Data Sheet 1_Bacterial actin MreB as a new antibiotic target.pdf

Disruption of the MreB filament network results in the disruption of the cell wall, which thus serves an unconventional antibacterial strategy. A22, a small inhibitor molecule, binds directly to the MreB filament, altering its structure and causing a morphological change of the cell, leading to cell death.

This effective antibacterial property is shadowed by the fact that at high concentration, A22 is toxic to eukaryotic host cells, so it cannot be administered at higher doses. Vancomycin is a widely used antibiotic targeting Gram-positive bacteria at concentrations as high as 10–20 μg/mL, which can occasionally cause serious side effects. In this study, we present our recent findings that a synergistic interaction exists between A22 and vancomycin, which results in the inhibition of cell proliferation by the combined use of very low concentrations of A22 (6.25 μg/mL) and vancomycin (1.56 μg/mL).