In vitro sortase a inhibitory and antimicrobial activity of flavonoids isolated from the roots of Sophora flavescens

• DOI: 10.1007/s12272-011-0206-0
• Publication Date: 2011-03-07T22:31:44Z
• Authors: Ikhoon Oh; Woo-Young Yang; Soon-Chun Chung; Tae-Yoon Kim; Ki-Bong Oh; Jongheon Shin
• Keywords: Sophora flavescens; Sophora

A series of flavonoids (1-14) was isolated from the roots of Sophora flavescens. We evaluated their ability to inhibit both microbial growth and sortase A, an enzyme that plays a key role in cell wall protein anchoring and virulence in Staphylococcus aureus. Most prenylated flavonoids (7-13) displayed potent inhibitory activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria except E. coli, with minimum inhibitory concentrations values ranging from 4.40 to 27.7 μM, and weak or no activity against fungal strains tested. Kurarinol (6) was a potent inhibitor of sortase A, with an IC(50) value of 107.7 ± 6.6 μM. A preliminary structure-activity relationship, including essential structural requirements, is described.