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Bioinformatics and Molecular Biological Characterization of a Hypothetical Protein SAV1226 as a Potential Drug Target

Nichole Haag1, Kimberly Velk2, Tyler McCune3

  • 1The Natural Sciences Division, Mount Marty College, Yankton, SD 57078 USA.

World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology
|September 22, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Researchers investigated a hypothetical protein, SAV1226, from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as a potential drug target. Kinetic assays suggest its function is likely misannotated in public databases.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Biochemistry
  • Bioinformatics

Background:

  • Methicillin/multiple-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) poses a significant threat due to antibiotic resistance.
  • A previous in silico study identified hypothetical protein SAV1226 as a potential drug target against MRSA.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To characterize the hypothetical protein SAV1226 from methicillin/vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus Mu50.
  • To determine the function of SAV1226 through bioinformatics and kinetic assays.

Main Methods:

  • Bioinformatics characterization of SAV1226.
  • Cloning, expression, and purification of SAV1226.
  • Kinetic assays and MALDI-TOF/MS analysis.

Main Results:

  • MALDI-TOF/MS analysis indicated low structural similarity to known proteins.
  • Kinetic assays ruled out SAV1226 being a dihydroxyacetone kinase or part of a phosphotransferase system.
  • The function of SAV1226 may be misannotated in databases like UniProt and InterProScan 5.

Conclusions:

  • The study provides experimental evidence challenging the current annotations of SAV1226.
  • SAV1226's true function requires further investigation beyond current database predictions.
  • This research impacts the understanding of MRSA biology and potential drug development targets.
Keywords:
Dihydroxyacetone kinaseMethicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureusdrug targetessential genes

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