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Nemčovičová I, Lopušná K, Štibrániová I, Benedetti F, Berti F, Felluga F, Drioli S, Vidali M, Katrlík J, Pažitná L, Holazová A, Blahutová J, Lenhartová S, Sláviková M, Klempa B, Ondrejovič M, Chmelová D, Legerská B, Miertuš S, Klacsová M, Uhríková D, Kerti L, Frecer V. Identification and evaluation of antiviral activity of novel compounds targeting SARS-CoV-2 virus by enzymatic and antiviral assays, and computational analysis. J Enzyme Inhib Med Chem 2024; 39:2301772. [PMID: 38221792 PMCID: PMC10791089 DOI: 10.1080/14756366.2024.2301772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/16/2024] Open
Abstract
The viral genome of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, the aetiologic agent of COVID-19, encodes structural, non-structural, and accessory proteins. Most of these components undergo rapid genetic variations, though to a lesser extent the essential viral proteases. Consequently, the protease and/or deubiquitinase activities of the cysteine proteases Mpro and PLpro became attractive targets for the design of antiviral agents. Here, we develop and evaluate new bis(benzylidene)cyclohexanones (BBC) and identify potential antiviral compounds. Three compounds were found to be effective in reducing the SARS-CoV-2 load, with EC50 values in the low micromolar concentration range. However, these compounds also exhibited inhibitory activity IC50 against PLpro at approximately 10-fold higher micromolar concentrations. Although originally developed as PLpro inhibitors, the comparison between IC50 and EC50 of BBC indicates that the mechanism of their in vitro antiviral activity is probably not directly related to inhibition of viral cysteine proteases. In conclusion, our study has identified new potential noncytotoxic antiviral compounds suitable for in vivo testing and further improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivana Nemčovičová
- Biomedical Research Center, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Katarína Lopušná
- Biomedical Research Center, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Iveta Štibrániová
- Biomedical Research Center, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Fabio Benedetti
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Federico Berti
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Fulvia Felluga
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Sara Drioli
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Mattia Vidali
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Jaroslav Katrlík
- Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Lucia Pažitná
- Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Alena Holazová
- Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Jana Blahutová
- Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Simona Lenhartová
- Biomedical Research Center, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Monika Sláviková
- Biomedical Research Center, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Boris Klempa
- Biomedical Research Center, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Miroslav Ondrejovič
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Trnava, Slovakia
- ICARST n.o, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Daniela Chmelová
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Trnava, Slovakia
| | - Barbora Legerská
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Trnava, Slovakia
| | - Stanislav Miertuš
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Trnava, Slovakia
- ICARST n.o, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Mária Klacsová
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Drugs, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Daniela Uhríková
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Drugs, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Lukáš Kerti
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Drugs, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Vladimír Frecer
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Drugs, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
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Rahebi P, Aryapour H. Reconstruction of the unbinding pathways of new inhibitors of the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease using molecular dynamics simulation. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024; 42:7501-7514. [PMID: 37505097 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2240424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Developing novel antiviral drugs against the SARS-CoV-2 virus and COVID-19 disease is imperative as the vaccines may not offer absolute protection. PLpro plays a crucial role in the viral life cycle, making it an attractive target for drug development. Several PLpro inhibitors have been developed, and their 3D structures in complex with PLpro are available. In this work, we employed Supervised Molecular Dynamics (SuMD), a specific Unbiased Molecular Dynamics (UMD) method, to investigate unbinding pathways of the novel inhibitors of PLpro (PDB IDs: 7LBR, 7RZC, 7SDR and 7E35) and GRL0617 (PDB ID: 7JRN) as a reference. We conducted three simulations for each ligand and achieved unbinding events in the nanosecond timescale in all simulations. We found that unbinding events are commonly affected by altering the conformation of the BL2 loop, which is caused by the natural fluctuations of the loop that are required to trap the substrate and throw out the product. BL2 loop is crucial for keeping the ligand and unbinding and acts as a double-edged sword. Any inhibitor designed to be effective must prevent the loop's natural fluctuations. We perceived that increasing ligands interactions with the binding pocket interior and the BL2 loop will help prevent natural fluctuation of the BL2 loop, Although the interactions with the binding pocket's inner side are more critical than the BL2 loop. These findings may be helpful in developing more potent inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pouya Rahebi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Golestan University, Gorgan, Iran
| | - Hassan Aryapour
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Golestan University, Gorgan, Iran
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Ferreira JC, Fadl S, Cardoso THS, Andrade BS, Melo TS, Silva EMDA, Agarwal A, Turville SJ, Saksena NK, Rabeh WM. Boosting immunity: synergistic antiviral effects of luteolin, vitamin C, magnesium and zinc against SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro. Biosci Rep 2024; 44:BSR20240617. [PMID: 39045772 PMCID: PMC11327220 DOI: 10.1042/bsr20240617] [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: 05/17/2024] [Revised: 07/10/2024] [Accepted: 07/23/2024] [Indexed: 07/25/2024] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 was first discovered in 2019 and has disseminated throughout the globe to pandemic levels, imposing significant health and economic burdens. Although vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 have been developed, their long-term efficacy and specificity have not been determined, and antiviral drugs remain necessary. Flavonoids, which are commonly found in plants, fruits, and vegetables and are part of the human diet, have attracted considerable attention as potential therapeutic agents due to their antiviral and antimicrobial activities and effects on other biological activities, such as inflammation. The present study uses a combination of biochemical, cellular, molecular dynamics, and molecular docking experiments to provide compelling evidence that the flavonoid luteolin (2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-5,7-dihydroxy-4H-chromen-4-one) has antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro) that is synergistically enhanced by magnesium, zinc, and vitamin C. The IC50 of luteolin against 2 µM 3CLpro is 78 µM and decreases 10-fold to 7.6 µM in the presence of zinc, magnesium, and vitamin C. Thermodynamic stability analyses revealed that luteolin has minimal effects on the structure of 3CLpro, whereas metal ions and vitamin C significantly alter the thermodynamic stability of the protease. Interactome analysis uncovered potential host-virus interactions and functional clusters associated with luteolin activity, supporting the relevance of this flavone for combating SARS-CoV-2 infection. This comprehensive investigation sheds light on luteolin's therapeutic potential and provides insights into its mechanisms of action against SARS-CoV-2. The novel formulation of luteolin, magnesium, zinc, and vitamin C may be an effective avenue for treating COVID-19 patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juliana C Ferreira
- Science Division, New York University Abu Dhabi, PO Box 129188, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Samar Fadl
- Science Division, New York University Abu Dhabi, PO Box 129188, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Thyago H S Cardoso
- G42 Healthcare Omics Excellence Center, Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, United Arabes Emirates
| | - Bruno Silva Andrade
- UESB - Universidade Estatudal Do Sudoeste da Bahia. Deparmento de Ciencias Biologicas
| | - Tarcisio S Melo
- UESB - Universidade Estatudal Do Sudoeste da Bahia. Deparmento de Ciencias Biologicas
| | | | | | | | - Nitin K Saksena
- Victoria University, Footscray Park Campus, Melbourne, VIC, 3134, Australia
- Aegros Therapeutics Pty Ltd, 5-6 Eden Park Drive, Macquarie Park, NSW 2113, Australia
| | - Wael M Rabeh
- Science Division, New York University Abu Dhabi, PO Box 129188, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
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Waqas M, Ullah S, Ullah A, Halim SA, Rehman NU, Khalid A, Ali A, Khan A, Gibbons S, Csuk R, Al-Harrasi A. Disrupting protease and deubiquitinase activities of SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease by natural and synthetic products discovered through multiple computational and biochemical approaches. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 277:134476. [PMID: 39111477 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.134476] [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: 12/21/2023] [Revised: 07/31/2024] [Accepted: 08/02/2024] [Indexed: 08/12/2024]
Abstract
The single-stranded RNA genome of SARS-CoV-2 encodes several structural and non-structural proteins, among which the papain-like protease (PLpro) is crucial for viral replication and immune evasion and has emerged as a promising therapeutic target. The current study aims to discover new inhibitors of PLpro that can simultaneously disrupt its protease and deubiquitinase activities. Using multiple computational approaches, six compounds (CP1-CP6) were selected from our in-house compounds database, with higher docking scores (-7.97 kcal/mol to -8.14 kcal/mol) and fitted well in the active pocket of PLpro. Furthermore, utilizing microscale molecular dynamics simulations (MD), the dynamic behavior of selected compounds was studied. Those molecules strongly binds at the PLpro active site and forms stable complexes. The dynamic motions suggest that the binding of CP1-CP6 brought the protein to a closed conformational state, thereby altering its normal function. In an in vitro evaluation, CP2 showed the most significant inhibitory potential for PLpro (protease activity = 2.71 ± 0.33 μM and deubiquitinase activity = 3.11 ± 0.75 μM), followed by CP1, CP5, CP4 and CP6. Additionally, CP1-CP6 showed no cytotoxicity at a concentration of 30 μM in the human BJ cell line.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Waqas
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Hazara University, Mansehra 2100, Pakistan
| | - Saeed Ullah
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Atta Ullah
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Sobia Ahsan Halim
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Najeeb Ur Rehman
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Asaad Khalid
- Health Research Center, Jazan University, P.O. Box: 114, Jazan 45142, Saudi Arabia
| | - Amjad Ali
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Hazara University, Mansehra 2100, Pakistan.
| | - Ajmal Khan
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman.
| | - Simon Gibbons
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Rene Csuk
- Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Organic Chemistry, Kurt-Mothes-Str. 2, D-06120 Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Ahmed Al-Harrasi
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman.
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Soleimani Asl S, Roozbahani MH. A novel robust inhibitor of papain-like protease (PLpro) as a COVID-19 drug. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024; 42:6863-6870. [PMID: 37578047 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2245474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2023] [Accepted: 07/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
Regarding the significance of SARS-CoV-2, scientists have shown considerable interest in developing effective drugs. Inhibitors for PLpro are the primary strategies for locating suitable COVID-19 drugs. Natural compounds comprise the majority of COVID-19 drugs. Due to limitations on the safety of clinical trials in cases of COVID, computational methods are typically utilized for inhibition studies. Whereas papain is highly similar to PLpro and is entirely safe, the current study aimed to examine several plant secondary metabolites to identify the most effective papain inhibitor and validate the results using molecular dynamics and docking. This simulation was conducted identically for PLpro and the optimal inhibitor. The results indicated that the experimental results are comparable to those obtained In-Silico, and the inhibition effects of Chlorogenic acid (CGA) on papain attained in the experiment were validated (IC50=0.54 mM). CGA as an inhibitor was located in the active site of PLpro and papain (total energy -2009410 and -456069 kJ/mol, respectively) at the desired location and distance. The study revealed that CGA and its derivatives are effective PLpro inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saeed Soleimani Asl
- Iran Digital Twin Laboratory (IDT-Lab)- Incubator Center, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran
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Hangyu W, Panpan L, Jie S, Hongyan W, Linmiao W, Kangning H, Yichen S, Shuai W, Cheng W. Advancements in Antiviral Drug Development: Comprehensive Insights into Design Strategies and Mechanisms Targeting Key Viral Proteins. J Microbiol Biotechnol 2024; 34:1376-1384. [PMID: 38934770 PMCID: PMC11294656 DOI: 10.4014/jmb.2403.03008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2024] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Viral infectious diseases have always been a threat to human survival and quality of life, impeding the stability and progress of human society. As such, researchers have persistently focused on developing highly efficient, low-toxicity antiviral drugs, whether for acute or chronic infectious diseases. This article presents a comprehensive review of the design concepts behind virus-targeted drugs, examined through the lens of antiviral drug mechanisms. The intention is to provide a reference for the development of new, virus-targeted antiviral drugs and guide their clinical usage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wang Hangyu
- Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Inflammatory Disease Research in Universities of Shandong Province, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Li Panpan
- Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Inflammatory Disease Research in Universities of Shandong Province, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Shen Jie
- School of Medical Laboratory, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Wang Hongyan
- Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Inflammatory Disease Research in Universities of Shandong Province, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Wei Linmiao
- Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Inflammatory Disease Research in Universities of Shandong Province, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Han Kangning
- Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Inflammatory Disease Research in Universities of Shandong Province, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Shi Yichen
- School of Stomatology, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang 261053, P.R. China
| | - Wang Shuai
- Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, The Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Inner Mongolia 010050, P.R. China
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory for Pathogenesis and Diagnosis of Rheumatic and Autoimmune Diseases, Inner Mongolia 010110, P.R. China
| | - Wang Cheng
- Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, The Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Inner Mongolia 010050, P.R. China
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory for Pathogenesis and Diagnosis of Rheumatic and Autoimmune Diseases, Inner Mongolia 010110, P.R. China
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Zhang W, Xiao L, Li D, Hu Y, Yu W. New Strategies for Responding to SARS-CoV-2: The Present and Future of Dual-Target Drugs. J Med Chem 2024; 67:11522-11542. [PMID: 38967785 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c00384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/06/2024]
Abstract
The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has resulted in millions of deaths, posing a serious threat to public health and safety. Rapid mutations of SARS-CoV-2 and complex interactions among multiple targets during infection pose a risk of expiry for small molecule inhibitors. This suggests that the traditional concept of "one bug, one drug" could be ineffective in dealing with the coronavirus. The dual-target drug strategy is expected to be the key to ending coronavirus infections. However, the lack of design method and improper combination of dual-targets poses obstacle to the discovery of new dual-target drugs. In this Perspective, we summarized the profiles concerning drug design methods, structure-activity relationships, and pharmacological parameters of dual-target drugs for the treatment of COVID-19. Importantly, we underscored how target combination and rational drug design illuminate the development of dual-target drugs for SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenyi Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Lecheng Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Dianyang Li
- School of Basic Medicine and Clinical Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Yuxuan Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Wenying Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
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Li Y, Lu SM, Wang JL, Yao HP, Liang LG. Progress in SARS-CoV-2, diagnostic and clinical treatment of COVID-19. Heliyon 2024; 10:e33179. [PMID: 39021908 PMCID: PMC11253070 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e33179] [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: 01/18/2024] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 06/15/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Corona Virus Disease 2019(COVID-19)is a global pandemic novel coronavirus infection disease caused by Severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although rapid, large-scale testing plays an important role in patient management and slowing the spread of the disease. However, there has been no good and widely used drug treatment for infection and transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Key findings Therefore, this review updates the body of knowledge on viral structure, infection routes, detection methods, and clinical treatment, with the aim of responding to the large-section caused by SARS-CoV-2. This paper focuses on the structure of SARS-CoV-2 viral protease, RNA polymerase, serine protease and main proteinase-like protease as well as targeted antiviral drugs. Conclusion In vitro or clinical trials have been carried out to provide deeper thinking for the pathogenesis, clinical diagnosis, vaccine development and treatment of SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Li
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Si-Ming Lu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Clinical in Vitro Diagnostic Techniques, Hangzhou, China
- Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jia-Long Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Hang-Ping Yao
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Li-Guo Liang
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- Centre for Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, China
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Qin B, Wu C, Zhao B, Li G, Wang B, Ou M, Li Z, Lang X, Li P, Liu J, Cui S, Huang H. Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of 1,2,4-Oxadiazole Derivatives Containing an Aryl Carboxylic Acid Moiety as Potent Sarbecovirus Papain-like Protease Inhibitors. J Med Chem 2024; 67:10211-10232. [PMID: 38871484 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c00534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2024]
Abstract
Papain-like protease (PLpro) is a promising therapeutic target for its pivotal role in the life cycle of SARS-CoV-2. A series of 1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives was designed and synthesized via a ring formation strategy based on SARS-CoV-2 PLpro-GRL0617 complex structure. Systematic structure-activity relationship studies revealed that introducing oxadiazole and aryl carboxylic acid moieties to GRL0617 enhanced the enzymatic inhibition activity, affinity, and deubiquitination capacity toward PLpro. 1,2,4-Oxadiazole compounds 13f and 26r, which had PLpro inhibition activity (IC50 = 1.8 and 1.0 μM) and antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 (EC50 = 5.4 and 4.3 μM), exhibited good metabolic stability (t1/2 > 93.2 min) and higher plasma exposure (AUC0-t = 17,380.08 and 24,289.76 ng·h/mL) in mice. Especially, compound 26r with moderate oral bioavailability of 39.1% and potent antiviral activity is worthy of further studies in vivo. Our findings provide a new insight for the discovery of antiviral agents targeting PLpro.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Qin
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, National Institute of Pathogen Biology, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
| | - Chengwei Wu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Active Substance Discovery and Druggability Evaluation, Institute of Materia Medica, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, P. R. China
| | - Binbin Zhao
- National Center of Technology Innovation for Animal Models, NHC Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Comparative Medicine Center, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100021, P. R. China
| | - Gang Li
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Active Substance Discovery and Druggability Evaluation, Institute of Materia Medica, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
| | - Baolian Wang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Active Substance Discovery and Druggability Evaluation, Institute of Materia Medica, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, P. R. China
| | - Mengdie Ou
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, National Institute of Pathogen Biology, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
| | - Ziheng Li
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, National Institute of Pathogen Biology, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
| | - Xuli Lang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Active Substance Discovery and Druggability Evaluation, Institute of Materia Medica, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, P. R. China
| | - Peng Li
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Active Substance Discovery and Druggability Evaluation, Institute of Materia Medica, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, P. R. China
| | - Jiangning Liu
- National Center of Technology Innovation for Animal Models, NHC Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Comparative Medicine Center, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100021, P. R. China
| | - Sheng Cui
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, National Institute of Pathogen Biology, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
| | - Haihong Huang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Active Substance Discovery and Druggability Evaluation, Institute of Materia Medica, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, P. R. China
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10
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Patel DK, Kumar H, Sobhia ME. Exploring the binding dynamics of covalent inhibitors within active site of PL pro in SARS-CoV-2. Comput Biol Chem 2024; 112:108132. [PMID: 38959551 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiolchem.2024.108132] [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: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 06/03/2024] [Accepted: 06/19/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
In the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 virus, the search for potent medications is paramount. With a focused investigation on the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease (PLpro) as a promising therapeutic target due to its pivotal role in viral replication and immune modulation, the catalytic triad of PLpro comprising Cys111, His272, and Asp286, highlights Cys111 as an intriguing nucleophilic center for potential covalent bonds with ligands. The detailed analysis of the binding site unveils crucial interactions with both hydrophobic and polar residues, demonstrating the structural insights of the cavity and deepening our understanding of its molecular landscape. The sequence of PLpro among variants of concern (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron) and the recent variant of interest, JN.1, remains conserved with no mutations at the active site. Moreover, a thorough exploration of apo, non-covalently bound, and covalently bound PLpro conformations exposes significant conformational changes in loop regions, offering invaluable insights into the intricate dynamics of ligand-protein complex formation. Employing strategic in silico medication repurposing, this study swiftly identifies potential molecules for target inhibition. Within the domain of covalent docking studies and molecular dynamics, using reported inhibitors and clinically tested molecules elucidate the formation of stable covalent bonds with the cysteine residue, laying a robust foundation for potential therapeutic applications. These details not only deepen our comprehension of PLpro inhibition but also play a pivotal role in shaping the dynamic landscape of COVID-19 treatment strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deepesh Kumar Patel
- Department of Pharmacoinformatics, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Sector 67, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali, Punjab 160062, India
| | - Harish Kumar
- Department of Pharmacoinformatics, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Sector 67, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali, Punjab 160062, India
| | - M Elizabeth Sobhia
- Department of Pharmacoinformatics, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Sector 67, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali, Punjab 160062, India.
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11
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Ferdoush J, Abdul Kadir R, Simay Kaplanoglu S, Osborn M. SARS-CoV-2 and UPS with potentials for therapeutic interventions. Gene 2024; 912:148377. [PMID: 38490508 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.148377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2024] [Revised: 03/09/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
The Ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS), an essential eukaryotic/host/cellular post-translational modification (PTM), plays a critical role in the regulation of diverse cellular functions including regulation of protein stability, immune signaling, antiviral activity, as well as virus replication. Although UPS regulation of viral proteins may be utilized by the host as a defense mechanism to invade viruses, viruses may have adapted to take advantage of the host UPS. This system can be manipulated by viruses such as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to stimulate various steps of the viral replication cycle and facilitate pathogenesis, thereby causing the respiratory disease COVID-19. Many SARS-CoV-2 encoded proteins including open reading frame 3a (ORF3a), ORF6, ORF7a, ORF9b, and ORF10 interact with the host's UPS machinery, influencing host immune signaling and apoptosis. Moreover, SARS-CoV-2 encoded papain-like protease (PLpro) interferes with the host UPS to facilitate viral replication and to evade the host's immune system. These alterations in SARS-CoV-2 infected cells have been revealed by various proteomic studies, suggesting potential targets for clinical treatment. To provide insight into the underlying causes of COVID-19 and suggest possible directions for therapeutic interventions, this paper reviews the intricate relationship between SARS-CoV-2 and UPS. Promising treatment strategies are also investigated in this paper including targeting PLpro with zinc-ejector drugs, as well as targeting viral non-structural protein (nsp12) via heat treatment associated ubiquitin-mediated proteasomal degradation to reduce viral pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jannatul Ferdoush
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga 615 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN 37403, USA.
| | - Rizwaan Abdul Kadir
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga 615 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN 37403, USA
| | - Selin Simay Kaplanoglu
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga 615 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN 37403, USA
| | - Morgan Osborn
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga 615 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN 37403, USA
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12
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Ayubov MS, Mirzakhmedov MK, Yusupov AN, Asrorov AM, Nosirov BV, Usmanov DE, Shermatov SE, Ubaydullaeva KA, Abdukarimov A, Buriev ZT, Abdurakhmonov IY. Most accurate mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genomes identified in Uzbek patients show novel amino acid changes. Front Med (Lausanne) 2024; 11:1401655. [PMID: 38882660 PMCID: PMC11176497 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1401655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 06/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Purpose The rapid changes in the coronavirus genomes created new strains after the first variation was found in Wuhan in 2019. SARS-CoV-2 genotypes should periodically undergo whole genome sequencing to control it because it has been extremely helpful in combating the virus. Many diagnoses, treatments, and vaccinations have been developed against it based on genome sequencing. With its practical implications, this study aimed to determine changes in the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 widespread in Uzbekistan during the pandemic by genome sequencing, thereby providing crucial insights for developing effective control strategies that can be directly applied in the field. Design We meticulously generated 17 high-quality whole-genome sequence data from 48 SARS-CoV-2 genotypes of COVID-19 patients who tested positive by PCR in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Our rigorous approach, which includes stringent quality control measures and multiple rounds of verification, ensures the accuracy and reliability of our findings. Methods Our study employed a unique combination of genome sequencing and bioinformatics web tools to analyze amino acid (AA) changes in the virus genomes. This approach allowed us to understand the genetic changes in the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 widespread in Uzbekistan during the pandemic. Results Our study revealed significant nucleotide polymorphisms, including non-synonymous (missense) and synonymous mutations in the coding regions of the sequenced sample genomes. These findings, categorized by phylogenetic analysis into the G clade (or GK sub-clade), contribute to our understanding of the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 widespread in Uzbekistan during the pandemic. A total of 134 mutations were identified, consisting of 65 shared and 69 unique mutations. These nucleotide changes, including one frameshift mutation, one conservative and disruptive insertion-deletion, four upstream region mutations, four downstream region mutations, 39 synonymous mutations, and 84 missense mutations, are crucial in the ongoing battle against the virus. Conclusion The comprehensive whole-genome sequencing data presented in this study aids in tracing the origins and sources of circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants and analyzing emerging variations within Uzbekistan and globally. The genome sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 from samples collected in Uzbekistan in late 2021, during the peak of the pandemic's second wave nationwide, is detailed here. Following acquiring these sequences, research efforts have focused on developing DNA and plant-based edible vaccines utilizing prevalent SARS-CoV-2 strains in Uzbekistan, which are currently undergoing clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mirzakamol S Ayubov
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | | | - Abdurakhmon N Yusupov
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | - Akmal M Asrorov
- Department of Chemistry for Natural Substances, National University of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
| | | | - Dilshod E Usmanov
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | - Shukhrat E Shermatov
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | - Khurshida A Ubaydullaeva
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | - Abdusattor Abdukarimov
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | - Zabardast T Buriev
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
| | - Ibrokhim Y Abdurakhmonov
- Center of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan
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13
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Ali MA, Sheikh H, Yaseen M, Faruqe MO, Ullah I, Kumar N, Bhat MA, Mollah MNH. Exploring the Therapeutic Potential of Petiveria alliacea L. Phytochemicals: A Computational Study on Inhibiting SARS-CoV-2's Main Protease (Mpro). Molecules 2024; 29:2524. [PMID: 38893400 PMCID: PMC11173994 DOI: 10.3390/molecules29112524] [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: 04/12/2024] [Revised: 04/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2, also known as the COVID-19 pandemic, is still a critical risk factor for both human life and the global economy. Although, several promising therapies have been introduced in the literature to inhibit SARS-CoV-2, most of them are synthetic drugs that may have some adverse effects on the human body. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to carry out an in-silico investigation into the medicinal properties of Petiveria alliacea L. (P. alliacea L.)-mediated phytocompounds for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infections since phytochemicals have fewer adverse effects compared to synthetic drugs. To explore potential phytocompounds from P. alliacea L. as candidate drug molecules, we selected the infection-causing main protease (Mpro) of SARS-CoV-2 as the receptor protein. The molecular docking analysis of these receptor proteins with the different phytocompounds of P. alliacea L. was performed using AutoDock Vina. Then, we selected the three top-ranked phytocompounds (myricitrin, engeletin, and astilbin) as the candidate drug molecules based on their highest binding affinity scores of -8.9, -8.7 and -8.3 (Kcal/mol), respectively. Then, a 100 ns molecular dynamics (MD) simulation study was performed for their complexes with Mpro using YASARA software, computed RMSD, RMSF, PCA, DCCM, MM/PBSA, and free energy landscape (FEL), and found their almost stable binding performance. In addition, biological activity, ADME/T, DFT, and drug-likeness analyses exhibited the suitable pharmacokinetics properties of the selected phytocompounds. Therefore, the results of this study might be a useful resource for formulating a safe treatment plan for SARS-CoV-2 infections after experimental validation in wet-lab and clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md. Ahad Ali
- Bioinformatics Laboratory, Department of Statistics, Faculty of Science, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi 6205, Bangladesh;
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi 6205, Bangladesh
| | - Humaira Sheikh
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science & Technology University, Gopalganj 8100, Bangladesh;
| | - Muhammad Yaseen
- Institute of Chemical Sciences, University of Swat, Main Campus, Charbagh 19130, Pakistan;
| | - Md Omar Faruqe
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi 6205, Bangladesh;
| | - Ihsan Ullah
- Institute of Chemical Sciences, University of Swat, Main Campus, Charbagh 19130, Pakistan;
| | - Neeraj Kumar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Bhupal Nobles’ College of Pharmacy, Udaipur 313001, Rajasthan, India;
| | - Mashooq Ahmad Bhat
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia;
| | - Md. Nurul Haque Mollah
- Bioinformatics Laboratory, Department of Statistics, Faculty of Science, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi 6205, Bangladesh;
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14
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Nagavarapu S, Kumar J, Biswal PK. Molecular docking based comparative study of antiviral compounds on SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Nat Prod Res 2024:1-9. [PMID: 38759218 DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2024.2355589] [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: 12/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024]
Abstract
The urgent need for effective therapeutic interventions against SARS-CoV-2 has prompted extensive exploration of potential drug candidates. Among the viral proteins, the spike (S) protein presents an attractive target due to its critical role in viral entry and infection. In this study, we employed molecular docking techniques to investigate the binding affinities and interaction profiles of a panel of active compounds against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Utilising computational simulations, we assessed the binding properties of these compounds within the receptor-binding domain (RBD) and other key regions of the spike protein. Our comparative analysis elucidates the differential binding patterns and identifies promising lead compounds with high binding affinity and favourable interaction profiles. Furthermore, we discuss the implications of these findings for the development of potential therapeutics targeting the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Using molecular docking and the Lipinski five rule, this study illustrates possible compounds with strong binding affinities, their molecular interactions, for both naturally occurring and man-made drugs. Computational approach is applied, and it is concluded that, drugs like Withanolide, Dihydroergocristine, Fenebrutinib, and Ergotamine shows binding energies between -8.3 and -9.1 kcal/mol, and are possible candidate for anti covid drug.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sowmya Nagavarapu
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, GIET University Gunupur, Odisha, India
| | - Jitendra Kumar
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, GIET University Gunupur, Odisha, India
| | - Pradyut K Biswal
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, IIIT Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
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15
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Sabadini G, Mellado M, Morales C, Mella J. Arylamines QSAR-Based Design and Molecular Dynamics of New Phenylthiophene and Benzimidazole Derivatives with Affinity for the C111, Y268, and H73 Sites of SARS-CoV-2 PLpro Enzyme. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2024; 17:606. [PMID: 38794177 PMCID: PMC11124164 DOI: 10.3390/ph17050606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2024] [Revised: 05/01/2024] [Accepted: 05/07/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024] Open
Abstract
A non-structural SARS-CoV-2 protein, PLpro, is involved in post-translational modifications in cells, allowing the evasion of antiviral immune response mechanisms. In this study, potential PLpro inhibitory drugs were designed using QSAR, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics. A combined QSAR equation with physicochemical and Free-Wilson descriptors was formulated. The r2, q2, and r2test values were 0.833, 0.770, and 0.721, respectively. From the equation, it was found that the presence of an aromatic ring and a basic nitrogen atom is crucial for obtaining good antiviral activity. Then, a series of structures for the binding sites of C111, Y268, and H73 of PLpro were created. The best compounds were found to exhibit pIC50 values of 9.124 and docking scoring values of -14 kcal/mol. The stability of the compounds in the cavities was confirmed by molecular dynamics studies. A high number of stable contacts and good interactions over time were exhibited by the aryl-thiophenes Pred14 and Pred15, making them potential antiviral candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianfranco Sabadini
- Instituto de Química y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valparaíso, Av. Gran Bretaña 1111, Valparaíso 2360102, Chile;
| | - Marco Mellado
- Instituto de Investigación y Postgrado, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Central de Chile, Santiago 8330507, Chile
| | - César Morales
- Laboratorio de Materiales Funcionales, Centro Integrativo de Biología y Química Aplicada (CIBQA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Bernardo OHiggins, General Gana 1702, Santiago 8320000, Chile;
| | - Jaime Mella
- Instituto de Química y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valparaíso, Av. Gran Bretaña 1111, Valparaíso 2360102, Chile;
- Centro de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación de Productos Bioactivos (CInBIO), Universidad de Valparaíso, Av. Gran Bretaña 1111, Valparaíso 2360102, Chile
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16
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Wang X, Zhu Y, Zhao Q, Lu W, Xu Y, Hu H, Lu X. Chemical Space Profiling of SARS-CoV-2 PL pro Using DNA-Encoded Focused Libraries. ACS Med Chem Lett 2024; 15:555-564. [PMID: 38628804 PMCID: PMC11017295 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.4c00069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2024] [Revised: 03/08/2024] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
DNA-encoded library (DEL) technology is gaining attention for its rapid construction and deconvolution capabilities. Our study explored a novel strategy using rational DELs tailored for the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease, which revealed new fragments. Structural changes post-DEL screening mimic traditional medicinal chemistry lead optimization. We unveiled unique aromatic structures offering an alternative optimization path. Notably, we identified superior binding fragments targeting the BL2 groove. Derivative 16 emerged as the most promising by exhibiting IC50 values of 0.25 μM. Derivative 6, which features an aromatic fragment capped with a naphthalene moiety, showed IC50 values of 2.91 μM. Molecular modeling revealed hydrogen bond interactions with Lys157 residue and potential covalent interactions with nearby amino acid residues. This research underscored DEL's potential for fragment-based drug discovery against SARS-CoV-2 protease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xudong Wang
- State
Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai
Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
- University
of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
| | - Ying Zhu
- School
of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University
of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, P. R. China
| | - Qingyi Zhao
- School
of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University
of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, P. R. China
| | - Weiwei Lu
- State
Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai
Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Yechun Xu
- State
Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai
Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
- School
of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University
of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, P. R. China
| | - Hangchen Hu
- State
Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai
Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
- School
of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced
Study, University of Chinese Academy of
Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Xiaojie Lu
- State
Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai
Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
- School
of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University
of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, P. R. China
- University
of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
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17
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Mendonça SC, Gomes BA, Campos MF, da Fonseca TS, Esteves MEA, Andriolo BV, Cheohen CFDAR, Constant LEC, da Silva Costa S, Calil PT, Tucci AR, de Oliveira TKF, Rosa ADS, Ferreira VNDS, Lima JNH, Miranda MD, da Costa LJ, da Silva ML, Scotti MT, Allonso D, Leitão GG, Leitão SG. Myrtucommulones and Related Acylphloroglucinols from Myrtaceae as a Promising Source of Multitarget SARS-CoV-2 Cycle Inhibitors. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2024; 17:436. [PMID: 38675398 PMCID: PMC11054083 DOI: 10.3390/ph17040436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
The LABEXTRACT plant extract bank, featuring diverse members of the Myrtaceae family from Brazilian hot spot regions, provides a promising avenue for bioprospection. Given the pivotal roles of the Spike protein and 3CLpro and PLpro proteases in SARS-CoV-2 infection, this study delves into the correlations between the Myrtaceae species from the Atlantic Forest and these targets, as well as an antiviral activity through both in vitro and in silico analyses. The results uncovered notable inhibitory effects, with Eugenia prasina and E. mosenii standing out, while E. mosenii proved to be multitarget, presenting inhibition values above 72% in the three targets analyzed. All extracts inhibited viral replication in Calu-3 cells (EC50 was lower than 8.3 µg·mL-1). Chemometric analyses, through LC-MS/MS, encompassing prediction models and molecular networking, identified potential active compounds, such as myrtucommulones, described in the literature for their antiviral activity. Docking analyses showed that one undescribed myrtucommulone (m/z 841 [M - H]-) had a higher fitness score when interacting with the targets of this study, including ACE2, Spike, PLpro and 3CLpro of SARS-CoV-2. Also, the study concludes that Myrtaceae extracts, particularly from E. mosenii and E. prasina, exhibit promising inhibitory effects against crucial stages in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Compounds like myrtucommulones emerge as potential anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents, warranting further exploration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simony Carvalho Mendonça
- Departamento de Produtos Naturais e Alimentos, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil; (S.C.M.); (B.A.G.); (M.F.C.)
| | - Brendo Araujo Gomes
- Departamento de Produtos Naturais e Alimentos, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil; (S.C.M.); (B.A.G.); (M.F.C.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia Vegetal e Bioprocessos, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil
| | - Mariana Freire Campos
- Departamento de Produtos Naturais e Alimentos, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil; (S.C.M.); (B.A.G.); (M.F.C.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia Vegetal e Bioprocessos, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil
| | - Thamirys Silva da Fonseca
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil;
| | - Maria Eduarda Alves Esteves
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Computacional e Sistemas, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro 21040-900, RJ, Brazil; (M.E.A.E.); (M.L.d.S.)
| | - Bruce Veiga Andriolo
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia, Duque de Caxias 25250-020, RJ, Brazil;
| | - Caio Felipe de Araujo Ribas Cheohen
- Programa de Pós-Graduação Multicêntrico em Ciências Fisiológicas, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Instituto de Biodiversidade e Sustentabilidade NUPEM, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Macaé 27965-045, RJ, Brazil;
| | - Larissa Esteves Carvalho Constant
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Biológicas, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-590, RJ, Brazil; (L.E.C.C.); (S.d.S.C.); (D.A.)
| | - Stephany da Silva Costa
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Biológicas, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-590, RJ, Brazil; (L.E.C.C.); (S.d.S.C.); (D.A.)
| | - Pedro Telles Calil
- Departamento de Virologia, Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-590, RJ, Brazil; (P.T.C.); (L.J.d.C.)
| | - Amanda Resende Tucci
- Laboratory of Morphology and Viral Morphogenesis, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil; (A.R.T.); (T.K.F.d.O.); (A.d.S.R.); (V.N.d.S.F.); (J.N.H.L.); (M.D.M.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil
| | - Thamara Kelcya Fonseca de Oliveira
- Laboratory of Morphology and Viral Morphogenesis, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil; (A.R.T.); (T.K.F.d.O.); (A.d.S.R.); (V.N.d.S.F.); (J.N.H.L.); (M.D.M.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil
| | - Alice dos Santos Rosa
- Laboratory of Morphology and Viral Morphogenesis, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil; (A.R.T.); (T.K.F.d.O.); (A.d.S.R.); (V.N.d.S.F.); (J.N.H.L.); (M.D.M.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil
| | - Vivian Neuza dos Santos Ferreira
- Laboratory of Morphology and Viral Morphogenesis, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil; (A.R.T.); (T.K.F.d.O.); (A.d.S.R.); (V.N.d.S.F.); (J.N.H.L.); (M.D.M.)
| | - Julia Nilo Henrique Lima
- Laboratory of Morphology and Viral Morphogenesis, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil; (A.R.T.); (T.K.F.d.O.); (A.d.S.R.); (V.N.d.S.F.); (J.N.H.L.); (M.D.M.)
| | - Milene Dias Miranda
- Laboratory of Morphology and Viral Morphogenesis, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil; (A.R.T.); (T.K.F.d.O.); (A.d.S.R.); (V.N.d.S.F.); (J.N.H.L.); (M.D.M.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro 21041-250, RJ, Brazil
| | - Luciana Jesus da Costa
- Departamento de Virologia, Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-590, RJ, Brazil; (P.T.C.); (L.J.d.C.)
| | - Manuela Leal da Silva
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Computacional e Sistemas, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro 21040-900, RJ, Brazil; (M.E.A.E.); (M.L.d.S.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia, Duque de Caxias 25250-020, RJ, Brazil;
- Programa de Pós-Graduação Multicêntrico em Ciências Fisiológicas, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Instituto de Biodiversidade e Sustentabilidade NUPEM, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Macaé 27965-045, RJ, Brazil;
| | - Marcus Tullius Scotti
- Departamento de Química, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa 58033-455, PB, Brazil;
| | - Diego Allonso
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Biológicas, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-590, RJ, Brazil; (L.E.C.C.); (S.d.S.C.); (D.A.)
- Departamento de Biotecnologia Farmacêutica, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil
| | - Gilda Guimarães Leitão
- Instituto de Pesquisas de Produtos Naturais, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil
| | - Suzana Guimarães Leitão
- Departamento de Produtos Naturais e Alimentos, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil; (S.C.M.); (B.A.G.); (M.F.C.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia Vegetal e Bioprocessos, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, RJ, Brazil;
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Fakih TM, Darusman F, Apriliani R, Prahayati S, Ramadhan DSF, Fikri Hidayat A, Rizkita AD, Yuniarta TA. Predicting anti-COVID-19 potential: in silico analysis of Mauritine compound from Ziziphus-spina christi as a promising papain-like protease (PLpro) inhibitor. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024:1-12. [PMID: 38529845 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2024.2322627] [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: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO), has led to 164,523,894 confirmed cases and 3,412,032 deaths globally as of May 20, 2021. SARS-CoV-2 encodes crucial proteases for its replication cycle, including the papain-like protease (PLpro), presenting a potential target for developing COVID-19 treatments. Mauritine, a cyclopeptide alkaloid found in the Ziziphus-spina christi plant, exhibits antiviral properties and was investigated for its affinity and toxicity towards PLpro using molecular docking through MGLTools 1.5.6 with Autodock Tools 4.2. Preceding this, toxicity and ADME prediction were performed via Toxtree 3.1.0 software and SwissADME servers. Results from molecular docking revealed free binding energy values of -8.58; -7.73; -8.36; -6.07; -6.67; -7.83; -7.67; -7.40; and -6.87 Kcal/mol for Mauritine-A, Mauritine-B, Mauritine-C, Mauritine-D, Mauritine-F, Mauritine-H, Mauritine-J, Mauritine-L, and Mauritine-M, respectively. Correspondingly, inhibition constants were 0.51724; 2.14; 0.7398; 35.43; 12.95; 1.83; 2.38; 3.80; and 9.17 µM, respectively. Interactions observed included hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interactions, and electrostatic interactions between the Mauritine compounds and the receptor. Mauritine-A and Mauritine-C emerged as a promising anti-COVID-19 candidate due to its superior affinity compared to other derivatives, as indicated by research findings. Interestingly, Mauritine-A and Mauritine-C exhibits notable stability as depicted by the RMSD and RMSF graphs, along with a considerable MM-PBSA binding free energy value of -162.431 and -137.500 kJ/mol, respectively.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taufik Muhammad Fakih
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Islam Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
| | - Fitrianti Darusman
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Islam Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
- Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Indonesia
| | - Riry Apriliani
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Islam Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
| | - Syifa Prahayati
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Islam Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
| | | | - Aulia Fikri Hidayat
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Islam Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
| | - Aden Dhana Rizkita
- Department of Pharmacy, Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Kesehatan (STIKES) Bogor Husada, Bogor, Indonesia
- School of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Tegar Achsendo Yuniarta
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Surabaya, Surabaya, Indonesia
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Saquib Q, Bakheit AH, Ahmed S, Ansari SM, Al-Salem AM, Al-Khedhairy AA. Identification of Phytochemicals from Arabian Peninsula Medicinal Plants as Strong Binders to SARS-CoV-2 Proteases (3CL Pro and PL Pro) by Molecular Docking and Dynamic Simulation Studies. Molecules 2024; 29:998. [PMID: 38474509 DOI: 10.3390/molecules29050998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Revised: 02/04/2024] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
We provide promising computational (in silico) data on phytochemicals (compounds 1-10) from Arabian Peninsula medicinal plants as strong binders, targeting 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLPro) and papain-like proteases (PLPro) of SARS-CoV-2. Compounds 1-10 followed the Lipinski rules of five (RO5) and ADMET analysis, exhibiting drug-like characters. Non-covalent (reversible) docking of compounds 1-10 demonstrated their binding with the catalytic dyad (CYS145 and HIS41) of 3CLPro and catalytic triad (CYS111, HIS272, and ASP286) of PLPro. Moreover, the implementation of the covalent (irreversible) docking protocol revealed that only compounds 7, 8, and 9 possess covalent warheads, which allowed the formation of the covalent bond with the catalytic dyad (CYS145) in 3CLPro and the catalytic triad (CYS111) in PLPro. Root-mean-square deviation (RMSD), root-mean-square fluctuation (RMSF), and radius of gyration (Rg) analysis from molecular dynamic (MD) simulations revealed that complexation between ligands (compounds 7, 8, and 9) and 3CLPro and PLPro was stable, and there was less deviation of ligands. Overall, the in silico data on the inherent properties of the above phytochemicals unravel the fact that they can act as reversible inhibitors for 3CLPro and PLPro. Moreover, compounds 7, 8, and 9 also showed their novel properties to inhibit dual targets by irreversible inhibition, indicating their effectiveness for possibly developing future drugs against SARS-CoV-2. Nonetheless, to confirm the theoretical findings here, the effectiveness of the above compounds as inhibitors of 3CLPro and PLPro warrants future investigations using suitable in vitro and in vivo tests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quaiser Saquib
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ahmed H Bakheit
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Sarfaraz Ahmed
- Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Sabiha M Ansari
- Botany & Microbiology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdullah M Al-Salem
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdulaziz A Al-Khedhairy
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
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20
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Waqas M, Ullah S, Halim SA, Rehman NU, Ali A, Jan A, Muhsinah AB, Khan A, Al-Harrasi A. Targeting papain-like protease by natural products as novel therapeutic potential SARS-CoV-2. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 258:128812. [PMID: 38114011 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.128812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Revised: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
The highly infectious respiratory illness 'COVID-19' was caused by SARS-CoV-2 and is responsible for millions of deaths. SARS-single-stranded viral RNA genome encodes several structural and nonstructural proteins, including papain-like protease (PLpro), which is essential for viral replication and immune evasion and serve as a potential therapeutic target. Multiple computational techniques were used to search the natural compounds that may block the protease and deubiquitinase activities of PLpro. Five compounds showed strong interactions and binding energy (ranges between -8.18 to -8.69 Kcal/mol) in our in-silico studies. Interestingly, those molecules strongly bind in the PLpro active site and form a stable complex, as shown by microscale molecular dynamic simulations (MD). The dynamic movements indicate that PLpro acquires closed conformation by the attachment of these molecules, thereby changing its normal function. In the in-vitro evaluation, compound COMP4 showed the most potent inhibitory potential for PLpro (protease activity: 2.24 ± 0.17 μM and deubiquitinase activity: 1.43 ± 0.14 μM), followed by COMP1, 2, 3, and 5. Furthermore, the cytotoxic effect of COMP1-COMP5 on a human BJ cell line revealed that these compounds demonstrate negligible cytotoxicity at a dosage of 30 μM. The results suggest that these entities bear therapeutic efficacy for SARS-CoV-2 PLpro.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Waqas
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Hazara University Mansehra, Mansehra 2100, Pakistan
| | - Saeed Ullah
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Sobia Ahsan Halim
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Najeeb Ur Rehman
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Amjad Ali
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Hazara University Mansehra, Mansehra 2100, Pakistan.
| | - Afnan Jan
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah 21955, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdullatif Bin Muhsinah
- Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Khalid University, Abha 62529, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ajmal Khan
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman.
| | - Ahmed Al-Harrasi
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa 616, Sultanate of Oman.
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21
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Kralj S, Jukič M, Bahun M, Kranjc L, Kolarič A, Hodošček M, Ulrih NP, Bren U. Identification of Triazolopyrimidinyl Scaffold SARS-CoV-2 Papain-Like Protease (PL pro) Inhibitor. Pharmaceutics 2024; 16:169. [PMID: 38399230 PMCID: PMC10893172 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics16020169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Revised: 01/18/2024] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The global impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its companion disease, COVID-19, has reminded us of the importance of basic coronaviral research. In this study, a comprehensive approach using molecular docking, in vitro assays, and molecular dynamics simulations was applied to identify potential inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease (PLpro), a key and underexplored viral enzyme target. A focused protease inhibitor library was initially created and molecular docking was performed using CmDock software (v0.2.0), resulting in the selection of hit compounds for in vitro testing on the isolated enzyme. Among them, compound 372 exhibited promising inhibitory properties against PLpro, with an IC50 value of 82 ± 34 μM. The compound also displayed a new triazolopyrimidinyl scaffold not yet represented within protease inhibitors. Molecular dynamics simulations demonstrated the favorable binding properties of compound 372. Structural analysis highlighted its key interactions with PLpro, and we stress its potential for further optimization. Moreover, besides compound 372 as a candidate for PLpro inhibitor development, this study elaborates on the PLpro binding site dynamics and provides a valuable contribution for further efforts in pan-coronaviral PLpro inhibitor development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastjan Kralj
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Smetanova Ulica 17, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Marko Jukič
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Smetanova Ulica 17, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia
- Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies, University of Primorska, Glagoljaška Ulica 8, SI-6000 Koper, Slovenia
- Institute of Enviormental Protection and Sensors, Beloruska Ulica 7, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Miha Bahun
- Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Luka Kranjc
- Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
- National Institute of Biology, Večna Pot 111, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Anja Kolarič
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Smetanova Ulica 17, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Milan Hodošček
- National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Nataša Poklar Ulrih
- Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Urban Bren
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Smetanova Ulica 17, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia
- Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies, University of Primorska, Glagoljaška Ulica 8, SI-6000 Koper, Slovenia
- Institute of Enviormental Protection and Sensors, Beloruska Ulica 7, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia
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22
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Li T, Yan Z, Zhou W, Liu Q, Liu J, Hua H. Discovery of a Potential Allosteric Site in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein and Targeting Allosteric Inhibitor to Stabilize the RBD Down State using a Computational Approach. Curr Comput Aided Drug Des 2024; 20:784-797. [PMID: 37493168 DOI: 10.2174/1573409919666230726142418] [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: 02/01/2023] [Revised: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 05/31/2023] [Indexed: 07/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has led to a worldwide public health crisis. At present, the development of effective drugs and/or related therapeutics is still the most urgent and important task for combating the virus. The viral entry and associated infectivity mainly rely on its envelope spike protein to recognize and bind to the host cell receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) through a conformational switch of the spike receptor binding domain (RBD) from inactive to active state. Thus, it is of great significance to design an allosteric inhibitor targeting spike to lock it in the inactive and ACE2-inaccessible state. OBJECTIVE This study aims to discover the potential broad-spectrum allosteric inhibitors capable of binding and stabilizing the diverse spike variants, including the wild type, Delta, and Omicron, in the inactive RBD down state. METHODS In this work, we first detected a potential allosteric pocket within the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Then, we performed large-scale structure-based virtual screening by targeting the putative allosteric pocket to identify allosteric inhibitors that could stabilize the spike inactive state. Molecular dynamics simulations were further carried out to evaluate the effects of compound binding on the stability of spike RBD. RESULTS Finally, we identified three potential allosteric inhibitors, CPD3, CPD5, and CPD6, against diverse SARS-CoV-2 variants, including Wild-type, Delta, and Omicron variants. Our simulation results showed that the three compounds could stably bind the predicted allosteric site and effectively stabilize the spike in the inactive state. CONCLUSION The three compounds provide novel chemical structures for rational drug design targeting spike protein, which is expected to greatly assist in the development of new drugs against SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tong Li
- School of Traditional Chinese Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Zheng Yan
- The Affiliated Jiangyin Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Jiangyin 214400, China
| | - Wei Zhou
- School of Traditional Chinese Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Qun Liu
- School of Traditional Chinese Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Jinfeng Liu
- School of Basic Medicine and Clinical Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Haibing Hua
- The Affiliated Jiangyin Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Jiangyin 214400, China
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23
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Srivastava R, Panda SK, Sen Gupta PS, Chaudhary A, Naaz F, Yadav AK, Ram NK, Rana MK, Singh RK, Srivastava R. In silico evaluation of S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine analogs as inhibitors of nsp14-viral cap N7 methyltranferase and PLpro of SARS-CoV-2: synthesis, molecular docking, physicochemical data, ADMET and molecular dynamics simulations studies. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2023:1-18. [PMID: 38147408 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2297005] [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: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
A series of S-adenosyl-L-homosysteine (SAH) analogs, with modification in the base and sugar moiety, have been designed, synthesized and screened as nsp14 and PLpro inhibitors of severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus (SARS-CoV-2). The outcomes of ADMET (Adsorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion, and Toxicity) studies demonstrated that the physicochemical properties of all analogs were permissible for development of these SAH analogs as antiviral agents. All molecules were screened against different SARS-CoV-2 targets using molecular docking. The docking results revealed that the SAH analogs interacted well in the active site of nsp14 protein having H-bond interactions with the amino acid residues Arg289, Val290, Asn388, Arg400, Phe401 and π-alkyl interactions with Arg289, Val290 and Phe426 of Nsp14-MTase site. These analogs also formed stable H-bonds with Leu163, Asp165, Arg167, Ser246, Gln270, Tyr274 and Asp303 residues of PLpro proteins and found to be quite stable complexes therefore behaved as probable nsp14 and PLpro inhibitors. Interestingly, analog 3 showed significant in silico activity against the nsp14 N7 methyltransferase of SARS-CoV-2. The molecular dynamics (MD) and post-MD results of analog 3 unambiguously established the higher stability of the nsp14 (N7 MTase):3 complex and also indicated its behavior as probable nsp14 inhibitor like the reference sinefungin. The docking and MD simulations studies also suggested that sinefungin did act as SARS-CoV-2 PLpro inhibitor as well. This study's findings not only underscore the efficacy of the designed SAH analogs as potent inhibitors against crucial SARS-CoV-2 proteins but also pinpoint analog 3 as a particularly promising candidate. All the study provides valuable insights, paving the way for potential advancements in antiviral drug development against SARS-CoV-2.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ritika Srivastava
- Department of Chemical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Berhampur, Odisha, India
- Bioorganic Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
| | - Saroj Kumar Panda
- Department of Chemical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Berhampur, Odisha, India
| | - Parth Sarthi Sen Gupta
- School of Biosciences and Bioengineering, D Y Patil International University, Akurdi, India
| | - Anvita Chaudhary
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Delhi Technological University, Delhi, India
| | - Farha Naaz
- Bioorganic Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
| | - Aditya K Yadav
- Bioorganic Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
| | - Nand Kumar Ram
- Bioorganic Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
| | - Malay Kumar Rana
- Department of Chemical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Berhampur, Odisha, India
| | - Ramendra K Singh
- Bioorganic Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
| | - Richa Srivastava
- Bioorganic Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Delhi Technological University, Delhi, India
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Forrestall K, Pringle ES, Sands D, Duguay BA, Farewell B, Woldemariam T, Falzarano D, Pottie I, McCormick C, Darvesh S. A phenothiazine urea derivative broadly inhibits coronavirus replication via viral protease inhibition. Antiviral Res 2023; 220:105758. [PMID: 38008194 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2023.105758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 11/02/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 11/28/2023]
Abstract
Coronavirus (CoV) replication requires efficient cleavage of viral polyproteins into an array of non-structural proteins involved in viral replication, organelle formation, viral RNA synthesis, and host shutoff. Human CoVs (HCoVs) encode two viral cysteine proteases, main protease (Mpro) and papain-like protease (PLpro), that mediate polyprotein cleavage. Using a structure-guided approach, a phenothiazine urea derivative that inhibits both SARS-CoV-2 Mpro and PLpro protease activity was identified. In silico docking studies also predicted the binding of the phenothiazine urea to the active sites of structurally similar Mpro and PLpro proteases from distantly related alphacoronavirus, HCoV-229 E (229 E), and the betacoronavirus, HCoV-OC43 (OC43). The lead phenothiazine urea derivative displayed broad antiviral activity against all three HCoVs tested in cellulo. It was further demonstrated that the compound inhibited 229 E and OC43 at an early stage of viral replication, with diminished formation of viral replication organelles, and the RNAs that are made within them, as expected following viral protease inhibition. These observations suggest that the phenothiazine urea derivative readily inhibits viral replication and may broadly inhibit proteases of diverse coronaviruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katrina Forrestall
- Department of Medicine (Geriatric Medicine and Neurology) and Medical Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2
| | - Eric S Pringle
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2
| | - Dane Sands
- Department of Medicine (Geriatric Medicine and Neurology) and Medical Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2
| | - Brett A Duguay
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2
| | - Brett Farewell
- Department of Medicine (Geriatric Medicine and Neurology) and Medical Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2
| | | | - Darryl Falzarano
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), 120 Veterinary Road, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 5E3; Department of Veterinary Microbiology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 5B4
| | - Ian Pottie
- Department of Chemistry & Physics, Mount Saint Vincent University, 166 Bedford Highway, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3M 2J6; Department of Chemistry, Saint Mary's University, 923 Robbie Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 3C3
| | - Craig McCormick
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2
| | - Sultan Darvesh
- Department of Medicine (Geriatric Medicine and Neurology) and Medical Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 4R2; Department of Chemistry & Physics, Mount Saint Vincent University, 166 Bedford Highway, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3M 2J6.
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25
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Meng H, Zhou J, Wang M, Zheng M, Xing Y, Wang Y. SARS-CoV-2 Papain-like Protease Negatively Regulates the NLRP3 Inflammasome Pathway and Pyroptosis by Reducing the Oligomerization and Ubiquitination of ASC. Microorganisms 2023; 11:2799. [PMID: 38004809 PMCID: PMC10673202 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11112799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Revised: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The interaction of viruses with hosts is complex, especially so with the antiviral immune systems of hosts, and the underlying mechanisms remain perplexing. Infection with SARS-CoV-2 may result in cytokine syndrome in the later stages, reflecting the activation of the antiviral immune response. However, viruses also encode molecules to negatively regulate the antiviral immune systems of hosts to achieve immune evasion and benefit viral replication during the early stage of infection. It has been observed that the papain-like protease (PLP) encoded by coronavirus could negatively regulate the host's IFNβ innate immunity. In this study, we first found that eight inflammasome-related genes were downregulated in CD14+ monocytes from COVID-19 patients. Subsequently, we observed that SARS-CoV-2 PLP negatively regulated the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway, inhibited the secretion of IL-1β, and decreased the caspase-1-mediated pyroptosis of human monocytes. The mechanisms for this may arise because PLP coimmunoprecipitates with ASC, reduces ASC ubiquitination, and inhibits ASC oligomerization and the formation of ASC specks. These findings suggest that PLP may inhibit strong immune defenses and provide the maximum advantage for viral replication. This research may allow us to better understand the flex function of CoV-encoding proteases and provide a new perspective on the innate immune responses against SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Meng
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100015, China
- Bioinformatics Center of Academy of Military Medicine Science, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Jianglin Zhou
- Bioinformatics Center of Academy of Military Medicine Science, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Mingyu Wang
- Bioinformatics Center of Academy of Military Medicine Science, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Mei Zheng
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100015, China
| | - Yaling Xing
- Bioinformatics Center of Academy of Military Medicine Science, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Yajie Wang
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100015, China
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Ghosh AK, Shahabi D, Imhoff MEC, Kovela S, Sharma A, Hattori SI, Higashi-Kuwata N, Mitsuya H, Mesecar AD. SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease (PLpro) inhibitory and antiviral activity of small molecule derivatives for drug leads. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2023; 96:129489. [PMID: 37770002 PMCID: PMC10842477 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2023.129489] [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: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
We report here the synthesis and biological evaluation of a series of small molecule SARS-CoV-2 PLpro inhibitors. We compared the activity of selected compounds in both SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 PLpro inhibitory and antiviral assays. We have synthesized and evaluated several new structural variants of previous leads against SARS-CoV-2 PLpro. The replacement of the carboxamide functionality with sulfonamide derivatives resulted in PLpro inhibitors with potent PLpro inhibitory and antiviral activity in VeroE6 cells similar to GRL0617. To obtain molecular insight, we created an optimized model of a potent sulfonamide derivative in the SARS-CoV-2 PLpro active site.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arun K Ghosh
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA.
| | - Dana Shahabi
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
| | | | - Satish Kovela
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
| | - Ashish Sharma
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
| | - Shin-Ichiro Hattori
- Department of Refractory Viral Diseases, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Shinjuku, Tokyo 162-8655 Japan
| | - Nobuyo Higashi-Kuwata
- Department of Refractory Viral Diseases, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Shinjuku, Tokyo 162-8655 Japan
| | - Hiroaki Mitsuya
- Department of Refractory Viral Diseases, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Shinjuku, Tokyo 162-8655 Japan; Department of Clinical Sciences, Kumamoto University Hospital, Kumamoto 860-8556 Japan; Experimental Retrovirology Section, HIV and AIDS Malignancy Branch National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Andrew D Mesecar
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 USA
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Brewitz L, Henry Chan HT, Lukacik P, Strain-Damerell C, Walsh MA, Duarte F, Schofield CJ. Mass spectrometric assays monitoring the deubiquitinase activity of the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease inform on the basis of substrate selectivity and have utility for substrate identification. Bioorg Med Chem 2023; 95:117498. [PMID: 37857256 PMCID: PMC10933793 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2023.117498] [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: 08/21/2023] [Revised: 10/07/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease (PLpro) and main protease (Mpro) are nucleophilic cysteine enzymes that catalyze hydrolysis of the viral polyproteins pp1a/1ab. By contrast with Mpro, PLpro is also a deubiquitinase (DUB) that accepts post-translationally modified human proteins as substrates. Here we report studies on the DUB activity of PLpro using synthetic Nε-lysine-branched oligopeptides as substrates that mimic post-translational protein modifications by ubiquitin (Ub) or Ub-like modifiers (UBLs), such as interferon stimulated gene 15 (ISG15). Mass spectrometry (MS)-based assays confirm the DUB activity of isolated recombinant PLpro. They reveal that the sequence of both the peptide fragment derived from the post-translationally modified protein and that derived from the UBL affects PLpro catalysis; the nature of substrate binding in the S sites appears to be more important for catalytic efficiency than binding in the S' sites. Importantly, the results reflect the reported cellular substrate selectivity of PLpro, i.e. human proteins conjugated to ISG15 are better substrates than those conjugated to Ub or other UBLs. The combined experimental and modelling results imply that PLpro catalysis is affected not only by the identity of the substrate residues binding in the S and S' sites, but also by the substrate fold and the conformational dynamics of the blocking loop 2 of the PLpro:substrate complex. Nε-Lysine-branched oligopeptides thus have potential to help the identification of PLpro substrates. More generally, the results imply that MS-based assays with Nε-lysine-branched oligopeptides have potential to monitor catalysis by human DUBs and hence to inform on their substrate preferences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lennart Brewitz
- Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, 12 Mansfield Road, OX1 3TA Oxford, United Kingdom; The Ineos Oxford Institute for Antimicrobial Research, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, 12 Mansfield Road, OX1 3TA Oxford, United Kingdom.
| | - H T Henry Chan
- Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, 12 Mansfield Road, OX1 3TA Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Petra Lukacik
- Diamond Light Source Ltd., Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, OX11 0DE Didcot, United Kingdom; Research Complex at Harwell, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, OX11 0FA Didcot, United Kingdom
| | - Claire Strain-Damerell
- Diamond Light Source Ltd., Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, OX11 0DE Didcot, United Kingdom; Research Complex at Harwell, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, OX11 0FA Didcot, United Kingdom
| | - Martin A Walsh
- Diamond Light Source Ltd., Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, OX11 0DE Didcot, United Kingdom; Research Complex at Harwell, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, OX11 0FA Didcot, United Kingdom
| | - Fernanda Duarte
- Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, 12 Mansfield Road, OX1 3TA Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher J Schofield
- Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, 12 Mansfield Road, OX1 3TA Oxford, United Kingdom; The Ineos Oxford Institute for Antimicrobial Research, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, 12 Mansfield Road, OX1 3TA Oxford, United Kingdom.
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Bakheit AH, Saquib Q, Ahmed S, Ansari SM, Al-Salem AM, Al-Khedhairy AA. Covalent Inhibitors from Saudi Medicinal Plants Target RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase (RdRp) of SARS-CoV-2. Viruses 2023; 15:2175. [PMID: 38005857 PMCID: PMC10675690 DOI: 10.3390/v15112175] [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: 10/10/2023] [Revised: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/28/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
COVID-19, a disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, has caused a huge loss of human life, and the number of deaths is still continuing. Despite the lack of repurposed drugs and vaccines, the search for potential small molecules to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 is in demand. Hence, we relied on the drug-like characters of ten phytochemicals (compounds 1-10) that were previously isolated and purified by our research team from Saudi medicinal plants. We computationally evaluated the inhibition of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) by compounds 1-10. Non-covalent (reversible) docking of compounds 1-10 with RdRp led to the formation of a hydrogen bond with template primer nucleotides (A and U) and key amino acid residues (ASP623, LYS545, ARG555, ASN691, SER682, and ARG553) in its active pocket. Covalent (irreversible) docking revealed that compounds 7, 8, and 9 exhibited their irreversible nature of binding with CYS813, a crucial amino acid in the palm domain of RdRP. Molecular dynamic (MD) simulation analysis by RMSD, RMSF, and Rg parameters affirmed that RdRP complexes with compounds 7, 8, and 9 were stable and showed less deviation. Our data provide novel information on compounds 7, 8, and 9 that demonstrated their non-nucleoside and irreversible interaction capabilities to inhibit RdRp and shed new scaffolds as antivirals against SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed H. Bakheit
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia;
| | - Quaiser Saquib
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia; (A.M.A.-S.); (A.A.A.-K.)
| | - Sarfaraz Ahmed
- Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia;
| | - Sabiha M. Ansari
- Botany & Microbiology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia;
| | - Abdullah M. Al-Salem
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia; (A.M.A.-S.); (A.A.A.-K.)
| | - Abdulaziz A. Al-Khedhairy
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia; (A.M.A.-S.); (A.A.A.-K.)
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29
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Duan L, Tang B, Luo S, Xiong D, Wang Q, Xu X, Zhang JZH. Entropy driven cooperativity effect in multi-site drug optimization targeting SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease. Cell Mol Life Sci 2023; 80:313. [PMID: 37796323 PMCID: PMC11072831 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-023-04985-4] [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: 07/24/2023] [Revised: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/06/2023]
Abstract
Papain-like protease (PLpro), a non-structural protein encoded by SARS-CoV-2, is an important therapeutic target. Regions 1 and 5 of an existing drug, GRL0617, can be optimized to produce cooperativity with PLpro binding, resulting in stronger binding affinity. This work investigated the origin of the cooperativity using molecular dynamics simulations combined with the interaction entropy (IE) method. The regions' improvement exhibits cooperativity by calculating the binding free energies between the complex of PLpro-inhibitor. The thermodynamic integration method further verified the cooperativity generated in the drug improvement. To further determine the specific source of cooperativity, enthalpy and entropy in the complexes were calculated using molecular mechanics/generalized Born surface area and IE. The results show that the entropic change is an important contributor to the cooperativity. Our study also identified residues P248, Q269, and T301 that play a significant role in cooperativity. The optimization of the inhibitor stabilizes these residues and minimizes the entropic loss, and the cooperativity observed in the binding free energy can be attributed to the change in the entropic contribution of these residues. Based on our research, the application of cooperativity can facilitate drug optimization, and provide theoretical ideas for drug development that leverage cooperativity by reducing the contribution of entropy through multi-locus binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lili Duan
- School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, China.
| | - Bolin Tang
- School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, China
| | - Song Luo
- School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, China
| | - Danyang Xiong
- School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, China
| | - Qihang Wang
- School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, China
| | - Xiaole Xu
- School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, China
| | - John Z H Zhang
- Faculty of Synthetic Biology and Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Molecular Therapeutics and New Drug Development, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China.
- NYU-ECNU Center for Computational Chemistry at NYU Shanghai, Shanghai, 200062, China.
- Department of Chemistry, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
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Kosenko M, Onkhonova G, Susloparov I, Ryzhikov A. SARS-CoV-2 proteins structural studies using synchrotron radiation. Biophys Rev 2023; 15:1185-1194. [PMID: 37974992 PMCID: PMC10643813 DOI: 10.1007/s12551-023-01153-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
In the process of the development of structural biology, both the size and the complexity of the determined macromolecular structures have grown significantly. As a result, the range of application areas for the results of structural studies of biological macromolecules has expanded. Significant progress in the development of structural biology methods has been largely achieved through the use of synchrotron radiation. Modern sources of synchrotron radiation allow to conduct high-performance structural studies with high temporal and spatial resolution. Thus, modern techniques make it possible to obtain not only static structures, but also to study dynamic processes, which play a key role in understanding biological mechanisms. One of the key directions in the development of structural research is the drug design based on the structures of biomolecules. Synchrotron radiation offers insights into the three-dimensional time-resolved structure of individual viral proteins and their complexes at atomic resolution. The rapid and accurate determination of protein structures is crucial for understanding viral pathogenicity and designing targeted therapeutics. Through the application of experimental techniques, including X-ray crystallography and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), it is possible to elucidate the structural details of SARS-CoV-2 virion containing 4 structural, 16 nonstructural proteins (nsp), and several accessory proteins. The most studied potential targets for vaccines and drugs are the structural spike (S) protein, which is responsible for entering the host cell, as well as nonstructural proteins essential for replication and transcription, such as main protease (Mpro), papain-like protease (PLpro), and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp). This article provides a brief overview of structural analysis techniques, with focus on synchrotron radiation-based methods applied to the analysis of SARS-CoV-2 proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maksim Kosenko
- Federal Budgetary Research Institution State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology “Vector” Rospotrebnadzor, Koltsovo, 630559 Russia
| | - Galina Onkhonova
- Federal Budgetary Research Institution State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology “Vector” Rospotrebnadzor, Koltsovo, 630559 Russia
| | - Ivan Susloparov
- Federal Budgetary Research Institution State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology “Vector” Rospotrebnadzor, Koltsovo, 630559 Russia
| | - Alexander Ryzhikov
- Federal Budgetary Research Institution State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology “Vector” Rospotrebnadzor, Koltsovo, 630559 Russia
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S V N, B S C, Mahesha, K N CP, M K H, N K L. In-silico investigation of 4-nitro-N-1H-pyrazol-3-ylbenzamide towards its potential use against SARS-CoV-2: a DFT, molecular docking and molecular dynamics study. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2023:1-21. [PMID: 37771166 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2262597] [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: 02/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/17/2023] [Indexed: 09/30/2023]
Abstract
In the present research work, we report the synthesis and characterization of novel pyrazole derivative obtained by the condensation reaction of 4-nitro benzaldehyde group with one equivalent of the 2-amino pyrazole yielding 4-nitro-N-1H-pyrazol-3-ylbenzamide with high yield. The two symmetry-independent molecules (molecule A and molecule B) differ about the central C-N bond, with the dihedral angles between the pyrazole ring system and the nitrobenzene ring being 13.90° and 18.64°, respectively. By optimizing the symmetry-independent dimer molecules, the rotational barrier between the conformers is found to be within the 2.5-5.5 kcal/mol range. QTAIM and RDG based NCI isosurface revealed the presence of strong N-H…N and C-H…O hydrogen bonds which stabilize the two independent centrosymmetric inversion-related dimers. Further, weak and short directional interactions such as C-H…N, H…H and C-H…π were also analyzed systematically using various topological parameters. The compound is found to adhere to the Lipinski's rule of five and exhibit good pharmacokinetic properties. The results of molecular docking studies performed against SARS-CoV-2 virus main protease (PDB IDs: 6LU7, 6W9C and 6WQF) revealed that the compound showed better docking scores. Molecular docking studies verified the inhibition activity of the synthesized novel compound. Finally, the binding free energy and contributed energies were calculated using MM-GBSA method. The 6LU7-ligand complex showed highest binding free energy and among all other interactions, the contributions of the covalent binding and van der Waals energy are found to be significant.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niranjana S V
- Department of Studies in Physics, University of Mysore, Mysuru, India
- Department of Studies in Physics, Karnataka State Open University, Mysuru, India
| | - Chethan B S
- Department of Studies in Physics, University of Mysore, Mysuru, India
| | - Mahesha
- Department of Studies in Physics, University of Mysore, Mysuru, India
- Department of Physics, SJCE, JSS Science and Technology University, Mysuru, India
| | - Chethan Prathap K N
- Department of Physics, University College of Science, Tumkur University, Tumakuru, India
| | - Hema M K
- Department of Studies in Physics, University of Mysore, Mysuru, India
| | - Lokanath N K
- Department of Studies in Physics, University of Mysore, Mysuru, India
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32
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Menendez CA, Mohamed A, Perez-Lemus GR, Weiss AM, Rawe BW, Liu G, Crolais AE, Kenna E, Byléhn F, Alvarado W, Mendels D, Rowan SJ, Tay S, de Pablo JJ. Development of Masitinib Derivatives with Enhanced M pro Ligand Efficiency and Reduced Cytotoxicity. Molecules 2023; 28:6643. [PMID: 37764425 PMCID: PMC10536273 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28186643] [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: 08/02/2023] [Revised: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Recently, a high-throughput screen of 1900 clinically used drugs identified masitinib, an orally bioavailable tyrosine kinase inhibitor, as a potential treatment for COVID-19. Masitinib acts as a broad-spectrum inhibitor for human coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2 and several of its variants. In this work, we rely on atomistic molecular dynamics simulations with advanced sampling methods to develop a deeper understanding of masitinib's mechanism of Mpro inhibition. To improve the inhibitory efficiency and to increase the ligand selectivity for the viral target, we determined the minimal portion of the molecule (fragment) that is responsible for most of the interactions that arise within the masitinib-Mpro complex. We found that masitinib forms highly stable and specific H-bond interactions with Mpro through its pyridine and aminothiazole rings. Importantly, the interaction with His163 is a key anchoring point of the inhibitor, and its perturbation leads to ligand unbinding within nanoseconds. Based on these observations, a small library of rationally designed masitinib derivatives (M1-M5) was proposed. Our results show increased inhibitory efficiency and highly reduced cytotoxicity for the M3 and M4 derivatives compared to masitinib.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cintia A. Menendez
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Adil Mohamed
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Gustavo R. Perez-Lemus
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Adam M. Weiss
- Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, 5735 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.L.); (A.E.C.)
| | - Benjamin W. Rawe
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Guancen Liu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, 5735 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.L.); (A.E.C.)
| | - Alex E. Crolais
- Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, 5735 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.L.); (A.E.C.)
| | - Emma Kenna
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Fabian Byléhn
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Walter Alvarado
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Dan Mendels
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Stuart J. Rowan
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
- Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, 5735 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.L.); (A.E.C.)
| | - Savaş Tay
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
| | - Juan J. de Pablo
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA (G.R.P.-L.); (B.W.R.); (S.J.R.); (S.T.)
- Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Lemont, IL 60439, USA
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33
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Bagdonas M, Čerepenkaitė K, Mickevičiūtė A, Kananavičiūtė R, Grybaitė B, Anusevičius K, Rukšėnaitė A, Kojis T, Gedgaudas M, Mickevičius V, Matulis D, Zubrienė A, Matulienė J. Screening, Synthesis and Biochemical Characterization of SARS-CoV-2 Protease Inhibitors. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:13491. [PMID: 37686295 PMCID: PMC10488051 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241713491] [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: 07/19/2023] [Revised: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 08/19/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The severe acute respiratory syndrome-causing coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) papain-like protease (PLpro) and main protease (Mpro) play an important role in viral replication events and are important targets for anti-coronavirus drug discovery. In search of these protease inhibitors, we screened a library of 1300 compounds using a fluorescence thermal shift assay (FTSA) and identified 53 hits that thermally stabilized or destabilized PLpro. The hit compounds structurally belonged to two classes of small molecules: thiazole derivatives and symmetrical disulfide compounds. Compound dissociation constants (Kd) were determined using an enzymatic inhibition method. Seven aromatic disulfide compounds were identified as efficient PLpro inhibitors with Kd values in the micromolar range. Two disulfides displayed six-fold higher potency for PLpro (Kd = 0.5 µM) than for Mpro. The disulfide derivatives bound covalently to both proteases, as confirmed through mass spectrometry. The identified compounds can serve as lead compounds for further chemical optimization toward anti-COVID-19 drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martynas Bagdonas
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Kamilė Čerepenkaitė
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Aurelija Mickevičiūtė
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Rūta Kananavičiūtė
- Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology, Institute of Biosciences, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania;
| | - Birutė Grybaitė
- Department of Organic Chemistry, Kaunas University of Technology, Radvilenų pl. 19, LT-50254 Kaunas, Lithuania; (B.G.); (K.A.); (V.M.)
| | - Kazimieras Anusevičius
- Department of Organic Chemistry, Kaunas University of Technology, Radvilenų pl. 19, LT-50254 Kaunas, Lithuania; (B.G.); (K.A.); (V.M.)
| | - Audronė Rukšėnaitė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania;
| | - Tautvydas Kojis
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Marius Gedgaudas
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Vytautas Mickevičius
- Department of Organic Chemistry, Kaunas University of Technology, Radvilenų pl. 19, LT-50254 Kaunas, Lithuania; (B.G.); (K.A.); (V.M.)
| | - Daumantas Matulis
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Asta Zubrienė
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
| | - Jurgita Matulienė
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; (M.B.); (K.Č.); (A.M.); (T.K.); (M.G.); (D.M.)
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34
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Shiraishi Y, Shimada I. NMR Characterization of the Papain-like Protease from SARS-CoV-2 Identifies the Conformational Heterogeneity in Its Inhibitor-Binding Site. J Am Chem Soc 2023. [PMID: 37478405 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c04115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/23/2023]
Abstract
Papain-like protease (PLpro) from severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a prime target for the development of antivirals for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, drugs that target the PLpro protein have not yet been approved. In order to gain insights into the development of a PLpro inhibitor, conformational dynamics of PLpro in complex with GRL0617, the most well-characterized PLpro inhibitor, were investigated using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy in solution. Although mutational analyses demonstrated that the L162 sidechain interaction is responsible for the affinity for GRL0617, NMR analyses revealed that L162 in the inhibitor-binding pocket underwent conformational exchange and was not fixed in the conformation in which it formed a contact with ortho-methyl group of GRL0617. The identified conformational dynamics would provide a rationale for the binding mechanism of a covalent inhibitor designed based on GRL0617.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutaro Shiraishi
- Laboratory for Dynamic Structure of Biomolecules, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR), 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Ichio Shimada
- Laboratory for Dynamic Structure of Biomolecules, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR), 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
- Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, 1-4-4, Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8528, Japan
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35
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Qin B, Li Z, Tang K, Wang T, Xie Y, Aumonier S, Wang M, Yuan S, Cui S. Identification of the SARS-unique domain of SARS-CoV-2 as an antiviral target. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3999. [PMID: 37414753 PMCID: PMC10326071 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39709-6] [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: 01/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 nsp3 is essential for viral replication and host responses. The SARS-unique domain (SUD) of nsp3 exerts its function through binding to viral and host proteins and RNAs. Herein, we show that SARS-CoV-2 SUD is highly flexible in solution. The intramolecular disulfide bond of SARS-CoV SUD is absent in SARS-CoV-2 SUD. Incorporating this bond in SARS-CoV-2 SUD allowed crystal structure determination to 1.35 Å resolution. However, introducing this bond in SARS-CoV-2 genome was lethal for the virus. Using biolayer interferometry, we screened compounds directly binding to SARS-CoV-2 SUD and identified theaflavin 3,3'-digallate (TF3) as a potent binder, Kd 2.8 µM. TF3 disrupted the SUD-guanine quadruplex interactions and exhibited anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity in Vero E6-TMPRSS2 cells with an EC50 of 5.9 µM and CC50 of 98.5 µM. In this work, we provide evidence that SARS-CoV-2 SUD harbors druggable sites for antiviral development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Qin
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, Institute of Pathogen Biology Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, 100730, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Pathogen Infection Prevention and Control (Peking Union Medical College), Ministry of Education, 100730, Beijing, China
| | - Ziheng Li
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, Institute of Pathogen Biology Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, 100730, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Pathogen Infection Prevention and Control (Peking Union Medical College), Ministry of Education, 100730, Beijing, China
| | - Kaiming Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Tongyun Wang
- Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yubin Xie
- Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Sylvain Aumonier
- Swiss Light Source at the Paul Scherrer Institute, 5232, Villigen, Switzerland
| | - Meitian Wang
- Swiss Light Source at the Paul Scherrer Institute, 5232, Villigen, Switzerland
| | - Shuofeng Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China.
- Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China.
| | - Sheng Cui
- NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, Institute of Pathogen Biology Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, 100730, Beijing, China.
- Key Laboratory of Pathogen Infection Prevention and Control (Peking Union Medical College), Ministry of Education, 100730, Beijing, China.
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Bajaj T, Wehri E, Suryawanshi RK, King E, Pardeshi KS, Behrouzi K, Khodabakhshi Z, Schulze-Gahmen U, Kumar GR, Mofrad MRK, Nomura DK, Ott M, Schaletzky J, Murthy N. Mercapto-pyrimidines are reversible covalent inhibitors of the papain-like protease (PLpro) and inhibit SARS-CoV-2 (SCoV-2) replication. RSC Adv 2023; 13:17667-17677. [PMID: 37312993 PMCID: PMC10259201 DOI: 10.1039/d3ra01915b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 06/01/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The papain-like protease (PLpro) plays a critical role in SARS-CoV-2 (SCoV-2) pathogenesis and is essential for viral replication and for allowing the virus to evade the host immune response. Inhibitors of PLpro have great therapeutic potential, however, developing them has been challenging due to PLpro's restricted substrate binding pocket. In this report, we screened a 115 000-compound library for PLpro inhibitors and identified a new pharmacophore, based on a mercapto-pyrimidine fragment that is a reversible covalent inhibitor (RCI) of PLpro and inhibits viral replication in cells. Compound 5 had an IC50 of 5.1 μM for PLpro inhibition and hit optimization yielded a derivative with increased potency (IC50 0.85 μM, 6-fold higher). Activity based profiling of compound 5 demonstrated that it reacts with PLpro cysteines. We show here that compound 5 represents a new class of RCIs, which undergo an addition elimination reaction with cysteines in their target proteins. We further show that their reversibility is catalyzed by exogenous thiols and is dependent on the size of the incoming thiol. In contrast, traditional RCIs are all based upon the Michael addition reaction mechanism and their reversibility is base-catalyzed. We identify a new class of RCIs that introduces a more reactive warhead with a pronounced selectivity profile based on thiol ligand size. This could allow the expansion of RCI modality use towards a larger group of proteins important for human disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teena Bajaj
- Graduate Program of Comparative Biochemistry, University of California Berkeley CA USA
| | - Eddie Wehri
- The Henry Wheeler Center of Emerging and Neglected Diseases 344 Li Ka Shing Berkeley CA USA
| | | | - Elizabeth King
- Chemical Biology Graduate Program, University of California Berkeley CA USA
| | | | - Kamyar Behrouzi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California Berkeley CA USA
| | | | | | - G Renuka Kumar
- Gladstone Institute of Virology Gladstone Institutes San Francisco CA USA
| | | | - Daniel K Nomura
- Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley CA USA
| | - Melanie Ott
- Gladstone Institute of Virology Gladstone Institutes San Francisco CA USA
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco CA USA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub San Francisco CA USA
| | - Julia Schaletzky
- The Henry Wheeler Center of Emerging and Neglected Diseases 344 Li Ka Shing Berkeley CA USA
| | - Niren Murthy
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Berkeley CA USA
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37
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Raïch-Regué D, Tenorio R, Fernández de Castro I, Tarrés-Freixas F, Sachse M, Perez-Zsolt D, Muñoz-Basagoiti J, Fernández-Sánchez SY, Gallemí M, Ortega-González P, Fernández-Oliva A, Gabaldón JA, Nuñez-Delicado E, Casas J, Roca N, Cantero G, Pérez M, Usai C, Lorca-Oró C, Alert JV, Segalés J, Carrillo J, Blanco J, Clotet Sala B, Cerón-Carrasco JP, Izquierdo-Useros N, Risco C. β-Cyclodextrins as affordable antivirals to treat coronavirus infection. Biomed Pharmacother 2023; 164:114997. [PMID: 37311279 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.114997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic made evident that there are only a few drugs against coronavirus. Here we aimed to identify a cost-effective antiviral with broad spectrum activity and high safety profile. Starting from a list of 116 drug candidates, we used molecular modelling tools to rank the 44 most promising inhibitors. Next, we tested their efficacy as antivirals against α and β coronaviruses, such as the HCoV-229E and SARS-CoV-2 variants. Four drugs, OSW-1, U18666A, hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HβCD) and phytol, showed in vitro antiviral activity against HCoV-229E and SARS-CoV-2. The mechanism of action of these compounds was studied by transmission electron microscopy and by fusion assays measuring SARS-CoV-2 pseudoviral entry into target cells. Entry was inhibited by HβCD and U18666A, yet only HβCD inhibited SARS-CoV-2 replication in the pulmonary Calu-3 cells. Compared to the other cyclodextrins, β-cyclodextrins were the most potent inhibitors, which interfered with viral fusion via cholesterol depletion. β-cyclodextrins also prevented infection in a human nasal epithelium model ex vivo and had a prophylactic effect in the nasal epithelium of hamsters in vivo. All accumulated data point to β-cyclodextrins as promising broad-spectrum antivirals against different SARS-CoV-2 variants and distant alphacoronaviruses. Given the wide use of β-cyclodextrins for drug encapsulation and their high safety profile in humans, our results support their clinical testing as prophylactic antivirals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dalia Raïch-Regué
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain
| | - Raquel Tenorio
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - Isabel Fernández de Castro
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - Ferran Tarrés-Freixas
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Martin Sachse
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - Daniel Perez-Zsolt
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain
| | - Jordana Muñoz-Basagoiti
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain
| | - Sara Y Fernández-Sánchez
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - Marçal Gallemí
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain
| | - Paula Ortega-González
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - Alberto Fernández-Oliva
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - José A Gabaldón
- Reconocimiento y Encapsulación Molecular. Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia (UCAM), Campus de los Jerónimos, N° 135, Guadalupe, 30107 Murcia, Spain
| | - Estrella Nuñez-Delicado
- Reconocimiento y Encapsulación Molecular. Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia (UCAM), Campus de los Jerónimos, N° 135, Guadalupe, 30107 Murcia, Spain
| | - Josefina Casas
- Institut de Química Avançada de Catalunya (IQAC-CSIC), Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBEREHD), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - Núria Roca
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Guillermo Cantero
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mónica Pérez
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Carla Usai
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Cristina Lorca-Oró
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Júlia-Vergara Alert
- IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA, IRTA-UAB), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain; Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Joaquim Segalés
- Unitat Mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain; Departament de Sanitat i Anatomia Animals, Facultat de Veterinària, UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Spain
| | - Jorge Carrillo
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain
| | - Julià Blanco
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain; University of Vic-Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), 08500 Vic, Spain; Consorcio Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Infecciosas (CIBERINFEC), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - Bonaventura Clotet Sala
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain; University of Vic-Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), 08500 Vic, Spain; Consorcio Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Infecciosas (CIBERINFEC), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - José P Cerón-Carrasco
- Centro Universitario de la Defensa, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena, C/Coronel López Peña s/n, Base Aérea de San Javier, Santiago de la Ribera, 30720 Murcia, Spain.
| | - Nuria Izquierdo-Useros
- IrsiCaixa, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916, Badalona, Spain; Consorcio Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Infecciosas (CIBERINFEC), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain.
| | - Cristina Risco
- Cell Structure Lab, Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, CNB - CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain.
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Wang Q, Chen G, He J, Li J, Xiong M, Su H, Li M, Hu H, Xu Y. Structure-Based Design of Potent Peptidomimetic Inhibitors Covalently Targeting SARS-CoV-2 Papain-like Protease. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24108633. [PMID: 37239980 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24108633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The papain-like protease (PLpro) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) plays a critical role in the proteolytic processing of viral polyproteins and the dysregulation of the host immune response, providing a promising therapeutic target. Here, we report the structure-guide design of novel peptidomimetic inhibitors covalently targeting SARS-CoV-2 PLpro. The resulting inhibitors demonstrate submicromolar potency in the enzymatic assay (IC50 = 0.23 μM) and significant inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 PLpro in the HEK293T cells using a cell-based protease assay (EC50 = 3.61 μM). Moreover, an X-ray crystal structure of SARS-CoV-2 PLpro in complex with compound 2 confirms the covalent binding of the inhibitor to the catalytic residue cysteine 111 (C111) and emphasizes the importance of interactions with tyrosine 268 (Y268). Together, our findings reveal a new scaffold of SARS-CoV-2 PLpro inhibitors and provide an attractive starting point for further optimization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Wang
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Guofeng Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jian He
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jiameng Li
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Muya Xiong
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Haixia Su
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Minjun Li
- Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Hangchen Hu
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Yechun Xu
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
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Kattula B, Reddi B, Jangam A, Naik L, Adimoolam BM, Vavilapalli S, Are S, Thota JR, Jadav SS, Arifuddin M, Addlagatta A. Development of 2-chloroquinoline based heterocyclic frameworks as dual inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 M Pro and PL Pro. Int J Biol Macromol 2023; 242:124772. [PMID: 37172706 PMCID: PMC10171901 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.124772] [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: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Evolution of new variants of SARS-CoV-2 warrant the need for the continued efforts in identifying target-oriented new drugs. Dual targeting agents against MPro and PLPro not only overcome the incomplete efficacy but also the drug resistance, which is common problem. Since both these are cysteine proteases, we designed 2-chloroquinoline based molecules with additional imine moiety in the middle as possible nucleophilic warheads. In the first round of design and synthesis, three molecules (C3, C4 and C5) inhibited (Ki < 2 μM) only MPro by binding covalently to C145 and one molecule (C10) inhibited both the proteases non-covalently (Ki < 2 μM) with negligible cytotoxicity. Further conversion of the imine in C10 to azetidinone (C11) improved the potency against both the enzymes in the nanomolar range (820 nM against MPro and 350 nM against PLPro) with no cytotoxicity. Conversion of imine to thiazolidinone (C12), reduced the inhibition by 3-5 folds against both the enzymes. Biochemical and computational studies suggest that C10-C12 bind in the substrate binding pocket of MPro and in the BL2 loop of the PLPro. Since these dual inhibitors have least cytotoxicity, they could be further explored as therapeutics against the SARS-CoV-2 and other analogous viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bhavita Kattula
- Division of Applied Biology, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India
| | - Bharati Reddi
- Division of Applied Biology, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India
| | - Aruna Jangam
- Division of Applied Biology, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India
| | - Lekhika Naik
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Hyderabad 500 037, Telangana, India
| | - Bala Manikanta Adimoolam
- Analytical and Structural Chemistry Department, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India
| | - Suresh Vavilapalli
- Organic Synthesis and Process Chemistry, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India
| | - Sayanna Are
- Division of Applied Biology, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India
| | - Jagadeshwar Reddy Thota
- Analytical and Structural Chemistry Department, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Organic Synthesis and Process Chemistry, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India
| | - Surender Singh Jadav
- Department of Natural Products and Medicinal Chemistry, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India.
| | - Mohammed Arifuddin
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Hyderabad 500 037, Telangana, India.
| | - Anthony Addlagatta
- Division of Applied Biology, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, Telangana, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Rafi Marg, New Delhi 110001, India.
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Li B, Qiao L, Xiao Q, Zhang J, Liu J, Zhang B, Liu H. Effects of diarylbutane lignans from Schisandra chinensis fruit on SARS-CoV-2 3CL pro and PL pro and their in vitro anti-inflammatory properties. PHYTOMEDICINE PLUS : INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHYTOTHERAPY AND PHYTOPHARMACOLOGY 2023; 3:100432. [PMID: 36968623 PMCID: PMC10005971 DOI: 10.1016/j.phyplu.2023.100432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Schisandra chinensis fruit is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), whose extract has a potent inhibitory effect on the severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro) and papain-like protease (PLpro). PURPOSE This work aims to find the active components from the fruit of S. chinensis against SARS‑CoV‑2 3CLpro and PLpro. MATERIALS AND METHODS The chemical constituents of the fruit of S. chinensis were retrieved based on the electronic databases, such as Web of Science, PubMed, Medline Plus, and CNKI. Molecular docking was used to screen the active components against SARS‑CoV‑2 3CLpro and PLpro. Potential hit compounds were further evaluated by enzymatic activity assay. Furthermore, the anti-inflammatory activities of the active compounds were further explored using the phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA)-induced THP1 cells model. RESULTS In this work, we retrieved 75 components of S. chinensis fruit, including 62 dibenzocyclooctadiene-type lignans, 3 diarylbutane-type lignans, 2 tetrahydrofuran-type lignans, and 8 nortriterpenoids. Combining molecular docking study and in vitro experiments, we found that pregomisin (63), meso‑dihydroguaiaretic acid (64), and nordihydroguaiaretic acid (65) could potently inhibit 3CLpro with IC50 values of 3.07 ± 0.38, 4.12 ± 0.38, and 6.06 ± 0.62 μM, respectively, and inhibit PLpro with IC50 values of 5.23 ± 0.33, 4.24 ± 0.46, and 16.28 ± 0.54 μM, respectively. Interestingly, compounds 63, 64, and 65 also have potent activities of regulating the inflammatory response in vitro. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that compounds 63, 64, and 65 may be promising SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro and PLpro inhibitors and anti-inflammatory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, 100193, Beijing China
| | - Liansheng Qiao
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, 100029, Beijing, China
| | - Qi Xiao
- Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, 100193, Beijing China
| | - Jianuo Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, 100193, Beijing China
| | - Jiushi Liu
- Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, 100193, Beijing China
| | - Bengang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, 100193, Beijing China
| | - Haitao Liu
- Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, 100193, Beijing China
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Pal T, Anand U, Sikdar Mitra S, Biswas P, Tripathi V, Proćków J, Dey A, Pérez de la Lastra JM. Harnessing and bioprospecting botanical-based herbal medicines against potential drug targets for COVID-19: a review coupled molecular docking studies. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2023:1-23. [PMID: 37105230 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2187634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Abstract
Since the end of February 2020, the world has come to a standstill due to the virus SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2). Since then, the global scientific community has explored various remedies and treatments against this virus, including natural products that have always been a choice because of their many benefits. Various known phytochemicals are well documented for their antiviral properties. Research is being carried out to discover new natural plant products or existing ones as a treatment measure for this disease. The three important targets in this regard are-papain like protease (PLpro), spike protein, and 3 chymotrypsin like proteases (3CLpro). Various docking studies are also being elucidated to identify the phytochemicals that modulate crucial proteins of the virus. The paper is simultaneously a comprehensive review that covers recent advances in the domain of the effect of various botanically derived natural products as an alternative treatment approach against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Furthermore, the docking analyses revealed that rutin (inhibitor of the major protease of SARS-CoV-2), gallocatechin (e.g., interacting with 03 hydrogen bonds with a spike-like protein), lycorine (showing the best binding affinity with amino acids GLN498, THR500 and GLY446 of the spike-like protein), and quercetrin (inhabiting at its residues ASP216, PHE219, and ILE259) are promising inhibitors of SARS‑CoV‑2.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tarun Pal
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | | | - Shreya Sikdar Mitra
- Department of Life Sciences, Presidency University, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
| | - Protha Biswas
- Department of Life Sciences, Presidency University, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
| | - Vijay Tripathi
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Engineering, Jacob Institute of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Jarosław Proćków
- Department of Plant Biology, Institute of Environmental Biology, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Abhijit Dey
- Department of Life Sciences, Presidency University, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
| | - José M Pérez de la Lastra
- Biotechnology of Macromolecules Research Group, Instituto de Productos Naturales y Agrobiología, IPNA-CSIC, Tenerife, Spain
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42
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Luo SY, Moussa EW, Lopez-Orozco J, Felix-Lopez A, Ishida R, Fayad N, Gomez-Cardona E, Wang H, Wilson JA, Kumar A, Hobman TC, Julien O. Identification of Human Host Substrates of the SARS-CoV-2 M pro and PL pro Using Subtiligase N-Terminomics. ACS Infect Dis 2023; 9:749-761. [PMID: 37011043 PMCID: PMC10081575 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.2c00458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 04/04/2023]
Abstract
The recent emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in the human population has caused a global pandemic. The virus encodes two proteases, Mpro and PLpro, that are thought to play key roles in the suppression of host protein synthesis and immune response evasion during infection. To identify the specific host cell substrates of these proteases, active recombinant SARS-CoV-2 Mpro and PLpro were added to A549 and Jurkat human cell lysates, and subtiligase-mediated N-terminomics was used to capture and enrich protease substrate fragments. The precise location of each cleavage site was identified using mass spectrometry. Here, we report the identification of over 200 human host proteins that are potential substrates for SARS-CoV-2 Mpro and PLpro and provide a global mapping of proteolysis for these two viral proteases in vitro. Modulating proteolysis of these substrates will increase our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 pathobiology and COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu Y. Luo
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Eman W. Moussa
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Joaquin Lopez-Orozco
- Department
of Cell Biology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Alberto Felix-Lopez
- Department
of Medical Microbiology & Immunology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Ray Ishida
- Department
of Medical Microbiology & Immunology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Nawell Fayad
- Department
of Cell Biology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Erik Gomez-Cardona
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Henry Wang
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
| | - Joyce A. Wilson
- Department
of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5E5, Canada
| | - Anil Kumar
- Department
of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5E5, Canada
| | - Tom C. Hobman
- Department
of Cell Biology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
- Department
of Medical Microbiology & Immunology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
- Li
Ka Shing Institute of Virology, Edmonton, Alberta T6G
2E1, Canada
| | - Olivier Julien
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada
- Li
Ka Shing Institute of Virology, Edmonton, Alberta T6G
2E1, Canada
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43
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Preparation and characterization of nanobodies targeting SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease. Protein Expr Purif 2023; 207:106267. [PMID: 37030644 PMCID: PMC10076250 DOI: 10.1016/j.pep.2023.106267] [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: 01/23/2023] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/26/2023] [Indexed: 04/09/2023]
Abstract
Coronavirus Papain-like protease (PLpro) mediates the cleavage of viral polyproteins and assists the virus escaping from innate immune response. Thus, PLpro is an attractive target for the development of broad-spectrum drugs as it has a conserved structure across different coronaviruses. In this study, we purified SARS-CoV-2 PLpro as an immune antigen, constructed a nanobody phage display library, and identified a set of nanobodies with high affinity for SARS-CoV-2. In addition, enzyme activity experiments demonstrated that two nanobodies had a significant inhibitory effect on the PLpro. These nanobodies should therefore be investigated as candidates for the treatment of coronaviruses.
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44
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Ayoup MS, ElShafey MM, Abdel-Hamid H, Ghareeb DA, Abu-Serie MM, Heikal LA, Teleb M. Repurposing 1,2,4-oxadiazoles as SARS-CoV-2 PLpro inhibitors and investigation of their possible viral entry blockade potential. Eur J Med Chem 2023; 252:115272. [PMID: 36966652 PMCID: PMC10008816 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2023.115272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 03/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023]
Abstract
Although vaccines are obviously mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic diffusion, efficient complementary antiviral agents are urgently needed to combat SARS-CoV-2. The viral papain-like protease (PLpro) is a promising therapeutic target being one of only two essential proteases crucial for viral replication. Nevertheless, it dysregulates the host immune sensing response. Here we report repositioning of the privileged 1,2,4-oxadiazole scaffold as promising SARS-CoV-2 PLpro inhibitor with potential viral entry inhibition profile. The design strategy relied on mimicking the general structural features of the lead benzamide PLpro inhibitor GRL0617 with isosteric replacement of its pharmacophoric amide backbone by 1,2,4-oxadiazole core. Inspired by the multitarget antiviral agents, the substitution pattern was rationalized to tune the scaffold's potency against other additional viral targets, especially the spike receptor binding domain (RBD) that is responsible for the viral invasion. The Adopted facial synthetic protocol allowed easy access to various rationally substituted derivatives. Among the evaluated series, the 2-[5-(pyridin-4-yl)-1,2,4-oxadiazol-3-yl]aniline (5) displayed the most balanced dual inhibitory potential against SARS-CoV-2 PLpro (IC50=7.197 μM) and spike protein RBD (IC50 = 8.673 μM), with acceptable ligand efficiency metrics, practical LogP (3.8) and safety profile on Wi-38 (CC50 = 51.78 μM) and LT-A549 (CC50 = 45.77 μM) lung cells. Docking simulations declared the possible structural determinants of activities and enriched the SAR data for further optimization studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed Salah Ayoup
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, Alexandria, 21321, Egypt.
| | - Mariam M ElShafey
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, Alexandria, 21321, Egypt
| | - Hamida Abdel-Hamid
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, Alexandria, 21321, Egypt
| | - Doaa A Ghareeb
- Bio‑screening and preclinical trial lab, Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, P.O. Box 21511, Alexandria, Egypt
| | - Marwa M Abu-Serie
- Medical Biotechnology Department, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute, City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), Egypt
| | - Lamia A Heikal
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, Alexandria, 21521, Egypt
| | - Mohamed Teleb
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, Alexandria, 21521, Egypt
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45
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Sanders BC, Pokhrel S, Labbe AD, Mathews II, Cooper CJ, Davidson RB, Phillips G, Weiss KL, Zhang Q, O'Neill H, Kaur M, Schmidt JG, Reichard W, Surendranathan S, Parvathareddy J, Phillips L, Rainville C, Sterner DE, Kumaran D, Andi B, Babnigg G, Moriarty NW, Adams PD, Joachimiak A, Hurst BL, Kumar S, Butt TR, Jonsson CB, Ferrins L, Wakatsuki S, Galanie S, Head MS, Parks JM. Potent and selective covalent inhibition of the papain-like protease from SARS-CoV-2. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1733. [PMID: 36977673 PMCID: PMC10044120 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37254-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Direct-acting antivirals are needed to combat coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). The papain-like protease (PLpro) domain of Nsp3 from SARS-CoV-2 is essential for viral replication. In addition, PLpro dysregulates the host immune response by cleaving ubiquitin and interferon-stimulated gene 15 protein from host proteins. As a result, PLpro is a promising target for inhibition by small-molecule therapeutics. Here we design a series of covalent inhibitors by introducing a peptidomimetic linker and reactive electrophile onto analogs of the noncovalent PLpro inhibitor GRL0617. The most potent compound inhibits PLpro with kinact/KI = 9,600 M-1 s-1, achieves sub-μM EC50 values against three SARS-CoV-2 variants in mammalian cell lines, and does not inhibit a panel of human deubiquitinases (DUBs) at >30 μM concentrations of inhibitor. An X-ray co-crystal structure of the compound bound to PLpro validates our design strategy and establishes the molecular basis for covalent inhibition and selectivity against structurally similar human DUBs. These findings present an opportunity for further development of covalent PLpro inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian C Sanders
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA.
| | - Suman Pokhrel
- Department of Chemical and Systems Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Biological Sciences Division, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Menlo Park, CA, USA
| | - Audrey D Labbe
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | | | - Connor J Cooper
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | | | - Gwyndalyn Phillips
- Neutron Scattering Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | - Kevin L Weiss
- Neutron Scattering Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | - Qiu Zhang
- Neutron Scattering Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | - Hugh O'Neill
- Neutron Scattering Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | - Manat Kaur
- Department of Structural Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jurgen G Schmidt
- B-11 Bioenergy and Biome Sciences, Bioscience Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, USA
| | - Walter Reichard
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Biochemistry, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Surekha Surendranathan
- Regional Biocontainment Laboratory, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Jyothi Parvathareddy
- Regional Biocontainment Laboratory, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Lexi Phillips
- Institute for Antiviral Research, Department of Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | | | | | - Desigan Kumaran
- Biology Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, USA
| | - Babak Andi
- Center for BioMolecular Structure, National Synchrotron Light Source II, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, USA
| | - Gyorgy Babnigg
- Center for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- Biosciences Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL, USA
| | - Nigel W Moriarty
- Molecular Biosciences and Integrated Bioimaging, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Paul D Adams
- Molecular Biosciences and Integrated Bioimaging, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Andrzej Joachimiak
- Center for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- Structural Biology Center, X-ray Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Brett L Hurst
- Institute for Antiviral Research, Department of Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | | | | | - Colleen B Jonsson
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Biochemistry, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Lori Ferrins
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Soichi Wakatsuki
- Department of Chemical and Systems Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, Menlo Park, CA, USA.
- Department of Structural Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
| | - Stephanie Galanie
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- Department of Process Research and Development, Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
| | - Martha S Head
- Joint Institute for Biological Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- Computing and Computational Sciences Directorate, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- Computational and Data Sciences, Center for Research Acceleration by Digital Innovation, Amgen, Inc., Thosand Oaks, CA, USA
| | - Jerry M Parks
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA.
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46
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Hassan H, Chiavaralli J, Hassan A, Bedda L, Krischuns T, Chen KY, Li ASM, Delpal A, Decroly E, Vedadi M, Naffakh N, Agou F, Mallart S, Arafa RK, Arimondo PB. Design and synthesis of naturally-inspired SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors. RSC Med Chem 2023; 14:507-519. [PMID: 36970153 PMCID: PMC10034039 DOI: 10.1039/d2md00149g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
A naturally inspired chemical library of 25 molecules was synthesised guided by 3-D dimensionality and natural product likeness factors to explore a new chemical space. The synthesised chemical library, consisting of fused-bridged dodecahydro-2a,6-epoxyazepino[3,4,5-c,d]indole skeletons, followed lead likeness factors in terms of molecular weight, C-sp3 fraction and Clog P. Screening of the 25 compounds against lung cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 led to the identification of 2 hits. Although the chemical library showed cytotoxicity, the two hits (3b, 9e) showed the highest antiviral activity (EC50 values of 3.7 and 1.4 μM, respectively) with an acceptable cytotoxicity difference. Computational analysis based on docking and molecular dynamics simulations against main protein targets in SARS-CoV-2 (main protease Mpro, nucleocapsid phosphoprotein, non-structural protein nsp10-nsp16 complex and RBD/ACE2 complex) were performed. The computational analysis proposed the possible binding targets to be either Mpro or the nsp10-nsp16 complex. Biological assays were performed to confirm this proposition. A cell-based assay for Mpro protease activity using a reverse-nanoluciferase (Rev-Nluc) reporter confirmed that 3b targets Mpro. These results open the way towards further hit-to-lead optimisations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haitham Hassan
- Institut Pasteur, Department of Structural Biology and Chemistry, CNRS UMR no 3523 Chem4Life, Epigenetic Chemical Biology, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Jeanne Chiavaralli
- Institut Pasteur, Center for Technological Resources and Research (C2RT), CNRS UMR no 3523 Chem4Life, Chemogenomic and Biological Screening platform, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Afnan Hassan
- Drug Design and Discovery Lab, Zewail City of Science and Technology 12578 Cairo Egypt
- Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Science and Technology, Zewail City of Science and Technology 12578 Cairo Egypt
| | - Loay Bedda
- Drug Design and Discovery Lab, Zewail City of Science and Technology 12578 Cairo Egypt
- Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Science and Technology, Zewail City of Science and Technology 12578 Cairo Egypt
| | - Tim Krischuns
- Institut Pasteur, Unité Biologie des ARN et Virus Influenza, CNRS UMR3569, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Kuang-Yu Chen
- Institut Pasteur, Unité Biologie des ARN et Virus Influenza, CNRS UMR3569, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Alice Shi Ming Li
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto Canada
| | - Adrien Delpal
- CNRS - UMR7257 - AFMB - Aix-Marseille Université Marseille France
| | - Etienne Decroly
- CNRS - UMR7257 - AFMB - Aix-Marseille Université Marseille France
| | - Masoud Vedadi
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto Canada
- QBI COVID-19 Research Group (QCRG) San Francisco CA USA
| | - Nadia Naffakh
- Institut Pasteur, Unité Biologie des ARN et Virus Influenza, CNRS UMR3569, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Fabrice Agou
- Institut Pasteur, Center for Technological Resources and Research (C2RT), CNRS UMR no 3523 Chem4Life, Chemogenomic and Biological Screening platform, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Sergio Mallart
- Institut Pasteur, Department of Structural Biology and Chemistry, CNRS UMR no 3523 Chem4Life, Epigenetic Chemical Biology, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
| | - Reem K Arafa
- Drug Design and Discovery Lab, Zewail City of Science and Technology 12578 Cairo Egypt
- Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Science and Technology, Zewail City of Science and Technology 12578 Cairo Egypt
| | - Paola B Arimondo
- Institut Pasteur, Department of Structural Biology and Chemistry, CNRS UMR no 3523 Chem4Life, Epigenetic Chemical Biology, Université Paris Cité F-75015 Paris France
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Garland O, Ton AT, Moradi S, Smith JR, Kovacic S, Ng K, Pandey M, Ban F, Lee J, Vuckovic M, Worrall LJ, Young RN, Pantophlet R, Strynadka NCJ, Cherkasov A. Large-Scale Virtual Screening for the Discovery of SARS-CoV-2 Papain-like Protease (PLpro) Non-covalent Inhibitors. J Chem Inf Model 2023; 63:2158-2169. [PMID: 36930801 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.2c01641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/19/2023]
Abstract
The rapid global spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus facilitated the development of novel direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs). The papain-like protease (PLpro) has been proposed as one of the major SARS-CoV-2 targets for DAAs due to its dual role in processing viral proteins and facilitating the host's immune suppression. This dual role makes identifying small molecules that can effectively neutralize SARS-CoV-2 PLpro activity a high-priority task. However, PLpro drug discovery faces a significant challenge due to the high mobility and induced-fit effects in the protease's active site. Herein, we virtually screened the ZINC20 database with Deep Docking (DD) to identify prospective noncovalent PLpro binders and combined ultra-large consensus docking with two pharmacophore (ph4)-filtering strategies. The analysis of active compounds revealed their somewhat-limited diversity, likely attributed to the induced-fit nature of PLpro's active site in the crystal structures, and therefore, the use of rigid docking protocols poses inherited limitations. The top hits were assessed against recombinant viral proteins and live viruses, demonstrating desirable inhibitory activities. The best compound VPC-300195 (IC50: 15 μM) ranks among the top noncovalent PLpro inhibitors discovered through in silico methodologies. In the search for novel SARS-CoV-2 PLpro-specific chemotypes, the identified inhibitors could serve as diverse templates for the development of effective noncovalent PLpro inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivia Garland
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Anh-Tien Ton
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Shoeib Moradi
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Centre for Blood Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Jason R Smith
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3Z6, Canada.,Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Suzana Kovacic
- Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Kurtis Ng
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Mohit Pandey
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Fuqiang Ban
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Jaeyong Lee
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Centre for Blood Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Marija Vuckovic
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Centre for Blood Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Liam J Worrall
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Centre for Blood Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Robert N Young
- Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Ralph Pantophlet
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada.,Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Natalie C J Strynadka
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Centre for Blood Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Artem Cherkasov
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3Z6, Canada
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48
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Ershov PV, Yablokov EO, Mezentsev YV, Chuev GN, Fedotova MV, Kruchinin SE, Ivanov AS. SARS-COV-2 Coronavirus Papain-like Protease PLpro as an Antiviral Target for Inhibitors of Active Site and Protein-Protein Interactions. Biophysics (Nagoya-shi) 2023; 67:902-912. [PMID: 36883182 PMCID: PMC9984130 DOI: 10.1134/s0006350922060082] [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: 06/05/2022] [Revised: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The papain-like protease PLpro of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is a multifunctional enzyme that catalyzes the proteolytic processing of two viral polyproteins, pp1a and pp1ab. PLpro also cleaves peptide bonds between host cell proteins and ubiquitin (or ubiquitin-like proteins), which is associated with a violation of immune processes. Nine structures of the most effective inhibitors of the PLpro active center were prioritized according to the parameters of biochemical (IC 50) and cellular tests to assess the suppression of viral replication (EC 50) and cytotoxicity (CC 50). A literature search has shown that PLpro can interact with at least 60 potential protein partners in cells, 23 of which are targets for other viral proteins (human papillomavirus and Epstein-Barr virus). The analysis of protein-protein interactions showed that the proteins USP3, UBE2J1, RCHY1, and FAF2 involved in deubiquitinylation and ubiquitinylation processes contain the largest number of bonds with other proteins; the interaction of viral proteins with them can affect the architecture of the entire network of protein-protein interactions. Using the example of a spatial model of the PLpro/ubiquitin complex and a set of 154 naturally occurring compounds with known antiviral activity, 13 compounds (molecular masses in the range of 454-954 Da) were predicted as potential PLpro inhibitors. These compounds bind to the "hot" amino acid residues of the protease at the positions Gly163, Asp164, Arg166, Glu167, and Tyr264 involved in the interaction with ubiquitin. Thus, pharmacological effects on peripheral PLpro sites, which play important roles in binding protein substrates, may be an additional target-oriented antiviral strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- P. V. Ershov
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, 119121 Moscow, Russia
| | - E. O. Yablokov
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, 119121 Moscow, Russia
| | | | - G. N. Chuev
- Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 142290 Pushchino, Moscow oblast Russia
| | - M. V. Fedotova
- Krestov Institute of Solution Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 153045 Ivanovo, Russia
| | - S. E. Kruchinin
- Krestov Institute of Solution Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 153045 Ivanovo, Russia
| | - A. S. Ivanov
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, 119121 Moscow, Russia
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Yang T, Wang SC, Ye L, Maimaitiyiming Y, Naranmandura H. Targeting viral proteins for restraining SARS-CoV-2: focusing lens on viral proteins beyond spike for discovering new drug targets. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2023; 18:247-268. [PMID: 36723288 DOI: 10.1080/17460441.2023.2175812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Emergence of highly infectious SARS-CoV-2 variants are reducing protection provided by current vaccines, requiring constant updates in antiviral approaches. The virus encodes four structural and sixteen nonstructural proteins which play important roles in viral genome replication and transcription, virion assembly, release , entry into cells, and compromising host cellular defenses. As alien proteins to host cells, many viral proteins represent potential targets for combating the SARS-CoV-2. AREAS COVERED Based on literature from PubMed and Web of Science databases, the authors summarize the typical characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 from the whole viral particle to the individual viral proteins and their corresponding functions in virus life cycle. The authors also discuss the potential and emerging targeted interventions to curb virus replication and spread in detail to provide unique insights into SARS-CoV-2 infection and countermeasures against it. EXPERT OPINION Our comprehensive analysis highlights the rationale to focus on non-spike viral proteins that are less mutated but have important functions. Examples of this include: structural proteins (e.g. nucleocapsid protein, envelope protein) and extensively-concerned nonstructural proteins (e.g. NSP3, NSP5, NSP12) along with the ones with relatively less attention (e.g. NSP1, NSP10, NSP14 and NSP16), for developing novel drugs to overcome resistance of SARS-CoV-2 variants to preexisting vaccines and antibody-based treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Yang
- Department of Hematology of First Affiliated Hospital, and Department of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Si Chun Wang
- Department of Hematology of First Affiliated Hospital, and Department of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Linyan Ye
- Department of Hematology of First Affiliated Hospital, and Department of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yasen Maimaitiyiming
- Department of Hematology of First Affiliated Hospital, and Department of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.,Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Haematology Oncology Diagnosis and Treatment, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.,Department of Neurobiology, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, and MOE Frontier Science Center for Brain Science and Brain-machine Integration, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Hua Naranmandura
- Department of Hematology of First Affiliated Hospital, and Department of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.,Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Haematology Oncology Diagnosis and Treatment, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.,Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
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Mezhibovsky E, Hoang SH, Szeto S, Roopchand DE. In silico analysis of dietary polyphenols and their gut microbial metabolites suggest inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 infection, replication, and host inflammatory mediators. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2023; 41:14339-14357. [PMID: 36803516 PMCID: PMC10439978 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2180669] [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: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/22/2023]
Abstract
The outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection ranges from asymptomatic to severe COVID-19 and death resulting from an exaggerated immune response termed cytokine storm. Epidemiological data have associated consumption of a high-quality plant-based diet with decreased incidence and severity of COVID-19. Dietary polyphenols and their microbial metabolites (MMs) have anti-viral and anti-inflammatory activities. Autodock Vina and Yasara were used in molecular docking and dynamics studies to investigate potential interactions of 7 parent polyphenols (PPs) and 11 MMs with the α- and Omicron variants of the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein (SGP), papain-like pro-tease (PLpro) and 3 chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro), as well as host inflammatory mediators including complement component 5a (C5a), C5a receptor (C5aR), and C-C chemokine receptor type 5 (CCR5). PPs and MMs interacted to varying degrees with residues on target viral and host inflammatory proteins showing potential as competitive inhibitors. Based on these in silico findings, PPs and MMs may inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection, replication, and/or modulate host immunity in the gut or periphery. Such inhibition may explain why people that consume a high-quality plant-based diet have less incidence and severity of COVID-19.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Esther Mezhibovsky
- Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, NJ Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health (Rutgers Center for Lipid Research and Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health), 61 Dudley Rd., New Brunswick, NJ 08901 USA
- Department of Nutritional Sciences Graduate Program, Rutgers University
| | - Skyler H. Hoang
- Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, NJ Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health (Rutgers Center for Lipid Research and Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health), 61 Dudley Rd., New Brunswick, NJ 08901 USA
| | - Samantha Szeto
- Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, NJ Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health (Rutgers Center for Lipid Research and Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health), 61 Dudley Rd., New Brunswick, NJ 08901 USA
| | - Diana E. Roopchand
- Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, NJ Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health (Rutgers Center for Lipid Research and Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health), 61 Dudley Rd., New Brunswick, NJ 08901 USA
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