Antituberculosis activities of clofazimine and its new analogs B4154 and B4157.

In our efforts to develop new drugs for the treatment of tuberculosis, especially that caused by multidrug-resistant strains, we investigated clofazimine (CFM) and two of its analogs, B4154 and B4157, for their antituberculosis activities. Twenty M. tuberculosis strains were tested, including 16 drug-resistant strains (strains resistant to one or more antituberculosis drugs), for their susceptibilities to these three agents. All of the strains were found to be susceptible to B4154 and B4157, and one strain showed moderate resistance to CFM. The MICs of B4154, B4157, and CFM at which 90% of strains were inhibited were 0.25, 0.12, and < or = 1.0 microgram/ml, respectively. The intracellular activities of CFM and B4157 were superior to that of B4154. The chemotherapeutic activities of the three compounds were evaluated in C57BL/6 mice. At a dose of 20 mg/kg of body weight, the activity of CFM was slightly superior to that of B4157; however, both compounds prevented mortality and caused a significant reduction in the numbers of CFU in the lungs and spleens. The animals treated with B4157 showed less pigmentation than animals treated with CFM. The chemotherapeutic activity of CFM was comparable to those of rifampin and isoniazid. Complete susceptibility of multidrug-resistant strains to CFM and B4157 and the therapeutic efficacies of these compounds against mouse tuberculosis make these drugs attractive agents for the treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis.