Impact of Fgd1 and ddn diversity in Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex on in vitro susceptibility to PA-824

Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2011 Dec;55(12):5718-22. doi: 10.1128/AAC.05500-11. Epub 2011 Sep 19.

Abstract

PA-824 is a promising drug candidate for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB). It is in phase II clinical trials as part of the first newly designed regimen containing multiple novel antituberculosis drugs (PA-824 in combination with moxifloxacin and pyrazinamide). However, given that the genes involved in resistance against PA-824 are not fully conserved in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), this regimen might not be equally effective against different MTBC genotypes. To investigate this question, we sequenced two PA-824 resistance genes (fgd1 [Rv0407] and ddn [Rv3547]) in 65 MTBC strains representing major phylogenetic lineages. The MICs of representative strains were determined using the modified proportion method in the Bactec MGIT 960 system. Our analysis revealed single-nucleotide polymorphisms in both genes that were specific either for several genotypes or for individual strains, yet none of these mutations significantly affected the PA-824 MICs (≤ 0.25 μg/ml). These results were supported by in silico modeling of the mutations identified in Fgd1. In contrast, "Mycobacterium canettii" strains displayed a higher MIC of 8 μg/ml. In conclusion, we found a large genetic diversity in PA-824 resistance genes that did not lead to elevated PA-824 MICs. In contrast, M. canettii strains had MICs that were above the plasma concentrations of PA-824 documented so far in clinical trials. As M. canettii is also intrinsically resistant against pyrazinamide, new regimens containing PA-824 and pyrazinamide might not be effective in treating M. canettii infections. This finding has implications for the design of multiple ongoing clinical trials.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antitubercular Agents / pharmacology*
  • Bacterial Proteins / genetics*
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial / genetics*
  • Genetic Variation*
  • Humans
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests / standards
  • Mycobacterium tuberculosis / classification
  • Mycobacterium tuberculosis / drug effects*
  • Mycobacterium tuberculosis / genetics
  • Nitroimidazoles / pharmacology*
  • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA

Substances

  • Antitubercular Agents
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Nitroimidazoles
  • pretomanid