1
|
van Groesen E, Mons E, Kotsogianni I, Arts M, Tehrani KHME, Wade N, Lysenko V, Stel FM, Zwerus JT, De Benedetti S, Bakker A, Chakraborty P, van der Stelt M, Scheffers DJ, Gooskens J, Smits WK, Holden K, Gilmour PS, Willemse J, Hitchcock CA, van Hasselt JGC, Schneider T, Martin NI. Semisynthetic guanidino lipoglycopeptides with potent in vitro and in vivo antibacterial activity. Sci Transl Med 2024; 16:eabo4736. [PMID: 39110780 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abo4736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2022] [Revised: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 07/16/2024] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
Gram-positive bacterial infections present a major clinical challenge, with methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant strains continuing to be a cause for concern. In recent years, semisynthetic vancomycin derivatives have been developed to overcome this problem as exemplified by the clinically used telavancin, which exhibits increased antibacterial potency but has also raised toxicity concerns. Thus, glycopeptide antibiotics with enhanced antibacterial activities and improved safety profiles are still necessary. We describe the development of a class of highly potent semisynthetic glycopeptide antibiotics, the guanidino lipoglycopeptides, which contain a positively charged guanidino moiety bearing a variable lipid group. These glycopeptides exhibited enhanced in vitro activity against a panel of Gram-positive bacteria including clinically relevant methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant strains, showed minimal toxicity toward eukaryotic cells, and had a low propensity for resistance selection. Mechanistically, guanidino lipoglycopeptides engaged with bacterial cell wall precursor lipid II with a higher binding affinity than vancomycin. Binding to both wild-type d-Ala-d-Ala lipid II and the vancomycin-resistant d-Ala-d-Lac variant was confirmed, providing insight into the enhanced activity of guanidino lipoglycopeptides against vancomycin-resistant isolates. The in vivo efficacy of guanidino lipoglycopeptide EVG7 was evaluated in a S. aureus murine thigh infection model and a 7-day sepsis survival study, both of which demonstrated superiority to vancomycin. Moreover, the minimal to mild kidney effects at supratherapeutic doses of EVG7 indicate an improved therapeutic safety profile compared with vancomycin. These findings position guanidino lipoglycopeptides as candidates for further development as antibacterial agents for the treatment of clinically relevant multidrug-resistant Gram-positive infections.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma van Groesen
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Elma Mons
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Ioli Kotsogianni
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Melina Arts
- Institute for Pharmaceutical Microbiology, University Hospital Bonn, University of Bonn, 53113 Bonn, Germany
| | - Kamaleddin H M E Tehrani
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Nicola Wade
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Vladyslav Lysenko
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Florence M Stel
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Jordy T Zwerus
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Stefania De Benedetti
- Institute for Pharmaceutical Microbiology, University Hospital Bonn, University of Bonn, 53113 Bonn, Germany
| | - Alexander Bakker
- Department of Molecular Physiology, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Parichita Chakraborty
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9700 AB Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Mario van der Stelt
- Department of Molecular Physiology, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Dirk-Jan Scheffers
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9700 AB Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Jairo Gooskens
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Center for Infectious Diseases (LUCID), Leiden University Medical Center, 2333 ZA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Wiep Klaas Smits
- Experimental Bacteriology, Leiden University Center for Infectious Diseases (LUCID), Leiden University Medical Center, 2333 ZA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Kirsty Holden
- Evotec (U.K.) Ltd., Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK10 4TG UK
| | | | - Joost Willemse
- Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | | | - J G Coen van Hasselt
- Division of Systems Biomedicine and Pharmacology, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Tanja Schneider
- Institute for Pharmaceutical Microbiology, University Hospital Bonn, University of Bonn, 53113 Bonn, Germany
| | - Nathaniel I Martin
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, 2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Chen S, Qin S, Li R, Qu Y, Ampomah-Wireko M, Nininahazwe L, Wang M, Gao C, Zhang E. Design, synthesis and antibacterial evaluation of low toxicity amphiphilic-cephalosporin derivatives. Eur J Med Chem 2024; 268:116293. [PMID: 38447461 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2024.116293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Global public health is facing a serious problem as a result of the rise in antibiotic resistance and the decline in the discovery of new antibiotics. In this study, two series of amphiphilic-cephalosporins were designed and synthesized, several of which showed good antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Structure-activity relationships indicated that the length of the hydrophobic alkyl chain significantly affects the antibacterial activity against Gram-negative bacteria. The best compound 2d showed high activity against drug-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with MICs of 0.5 and 2-4 μg/mL, respectively. Furthermore, 2d remained active in complex mammalian body fluids and had a longer post-antibiotic effect (PAE) than vancomycin. Mechanism studies indicated that compound 2d lacks membrane-damaging properties and can target penicillin-binding proteins to disrupt bacterial cell wall structure, inhibit the metabolic activity and induce the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in bacteria. Compound 2d showed minimal drug resistance and was nontoxic to HUVEC and HBZY-1 cells with CC50 > 128 μg/mL. These findings suggest that 2d is a promising drug candidate for treating bacterial infections.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shengcong Chen
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Shangshang Qin
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Ruirui Li
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Ye Qu
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Maxwell Ampomah-Wireko
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Lauraine Nininahazwe
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Meng Wang
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Chen Gao
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - En Zhang
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China; Pingyuan Laboratory (Zhengzhou University), PR China.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Jiang Y, Lin W, Tan S, Wang Y, Wu W, Lu Z. Synthesis and Antibacterial Evaluation of Novel Vancomycin Derivatives Containing Quaternary Ammonium Moieties. ACS OMEGA 2023; 8:28511-28518. [PMID: 37576623 PMCID: PMC10413833 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c02879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
A series of novel vancomycin analogues with quaternary ammonium moieties have been designed and synthesized for fighting with clinically isolated drug-resistant bacteria. Partial target molecules exhibited potent activity against the tested strains. Among all of the compounds, a triazole quaternary ammonium vancomycin (QAV) derivative QAV-a1 exerted the best antibacterial activities. QAV-a1 was found to be 4- to 32-fold more efficacious than vancomycin against MRSA. Meanwhile, QAV-a1 showed a good pharmacokinetic profile with a half-life of 5.19 ± 0.10 h, which is longer than that of vancomycin (4.3 ± 1.9 h). These results provided guidance for the further exploitation of vancomycin derivatives against drug-resistant bacteria.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yongwei Jiang
- Key
Laboratory of Acupuncture and Medicine Research of Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Weixin Lin
- College
of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese
Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Subei Tan
- State
Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center
for Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Institute of
Biomedical Sciences, and Human Phenome Institute, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Yuxuan Wang
- College
of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese
Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Wei Wu
- Key
Laboratory of Acupuncture and Medicine Research of Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Zhigang Lu
- Key
Laboratory of Acupuncture and Medicine Research of Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
- College
of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese
Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Boeck L. Antibiotic tolerance: targeting bacterial survival. Curr Opin Microbiol 2023; 74:102328. [PMID: 37245488 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2023.102328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Revised: 04/22/2023] [Accepted: 04/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Antimicrobial susceptibility testing is the cornerstone of antibiotic treatments. Yet, active drugs are frequently unsuccessful in vivo and most clinical trials investigating antibiotics fail. So far, bacterial survival strategies, other than drug resistance, have been largely ignored. As such, drug tolerance and persisters, allowing bacterial populations to survive during antibiotic treatments, could fill a gap in antibiotic susceptibility testing. Therefore, it remains critical to establish robust and scalable bacterial viability measures and to define the clinical relevance of bacterial survivors across various bacterial infections. If successful, these tools could improve drug design and development to prevent tolerance formation or target bacterial survivors, to ultimately reduce treatment failures and curb resistance evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lucas Boeck
- Department of Biomedicine, University Basel, Basel, Switzerland; Clinic of Pulmonary Medicine, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Sarkar P, De K, Modi M, Dhanda G, Priyadarshini R, Bandow JE, Haldar J. Next-generation membrane-active glycopeptide antibiotics that also inhibit bacterial cell division. Chem Sci 2023; 14:2386-2398. [PMID: 36873852 PMCID: PMC9977398 DOI: 10.1039/d2sc05600c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2022] [Accepted: 01/02/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Resistance to vancomycin, a life-saving drug against Gram-positive bacterial infections necessitates developing alternative therapeutics. Herein, we report vancomycin derivatives that assimilate mechanisms beyond d-Ala-d-Ala binding. The role of hydrophobicity towards the structure and function of the membrane-active vancomycin showed that alkyl-cationic substitutions favored broad-spectrum activity. The lead molecule, VanQAmC10 delocalized the cell division protein MinD in Bacillus subtilis, implying an impact on bacterial cell division. Further examination of wild-type, GFP-FtsZ, or GFP-FtsI producing- and ΔamiAC mutants of Escherichia coli revealed filamentous phenotypes and delocalization of the FtsI protein. The findings indicate that VanQAmC10 also inhibits bacterial cell division, a property previously unknown for glycopeptide antibiotics. The conjunction of multiple mechanisms contributes to its superior efficacy against metabolically active and inactive bacteria, wherein vancomycin is ineffective. Additionally, VanQAmC10 exhibits high efficacy against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Acinetobacter baumannii in mouse models of infection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Paramita Sarkar
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit and School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) Jakkur Bengaluru 560064 Karnataka India +91 802208 2565
| | - Kathakali De
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit and School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) Jakkur Bengaluru 560064 Karnataka India +91 802208 2565
| | - Malvika Modi
- Department of Life Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, Shiv Nadar University Dadri 201314 UP India
| | - Geetika Dhanda
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit and School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) Jakkur Bengaluru 560064 Karnataka India +91 802208 2565
| | - Richa Priyadarshini
- Department of Life Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, Shiv Nadar University Dadri 201314 UP India
| | - Julia E Bandow
- Applied Microbiology, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150 44780 Bochum Germany
| | - Jayanta Haldar
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit and School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) Jakkur Bengaluru 560064 Karnataka India +91 802208 2565
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Li S, Wang M, Chen S, Ampomah-Wireko M, Gao C, Xia Z, Nininahazwe L, Qin S, Zhang E. Development of biaromatic core-linked antimicrobial peptide mimics: Substituent position significantly affects antibacterial activity and hemolytic toxicity. Eur J Med Chem 2023; 247:115029. [PMID: 36549113 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2022.115029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2022] [Revised: 12/04/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The development of bacterial resistance to the majority of clinically significant antimicrobials has made it more difficult to treat bacterial infections with conventional antibiotics. As part of ongoing research on antimicrobial peptide mimetics, a series of quaternary ammonium cationic compounds with various linkers were designed and synthesized, with some demonstrating high antibacterial activity against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The structure-activity relationship study revealed that the spatial position of substituents had a significant impact on antibacterial activity and hemolytic toxicity. The best compound, 3e, has good antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus [minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC = 1 μg/mL)] and the least hemolytic toxicity [hemolytic concentration (HC50 = 905 μg/mL)], is stable in mammalian body fluids, and rarely induces bacterial resistance. The mechanism study revealed that the membrane action mode may be its potential bactericidal mechanism, and it can effectively cause the accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) for killing bacteria. Importantly, 3e can effectively reduce the load of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in mouse skin and has a higher in vivo bactericidal efficiency than vancomycin. These findings highlight the significance of divergent linkers in quaternary ammonium cations as antimicrobial peptide mimics and the potential of these cations to treat bacterial infections.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sen Li
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Meng Wang
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Shengcong Chen
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Maxwell Ampomah-Wireko
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Chen Gao
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Ziwei Xia
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Lauraine Nininahazwe
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China
| | - Shangshang Qin
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China; Collaborative Innovation Center of New Drug Research and Safety Evaluation, Henan Province, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China.
| | - En Zhang
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery and Development, Key Laboratory of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology, Ministry of Education of China, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China; Collaborative Innovation Center of New Drug Research and Safety Evaluation, Henan Province, Zhengzhou, 450001, PR China.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Enzymatic Synthesis of Vancomycin-Modified DNA. MOLECULES (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 27:molecules27248927. [PMID: 36558056 PMCID: PMC9782525 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27248927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Many potent antibiotics fail to treat bacterial infections due to emergence of drug-resistant strains. This surge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) calls in for the development of alternative strategies and methods for the development of drugs with restored bactericidal activities. In this context, we surmised that identifying aptamers using nucleotides connected to antibiotics will lead to chemically modified aptameric species capable of restoring the original binding activity of the drugs and hence produce active antibiotic species that could be used to combat AMR. Here, we report the synthesis of a modified nucleoside triphosphate equipped with a vancomycin moiety on the nucleobase. We demonstrate that this nucleotide analogue is suitable for polymerase-mediated synthesis of modified DNA and, importantly, highlight its compatibility with the SELEX methodology. These results pave the way for bacterial-SELEX for the identification of vancomycin-modified aptamers.
Collapse
|
8
|
Shen BY, Wang MM, Xu SM, Gao C, Wang M, Li S, Ampomah-Wireko M, Chen SC, Yan DC, Qin S, Zhang E. Antibacterial efficacy evaluation and mechanism probe of small lysine chalcone peptide mimics. Eur J Med Chem 2022; 244:114885. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2022.114885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Revised: 10/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
|
9
|
van Groesen E, Innocenti P, Martin NI. Recent Advances in the Development of Semisynthetic Glycopeptide Antibiotics: 2014-2022. ACS Infect Dis 2022; 8:1381-1407. [PMID: 35895325 PMCID: PMC9379927 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.2c00253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The accelerated appearance of drug-resistant bacteria poses an ever-growing threat to modern medicine's capacity to fight infectious diseases. Gram-positive species such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Streptococcus pneumoniae continue to contribute significantly to the global burden of antimicrobial resistance. For decades, the treatment of serious Gram-positive infections relied upon the glycopeptide family of antibiotics, typified by vancomycin, as a last line of defense. With the emergence of vancomycin resistance, the semisynthetic glycopeptides telavancin, dalbavancin, and oritavancin were developed. The clinical use of these compounds is somewhat limited due to toxicity concerns and their unusual pharmacokinetics, highlighting the importance of developing next-generation semisynthetic glycopeptides with enhanced antibacterial activities and improved safety profiles. This Review provides an updated overview of recent advancements made in the development of novel semisynthetic glycopeptides, spanning the period from 2014 to today. A wide range of approaches are covered, encompassing innovative strategies that have delivered semisynthetic glycopeptides with potent activities against Gram-positive bacteria, including drug-resistant strains. We also address recent efforts aimed at developing targeted therapies and advances made in extending the activity of the glycopeptides toward Gram-negative organisms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma van Groesen
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Paolo Innocenti
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Nathaniel I Martin
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Acharya Y, Dhanda G, Sarkar P, Haldar J. Pursuit of next-generation glycopeptides: a journey with vancomycin. Chem Commun (Camb) 2022; 58:1881-1897. [PMID: 35043130 DOI: 10.1039/d1cc06635h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Vancomycin, a blockbuster antibiotic of the glycopeptide class, has been a life-saving therapeutic against multidrug-resistant Gram-positive infections. The emergence of glycopeptide resistance has however enunciated the need to develop credible alternatives with potent activity against vancomycin-resistant bacteria. Medicinal chemistry has responded to this challenge through various strategies, one of them being the development of semisynthetic analogues. Many groups, including ours, have been contributing towards the development of semisynthetic vancomycin analogues to tackle vancomycin-resistant bacteria. In this feature article, we have discussed our research contribution to the field of glycopeptides, which includes our strategies and designs of vancomycin analogues incorporating multimodal mechanisms of action. The strategies discussed here, such as conferring membrane activity, enhanced binding to target, multivalency, etc. involve semisynthetic modifications to vancomycin at the carboxy terminal and the amino group of the vancosamine sugar of vancomycin, to develop novel analogues. These analogues have demonstrated their superior efficacy in tackling the inherited forms of vancomycin resistance in Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, including highly drug-resistant strains. More importantly, these analogues also possess the ability to tackle various non-inherited forms of bacterial resistance, such as metabolically dormant stationary-phase and persister cells, bacterial biofilms, and intracellular pathogens. Our derivatives also display superior pharmacokinetics, and less propensity for resistance development, owing to their different modes of action. Through this feature article, we present to the reader a concise picture of the multitude of approaches that can be used to tackle different types of resistance through semisynthetic modifications to vancomycin. We have also highlighted the challenges and lacunae in the field, and potential directions which future research can explore.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yash Acharya
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bengaluru 560064, Karnataka, India.
| | - Geetika Dhanda
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bengaluru 560064, Karnataka, India.
| | - Paramita Sarkar
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bengaluru 560064, Karnataka, India.
| | - Jayanta Haldar
- Antimicrobial Research Laboratory, New Chemistry Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bengaluru 560064, Karnataka, India. .,School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bengaluru 560064, Karnataka, India
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
van Groesen E, Slingerland CJ, Innocenti P, Mihajlovic M, Masereeuw R, Martin NI. Vancomyxins: Vancomycin-Polymyxin Nonapeptide Conjugates That Retain Anti-Gram-Positive Activity with Enhanced Potency against Gram-Negative Strains. ACS Infect Dis 2021; 7:2746-2754. [PMID: 34387988 PMCID: PMC8438664 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.1c00318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
![]()
Vancomycin functions
by binding to lipid II, the penultimate bacterial
cell wall building block used by both Gram-positive and Gram-negative
species. However, vancomycin is generally only able to exert its antimicrobial
effect against Gram-positive strains as it cannot pass the outer membrane
(OM) of Gram-negative bacteria. To address this challenge, we here
describe efforts to conjugate vancomycin to the OM disrupting polymyxin
E nonapeptide (PMEN) to yield the hybrid “vancomyxins”.
In designing these hybrid antibiotics, different spacers and conjugation
sites were explored for connecting vancomycin and PMEN. The vancomyxins
show improved activity against Gram-negative strains compared with
the activity of vancomycin or vancomycin supplemented with PMEN separately.
In addition, the vancomyxins maintain the antimicrobial effect of
vancomycin against Gram-positive strains and, in some cases, show
enhanced activity against vancomycin-resistant strains. The hybrid
antibiotics described here have reduced nephrotoxicity when compared
with clinically used polymyxin antibiotics. This study demonstrates
that covalent conjugation to an OM disruptor contributes to sensitizing
Gram-negative strains to vancomycin while retaining anti-Gram-positive
activity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma van Groesen
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Cornelis J. Slingerland
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Paolo Innocenti
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Milos Mihajlovic
- Division of Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Rosalinde Masereeuw
- Division of Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Nathaniel I. Martin
- Biological Chemistry Group, Institute of Biology Leiden, Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, 2333 BE Leiden, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|