Lipid II as a target for antibiotics

Lipid II is a membrane-anchored cell-wall precursor that is essential for bacterial cell-wall biosynthesis. The effectiveness of targeting Lipid II as an antibacterial strategy is highlighted by the fact that it is the target for at least four different classes of antibiotic, including the clinically important glycopeptide antibiotic vancomycin. However, the growing problem of bacterial resistance to many current drugs, including vancomycin, has led to increasing interest in the therapeutic potential of other classes of compound that target Lipid II. Here, we review progress in understanding of the antibacterial activities of these compounds, which include lantibiotics, mannopeptimycins and ramoplanin, and consider factors that will be important in exploiting their potential as new treatments for bacterial infections.