Research area:

Structural basis of protein synthesis apparatus of bacteria Staphylococcus aureus.

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the major human pathogens, which causes numerous community-associated and hospital-acquired infections. Over the past decade, the changing pattern of resistance in S. aureus has underscored the need for new antimicrobial agents. One of the main target of antibiotic in bacteria is the ribosome - the ribonucleoprotein particle that performs protein synthesis in the cell. More than 40% of clinically useful antibiotics target the ribosome apparatus. Ribosome catalyzes sequential polymerization of amino acids into proteins according to the genetic code specified by a messenger RNA (mRNA) template. During the translational cycle (initiation, elongation, termination and recycling) the ribosome interacts with several protein factors. Thus, the ribosome is both an enzyme and a molecular motor. The protein synthesis machinery is essential to all living cells, and it is one of the major targets for clinical treatment of bacterial infections