How bacteria make a copper-based antibiotic
Mechanisms of unusual enzymes in the biosynthesis of a copper-containing antibiotic
Researchers are learning how a common hospital bacterium builds a rare copper-containing antibiotic to help create new drugs for people with resistant infections.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chapel Hill, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11180394 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
From a patient's point of view, scientists are looking inside Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacterium that causes hospital infections, to see how it produces a copper-containing antibiotic called fluopsin C. They are focusing on three unusual enzymes that do chemical steps not seen before in related enzyme families. The team will use lab methods such as enzyme activity tests, protein structure studies, spectroscopy, and chemical synthesis to map how these enzymes work. The aim is to see whether those enzymes or their chemistry can be used or redesigned to make new antibiotic molecules.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections would be the most likely to benefit from therapies developed based on this work.
Not a fit: Patients with viral infections or non-bacterial conditions are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new antibiotic candidates or methods to make improved drugs against multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.
How similar studies have performed: Previous natural-product and enzyme-discovery research has produced drug leads, but the specific copper-containing antibiotic and the novel enzyme chemistries here are largely new and untested for therapy development.
Where this research is happening
Chapel Hill, United States
- Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill — Chapel Hill, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Li, Bo — Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill
- Study coordinator: Li, Bo
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.