2
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Eck T, Patel S, Candela T, Leon H K, Little M, Reis NE, Liyanagunawardana U, Gubler U, Janson CA, Catalano J, Goodey NM. Mutational analysis confirms the presence of distal inhibitor-selectivity determining residues in B. stearothermophilus dihydrofolate reductase. Arch Biochem Biophys 2020; 692:108545. [PMID: 32810476 PMCID: PMC10727455 DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2020.108545] [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: 05/22/2020] [Revised: 08/08/2020] [Accepted: 08/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Many antibacterial and antiparasitic drugs work by competitively inhibiting dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), a vital enzyme in folate metabolism. The interactions between inhibitors and DHFR active site residues are known in many homologs but the contributions from distal residues are less understood. Identifying distal residues that aid in inhibitor binding can improve targeted drug development programs by accounting for distant influences that may be less conserved and subject to frequent resistance causing mutations. Previously, a novel, homology-based, computational approach that mines ligand inhibition data was used to predict residues involved in inhibitor selectivity in the DHFR family. Expectedly, some inhibitor selectivity determining residue positions were predicted to lie in the active site and coincide with experimentally known inhibitor selectivity determining positions. However, other residues that group spatially in clusters distal to the active site have not been previously investigated. In this study, the effect of introducing amino acid substitutions at one of these predicted clusters (His38-Ala39-Ile40) on the inhibitor selectivity profile in Bacillus stearothermophilus dihydrofolate reductase (Bs DHFR) was investigated. Mutations were introduced into these cluster positions to change sidechain chemistry and size. We determined kcat and KM values and measured KD values at equilibrium for two competitive DHFR inhibitors, trimethoprim (TMP) and pyrimethamine (PYR). Mutations in the His38-Ala39-Ile40 cluster significantly impacted inhibitor binding and TMP/PYR selectivity - seven out of nine mutations resulted in tighter binding to PYR when compared to TMP. These data suggest that the His38-Ala39-Ile40 cluster is a distal inhibitor selectivity determining region that favors PYR binding in Bs DHFR and, possibly, throughout the DHFR family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Eck
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Seema Patel
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Thomas Candela
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Katherine Leon H
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Michael Little
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Natalia E Reis
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | | | - Ueli Gubler
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Cheryl A Janson
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Jaclyn Catalano
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Nina M Goodey
- Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA.
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3
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Tobias AM, Toska D, Lange K, Eck T, Bhat R, Janson CA, Rotella DP, Gubler U, Goodey NM. Expression, purification, and inhibition profile of dihydrofolate reductase from the filarial nematode Wuchereria bancrofti. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0197173. [PMID: 29787565 PMCID: PMC5963757 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0197173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2017] [Accepted: 04/27/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Filariasis is a tropical disease caused by the parasitic nematodes Wuchereria bancrofti and Brugia malayi. Known inhibitors of dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) have been previously shown to kill Brugia malayi nematodes and to inhibit Brugia malayi DHFR (BmDHFR) at nanomolar concentrations. These data suggest that BmDHFR is a potential target for the treatment of filariasis. Here, protocols for cloning, expression and purification of Wuchereria bancrofti DHFR (WbDHFR) were developed. The Uniprot entry J9F199-1 predicts a 172 amino acid protein for WbDHFR but alignment of this sequence to the previously described BmDHFR shows that this WbDHFR sequence lacks a crucial, conserved 13 amino acid loop. The presence of the loop in WbDHFR is supported by a noncanonical splicing event and the loop sequence was therefore included in the gene design. Subsequently, the KM for dihydrofolate (3.7 ± 2 μM), kcat (7.4 ± 0.6 s-1), and pH dependence of activity were determined. IC50 values of methotrexate, trimethoprim, pyrimethamine, raltitrexed, aminopterin, (-)-epicatechin gallate, (-)-epicatechin, and vitexin were measured for WbDHFR and BmDHFR. Methotrexate and structurally related aminopterin were found to be effective inhibitors of WbDHFR, with an KI of 1.2 ± 0.2 nM and 2.1 ± 0.5 nM, respectively, suggesting that repurposing of known antifolate compound may be an effective strategy to treating filariasis. Most compounds showed similar inhibition profiles toward both enzymes, suggesting that the two enzymes have important similarities in their active site environments and can be targeted with the same compound, once a successful inhibitor is identified.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew M. Tobias
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Dea Toska
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Keith Lange
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Tyler Eck
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Rohit Bhat
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Cheryl A. Janson
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - David P. Rotella
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Ueli Gubler
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
| | - Nina M. Goodey
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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4
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Linciano P, Dawson A, Pöhner I, Costa DM, Sá MS, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Luciani R, Gul S, Witt G, Ellinger B, Kuzikov M, Gribbon P, Reinshagen J, Wolf M, Behrens B, Hannaert V, Michels PAM, Nerini E, Pozzi C, di Pisa F, Landi G, Santarem N, Ferrari S, Saxena P, Lazzari S, Cannazza G, Freitas-Junior LH, Moraes CB, Pascoalino BS, Alcântara LM, Bertolacini CP, Fontana V, Wittig U, Müller W, Wade RC, Hunter WN, Mangani S, Costantino L, Costi MP. Exploiting the 2-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole Scaffold To Inhibit Trypanosoma brucei Pteridine Reductase in Support of Early-Stage Drug Discovery. ACS OMEGA 2017; 2:5666-5683. [PMID: 28983525 PMCID: PMC5623949 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.7b00473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2017] [Accepted: 08/11/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Pteridine reductase-1 (PTR1) is a promising drug target for the treatment of trypanosomiasis. We investigated the potential of a previously identified class of thiadiazole inhibitors of Leishmania major PTR1 for activity against Trypanosoma brucei (Tb). We solved crystal structures of several TbPTR1-inhibitor complexes to guide the structure-based design of new thiadiazole derivatives. Subsequent synthesis and enzyme- and cell-based assays confirm new, mid-micromolar inhibitors of TbPTR1 with low toxicity. In particular, compound 4m, a biphenyl-thiadiazole-2,5-diamine with IC50 = 16 μM, was able to potentiate the antitrypanosomal activity of the dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor methotrexate (MTX) with a 4.1-fold decrease of the EC50 value. In addition, the antiparasitic activity of the combination of 4m and MTX was reversed by addition of folic acid. By adopting an efficient hit discovery platform, we demonstrate, using the 2-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole scaffold, how a promising tool for the development of anti-T. brucei agents can be obtained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pasquale Linciano
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Alice Dawson
- Biological Chemistry &
Drug Discovery, School of Life Sciences, The Wellcome Trust Building, University of Dundee, Dow Street, Dundee DD1
5EH, U.K.
| | - Ina Pöhner
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - David M. Costa
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Monica S. Sá
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Rosaria Luciani
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Sheraz Gul
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Gesa Witt
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Maria Kuzikov
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Philip Gribbon
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Markus Wolf
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Birte Behrens
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Véronique Hannaert
- Research Unit for Tropical
Diseases, de Duve Institute and Laboratory of Biochemistry, Université catholique de Louvain, Avenue Hippocrate 74, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Paul A. M. Michels
- Research Unit for Tropical
Diseases, de Duve Institute and Laboratory of Biochemistry, Université catholique de Louvain, Avenue Hippocrate 74, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Erika Nerini
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Cecilia Pozzi
- University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Flavio di Pisa
- University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Giacomo Landi
- University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Nuno Santarem
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Stefania Ferrari
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Puneet Saxena
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Sandra Lazzari
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Cannazza
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Carolina B. Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Bruno S. Pascoalino
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Laura M. Alcântara
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Claudia P. Bertolacini
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Vanessa Fontana
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Ulrike Wittig
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Müller
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Rebecca C. Wade
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
- Center for Molecular Biology (ZMBH), DKFZ−ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
- Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 205, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - William N. Hunter
- Biological Chemistry &
Drug Discovery, School of Life Sciences, The Wellcome Trust Building, University of Dundee, Dow Street, Dundee DD1
5EH, U.K.
| | | | - Luca Costantino
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Maria P. Costi
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
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5
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Perez-Abraham R, Sanchez KG, Alfonso M, Gubler U, Siekierka JJ, Goodey NM. Expression, purification and enzymatic characterization of Brugia malayi dihydrofolate reductase. Protein Expr Purif 2016; 128:81-5. [PMID: 27544923 DOI: 10.1016/j.pep.2016.08.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2016] [Revised: 08/12/2016] [Accepted: 08/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Brugia malayi (B. malayi) is one of the three causative agents of lymphatic filariasis, a neglected parasitic disease. Current literature suggests that dihydrofolate reductase is a potential drug target for the elimination of B. malayi. Here we report the recombinant expression and purification of a ∼20 kDa B. malayi dihydrofolate reductase (BmDHFR). A His6-tagged construct was expressed in E. coli and purified by affinity chromatography to yield active and homogeneous enzyme for steady-state kinetic characterization and inhibition studies. The catalytic activity kcat was found to be 1.4 ± 0.1 s(-1), the Michaelis Menten constant KM for dihydrofolate 14.7 ± 3.6 μM, and the equilibrium dissociation constant KD for NADPH 25 ± 24 nM. For BmDHFR, IC50 values for a six DHFR inhibitors were determined to be 3.1 ± 0.2 nM for methotrexate, 32 ± 22 μM for trimethoprim, 109 ± 34 μM for pyrimethamine, 154 ± 46 μM for 2,4-diaminoquinazoline, 771 ± 44 μM for cycloguanil, and >20,000 μM for 2,4-diaminopyrimidine. Our findings suggest that antifolate compounds can serve as inhibitors of BmDHFR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romy Perez-Abraham
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Karla Garabiles Sanchez
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Melany Alfonso
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Ueli Gubler
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - John J Siekierka
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Nina M Goodey
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA.
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