Novel MTN Inhibitors as a New Class of Antibiotics
Faculty Mentor Information
Ken Cornell, Ph.D
Abstract
The increase in antibiotic resistant infections is a serious threat to human health. Thus, developing new antibiotics to treat infections is imperative. Studies have shown that the enzyme Methylthioadenosine / S-adenosylhomocysteine nucleosidase (MTN), which is present in many bacterial species, is a potential target for new antibiotics. Our goal is to target and halt adenine and methionine salvage in pathogenic bacteria by developing specific non-nucleoside MTN inhibitors. An MTN inhibitor “15A” was previously identified via in silico screening. To develop a structure-activity relationship (SAR) based on 15A, the inhibitory activity of a series of 15A analogs were examined using a spectrophotometric assay. We will use the results of this study to design even better MTN inhibitors in the future with the goal of developing a new class of antibiotics to treat drug resistant infections.
Novel MTN Inhibitors as a New Class of Antibiotics
The increase in antibiotic resistant infections is a serious threat to human health. Thus, developing new antibiotics to treat infections is imperative. Studies have shown that the enzyme Methylthioadenosine / S-adenosylhomocysteine nucleosidase (MTN), which is present in many bacterial species, is a potential target for new antibiotics. Our goal is to target and halt adenine and methionine salvage in pathogenic bacteria by developing specific non-nucleoside MTN inhibitors. An MTN inhibitor “15A” was previously identified via in silico screening. To develop a structure-activity relationship (SAR) based on 15A, the inhibitory activity of a series of 15A analogs were examined using a spectrophotometric assay. We will use the results of this study to design even better MTN inhibitors in the future with the goal of developing a new class of antibiotics to treat drug resistant infections.