The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Diversity Set was screened for potential inhibitors of phospho-Mur-NAc-pentapeptide translocase MraY from Escherichia coli using a primary fluorescence enhancement assay, followed by a secondary radiochemical assay. One new MraY inhibitor was identified from this screen, a naphthylisoquinoline alkaloid michellamine B, which inhibited E. coli MraY (IC50 456 mu M) and Bacillus subtilis MraY (IC50 386 mu M), and which showed antimicrobial activity against B. subtilis (MIC 16 mu g/mL). Following an earlier report of halogenated fluoresceins identified from a combined MraY/MurG screen, three halogenated fluoresceins were tested as inhibitors of E. coli MraY and E. coli MurG, and phloxine B was identified as an inhibitor of E. coli MraY (IC50 32 mu M). Molecular docking of inhibitor structures against the structure of Aquifex aeolicus MraY indicates that phloxine B appears to bind to the Mg2+ cofactor in the enzyme active site, while michellamine B binds to a hydrophobic groove formed between transmembrane helices 5 and 9. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.