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Kouba BR, Altê GA, Rodrigues ALS. Putative Pharmacological Depression and Anxiety-Related Targets of Calcitriol Explored by Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2024; 17:893. [PMID: 39065743 PMCID: PMC11280388 DOI: 10.3390/ph17070893] [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: 06/07/2024] [Revised: 06/27/2024] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Depression and anxiety disorders, prevalent neuropsychiatric conditions that frequently coexist, limit psychosocial functioning and, consequently, the individual's quality of life. Since the pharmacological treatment of these disorders has several limitations, the search for effective and secure antidepressant and anxiolytic compounds is welcome. Vitamin D has been shown to exhibit neuroprotective, antidepressant, and anxiolytic properties. Therefore, this study aimed to explore new molecular targets of calcitriol, the active form of vitamin D, through integrated bioinformatic analysis. Calcitriol targets were predicted in SwissTargetPrediction server (2019 version). The disease targets were collected by the GeneCards database searching the keywords "depression" and "anxiety". Gene ontology (GO) and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) were used to analyze the intersections of targets. Network analyses were carried out using GeneMania server (2023 version) and Cytoscape (V. 3.9.1.) software. Molecular docking predicted the main targets of the network and Ligplot predicted the main intermolecular interactions. Our study showed that calcitriol may interact with multiple targets. The main targets found are the vitamin D receptor (VDR), histamine H3 receptor (H3R), endocannabinoid receptors 1 and 2 (CB1 and CB2), nuclear receptor NR1H3, patched-1 (PTCH1) protein, opioid receptor NOP, and phosphodiesterase enzymes PDE3A and PDE5A. Considering the role of these targets in the pathophysiology of depression and anxiety, our findings suggest novel putative mechanisms of action of vitamin D as well as new promising molecular targets whose role in these disorders deserves further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ana Lúcia S. Rodrigues
- Department of Biochemistry, Center of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianopolis 88037-000, SC, Brazil; (B.R.K.); (G.A.A.)
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2
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Hamid M, Zahid S. Ameliorative effects of probiotics in AlCl 3-induced mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2023; 107:5803-5812. [PMID: 37462697 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-023-12686-y] [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: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 06/27/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/20/2023]
Abstract
In recent years, gut microbiome alterations have been linked with complex underlying mechanisms of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease (AD). The gut microbiota modulates gut brain axis by facilitating development of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and synthesis of neuromodulators. The study was designed to unravel the effect of combined consumption of probiotics; Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG®) and Bifidobacterium BB-12 (BB-12®) (1 × 109 CFU) on AlCl3-induced AD mouse model in comparison with potent acetylcholine esterase inhibitor drug for AD, donepezil. Mice were randomly allocated to six different study groups (n = 8). Behavioral tests were conducted to assess effect of AlCl3 (300 mg/kg) and probiotics treatment on cognition and anxiety through Morris Water Maze (MWM), Novel Object Recognition (NOR), Elevated Plus Maze (EPM), and Y-maze. The results indicated that the combined probiotic treatment significantly (p < 0.0001) reduced anxiety-like behavior post AlCl3 exposure. The AlCl3 + LGG® and BB-12®-treated group showed significantly improved spatial (p < 0.0001) and recognition memory (p < 0.0001) in comparison to AlCl3-treated group. The expression status of inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-1β) was also normalized upon treatment with LGG® and BB-12® post AlCl3 exposure. Our findings indicated that the probiotics LGG® and BB-12® have strong potential to overcome neuroinflammatory imbalance, cognitive deficits and anxiety-like behavior, therefore can be considered as a combination therapy for AD through modulation of gut brain axis. KEY POINTS: • Bifidobacterium BB-12 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG were fed to AlCl3-induced Alzheimer's disease mice. • This combination of probiotics had remarkable ameliorating effects on anxiety, neuroinflammation and cognitive deficits. • These effects may suggest that combined consumption of these probiotics instigate potential mitigation of AD associated consequences through gut brain axis modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maryam Hamid
- Neurobiology Research Laboratory, Department of Healthcare Biotechnology, Atta ur Rahman School of Applied Biosciences, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Saadia Zahid
- Neurobiology Research Laboratory, Department of Healthcare Biotechnology, Atta ur Rahman School of Applied Biosciences, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan.
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3
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Lopes FB, Aranha CMSQ, Corrêa MF, Fernandes GAB, Okamoto DN, Simões LPM, Junior NMN, Fernandes JPS. Evaluation of the Histamine H 3 Receptor Antagonists from LINS01 Series as Cholinesterases Inhibitors - Enzymatic and Modeling Studies. Chem Biol Drug Des 2022; 100:722-729. [PMID: 36050829 DOI: 10.1111/cbdd.14139] [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: 05/20/2022] [Revised: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Histamine is involved in several CNS processes including cognition. In the last years, H3 receptor (H3 R) antagonists have been widely explored for their potential on dementias and other cognitive dysfunctions, and the cooperative role between histamine and acetylcholine neurotransmissions on cognitive processes is widely known in literature. This motivated us to assess the potential of 1-[(2,3-dihydrobenzofuran-1-yl)methyl]piperazines (LINS01 compounds) as inhibitors of cholinesterases, and thus this work presents the inhibitory effect of such compounds against acetyl (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE). A set of 16 selected compounds were evaluated, being compounds 2d and 2e the most potent inhibitors of both cholinesterases (IC50 13.2 - 33.9 μM) by competitive mechanism, as indicated by the kinetic assays. Molecular docking simulations suggested that the allylpiperazine and dihydrobenzofuran motifs present in these compounds are important to perform π-interactions with key tryptophan residues from the enzymes, increasing their affinity for both H3 R and cholinesterases. Metric analysis support that compound 2d (LINS01022) should be highlighted due to its balanced lipophilicity (ClogP 2.35) and efficiency (LE 0.32) as AChE inhibitor. The results add important information to future design of dual H3 R-cholinesterases ligands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flávia B Lopes
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Unifesp), campus Diadema, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Cecília M S Q Aranha
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Unifesp), campus Diadema, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Michelle F Corrêa
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Unifesp), campus Diadema, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Gustavo A B Fernandes
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Unifesp), campus Diadema, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Debora N Okamoto
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Unifesp), campus Diadema, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Leonardo P M Simões
- Department of Biochemistry and Organic Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Araraquara, SP, Brazil
| | - Nailton M Nascimento Junior
- Department of Biochemistry and Organic Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Araraquara, SP, Brazil
| | - João Paulo S Fernandes
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Unifesp), campus Diadema, Diadema, SP, Brazil
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Alhusaini M, Eissa N, Saad AK, Beiram R, Sadek B. Revisiting Preclinical Observations of Several Histamine H3 Receptor Antagonists/Inverse Agonists in Cognitive Impairment, Anxiety, Depression, and Sleep-Wake Cycle Disorder. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:861094. [PMID: 35721194 PMCID: PMC9198498 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.861094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Accepted: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
A relationship appears to exist between dysfunction of brain histamine (HA) and various neuropsychiatric brain disorders. The possible involvement of brain HA in neuropathology has gained attention recently, and its role in many (patho)physiological brain functions including memory, cognition, and sleep-wake cycle paved the way for further research on the etiology of several brain disorders. Histamine H3 receptor (H3R) evidenced in the brains of rodents and humans remains of special interest, given its unique position as a pre- and postsynaptic receptor, controlling the synthesis and release of HA as well as different other neurotransmitters in different brain regions, respectively. Despite several disappointing outcomes for several H3R antagonists/inverse agonists in clinical studies addressing their effectiveness in Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and schizophrenia (SCH), numerous H3R antagonists/inverse agonists showed great potentials in modulating memory and cognition, mood, and sleep-wake cycle, thus suggesting its potential role in neurocognitive and neurodegenerative diseases such as AD, PD, SCH, narcolepsy, and major depression in preclinical rodent models. In this review, we present preclinical applications of selected H3R antagonists/inverse agonists and their pharmacological effects on cognitive impairment, anxiety, depression, and sleep-wake cycle disorders. Collectively, the current review highlights the behavioral impact of developments of H3R antagonists/inverse agonists, aiming to further encourage researchers in the preclinical drug development field to profile the potential therapeutic role of novel antagonists/inverse agonists targeting histamine H3Rs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mera Alhusaini
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.,Zayed Center for Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
| | - Nermin Eissa
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.,Zayed Center for Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Abu Dhabi University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Ali K Saad
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.,Zayed Center for Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
| | - Rami Beiram
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.,Zayed Center for Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
| | - Bassem Sadek
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.,Zayed Center for Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
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Lopes FB, Aranha CMSQ, Fernandes JPS. Histamine H 3 receptor and cholinesterases as synergistic targets for cognitive decline: Strategies to the rational design of multitarget ligands. Chem Biol Drug Des 2021; 98:212-225. [PMID: 33991182 DOI: 10.1111/cbdd.13866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2021] [Revised: 05/04/2021] [Accepted: 05/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The role of histamine and acetylcholine in cognitive functions suggests that compounds able to increase both histaminergic and cholinergic neurotransmissions in the brain should be considered as promising therapeutic options. For this purpose, dual inhibitors of histamine H3 receptors (H3 R) and cholinesterases (ChEs) have been designed and assessed. In this context, this paper reviews the strategies used to obtain dual H3 R/ChEs ligands using multitarget design approaches. Hybrid compounds designed by linking tacrine or flavonoid motifs to H3 R antagonists were obtained with high affinity for both targets, and compounds designed by merging the H3 R antagonist pharmacophore with known anticholinesterase molecules were also reported. These reports strongly suggest that key modifications in the lipophilic region (including a second basic group) seem to be a strategy to reach novel compounds, allied with longer linker groups to a basic region. Some compounds have already demonstrated efficacy in memory models, although the pharmacokinetic and toxicity profile should be considered when designing further compounds. In conclusion, the key features to be considered when designing novel H3 R/ChEs inhibitors with improved pharmacological profile were herein summarized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flávia B Lopes
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Cecília M S Q Aranha
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - João Paulo S Fernandes
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
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Novel potent (dihydro)benzofuranyl piperazines as human histamine receptor ligands - Functional characterization and modeling studies on H 3 and H 4 receptors. Bioorg Med Chem 2020; 30:115924. [PMID: 33333448 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2020.115924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2020] [Revised: 11/28/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Histamine acts through four different receptors (H1R-H4R), the H3R and H4R being the most explored in the last years as drug targets. The H3R is a potential target to treat narcolepsy, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, schizophrenia and several other CNS-related conditions, while H4R blockade leads to anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. Our group has been exploring the dihydrobenzofuranyl-piperazines (LINS01 series) as human H3R/H4R ligands as potential drug candidates. In the present study, a set of 12 compounds were synthesized from adequate (dihydro)benzofuran synthons through simple reactions with corresponding piperazines, giving moderate to high yields. Four compounds (1b, 1f, 1g and 1h) showed high hH3R affinity (pKi > 7), compound 1h being the most potent (pKi 8.4), and compound 1f showed the best efficiency (pKi 8.2, LE 0.53, LLE 5.85). BRET-based assays monitoring Gαi activity indicated that the compounds are potent antagonists. Only one compound (2c, pKi 7.1) presented high affinity for hH4R. In contrast to what was observed for hH3R, it showed partial agonist activity. Docking experiments indicated that bulky substituents occupy a hydrophobic pocket in hH3R, while the N-allyl group forms favorable interactions with hydrophobic residues in the TM2, 3 and 7, increasing the selectivity towards hH3R. Additionally, the importance of the indole NH in the interaction with Glu5.46 from hH4R was confirmed by the modeling results, explaining the affinity and agonistic activity of compound 2c. The data reported in this work represent important findings for the rational design of future compounds for hH3R and hH4R.
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Giacomini AC, Bueno BW, Marcon L, Scolari N, Genario R, Demin KA, Kolesnikova TO, Kalueff AV, de Abreu MS. An acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, donepezil, increases anxiety and cortisol levels in adult zebrafish. J Psychopharmacol 2020; 34:1449-1456. [PMID: 32854587 DOI: 10.1177/0269881120944155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A potent acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, donepezil is a cognitive enhancer clinically used to treat neurodegenerative diseases. However, its complete pharmacological profile beyond cognition remains unclear. The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is rapidly becoming a powerful novel model organism in neuroscience and central nervous system drug screening. AIM Here, we characterize the effects of 24-h donepezil administration on anxiety-like behavioral and endocrine responses in adult zebrafish. METHODS We evaluated zebrafish anxiety-like behaviors in the novel tank, the light-dark and the shoaling tests, paralleled by assessing brain acetylcholinesterase activity and whole-body cortisol levels. RESULTS Overall, donepezil dose-dependently decreased zebrafish locomotor activity in the novel tank test and reduced time in light in the light-dark test, likely representing hypolocomotion and anxiety-like behaviors. Donepezil predictably decreased brain acetylcholinesterase activity, also increasing whole-body cortisol levels, thus further linking acetylcholinesterase inhibition to anxiety-like behavioral and endocrine responses. CONCLUSION Collectively, these findings suggest negative modulation of zebrafish affective behavior by donepezil, support the key role of cholinergic mechanisms in behavioral regulation in zebrafish, and reinforce the growing utility of zebrafish models for studying complex behavioral processess and their neuroendocrine and neurochemical regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Cvv Giacomini
- Postgraduate Program in Environmental Sciences, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil.,Bioscience Institute, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil
| | - Barbara W Bueno
- Bioscience Institute, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil
| | - Leticia Marcon
- Bioscience Institute, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil
| | - Naiara Scolari
- Bioscience Institute, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil
| | - Rafael Genario
- Bioscience Institute, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil
| | - Konstantin A Demin
- Institute of Experimental Medicine, Almazov Medical Research Centre, Ministry of Healthcare of Russian Federation, St. Petersburg, Russia.,Institute of Translational Biomedicine, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Tatyana O Kolesnikova
- Granov Scientific Research Center for Radiology and Surgical Technologies, St Petersburg, Russia
| | - Allan V Kalueff
- School of Pharmacy, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.,Ural Federal University, Ekaterinburg, Russia
| | - Murilo S de Abreu
- Bioscience Institute, University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil.,The International Zebrafish Neuroscience Research Consortium, Slidell, USA
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