3-Bromo-4-(1H-3-indolyl)-2,5-dihydro-1H-2,5-pyrroledione derivatives as new lead compounds for antibacterially active substances.

A number of new compounds containing 3-bromo-2,5-dihydro-1H-2,5-pyrroledione and indole substructures were found to have antibacterial activity against resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium smegmatis and some other Gram positive bacteria. The investigated compounds exhibit minimal inhibition concentrations (MIC's) lower than those of ciprofloxacin, vancomycin and doxycycline resp. A different spectrum of activity, suggests a mechanism of action different to vancomycin and doxycycline. This might be important in circumventing existing resistance mechanisms. Here we report about the synthesis and on the antibacterial activity in a structure activity relationship study.