ABSTRACT
Tuberculosis, caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), is the infectious disease responsible for the highest number of deaths worldwide. Herein, 22 new N-oxide-containing compounds were synthesized followed by in vitro and in vivo evaluation of their antitubercular potential against Mtb. Compound 8 was found to be the most promising compound, with MIC90 values of 1.10 and 6.62 µM against active and nonreplicating Mtb, respectively. Additionally, we carried out in vivo experiments to confirm the safety and efficacy of compound 8; the compound was found to be orally bioavailable and highly effective, leading to a reduction of Mtb to undetectable levels in a mouse model of infection. Microarray-based initial studies on the mechanism of action suggest that compound 8 blocks translation. Altogether, these results indicate that benzofuroxan derivative 8 is a promising lead compound for the development of a novel chemical class of antitubercular drugs.
Subject(s)
Antitubercular Agents/chemistry , Antitubercular Agents/pharmacology , Heterocyclic Compounds/chemistry , Heterocyclic Compounds/pharmacology , Animals , Antitubercular Agents/chemical synthesis , Antitubercular Agents/pharmacokinetics , Biological Availability , Caco-2 Cells , Heterocyclic Compounds/chemical synthesis , Heterocyclic Compounds/pharmacokinetics , Humans , Mice , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Microbial Sensitivity Tests , Mycobacterium tuberculosis/drug effects , Oxides/chemistry , Spectrum Analysis/methodsABSTRACT
Tuberculosis (TB) is an important infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and responsible for thousands of deaths every year. Although there are antimycobacterial drugs available in therapeutics, just few new chemical entities have reached clinical trials, and in fact, since introduction of rifampin only two important drugs had reached the market. Pyrazinoic acid (POA), the active agent of pyrazinamide, has been explored through prodrug approach to achieve novel molecules with anti-Mtb activity, however, there is no activity evaluation of these molecules against non-replicating Mtb until the present. Additionally, pharmacokinetic must be preliminary evaluated to avoid future problems during clinical trials. In this paper, we have presented six POA esters as prodrugs in order to evaluate their anti-Mtb activity in replicating and non-replicating Mtb, and these showed activity highly influenced by medium composition (especially by albumin). Lipophilicity seems to play the main role in the activity, possibly due to controlling membrane passage. Novel duplicated prodrugs of POA were also described, presenting interesting activity. Cytotoxicity of these prodrugs set was also evaluated, and these showed no important cytotoxic profile.