Plasma Membrane Damage Contributes to Antifungal Activity of Silicon Against Penicillium digitatum

Putative penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) were identified in the genome of the Burkholderia cenocepacia strain J2315 based on homology to E. coli PBPs. The three sequences identified as homologs of E. coli PBP1a, BCAL2021, BCAL0274, and BCAM2632, were cloned and expressed as His₆-tagged fusion proteins in E. coli. The fusion proteins were isolated and shown to bind β-lactams, indicating these putative PBPs have penicillin-binding activity.