Dissecting the antibacterial activity of oxadiazolone-core derivatives against Mycobacterium abscessus

PLoS One. 2020 Sep 18;15(9):e0238178. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0238178. eCollection 2020.

Abstract

Mycobacterium abscessus (M. abscessus), a rapidly growing mycobacterium, is an emergent opportunistic pathogen responsible for chronic bronchopulmonary infections in individuals with respiratory diseases such as cystic fibrosis. Most treatments of M. abscessus pulmonary infections are poorly effective due to the intrinsic resistance of this bacteria against a broad range of antibiotics including anti-tuberculosis agents. Consequently, the number of drugs that are efficient against M. abscessus remains limited. In this context, 19 oxadiazolone (OX) derivatives have been investigated for their antibacterial activity against both the rough (R) and smooth (S) variants of M. abscessus. Several OXs impair extracellular M. abscessus growth with moderated minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC), or act intracellularly by inhibiting M. abscessus growth inside infected macrophages with MIC values similar to those of imipenem. Such promising results prompted us to identify the potential target enzymes of the sole extra and intracellular inhibitor of M. abscessus growth, i.e., compound iBpPPOX, via activity-based protein profiling combined with mass spectrometry. This approach led to the identification of 21 potential protein candidates being mostly involved in M. abscessus lipid metabolism and/or in cell wall biosynthesis. Among them, the Ag85C protein has been confirmed as a vulnerable target of iBpPPOX. This study clearly emphasizes the potential of the OX derivatives to inhibit the extracellular and/or intracellular growth of M. abscessus by targeting various enzymes potentially involved in many physiological processes of this most drug-resistant mycobacterial species.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / chemistry*
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology*
  • Extracellular Space / drug effects
  • Extracellular Space / microbiology
  • Intracellular Space / drug effects
  • Intracellular Space / microbiology
  • Mice
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Mycobacterium abscessus / drug effects*
  • Mycobacterium abscessus / growth & development
  • Oxadiazoles / chemistry*
  • Oxadiazoles / pharmacology*
  • RAW 264.7 Cells

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Oxadiazoles

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the CNRS, Aix Marseille University and by the grant ANR-19-CE44-0011 from the Agence Nationale de la Recherche (https://anr.fr/). AM was supported by a PhD fellowship from the Association Grégory Lemarchal and Vaincre la Mucoviscidose (https://www.vaincrelamuco.org/) (project n°RF20160501651). A. M. received a financial support from the IHU Méditerranée Infection (Marseille, France). Proteomics analyses were supported by the Institut Paoli-Calmettes and the Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille. Proteomic analyses were done using the mass spectrometry facility of Marseille Proteomics (marseille-proteomique.univ-amu.fr) supported by IBISA (Infrastructures Biologie Santé et Agronomie), the Cancéropôle PACA, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Région, the Institut Paoli-Calmettes, and Fonds Européen de Développement Régional (FEDER). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.