scholarly journals In Vitro Evaluation of CBR-2092, a Novel Rifamycin-Quinolone Hybrid Antibiotic: Studies of the Mode of Action in Staphylococcus aureus

2008 ◽  
Vol 52 (7) ◽  
pp. 2313-2323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory T. Robertson ◽  
Eric J. Bonventre ◽  
Timothy B. Doyle ◽  
Qun Du ◽  
Leonard Duncan ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Rifamycins have proven efficacy in the treatment of persistent bacterial infections. However, the frequency with which bacteria develop resistance to rifamycin agents restricts their clinical use to antibiotic combination regimens. In a program directed toward the synthesis of rifamycins with a lower propensity to elicit resistance development, a series of compounds were prepared that covalently combine rifamycin and quinolone pharmacophores to form stable hybrid antibacterial agents. We describe mode-of-action studies with Staphylococcus aureus of CBR-2092, a novel hybrid that combines the rifamycin SV and 4H-4-oxo-quinolizine pharmacophores. In biochemical studies, CBR-2092 exhibited rifampin-like potency as an inhibitor of RNA polymerase, was an equipotent (balanced) inhibitor of DNA gyrase and DNA topoisomerase IV, and retained activity against a prevalent quinolone-resistant variant. Macromolecular biosynthesis studies confirmed that CBR-2092 has rifampin-like effects on RNA synthesis in rifampin-susceptible strains and quinolone-like effects on DNA synthesis in rifampin-resistant strains. Studies of mutant strains that exhibited reduced susceptibility to CBR-2092 further substantiated RNA polymerase as the primary cellular target of CBR-2092, with DNA gyrase and DNA topoisomerase IV being secondary and tertiary targets, respectively, in strains exhibiting preexisting rifampin resistance. In contrast to quinolone comparator agents, no strains with altered susceptibility to CBR-2092 were found to exhibit changes consistent with altered efflux properties. The combined data indicate that CBR-2092 may have potential utility in monotherapy for the treatment of persistent S. aureus infections.

1996 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
pp. 2714-2720 ◽  
Author(s):  
F Blanche ◽  
B Cameron ◽  
F X Bernard ◽  
L Maton ◽  
B Manse ◽  
...  

Staphylococcus aureus gyrA and gyrB genes encoding DNA gyrase subunits were cloned and coexpressed in Escherichia coli under the control of the T7 promoter-T7 RNA polymerase system, leading to soluble gyrase which was purified to homogeneity. Purified gyrase was catalytically indistinguishable from the gyrase purified from S. aureus and did not contain detectable amounts of topoisomerases from the E. coli host. Topoisomerase IV subunits GrlA and GrlB from S. aureus were also expressed in E. coli and were separately purified to apparent homogeneity. Topoisomerase IV, which was reconstituted by mixing equimolar amounts of GrlA and GrlB, had both ATP-dependent decatenation and DNA relaxation activities in vitro. This enzyme was more sensitive than gyrase to inhibition by typical fluoroquinolone antimicrobial agents such as ciprofloxacin or sparfloxacin, adding strong support to genetic studies which indicate that topoisomerase IV is the primary target of fluoroquinolones in S. aureus. The results obtained with ofloxacin suggest that this fluoroquinolone could also primarily target gyrase. No cleavable complex could be detected with S. aureus gyrase upon incubation with ciprofloxacin or sparfloxacin at concentrations which fully inhibit DNA supercoiling. This suggests that these drugs do not stabilize the open DNA-gyrase complex, at least under standard in vitro incubation conditions, but are more likely to interfere primarily with the DNA breakage step, contrary to what has been reported with E. coli gyrase. Both S. aureus gyrase-catalyzed DNA supercoiling and S. aureus topoisomerase IV-catalyzed decatenation were dramatically stimulated by potassium glutamate or aspartate (500- and 50-fold by 700 and 350 mM glutamate, respectively), whereas topoisomerase IV-dependent DNA relaxation was inhibited 3-fold by 350 mM glutamate. The relevance of the effect of dicarboxylic amino acids on the activities of type II topoisomerases is discussed with regard to the intracellular osmolite composition of S. aureus.


1996 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 1157-1163 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Yamagishi ◽  
T Kojima ◽  
Y Oyamada ◽  
K Fujimoto ◽  
H Hattori ◽  
...  

A 4.2-kb DNA fragment conferring quinolone resistance was cloned from a quinolone-resistant clinical isolate of Staphylococcus aureus and was shown to possess a part of the grlB gene and a mutated grlA gene. S-80-->F and E-84-->K mutations in the grlA gene product were responsible for the quinolone resistance. The mutated grlA genes responsible for quinolone resistance were dominant over the wild-type allele, irrespective of gene dosage in a transformation experiment with the grlA gene alone. However, dominance by mutated grlA genes depended on gene dosage when bacteria were transformed with the grlA and grlB genes in combination. Quinolone-resistant gyrA mutants were easily isolated from a strain, S. aureus RN4220, carrying a plasmid with the mutated grlA gene, though this was not the case for other S. aureus strains lacking the plasmid. The elimination of this plasmid from such quinolone-resistant gyrA mutants resulted in marked increases in quinolone susceptibility. These results suggest that both DNA gyrase and DNA topoisomerase IV may be targets of quinolones and that the quinolone susceptibility of organisms may be determined by which of these enzymes is most quinolone sensitive.


2002 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 1651-1657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark E. Jones ◽  
Ian A. Critchley ◽  
James A. Karlowsky ◽  
Renée S. Blosser-Middleton ◽  
Franz-Josef Schmitz ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Two 8-methoxy nonfluorinated quinolones (NFQs), PGE 9262932 and PGE 9509924, were tested against contemporary clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus (n = 122) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (n = 69) with genetically defined quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDRs). For S. aureus isolates with wild-type (WT) sequences at the QRDRs, the NFQs demonstrated activities 4- to 32-fold more potent (MICs at which 90% of isolates are inhibited [MIC90s], 0.03 μg/ml) than those of moxifloxacin (MIC90, 0.12 μg/ml), gatifloxacin (MIC90, 0.25 μg/ml), levofloxacin (MIC90, 0.25 μg/ml), and ciprofloxacin (MIC90, 1 μg/ml). Against S. pneumoniae isolates with WT sequences at gyrA and parC, the NFQs PGE 9262932 (MIC90, 0.03 μg/ml) and PGE 9509924 (MIC90, 0.12 μg/ml) were 8- to 64-fold and 2- to 16-fold more potent, respectively, than moxifloxacin (MIC90, 0.25 μg/ml), gatifloxacin (MIC90, 0.5 μg/ml), levofloxacin (MIC90, 2 μg/ml), and ciprofloxacin (MIC90, 2 μg/ml). The MICs of all agents were elevated for S. aureus isolates with alterations in GyrA (Glu88Lys or Ser84Leu) and GrlA (Ser80Phe) and S. pneumoniae isolates with alterations in GyrA (Ser81Phe or Ser81Tyr) and ParC (Ser79Phe or Lys137Asn). Fluoroquinolone MICs for S. aureus strains with double alterations in GyrA combined with double alterations in GrlA were ≥32 μg/ml, whereas the MICs of the NFQs for strains with these double alterations were 4 to 8 μg/ml. The PGE 9262932 and PGE 9509924 MICs for the S. pneumoniae isolates did not exceed 0.5 and 1 μg/ml, respectively, even for isolates with GyrA (Ser81Phe) and ParC (Ser79Phe) alterations, for which levofloxacin MICs were >16 μg/ml. No difference in the frequency of selection of mutations (<10−8 at four times the MIC) in wild-type or first-step mutant isolates of S. aureus or S. pneumoniae was detected for the two NFQs. On the basis of their in vitro activities, these NFQ agents show potential for the treatment of infections caused by isolates resistant to currently available fluoroquinolones.


2007 ◽  
Vol 51 (7) ◽  
pp. 2445-2453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jijun Cheng ◽  
Jane A. Thanassi ◽  
Christy L. Thoma ◽  
Barton J. Bradbury ◽  
Milind Deshpande ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Heteroaryl isothiazolones (HITZs) are antibacterial agents that display excellent in vitro activity against Staphylococcus aureus. We recently identified a series of these compounds that show potent bactericidal activities against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). We report here the results of in vitro resistance studies that reveal potential underlying mechanisms of action. HITZs selected gyrA mutations exclusively in first-step mutants of wild-type S. aureus, indicating that in contrast to the case with most quinolones, DNA gyrase is the primary target. The compounds displayed low mutation frequencies (10−9 to 10−10) at concentrations close to the MICs and maintained low MICs (≤0.016 μg/ml) against mutants with single mutations in either gyrA or grlA (parC). These data suggested that HITZs possess significant inhibitory activities against target enzymes, DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV. This dual-target inhibition was supported by low 50% inhibitory concentrations against topoisomerase IV as measured in a decatenation activity assay and against DNA gyrase as measured in a supercoiling activity assay. Good antibacterial activities (≤1 μg/ml) against staphylococcal gyrA grlA double mutants, as well as low frequencies (10−9 to 10−10) of selection of still higher-level mutants, also suggested that HITZs remained active against mutant enzymes. We further demonstrated that HITZs exhibit good inhibition of both S. aureus mutant enzymes and thus continue to possess a novel dual-targeting mode of action against these mutant strains. In stepwise acquisition of mutations, HITZs selected quinolone resistance determining region mutations gyrA(Ser84Leu), grlA(Ser80Phe), grlA(Ala116Val), and gyrA(Glu88Lys) sequentially, suggesting that the corresponding amino acids are key amino acids involved in the binding of HITZs to topoisomerases. The overall profile of these compounds suggests the potential utility of HITZs in combating infections caused by S. aureus, including multidrug-resistant MRSA.


2010 ◽  
Vol 54 (7) ◽  
pp. 3011-3014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa M. Oppegard ◽  
Kathryn R. Streck ◽  
Jonathan D. Rosen ◽  
Heidi A. Schwanz ◽  
Karl Drlica ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Bacterial resistance presents a difficult issue for fluoroquinolone treatment of bacterial infections. In previous work, we reported that 8-methoxy-quinazoline-2,4-diones are active against quinolone-resistant mutants of Escherichia coli. Here, we demonstrate the activity of a representative 8-methoxy-quinazoline-2,4-dione against quinolone-resistant gyrases. Furthermore, 8-methoxy-quinazoline-2,4-dione and other diones are shown to inhibit Staphylococcus aureus gyrase and topoisomerase IV with similar degrees of efficacy, suggesting that the diones might act as dual-targeting agents against S. aureus.


1996 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
pp. 2691-2697 ◽  
Author(s):  
T D Gootz ◽  
R Zaniewski ◽  
S Haskell ◽  
B Schmieder ◽  
J Tankovic ◽  
...  

The MICs of trovafloxacin, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, and sparfloxacin at which 90% of isolates are inhibited for 55 isolates of pneumococci were 0.125, 1, 4, and 0.5 microgram/ml, respectively. Resistant mutants of two susceptible isolates were selected in a stepwise fashion on agar containing ciprofloxacin at 2 to 10 times the MIC. While no mutants were obtained at the highest concentration tested, mutants were obtained at four times the MIC of ciprofloxacin (4 micrograms/ml) at a frequency of 1.0 x 10(-9). Ciprofloxacin MICs for these first-step mutants ranged from 4 to 8 micrograms/ml, whereas trovafloxacin MICs were 0.25 to 0.5 microgram/ml. Amplification of the quinolone resistance-determining region of the grlA (parC; topoisomerase IV) and gyrA (DNA gyrase) genes of the parents and mutants revealed that changes of the serine at position 80 (Ser80) to Phe or Tyr (Staphylococcus aureus coordinates) in GrlA were associated with resistance to ciprofloxacin. Second-step mutants of these isolates were selected by plating the isolates on medium containing ciprofloxacin at 32 micrograms/ml. Mutants for which ciprofloxacin MICs were 32 to 256 micrograms/ml and trovafloxacin MICs were 4 to 16 micrograms/ml were obtained at a frequency of 1.0 x 10(-9). Second-step mutants also had a change in GyrA corresponding to a substitution in Ser84 to Tyr or Phe or in Glu88 to Lys. Trovafloxacin protected from infection mice whose lungs were inoculated with lethal doses of either the parent strain or the first-step mutant. These results indicate that resistance to fluoroquinolones in S. pneumoniae occurs in vitro at a low frequency, involving sequential mutations in topoisomerase IV and DNA gyrase. Trovafloxacin MICs for wild-type and first-step mutants are within clinically achievable levels in the blood and lungs of humans.


1999 ◽  
Vol 43 (8) ◽  
pp. 2000-2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ekaterina Pestova ◽  
Rebecca Beyer ◽  
Nicholas P. Cianciotto ◽  
Gary A. Noskin ◽  
Lance R. Peterson

ABSTRACT In this study, we assessed the activity of ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, sparfloxacin, and trovafloxacin against clinical isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae that were resistant to the less-recently developed fluoroquinolones by using defined amino acid substitutions in DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV. The molecular basis for resistance was assessed by using mutants selected with trovafloxacin, ciprofloxacin, and levofloxacin in vitro. This demonstrated that the primary target of trovafloxacin in S. pneumoniae is the ParC subunit of DNA topoisomerase IV, similar to most other fluoroquinolones. However, first-step mutants bearing the Ser79→Phe/Tyr substitution in topoisomerase IV subunit ParC were susceptible to trovafloxacin with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 0.25 μg/ml, and mutations in the structural genes for both topoisomerase IV subunit ParC (parC) and the DNA gyrase subunit (gyrA) were required to achieve levels of resistance above the breakpoint. The data also suggest that enhanced activity of trovafloxacin against pneumococci is due to a combination of factors that may include reduced efflux of this agent and an enhanced activity against both DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV.


2006 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 1228-1237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nagraj Mani ◽  
Christian H. Gross ◽  
Jonathan D. Parsons ◽  
Brian Hanzelka ◽  
Ute Müh ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Antibiotics with novel mechanisms of action are becoming increasingly important in the battle against bacterial resistance to all currently used classes of antibiotics. Bacterial DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV (topoIV) are the familiar targets of fluoroquinolone and coumarin antibiotics. Here we present the characterization of two members of a new class of synthetic bacterial topoII ATPase inhibitors: VRT-125853 and VRT-752586. These aminobenzimidazole compounds were potent inhibitors of both DNA gyrase and topoIV and had excellent antibacterial activities against a wide spectrum of problematic pathogens responsible for both nosocomial and community-acquired infections, including staphylococci, streptococci, enterococci, and mycobacteria. Consistent with the novelty of their structures and mechanisms of action, antibacterial potency was unaffected by commonly encountered resistance phenotypes, including fluoroquinolone resistance. In time-kill assays, VRT-125853 and VRT-752586 were bactericidal against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Enterococcus faecalis, and Haemophilus influenzae, causing 3-log reductions in viable cells within 24 h. Finally, similar to the fluoroquinolones, relatively low frequencies of spontaneous resistance to VRT-125853 and VRT-752586 were found, a property consistent with their in vitro dual-targeting activities.


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