Insecticidal 3-benzamido-N-phenylbenzamides specifically bind with high affinity to a novel allosteric site in housefly GABA receptors

• 3-Benzamido-N-phenylbenzamides (BPBs) are a novel class of potent insecticides.
• BPB binding to housefly head membranes was modulated by GABA receptor ligands.
• BPB equally bound to the head membranes of wild-type and rdl mutant houseflies.
• BPB inhibited GABA-induced currents but not glutamate-induced currents.
• BPBs are antagonists that act at a site distinct from the GABA channel blocker site.

γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors (GABARs) are an important target for existing insecticides such as fiproles. These insecticides act as noncompetitive antagonists (channel blockers) for insect GABARs by binding to a site within the intrinsic channel of the GABAR. Recently, a novel class of insecticides, 3-benzamido-N-phenylbenzamides (BPBs), was shown to inhibit GABARs by binding to a site distinct from the site for fiproles. We examined the binding site of BPBs in the adult housefly by means of radioligand-binding and electrophysiological experiments. 3-Benzamido-N-(2,6-dimethyl-4-perfluoroisopropylphenyl)-2-fluorobenzamide (BPB 1) (the N-demethyl BPB) was a partial, but potent, inhibitor of [3H]4′-ethynyl-4-n-propylbicycloorthobenzoate (GABA channel blocker) binding to housefly head membranes, whereas the 3-(N-methyl)benzamido congener (the N-methyl BPB) had low or little activity. A total of 15 BPB analogs were tested for their abilities to inhibit [3H]BPB 1 binding to the head membranes. The N-demethyl analogs, known to be highly effective insecticides, potently inhibited the [3H]BPB 1 binding, but the N-methyl analogs did not even though they, too, are considered highly effective. [3H]BPB 1 equally bound to the head membranes from wild-type and dieldrin-resistant (rdl mutant) houseflies. GABA allosterically inhibited [3H]BPB 1 binding. By contrast, channel blocker-type antagonists enhanced [3H]BPB 1 binding to housefly head membranes by increasing the affinity of BPB 1. Antiparasitic macrolides, such as ivermectin B1a, were potent inhibitors of [3H]BPB 1 binding. BPB 1 inhibited GABA-induced currents in housefly GABARs expressed in Xenopus oocytes, whereas it failed to inhibit l-glutamate-induced currents in inhibitory l-glutamate receptors. Overall, these findings indicate that BPBs act at a novel allosteric site that is different from the site for channel blocker-type antagonists and that is probably overlapped with the site for macrolides in insect GABARs.

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