Two-Way Regulation of MmpL3 Expression Identifies and Validates Inhibitors of MmpL3 Function in <i>Mycobacterium tuberculosis</i>

MmpL3, an essential mycolate transporter in the inner membrane of Mycobacterium tuberculosis ( Mtb ), has been identified as a target of multiple, chemically diverse antitubercular drugs. However, several of these molecules seem to have secondary targets and inhibit bacterial growth by more than one mechanism. Here, we describe a cell-based assay that utilizes two-way regulation of MmpL3 expression to readily identify MmpL3-specific inhibitors. We successfully used this assay to identify a novel guanidine-based MmpL3 inhibitor from a library of 220 compounds that inhibit growth of Mtb by largely unknown mechanisms. We furthermore identified inhibitors of cytochrome bc 1 - aa 3 oxidase as one class of off-target hits in whole-cell screens for MmpL3 inhibitors and report a novel sulfanylacetamide as a potential QcrB inhibitor.