Proteolytic assay-based screening identifies a potent inhibitor of anthrax lethal factor

Anthrax lethal factor (LF), a Zn2+-dependent metalloprotease, is a key virulence component of anthrax toxin. Here, we used proteolytic assay-based screening to identify novel LF inhibitors from a naturally extracted chemical library. The screening identified four compounds that inhibited in vitro proteolytic activity of LF with an IC50 of low micromolar range (11-20 μM). Three of these compounds were toxic to the mouse macrophage-like cell line, RAW 264.7. Compound 200 was non-toxic, however, and successfully protected Raw 264.7 cells from a lethal toxin challenge with an IC50 of 39.2 μM. We also identified possible binding modes of compound 200 by molecular docking.