Microbial metabolites as promising alternatives to empagliflozin for type 2 diabetes management
摘要
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), a global metabolic disease, challenges healthcare systems financially and logistically due to the increasing prevalence of complications such as cardiovascular and renal complications. This study compares empagliflozin, a standard SGLT-2 inhibitor, with microbial-derived alternatives from the NP Atlas database. 36,395 microbial compounds were screened and docked against the 7VSI protein complex. Molecular docking identified three lead compounds, malassezione, echoside A, and fumiquinazoline F, with binding affinities of -9.8, -9.757, and − 10.776 kcal/mol, respectively, mirroring the potency of empagliflozin (-10.719 kcal/mol). The hit compounds exhibited favorable pharmacokinetic and toxicological profiles, with no Lipinski rule violations, suggesting high reliability and efficacy. MD simulation conducted at 150 ns confirmed the stability and target compatibility of the compounds, with echoside A exhibiting prolonged activity compared to empagliflozin under PCA analysis. The Echoside A, derived from the bacterium Streptomyces sp. LZ35 exhibits anti-diabetic, SGLT-2 inhibitory, and cardioprotective characteristics, making it a promising therapeutic candidate for T2DM.