The first new antibacterial class in decades discovered

 Vanderbilt researchers (Led by Neil Osheroff, John Coniglio Chair in Biochemistry and professor of biochemistry and medicine) are the first to undertake a systematic analysis of the mechanism of action of gepotidacin, a first-in-class triazaacenaphthylene antibacterial, against its targets in Escherichia coli—the type II topoisomerases gyrase and topoisomerase IV and the mechanistic basis for drug resistance. E. coli is the etiological agent of most urinary tract infections. The research was published in the journal ACS Infectious Diseases. The finding is critical because it means that to get resistance to geoptidacin, there will have to be simultaneous mutations in two separate enzymes. The findings make it much less likely that resistance will develop. The study's results prove that gepotidacin is an effective and safe oral antibiotic for treating uncomplicated urinary tract infections. Gepotidacin has the potential to be a valuable new treatment, which is particularly promising for patients who are resistant to other antibiotics or who are intolerant to first-line treatments. @ https://phys.org/news/2024-03-biochemists-antibacterial-class-decades.amp