Abstract

Peptidoglycan is the exoskeleton of bacterial cells and is required for their viability and cell division. Antibiotics that target its biosynthesis comprise >50% of prescriptions written today to treat bacterial infections in humans. We have been studying atypical aspects of bacterial peptidoglycan. The roles of a newly identified class of enzyme involved in peptidoglycan synthesis, its chemical biology and efforts to develop therapeutics based on inhibition of this enzyme class will be presented today. Efforts to leverage findings from our studies to develop regimens to treat non-tuberculous mycobacterial infections will all be discussed.