The enzyme serine hydroxymethyltransferse (SHMT) converts serine into glycine and a tetrahydrofolate-bound one-carbon unit. Folate one-carbon units support purine and thymidine synthesis, and thus cell growth. Mammals have both cytosolic SHMT1 and mitochondrial SHMT2, with the mitochondrial isozyme strongly up-regulated in cancer. Here we show genetically that dual SHMT1/2 knockout blocks HCT-116 colon cancer tumor xenograft formation. Building from a pyrazolopyran scaffold that inhibits plant SHMT, we identify small-molecule dual inhibitors of human SHMT1/2 (biochemical IC ∼ 10 nM). Metabolomics and isotope tracer studies demonstrate effective cellular target engagement. A cancer cell-line screen revealed that B-cell lines are particularly sensitive to SHMT inhibition. The one-carbon donor formate generally rescues cells from SHMT inhibition, but paradoxically increases the inhibitor's cytotoxicity in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). We show that this effect is rooted in defective glycine uptake in DLBCL cell lines, rendering them uniquely dependent upon SHMT enzymatic activity to meet glycine demand. Thus, defective glycine import is a targetable metabolic deficiency of DLBCL.

Quorum sensing is a process of cell-cell communication that bacteria use to regulate collective behaviors. Quorum sensing depends on the production, detection, and group-wide response to extracellular signal molecules called autoinducers. In many bacterial species, quorum sensing controls virulence factor production. Thus, disrupting quorum sensing is considered a promising strategy to combat bacterial pathogenicity. Several members of a family of naturally produced plant metabolites called flavonoids inhibit biofilm formation by an unknown mechanism. Here, we explore this family of molecules further, and we demonstrate that flavonoids specifically inhibit quorum sensing via antagonism of the autoinducer-binding receptors, LasR and RhlR. Structure-activity relationship analyses demonstrate that the presence of two hydroxyl moieties in the flavone A-ring backbone are essential for potent inhibition of LasR/RhlR. Biochemical analyses reveal that the flavonoids function non-competitively to prevent LasR/RhlR DNA binding. Administration of the flavonoids to alters transcription of quorum sensing-controlled target promoters and suppresses virulence factor production, confirming their potential as anti-infectives that do not function by traditional bacteriocidal or bacteriostatic mechanisms.

Many enveloped viruses induce multinucleated cells (syncytia), reflective of membrane fusion events caused by the same machinery that underlies viral entry. These syncytia are thought to facilitate replication and evasion of the host immune response. Here, we report that co-culture of human cells expressing the receptor ACE2 with cells expressing SARS-CoV-2 spike, results in synapse-like intercellular contacts that initiate cell-cell fusion, producing syncytia resembling those we identify in lungs of COVID-19 patients. To assess the mechanism of spike/ACE2-driven membrane fusion, we developed a microscopy-based, cell-cell fusion assay to screen ~6000 drugs and >30 spike variants. Together with quantitative cell biology approaches, the screen reveals an essential role for biophysical aspects of the membrane, particularly cholesterol-rich regions, in spike-mediated fusion, which extends to replication-competent SARS-CoV-2 isolates. Our findings potentially provide a molecular basis for positive outcomes reported in COVID-19 patients taking statins and suggest new strategies for therapeutics targeting the membrane of SARS-CoV-2 and other fusogenic viruses.

The rise of antibiotic resistance and declining discovery of new antibiotics have created a global health crisis. Of particular concern, no new antibiotic classes have been approved for treating Gram-negative pathogens in decades. Here, we characterize a compound, SCH-79797, that kills both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria through a unique dual-targeting mechanism of action (MoA) with undetectably low resistance frequencies. In an animal host model, SCH-79797 reduces pathogenesis of Acinetobacter baumannii, a drug-resistant Gramnegative pathogen. To characterize the MoA of SCH-79797 we combined quantitative imaging, proteomic, genetic, metabolomic, and cell-based assays. This pipeline shows that SCH-79797 has two independent cellular targets, folate metabolism and bacterial membrane integrity, and outperforms combination treatments with other antifolates and membrane disruptors in killing MRSA persisters. Thus, SCH-79797 represents a promising lead antibiotic and suggests that combining multiple MoAs onto a single chemical scaffold may be an underappreciated approach to target challenging bacterial pathogens..

Glucose is catabolized by two fundamental pathways, glycolysis to make ATP and the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway to make NADPH. The first step of the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway is catalyzed by the enzyme glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD). Here we develop metabolite reporter and deuterium tracer assays to monitor cellular G6PD activity. Using these, we show that the most widely cited G6PD antagonist, dehydroepiandosterone (DHEA), does not robustly inhibit G6PD in cells. We then identify a small molecule (G6PDi-1) that more effectively inhibits G6PD. Across a range of cultured cells, G6PDi-1 depletes NADPH most strongly in lymphocytes. In T cells but not macrophages, G6PDi-1 markedly decreases inflammatory cytokine production. In neutrophils, it suppresses respiratory burst. Thus, we provide a cell-active small molecule tool for oxidative pentose phosphate pathway inhibition, and use it to identify G6PD as a pharmacological target for modulating immune response.

A highly stereoselective palladium-catalyzed O-glycosylation reaction is described. The reaction of a glycal 3-acetate or carbonate with the zinc(II) alkoxide of acceptors establishes the glycosidic linkage under palladium catalysis to give rise to disaccharides as the product in good yields and with high stereoselectivity. In contrast to the Lewis acid mediated Ferrier procedure, the anomeric stereochemistry of this reaction is controlled by the employed ligand. Whereas the use of a complex of palladium acetate and 2-di(tert-butyl)phosphinobiphenyl as the catalyst results in the exclusive beta-glycoside formation, the same reaction using trimethyl phosphite ligand furnishes an alpha-anomer as the major product. The utility of the 2,3-unsaturation present in the resulting glycoside is demonstrated by the further transformations such as dihydroxylation, hydration, and hydrogenation reactions. Thus, the combination of the glycosylation and subsequent functionalization provides a novel entry to saccharides which are otherwise difficult to prepare. The broad scope of the process, mildness of the reaction conditions, and experimental simplicity should make this method a useful tool in synthetic carbohydrate chemistry.

Supporting InformationGeneral Information. Commercial reagents were purified prior to use following the guidelines of Perrin and Armarego. 1 All solvents were purified according to the method of Grubbs. 2 Organic solutions were concentrated under reduced pressure on a Büchi rotary evaporator using an ice-water bath for volatile compounds. Potassium trifluoroborate salts were synthesized from commercially or readily available boronic acids or esters using a modified Molander procedure. 3 Chromatographic purification of products was accomplished using force-flow chromatography on Silicycle silica gel according to the method of Still 4 and where noted, Iatrobeads 6RS-8060 was used in place of silica gel. Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) was performed on Silicycle 250 µm silica gel plates. Visualization of the developed chromatogram was performed by fluorescence quenching and anisaldehyde stain. 1 H and 13 C NMR spectra were recorded on a Varian Inova 400 (400 MHz or 100 MHz) and are internally referenced to residual protio solvent signals (note: CDCl 3

Folate metabolism enables cell growth by providing one-carbon (1C) units for nucleotide biosynthesis. The 1C units are carried by tetrahydrofolate (THF), whose production by the enzyme DHFR is targeted by the important anticancer drug methotrexate. 1C units come largely from serine catabolism by the enzyme SHMT, whose mitochondrial isoform is strongly upregulated in cancer. Here we report the SHMT inhibitor SHIN2 and demonstrate its in vivo target engagement with 13 C-serine tracing. As methotrexate is standard treatment for T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), we explored the utility of SHIN2 in this disease. SHIN2 increases survival in NOTCH1-driven mouse primary T-ALL in vivo . Low dose methotrexate sensitizes Molt4 human T-ALL cells to SHIN2, and cells rendered methotrexate resistant in vitro show enhanced sensitivity to SHIN2. Finally, SHIN2 and methotrexate synergize in mouse primary T-ALL and in a human patient-derived xenograft in vivo , increasing survival. Thus, SHMT inhibition offers a complementary strategy in the treatment of T-ALL.