α -Aminooxyacetic acid derivatives acting as pro-drugs against Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB), a significant cause of mortality globally, continues to claim 1.5 million lives each year. Despite recent advances in TB management, the emergence of multidrug-resistant strains of TB is exacerbating the treatment of TB. Therefore, there is an immediate necessity to uncover new anti-TB compounds with unprecedented targets. This study introduces novel antimycobacterial molecules that are based on α-aminooxyacetic acid core structures. The lead compounds KSK-104 and KSK-106 displayed potent sub-micromolar antibacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv and XDR clinical isolates, while exhibiting virtually no cytotoxicity against various human cells. Complementation experiments following whole genome sequencing of spontaneously resistant mutants generated against these bactericidal compounds suggested that they are pro-drugs that are intracellularly hydrolyzed by one or both of two specific amidohydrolases, Rv0552 and AmiC. Furthermore, proteomic and transcriptomic analyses of stressed cells and genetic interaction mapping employing transposon insertion sequencing suggest a “dirty drug” mechanism that involves the simultaneous attack of the various drug cleavage products on multiple intracellular targets. Our results suggest a primary role of the pyridoxal 5’-phosphate (PLP) synthesis and salvage pathway and/or PLP-dependent enzymes, the oxidative stress network, and the largely uncharacterized Rv3092c-Rv3095 gene cluster in the mode of action.