# Broad-Spectrum Anti-Infective Activity of Natural Compounds Pyrrolomycins, Marinopyrroles, and Their Analogs

**Authors:** Brianna N. Davis, Clare F. Euteneuer, Kayleen J. Mijangos, Angelique Vargas, Kailey M. Bruha, Paul H. Davis

PMC · DOI: 10.3390/pathogens15020203 · Pathogens · 2026-02-11

## TL;DR

This paper explores natural compounds pyrrolomycins and marinopyrroles and their derivatives, which show strong anti-infective activity against a wide range of pathogens, including drug-resistant bacteria and parasites.

## Contribution

The study introduces structural refinements of pyrrolomycins and marinopyrroles to enhance their pharmacological properties while maintaining broad-spectrum anti-infective activity.

## Key findings

- Pyrrolomycins and marinopyrroles act as protonophores, contributing to their broad-spectrum antibacterial activity.
- Synthesized derivatives of these compounds show improved efficacy and potential against drug-resistant bacteria and biofilms.
- The compounds also demonstrate activity against parasitic infections and some viruses.

## Abstract

Pyrrolomycins and marinopyrroles are natural products originally derived from Streptomyces spp. that possess potent anti-infective activity against a variety of organisms, including drug-resistant bacteria and eukaryotic pathogens, especially pertinent amid the search for additional antimicrobial agents. These highly halogenated compounds have been proposed to act as protonophores, an uncommon mechanism of action that likely contributes to their broad-spectrum antibacterial activity. To improve efficacy and overcome limitations to clinical transition, promising derivatives of these natural compounds have been synthesized, introducing structural refinements that enhance pharmacological properties while preserving potent anti-infective activity. Recent discoveries demonstrate the potential of pyrrolomycins and marinopyrroles derivatives to serve as broad-spectrum anti-infective agents with efficacy against drug-resistant bacteria, bacterial biofilms, parasitic infections, and some viruses.

## Full-text entities

- **Genes:** COPZ1 (coat protein complex I subunit zeta 1) [NCBI Gene 22818] {aka CGI-120, COPZ, HSPC181, SCN12, zeta-COP, zeta1-COP}, ALB (albumin) [NCBI Gene 213] {aka FDAHT, HSA, PRO0883, PRO0903, PRO1341}
- **Diseases:** parasitic infections (MESH:D010272), bacterial (MESH:D001424), lethargic (MESH:D004674), biofilm colonization (MESH:D003108), toxoplasmosis (MESH:D014123), infectious disease (MESH:D003141), sepsis (MESH:D018805), streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (MESH:D012772), malaria (MESH:D008288), deaths (MESH:D003643), pharyngitis (MESH:D010612), Cytotoxicity (MESH:D064420), PM F (OMIM:102510), urinary tract infections (MESH:D014552), wound infections (MESH:D014946), Infective (MESH:D007239), scarlet fever (MESH:D012541), pneumonia (MESH:D011014), PM D (MESH:D014808), RD (MESH:D012208), mitochondrial dysfunction (MESH:D028361), abscesses (MESH:D000038), injury to (MESH:D014947), cancer (MESH:D009369)
- **Chemicals:** lipid (MESH:D008055), minocycline (MESH:D008911), triclosan (MESH:D014260), pyrrole (MESH:D011758), LPS (MESH:D008070), nystatin (MESH:D009761), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (MESH:D015662), ATP (MESH:D000255), PM D (MESH:C034691), neomycin (MESH:D009355), PM F2a (MESH:C040035), halogen (MESH:D006219), PMs (MESH:D011399), PM C (MESH:C034690), beta-lactams (MESH:D047090), lincomycin (MESH:D008034), proton (MESH:D011522), tetracycline (MESH:D013752), CNQ-418 (-), sulfur (MESH:D013455), crystal violet (MESH:D005840), chlorine (MESH:D002713), linezolid (MESH:D000069349), cephalosporins (MESH:D002511), Pyrazoles (MESH:D011720), amphotericin B (MESH:D000666), thiol (MESH:D013438), macrolides (MESH:D018942), Thiazole (MESH:D013844), pyrimethamine (MESH:D011739), vancomycin (MESH:D014640), staphyloxanthin (MESH:C031841), tetracyclines (MESH:D013754), phenol (MESH:D019800), E (MESH:D004540), fluorine (MESH:D005461), clindamycin (MESH:D002981), erythromycin (MESH:D004917), kanamycin (MESH:D007612), pyrazole (MESH:C031280), teichoic acids (MESH:D013682), LOS (MESH:C023023), tetrazole (MESH:C045574), aminoglycosides (MESH:D000617), bromine (MESH:D001966), salicylic acid (MESH:D020156), teicoplanin (MESH:D017334), doxycycline (MESH:D004318), BH3 (MESH:C006008), azithromycin (MESH:D017963), Dioxapyrrolomycin (MESH:C053531), C (MESH:D002244), lincosamides (MESH:D055231), streptomycin (MESH:D013307), MAR A (MESH:C528298), NO2 (MESH:D009585), CCCP (MESH:D002258), nitrogen (MESH:D009584)
- **Species:** Acinetobacter baumannii (species) [taxon 470], Listeria ivanovii (species) [taxon 1638], Neisseria gonorrhoeae (species) [taxon 485], Plasmodium (subgenus) [taxon 418103], Haemonchus contortus (barber pole worm, species) [taxon 6289], Moraxella catarrhalis (species) [taxon 480], Bacillus (genus) [taxon 55087], Streptomyces (genus) [taxon 1883], Micromonospora sp. (species) [taxon 1876], Enterococcus faecium (species) [taxon 1352], Cercopithecidae (monkey, family) [taxon 9527], Neisseria meningitidis (species) [taxon 487], Viruses (acellular root) [taxon 10239], Corynebacterium (genus) [taxon 1716], Pseudomonas sp. MC (species) [taxon 1848964], Haemophilus influenzae (species) [taxon 727], Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606], Streptomyces sp. (species) [taxon 1931], Staphylococcus (genus) [taxon 1279], Rattus norvegicus (brown rat, species) [taxon 10116], Bacteria Latreille et al. 1825 (Bacteria stick insect, genus) [taxon 629395], Mycobacterium tuberculosis (species) [taxon 1773], Ovis aries (domestic sheep, species) [taxon 9940], Campylobacter jejuni (species) [taxon 197], Enterococcus faecalis (species) [taxon 1351], Streptomyces fumanus (species) [taxon 67302], Wenjunlia vitaminophila (species) [taxon 76728], Fungi (kingdom) [taxon 4751], Actinomycetota (actinobacteria, phylum) [taxon 201174], Galleria mellonella (greater wax moth, species) [taxon 7137], Toxoplasma gondii (species) [taxon 5811], Streptococcus pyogenes (species) [taxon 1314], Zika virus (no rank) [taxon 64320], Escherichia coli (E. coli, species) [taxon 562], Neisseria mucosa (species) [taxon 488], Mycolicibacterium smegmatis (species) [taxon 1772], Mycobacterium tuberculosis subsp. tuberculosis (subspecies) [taxon 182785], Cricetus cricetus (black-bellied hamster, species) [taxon 10034], Canis lupus familiaris (dog, subspecies) [taxon 9615], Enterococcus durans (species) [taxon 53345], Klebsiella pneumoniae (species) [taxon 573], Pseudomonas aeruginosa (species) [taxon 287], Mus musculus (house mouse, species) [taxon 10090]
- **Cell lines:** HeLa — Homo sapiens (Human), Human papillomavirus-related endocervical adenocarcinoma, Cancer cell line (CVCL_0030), Vero — Chlorocebus sabaeus (Green monkey), Spontaneously immortalized cell line (CVCL_0059), HFF — Mus musculus (Mouse), Hybridoma (CVCL_XV44), RD — Homo sapiens (Human), Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma, Cancer cell line (CVCL_JB74), HEK293 — Homo sapiens (Human), Transformed cell line (CVCL_0045), RB23 — Homo sapiens (Human), Bladder carcinoma, Cancer cell line (CVCL_9828), USA300 — Homo sapiens (Human), Parkinson disease, Induced pluripotent stem cell (CVCL_C952), HepG2 — Homo sapiens (Human), Hepatoblastoma, Cancer cell line (CVCL_0027), BHK — Mesocricetus auratus (Golden hamster), Spontaneously immortalized cell line (CVCL_1914)

## Full text

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## Figures

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## References

106 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12942903/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12942903