Potential inhibitory properties of selected plant secondary metabolites from local plant families in the Philippines against AcrAB-tolc drug efflux pump system of E. coli: An In silico analysis

Abstract

Antibiotics heralded an approach to controlling and ending infectious diseases caused by bacteria. However, these life-saving drugs have begun to lose their efficacy as various bacteria have gained a significant level of antibiotic resistance over the years. Amidst these bacterial survival mechanisms, plant secondary metabolites provide a possible countermeasure against this phenomenon because of their defense mechanisms. Through in silico analytic procedures, nine selected plant secondary metabolites from Ixora coccinea, Mimosa pudica, and Origanum vulgare, in the Philippines were molecularly docked using AutoDock simulation software and Biovia Discovery Studio against the RND efflux pump system, AcrAB-TolC of E. coli. All of the selected metabolites showed negative binding energies implying high ligand-receptor affinity and good stability, especially the secondary metabolites of I. coccinea. Metabolites that have remarkable properties similar to the existing efflux pump inhibitors include lupeol, quercetin, galangin, kaempferol, and ursolic acid.