1
|
Oduro-Kwateng E, Soliman MES. Unveiling therapeutic frontiers: DON/DRP-104 as innovative Plasma kallikrein inhibitors against carcinoma-associated hereditary angioedema shocks - a comprehensive molecular dynamics exploration. Cell Biochem Biophys 2024:10.1007/s12013-024-01266-0. [PMID: 38869687 DOI: 10.1007/s12013-024-01266-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 06/14/2024]
Abstract
Human plasma kallikrein (PKa) is a member of the serine protease family and serves as a key mediator of the kallikrein-kinin system (KKS), which is known for its regulatory roles in inflammation, vasodilation, blood pressure, and coagulation. Genetic dysregulation of KKS leads to Hereditary Angioedema (HAE), which is characterized by spontaneous, painful swelling in various body regions. Importantly, HAE frequently coexists with various cancers. Despite substantial efforts towards the development of PKa inhibitors for HAE, there remains a need for bifunctional agents addressing both anti-cancer and anti-HAE aspects, especially against carcinoma-associated comorbid HAE conditions. Consequently, we investigated the therapeutic potential of the anti-glutamine prodrug, isopropyl(S)-2-((S)-2-acetamido-3-(1H-indol-3-yl)-propanamido)-6-diazo-5-oxo-hexanoate (DRP-104), and its active form, 6-Diazo-5-oxo-l-norleucine (DON), recognized for their anti-cancer properties, as novel PKa inhibitors. Utilizing structure-based in silico methods, we conducted a comparative analysis with berotralstat, a clinically approved HAE prophylactic, and sebetralstat, an investigational HAE therapeutic agent, in Phase 3 clinical trials. Inhibiting PKa with DON resulted in relatively heightened structural stability, rigidity, restricted protein folding, and solvent-accessible loop exposure, contributing to increased intra-atomic hydrogen bond formation. Conversely, PKa inhibition with DRP-104 induced restricted residue flexibility and significantly disrupted the critical SER195-HIS57 arrangement in the catalytic triad. Both DON and DRP-104, along with the reference drugs, induced strong cooperative intra-residue motion and bidirectional displacement in the PKa architecture. The results revealed favorable binding kinetics of DON/DRP-104, showing thermodynamic profiles that were either superior or comparable to those of the reference drugs. These findings support their consideration for clinical investigations into the management of carcinoma-associated HAE.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ernest Oduro-Kwateng
- Molecular Bio-Computation and Drug Design Research Group, School of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu Natal, Westville Campus, Durban, 4001, South Africa
| | - Mahmoud E S Soliman
- Molecular Bio-Computation and Drug Design Research Group, School of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu Natal, Westville Campus, Durban, 4001, South Africa.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Allison M, Davie RL, Mogg AJ, Hampton SL, Emsley J, Stocks MJ. Discovery of α-Amidobenzylboronates as Highly Potent Covalent Inhibitors of Plasma Kallikrein. ACS Med Chem Lett 2024; 15:501-509. [PMID: 38628785 PMCID: PMC11017388 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.3c00572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2023] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Hereditary angioedema (HAE), a rare genetic disorder, is associated with uncontrolled plasma kallikrein (PKa) enzyme activity leading to the generation of bradykinin swelling in subcutaneous and submucosal membranes in various locations of the body. Herein, we describe a series of potent α-amidobenzylboronates as potential covalent inhibitors of PKa. These compounds exhibited time-dependent inhibition of PKa (compound 20 IC50 66 nM at 1 min, 70 pM at 24 h). Further compound dissociation studies demonstrated that 20 showed no apparent reversibility comparable to d-Phe-Pro-Arg-chloromethylketone (PPACK) (23), a known nonselective covalent PKa inhibitor.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Allison
- Biodiscovery
Institute, School of Pharmacy, University
of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, United
Kingdom
| | - Rebecca L. Davie
- KalVista
Pharmaceuticals Limited, Salisbury, SP4 0BF, United
Kingdom
| | - Adrian J. Mogg
- KalVista
Pharmaceuticals Limited, Salisbury, SP4 0BF, United
Kingdom
| | - Sally L. Hampton
- KalVista
Pharmaceuticals Limited, Salisbury, SP4 0BF, United
Kingdom
| | - Jonas Emsley
- Biodiscovery
Institute, School of Pharmacy, University
of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, United
Kingdom
| | - Michael J. Stocks
- Biodiscovery
Institute, School of Pharmacy, University
of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, United
Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Borovsky D, Rougé P. Cloning and characterization of Aedes aegypti blood downregulated chymotrypsin II. ARCHIVES OF INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY 2023; 113:e22018. [PMID: 37106507 DOI: 10.1002/arch.22018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2023] [Revised: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Aedes aegypti adult and larval blood downregulated chymotrypsin II was cloned, sequenced and its 3D conformation modeled. Cloning of the enzymes from adult and larval guts indicated that both genes sit at the same location on Chromosome 2. Genomic analyses showed that larval and adult genes are the same and both have four exons and three introns that are located on an 8.32 Kb DNA in direction with the Ae. aegypti genome. The adult and larval transcript synthesis is controlled by alternative splicing explaining small difference in the amino acids sequences. Chymotrypsin II that was extracted from guts of sugar-fed and at 48 after blood feeding showed a pH optimum of 4-5 with a broad shoulder of activity from pH 6 to 10. Dot blot analyses show that the enzyme's transcript is downregulated after females take a blood meal and upregulated at 48 h after the blood meal. A Chymotrypsin II transcript was also detected in the larval gut during different times of larval developmental stages, indication that Ae. aegypti chymotrypsin II is synthesized by adults and larval guts. The possibility that JH III and 20HE play an active role in the regulation is discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dov Borovsky
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA
| | - Pierre Rougé
- UMR 152 Pharma-Dev, Faculté des Sciences Pharmaceutiques, Institut de Recherche et Développement, Université Toulouse 3, Toulouse, France
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Olanders G, Brandt P, Sköld C, Karlén A. Computational studies of molecular pre-organization through macrocyclization: Conformational distribution analysis of closely related non-macrocyclic and macrocyclic analogs. Bioorg Med Chem 2021; 49:116399. [PMID: 34601455 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2021.116399] [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: 05/05/2021] [Revised: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Macrocycles form an important compound class in medicinal chemistry due to their interesting structural and biological properties. To help design macrocycles, it is important to understand how the conformational preferences are affected upon macrocyclization of a lead compound. To address this, we collected a unique data set of protein-ligand complexes containing "non-macrocyclic" ("linear") ligands matched with macrocyclic analogs binding to the same protein in a similar pose. Out of the 39 co-crystallized ligands considered, 10 were linear and 29 were macrocyclic. To enable a more general analysis, 128 additional ligands from the publications associated with these protein data bank entries were added to the data set. Using in total 167 collected ligands, we investigated if the conformers in the macrocyclic conformational ensembles were more similar to the bioactive conformation in comparison to the conformers of their linear counterparts. Unexpectedly, in most cases the macrocycle conformational ensemble distributions were not very different from those of the linear compounds. Thus, care should be taken when designing macrocycles with the aim to focus their conformational preference towards the bioactive conformation. We also set out to investigate potential conformational flexibility differences between the two compound classes, computational energy window settings and evaluate a literature metric for approximating the conformational focusing on the bioactive conformation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gustav Olanders
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Uppsala University, BMC, Box 574, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Peter Brandt
- Medicinal Chemistry, Research and Early Development Cardiovascular, Renal and Metabolism, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Christian Sköld
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Uppsala University, BMC, Box 574, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Anders Karlén
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Uppsala University, BMC, Box 574, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Kotian PL, Wu M, Vadlakonda S, Chintareddy V, Lu P, Juarez L, Kellogg-Yelder D, Chen X, Muppa S, Chambers-Wilson R, Davis Parker C, Williams J, Polach KJ, Zhang W, Raman K, Babu YS. Berotralstat (BCX7353): Structure-Guided Design of a Potent, Selective, and Oral Plasma Kallikrein Inhibitor to Prevent Attacks of Hereditary Angioedema (HAE). J Med Chem 2021; 64:12453-12468. [PMID: 34436898 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c00511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare and potentially life-threatening disease that affects an estimated 1 in 50 000 individuals worldwide. Until recently, prophylactic HAE treatment options were limited to injectables, a burdensome administration route that has driven the need for an oral treatment. A substantial body of evidence has shown that potent and selective plasma kallikrein inhibitors that block the generation of bradykinin represent a promising approach for the treatment of HAE. Berotralstat (BCX7353, discovered by BioCryst Pharmaceuticals using a structure-guided drug design strategy) is a synthetic plasma kallikrein inhibitor that is potent and highly selective over other structurally related serine proteases. This once-daily, small-molecule drug is the first orally bioavailable prophylactic treatment for HAE attacks, having successfully completed a Phase III clinical trial (meeting its primary end point) and recently receiving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval for the prophylactic treatment of HAE attacks in patients 12 years and older.
Collapse
|
6
|
Sgrignani J, Cavalli A. Computational Identification of a Putative Allosteric Binding Pocket in TMPRSS2. Front Mol Biosci 2021; 8:666626. [PMID: 33996911 PMCID: PMC8119889 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2021.666626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Camostat, nafamostat, and bromhexine are inhibitors of the transmembrane serine protease TMPRSS2. The inhibition of TMPRSS2 has been shown to prevent the viral infection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and other viruses. However, while camostat and nafamostat inhibit TMPRSS2 by forming a covalent adduct, the mode of action of bromhexine remains unclear. TMPRSS2 is autocatalytically activated from its inactive form, zymogen, through a proteolytic cleavage that promotes the binding of Ile256 to a putative allosteric pocket (A-pocket). Computer simulations, reported here, indicate that Ile256 binding induces a conformational change in the catalytic site, thus providing the atomistic rationale to the activation process of the enzyme. Furthermore, computational docking and molecular dynamics simulations indicate that bromhexine competes with the N-terminal Ile256 for the same binding site, making it a potential allosteric inhibitor. Taken together, these findings provide the atomistic basis for the development of more selective and potent TMPRSS2 inhibitors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jacopo Sgrignani
- Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Bellinzona, Switzerland
| | - Andrea Cavalli
- Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Bellinzona, Switzerland.,Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Singh N, Decroly E, Khatib AM, Villoutreix BO. Structure-based drug repositioning over the human TMPRSS2 protease domain: search for chemical probes able to repress SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein cleavages. Eur J Pharm Sci 2020; 153:105495. [PMID: 32730844 PMCID: PMC7384984 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejps.2020.105495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2020] [Revised: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
In December 2019, a new coronavirus was identified in the Hubei province of central china and named SARS-CoV-2. This new virus induces COVID-19, a severe respiratory disease with high death rate. A putative target to interfere with the virus is the host transmembrane serine protease family member II (TMPRSS2). This enzyme is critical for the entry of coronaviruses into human cells by cleaving and activating the spike protein (S) of SARS-CoV-2. Repositioning approved, investigational and experimental drugs on the serine protease domain of TMPRSS2 could thus be valuable. There is no experimental structure for TMPRSS2 but it is possible to develop quality structural models for the serine protease domain using comparative modeling strategies as such domains are highly structurally conserved. Beside the TMPRSS2 catalytic site, we predicted on our structural models a main exosite that could be important for the binding of protein partners and/or substrates. To block the catalytic site or the exosite of TMPRSS2 we used structure-based virtual screening computations and two different collections of approved, investigational and experimental drugs. We propose a list of 156 molecules that could bind to the catalytic site and 100 compounds that may interact with the exosite. These small molecules should now be tested in vitro to gain novel insights over the roles of TMPRSS2 or as starting point for the development of second generation analogs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Natesh Singh
- Univ. Lille, INSERM, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1177, F-59000 Lille, France
| | | | - Abdel-Majid Khatib
- Univ. Bordeaux, Allée Geoffroy St Hilaire, 33615 Pessac, France
- INSERM, LAMC, UMR 1029, Allée Geoffroy St Hilaire, 33615 Pessac, France
- Corresponding authors.
| | - Bruno O. Villoutreix
- Univ. Lille, INSERM, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1177, F-59000 Lille, France
- Corresponding authors.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Zhang Y, Li Z, Kholodkevich S, Sharov A, Feng Y, Ren N, Sun K. Microcystin-LR-induced changes of hepatopancreatic transcriptome, intestinal microbiota, and histopathology of freshwater crayfish (Procambarus clarkii). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 711:134549. [PMID: 31810700 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2019] [Revised: 08/19/2019] [Accepted: 09/17/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
As a hepatotoxin, microcystin-LR (MC-LR) poses a great threat to aquatic organisms. In this research, the hepatopancreatic transcriptome, intestinal microbiota, and histopathology of Procambarus clarkii (P. clarkii) in response to acute MC-LR exposure were studied. RNA-seq analysis of hepatopancreas identified 372 and 781 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) after treatment with 10 and 40 μg/L MC-LR, respectively. Among the DEGs, 23 genes were immune-related and 21 genes were redox-related. GO functional enrichment analysis revealed that MC-LR could impact nuclear-transcribed mRNA catabolic process, cobalamin- and heme-related processes, and sirohydrochlorin cobaltochelatase activity of P. clarkii. In addition, the only significantly enriched KEGG pathway induced by MC-LR was galactose metabolism pathway. Meanwhile, sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene demonstrated that MC-LR decreased bacterial richness and diversity, and altered the intestinal microbiota composition. At the phylum level, after 96 h, the abundance of Verrucomicrobia decreased after treatment with 10 and 40 μg/L MC-LR, while Firmicutes increased in the 40 μg/L MC-LR-treated group. At the genus level, the abundances of 15 genera were significantly altered after exposure to MC-LR. Our research demonstrated that MC-LR exposure caused histological alterations such as structural damage of hepatopancreas and intestines. This research provides an insight into the mechanisms associated with MC-LR toxicity in aquatic crustaceans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yu Zhang
- State Key Lab of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
| | - Zheyu Li
- State Key Lab of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
| | - Sergey Kholodkevich
- Institute of Earth Sciences, Saint-Petersburg State University, Saint-Petersburg 199034, Russia; Saint-Petersburg Scientific Research Center for Ecological Safety, Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint-Petersburg 197110, Russia
| | - Andrey Sharov
- Saint-Petersburg Scientific Research Center for Ecological Safety, Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint-Petersburg 197110, Russia; Papanin Institute for Biology of the Inland Waters, Russian Academy of Sciences, Borok 152742, Russia
| | - Yujie Feng
- State Key Lab of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
| | - Nanqi Ren
- State Key Lab of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
| | - Kai Sun
- State Key Lab of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China.
| |
Collapse
|