Therapeutics: Thioredoxin reductase

In vitro and mouse studies suggest auranofin could be repurposed to treat tuberculosis and other Gram-positive bacterial infections. In vitro, auranofin inhibited thioredoxin reductase from Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Staphylococcus aureus with IC50 values of 63 and 90 nM, respectively. In multiple Gram-positive bacterial cultures, auranofin inhibited growth at minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 0.05 to 0.50 mg/mL. In a mouse model of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) infection, auranofin increased survival compared with control. Next steps include clinical testing of auranofin to treat tuberculosis and developing inhibitors of bacterial thioredoxin reductase to treat other Gram-positive bacterial infections. ...