Tautomycin is a chemical that occurs naturally in shellfish and is produced by the bacterium ''

Streptomyces spiroverticillatus ''Streptomyces spiroverticillatus'' is a bacterium species from the genus of '' Streptomyces'' which has been isolated from soil in Japan. ''Streptomyces spiroverticillatus'' produces tautomycin. Further reading * * * * * * See also ...

''. It is a

polyketide Polyketides are a class of natural products derived from a precursor molecule consisting of a chain of alternating ketone (or reduced forms of a ketone) and methylene groups: (-CO-CH2-). First studied in the early 20th century, discovery, biosynth ...

-based structure characterized by a three

hydroxyl In chemistry, a hydroxy or hydroxyl group is a functional group with the chemical formula and composed of one oxygen atom covalently bonded to one hydrogen atom. In organic chemistry, alcohols and carboxylic acids contain one or more hydro ...

groups, two ketones, a dialkylmaleic anhydride, an

ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an oxoacid (organic or inorganic) in which at least one hydroxyl group () is replaced by an alkoxy group (), as in the substitution reaction of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Glycerides a ...

linkage (connecting anhydride unit to polyketide chain), a spiroketal and one methyl

ether In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group—an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups. They have the general formula , where R and R′ represent the alkyl or aryl groups. Ethers can again be ...

among others.

Pharmacology

It is a very potent inhibitor of the protein phosphatases PP1 and PP2A. Tautomycin demonstrates a slight preference for PP1 inhibition relative to PP2A inhibition. Tautomycin is closely related to another anhydride containing polyketide PP inhibitor called tautomycetin which, in addition to being useful as a lead for

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

drug discovery, also is a very potent immunosuppressor. The mechanism of immunosuppression by Tautomycetin differs from that of more classical immunosuppressors such as

rapamycin Sirolimus, also known as rapamycin and sold under the brand name Rapamune among others, is a macrolide compound that is used to coat coronary stents, prevent organ transplant rejection, treat a rare lung disease called lymphangioleiomyomatosi ...

and

tacrolimus Tacrolimus, sold under the brand name Prograf among others, is an immunosuppressive drug. After allogeneic organ transplant, the risk of organ rejection is moderate. To lower the risk of organ rejection, tacrolimus is given. The drug can also ...

References

{{reflist Phosphatase inhibitors Polyketides Spiro compounds