from Bacterial Nox to Drug Identification Tools – BANDIT

The NADPH OXidase complex was the first identified system that generates reactive oxygen species in a dedicated manner. NOX are proteins involved in the transmembrane transfer of electrons to the molecular oxygen, resulting in the production of superoxides. Deregulation of Nox-dependant ROS production induces pathological consequences. Accordingly, the Nox family became a potential drug target. In the literature, it has always been reported that Nox proteins exist only in eukaryotes. Through using a novel program, we were able to identify hundreds of prokaryotic candidates and we purified and characterized SpNox from Streptococcus pneumoniae. Our data support a strong structural and functional homology with known eukaryotic NOX enzymes. We are planning to solve the structure of SpNox and the Nox’s physiological function in bacteria remains to investigate. These results provide tools for a better characterising of NOX enzymes leading to efficient drug design strategies.