is essential for peptidoglycan biosynthesis, and is therefore an important target for antibacterial drug discovery. We report the synthesis, in silico studies and extensive structure–activityrelationships of a series of quinazolinone-based inhibitors of MurA from Escherichia coli. 3-Benzyloxyphenylquinazolinones showed promising inhibitory potencies against MurA, in the low micromolar range, with an