Structure-Activity Relationship of a Pyrrole Based Series of PfPKG Inhibitors as Anti-Malarials.

Controlling malaria requires new drugs against . The cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PfPKG) is a validated target whose inhibitors could block multiple steps of the parasite's life cycle. We defined the structure-activity relationship (SAR) of a pyrrole series for PfPKG inhibition.

Tetracycline-induced mitohormesis mediates disease tolerance against influenza.

Mitohormesis defines the increase in fitness mediated by adaptive responses to mild mitochondrial stress. Tetracyclines inhibit not only bacterial but also mitochondrial translation, thus imposing a low level of mitochondrial stress on eukaryotic cells. We demonstrate in cell and germ-free mouse models that tetracyclines induce a mild adaptive mitochondrial stress response (MSR), involving both the ATF4-mediated integrative stress response and type I interferon (IFN) signaling.

TXH11106: A Third-Generation MreB Inhibitor with Enhanced Activity against a Broad Range of Gram-Negative Bacterial Pathogens.

The emergence of multi-drug-resistant Gram-negative pathogens highlights an urgent clinical need to explore and develop new antibiotics with novel antibacterial targets. MreB is a promising antibacterial target that functions as an essential elongasome protein in most Gram-negative bacterial rods. Here, we describe a third-generation MreB inhibitor (TXH11106) with enhanced bactericidal activity versus the Gram-negative pathogens , , , and compared to the first- and second-generation compounds A22 and CBR-4830, respectively.

N-Hydroxybenzimidazole inhibitors of ExsA MAR transcription factor in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: In vitro anti-virulence activity and metabolic stability.

ExsA is a multiple adaptational response (MAR) transcription factor, regulating the expression of a virulence determinant, the type III secretion system (T3SS) in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Non-cytotoxic, non-antibacterial N-hydroxybenzimidazoles were identified as effective inhibitors of ExsA-DNA binding, and their potential utility as anti-virulence agents for P. aeruginosa was demonstrated in a whole cell assay.

N-hydroxybenzimidazole inhibitors of the transcription factor LcrF in Yersinia: novel antivirulence agents.

LcrF, a multiple adaptational response (MAR) transcription factor, regulates virulence in Yersinia pestis and Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. In a search for small molecule inhibitors of LcrF, an acrylic amide series of N-hydroxybenzimidazoles was synthesized and the SAR (structure-activity relationship) was examined. Selected test compounds demonstrated inhibitory activity in a primary cell-free LcrF-DNA binding assay as well as in a secondary whole cell assay (type III secretion system dependent Y.

Novel anti-infection agents: small-molecule inhibitors of bacterial transcription factors.

Structure-based drug design was utilized to identify potent small-molecule inhibitors of proteins within the AraC family of bacterial transcription factors, which control virulence in medically important microbes. These agents represent a novel approach to fight infectious disease and may be less likely to promote resistance development. These compounds lack intrinsic antibacterial activity in vitro and were able to limit a bacterial infection in a mouse model of urinary tract infection.

A structure/activity relationship study on arvanil, an endocannabinoid and vanilloid hybrid.

Arvanil, a structural "hybrid" between the endogenous cannabinoid CB1 receptor ligand anandamide and capsaicin, is a potent agonist for the capsaicin receptor VR1 (vanilloid receptor type 1), inhibits the anandamide membrane transporter (AMT), and induces cannabimimetic responses in mice. Novel arvanil derivatives prepared by N-methylation, replacement of the amide with urea and thiourea moieties, and manipulation of the vanillyl group were evaluated for their ability to bind/activate CB1 receptors, activate VR1 receptors, inhibit the AMT and fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), and produce cannabimimetic effects in mice. The compounds did not stimulate the CB1 receptor.