Tideglusib and Its Analogues As Inhibitors of Staphylococcus aureus SrtA

J Med Chem. 2020 Aug 13;63(15):8442-8457. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c00803. Epub 2020 Jul 17.

Abstract

Sortase A (SrtA) anchors surface proteins to the cell wall envelope, and it has attracted increasing interesting as a potential antivirulence target. Several small-molecule inhibitors for SrtA have been developed, but target validation remains largely underexplored. Herein, we report a new class of SrtA inhibitors that supports antivirulence therapy through small-molecule targeting of SrtA. Tideglusib (TD), a drug candidate for myotonic dystrophy, was outstanding in high-throughput screening. A concise synthetic route quickly provided TD analogues, and the structure-activity relationships for SrtA inhibition have been established from those analogues. Several compounds largely retained the in vitro potency and exhibited a better solubility than TD. Additionally, TD attenuated virulence-related phenotypes in vitro and protected mice against lethal S. aureus USA300 bacteremia. Our study indicates that TD and its analogues could be new candidates as SrtA inhibitors with potential in the development of new antivirulence agents.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aminoacyltransferases / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Aminoacyltransferases / metabolism
  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / chemistry
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology*
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Bacteremia / drug therapy
  • Bacteremia / microbiology
  • Bacterial Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Bacterial Proteins / metabolism
  • Cysteine Endopeptidases / metabolism
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / chemistry
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / pharmacology*
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / therapeutic use
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred BALB C
  • Molecular Docking Simulation
  • Staphylococcal Infections / drug therapy
  • Staphylococcal Infections / microbiology
  • Staphylococcus aureus / drug effects
  • Staphylococcus aureus / enzymology*
  • Staphylococcus aureus / metabolism
  • Thiadiazoles / chemistry
  • Thiadiazoles / pharmacology*
  • Thiadiazoles / therapeutic use

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • Thiadiazoles
  • Aminoacyltransferases
  • sortase A
  • Cysteine Endopeptidases
  • tideglusib