Phospholipase A ₂ Inhibitors Synthesized by Two Entomopathogenic Bacteria, Xenorhabdus nematophila and Photorhabdus temperata subsp. temperata

Abstract

bThe entomopathogenic bacteria Xenorhabdus nematophila and Photorhabdus temperata subsp. temperata suppress insect immune responses by inhibiting the catalytic activity of phospholipase A 2 (PLA 2 ), which results in preventing biosynthesis of immune-mediating eicosanoids. This study identified PLA 2 inhibitors derived from culture broths of these two bacteria. Both X. nematophila and P. temperata subsp. temperata culture broths possessed significant PLA 2 -inhibitory activities. Fractionation of these bacterial metabolites in the culture broths using organic solvent and subsequent chromatography purified seven potent PLA 2 inhibitors, three of which (benzylideneacetone [BZA], proline-tyrosine [PY], and acetylated phenylalanine-glycine-valine [FGV]) were reported in a previous study. Four other compounds (indole, oxindole, cis-cyclo-PY, and p-hydroxyphenyl propionic acid) were identified and shown to significantly inhibit PLA 2 . X. nematophila culture broth contained these seven compounds, while P. temperata subsp. temperata culture broth contained three compounds (BZA, acetylated FGV, and cis-cyclo-PY). BZA was detected in the largest amount among these PLA 2 compounds in both bacterial culture broths. All seven bacterial metabolites also showed significant inhibitory activities against immune responses, such as phenoloxidase activity and hemocytic nodulation; BZA was the most potent. Finally, this study characterized these seven compounds for their insecticidal activities against the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella. Even though these compounds showed relatively low toxicities to larvae, they significantly enhanced the pathogenicity of Bacillus thuringiensis. This study reports bacterial-origin PLA 2 inhibitors, which would be applicable for developing novel insecticides. Insect immune responses consist of innate cellular and humoral components (2). Upon pathogen infection, pattern recognition receptors recognize nonself and the recognition signal is transferred by immune mediators to effector tissues, such as hemocytes and fat body (7). Eicosanoids form a chemical group of oxygenated polyunsaturated C 20 fatty acids, which are derived from arachidonic acid, a catalytic product of phospholipase A 2 (PLA 2 ) on phospholipid (PL) substrate (3). Two types of eicosanoids, prostaglandins and leukotrienes, are known to mediate the nonself recognition signals against various insect pathogens, including bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasitoid eggs in insects (38). Inhibition of PLA 2 prevents eicosanoid biosynthesis and suppresses immune responses in response to microbial pathogens (23, 37).Xenorhabdus nematophila and Photorhabdus temperata subsp. temperata are insect pathogens that are symbiotic to the entomopathogenic nematodes Steinernema carpocapsae and Heterorhabditis megidis, respectively (1, 13, 25). Infective juvenile-stage nematodes enter target insect hemocoel through natural openings (such as mouth, anus, and spiracles) and then release their symbiotic bacteria from the nematode intestine. The releas...

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