptococcus pyogenes Cysteine Protease SpeB in Evasion of Host Complement Defenses

ACS Chem Biol. 2020 Aug 21;15(8):2060-2069. doi: 10.1021/acschembio.0c00191. Epub 2020 Jul 28.

Abstract

Members of the CA class of cysteine proteases have multifaceted roles in physiology and virulence for many bacteria. Streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin B (SpeB) is secreted by Streptococcus pyogenes and implicated in the pathogenesis of the bacterium through degradation of key human immune effector proteins. Here, we developed and characterized a clickable inhibitor, 2S-alkyne, based on X-ray crystallographic analysis and structure-activity relationships. Our SpeB probe showed irreversible enzyme inhibition in biochemical assays and labeled endogenous SpeB in cultured S. pyogenes supernatants. Importantly, application of 2S-alkyne decreased S. pyogenes survival in the presence of human neutrophils and supports the role of SpeB-mediated proteolysis as a mechanism to limit complement-mediated host defense. We posit that our SpeB inhibitor will be a useful chemical tool to regulate, label, and quantitate secreted cysteine proteases with SpeB-like activity in complex biological samples and a lead candidate for new therapeutics designed to sensitize S. pyogenes to host immune clearance.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bacterial Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • Cysteine Proteases / drug effects*
  • Cysteine Proteinase Inhibitors / chemistry
  • Cysteine Proteinase Inhibitors / pharmacology*
  • Drug Design
  • Protein Conformation
  • Streptococcus pyogenes / enzymology*
  • Streptococcus pyogenes / pathogenicity
  • Structure-Activity Relationship
  • Virulence

Substances

  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Cysteine Proteinase Inhibitors
  • Cysteine Proteases