# Characterization and Inhibition of protein-protein interactions involving Staphylococcus aureus GpsB

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA · 2022 · $186,875

## Abstract

Abstract
GpsB is an intracellular anchor protein that interacts with a multitude of enzymes involved in cell division and
cell wall synthesis. Comprehensive understanding of protein-protein interactions between GpsB and its
partners will offer crucial information on the regulation of peptidoglycan synthesis and coordination of various
cellular processes during cell growth and division, while providing a valuable target for novel antibiotic
development. This proposal focuses on Staphylococcus aureus, a human pathogen whose GpsB is essential
for its survival and contains unique structural features not observed in other homologs. The goal is to establish
a multi-disciplinary platform to characterize GpsB interactions with potential partner proteins (PBP2, FtsZ,
TarG), and to identify cyclic peptide and small molecule ligands for studying GpsB function and inhibition. The
results will lay the foundation for a future in-depth analysis of the GpsB-dependent protein complexes
underlying bacterial cell division, and an antibiotic discovery program to uncover cell-active high affinity
compounds binding to GpsB.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10437907
- **Project number:** 5R21AI164775-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** Jianfeng Cai
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $186,875
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-06-25 → 2023-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10437907

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10437907, Characterization and Inhibition of protein-protein interactions involving Staphylococcus aureus GpsB (5R21AI164775-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10437907. Licensed CC0.

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