Inhibitors of anthrax lethal factor based upon N-oleoyldopamine

The structural features of an anthrax lethal factor inhibitor, N-oleoyldopamine (OLDA, 1) have been probed. The oleic acid moiety is critical, but, more interestingly, the presence of the double bond and its geometry were found to play an essential role. One compound, 5, was found to be an uncompetitive inhibitor of lethal factor (LF) with a Ki value of 2.2 μM and a cell-based IC50 value of 4.3 μM.