Scripps researchers synthesize potent vancomycin analog

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute showed that multiple structural modifications to vancomycin made the antibiotic 25,000 times more potent than the parent compound and helped overcome the molecular basis of antibiotic resistance.

Vancomycin binds to bacterial cell wall precursors containing D-alanyl-D-alanine (D-Ala-D-Ala), inhibiting cell wall formation. Bacteria such as vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) have evolved to resist vancomycin by replacing D-Ala-D-Ala with D-alanyl-D-lactate (D-Ala-D-Lac)...