1. Academic Validation
  2. The cell division protein FtsZ as a cellular target to hit cystic fibrosis pathogens

The cell division protein FtsZ as a cellular target to hit cystic fibrosis pathogens

  • Eur J Med Chem. 2020 Mar 15;190:112132. doi: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2020.112132.
Silvia Buroni 1 Vadim Makarov 2 Viola Camilla Scoffone 1 Gabriele Trespidi 1 Giovanna Riccardi 1 Laurent R Chiarelli 3
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Biology and Biotechnology "Lazzaro Spallanzani", University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
  • 2 Federal Research Centre "Fundamentals of Biotechnology" of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
  • 3 Department of Biology and Biotechnology "Lazzaro Spallanzani", University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy. Electronic address: laurent.chiarelli@unipv.it.
Abstract

Cystic fibrosis is a rare genetic disease characterized by the production of dehydrated mucus in the lung able to trap bacteria and rendering their proliferation particularly dangerous, thus leading to chronic infections. Among these bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa play a major role while, within emerging pathogens, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Achromobacter xylosoxidans, Burkholderia cepacia complex species, as well as non-tuberculous mycobacteria are listed. Since a common feature of these bacteria is the high level of drug resistance, cell division, and in particular FtsZ, has been explored as a novel therapeutic target for the design of new molecules with Antibacterial properties. This review summarizes and provides insight into recent advances in the discovery of compounds targeting FtsZ: the majority of them exhibit anti-staphylococcal activity, while a few were directed against the cystic fibrosis Gram negative pathogens.

Keywords

Antibiotic resistance; Cell division; Cystic fibrosis; FtsZ; Microbial infections.

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