The high number of bacterial cells in the body means that they play important roles in host physiology and pathology. Indeed, the microbiome is emerging as a major player in many diseases and diverse bacteria have been isolated from tumor cells.
Bacteria can easily replicate in these hypoxic microenvironments, and can contribute to anticancer drug resistance e.g. by expressing enzymes capable of metabolizing cancer drugs used in chemotherapy. Taking into account this knowledge, the project aims to synthesize compounds as mutual prodrugs to inhibit bacteria in tumor hypoxic environments and at the same time to trigger the immune response.
