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The Alanine Racemase of Mycobacterium smegmatis Is Essential for Growth in the Absence of D-Alanine ^,

Department of Biochemistry,¹ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Otago School of Medical Sciences, University of Otago, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand,² Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204-5001³

Received 26 July 2007/ Accepted 31 August 2007

Alanine racemase, encoded by the gene alr, is an important enzyme in the synthesis of D-alanine for peptidoglycan biosynthesis. Strains of Mycobacterium smegmatis with a deletion mutation of the alr gene were found to require D-alanine for growth in both rich and minimal media. This indicates that alanine racemase is the only source of D-alanine for cell wall biosynthesis in M. smegmatis and confirms alanine racemase as a viable target gene for antimycobacterial drug development.

Published ahead of print on 7 September 2007.

We dedicate this article to the late John Curtis Thrash, Jr., a noted philanthropist and businessman from Houston, Texas.