A comparison of Bacillus cereus and Aeromonas hydrophilia Zn-beta-lactamases

In an increasing number of pathogenic bacteria Zn-beta-lactamases are being discovered as major factors of antibiotic resistance. For a possible strat egy to fight these bacteria, it is important to understand the catalytic me chanism. X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements on the zinc-K-edge of b eta-lactamases from Bacillus cereus (strain 5/B/6) and Aeromonas hydrophila (AE 036) gives evidence for differences in the mode of zinc sulfur coordin ation and information about the coordination to N and O donor ligands.