One‐Pot Protection‐Glycosylation Reactions for Synthesis of Lipid II Analogues

(2,6‐Dichloro‐4‐methoxyphenyl)(2,4‐dichlorophenyl)methyl trichloroacetimidate ( 3 ) and its polymer‐supported reagent 4 can be successfully applied to a one‐pot protection‐glycosylation reaction to form the disaccharide derivative 7 d for the synthesis of lipid II analogues. The temporary protecting group or linker at the C‐6 position and N‐Troc protecting group of 7 d can be cleaved simultaneously through a reductive condition. Overall yields of syntheses of lipid II ( 1 ) and neryl‐lipid II N^ε‐dansylthiourea are significantly improved by using the described methods.     

An Activity‐Based Probe for Studying Crosslinking in Live Bacteria

Penicillin‐binding proteins (PBPs) catalyze the crosslinking of peptidoglycan (PG), an essential process for bacterial growth and survival, and a common antibiotic target. Yet, despite its importance, little is known about the spatiotemporal aspects of crosslinking—largely because of a lack of experimental tools for studying the reaction in live bacteria. Here we introduce such a tool: an activity‐based probe that enables visualization and relative quantitation of crosslinking in vivo. In Staphylococcus aureus, we show that fluorescent mimics of the natural substrate of PBPs (PG stem peptide) are covalently incorporated into the cell wall, installing fluorophores in place of natural crosslinks. These fluorescent stem peptide mimics (FSPMs) are selectively recognized by a single PBP in S. aureus: PBP4. Thus, we were able to use FSPM pulse‐labeling to localize PBP4 activity in live cells, showing that it is recruited to the septum in a manner dependent on wall teichoic acid.     

Dissociation Energy Computations for Saline Bonds Implied in Interactions Mediated by Peptidoglicans

Summary: Dissociation energy and hydration energy calculations, in water solution, are presented for saline bonds mediated by Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ ions with Brőnstedt type bases ( COO ,  OSO₃ ,  OH). A computationally intensive method, Polarisable Continuum Model (PCM) using 6-31G^* basis set, was applied. Hydration energies were computed by various methods, as well as dissociation energies of some L₂M complexes. L₂Ca complexes result as more stable against dissociation than L₂Mg complexes. Hydration energy calculation results, for some of the methods, here used, seem rather reliable as compared to experimental results.