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Li Q, Button-Simons KA, Sievert MAC, Chahoud E, Foster GF, Meis K, Ferdig MT, Milenković T. Enhancing Gene Co-Expression Network Inference for the Malaria Parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Genes (Basel) 2024; 15:685. [PMID: 38927622 PMCID: PMC11202799 DOI: 10.3390/genes15060685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2024] [Revised: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Malaria results in more than 550,000 deaths each year due to drug resistance in the most lethal Plasmodium (P.) species P. falciparum. A full P. falciparum genome was published in 2002, yet 44.6% of its genes have unknown functions. Improving the functional annotation of genes is important for identifying drug targets and understanding the evolution of drug resistance. RESULTS Genes function by interacting with one another. So, analyzing gene co-expression networks can enhance functional annotations and prioritize genes for wet lab validation. Earlier efforts to build gene co-expression networks in P. falciparum have been limited to a single network inference method or gaining biological understanding for only a single gene and its interacting partners. Here, we explore multiple inference methods and aim to systematically predict functional annotations for all P. falciparum genes. We evaluate each inferred network based on how well it predicts existing gene-Gene Ontology (GO) term annotations using network clustering and leave-one-out crossvalidation. We assess overlaps of the different networks' edges (gene co-expression relationships), as well as predicted functional knowledge. The networks' edges are overall complementary: 47-85% of all edges are unique to each network. In terms of the accuracy of predicting gene functional annotations, all networks yielded relatively high precision (as high as 87% for the network inferred using mutual information), but the highest recall reached was below 15%. All networks having low recall means that none of them capture a large amount of all existing gene-GO term annotations. In fact, their annotation predictions are highly complementary, with the largest pairwise overlap of only 27%. We provide ranked lists of inferred gene-gene interactions and predicted gene-GO term annotations for future use and wet lab validation by the malaria community. CONCLUSIONS The different networks seem to capture different aspects of the P. falciparum biology in terms of both inferred interactions and predicted gene functional annotations. Thus, relying on a single network inference method should be avoided when possible. SUPPLEMENTARY DATA Attached.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Li
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
- Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
- Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA (M.T.F.)
| | - Katrina A. Button-Simons
- Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA (M.T.F.)
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Mackenzie A. C. Sievert
- Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA (M.T.F.)
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Elias Chahoud
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
- Department of Preprofessional Studies, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Gabriel F. Foster
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Kaitlynn Meis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Michael T. Ferdig
- Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA (M.T.F.)
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Tijana Milenković
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
- Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
- Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA (M.T.F.)
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2
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Xiang H, Zhou M, Li Y, Zhou L, Wang R. Drug discovery by targeting the protein-protein interactions involved in autophagy. Acta Pharm Sin B 2023; 13:4373-4390. [PMID: 37969735 PMCID: PMC10638514 DOI: 10.1016/j.apsb.2023.07.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2023] [Revised: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Autophagy is a cellular process in which proteins and organelles are engulfed in autophagosomal vesicles and transported to the lysosome/vacuole for degradation. Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) play a crucial role at many stages of autophagy, which present formidable but attainable targets for autophagy regulation. Moreover, selective regulation of PPIs tends to have a lower risk in causing undesired off-target effects in the context of a complicated biological network. Thus, small-molecule regulators, including peptides and peptidomimetics, targeting the critical PPIs involved in autophagy provide a new opportunity for innovative drug discovery. This article provides general background knowledge of the critical PPIs involved in autophagy and reviews a range of successful attempts on discovering regulators targeting those PPIs. Successful strategies and existing limitations in this field are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Honggang Xiang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Mi Zhou
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Yan Li
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Lu Zhou
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Renxiao Wang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
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3
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Usman MA, Salman AA, Ibrahim MA, Furukawa K, Yamasaki K. Biological functions and structural biology of Plasmodium falciparum autophagy-related proteins: The under-explored options for novel antimalarial drug design. Chem Biol Drug Des 2023; 101:1241-1251. [PMID: 36869438 DOI: 10.1111/cbdd.14225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023]
Abstract
Malaria remains a threat to global public health and the available antimalarial drugs are undermined by side effects and parasite resistance, suggesting an emphasis on new potential targets. Among the novel targets, Plasmodium falciparum autophagy-related proteins (PfAtg) remain a priority. In this paper, we reviewed the existing knowledge on the functions and structural biology of PfAtg including the compounds with inhibitory activity toward P. falciparum Atg8-Atg3 protein-protein interaction (PfAtg8-PfAtg3 PPI). A total of five PfAtg (PfAtg5, PfAtg8, PfAtg12, PfAtg18, and Rab7) were observed to have autophagic and/or non-autophagic roles. Available data showed that PfAtg8 has conserved hydrophobic pockets, which allows it to interact with PfAtg3 to form PfAtg8-PfAtg3 PPI. Additionally, 2-bromo-N-(4-pyridin-2-yl-1,3-thiazol-2-yl) benzamide was identified as the most powerful inhibitor of PfAtg8-PfAtg3 PPI. Due to the dearth of knowledge in this field, we hope that the article would open an avenue to further research on the remaining PfAtg as possible drug candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Koji Furukawa
- Health and Medical Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Kazuhiko Yamasaki
- Biomedical Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Japan
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4
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Xiang H, Liu R, Zhang X, An R, Zhou M, Tan C, Li Q, Su M, Guo C, Zhou L, Li Y, Wang R. Discovery of Small-Molecule Autophagy Inhibitors by Disrupting the Protein-Protein Interactions Involving Autophagy-Related 5. J Med Chem 2023; 66:2457-2476. [PMID: 36749313 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c01233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
One possible strategy for modulating autophagy is to disrupt the critical protein-protein interactions (PPIs) formed during this process. Our attention is on the autophagy-related 12 (ATG12)-autophagy-related 5 (ATG5)-autophagy-related 16-like 1 (ATG16L1) heterotrimer complex, which is responsible for ATG8 translocation from ATG3 to phosphatidylethanolamine. In this work, we discovered a compound with an (E)-3-(2-furanylmethylene)-2-pyrrolidinone core moiety (T1742) that blocked the ATG5-ATG16L1 and ATG5-TECAIR interactions in the in vitro binding assay (IC50 = 1-2 μM) and also exhibited autophagy inhibition in cellular assays. The possible binding mode of T1742 to ATG5 was predicted through molecular modeling, and a batch of derivatives sharing essentially the same core moiety were synthesized and tested. The outcomes of the in vitro binding assay and the flow cytometry assay of those newly synthesized compounds were generally consistent. This work has validated our central hypothesis that small-molecule inhibitors of the PPIs involving ATG5 can tune down autophagy effectively, and their pharmaceutical potential may be further explored.
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Affiliation(s)
- Honggang Xiang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruiqi Liu
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiangying Zhang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
| | - Ran An
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, People's Republic of China
| | - Mi Zhou
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
| | - Chang Tan
- Department of Chemistry, Shanghai Normal University, 100 Guilin Road, Shanghai 200234, China.,State Key Laboratory of Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 345 Lingling Road, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China
| | - Qing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 345 Lingling Road, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China
| | - Minyi Su
- State Key Laboratory of Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 345 Lingling Road, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China
| | - Chun Guo
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, People's Republic of China
| | - Lu Zhou
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
| | - Yingxia Li
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
| | - Renxiao Wang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, People's Republic of China
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5
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Fassio AV, Shub L, Ponzoni L, McKinley J, O’Meara MJ, Ferreira RS, Keiser MJ, de Melo Minardi RC. Prioritizing Virtual Screening with Interpretable Interaction Fingerprints. J Chem Inf Model 2022; 62:4300-4318. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.2c00695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre V. Fassio
- São Carlos Institute of Physics, University of São Paulo, São Carlos, São Paulo 13563-120, Brazil
- Department of Biochemistry and Immunology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Laura Shub
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Department of Bioengineering & Therapeutic Sciences, Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, United States
| | - Luca Ponzoni
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Department of Bioengineering & Therapeutic Sciences, Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, United States
| | - Jessica McKinley
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California 94404, United States
| | - Matthew J. O’Meara
- Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, United States
| | - Rafaela S. Ferreira
- Department of Biochemistry and Immunology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Michael J. Keiser
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Department of Bioengineering & Therapeutic Sciences, Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, United States
| | - Raquel C. de Melo Minardi
- Department of Computer Science, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
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6
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Toxoplasma TgAtg8-TgAtg3 Interaction Primarily Contributes to Apicoplast Inheritance and Parasite Growth in Tachyzoite. Microbiol Spectr 2022; 10:e0149521. [PMID: 35196797 PMCID: PMC8865545 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01495-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The apicoplast, which harbors key pathways involved in biosynthesis of vital metabolites, is a unique and essential nonphotosynthetic plastid organelle in apicomplexan parasites. Intriguingly, autophagy-related protein 8 (Atg8), a highly conserved eukaryotic protein, can localize to the outermost membrane of the apicoplast and modulate its inheritance in both Toxoplasma and Plasmodium parasites. The Atg8-Atg3 interaction plays a key role in Atg8 lipidation and localization, and our previously work in Toxoplasma has suggested that the core Atg8-family interacting motif (AIM) in TgAtg3, 239FADI242, and the R27 residue of TgAtg8 contribute to TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction in vitro. However, little is known about the function of this interaction or its importance in tachyzoite growth in Toxoplasma gondii. Here, we generated two complemented cell lines, TgAtg3F239A/I242A and TgAtg8R27E, based on the TgAtg3 and TgAtg8 conditional knockdown cell lines, respectively. We found that both mutant complemented cell lines were severely affected in terms of tachyzoite growth and displayed delayed death upon conditional knockdown of endogenous TgAtg3 or TgAtg8. Intriguingly, both complemented lines appeared to be defective in TgAtg8 lipidation and apicoplast inheritance. Moreover, we showed that the interaction of TgAtg8 and TgAtg3 is critical for TgAtg8 apicoplast localization. In addition, we found that the TgAtg3F239A/I242A complemented line exhibits an integral mitochondrial network upon ablation of endogenous TgAtg3, which is distinct from TgAtg3-depleted parasites with a fragmented mitochondrial network. Taken together, this work solidifies the contribution of the TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction to apicoplast inheritance and the growth of T. gondii tachyzoites. IMPORTANCEToxoplasma gondiiis a widespread intracellular parasite infecting a variety of warm-blooded animals, including humans. Current frontline treatment of toxoplasmosis suffers many drawbacks, including toxicity, drug resistance, and failure to eradicate tissue cysts, underscoring the need to identify novel drug targets for suppression or treatment of toxoplasmosis. TgAtg8 is thought to serve multiple functions in lipidation and is considered essential to the growth and development of both tachyzoites and bradyzoites. Here, we show that Toxoplasma gondii has adapted a conserved Atg8-Atg3 interaction, required for canonical autophagy in other eukaryotes, to function specifically in apicoplast inheritance. Our finding not only highlights the importance of TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction in tachyzoite growth but also suggests that this interaction is a promising drug target for the therapy of toxoplasmosis.
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7
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Leung E, Ayine-Tora DM, Santos-Ledo A, Korolchuk VI, Reynisson J. Identification of novel Atg3-Atg8 inhibitors using virtual screening for autophagy modulation. Bioorg Chem 2021; 114:105092. [PMID: 34147881 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2021.105092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2021] [Revised: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
A collection of 9050 natural products, their derivatives, and mimetics, was virtually screened against the human Atg3-Atg8 (Atg - autophagy) binding scaffold. By blocking this interaction, the lipidation of Atg8 does not occur and the formation of autophagosomes is inhibited. Forty-three (43) potential ligands were tested using enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein (eGFP) tagged LC3, the human ortholog of Atg8, in MCF7 breast cancer cells. Three hits showed single digit µM IC50 values with AT110, an isoflavone derivative, being the best at 1.2 ± 0.6 µM. Molecular modelling against Atg8 in conjunction with structural activity relationship (SAR) strongly supports the binding to this target. Testing in a panel of cancer cell lines showed little cytotoxic effect as compared to chloroquine. However, same concentration of AT110 was shown to be toxic to young zebrafish embryos. This can be explained in terms of the autophagy process being very active in the zebrafish embryos rendering them susceptible to AT110 whereas in the cancer cells tested the autophagy is not usually active. Nevertheless, AT110 blocks autophagy flux in the zebrafish confirming that the ligand is modulating autophagy. A small molecule non-cytotoxic autophagy inhibitor would open the door for adjunct therapies to bolster many established anticancer drugs, reducing their efficacious concentration thus limiting undesirable site effects. In addition, since many cancer types rely on the autophagy mechanism to survive a therapeutic regime, recurrence can potentially be reduced. The discovery of AT110 is an important step in establishing such an adjunct therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Euphemia Leung
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | - Adrián Santos-Ledo
- Biosciences Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Viktor I Korolchuk
- Biosciences Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Jóhannes Reynisson
- School of Pharmacy and Bioengineering, Keele University, Hornbeam Building, Newcastle under Lyme, Staffordshire ST5 5BG, United Kingdom.
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8
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Kang SM, Kim DH. A Structural Approach into Drug Discovery Based on Autophagy. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:life11060526. [PMID: 34199860 PMCID: PMC8226661 DOI: 10.3390/life11060526] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2021] [Revised: 05/29/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Autophagy is a lysosome-dependent intracellular degradation machinery that plays an essential role in the regulation of cellular homeostasis. As many studies have revealed that autophagy is related to cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, metabolic diseases, and so on, and it is considered as a promising drug target. Recent advances in structural determination and computational technologies provide important structural information on essential autophagy-related proteins. Combined with high-throughput screening methods, structure-activity relationship studies have led to the discovery of molecules that modulate autophagy. In this review, we summarize the recent structural studies on autophagy-related proteins and the discovery of modulators, indicating that targeting autophagy can be utilized as an effective strategy for novel drug development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sung-Min Kang
- College of Pharmacy, Duksung Women’s University, Seoul 01369, Korea;
| | - Do-Hee Kim
- College of Pharmacy, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, Korea
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Advanced Convergence Technology & Science, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, Korea
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +82-64-754-8195
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9
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Karpiyevich M, Artavanis-Tsakonas K. Ubiquitin-Like Modifiers: Emerging Regulators of Protozoan Parasites. Biomolecules 2020; 10:E1403. [PMID: 33022940 PMCID: PMC7600729 DOI: 10.3390/biom10101403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2020] [Revised: 09/28/2020] [Accepted: 10/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Post-translational protein regulation allows for fine-tuning of cellular functions and involves a wide range of modifications, including ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like modifiers (Ubls). The dynamic balance of Ubl conjugation and removal shapes the fates of target substrates, in turn modulating various cellular processes. The mechanistic aspects of Ubl pathways and their biological roles have been largely established in yeast, plants, and mammalian cells. However, these modifiers may be utilised differently in highly specialised and divergent organisms, such as parasitic protozoa. In this review, we explore how these parasites employ Ubls, in particular SUMO, NEDD8, ATG8, ATG12, URM1, and UFM1, to regulate their unconventional cellular physiology. We discuss emerging data that provide evidence of Ubl-mediated regulation of unique parasite-specific processes, as well as the distinctive features of Ubl pathways in parasitic protozoa. We also highlight the potential to leverage these essential regulators and their cognate enzymatic machinery for development of therapeutics to protect against the diseases caused by protozoan parasites.
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10
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J. Boucher
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Ellen Yeh
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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11
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Raza S, Ranaghan KE, van der Kamp MW, Woods CJ, Mulholland AJ, Azam SS. Visualizing protein-ligand binding with chemical energy-wise decomposition (CHEWD): application to ligand binding in the kallikrein-8 S1 Site. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2019; 33:461-475. [PMID: 30989572 DOI: 10.1007/s10822-019-00200-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2018] [Accepted: 04/05/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Kallikrein-8, a serine protease, is a target for structure-based drug design due to its therapeutic potential in treating Alzheimer's disease and is also useful as a biomarker in ovarian cancer. We present a binding assessment of ligands to kallikrein-8 using a residue-wise decomposition of the binding energy. Binding of four putative inhibitors of kallikrein-8 is investigated through molecular dynamics simulation and ligand binding energy evaluation with two methods (MM/PBSA and WaterSwap). For visualization of the residue-wise decomposition of binding energies, chemical energy-wise decomposition or CHEWD is introduced as a plugin to UCSF Chimera and Pymol. CHEWD allows easy comparison between ligands using individual residue contributions to the binding energy. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate one ligand binds stably to the kallikrein-8 S1 binding site. Comparison with other members of the kallikrein family shows that residues responsible for binding are specific to kallikrein-8. Thus, ZINC02927490 is a promising lead for development of novel kallikrein-8 inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saad Raza
- Computational Biology Lab, National Center for Bioinformatics, Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Islamabad, 45320, Pakistan.,Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Kara E Ranaghan
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Marc W van der Kamp
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,School of Biochemistry, Biomedical Sciences Building, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, UK.,BrisSynBio Synthetic Biology Research Centre, Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Christopher J Woods
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,BrisSynBio Synthetic Biology Research Centre, Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Adrian J Mulholland
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK. .,BrisSynBio Synthetic Biology Research Centre, Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK.
| | - Syed Sikander Azam
- Computational Biology Lab, National Center for Bioinformatics, Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Islamabad, 45320, Pakistan.
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12
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Bosch J. PPI inhibitor and stabilizer development in human diseases. DRUG DISCOVERY TODAY. TECHNOLOGIES 2018; 24:3-9. [PMID: 29233297 DOI: 10.1016/j.ddtec.2017.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2017] [Accepted: 10/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
All processes in living organisms are regulated by, or at least influenced by, protein-protein interactions (PPI). Membrane proteins play a fundamental part in this class of interactions: by providing inter-cellular communication and sensing capabilities to the cell, they lead to downstream regulation signaling events. It is therefore not surprising that PPI modulators are of keen interest when developing drug-like molecules for a range of diseases and medical conditions. However, techniques for exploiting PPIs in meaningful ways have only recently become readily available. This review is meant to provide a brief overview of applied techniques for PPI elucidation, and present various case studies of PPI exploitation ranging from early discovery efforts to now-approved market drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jürgen Bosch
- Pediatric Pulmonology Division, Department of Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, 2109 Adelbert Rd, Biomedical Research Building Room 835, Cleveland, OH, USA; InterRayBio, LLC, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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13
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Liu S, Zhang F, Wang Y, Wang H, Chen X, Hu Y, Chen M, Lan S, Wang C, Cao J, Hu X, Tan F. Characterization of the molecular mechanism of the autophagy-related Atg8-Atg3 protein interaction in Toxoplasma gondii. J Biol Chem 2018; 293:14545-14556. [PMID: 30026233 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.002614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2018] [Revised: 07/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasmosis is caused by an obligate intracellular parasite, the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii Discovery of novel drugs against T. gondii infection could circumvent the toxicity of existing drugs and T. gondii resistance to current treatments. The autophagy-related protein 8 (Atg8)-Atg3 interaction in T. gondii is a promising drug target because of its importance for regulating Atg8 lipidation. We reported previously that TgAtg8 and TgAtg3 interact directly. Here we validated that substitutions of conserved residues of TgAtg8 interacting with the Atg8 family-interacting motif (AIM) in Atg3 disrupt the TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction and reduce TgAtg8 lipidation and autophagosome formation. These findings were consistent with results reported previously for Plasmodium Atg8, suggesting functional conservation of Atg8 in Toxoplasma and Plasmodium. Moreover, using peptide and AlphaScreen assays, we identified the AIM sequence in TgAtg3 that binds TgAtg8. We determined that the core TgAtg3 AIM contains a Phe239-Ala240-Asp241-Ile242 (239FADI242) signature distinct from the 105WLLP108 signature in the AIM of Plasmodium Atg3. Furthermore, an alanine-scanning assay revealed that the TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction in T. gondii also depends strongly on several residues surrounding the core TgAtg3 AIM, such as Asn238, Asp243, and Cys244 These results indicate that distinct AIMs in Atg3 contribute to differences between Toxoplasma and Plasmodium Atg8-Atg3 interactions. By elucidating critical residues involved in the TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction, our work paves the way for the discovery of potential anti-toxoplasmosis drugs. The quantitative and straightforward AlphaScreen assay developed here may enable high-throughput screening for small molecules disrupting the TgAtg8-TgAtg3 interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuxian Liu
- From the Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Fangfei Zhang
- Renji College, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Yan Wang
- From the Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Han Wang
- From the Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Xiaojian Chen
- the Department of Clinical Laboratory, Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325027, China
| | - Yue Hu
- From the Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Ming Chen
- the Chemical Biology Core Facility, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Shujue Lan
- the Chemical Biology Core Facility, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Chenhong Wang
- the School of the Second Clinical Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Jiaxin Cao
- From the Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Xin Hu
- the School of Medical Laboratory Science and School of Life Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China
| | - Feng Tan
- From the Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China,
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Novel Antifungal Compounds Discovered in Medicines for Malaria Venture's Malaria Box. mSphere 2018; 3:mSphere00537-17. [PMID: 29564402 PMCID: PMC5853493 DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00537-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2017] [Accepted: 01/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Much like the recent increase in drug-resistant bacteria, there is a rise in antifungal-resistant strains of pathogenic fungi. There is a need for novel and more potent antifungal therapeutics. Consequently, we investigated a mixed library of drug-like and probe-like compounds with activity in Plasmodium spp. for activity against two common fungal pathogens, Cryptococcus neoformans and Candida albicans, along with two less common pathogenic species, Lomentospora prolificans and Cryptococcus gattii. We uncover a previously uncharacterized drug with higher broad-spectrum antifungal activity than some current treatments. Our findings may eventually lead to a compound added to the arsenal of antifungal therapeutics. Similarities in fungal and animal cells make antifungal discovery efforts more difficult than those for other classes of antimicrobial drugs. Currently, there are only three major classes of antifungal drugs used for the treatment of systemic fungal diseases: polyenes, azoles, and echinocandins. Even in situations where the offending fungal organism is susceptible to the available drugs, treatment courses can be lengthy and unsatisfactory, since eradication of infection is often very difficult, especially in individuals with impaired immunity. Consequently, there is a need for new and more effective antifungal drugs. We have identified compounds with significant antifungal activity in the Malaria Box (Medicines for Malaria Ventures, Geneva, Switzerland) that have higher efficacy than some of the currently used antifungal drugs. Our best candidate, MMV665943 (IUPAC name 4-[6-[[2-(4-aminophenyl)-3H-benzimidazol-5-yl]methyl]-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl]aniline), here referred to as DM262, showed 16- to 32-fold-higher activity than fluconazole against Cryptococcus neoformans. There was also significant antifungal activity in other fungal species with known antifungal resistance, such as Lomentospora prolificans and Cryptococcus gattii. Antifungal activity was also observed against a common fungus, Candida albicans. These results are important because they offer a potentially new class of antifungal drugs and the repurposing of currently available therapeutics. IMPORTANCE Much like the recent increase in drug-resistant bacteria, there is a rise in antifungal-resistant strains of pathogenic fungi. There is a need for novel and more potent antifungal therapeutics. Consequently, we investigated a mixed library of drug-like and probe-like compounds with activity in Plasmodium spp. for activity against two common fungal pathogens, Cryptococcus neoformans and Candida albicans, along with two less common pathogenic species, Lomentospora prolificans and Cryptococcus gattii. We uncover a previously uncharacterized drug with higher broad-spectrum antifungal activity than some current treatments. Our findings may eventually lead to a compound added to the arsenal of antifungal therapeutics.
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15
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Structure-based drug design, synthesis and biological assays of P. falciparum Atg3–Atg8 protein–protein interaction inhibitors. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2018; 32:473-486. [DOI: 10.1007/s10822-018-0102-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2017] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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16
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Characterization of Plasmodium Atg3-Atg8 Interaction Inhibitors Identifies Novel Alternative Mechanisms of Action in Toxoplasma gondii. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2018; 62:AAC.01489-17. [PMID: 29158278 DOI: 10.1128/aac.01489-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2017] [Accepted: 11/15/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Protozoan parasites, including the apicomplexan pathogens Plasmodium falciparum (which causes malaria) and Toxoplasma gondii (which causes toxoplasmosis), infect millions of people worldwide and represent major human disease burdens. Despite their prevalence, therapeutic strategies to treat infections caused by these parasites remain limited and are threatened by the emergence of drug resistance, highlighting the need for the identification of novel drug targets. Recently, homologues of the core autophagy proteins, including Atg8 and Atg3, were identified in many protozoan parasites. Importantly, components of the Atg8 conjugation system that facilitate the lipidation of Atg8 are required for both canonical and parasite-specific functions and are essential for parasite viability. Structural characterization of the P. falciparum Atg3-Atg8 (PfAtg3-Atg8) interaction has led to the identification of compounds that block this interaction. Additionally, many of these compounds inhibit P. falciparum growth in vitro, demonstrating the viability of this pathway as a drug target. Given the essential role of the Atg8 lipidation pathway in Toxoplasma, we sought to determine whether three PfAtg3-Atg8 interaction inhibitors identified in the Medicines for Malaria Venture Malaria Box exerted a similar inhibitory effect in Toxoplasma While all three inhibitors blocked Toxoplasma replication in vitro at submicromolar concentrations, they did not inhibit T. gondii Atg8 (TgAtg8) lipidation. Rather, high concentrations of two of these compounds induced TgAtg8 lipidation and fragmentation of the parasite mitochondrion, similar to the effects seen following starvation and monensin-induced autophagy. Additionally, we report that one of the PfAtg3-Atg8 interaction inhibitors induces Toxoplasma egress and provide evidence that this is mediated by an increase in intracellular calcium in response to drug treatment.
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Khalife J, Pierrot C. Phosphatases are emerging as novel druggable targets in Plasmodium. Future Microbiol 2016; 11:603-6. [PMID: 27159136 DOI: 10.2217/fmb-2016-0029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Jamal Khalife
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1019
| | - Christine Pierrot
- UMR 8204 - CIIL - Centre d'Infection et d'Immunité de Lille, F-59000 Lille, France
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