Effects of novobiocin, coumermycin A1, clorobiocin, and their analogs on Escherichia coli DNA gyrase and bacterial growth.

Novobiocin, coumermycin A1, and clorobiocin, structurally related compounds that antagonize the B subunit of the essential bacterial enzyme DNA gyrase, were compared with 18 of their analogs for the inhibition of Escherichia coli DNA gyrase supertwisting activity in vitro and of bacterial multiplication. This family of compounds has a 4-hydroxy-8-methylcoumarin core substituted in the 7 and 3 positions. Important for enzyme inhibition in vitro is a 7 ether linkage to a 3'-substituted noviose sugar. The 3'-ester-linked 5-methylpyrrole, found in the coumermycin series, conferred at least 10-fold more inhibitory activity than did the similarly linked amide, found in the novobiocin series; lack of the pyrrole and amide results in the loss of inhibitory activity. Of many aryl and alkyl substituents linked as an amide at the 3 position, the 4-hydroxyl-3-(3-methyl-2-butenyl)benzoic acid moiety, found in novobiocin and clorobiocin, and the reduplication of the coumarin-noviose-5-methylpyrrole, found in coumermycin A1, were most effective in gyrase inhibition. In vivo, the ability of these compounds to inhibit the growth of E. coli varied greatly. The enhanced inhibition of gyrase in vitro conferred by a 5-methylpyrrole relative to an amide in the 3'-noviose position was reflected in inhibition of bacterial multiplication. Several substitutions at the 3 position of the coumarin core conferring similar antagonism of gyrase in vitro resulted in substantially different inhibitory activities for E. coli, suggesting that these moieties at the 3 position affect drug access to the intracellular target. This target was shown for isobutyryl PNC-NH2 (PNC-NH2 is 3-amino-4-hydroxy-8-methyl-7-[3-O-(5-methyl-2-pyrrolylcarbonyl)noviosyloxy] coumarin) and confirmed for novobiocin, coumermycin A1, and clorobiocin to be in the B subunit of DNA gyrase.