Tackling TB in cattle: identifying inhibitors of cell wall biosynthesis enzymes from Mycobacterium bovis, the causitive agent of bovine TB.

Synthesis of rationally designed inhibitors of enzymes essential to the biosynthesis of the cell wall of Mycobacterium bovis, the causative agent of tuberculosis in cattle for further evaluation in assays against the isolated enzyme and whole Mycobacterium bovis. The project will involve some computational docking of molecules into the enzyme active site together with the synthesis of the compounds.Whilst this rotation project is self-contained, one option would be to follow-on from this with the project led by Dr De Matteis in which the activity of the compounds synthesized could be determined.