Targeting MurG enzyme in Klebsiella pneumoniae: An in silico approach to novel antimicrobial discovery

Antibiotic resistance poses a global crisis fuelled by widespread antibiotic use, particularly against Gramnegative bacteria like Klebsiella pneumoniae, a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections with high mortality rates. Urgent identification of effective drug targets is imperative, with a focus on metabolic pathways to inhibit bacterial growth. Targeting the crucial metabolic pathways of K. pneumoniae would be a more efficient way to prevent its growth and the diseases that it causes. The present study focused on inhibiting the UDP-Nacetylglucosamine-N-acetylmuramyl-(pentapeptide)pyrophosphoryl-undecaprenol N-acetylglucosamine transferase (MurG) enzyme, which is a key enzyme in peptidoglycan biosynthesis pathway. A high throughput virtual screening was used to find possible lead molecules from Enamine -High-Throughput Screening Center library. The resulting high binding affinity ligands were further assessed for their drug-likeness and other pharmacokinetic properties. Based on these analyses, the three ligands Z95813755_1, Z324718246_1 and Z324718246_2 were selected for further molecular dynamic simulation studies. The molecular dynamic simulation results and MM/PBSA analysis predicted that both Z95813755_1 and Z324718246_2, molecules show higher binding affinity towards MurG. For the first time we are reporting potential candidate inhibitors against MurG from K. pneumoniae, providing new insights in management of multi drug resistant K. pneumoniae infections.