Potential Ligands to 3-Dehydroquinate Dehydratase (SaDHQD) of Staphylococcus aureus, Evaluated by Molecular Docking and In Vitro Assays to Develop an Antibiotic Drug

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that by 2050, bacterial resistance will cause 10 million deaths, of which approximately one million are associated with multidrug-resistant (MDR) microorganisms. Staphylococcus aureus is one of the bacteria with high resistance to the most widely used antibiotics that cause infections worldwide. Reports show that approximately 80% of S. aureus strains are resistant to penicillin (methicillin resistance), and that this resistance has been developing since the 1960s (WHO). On the other hand, there are new potential targets to develop new antibiotic drugs; notably, the 3-dehydroquinate dehydratase of S. aureus (SaDHQD) is relevant for this, due to the SaDHQD involved in the metabolism of the S. aureus, which is necessary in the shikimate pathway. This study proposes two compounds against SaDHQD to develop a new antibiotic drug. We performed in silico and in vitro assays for it, and in this way, this study proposes compounds that could be selected against SaDHQD, for the development of a new antibiotic drug.