1
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Nguyen H, Nguyen HL, Li MS. Binding of SARS-CoV-2 Nonstructural Protein 1 to 40S Ribosome Inhibits mRNA Translation. J Phys Chem B 2024; 128:7033-7042. [PMID: 39007765 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.4c01391] [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: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Experimental evidence has established that SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 acts as a factor that restricts cellular gene expression and impedes mRNA translation within the ribosome's 40S subunit. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon have remained elusive. To elucidate this issue, we employed a combination of all-atom steered molecular dynamics and coarse-grained alchemical simulations to explore the binding affinity of mRNA to the 40S ribosome, both in the presence and absence of SARS-CoV-2 NSP1. Our investigations revealed that the binding of SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 to the 40S ribosome leads to a significant enhancement in the binding affinity of mRNA. This observation, which aligns with experimental findings, strongly suggests that SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 has the capability to inhibit mRNA translation. Furthermore, we identified electrostatic interactions between mRNA and the 40S ribosome as the primary driving force behind mRNA translation. Notably, water molecules were found to play a pivotal role in stabilizing the mRNA-40S ribosome complex, underscoring their significance in this process. We successfully pinpointed the specific SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 residues that play a critical role in triggering the translation arrest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hung Nguyen
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Hoang Linh Nguyen
- Institute of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, Duy Tan University, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
- Faculty of Environmental and Natural Sciences, Duy Tan University, Da Nang City 550000, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
- Quang Trung Software City, Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 729110, Vietnam
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2
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Cuong NM, Khanh PN, Nhung LTH, Ha NX, Huong TT, Bauerova K, Kim YH, Tung DD, Thuy TT, Anh NTH. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities of some flavonoids from the root bark of Pinus krempfii Lecomte: in vitro and in silico study. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024; 42:4888-4901. [PMID: 37325850 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2223664] [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: 01/29/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
From the root bark of Pinus krempfii Lecomte, four flavonoids were isolated and evaluated for their inhibitory activities against AChE and BChE enzymes in vitro and in silico. Tectochrysin (1) was found to inhibit AChE with an IC50 value of 33.69 ± 2.80 μM. The docking study results also showed agreement with the in vitro test results. All four compounds also showed the best binding affinity for the AChE enzyme, characterised by binding energy (ΔG) values as low as -8.1 to -9.3 kcal/mol, in which, the compound tectochrysin had the best binding affinity for the AChE protein with a ΔG value of -9.329 kcal/mol. Tectochrysin (1) was also bound to the amino acid Phe295 of AChE with a bond length of 2.8 Å, similar to the control dihydrotanshinone-I. Galangin (2) also showed its in vitro inhibitory activity against BChE with an IC50 value of 82.21 ± 2.70 μM. In silico, it also had the best binding energy value of -9.072 kcal/mol with BChE and formed hydrogen bonds with the His438 (2.85 Å) residues of BChE like the positive control (tacrine). The steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulation results of these two complexes revealed a mechanistic insight that the protein-ligand complexes showed stable trajectories throughout the 20 and 150 ns simulations. Moreover, the drug likeliness suggested that both flavonoids (1 and 2) were expected to be drug-like and have an LD50 toxicity level of 5. This study has contributed new results for drug discovery and the development of substances with neuroprotective effects, especially for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nguyen Manh Cuong
- Institute of Natural Products Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Graduate University of Sciences and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Pham Ngoc Khanh
- Institute of Natural Products Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Graduate University of Sciences and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Le Thi Hong Nhung
- Faculty of Chemical Technology, Hanoi University of Industry, Bac Tu Liem District, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Nguyen Xuan Ha
- Institute of Natural Products Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Tran Thu Huong
- Institute of Natural Products Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Katarina Bauerova
- Centre of Experimental Medicine, Institute of Experimental Pharmacology and Toxicology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Karlova Ves, Slovakia
| | - Young Ho Kim
- College of Pharmacy, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | | | - Trinh Thi Thuy
- Graduate University of Sciences and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Institute of Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Nguyen Thi Hoang Anh
- Graduate University of Sciences and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Institute of Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
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3
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Truong DT, Ho K, Pham DQH, Chwastyk M, Nguyen-Minh T, Nguyen MT. Treatment of flexibility of protein backbone in simulations of protein-ligand interactions using steered molecular dynamics. Sci Rep 2024; 14:10475. [PMID: 38714683 PMCID: PMC11076533 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-59899-3] [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: 02/11/2024] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/10/2024] Open
Abstract
To ensure that an external force can break the interaction between a protein and a ligand, the steered molecular dynamics simulation requires a harmonic restrained potential applied to the protein backbone. A usual practice is that all or a certain number of protein's heavy atoms or Cα atoms are fixed, being restrained by a small force. This present study reveals that while fixing both either all heavy atoms and or all Cα atoms is not a good approach, while fixing a too small number of few atoms sometimes cannot prevent the protein from rotating under the influence of the bulk water layer, and the pulled molecule may smack into the wall of the active site. We found that restraining the Cα atoms under certain conditions is more relevant. Thus, we would propose an alternative solution in which only the Cα atoms of the protein at a distance larger than 1.2 nm from the ligand are restrained. A more flexible, but not too flexible, protein will be expected to lead to a more natural release of the ligand.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duc Toan Truong
- Laboratory for Chemical Computation and Modeling, Institute for Computational Science and Artificial Intelligence, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, 70000, Vietnam
- Faculty of Applied Technology, School of Technology, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, 70000, Vietnam
| | - Kiet Ho
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology (ICST), Quang Trung Software City, Ho Chi Minh City, 70000, Vietnam
| | | | - Mateusz Chwastyk
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Thai Nguyen-Minh
- University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, 70000, Vietnam
| | - Minh Tho Nguyen
- Laboratory for Chemical Computation and Modeling, Institute for Computational Science and Artificial Intelligence, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, 70000, Vietnam.
- Faculty of Applied Technology, School of Technology, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, 70000, Vietnam.
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4
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Zhang YJ, Liang JX, Xu YS, Liu YX, Cui Y, Qiao ZY, Wang H. Covalent drugs based on small molecules and peptides for disease theranostics. Biomater Sci 2024; 12:564-580. [PMID: 37975197 DOI: 10.1039/d3bm01138k] [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: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Biomacromolecules, such as proteins, nucleic acids and polysaccharides, are widely distributed in the human body, and some of them have been recognized as the targets of drugs for disease theranostics. Drugs typically act on targets in two ways: non-covalent bond and covalent bond. Non-covalent bond-based drugs have some disadvantages, such as structural instability and environmental sensitivity. Covalent interactions between drugs and targets have a longer action time, higher affinity and controllability than non-covalent interactions of conventional drugs. With the development of artificial intelligence, covalent drugs have received more attention and have been developed rapidly in pharmaceutical research in recent years. From the perspective of covalent drugs, this review summarizes the design methods and the effects of covalent drugs. Finally, we discuss the application of covalent peptide drugs and expect to provide a new reference for cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying-Jin Zhang
- Henan Institute of Advanced Technology, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, P.R. China
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), No. 11 Beiyitiao, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, P.R. China.
| | - Jian-Xiao Liang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), No. 11 Beiyitiao, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, P.R. China.
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19(A) Yuquan Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing 100049, P.R. China
| | - Yin-Sheng Xu
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), No. 11 Beiyitiao, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, P.R. China.
| | - Yi-Xuan Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), No. 11 Beiyitiao, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, P.R. China.
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19(A) Yuquan Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing 100049, P.R. China
| | - Yingying Cui
- Department of Food and Drug, Laiwu Vocational and Technical, College, Jinan, China
| | - Zeng-Ying Qiao
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), No. 11 Beiyitiao, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, P.R. China.
| | - Hao Wang
- Henan Institute of Advanced Technology, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, P.R. China
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), No. 11 Beiyitiao, Zhongguancun, Beijing 100190, P.R. China.
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19(A) Yuquan Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing 100049, P.R. China
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5
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Nguyen HL, Thai NQ, Li MS. Identifying inhibitors of NSP16-NSP10 of SARS-CoV-2 from large databases. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2023; 41:7045-7054. [PMID: 36002258 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2022.2114941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 08/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic, which has already claimed millions of lives, continues to pose a serious threat to human health, requiring the development of new effective drugs. Non-structural proteins of SARS-CoV-2 play an important role in viral replication and infection. Among them, NSP16 (non-structured protein 16) and its cofactor NSP10 (non-structured protein 10) perform C2'-O methylation at the 5' end of the viral RNA, which promotes efficient virus replication. Therefore, the NSP16-NSP10 complex becomes an attractive target for drug development. Using a multi-step virtual screening protocol which includes Lipinski's rule, docking, steered molecular dynamics and umbrella sampling, we searched for potential inhibitors from the PubChem and anti-HIV databases. It has been shown that CID 135566620 compound from PubChem is the best candidate with an inhibition constant in the sub-μM range. The Van der Waals interaction was found to be more important than the electrostatic interaction in the binding affinity of this compound to NSP16-NSP10. Further in vitro and in vivo studies are needed to test the activity of the identified compound against COVID-19.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hoang Linh Nguyen
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung, Software City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | | | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
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6
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Wang A, Yue K, Zhong W, Zhang G, Wang L, Wang H, Zhang H, Zhang X. Ligand-receptor interaction in the specific targeting of biomimetic peptide nanoparticles to lysophosphatidylcholine. Int J Biol Macromol 2023; 227:193-202. [PMID: 36549027 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2022.12.162] [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: 10/12/2022] [Revised: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
As nanotechnology is applied clinical medicine, nanoparticle-based therapy is emerging as a novel approach for the treatment of atherosclerosis. Ligand-receptor interaction affects the effectiveness of nanoparticle targeting therapy. In this study, the biomimetic peptide (BP-KFFVLK-WYKDGD) ligand specifically targeting the lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) receptor in atherosclerotic plaques was constructed. The corresponding ligand-receptor interaction under different pH values was investigated by molecular dynamics simulation and experimental measurements. Results show that the interaction force between the peptide and LPC is greater than that of the peptide and human umbilical vein endothelial cell, clearly demonstrating the specific targeting of the peptide ligand to the LPC receptor. The ligand-receptor binding of peptide and LPC dominantly depends on Coulomb and van der Waals interactions. The YKDG amino acids of the peptide are the main fragment that binds to LPC. Compared with neutral environment at pH 7.4, the interaction forces between the peptide and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) decreased by 18.22 % and 45.87 % under acidic environments at pH 6.5 and 5.5, respectively, because of the change in oxLDL secondary structure and the release of LPC from oxLDL. Nevertheless, the peptide still has a strong binding capacity with oxLDL for the treatment of atherosclerosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anqi Wang
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Kai Yue
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China; Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing, Shunde, Guangdong Province 528399, China.
| | - Weishen Zhong
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Genpei Zhang
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China; Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing, Shunde, Guangdong Province 528399, China
| | - Lei Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
| | - Hao Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
| | - Hua Zhang
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100730, China
| | - Xinxin Zhang
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China; Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing, Shunde, Guangdong Province 528399, China
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7
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Wang A, Yue K, Wei Y, Zhong W, Zhang G. Temperature‐induced structural change of integrin αvβ3 receptor and its interaction with the
RGD
peptide ligand. Pept Sci (Hoboken) 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pep2.24302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anqi Wang
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering University of Science and Technology Beijing Beijing China
- Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing Shunde Guangdong Province China
| | - Kai Yue
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering University of Science and Technology Beijing Beijing China
- Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing Shunde Guangdong Province China
| | - Yiang Wei
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering University of Science and Technology Beijing Beijing China
| | - Weishen Zhong
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering University of Science and Technology Beijing Beijing China
- Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing Shunde Guangdong Province China
| | - Genpei Zhang
- School of Energy and Environmental Engineering University of Science and Technology Beijing Beijing China
- Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing Shunde Guangdong Province China
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8
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Ngo ST, Nguyen TH, Tung NT, Vu VV, Pham MQ, Mai BK. Characterizing the ligand-binding affinity toward SARS-CoV-2 Mpro via physics- and knowledge-based approaches. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2022; 24:29266-29278. [PMID: 36449268 DOI: 10.1039/d2cp04476e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Computational approaches, including physics- and knowledge-based methods, have commonly been used to determine the ligand-binding affinity toward SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro or 3CLpro). Strong binding ligands can thus be suggested as potential inhibitors for blocking the biological activity of the protease. In this context, this paper aims to provide a short review of computational approaches that have recently been applied in the search for inhibitor candidates of Mpro. In particular, molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are usually combined to predict the binding affinity of thousands of compounds. Quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) is the least computationally demanding and therefore can be used for large chemical collections of ligands. However, its accuracy may not be high. Moreover, the quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) method is most commonly used for covalently binding inhibitors, which also play an important role in inhibiting the activity of SARS-CoV-2. Furthermore, machine learning (ML) models can significantly increase the searching space of ligands with high accuracy for binding affinity prediction. Physical insights into the binding process can then be confirmed via physics-based calculations. Integration of ML models into computational chemistry provides many more benefits and can lead to new therapies sooner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Son Tung Ngo
- Laboratory of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics, Advanced Institute of Materials Science, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. .,Faculty of Pharmacy, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Trung Hai Nguyen
- Laboratory of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics, Advanced Institute of Materials Science, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. .,Faculty of Pharmacy, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Nguyen Thanh Tung
- Institute of Materials Science, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam. .,Graduate University of Science and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Van V Vu
- NTT Hi-Tech Institute, Nguyen Tat Thanh University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Minh Quan Pham
- Graduate University of Science and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam.,Institute of Natural Products Chemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Binh Khanh Mai
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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9
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Thu TTM, Li MS. Protein aggregation rate depends on mechanical stability of fibrillar structure . J Chem Phys 2022; 157:055101. [DOI: 10.1063/5.0088689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The formation of the fibrillar structure of amyloid proteins/peptides is believed to be associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, etc. Since the rate of aggregation can influence neurotoxicity, finding the key factors that control this rate is of paramount importance. It was recently found evidence that the rate of protein aggregation is related to the mechanical stability of the fibrillar structure, such that the higher the mechanical stability, the faster the fibril is formed. However, this conclusion was supported by a limited dataset. In this work, we expand the previous study to a larger dataset, including the wild type of Aβ42 peptide and its 20 mutants, the aggregation rate of which was measured experimentally. By using all-atom steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulations we can access the mechanical stability of the fibril structure, which is characterized by the rupture force, pulling work and unbinding free energy barrier. Our result confirms that mechanical stability is indeed related to the aggregation rate. Since estimation of the aggregation rate using all-atom simulations is almost forbidden by the current computational capabilities, our result is useful for predicting it based on information obtained from fast SMD simulations for fibrils.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Theoretical Physics, Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland
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10
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Nguyen H, Li MS. Antibody-nanobody combination increases their neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2 and nanobody H11-H4 is effective against Alpha, Kappa and Delta variants. Sci Rep 2022; 12:9701. [PMID: 35690632 PMCID: PMC9188278 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-14263-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The global spread of COVID-19 is devastating health systems and economies worldwide. While the use of vaccines has yielded encouraging results, the emergence of new variants of SARS-CoV-2 shows that combating COVID-19 remains a big challenge. One of the most promising treatments is the use of not only antibodies, but also nanobodies. Recent experimental studies revealed that the combination of antibody and nanobody can significantly improve their neutralizing ability through binding to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, but the molecular mechanisms underlying this observation remain largely unknown. In this work, we investigated the binding affinity of the CR3022 antibody and H11-H4 nanobody to the SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD) using molecular modeling. Both all-atom steered molecular dynamics simulations and coarse-grained umbrella sampling showed that, consistent with the experiment, CR3022 associates with RBD more strongly than H11-H4. We predict that the combination of CR3022 and H11-H4 considerably increases their binding affinity to the spike protein. The electrostatic interaction was found to control the association strength of CR3022, but the van der Waals interaction dominates in the case of H11-H4. However, our study for a larger set of nanobodies and antibodies showed that the relative role of these interactions depends on the specific complex. Importantly, we showed Beta, Gamma, Lambda, and Mu variants reduce the H11-H4 activity while Alpha, Kappa and Delta variants increase its neutralizing ability, which is in line with experiment reporting that the nanobody elicited from the llama is very promising for fighting against the Delta variant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hung Nguyen
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668, Warsaw, Poland. .,Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
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11
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Reif MM, Zacharias M. Improving the Potential of Mean Force and Nonequilibrium Pulling Simulations by Simultaneous Alchemical Modifications. J Chem Theory Comput 2022; 18:3873-3893. [PMID: 35653503 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.1c01194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
We present an approach combining alchemical modifications and physical-pathway methods to calculate absolute binding free energies. The employed physical-pathway method is either a stratified umbrella sampling to calculate a potential of mean force or nonequilibrium pulling. We devised two basic approaches: the simultaneous approach (S-approach), where, along the physical unbinding pathway, an alchemical transformation of ligand-protein interactions is installed and deinstalled, and the prior-plus-simultaneous approach (PPS-approach), where, prior to the physical-pathway simulation, an alchemical transformation of ligand-protein interactions is installed in the binding site and deinstalled during the physical-pathway simulation. Using a mutant of T4 lysozyme with a benzene ligand as an example, we show that installation and deinstallation of soft-core interactions concurrent with physical ligand unbinding (S-approach) allow successful potential of mean force calculations and nonequilibrium pulling simulations despite the problems posed by the occluded nature of the lysozyme binding pocket. Good agreement between the potential of the mean-force-based S-approach and double decoupling simulations as well as a remarkable efficiency and accuracy of the nonequilibrium-pulling-based S-approach is found. The latter turned out to be more compute-efficient than the potential of mean force calculation by approximately 70%. Furthermore, we illustrate the merits of reducing ligand-protein interactions prior to potential of mean force calculations using the murine double minute homologue protein MDM2 with a p53-derived peptide ligand (PPS-approach). Here, the problem of breaking strong interactions in the binding pocket is transferred to a prior alchemical transformation that reduces the free-energy barrier between the bound and unbound state in the potential of mean force. Besides, disentangling physical ligand displacement from the deinstallation of ligand-protein interactions was seen to allow a more uniform sampling of distance histograms in the umbrella sampling. In the future, physical ligand unbinding combined with simultaneous alchemical modifications may prove useful in the calculation of protein-protein binding free energies, where sampling problems posed by multiple, possibly sticky interactions and potential steric clashes can thus be reduced.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria M Reif
- Center for Protein Assemblies (CPA), Physics Department, Chair of Theoretical Biophysics (T38), Technical University of Munich, Ernst-Otto-Fischer-Str. 8, Garching 85748, Germany
| | - Martin Zacharias
- Center for Protein Assemblies (CPA), Physics Department, Chair of Theoretical Biophysics (T38), Technical University of Munich, Ernst-Otto-Fischer-Str. 8, Garching 85748, Germany
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12
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Nguyen HL, Thai NQ, Li MS. Determination of Multidirectional Pathways for Ligand Release from the Receptor: A New Approach Based on Differential Evolution. J Chem Theory Comput 2022; 18:3860-3872. [PMID: 35512104 PMCID: PMC9202309 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.1c01158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
![]()
Steered molecular
dynamics (SMD) simulation is a powerful method
in computer-aided drug design as it can be used to access the relative
binding affinity with high precision but with low computational cost.
The success of SMD depends on the choice of the direction along which
the ligand is pulled from the receptor-binding site. In most simulations,
the unidirectional pathway was used, but in some cases, this choice
resulted in the ligand colliding with the complex surface of the exit
tunnel. To overcome this difficulty, several variants of SMD with
multidirectional pulling have been proposed, but they are not completely
devoid of disadvantages. Here, we have proposed to determine the direction
of pulling with a simple scoring function that minimizes the receptor–ligand
interaction, and an optimization algorithm called differential evolution
is used for energy minimization. The effectiveness of our protocol
was demonstrated by finding expulsion pathways of Huperzine A and
camphor from the binding site of Torpedo California acetylcholinesterase
and P450cam proteins, respectively, and comparing them with the previous
results obtained using memetic sampling and random acceleration molecular
dynamics. In addition, by applying this protocol to a set of ligands
bound with LSD1 (lysine specific demethylase 1), we obtained a much
higher correlation between the work of pulling force and experimental
data on the inhibition constant IC50 compared to that obtained using
the unidirectional approach based on minimal steric hindrance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hoang Linh Nguyen
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, QuangTrung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 729110, Vietnam.,Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT), Ho Chi Minh City 740500, Vietnam.,Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City 71300, Vietnam
| | - Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, QuangTrung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 729110, Vietnam.,Dong Thap University, 783 Pham Huu Lau Street, Ward 6, Cao Lanh City, Dong Thap 81100, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, Warsaw 02-668, Poland
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13
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Abu-Saleh AAAA, Yadav A, Poirier RA. Accelerating the discovery of the beyond rule of five compounds that have high affinities toward SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2022; 41:2518-2527. [PMID: 35132950 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2022.2036640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The battle against SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is the focal point for the global pandemic that has affected millions of lives worldwide. The need for effective and selective therapeutics for the treatment of the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 is critical. Herein, we performed a hierarchical computational approach incorporating molecular docking studies, molecular dynamics simulations, absolute binding energy calculations, and steered molecular dynamics simulations for the discovery of potential compounds with high affinity towards SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD. By leveraging ZINC15 database, a total of 1282 in-clinical and FDA approved drugs were filtered out from nearly 0.5 million protomers of relatively large compounds (MW > 500, and LogP ≤ 5). Our results depict plausible mechanistic aspects related to the blockage of SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD by the top hits discovered. We found that the most promising candidates, namely, ZINC95628821, ZINC95617623, ZINC3979524, and ZINC261494658, strongly bind to the spike RBD and interfere with the human ACE2 receptor. These findings accelerate the rational design of selective inhibitors targeting the spike RBD protein of SARS-CoV-2.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Arpita Yadav
- Department of Chemistry, University Institute of Engineering & Technology, Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur, India
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14
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Obot DN, Udom GJ, Udoh AE, Onyeukwu NJ, Olusola AJ, Udoh IM, Umana IK, Yemitan OK, Okokon JE. Advances in the molecular understanding of G protein-coupled receptors and their future therapeutic opportunities. FUTURE JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES 2021. [DOI: 10.1186/s43094-021-00341-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Background
Understanding the mechanisms, activated and inhibited pathways as well as other molecular targets involved in existing and emerging disease conditions provides useful insights into their proper diagnosis and treatment and aids drug discovery, development and production. G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are one of the most important classes of targets for small-molecule drug discovery. Of all drug targets, GPCRs are the most studied, undoubtedly because of their pharmacological tractability and role in the pathophysiology as well as the pathogenesis of human diseases.
Main body of the abstract
GPCRs are regarded as the largest target class of the “druggable genome” representing approximately 19% of the currently available drug targets. They have long played a prominent role in drug discovery, such that as of this writing, 481 drugs (about 34% of all FDA-approved drugs) act on GPCRs. More than 320 therapeutic agents are currently under clinical trials, of which a significant percentage targets novel GPCRs. GPCRs are implicated in a wide variety of diseases including CNS disorders, inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease, as well as metabolic disease and cancer. The non-olfactory human GPCRs yet to be clinically explored or tried are endowed with perhaps a huge untapped potential drug discovery especially in the field of immunology and genetics.
Short conclusion
This review discusses the recent advances in the molecular pharmacology and future opportunities for targeting GPCRs with a view to drug development.
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15
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Poma AB, Thu TTM, Tri LTM, Nguyen HL, Li MS. Nanomechanical Stability of Aβ Tetramers and Fibril-like Structures: Molecular Dynamics Simulations. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:7628-7637. [PMID: 34253022 PMCID: PMC8389904 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c02322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2021] [Revised: 06/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder and one of the main causes of dementia. The disease is associated with amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide aggregation forming initial clusters and then fibril structure and plaques. Other neurodegenerative diseases such as type 2 diabetes, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Parkinson's disease follow a similar mechanism. Therefore, inhibition of Aβ aggregation is considered an effective way to prevent AD. Recent experiments have provided evidence that oligomers are more toxic agents than mature fibrils, prompting researchers to investigate various factors that may influence their properties. One of these factors is nanomechanical stability, which plays an important role in the self-assembly of Aβ and possibly other proteins. This stability is also likely to be related to cell toxicity. In this work, we compare the mechanical stability of Aβ-tetramers and fibrillar structures using a structure-based coarse-grained (CG) approach and all-atom molecular dynamics simulation. Our results support the evidence for an increase in mechanical stability during the Aβ fibrillization process, which is consistent with in vitro AFM characterization of Aβ42 oligomers. Namely, using a CG model, we showed that the Young modulus of tetramers is lower than that of fibrils and, as follows from the experiment, is about 1 GPa. Hydrogen bonds are the dominant contribution to the detachment of one chain from the Aβ fibril fragment. They tend to be more organized along the pulling direction, whereas in the Aβ tetramers no preference is observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adolfo B. Poma
- Institute
of Fundamental Technological Research, Polish
Academy of Sciences, Pawińskiego 5B, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland
- International
Center for Research on Innovative Biobased Materials (ICRI-BioM)—International
Research Agenda, Lodz University of Technology, Żeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
| | - Tran Thi Minh Thu
- Institute
for Computational Science and Technology, SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh
Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Faculty
of Materials Science and Technology, Ho
Chi Minh City University of Science - VNUHCM, 227 Nguyen Van Cu Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Vietnam
National University, Ho Chi Minh
City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Lam Tang Minh Tri
- Faculty
of Materials Science and Technology, Ho
Chi Minh City University of Science - VNUHCM, 227 Nguyen Van Cu Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Vietnam
National University, Ho Chi Minh
City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Hoang Linh Nguyen
- Institute
for Computational Science and Technology, SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh
Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Ho
Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT), Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
- Vietnam
National University, Ho Chi Minh
City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute
of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotników 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
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16
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Pham HA, Truong DT, Li MS. Dependence of Work on the Pulling Speed in Mechanical Ligand Unbinding. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:8325-8330. [PMID: 34292743 PMCID: PMC8389893 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c01818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In single-molecule force spectroscopy, the rupture force Fmax required for mechanical unfolding of a biomolecule or for pulling a ligand out of a binding site depends on the pulling speed V and, in the linear Bell-Evans regime, Fmax ∼ ln(V). Recently, it has been found that non-equilibrium work W is better than Fmax in describing relative ligand binding affinity, but the dependence of W on V remains unknown. In this paper, we developed an analytical theory showing that in the linear regime, W ∼ c1 ln(V) + c2 ln2(V), where c1 and c2 are constants. This quadratic dependence was also confirmed by all-atom steered molecular dynamics simulations of protein-ligand complexes. Although our theory was developed for ligand unbinding, it is also applicable to other processes, such as mechanical unfolding of proteins and other biomolecules, due to its universality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong An Pham
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, QuangTrung Software City, Tan Chanh, Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Duc Toan Truong
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, QuangTrung Software City, Tan Chanh, Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy Science, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, Warsaw 02-668, Poland
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17
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Nguyen H, Lan PD, Nissley DA, O’Brien EP, Li MS. Electrostatic Interactions Explain the Higher Binding Affinity of the CR3022 Antibody for SARS-CoV-2 than the 4A8 Antibody. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:7368-7379. [PMID: 34228472 PMCID: PMC8276604 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c03639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2021] [Revised: 05/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
A structural understanding of the mechanism by which antibodies bind SARS-CoV-2 at the atomic level is highly desirable as it can tell the development of more effective antibodies to treat Covid-19. Here, we use steered molecular dynamics (SMD) and coarse-grained simulations to estimate the binding affinity of the monoclonal antibodies CR3022 and 4A8 to the SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain (RBD) and SARS-CoV-2 N-terminal domain (NTD). Consistent with experiments, our SMD and coarse-grained simulations both indicate that CR3022 has a higher affinity for SARS-CoV-2 RBD than 4A8 for the NTD, and the coarse-grained simulations indicate the former binds three times stronger to its respective epitope. This finding shows that CR3022 is a candidate for Covid-19 therapy and is likely a better choice than 4A8. Energetic decomposition of the interaction energies between these two complexes reveals that electrostatic interactions explain the difference in the observed binding affinity between the two complexes. This result could lead to a new approach for developing anti-Covid-19 antibodies in which good candidates must contain charged amino acids in the area of contact with the virus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hung Nguyen
- Institute
of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Pham Dang Lan
- Life
Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Faculty
of Physics and Engineering Physics, VNUHCM-University
of Science, 227, Nguyen
Van Cu Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Daniel A. Nissley
- Department
of Statistics, University of Oxford, Oxford
Protein Bioinformatics Group, Oxford OX1 2JD, United Kingdom
| | - Edward P. O’Brien
- Department
of Chemistry, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Bioinformatics
and Genomics Graduate Program, The Huck
Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Institute
for Computational and Data Sciences, Penn
State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute
of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
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18
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Abouelela ME, Assaf HK, Abdelhamid RA, Elkhyat ES, Sayed AM, Oszako T, Belbahri L, El Zowalaty AE, Abdelkader MSA. Identification of Potential SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease and Spike Protein Inhibitors from the Genus Aloe: An In Silico Study for Drug Development. Molecules 2021; 26:1767. [PMID: 33801151 PMCID: PMC8004122 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26061767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) disease is a global rapidly spreading virus showing very high rates of complications and mortality. Till now, there is no effective specific treatment for the disease. Aloe is a rich source of isolated phytoconstituents that have an enormous range of biological activities. Since there are no available experimental techniques to examine these compounds for antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2, we employed an in silico approach involving molecular docking, dynamics simulation, and binding free energy calculation using SARS-CoV-2 essential proteins as main protease and spike protein to identify lead compounds from Aloe that may help in novel drug discovery. Results retrieved from docking and molecular dynamics simulation suggested a number of promising inhibitors from Aloe. Root mean square deviation (RMSD) and root mean square fluctuation (RMSF) calculations indicated that compounds 132, 134, and 159 were the best scoring compounds against main protease, while compounds 115, 120, and 131 were the best scoring ones against spike glycoprotein. Compounds 120 and 131 were able to achieve significant stability and binding free energies during molecular dynamics simulation. In addition, the highest scoring compounds were investigated for their pharmacokinetic properties and drug-likeness. The Aloe compounds are promising active phytoconstituents for drug development for SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed E. Abouelela
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Assiut-Branch, Assiut 71524, Egypt; (M.E.A.); (H.K.A.); (R.A.A.); (E.S.E.)
| | - Hamdy K. Assaf
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Assiut-Branch, Assiut 71524, Egypt; (M.E.A.); (H.K.A.); (R.A.A.); (E.S.E.)
| | - Reda A. Abdelhamid
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Assiut-Branch, Assiut 71524, Egypt; (M.E.A.); (H.K.A.); (R.A.A.); (E.S.E.)
| | - Ehab S. Elkhyat
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Assiut-Branch, Assiut 71524, Egypt; (M.E.A.); (H.K.A.); (R.A.A.); (E.S.E.)
| | - Ahmed M. Sayed
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Nahda University, Beni-Suef 62513, Egypt;
| | - Tomasz Oszako
- Department of Forest Protection, Forest Research Institute, 05-090 Sekocin Stary, Poland;
| | - Lassaad Belbahri
- Laboratory of Soil Biology, University of Neuchatel, 2000 Neuchatel, Switzerland
| | - Ahmed E. El Zowalaty
- Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Department of Surgery, Institute of Clinical Sciences, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
- Wallenberg Centre for Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
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19
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Nguyen H, Thai NQ, Truong DT, Li MS. Remdesivir Strongly Binds to Both RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase and Main Protease of SARS-CoV-2: Evidence from Molecular Simulations. J Phys Chem B 2020; 124:11337-11348. [PMID: 33264025 PMCID: PMC7724981 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c07312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2020] [Revised: 11/12/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The outbreak of a new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2) has caused a global COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic, resulting in millions of infections and thousands of deaths around the world. There is currently no drug or vaccine for COVID-19, but it has been revealed that some commercially available drugs are promising, at least for treating symptoms. Among them, remdesivir, which can block the activity of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) in old SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV viruses, has been prescribed to COVID-19 patients in many countries. A recent experiment showed that remdesivir binds to SARS-CoV-2 with an inhibition constant of μM, but the exact target has not been reported. In this work, combining molecular docking, steered molecular dynamics, and umbrella sampling, we examined its binding affinity to two targets including the main protease (Mpro), also known as 3C-like protease, and RdRp. We showed that remdesivir binds to Mpro slightly weaker than to RdRp, and the corresponding inhibition constants, consistent with the experiment, fall to the μM range. The binding mechanisms of remdesivir to two targets differ in that the electrostatic interaction is the main force in stabilizing the RdRp-remdesivir complex, while the van der Waals interaction dominates in the Mpro-remdesivir case. Our result indicates that remdesivir can target not only RdRp but also Mpro, which can be invoked to explain why this drug is effective in treating COVID-19. We have identified residues of the target protein that make the most important contribution to binding affinity, and this information is useful for drug development for this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hoang
Linh Nguyen
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh
Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh
Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
- Dong
Thap University, 783 Pham Huu Lau Street, Ward 6, Cao Lanh
City 870000, Dong Thap, Vietnam
| | - Duc Toan Truong
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh
Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, al. Lotnikow 32/46, Warsaw 02-668, Poland
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20
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Ahn SH, Jagger BR, Amaro RE. Ranking of Ligand Binding Kinetics Using a Weighted Ensemble Approach and Comparison with a Multiscale Milestoning Approach. J Chem Inf Model 2020; 60:5340-5352. [PMID: 32315175 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.9b00968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
To improve lead optimization efforts in finding the right ligand, pharmaceutical industries need to know the ligand's binding kinetics, such as binding and unbinding rate constants, which often correlate with the ligand's efficacy in vivo. To predict binding kinetics efficiently, enhanced sampling methods, such as milestoning and the weighted ensemble (WE) method, have been used in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of these systems. However, a comparison of these enhanced sampling methods in ranking ligands has not been done. Hence, a WE approach called the concurrent adaptive sampling (CAS) algorithm that uses MD simulations was used to rank seven ligands for β-cyclodextrin, a system in which a multiscale milestoning approach called simulation enabled estimation of kinetic rates (SEEKR) was also used, which uses both MD and Brownian dynamics simulations. Overall, the CAS algorithm can successfully rank ligands using the unbinding rate constant koff values and binding free energy ΔG values, as SEEKR did, with reduced computational cost that is about the same as SEEKR. We compare the CAS algorithm simulations with different parameters and discuss the impact of parameters in ranking ligands and obtaining rate constant and binding free energy estimates. We also discuss similarities and differences and advantages and disadvantages of SEEKR and the CAS algorithm for future use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Surl-Hee Ahn
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
| | - Benjamin R Jagger
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
| | - Rommie E Amaro
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
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21
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Nguyen HL, Lan PD, Thai NQ, Nissley DA, O'Brien EP, Li MS. Does SARS-CoV-2 Bind to Human ACE2 More Strongly Than Does SARS-CoV? J Phys Chem B 2020; 124:7336-7347. [PMID: 32790406 PMCID: PMC7433338 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c04511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
![]()
The
2019 novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) epidemic, which was first
reported in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, was declared a pandemic
by the World Health Organization in March 2020. Genetically, SARS-CoV-2
is closely related to SARS-CoV, which caused a global epidemic with
8096 confirmed cases in more than 25 countries from 2002 to 2003.
Given the significant morbidity and mortality rate, the current pandemic
poses a danger to all of humanity, prompting us to understand the
activity of SARS-CoV-2 at the atomic level. Experimental studies have
revealed that spike proteins of both SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV bind
to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) before entering the cell
for replication. However, the binding affinities reported by different
groups seem to contradict each other. Wrapp et al. (Science2020, 367, 1260–1263) showed
that the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 binds to the ACE2 peptidase domain
(ACE2-PD) more strongly than does SARS-CoV, and this fact may be associated
with a greater severity of the new virus. However, Walls et al. (Cell2020, 181, 281–292)
reported that SARS-CoV-2 exhibits a higher binding affinity, but the
difference between the two variants is relatively small. To understand
the binding mechnism and experimental results, we investigated how
the receptor binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV (SARS-CoV-RBD) and SARS-CoV-2
(SARS-CoV-2-RBD) interacts with a human ACE2-PD using molecular modeling.
We applied a coarse-grained model to calculate the dissociation constant
and found that SARS-CoV-2 displays a 2-fold higher binding affinity.
Using steered all-atom molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate
that, like a coarse-grained simulation, SARS-CoV-2-RBD was associated
with ACE2-PD more strongly than was SARS-CoV-RBD, as evidenced by
a higher rupture force and larger pulling work. We show that the binding
affinity of both viruses to ACE2 is driven by electrostatic interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hoang Linh Nguyen
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Pham Dang Lan
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.,Faculty of Physics and Engineering Physics, VNUHCM-University of Science, 227, Nguyen Van Cu Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Life Science Lab, Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.,Dong Thap University, 783 Pham Huu Lau Street, Ward 6, Cao Lanh City, Dong Thap, Vietnam
| | - Daniel A Nissley
- Department of Statistics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 2JD, United Kingdom
| | - Edward P O'Brien
- Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Bioinformatics and Genomics Graduate Program, The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802,United States
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
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22
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Abstract
![]()
Accurate determination
of the binding affinity of the ligand to
the receptor remains a difficult problem in computer-aided drug design.
Here, we study and compare the efficiency of Jarzynski’s equality
(JE) combined with steered molecular dynamics and the linear interaction
energy (LIE) method by assessing the binding affinity of 23 small
compounds to six receptors, including β-lactamase, thrombin,
factor Xa, HIV-1 protease (HIV), myeloid cell leukemia-1, and cyclin-dependent
kinase 2 proteins. It was shown that Jarzynski’s nonequilibrium
binding free energy ΔGneqJar correlates with the available
experimental data with the correlation levels R =
0.89, 0.86, 0.83, 0.80, 0.83, and 0.81 for six data sets, while for
the binding free energy ΔGLIE obtained
by the LIE method, we have R = 0.73, 0.80, 0.42,
0.23, 0.85, and 0.01. Therefore, JE is recommended to be used for
ranking binding affinities as it provides accurate and robust results.
In contrast, LIE is not as reliable as JE, and it should be used with
caution, especially when it comes to new systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiet Ho
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, SBI Building, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Duc Toan Truong
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, SBI Building, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.,Department of Theoretical Physics, Faculty of Physics and Engineering Physics, Ho Chi Minh University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
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23
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Thai NQ, Theodorakis PE, Li MS. Fast Estimation of the Blood-Brain Barrier Permeability by Pulling a Ligand through a Lipid Membrane. J Chem Inf Model 2020; 60:3057-3067. [PMID: 32469527 PMCID: PMC7588033 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.9b00834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
![]()
The blood–brain barrier (BBB)
is a physical barrier that
regulates the homeostasis of the neural microenvironment. A relative
estimate of the BBB permeability, which is important for drug design,
may be experimentally provided by the logBB (the blood–brain
concentration ratio) and the logPS (permeability–surface-area
product), while many computational methods aim to identify key properties
that correlate well with these quantities. Although currently existing
computational methods (e.g., quantitative structure activity relation)
have made a significant contribution in screening various compounds
that could potentially translocate through the BBB, they are unable
to provide a physical explanation of the underlying processes and
they can often be computationally demanding. Here, we use steered
molecular dynamics simulation to estimate the BBB permeability of
various compounds on the basis of simple lipid–membrane models
by computing the nonequilibrium work, Wneq, produced by pulling the compounds through the membrane. We found
that the values of Wneq correlate remarkably
well with logBB and logPS for a range of compounds and different membrane
types and pulling speeds, independently of the choice of force field.
Moreover, our results provide insight into the role of hydrogen bonds,
the energetic barriers, and the forces exerted on the ligands during
their pulling. Our method is computationally easy to implement and
fast. Therefore, we anticipate that it could provide a reliable prescreening
tool for estimating the relative permeability of the BBB to various
substances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam.,Dong Thap University, 783 Pham Huu Lau Street, Ward 6, Cao Lanh City 870000, Dong Thap, Vietnam
| | | | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
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24
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Hacisuleyman A, Erman B. ModiBodies: A computational method for modifying nanobodies in nanobody-antigen complexes to improve binding affinity and specificity. J Biol Phys 2020; 46:189-208. [PMID: 32418062 DOI: 10.1007/s10867-020-09548-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Accepted: 04/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Nanobodies are special derivatives of antibodies, which consist of single domain fragments. They have become of considerable interest as next-generation biotechnological tools for antigen recognition. They can be easily engineered due to their high stability and compact size. Nanobodies have three complementarity-determining regions, CDRs, which are enlarged to provide a similar binding surface to that of human immunoglobulins. Here, we propose a benchmark testing algorithm that uses 3D structures of already existing protein-nanobody complexes as initial structures followed by successive mutations on the CDR domains. The aim is to find optimum binding amino acids for hypervariable residues of CDRs. We use molecular dynamics simulations to compare the binding energies of the resulting complexes with that of the known complex and accept those that are improved by mutations. We use the MDM4-VH9 complex, (PDB id 2VYR), fructose-bisphosphate aldolase from Trypanosoma congolense (PDB id 5O0W) and human lysozyme (PDB id 4I0C) as benchmark complexes. By using this algorithm, better binding nanobodies can be generated in a short amount of time. We suggest that this method can complement existing immune and synthetic library-based methods, without a need for extensive experimentation or large libraries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aysima Hacisuleyman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koc University, Istanbul, Turkey.
| | - Burak Erman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koc University, Istanbul, Turkey
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25
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Jalalypour F, Sensoy O, Atilgan C. Perturb-Scan-Pull: A Novel Method Facilitating Conformational Transitions in Proteins. J Chem Theory Comput 2020; 16:3825-3841. [PMID: 32324386 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.9b01222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Conformational transitions in proteins facilitate precise physiological functions. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the mechanisms underlying these processes to modulate protein function. Yet, studying structural and dynamical properties of proteins is notoriously challenging due to the complexity of the underlying potential energy surfaces (PES). We have previously developed the perturbation-response scanning (PRS) method to identify key residues that participate in the communication network responsible for specific conformational transitions. PRS is based on a residue-by-residue scan of the protein to determine the subset of residues/forces which provide the closest conformational change leading to a target conformational state, inasmuch as linear response theory applies to these motions. Here, we develop a novel method to further evaluate if conformational transitions may be triggered on the PES. We aim to study functionally relevant conformational transitions in proteins by using results obtained from PRS and feeding them as inputs to steered molecular dynamics simulations. The success and the transferability of the method are evaluated on three protein systems having different complexities of motion on the PES: calmodulin, adenylate kinase, and bacterial ferric binding protein. We find that the method captures the target conformation, while providing key residues and the optimum paths with relatively low free energy profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Farzaneh Jalalypour
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, 34956, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Ozge Sensoy
- School of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Istanbul Medipol University, 34810, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Canan Atilgan
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, 34956, Istanbul, Turkey.,Sabanci University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center, SUNUM, 34956, Istanbul, Turkey
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26
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Sivakumar KC, Haixiao J, Naman CB, Sajeevan TP. Prospects of multitarget drug designing strategies by linking molecular docking and molecular dynamics to explore the protein-ligand recognition process. Drug Dev Res 2020; 81:685-699. [PMID: 32329098 DOI: 10.1002/ddr.21673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2019] [Revised: 03/24/2020] [Accepted: 04/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The designing of drugs that can simultaneously affect different protein targets is one novel and promising way to treat complex diseases. Multitarget drugs act on multiple protein receptors each implicated in the same disease state, and may be considered to be more beneficial than conventional drug therapies. For example, these drugs can have improved therapeutic potency due to synergistic effects on multiple targets, as well as improved safety and resistance profiles due to the combined regulation of potential primary therapeutic targets and compensatory elements and lower dosage typically required. This review analyzes in-silico methods that facilitate multitarget drug design that facilitate the discovery and development of novel therapeutic agents. Here presented is a summary of the progress in structure-based drug discovery techniques that study the process of molecular recognition of targets and ligands, moving from static molecular docking to improved molecular dynamics approaches in multitarget drug design, and the advantages and limitations of each.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krishnankutty Chandrika Sivakumar
- National Centre for Aquatic Animal Health, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, India.,Bioinformatics Facility, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Thiruvananthapuram, India
| | - Jin Haixiao
- Li Dak Sum Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China
| | - C Benjamin Naman
- Li Dak Sum Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China.,Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - T P Sajeevan
- National Centre for Aquatic Animal Health, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, India
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27
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Limongelli V. Ligand binding free energy and kinetics calculation in 2020. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR SCIENCE 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/wcms.1455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Vittorio Limongelli
- Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Computational Science – Center for Computational Medicine in Cardiology Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) Lugano Switzerland
- Department of Pharmacy University of Naples “Federico II” Naples Italy
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28
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Wang AH, Zhang ZC, Li GH. Advances in enhanced sampling molecular dynamics simulations for biomolecules. CHINESE J CHEM PHYS 2019. [DOI: 10.1063/1674-0068/cjcp1905091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- An-hui Wang
- Laboratory of Molecular Modeling and Design, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Reaction Dynamics, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian 116023, China
- State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, School of Chemistry, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Zhi-chao Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, School of Chemistry, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Guo-hui Li
- Laboratory of Molecular Modeling and Design, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Reaction Dynamics, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian 116023, China
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29
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Wang B, Sun Y, Davis TP, Ke PC, Wu Y, Ding F. Understanding Effects of PAMAM Dendrimer Size and Surface Chemistry on Serum Protein Binding with Discrete Molecular Dynamics Simulations. ACS SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY & ENGINEERING 2018; 6:11704-11715. [PMID: 30881771 PMCID: PMC6413314 DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.8b01959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers, a class of polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) with highly-controllable sizes and surface chemistry, are promising candidates for many biomedical applications, including drug and gene delivery, imaging, and inhibition of amyloid aggregation. In circulation, binding of serum proteins with dendritic NPs renders the formation of protein corona and alters the biological identity of the NP core, which may subsequently elicit immunoresponse and cytotoxicity. Understanding the effects of PAMAM size and surface chemistry on serum protein binding is, therefore, crucial to enable their broad biomedical applications. Here, by applying atomistic discrete molecular dynamics (DMD) simulations, we first uncovered the binding of PAMAM with HSA and Ig and detailed the dependences of such binding on PAMAM size and surface modification. Compared to either anionic or cationic surfaces, modifications with neutral phosphorylcholine (PC), polyethylene glycol (PEG), and hydroxyls (OH) significantly reduced binding with proteins. The relatively strong binding between proteins and PAMAM dendrimers with charged surface groups was mainly driven by electrostatic interactions as well as hydrophobic interactions. Using steered DMD (SDMD) simulations, we conducted a force-pulling experiment in silico estimating the critical forces separating PAMAM-protein complexes and deriving the corresponding free energy barriers for dissociation. The SDMD-derived HSA-binding affinities were consistent with existing experimental measurements. Our results highlighted the association dynamics of protein-dendrimer interactions and binding affinities, whose implications range from fundamental nanobio interfacial phenomena to the development of "stealth NPs".
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Wang
- department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University,
Clemson, SC 29634, USA
- Department of Systems and Computational Biology, Albert
Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA
| | - Yunxiang Sun
- department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University,
Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Thomas P. Davis
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Convergent Bio-Nano Science and
Technology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, 381
Royal Parade, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Pu Chun Ke
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Convergent Bio-Nano Science and
Technology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, 381
Royal Parade, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Yinghao Wu
- Department of Systems and Computational Biology, Albert
Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA
| | - Feng Ding
- department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University,
Clemson, SC 29634, USA
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30
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Salmaso V, Moro S. Bridging Molecular Docking to Molecular Dynamics in Exploring Ligand-Protein Recognition Process: An Overview. Front Pharmacol 2018; 9:923. [PMID: 30186166 PMCID: PMC6113859 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2018.00923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 313] [Impact Index Per Article: 52.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2018] [Accepted: 07/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Computational techniques have been applied in the drug discovery pipeline since the 1980s. Given the low computational resources of the time, the first molecular modeling strategies relied on a rigid view of the ligand-target binding process. During the years, the evolution of hardware technologies has gradually allowed simulating the dynamic nature of the binding event. In this work, we present an overview of the evolution of structure-based drug discovery techniques in the study of ligand-target recognition phenomenon, going from the static molecular docking toward enhanced molecular dynamics strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica Salmaso
- Molecular Modeling Section, Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Stefano Moro
- Molecular Modeling Section, Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
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31
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Kouza M, Banerji A, Kolinski A, Buhimschi I, Kloczkowski A. Role of Resultant Dipole Moment in Mechanical Dissociation of Biological Complexes. Molecules 2018; 23:molecules23081995. [PMID: 30103417 PMCID: PMC6222447 DOI: 10.3390/molecules23081995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2018] [Revised: 08/07/2018] [Accepted: 08/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein-peptide interactions play essential roles in many cellular processes and their structural characterization is the major focus of current experimental and theoretical research. Two decades ago, it was proposed to employ the steered molecular dynamics (SMD) to assess the strength of protein-peptide interactions. The idea behind using SMD simulations is that the mechanical stability can be used as a promising and an efficient alternative to computationally highly demanding estimation of binding affinity. However, mechanical stability defined as a peak in force-extension profile depends on the choice of the pulling direction. Here we propose an uncommon choice of the pulling direction along resultant dipole moment (RDM) vector, which has not been explored in SMD simulations so far. Using explicit solvent all-atom MD simulations, we apply SMD technique to probe mechanical resistance of ligand-receptor system pulled along two different vectors. A novel pulling direction—when ligand unbinds along the RDM vector—results in stronger forces compared to commonly used ligand unbinding along center of masses vector. Our observation that RDM is one of the factors influencing the mechanical stability of protein-peptide complex can be used to improve the ranking of binding affinities by using mechanical stability as an effective scoring function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maksim Kouza
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland;
- Battelle Center for Mathematical Medicine, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH 43215, USA;
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +48-22-55-26-364
| | - Anirban Banerji
- Battelle Center for Mathematical Medicine, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH 43215, USA;
| | - Andrzej Kolinski
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland;
| | - Irina Buhimschi
- Center for Perinatal Research, Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH 43215, USA;
- Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH 43215, USA
| | - Andrzej Kloczkowski
- Battelle Center for Mathematical Medicine, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH 43215, USA;
- Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH 43215, USA
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32
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Chaves EJF, Padilha IQM, Araújo DAM, Rocha GB. Determining the Relative Binding Affinity of Ricin Toxin A Inhibitors by Using Molecular Docking and Nonequilibrium Work. J Chem Inf Model 2018; 58:1205-1213. [PMID: 29750861 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.8b00036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Ricin is a ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP type 2) consisting of two subunits, ricin toxin A (RTA) and ricin toxin B (RTB). Because of its cytotoxicity, ricin has worried world authorities for its potential use as a chemical weapon; therefore, its inhibition is of great biotechnological interest. RTA is the target for inhibitor synthesis, and pterin derivatives are promising candidates to inhibit it. In this study, we used a combination of the molecular docking approach and fast steered molecular dynamics (SMD) to assess the correlation between nonequilibrium work, ⟨ W⟩, and the IC50 for six RTA inhibitors. The results showed that molecular docking is a powerful tool to predict good bioactive poses of RTA inhibitors, and ⟨ W⟩ presented a strong correlation with IC50 ( R2 = 0.961). Such a profile ranked the RTA inhibitors better than the molecular docking approach. Therefore, the combination of docking and fast SMD simulation was shown to be a promising tool to distinguish RTA-active inhibitors from inactive ones and could be used as postdocking filtering approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elton J F Chaves
- Department of Biotechnology , Federal University of Paraíba , 58051-900 João Pessoa - PB , Brazil
| | - Itácio Q M Padilha
- Department of Biotechnology , Federal University of Paraíba , 58051-900 João Pessoa - PB , Brazil
| | - Demétrius A M Araújo
- Department of Biotechnology , Federal University of Paraíba , 58051-900 João Pessoa - PB , Brazil
| | - Gerd B Rocha
- Department of Chemistry , Federal University of Paraíba , 58051-900 João Pessoa - PB , Brazil
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33
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Nguyen H, Pham T, Nguyen HL, Phan T. Investigation of Binding Affinity Between Prokaryotic Proteins (AHU-IHF) and DNAs: Steered Molecular Dynamics Approach. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 2018; 186:834-846. [DOI: 10.1007/s12010-018-2735-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2017] [Accepted: 03/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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34
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Iglesias J, Saen‐oon S, Soliva R, Guallar V. Computational structure‐based drug design: Predicting target flexibility. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR SCIENCE 2018. [DOI: 10.1002/wcms.1367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Victor Guallar
- Life Science DepartmentBarcelonaSpain
- ICREA, Passeig Lluís Companys 23BarcelonaSpain
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35
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Erythromycin leads to differential protein expression through differences in electrostatic and dispersion interactions with nascent proteins. Sci Rep 2018; 8:6460. [PMID: 29691429 PMCID: PMC5915450 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-24344-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2017] [Accepted: 03/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The antibiotic activity of erythromycin, which reversibly binds to a site within the bacterial ribosome exit tunnel, against many gram positive microorganisms indicates that it effectively inhibits the production of proteins. Similar to other macrolides, the activity of erythromycin is far from universal, as some peptides can bypass the macrolide-obstructed exit tunnel and become partially or fully synthesized. It is unclear why, at the molecular level, some proteins can be synthesized while others cannot. Here, we use steered molecular dynamics simulations to examine how erythromycin inhibits synthesis of the peptide ErmCL but not the peptide H-NS. By pulling these peptides through the exit tunnel of the E.coli ribosome with and without erythromycin present, we find that erythromycin directly interacts with both nascent peptides, but the force required for ErmCL to bypass erythromycin is greater than that of H-NS. The largest forces arise three to six residues from their N-terminus as they start to bypass Erythromycin. Decomposing the interaction energies between erythromycin and the peptides at this point, we find that there are stronger electrostatic and dispersion interactions with the more C-terminal residues of ErmCL than with H-NS. These results suggest that erythromycin slows or stalls synthesis of ErmCL compared to H-NS due to stronger interactions with particular residue positions along the nascent protein.
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36
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Truong DT, Li MS. Probing the Binding Affinity by Jarzynski's Nonequilibrium Binding Free Energy and Rupture Time. J Phys Chem B 2018; 122:4693-4699. [PMID: 29630379 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b02137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Binding affinity of a small ligand to a receptor is the important quantity in drug design, and it might be characterized by different quantities. The most popular one is the binding free energy, which can be estimated by several methods in conventional molecular dynamics simulation. So far in steered molecular dynamics (SMD), one can use either the rupture force or nonequilibrium pulling work as a measure for binding affinity. In this paper, we have shown that the nonequilibrium binding free energy Δ GneqJar, obtained by Jarzynski's equality at a finite pulling speed, has good correlation with experimental data on inhibition constants, implying that this quantity can be used as a good scoring function for binding affinity. A similar correlation has also been disclosed for binding and unbinding free energy barriers. Applying the SMD method to unbinding of 23 small compounds from the binding site of β-lactamase protein, a bacteria-produced enzyme, we have demonstrated that the rupture or unbinding time strongly correlates with experimental data with correlation level R ≈ 0.84. As follows from the Jarzynski's equality, the rupture time depends on the unbinding barrier exponentially. We show that Δ GneqJar, the rupture time, and binding and unbinding free energy barriers are good descriptors for binding affinity. Our observation may be useful for fast screening of potential leads as the SMD simulation is not time-consuming. On the basis of nonequilibrium simulation, we disclosed that, in agreement with the experiment, the binding time is much longer than the unbinding one.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duc Toan Truong
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology , SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City , Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City , Vietnam.,Department of Theoretical Physics, Faculty of Physics and Engineering Physics , Ho Chi Minh University of Science, Vietnam National University , 227 Nguyen Van Cu, Dist. 5 , Ho Chi Minh City , Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology , SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City , Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City , Vietnam.,Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences , Al. Lotnikow 32/46 , 02-668 Warsaw , Poland
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37
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Thai NQ, Nguyen NQ, Nguyen C, Nguyen TQ, Ho K, Nguyen TT, Li MS. Screening potential inhibitors for cancer target LSD1 from natural products by steered molecular dynamics. MOLECULAR SIMULATION 2017. [DOI: 10.1080/08927022.2017.1380802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Life Science Lab, Institute of Computational Science and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Department of Physics, Dong Thap University, Cao Lanh City, Vietnam
- Biomedical Engineering Department, University of Technology -VNU HCM, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Ngan Quy Nguyen
- Life Science Lab, Institute of Computational Science and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Chuong Nguyen
- Theoretical Physics Research Group, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Faculty of Applied Sciences, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Truong Quy Nguyen
- Faculty of Physics and Engineering Physics, Department of Theoretical Physics, University of Science - VNU HCM, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Kiet Ho
- Theoretical Physics Research Group, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Trung Tin Nguyen
- Life Science Lab, Institute of Computational Science and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
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38
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Thai NQ, Nguyen HL, Linh HQ, Li MS. Protocol for fast screening of multi-target drug candidates: Application to Alzheimer's disease. J Mol Graph Model 2017; 77:121-129. [PMID: 28850894 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2017.08.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2017] [Revised: 08/03/2017] [Accepted: 08/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The treatment of many diseases may require drugs that are capable to attack multiple targets simultaneously. Obviously, the virtual screening of multi-target drug candidates is much more time consuming compared to the single-target case. This, in particular, concerns the last step of virtual screening where the binding free energy is computed by conventional molecular dynamics simulation. To overcome this difficulty we propose a simple protocol which is relied on the fast steered molecular dynamics simulation and on available experimental data on binding affinity of reference ligand to a given target. Namely, first we compute non-equilibrium works generated during pulling ligands from the binding site using the steered molecular dynamics method. Then as top leads we choose only those compounds that have the non-equilibrium work larger than that of a reference compound for which the binding free energy has been already known from experiment. Despite many efforts no cures for AD (Alzheimer's disease) have been found. One of possible reasons for this failure is that drug candidates were developed for a single target, while there are exist many possible pathways to AD. Applying our new protocol to five targets including amyloid beta fibril, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ, retinoic X receptor α, β- and γ-secretases, we have found two potential drugs (CID 16040294 and CID 9998128) for AD from the large PubChem database. We have also shown that these two ligands can interfere with the activity of popular Acetylcholinesterase target through strong binding towards it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology,SBI building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam; Dong Thap University,783 Pham Huu Lau Street, Ward 6, Cao Lanh City, Dong Thap, Viet Nam; Biomedical Engineering Department, University of Technology -VNU HCM, 268 Ly Thuong Kiet Str., Distr. 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
| | - Hoang Linh Nguyen
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology,SBI building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
| | - Huynh Quang Linh
- Biomedical Engineering Department, University of Technology -VNU HCM, 268 Ly Thuong Kiet Str., Distr. 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology,SBI building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam; Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland.
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39
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Li MS. Ligand migration and steered molecular dynamics in drug discovery: Comment on "Ligand diffusion in proteins via enhanced sampling in molecular dynamics" by Jakub Rydzewski and Wieslaw Nowak. Phys Life Rev 2017; 22-23:79-81. [PMID: 28807592 DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2017.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2017] [Accepted: 08/08/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland.
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40
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Rydzewski J, Nowak W. Ligand diffusion in proteins via enhanced sampling in molecular dynamics. Phys Life Rev 2017; 22-23:58-74. [PMID: 28410930 DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2017.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2016] [Revised: 10/28/2016] [Accepted: 03/28/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Computational simulations in biophysics describe the dynamics and functions of biological macromolecules at the atomic level. Among motions particularly important for life are the transport processes in heterogeneous media. The process of ligand diffusion inside proteins is an example of a complex rare event that can be modeled using molecular dynamics simulations. The study of physical interactions between a ligand and its biological target is of paramount importance for the design of novel drugs and enzymes. Unfortunately, the process of ligand diffusion is difficult to study experimentally. The need for identifying the ligand egress pathways and understanding how ligands migrate through protein tunnels has spurred the development of several methodological approaches to this problem. The complex topology of protein channels and the transient nature of the ligand passage pose difficulties in the modeling of the ligand entry/escape pathways by canonical molecular dynamics simulations. In this review, we report a methodology involving a reconstruction of the ligand diffusion reaction coordinates and the free-energy profiles along these reaction coordinates using enhanced sampling of conformational space. We illustrate the above methods on several ligand-protein systems, including cytochromes and G-protein-coupled receptors. The methods are general and may be adopted to other transport processes in living matter.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Rydzewski
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Grudziadzka 5, 87-100 Toruń, Poland.
| | - W Nowak
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Grudziadzka 5, 87-100 Toruń, Poland.
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Bartuzi D, Kaczor AA, Targowska-Duda KM, Matosiuk D. Recent Advances and Applications of Molecular Docking to G Protein-Coupled Receptors. Molecules 2017; 22:molecules22020340. [PMID: 28241450 PMCID: PMC6155844 DOI: 10.3390/molecules22020340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2016] [Revised: 01/27/2017] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The growing number of studies on G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) family are a source of noticeable improvement in our understanding of the functioning of these proteins. GPCRs are responsible for a vast part of signaling in vertebrates and, as such, invariably remain in the spotlight of medicinal chemistry. A deeper insight into the underlying mechanisms of interesting phenomena observed in GPCRs, such as biased signaling or allosteric modulation, can be gained with experimental and computational studies. The latter play an important role in this process, since they allow for observations on scales inaccessible for most other methods. One of the key steps in such studies is proper computational reconstruction of actual ligand-receptor or protein-protein interactions, a process called molecular docking. A number of improvements and innovative applications of this method were documented recently. In this review, we focus particularly on innovations in docking to GPCRs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damian Bartuzi
- Department of Synthesis and Chemical Technology of Pharmaceutical Substances with Computer Modelling Lab, Medical University of Lublin, 4A Chodźki Str., PL20093 Lublin, Poland.
| | - Agnieszka A Kaczor
- Department of Synthesis and Chemical Technology of Pharmaceutical Substances with Computer Modelling Lab, Medical University of Lublin, 4A Chodźki Str., PL20093 Lublin, Poland.
- School of Pharmacy, University of Eastern Finland, Yliopistonranta 1, P.O. Box 1627, FI-70211 Kuopio, Finland.
| | | | - Dariusz Matosiuk
- Department of Synthesis and Chemical Technology of Pharmaceutical Substances with Computer Modelling Lab, Medical University of Lublin, 4A Chodźki Str., PL20093 Lublin, Poland.
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Fast and accurate determination of the relative binding affinities of small compounds to HIV-1 protease using non-equilibrium work. J Comput Chem 2016; 37:2734-2742. [DOI: 10.1002/jcc.24502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2016] [Revised: 08/29/2016] [Accepted: 09/06/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Thai NQ, Tseng NH, Vu MT, Nguyen TT, Linh HQ, Hu CK, Chen YR, Li MS. Discovery of DNA dyes Hoechst 34580 and 33342 as good candidates for inhibiting amyloid beta formation: in silico and in vitro study. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2016; 30:639-50. [PMID: 27511370 PMCID: PMC5021751 DOI: 10.1007/s10822-016-9932-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2016] [Accepted: 07/27/2016] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Combining Lipinski's rule with the docking and steered molecular dynamics simulations and using the PubChem data base of about 1.4 million compounds, we have obtained DNA dyes Hoechst 34580 and Hoechst 33342 as top-leads for the Alzheimer's disease. The binding properties of these ligands to amyloid beta (Aβ) fibril were thoroughly studied by in silico and in vitro experiments. Hoechst 34580 and Hoechst 33342 prefer to locate near hydrophobic regions with binding affinity mainly governed by the van der Waals interaction. By the Thioflavin T assay, it was found that the inhibition constant IC50 ≈ 0.86 and 0.68 μM for Hoechst 34580 and Hoechst 33342, respectively. This result qualitatively agrees with the binding free energy estimated using the molecular mechanic-Poisson Boltzmann surface area method and all-atom simulations with the AMBER-f99SB-ILDN force field and water model TIP3P. In addition, DNA dyes have the high capability to cross the blood brain barrier. Thus, both in silico and in vitro experiments have shown that Hoechst 34580 and 33342 are good candidates for treating the Alzheimer's disease by inhibiting Aβ formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nguyen Quoc Thai
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Biomedical Engineering Department, University of Technology -VNU HCM, 268 Ly Thuong Kiet Str., Distr. 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Division of Theoretical Physics, Dong Thap University, 783 Pham Huu Lau Street, Ward 6, Cao Lanh City, Dong Thap Vietnam
| | - Ning-Hsuan Tseng
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang Dist., Taipei 115, Taiwan
| | - Mui Thi Vu
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Tin Trung Nguyen
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Huynh Quang Linh
- Biomedical Engineering Department, University of Technology -VNU HCM, 268 Ly Thuong Kiet Str., Distr. 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Chin-Kun Hu
- Institute of Physics, Academia Sinica, 128 Academia Road Section 2, Taipei, 11529 Taiwan
- National Center for Theoretical Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, 101 Kuang-Fu Road Section 2, Hsinch, 30013 Taiwan
- Business School, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, 334 Jun Gong Road, Shanghai, 200093 China
| | - Yun-Ru Chen
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang Dist., Taipei 115, Taiwan
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute for Computational Science and Technology, SBI Building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
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Nguyen TT, Tran DP, Hoang Z, Carloni P, Van Pham P, Nguyen C, Li MS. Ligand binding to anti-cancer target CD44 investigated by molecular simulations. J Mol Model 2016; 22:165. [PMID: 27342250 DOI: 10.1007/s00894-016-3029-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Accepted: 05/31/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
CD44 is a cell-surface glycoprotein and receptor for hyaluronan, one of the major components of the tumor extracellular matrix. There is evidence that the interaction between CD44 and hyaluronan promotes breast cancer metastasis. Recently, the molecule F-19848A was shown to inhibit hyaluronan binding to receptor CD44 in a cell-based assay. In this study, we investigated the mechanism and energetics of F-19848A binding to CD44 using molecular simulation. Using the molecular mechanics/Poisson Boltzmann surface area (MM-PBSA) method, we obtained the binding free energy and inhibition constant of the complex. The van der Waals (vdW) interaction and the extended portion of F-19848A play key roles in the binding affinity. We screened natural products from a traditional Chinese medicine database to search for CD44 inhibitors. From combining pharmaceutical requirements with docking and molecular dynamics simulations, we found ten compounds that are potentially better or equal to the F-19848A ligand at binding to CD44 receptor. Therefore, we have identified new candidates of CD44 inhibitors, based on molecular simulation, which may be effective small molecules for the therapy of breast cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tin Trung Nguyen
- Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology, SBI building, Quang Trung Software City, Tan Chanh Hiep Ward, District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Duy Phuoc Tran
- University of Technology, Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City, 268 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, District 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Zung Hoang
- Center for Molecular and NanoArchitecture (MANAR), Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City, Quarter 6, Linh Trung Ward, Thu Duc District, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Paolo Carloni
- Computational Biomedicine, Institute for Advanced Simulation IAS-5 and Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine INM-9, Forschungszentrum Juelich, Juelich, Germany.
| | - Phuc Van Pham
- Stem Cell Research and Application Laboratory, University of Science, Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
| | - Chuong Nguyen
- Theoretical Physics Research Group, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
- Faculty of Applied Sciences, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668, Warsaw, Poland.
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