Catechol–rhodanine derivatives: Specific and promiscuous inhibitors of Escherichia coli deoxyxylulose phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR)

Over 40 Years of Fosmidomycin Drug Research: A Comprehensive Review and Future Opportunities

To address the continued rise of multi-drug-resistant microorganisms, the development of novel drugs with new modes of action is urgently required. While humans biosynthesize the essential isoprenoid precursors isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP) and dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP) via the established mevalonate pathway, pathogenic protozoa and certain pathogenic eubacteria use the less well-known methylerythritol phosphate pathway for this purpose. Important pathogens using the MEP pathway are, for example, Plasmodium falciparum, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. The enzymes of that pathway are targets for antiinfective drugs that are exempt from target-related toxicity. 2C-Methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP), the second enzyme of the non-mevalonate pathway, has been established as the molecular target of fosmidomycin, an antibiotic that has so far failed to be approved as an anti-infective drug. This review describes the development and anti-infective properties of a wide range of fosmidomycin derivatives synthesized over the last four decades. Here we discuss the DXR inhibitor pharmacophore, which comprises a metal-binding group, a phosphate or phosphonate moiety and a connecting linker. Furthermore, non-fosmidomycin-based DXRi, bisubstrate inhibitors and several prodrug concepts are described. A comprehensive structure-activity relationship (SAR) of nearly all inhibitor types is presented and some novel opportunities for further drug development of DXR inhibitors are discussed.

Synthesis and Antibacterial evaluation of Rhodanine and Its related heterocyclic compounds against S. aureus and A. baumannii

Antimicrobial resistance is a serious challenge to modern medicine. Besides imposing high financial burden, multidrug resistant infections are directly responsible for high morbidity and mortality. Even though a number of antibiotics are currently available to treat infections caused by ESKAPE organisms, more and more bacterial strains are becoming resistant to these drugs. In these circumstances, there is an urgent unmet need for development of newer antimicrobials to treat the infections caused due to MDR organisms. Rhodanine and structurally related 5-membered heterocycles possess wide range of pharmacological activities. A number of these derivatives have shown good to potent inhibition against the various microorganisms. They are reported to alter the functions of DNA gyrase B, metallo-β-lactamases, pencilline binding protein (PBP), Mur ligases, RNA polymerase, Enoyl ACP reductases, 1-deoxy-d-xylulose-5-phosphate reductoisomerase. etc which are vital molecular targets involved in bacterial growth, survival and replication. In this study, we have generated a library of Rhodanine and related 5 membered heterocyclic derivatives and screened them against a panel of pathogens. Among all the compounds, 2a-i, 3a-b, 3g, 4, 6b-c, 6e, 6g, 12a-b and 14b-c have demonstrated good to moderate inhibition against S. aureus (MIC 0.125-8 µ g/mL). Further, compound 17b demonstrated moderate activity against A. baumannii (MIC 8 µ g/mL). In addition, compounds 2a, 2e, 4, 6c, 6g and 14b have shown good to mild inhibition against MDR S. aureus including VRSA (MIC 0.5-16 µ g/mL) with good selectivity index 20-1600. In addition, compound 2e has inhibited growth gradually after 6 h in time kill kinetic studies and not antagonized with the tested FDA approved drugs.

Inhibitory Activity of Proanthocyanidins Against Escherichia coli 1-Deoxy-D-Xylulose-5-Phosphate Reductoisomerase

1-Deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) is a key enzyme in the methylerythritol phosphate pathway for terpenoid biosynthesis. Furthermore, it is an ideal target for the screening of novel antibiotics because it is present in causative organisms, but absent from humans. To identify more lipophilic DXR inhibitors from natural resources, we tested the DXR inhibitory activity of five proanthocyanidins in this study. The results indicated that all these compounds specifically restrained the activity of DXR, with procyanid B2 exhibiting a relatively low effect against DXR (IC50 ∼ 305 μM) and procyanid C1 displaying moderate activity (IC50 75.1 μM). The other three compounds cinnamtannin A2, cinnamtannin B1, and cinnamtannin D1 (IC50 ∼ 89.3, 105.0, and 97.8 μM, respectively) showed DXR inhibitory effects that were slightly weaker than that of procyanid C1. In addition, based on the initial characterization, the structure–activity relationship of this series of compounds against DXR is discussed.

Bayesian Modeling and Intrabacterial Drug Metabolism Applied to Drug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

We present the application of Bayesian modeling to identify chemical tools and/or drug discovery entities pertinent to drug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. The quinoline JSF-3151 was predicted by modeling and then empirically demonstrated to be active against in vitro cultured clinical methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant strains while also exhibiting efficacy in a mouse peritonitis model of methicillin-resistant S. aureus infection. We highlight the utility of an intrabacterial drug metabolism (IBDM) approach to probe the mechanism by which JSF-3151 is transformed within the bacteria. We also identify and then validate two mechanisms of resistance in S. aureus: one mechanism involves increased expression of a lipocalin protein, and the other arises from the loss of function of an azoreductase. The computational and experimental approaches, discovery of an antibacterial agent, and elucidated resistance mechanisms collectively hold promise to advance our understanding of therapeutic regimens for drug-resistant S. aureus.

Machine Learning Platform to Discover Novel Growth Inhibitors of Neisseria gonorrhoeae

PURPOSE

To advance fundamental biological and translational research with the bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae through the prediction of novel small molecule growth inhibitors via naïve Bayesian modeling methodology.

METHODS

Inspection and curation of data from the publicly available ChEMBL web site for small molecule growth inhibition data of the bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae resulted in a training set for the construction of machine learning models. A naïve Bayesian model for bacterial growth inhibition was utilized in a workflow to predict novel antibacterial agents against this bacterium of global health relevance from a commercial library of >10⁵ drug-like small molecules. Follow-up efforts involved empirical assessment of the predictions and validation of the hits.

RESULTS

Specifically, two small molecules were found that exhibited promising activity profiles and represent novel chemotypes for agents against N. gonorrrhoeae.

CONCLUSIONS

This represents, to the best of our knowledge, the first machine learning approach to successfully predict novel growth inhibitors of this bacterium. To assist the chemical tool and drug discovery fields, we have made our curated training set available as part of the Supplementary Material and the Bayesian model is accessible via the web. Graphical Abstract.

Drug screening of rhodanine derivatives for antibacterial activity

Introduction: Bacteriological infections are a major risk to human health. These include all hospital and public-acquired infections. In drug discovery, rhodanines are privileged heterocyclic frameworks. Their derivatives possess strong anti-bacterial activity and some of them have shown potent activity against multidrug-resistant pathogens, both under in vitro and in vivo conditions. To treat multi-drug resistant pathogens, the development of novel potent drugs, with superior anti-bacterial efficacy, is paramount. One avenue which shows promise is the design and development of novel rhodanines.Areas covered: This review summarizes the status on rhodanine-based derivatives and their anti-bacterial activity, based on published research over the past six years. Furthermore, to facilitate the design of novel derivatives with improved functions, their structure-activity relationships are assessed with reference to their efficacy as anti-bacterial agents and their toxicity.Expert opinion: The pharmacological activity of molecules bearing a rhodanine scaffold needs to be very critically assessed in spite of considerable information available from various biological evaluations. Although, some data on structure-activity relationship frameworks is available, information is not adequate to optimize the efficacy of rhodanine derivatives for different applications.

Mechanisms of Specific versus Nonspecific Interactions of Aggregation-Prone Inhibitors and Attenuators

A common source of false positives in drug discovery is ligand self-association into large colloidal assemblies that nonspecifically inhibit target proteins. However, the mechanisms of aggregation-based inhibition (ABI) and ABI-attenuation by additives, such as Triton X-100 (TX) and human serum albumin (HSA), are not fully understood. Here, we investigate the molecular basis of ABI and ABI-attenuation through the lens of NMR and coupled thermodynamic cycles. We unexpectedly discover a new class of aggregating ligands that exhibit negligible interactions with proteins but act as competitive sinks for the free inhibitor, resulting in bell-shaped dose-response curves. TX attenuates ABI by converting inhibitory, protein-binding aggregates into nonbinding coaggregates, whereas HSA minimizes nonspecific ligand interactions by functioning as a reservoir for free inhibitor and preventing self-association. Hence, both TX and HSA are useful tools to minimize false positives arising from nonspecific binding but at the cost of potentially introducing false negatives due to suppression of specific interactions.

Targeting Metalloenzymes for Therapeutic Intervention

Metalloenzymes are central to a wide range of essential biological activities, including nucleic acid modification, protein degradation, and many others. The role of metalloenzymes in these processes also makes them central for the progression of many diseases and, as such, makes metalloenzymes attractive targets for therapeutic intervention. Increasing awareness of the role metalloenzymes play in disease and their importance as a class of targets has amplified interest in the development of new strategies to develop inhibitors and ultimately useful drugs. In this Review, we provide a broad overview of several drug discovery efforts focused on metalloenzymes and attempt to map out the current landscape of high-value metalloenzyme targets.

Antimicrobial mechanism of epigallocatechin gallate and gallocatechin gallate: They target 1-deoxy-d-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase, the key enzyme of the MEP terpenoid biosynthetic pathway

The catechins EGCG and GCG show a variety of pharmacological activities, especially an antibacterial capacity, but their modes of antimicrobial action have not been fully elucidated. 1-Deoxy-d-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR), the first key enzyme in the MEP pathway for terpenoid biosynthesis, is a recently validated antimicrobial target. In order to disclose the antibacterial mechanism of EGCG and GCG, the DXR inhibitory activity of them was investigated in this study. The data show that EGCG and GCG both could specifically suppress the activity of DXR, with EGCG exhibiting relatively low effect against DXR (IC₅₀ about 210 μM) and GCG displaying strong activity (IC₅₀ 27.5 μM). In addition, studies on inhibition kinetics of the catechins against DXR demonstrate that they are competitive inhibitors of DXR against DXP and uncompetitive inhibitors with respect to NADPH. Meanwhile, the possible interactions between DXR and the catechine, esyth onlols were simulated via docking experiments.

Internal Structure and Preferential Protein Binding of Colloidal Aggregates

Colloidal aggregates of small molecules are the most common artifact in early drug discovery, sequestering and inhibiting target proteins without specificity. Understanding their structure and mechanism has been crucial to developing tools to control for, and occasionally even exploit, these particles. Unfortunately, their polydispersity and transient stability have prevented exploration of certain elementary properties, such as how they pack. Dye-stabilized colloidal aggregates exhibit enhanced homogeneity and stability when compared to conventional colloidal aggregates, enabling investigation of some of these properties. By small-angle X-ray scattering and multiangle light scattering, pair distance distribution functions suggest that the dye-stabilized colloids are filled, not hollow, spheres. Stability of the coformulated colloids enabled investigation of their preference for binding DNA, peptides, or folded proteins, and their ability to purify one from the other. The coformulated colloids showed little ability to bind DNA. Correspondingly, the colloids preferentially sequestered protein from even a 1600-fold excess of peptides that are themselves the result of a digest of the same protein. This may reflect the avidity advantage that a protein has in a surface-to-surface interaction with the colloids. For the first time, colloids could be shown to have preferences of up to 90-fold for particular proteins over others. Loaded onto the colloids, bound enzyme could be spun down, resuspended, and released back into buffer, regaining most of its activity. Implications of these observations for colloid mechanisms and utility will be considered.

Antimicrobial mechanism of theaflavins: They target 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase, the key enzyme of the MEP terpenoid biosynthetic pathway

1-Deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) is the first committed enzyme in the 2-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) terpenoid biosynthetic pathway and is also a validated antimicrobial target. Theaflavins, which are polyphenolic compounds isolated from fermented tea, possess a wide range of pharmacological activities, especially an antibacterial effect, but little has been reported on their modes of antimicrobial action. To uncover the antibacterial mechanism of theaflavins and to seek new DXR inhibitors from natural sources, the DXR inhibitory activity of theaflavins were investigated in this study. The results show that all four theaflavin compounds could specifically suppress the activity of DXR, with theaflavin displaying the lowest effect against DXR (IC₅₀ 162.1 μM) and theaflavin-3,3′-digallate exhibiting the highest (IC₅₀ 14.9 μM). Moreover, determination of inhibition kinetics of the theaflavins demonstrates that they are non-competitive inhibitors of DXR against 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate (DXP) and un-competitive inhibitors with respect to NADPH. The possible interactions between DXR and the theaflavins were simulated via docking experiments.

Carbon nanotubes supported tyrosinase in the synthesis of lipophilic hydroxytyrosol and dihydrocaffeoyl catechols with antiviral activity against DNA and RNA viruses

Hydroxytyrosol and dihydrocaffeoyl catechols with lipophilic properties have been synthesized in high yield using tyrosinase immobilized on multi-walled carbon nanotubes by the Layer-by-Layer technique. All synthesized catechols were evaluated against a large panel of DNA and RNA viruses, including Poliovirus type 1, Echovirus type 9, Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), Coxsackievirus type B3 (Cox B3), Adenovirus type 2 and type 5 and Cytomegalovirus (CMV). A significant antiviral activity was observed in the inhibition of HSV-1, HSV-2, Cox B3 and CMV. The mechanism of action of the most active dihydrocaffeoyl derivative was investigated against a model of HSV-1 infection.

Flavonoids: true or promiscuous inhibitors of enzyme? The case of deoxyxylulose phosphate reductoisomerase

Flavonoids, due to their physical and chemical properties (among them hydrophobicity and metal chelation abilities), are potential inhibitors of the 1-deoxyxylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase and most of the tested flavonoids effectively inhibited its activity with encouraging IC50 values in the micromolar range. The addition of 0.01% Triton X100 in the assays led however, to a dramatic decrease of the inhibition revealing that a non-specific inhibition probably takes place. Our study highlights the possibility of erroneous conclusions regarding the inhibition of enzymes by flavonoids that are able to produce aggregates in micromolar range. Therefore, the addition of a detergent in the assays prevents possible false positive hits in high throughput screenings.