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The synthesis, biochemical, and biological evaluation of a systematic series of 2-triazole derivatives of 5'-O-[N-(salicyl)sulfamoyl]adenosine (Sal-AMS) are described as inhibitors of aryl acid adenylating enzymes (AAAE) involved in siderophore biosynthesis by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Structure-activity relationships revealed a remarkable ability to tolerate a wide range of substituents at the 4-position of the triazole moiety, and a majority of the compounds possessed subnanomolar apparent inhibition constants. However, the in vitro potency did not always translate into whole cell biological activity against M. tuberculosis, suggesting that intrinsic resistance plays an important role in the observed activities. Additionally, the well-known valence tautomerism between 2-azidopurines and their fused tetrazole counterparts led to an unexpected facile acylation of the purine N-6 amino group.

5'-O-[N-(salicyl)sulfamoyl]adenosine (Sal-AMS) is a prototype for a new class of antitubercular agents that inhibit the aryl acid adenylating enzyme (AAAE) known as MbtA involved in biosynthesis of the mycobactins. Herein, we report the structure-based design, synthesis, biochemical, and biological evaluation of a comprehensive and systematic series of analogues, exploring the structure-activity relationship of the purine nucleobase domain of Sal-AMS. Significantly, 2-phenyl-Sal-AMS derivative 26 exhibited exceptionally potent antitubercular activity with an MIC99 under iron-deficient conditions of 0.049 microM while the N-6-cyclopropyl-Sal-AMS 16 led to improved potency and to a 64-enhancement in activity under iron-deficient conditions relative to iron-replete conditions, a phenotype concordant with the designed mechanism of action. The most potent MbtA inhibitors disclosed here display in vitro antitubercular activity superior to most current first line TB drugs, and these compounds are also expected to be useful against a wide range of pathogens that require aryl-capped siderphores for virulence.

A study of the structure-activity relationships of 5'-O-[N-(salicyl)sulfamoyl]adenosine (6), a potent inhibitor of the bifunctional enzyme salicyl-AMP ligase (MbtA, encoded by the gene Rv2384) in Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is described, targeting the salicyl moiety. A systematic series of analogues was prepared exploring the importance of substitution at the C-2 position revealing that a hydroxy group is required for optimal activity. Examination of a series of substituted salicyl derivatives indicated that substitution at C-4 was tolerated. Consequently, a series of analogues at this position provided 4-fluoro derivative, which displayed an impressive MIC99 of 0.098 microM against whole-cell M. tuberculosis under iron-limiting conditions. Examination of other heterocyclic, cycloalkyl, alkyl, and aminoacyl replacements of the salicyl moiety demonstrated that these nonconservative modifications were poorly tolerated, a result consistent with the fairly strict substrate specificities of related non-ribosomal peptide synthetase adenylation enzymes.