Cloning, expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction studies of NAD synthetase from methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus

Abstract

Staphylococcus aureusis an important human and animal pathogen that causes a wide range of infections. The prevalence of multidrug-resistantS. aureusstrains in both hospital and community settings makes it imperative to characterize new drug targets to combatS. aureusinfections. In this context, enzymes involved in NAD metabolism and synthesis are significant drug targets as NAD is a central player in several cellular processes. NAD synthetase catalyzes the last step in the biosynthesis of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, making it a crucial intermediate enzyme linked to the biosynthesis of several amino acids, purine and pyrimidine nucleotides, coenzymes and antibiotics.