1
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Bartocci A, Dumont E. Situating the phosphonated calixarene-cytochrome C association by molecular dynamics simulations. J Chem Phys 2024; 160:105101. [PMID: 38465686 DOI: 10.1063/5.0198522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2024] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Protein-calixarenes binding plays an increasingly central role in many applications, spanning from molecular recognition to drug delivery strategies and protein inhibition. These ligands obey a specific bio-supramolecular chemistry, which can be revealed by computational approaches, such as molecular dynamics simulations. In this paper, we rely on all-atom, explicit-solvent molecular dynamics simulations to capture the electrostatically driven association of a phosphonated calix-[4]-arene with cytochome-C, which critically relies on surface-exposed paired lysines. Beyond two binding sites identified in direct agreement with the x-ray structure, the association has a larger structural impact on the protein dynamics. Then, our simulations allow a direct comparison to analogous calixarenes, namely, sulfonato, similarly reported as "molecular glue." Our work can contribute to a robust in silico predictive tool to assess binding sites for any given protein of interest for crystallization, with the specificity of a macromolecular cage whose endo/exo orientation plays a role in the binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessio Bartocci
- Department of Physics, University of Trento, Via Sommarive 14, I-38123 Trento, Italy
- INFN-TIFPA, Trento Institute for Fundamental Physics and Applications, Via Sommarive 14, I-38123 Trento, Italy
- Institut de Chimie de Strasbourg, UMR 7177, CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg Cedex 67083, France
| | - Elise Dumont
- Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Institut de Chimie de Nice, UMR 7272, 06108 Nice, France
- Institut Universitaire de France, 5 rue Descartes, 75005 Paris, France
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2
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Esther Rubavathy SM, Rajapandian V, Prakash M. Exploration of novel hydroxamate zinc binding group inhibitors against HDAC-1-3 enzymes by AI-based virtual screening: atomistic insights from steered molecular dynamics. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024:1-12. [PMID: 38456827 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2024.2325104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
Overexpression of histone deacetylase (HDAC) enzymes is linked to a wide variety of illnesses, including malignancies and neurological disorders, which makes HDAC inhibitors potentially therapeutic. However, most HDAC inhibitors lack subclass or isoform selectivity, which can be dangerous. Featuring both enhanced selectivity and toxicity profiles, slow-binding HDAC inhibitors offer promising treatment options for a variety of disorders. Diseases like cardiac, neurodegenerative disorders and diabetes are mainly associated with the HDAC1, HDAC2 and HDAC3 enzymes. The AI-based virtual screening tool PyRMD is implemented to identify the potential inhibitors from ∼2 million compounds. Based on the IC50 values, the top 10 compounds were selected for molecular docking. From the docking and ADMET study, the top-ranked three compounds were selected for molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Further, to get more insights into the binding/unbinding mechanism of the ligand, we have employed the steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulations. This study assists in developing Amber force field parameters for the HDAC1, HDAC2 and HDAC3 proteins and sheds light on the discovery of a potent drug. Our study suggests that hydroxamic acid derivative (i.e. referred to as Comp-1, CHEMBL600072) is the potential inhibitor for the series of HDAC-related diseases.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- S M Esther Rubavathy
- Department of Chemistry, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - V Rajapandian
- Department of Chemistry, Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - M Prakash
- Department of Chemistry, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Tamil Nadu, India
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3
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Ding Y, Huang J. DP/MM: A Hybrid Model for Zinc-Protein Interactions in Molecular Dynamics. J Phys Chem Lett 2024; 15:616-627. [PMID: 38198685 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c03158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Zinc-containing proteins are vital for many biological processes, yet accurately modeling them using classical force fields is hindered by complicated polarization and charge transfer effects. This study introduces DP/MM, a hybrid force field scheme that utilizes a deep potential model to correct the atomic forces of zinc ions and their coordinated atoms, elevating them from MM to QM levels of accuracy. Trained on the difference between MM and QM atomic forces across diverse zinc coordination groups, the DP/MM model faithfully reproduces structural characteristics of zinc coordination during simulations, such as the tetrahedral coordination of Cys4 and Cys3His1 groups. Furthermore, DP/MM allows water exchange in the zinc coordination environment. With its unique blend of accuracy, efficiency, flexibility, and transferability, DP/MM serves as a valuable tool for studying structures and dynamics of zinc-containing proteins and also represents a pioneering approach in the evolving landscape of machine learning potentials for molecular modeling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ye Ding
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310027, China
- School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310024, China
- Westlake AI Therapeutics Lab, Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310024, China
| | - Jing Huang
- School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310024, China
- Westlake AI Therapeutics Lab, Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310024, China
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4
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Nakao IA, Almeida TC, Cardoso Reis AC, Coutinho GG, Hermenegildo AM, Cordeiro CF, da Silva GN, Dias DF, Brandão GC, Pinto Braga SF, de Souza TB. Discovery of a new dihydroeugenol-chalcone hybrid with cytotoxic and anti-migratory potential: A dual-action hit for cancer therapeutics. Bioorg Med Chem 2023; 96:117516. [PMID: 37944413 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2023.117516] [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: 06/18/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/01/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Cancer still represents a serious public health problem and one of the main problems related to the worsening of this disease is the ability of some tumors to develop metastasis. In this work, we synthesized a new series of chalcones and isoxazoles derived from eugenol and analogues as molecular hybrids and these compounds were evaluated against different tumor cell lines. This structural pattern was designed considering the cytotoxic potential already known for eugenol, chalcones and isoxazoles. Notably, chalcones 7, 9, 10, and 11 displayed significant activity (4.2-14.5 µM) against two cancer cell lines, surpassing the potency of the control drug doxorubicin. The reaction of chalcones with hydroxylamine hydrochloride provided the corresponding isoxazoles that were inactive against these cancer cells. The dihydroeugenol chalcone 7 showed the most promising results, demonstrating higher potency against HepG2 (CC50: 4.2 µM) and TOV-21G (CC50: 7.2 µM). Chalcone 7 was also three times less toxic than doxorubicin considering HepG2 cells, with a selectivity index greater than 11. Further investigations including clonogenic survival, cell cycle progression and cell migration assays confirmed the compelling antitumoral potential of chalcone 7, as it reduced long-term survival due to DNA fragmentation, inducing cell death and inhibiting HepG2 cells migration. Moreover, in silico studies involving docking and molecular dynamics revealed a consistent binding mode of chalcone 7 with metalloproteinases, particularly MMP-9, shedding light on its potential mechanism of action related to anti-migratory effects. These significant findings suggest the inclusion of compound 7 as a promising candidate for future studies in the field of cancer therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Izadora Amaral Nakao
- School of Pharmacy - Federal University of Ouro Preto, 35400-000 Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil
| | - Tamires Cunha Almeida
- School of Pharmacy - Federal University of Ouro Preto, 35400-000 Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Geraldo Célio Brandão
- School of Pharmacy - Federal University of Ouro Preto, 35400-000 Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil
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5
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Scarano N, Di Palma F, Origlia N, Musumeci F, Schenone S, Spinelli S, Passalacqua M, Zocchi E, Sturla L, Cichero E, Cavalli A. New Insights into the LANCL2- ABA Binding Mode towards the Evaluation of New LANCL Agonists. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:2754. [PMID: 38140095 PMCID: PMC10747503 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15122754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/02/2023] [Accepted: 12/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The lanthionine synthetase C-like (LANCL) proteins include LANCL2, which is expressed in the central nervous system (CNS) and in peripheral tissues. LANCL2 exhibits glutathionylation activity and is involved in the neutralization of reactive electrophiles. Several studies explored LANCL2 activation as a validated pharmacological target for diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease. In this context, LANCL2 was found to bind the natural product abscisic acid (ABA), whose pre-clinical effectiveness in different inflammatory diseases was reported in the literature. More recently, LANCL2 attracted more attention as a valuable resource in the field of neurodegenerative disorders. ABA was found to regulate neuro-inflammation and synaptic plasticity to enhance learning and memory, exhibiting promising neuroprotective effects. Up until now, a limited number of LANCL2 ligands are known; among them, BT-11 is the only compound patented and investigated for its anti-inflammatory properties. To guide the design of novel putative LANCL2 agonists, a computational study including molecular docking and long molecular dynamic (MD) simulations of both ABA and BT-11 was carried out. The results pointed out the main LANCL2 ligand chemical features towards the following virtual screening of a novel putative LANCL2 agonist (AR-42). Biochemical assays on rat H9c2 cardiomyocytes showed a similar, LANCL2-mediated stimulation by BT-11 and by AR-42 of the mitochondrial proton gradient and of the transcriptional activation of the AMPK/PGC-1α/Sirt1 axis, the master regulator of mitochondrial function, effects that are previously observed with ABA. These results may allow the development of LANCL2 agonists for the treatment of mitochondrial dysfunction, a common feature of chronic and degenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naomi Scarano
- Department of Pharmacy, Section of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Genova, Viale Benedetto XV, 3, 16132 Genoa, Italy; (N.S.); (F.M.); (S.S.)
| | - Francesco Di Palma
- Computational & Chemical Biology, Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy; (F.D.P.); (A.C.)
| | - Nicola Origlia
- National Research Council (CNR), Institute of Neuroscience, 56124 Pisa, Italy;
| | - Francesca Musumeci
- Department of Pharmacy, Section of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Genova, Viale Benedetto XV, 3, 16132 Genoa, Italy; (N.S.); (F.M.); (S.S.)
| | - Silvia Schenone
- Department of Pharmacy, Section of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Genova, Viale Benedetto XV, 3, 16132 Genoa, Italy; (N.S.); (F.M.); (S.S.)
| | - Sonia Spinelli
- Laboratorio di Nefrologia Molecolare, IRCCS Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Via Gerolamo Gaslini 5, 16147 Genova, Italy;
| | - Mario Passalacqua
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Biochemistry, University of Genoa, Viale Benedetto XV 1, 16132 Genova, Italy; (M.P.); (E.Z.)
| | - Elena Zocchi
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Biochemistry, University of Genoa, Viale Benedetto XV 1, 16132 Genova, Italy; (M.P.); (E.Z.)
| | - Laura Sturla
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Biochemistry, University of Genoa, Viale Benedetto XV 1, 16132 Genova, Italy; (M.P.); (E.Z.)
| | - Elena Cichero
- Department of Pharmacy, Section of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Genova, Viale Benedetto XV, 3, 16132 Genoa, Italy; (N.S.); (F.M.); (S.S.)
| | - Andrea Cavalli
- Computational & Chemical Biology, Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy; (F.D.P.); (A.C.)
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126 Bologna, Italy
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6
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Sharma A, Chiang RA, Manginell M, Nardi I, Coker EN, Vanegas JM, Rempe SB, Bachand GD. Carbonic Anhydrase Robustness for Use in Nanoscale CO 2 Capture Technologies. ACS OMEGA 2023; 8:37830-37841. [PMID: 37867662 PMCID: PMC10586288 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c02630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023]
Abstract
Continued dependence on crude oil and natural gas resources for fossil fuels has caused global atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to increase to record-setting proportions. There is an urgent need for efficient and inexpensive carbon sequestration systems to mitigate large-scale emissions of CO2 from industrial flue gas. Carbonic anhydrase (CA) has shown high potential for enhanced CO2 capture applications compared to conventional absorption-based methods currently utilized in various industrial settings. This study aims to understand structural aspects that contribute to the stability of CA enzymes critical for their applications in industrial processes, which require the ability to withstand conditions different from those in their native environments. Here, we evaluated the thermostability and enzyme activity of mesophilic and thermophilic CA variants at different temperature conditions and in the presence of atmospheric gas pollutants like nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. Based on our enzyme activity assays and molecular dynamics simulations, we see increased conformational stability and CA activity levels in thermostable CA variants incubated week-long at different temperature conditions. The thermostable CA variants also retained high levels of CA activity despite changes in solution pH due to increasing NO and SO2 concentrations. A loss of CA activity was observed only at high concentrations of NO/SO2 that possibly can be minimized with the appropriate buffered solutions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arjun Sharma
- Department
of Physics, The University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont 05405-0160, United
States
| | - Rong-an Chiang
- Memzyme,
LLC, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87123, United States
| | - Monica Manginell
- Center
for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Sandia
National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185, United States
| | - Isaac Nardi
- Epigentor
Consultants, Inc., Miami, Florida 87185, United States
| | - Eric N. Coker
- Electronic,
Optical, and Nanomaterials Department, Sandia
National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185, United States
| | - Juan M. Vanegas
- Department
of Physics, The University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont 05405-0160, United
States
| | - Susan B. Rempe
- Center
for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Sandia
National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185, United States
| | - George D. Bachand
- Center
for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Sandia
National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185, United States
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7
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Zheng N, Jiang W, Zhang P, Ma L, Chen J, Zhang H. Repurposing of World-Approved Drugs for Potential Inhibition against Human Carbonic Anhydrase I: A Computational Study. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:12619. [PMID: 37628799 PMCID: PMC10454238 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241612619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Revised: 08/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Human carbonic anhydrases (hCAs) have enzymatic activities for reversible hydration of CO2 and are acknowledged as promising targets for the treatment of various diseases. Using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation approaches, we hit three compounds of methyl 4-chloranyl-2-(phenylsulfonyl)-5-sulfamoyl-benzoate (84Z for short), cyclothiazide, and 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-4-piperidin-1-ylbenzenesulfonamide (3UG for short) from the existing hCA I inhibitors and word-approved drugs. As a Zn2+-dependent metallo-enzyme, the influence of Zn2+ ion models on the stability of metal-binding sites during MD simulations was addressed as well. MM-PBSA analysis predicted a strong binding affinity of -18, -16, and -14 kcal/mol, respectively, for these compounds, and identified key protein residues for binding. The sulfonamide moiety bound to the Zn2+ ion appeared as an essential component of hCA I inhibitors. Vina software predicted a relatively large (unreasonable) Zn2+-sulfonamide distance, although the relative binding strength was reproduced with good accuracy. The selected compounds displayed potent inhibition against other hCA isoforms of II, XIII, and XIV. This work is valuable for molecular modeling of hCAs and further design of potent inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Haiyang Zhang
- Department of Biological Science and Engineering, School of Chemistry and Biological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
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8
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Scrima S, Tiberti M, Ryde U, Lambrughi M, Papaleo E. Comparison of force fields to study the zinc-finger containing protein NPL4, a target for disulfiram in cancer therapy. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. PROTEINS AND PROTEOMICS 2023; 1871:140921. [PMID: 37230374 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2023.140921] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Revised: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are a powerful approach to studying the structure and dynamics of proteins related to health and disease. Advances in the MD field allow modeling proteins with high accuracy. However, modeling metal ions and their interactions with proteins is still challenging. NPL4 is a zinc-binding protein and works as a cofactor for p97 to regulate protein homeostasis. NPL4 is of biomedical importance and has been proposed as the target of disulfiram, a drug recently repurposed for cancer treatment. Experimental studies proposed that the disulfiram metabolites, bis-(diethyldithiocarbamate)‑copper and cupric ions, induce NPL4 misfolding and aggregation. However, the molecular details of their interactions with NPL4 and consequent structural effects are still elusive. Here, biomolecular simulations can help to shed light on the related structural details. To apply MD simulations to NPL4 and its interaction with copper the first important step is identifying a suitable force field to describe the protein in its zinc-bound states. We examined different sets of non-bonded parameters because we want to study the misfolding mechanism and cannot rule out that the zinc may detach from the protein during the process and copper replaces it. We investigated the force-field ability to model the coordination geometry of the metal ions by comparing the results from MD simulations with optimized geometries from quantum mechanics (QM) calculations using model systems of NPL4. Furthermore, we investigated the performance of a force field including bonded parameters to treat copper ions in NPL4 that we obtained based on QM calculations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Scrima
- Cancer Structural Biology, Danish Cancer Society Research Center, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; Cancer Systems Biology, Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Health and Technology, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Matteo Tiberti
- Cancer Structural Biology, Danish Cancer Society Research Center, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ulf Ryde
- Division of Theoretical Chemistry, Lund University, Chemical Centre, P. O. Box 124, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden
| | - Matteo Lambrughi
- Cancer Structural Biology, Danish Cancer Society Research Center, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Elena Papaleo
- Cancer Structural Biology, Danish Cancer Society Research Center, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; Cancer Systems Biology, Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Health and Technology, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Lyngby, Denmark.
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9
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Singh AK, Pomorski A, Wu S, Peris-Díaz MD, Czepczyńska-Krężel H, Krężel A. The connection of α- and β-domains in mammalian metallothionein-2 differentiates Zn(II) binding affinities, affects folding, and determines zinc buffering properties. Metallomics 2023; 15:mfad029. [PMID: 37147085 PMCID: PMC10243857 DOI: 10.1093/mtomcs/mfad029] [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: 03/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Mammalian metallothioneins (MTs) are small Cys-rich proteins involved in Zn(II) and Cu(I) homeostasis. They bind seven Zn(II) ions in two distinct β- and α-domains, forming Zn3Cys9 and Zn4Cys11 clusters, respectively. After six decades of research, their role in cellular buffering of Zn(II) ions has begun to be understood recently. This is because of different affinities of bound ions and the proteins' coexistence in variously Zn(II)-loaded Zn4-7MT species in the cell. To date, it has remained unclear how these mechanisms of action occur and how the affinities are differentiated despite the Zn(S-Cys)4 coordination environment being the same. Here, we dissect the molecular basis of these phenomena by using several MT2 mutants, hybrid protein, and isolated domains. Through a combination of spectroscopic and stability studies, thiol(ate) reactivity, and steered molecular dynamics, we demonstrate that both protein folding and thermodynamics of Zn(II) ion (un)binding significantly differ between isolated domains and the whole protein. Close proximity reduces the degrees of freedom of separated domains, making them less dynamic. It is caused by the formation of intra- and interdomain electrostatic interactions. The energetic consequence of domains connection has a critical impact on the role of MTs in the cellular environment, where they function not only as a zinc sponge but also as a zinc buffering system keeping free Zn(II) in the right concentrations. Any change of that subtle system affects the folding mechanism, zinc site stabilities, and cellular zinc buffer components.
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Affiliation(s)
- Avinash Kumar Singh
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Adam Pomorski
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Sylwia Wu
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Manuel D Peris-Díaz
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Hanna Czepczyńska-Krężel
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Artur Krężel
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
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10
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Melse O, Antes I, Kaila VRI, Zacharias M. Benchmarking biomolecular force field-based Zn 2+ for mono- and bimetallic ligand binding sites. J Comput Chem 2023; 44:912-926. [PMID: 36495007 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.27052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Revised: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Zn2+ is one of the most versatile biologically available metal ions, but accurate modeling of Zn2+ -containing metalloproteins at the biomolecular force field level can be challenging. Since most Zn2+ models are parameterized in bulk solvent, in-depth knowledge about their performance in a protein environment is limited. Thus, we systematically investigate here the behavior of non-polarizable Zn2+ models for their ability to reproduce experimentally determined metal coordination and ligand binding in metalloproteins. The benchmarking is performed in challenging environments, including mono- (carbonic anhydrase II) and bimetallic (metallo-β-lactamase VIM-2) ligand binding sites. We identify key differences in the performance between the Zn2+ models with regard to the preferred ligating atoms (charged/non-charged), attraction of water molecules, and the preferred coordination geometry. Based on these results, we suggest suitable simulation conditions for varying Zn2+ site geometries that could guide the further development of biomolecular Zn2+ models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Okke Melse
- Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Technical University of Munich, Garching, Germany.,SynBiofoundry@TUM, Technical University of Munich, Straubing, Germany
| | - Iris Antes
- Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Technical University of Munich, Garching, Germany.,SynBiofoundry@TUM, Technical University of Munich, Straubing, Germany
| | - Ville R I Kaila
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Martin Zacharias
- Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Technical University of Munich, Garching, Germany
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11
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Comparison of Empirical Zn2+ Models in Protein–DNA Complexes. BIOPHYSICA 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/biophysica3010014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2023]
Abstract
Zinc ions are the second most abundant ions found in humans. Their role in proteins can be merely structural but also catalytic, owing to their transition metal character. Modelling their geometric–coordination versatility by empirical force fields is, thus, a challenging task. In this work, we evaluated three popular models, specifically designed to represent zinc ions with regard to their capability of preserving structural integrity. To this end, we performed molecular dynamics simulations of two zinc-containing protein–DNA complexes, which differed in their zinc coordination, i.e., four cysteines or two cysteines and two histidines. The most flexible non-bonded 12-6-4 Lennard–Jones-type model shows a preference for six-fold coordination of the Zn2+-ions in contradiction to the crystal structure. The cationic dummy atom model favours tetrahedral geometry, whereas the bonded extended zinc AMBER force field model, by construction, best preserves the initial geometry of a regular or slightly distorted tetrahedron. Our data renders the extended zinc AMBER force field the best model for structural zinc ions in a given geometry. In more complicated cases, though, more flexible models may be advantageous.
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12
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A Comparison of Bonded and Nonbonded Zinc(II) Force Fields with NMR Data. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24065440. [PMID: 36982515 PMCID: PMC10055966 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24065440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 02/16/2023] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are widely used to inspect the behavior of zinc(II)-proteins at the atomic level, hence the need to properly model the zinc(II) ion and the interaction with its ligands. Different approaches have been developed to represent zinc(II) sites, with the bonded and nonbonded models being the most used. In the present work, we tested the well-known zinc AMBER force field (ZAFF) and a recently developed nonbonded force field (NBFF) to assess how accurately they reproduce the dynamic behavior of zinc(II)-proteins. For this, we selected as benchmark six zinc-fingers. This superfamily is extremely heterogenous in terms of architecture, binding mode, function, and reactivity. From repeated MD simulations, we computed the order parameter (S2) of all backbone N-H bond vectors in each system. These data were superimposed to heteronuclear Overhauser effect measurements taken by NMR spectroscopy. This provides a quantitative estimate of the accuracy of the FFs in reproducing protein dynamics, leveraging the information about the protein backbone mobility contained in the NMR data. The correlation between the MD-computed S2 and the experimental data indicated that both tested FFs reproduce well the dynamic behavior of zinc(II)-proteins, with comparable accuracy. Thus, along with ZAFF, NBFF represents a useful tool to simulate metalloproteins with the advantage of being extensible to diverse systems such as those bearing dinuclear metal sites.
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13
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Das B, Roychowdhury S, Mohanty P, Rizuan A, Chakraborty J, Mittal J, Chattopadhyay K. A Zn-dependent structural transition of SOD1 modulates its ability to undergo phase separation. EMBO J 2023; 42:e111185. [PMID: 36416085 PMCID: PMC9841336 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2022111185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2022] [Revised: 10/26/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The misfolding and mutation of Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) is commonly associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). SOD1 can accumulate within stress granules (SGs), a type of membraneless organelle, which is believed to form via liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS). Using wild-type, metal-deficient, and different ALS disease mutants of SOD1 and computer simulations, we report here that the absence of Zn leads to structural disorder within two loop regions of SOD1, triggering SOD1 LLPS and amyloid formation. The addition of exogenous Zn to either metal-free SOD1 or to the severe ALS mutation I113T leads to the stabilization of the loops and impairs SOD1 LLPS and aggregation. Moreover, partial Zn-mediated inhibition of LLPS was observed for another severe ALS mutant, G85R, which shows perturbed Zn-binding. By contrast, the ALS mutant G37R, which shows reduced Cu-binding, does not undergo LLPS. In addition, SOD1 condensates induced by Zn-depletion exhibit greater cellular toxicity than aggregates formed by prolonged incubation under aggregating conditions. Overall, our work establishes a role for Zn-dependent modulation of SOD1 conformation and LLPS properties that may contribute to amyloid formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bidisha Das
- Structural Biology and Bioinformatics DivisionCSIR‐Indian Institute of Chemical BiologyKolkataIndia
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR)GhaziabadIndia
| | - Sumangal Roychowdhury
- Structural Biology and Bioinformatics DivisionCSIR‐Indian Institute of Chemical BiologyKolkataIndia
| | - Priyesh Mohanty
- Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical EngineeringTexas A&M UniversityCollege StationTXUSA
| | - Azamat Rizuan
- Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical EngineeringTexas A&M UniversityCollege StationTXUSA
| | - Joy Chakraborty
- Cell Biology and Physiology DivisionCSIR‐Indian Institute of Chemical BiologyKolkataIndia
| | - Jeetain Mittal
- Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical EngineeringTexas A&M UniversityCollege StationTXUSA
| | - Krishnananda Chattopadhyay
- Structural Biology and Bioinformatics DivisionCSIR‐Indian Institute of Chemical BiologyKolkataIndia
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR)GhaziabadIndia
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14
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Di Matteo F, Frumenzio G, Chandramouli B, Grottesi A, Emerson A, Musiani F. Computational Study of Helicase from SARS-CoV-2 in RNA-Free and Engaged Form. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232314721. [PMID: 36499049 PMCID: PMC9738952 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232314721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causative agent of the pandemic that broke out in 2020 and continues to be the cause of massive global upheaval. Coronaviruses are positive-strand RNA viruses with a genome of ~30 kb. The genome is replicated and transcribed by RNA-dependent RNA polymerase together with accessory factors. One of the latter is the protein helicase (NSP13), which is essential for viral replication. The recently solved helicase structure revealed a tertiary structure composed of five domains. Here, we investigated NSP13 from a structural point of view, comparing its RNA-free form with the RNA-engaged form by using atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations at the microsecond timescale. Structural analyses revealed conformational changes that provide insights into the contribution of the different domains, identifying the residues responsible for domain-domain interactions in both observed forms. The RNA-free system appears to be more flexible than the RNA-engaged form. This result underlies the stabilizing role of the nucleic acid and the functional core role of these domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Di Matteo
- Laboratory of Bioinorganic Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Viale G. Fanin 40, 40127 Bologna, Italy
| | - Giorgia Frumenzio
- Super Computing Applications and Innovation, Department HPC, CINECA, via Magnanelli 6/3, 40033 Casalecchio di Reno, Italy
| | - Balasubramanian Chandramouli
- Super Computing Applications and Innovation, Department HPC, CINECA, via Magnanelli 6/3, 40033 Casalecchio di Reno, Italy
| | | | - Andrew Emerson
- Super Computing Applications and Innovation, Department HPC, CINECA, via Magnanelli 6/3, 40033 Casalecchio di Reno, Italy
| | - Francesco Musiani
- Laboratory of Bioinorganic Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Viale G. Fanin 40, 40127 Bologna, Italy
- Correspondence:
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15
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Kluska K, Chorążewska A, Peris-Díaz MD, Adamczyk J, Krężel A. Non-Conserved Amino Acid Residues Modulate the Thermodynamics of Zn(II) Binding to Classical ββα Zinc Finger Domains. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232314602. [PMID: 36498928 PMCID: PMC9735795 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232314602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Classical zinc fingers domains (ZFs) bind Zn(II) ion by a pair of cysteine and histidine residues to adopt a characteristic and stable ββα fold containing a small hydrophobic core. As a component of transcription factors, they recognize specific DNA sequences to transcript particular genes. The loss of Zn(II) disrupts the unique structure and function of the whole protein. It has been shown that the saturation of ZFs under cellular conditions is strictly related to their affinity for Zn(II). High affinity warrants their constant saturation, while medium affinity results in their transient structurization depending on cellular zinc availability. Therefore, there must be factors hidden in the sequence and structure of ZFs that impact Zn(II)-to-protein affinities to control their function. Using molecular dynamics simulations and experimental spectroscopic and calorimetric approaches, we showed that particular non-conserved residues derived from ZF sequences impact hydrogen bond formation. Our in silico and in vitro studies show that non-conserved residues can alter metal-coupled folding mechanisms and overall ZF stability. Furthermore, we show that Zn(II) binding to ZFs can also be entropically driven. This preference does not correlate either with Zn(II) binding site or with the extent of the secondary structure but is strictly related to a reservoir of interactions within the second coordination shell, which may loosen or tighten up the structure. Our findings shed new light on how the functionality of ZFs is modulated by non-coordinating residues diversity under cellular conditions. Moreover, they can be helpful for systematic backbone alteration of native ZF ββα scaffold to create artificial foldamers and proteins with improved stability.
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16
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Lapierre J, Hub JS. DNA opening during transcription initiation by RNA polymerase II in atomic detail. Biophys J 2022; 121:4299-4310. [PMID: 36230000 PMCID: PMC9703100 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2022.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Revised: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) synthesizes RNA by reading the DNA code. During transcription initiation, RNAP II opens the double-stranded DNA to expose the DNA template to the active site. The molecular interactions driving and controlling DNA opening are not well understood. We used all-atom steered molecular dynamics simulations to derive a continuous pathway of DNA opening in human RNAP II, involving a 55 Å DNA strand displacement and a nearly 360° DNA helix rotation. To drive such large-scale transitions, we used a combination of RMSD-based collective variables, a newly designed rotational coordinate, and a path collective variable. The simulations reveal extensive interactions of the DNA with three conserved protein loops near the active site, namely with the rudder, fork loop 1, and fork loop 2. According to the simulations, DNA-protein interactions support DNA opening by a twofold mechanism; they catalyze DNA opening by attacking Watson-Crick hydrogen bonds, and they stabilize the open DNA bubble by the formation of a wide set of DNA-protein salt bridges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Lapierre
- Theoretical Physics and Center for Biophysics, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany
| | - Jochen S Hub
- Theoretical Physics and Center for Biophysics, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany.
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17
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Fu H, Zhou Y, Jing X, Shao X, Cai W. Meta-Analysis Reveals That Absolute Binding Free-Energy Calculations Approach Chemical Accuracy. J Med Chem 2022; 65:12970-12978. [PMID: 36179112 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c00796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Systematic and quantitative analysis of the reliability of formally exact methods that in silico calculate absolute protein-ligand binding free energies remains lacking. Here, we provide, for the first time, evidence-based information on the reliability of these methods by statistically studying 853 cases from 34 different research groups through meta-analysis. The results show that formally exact methods approach chemical accuracy (error = 1.58 kcal/mol), even if people are challenging difficult tasks such as blind drug screening in recent years. The geometrical-pathway-based methods prove to possess a better convergence ability than the alchemical ones, while the latter have a larger application range. We also reveal the importance of always using the latest force fields to guarantee reliability and discuss the pros and cons of turning to an implicit solvent model in absolute binding free-energy calculations. Moreover, based on the meta-analysis, an evidence-based guideline for in silico binding free-energy calculations is provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haohao Fu
- Research Center for Analytical Sciences, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Nankai University, Tianjin300071, China.,Haihe Laboratory of Sustainable Chemical Transformations, Tianjin300192, China
| | - Yan Zhou
- School of Medicine, Nankai University, Tianjin300071, China.,Department of Ultrasound, Tianjin Third Central Hospital, Tianjin300170, China
| | - Xiang Jing
- Department of Ultrasound, Tianjin Third Central Hospital, Tianjin300170, China
| | - Xueguang Shao
- Research Center for Analytical Sciences, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Nankai University, Tianjin300071, China.,Haihe Laboratory of Sustainable Chemical Transformations, Tianjin300192, China
| | - Wensheng Cai
- Research Center for Analytical Sciences, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Nankai University, Tianjin300071, China.,Haihe Laboratory of Sustainable Chemical Transformations, Tianjin300192, China
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18
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Development of Hydroxamic Acid Compounds for Inhibition of Metallo-β-Lactamase from Bacillus anthracis. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23169163. [PMID: 36012433 PMCID: PMC9408887 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23169163] [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: 06/22/2022] [Revised: 08/06/2022] [Accepted: 08/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The emergence of resistant bacteria takes place, endangering the effectiveness of antibiotics. A reason for antibiotic resistance is the presence of lactamases that catalyze the hydrolysis of β-lactam antibiotics. An inhibitor of serine-β-lactamases such as clavulanic acid binds to the active site of the enzymes, thus solving the resistance problem. A pressing issue, however, is that the reaction mechanism of metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) hydrolyzing β-lactam antibiotics differs from that of serine-β-lactamases due to the existence of zinc ions in the active site of MBLs. Thus, the development of potential inhibitors for MBLs remains urgent. Here, the ability to inhibit MBL from Bacillus anthracis (Bla2) was investigated in silico and in vitro using compounds possessing two hydroxamate functional groups such as 3-chloro-N-hydroxy-4-(7-(hydroxyamino)-7-oxoheptyl)benzamide (Compound 4) and N-hydroxy-4-(7-(hydroxyamino)-7-oxoheptyl)-3-methoxybenzamide (Compound 6). In silico docking and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that both Compounds 4 and 6 were coordinated with zinc ions in the active site, suggesting that the hydroxamate group attached to the aromatic ring of the compound plays a crucial role in the coordination to the zinc ions. In vitro kinetic analysis demonstrated that the mode of inhibitions for Compounds 4 and 6 were a competitive inhibition with Ki values of 6.4 ± 1.7 and 4.7 ± 1.4 kcal/mol, respectively. The agreement between in silico and in vitro investigations indicates that compounds containing dihyroxamate moieties may offer a new avenue to overcome antibiotic resistance to bacteria.
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19
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Identification of novel HDAC8 selective inhibitors through ligand and structure based studies: Exploiting the acetate release channel differences among class I isoforms. ARAB J CHEM 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.arabjc.2022.103863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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20
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Neuhaus D. Zinc finger structure determination by NMR: Why zinc fingers can be a handful. PROGRESS IN NUCLEAR MAGNETIC RESONANCE SPECTROSCOPY 2022; 130-131:62-105. [PMID: 36113918 PMCID: PMC7614390 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnmrs.2022.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2022] [Revised: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 07/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Zinc fingers can be loosely defined as protein domains containing one or more tetrahedrally-co-ordinated zinc ions whose role is to stabilise the structure rather than to be involved in enzymatic chemistry; such zinc ions are often referred to as "structural zincs". Although structural zincs can occur in proteins of any size, they assume particular significance for very small protein domains, where they are often essential for maintaining a folded state. Such small structures, that sometimes have only marginal stability, can present particular difficulties in terms of sample preparation, handling and structure determination, and early on they gained a reputation for being resistant to crystallisation. As a result, NMR has played a more prominent role in structural studies of zinc finger proteins than it has for many other types of proteins. This review will present an overview of the particular issues that arise for structure determination of zinc fingers by NMR, and ways in which these may be addressed.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Neuhaus
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Francis Crick Avenue, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK.
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21
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Lu LN, Liu C, Yang ZZ, Zhao DX. Refined models of coordination between Al3+/Mg2+ and enzyme in molecular dynamics simulation in terms of ABEEM polarizable force field. J Mol Graph Model 2022; 114:108190. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2022.108190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2022] [Revised: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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22
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Zhang C, Zhao DX, Feng Y, Wang J, Yang ZZ. Energetics and J-coupling constants for Ala, Gly, and Val peptides demonstrated using ABEEM polarizable force field in vacuo and an aqueous solution. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2022; 24:4232-4250. [DOI: 10.1039/d1cp05676j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The development of an atom-bond electronegativity equalisation method at the σπ-level (ABEEM) polarisable force field (PFF) for peptides is presented. ABEEM PFF utilises a fluctuating charge model to explicitly describe...
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23
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Morita R, Shigeta Y, Harada R. Structural Variations of Metallothionein with or without Zinc Ions Elucidated by All-Atom Molecular Dynamics Simulations. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:12712-12717. [PMID: 34762438 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c07928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Metallothionein (MT) is a small globular protein that binds to trace metals. However, it was still unclear how the existence of metal ions affects the structure of MT. Therefore, we performed all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations under several surrounding conditions with or without Zn2+ ions. As a result of 10 μs MD simulation, MT without Zn2+ ions tended to adopt an extended β-hairpin structure, while MT with Zn2+ ions became a globular structure like the NMR structure. Furthermore, we also found that the capture of Zn2+ ions by the second and third cysteines played a crucial role in the formation of the native structure. The finding of the Zn2+ binding for the specific cysteines and the unknown β-hairpin structure will provide new insights into the structural mechanism of metal signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rikuri Morita
- Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, Japan
| | - Yasuteru Shigeta
- Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, Japan
| | - Ryuhei Harada
- Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, Japan
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24
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Francés-Monerris A, García-Iriepa C, Iriepa I, Hognon C, Miclot T, Barone G, Monari A, Marazzi M. Microscopic interactions between ivermectin and key human and viral proteins involved in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:22957-22971. [PMID: 34636373 DOI: 10.1039/d1cp02967c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The identification of chemical compounds able to bind specific sites of the human/viral proteins involved in the SARS-CoV-2 infection cycle is a prerequisite to design effective antiviral drugs. Here we conduct a molecular dynamics study with the aim to assess the interactions of ivermectin, an antiparasitic drug with broad-spectrum antiviral activity, with the human Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2), the viral 3CLpro and PLpro proteases, and the viral SARS Unique Domain (SUD). The drug/target interactions have been characterized in silico by describing the nature of the non-covalent interactions found and by measuring the extent of their time duration along the MD simulation. Results reveal that the ACE2 protein and the ACE2/RBD aggregates form the most persistent interactions with ivermectin, while the binding with the remaining viral proteins is more limited and unspecific.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Francés-Monerris
- Université de Lorraine and CNRS, LPCT UMR 7019, F-54000 Nancy, France. .,Departament de Química Física, Universitat de València, 46100 Burjassot, Spain.
| | - Cristina García-Iriepa
- Departamento de Química Analítica, Química Física e Ingeniería Química, Universidad de Alcalá, Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona, Km 33,600, 28871 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain. .,Instituto de Investigación Química "Andrés M. del Río" (IQAR), Universidad de Alcalá, 28871 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain
| | - Isabel Iriepa
- Departamento de Química Analítica, Química Física e Ingeniería Química, Universidad de Alcalá, Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona, Km 33,600, 28871 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain. .,Departamento de Química Orgánica y Química Inorgánica, Universidad de Alcalá, Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona, Km 33,600, 28871 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain
| | - Cécilia Hognon
- Université de Lorraine and CNRS, LPCT UMR 7019, F-54000 Nancy, France.
| | - Tom Miclot
- Université de Lorraine and CNRS, LPCT UMR 7019, F-54000 Nancy, France. .,Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche, Chimiche e Farmaceuticche, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy
| | - Giampaolo Barone
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche, Chimiche e Farmaceuticche, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy
| | - Antonio Monari
- Université de Lorraine and CNRS, LPCT UMR 7019, F-54000 Nancy, France. .,Université de Paris and CNRS, ITODYS, F-75006, Paris, France
| | - Marco Marazzi
- Departamento de Química Analítica, Química Física e Ingeniería Química, Universidad de Alcalá, Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona, Km 33,600, 28871 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain. .,Instituto de Investigación Química "Andrés M. del Río" (IQAR), Universidad de Alcalá, 28871 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain
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25
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Urbański LJ, Angeli A, Mykuliak VV, Azizi L, Kuuslahti M, Hytönen VP, Supuran CT, Parkkila S. Biochemical and structural characterization of beta-carbonic anhydrase from the parasite Trichomonas vaginalis. J Mol Med (Berl) 2021; 100:115-124. [PMID: 34652457 PMCID: PMC8724216 DOI: 10.1007/s00109-021-02148-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2021] [Revised: 09/07/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/05/2022]
Abstract
Abstract Trichomonas vaginalis is a unicellular parasite and responsible for one of the most common sexually transmittable infections worldwide, trichomoniasis. Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are enzymes found in all lifeforms and are known to play a vital role in many biochemical processes in organisms including the maintenance of acid–base homeostasis. To date, eight evolutionarily divergent but functionally convergent forms of CAs (α, β, γ, δ, ζ, η, θ, and ι) have been discovered. The human genome contains only α-CAs, whereas many clinically significant pathogens express only β-CAs and/or γ-CAs. The characterization of pathogenic β- and γ-CAs provides important knowledge for targeting these biomolecules to develop novel anti-invectives against trichomoniasis. Here, we report the recombinant production and characterization of the second β-CA of T. vaginalis (TvaCA2). Light scattering analysis revealed that TvaCA2 is a dimeric protein, which was further supported with in silico modeling, suggesting similar structures between TvaCA2 and the first β-CA of T. vaginalis (TvaCA1). TvaCA2 exhibited moderate catalytic activity with the following kinetic parameters: kcat of 3.8 × 105 s−1 and kcat/KM of 4.4 × 107 M−1 s−1. Enzyme activity inhibition was studied with a set of clinically used sulfonamides and sulfonamide derivates. Twenty-seven out of the 39 compounds resulted in inhibition with a nanomolar range. These initial results encourage for future work entailing the design of more potent inhibitors against TvaCA2, which may provide new assets to fight trichomoniasis. Key messages • Protozoan parasite Trichomonas vaginalis has two β-carbonic anhydrases (TvaCA1/2). • TvaCA1/TvaCA2 represents promising targets for antitrichomonal drug development. • TvaCA2 is a dimer of 20.3 kDa and possesses moderate catalytic activity. • The most efficient inhibitor was clinical drug acetazolamide with KI of 222.9 nM. • The 39 tested sulfonamides form the basis for the design of more potent inhibitors. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00109-021-02148-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda J Urbański
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Arvo Ylpön katu 34, 33520, Tampere, Finland.
| | - Andrea Angeli
- Neurofarba Department, Sezione Di Chimica Farmaceutica E Nutraceutica, Università Degli Studi Di Firenze, Via U. Schiff 6, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino (Firenze), Italy
| | - Vasyl V Mykuliak
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Arvo Ylpön katu 34, 33520, Tampere, Finland
| | - Latifeh Azizi
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Arvo Ylpön katu 34, 33520, Tampere, Finland
| | - Marianne Kuuslahti
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Arvo Ylpön katu 34, 33520, Tampere, Finland
| | - Vesa P Hytönen
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Arvo Ylpön katu 34, 33520, Tampere, Finland
- Fimlab Ltd, Tampere University Hospital, Arvo Ylpön katu 4, 33520, Tampere, Finland
| | - Claudiu T Supuran
- Neurofarba Department, Sezione Di Chimica Farmaceutica E Nutraceutica, Università Degli Studi Di Firenze, Via U. Schiff 6, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino (Firenze), Italy
| | - Seppo Parkkila
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Arvo Ylpön katu 34, 33520, Tampere, Finland
- Fimlab Ltd, Tampere University Hospital, Arvo Ylpön katu 4, 33520, Tampere, Finland
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26
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Peris-Díaz M, Guran R, Domene C, de los Rios V, Zitka O, Adam V, Krężel A. An Integrated Mass Spectrometry and Molecular Dynamics Simulations Approach Reveals the Spatial Organization Impact of Metal-Binding Sites on the Stability of Metal-Depleted Metallothionein-2 Species. J Am Chem Soc 2021; 143:16486-16501. [PMID: 34477370 PMCID: PMC8517974 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.1c05495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Mammalian metallothioneins (MTs) are a group of cysteine-rich proteins that bind metal ions in two α- and β-domains and represent a major cellular Zn(II)/Cu(I) buffering system in the cell. At cellular free Zn(II) concentrations (10-11-10-9 M), MTs do not exist in fully loaded forms with seven Zn(II)-bound ions (Zn7MTs). Instead, MTs exist as partially metal-depleted species (Zn4-6MT) because their Zn(II) binding affinities are on the nano- to picomolar range comparable to the concentrations of cellular Zn(II). The mode of action of MTs remains poorly understood, and thus, the aim of this study is to characterize the mechanism of Zn(II) (un)binding to MTs, the thermodynamic properties of the Zn1-6MT2 species, and their mechanostability properties. To this end, native mass spectrometry (MS) and label-free quantitative bottom-up and top-down MS in combination with steered molecular dynamics simulations, well-tempered metadynamics (WT-MetaD), and parallel-bias WT-MetaD (amounting to 3.5 μs) were integrated to unravel the chemical coordination of Zn(II) in all Zn1-6MT2 species and to explain the differences in binding affinities of Zn(II) ions to MTs. Differences are found to be the result of the degree of water participation in MT (un)folding and the hyper-reactive character of Cys21 and Cys29 residues. The thermodynamics properties of Zn(II) (un)binding to MT2 are found to differ from those of Cd(II), justifying their distinctive roles. The potential of this integrated strategy in the investigation of numerous unexplored metalloproteins is attested by the results highlighted in the present study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuel
David Peris-Díaz
- Department
of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, F. Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Roman Guran
- Department
of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mendel University
in Brno, Zemedelska 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- Central
European Institute of Technology, Brno University
of Technology, Purkynova
123, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Carmen Domene
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3TA, United Kingdom
| | - Vivian de los Rios
- Functional
Proteomics, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Proteomic
Facility, Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas
(CIB-CSIC), Ramiro de Maeztu 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain
| | - Ondrej Zitka
- Department
of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mendel University
in Brno, Zemedelska 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- Central
European Institute of Technology, Brno University
of Technology, Purkynova
123, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtech Adam
- Department
of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mendel University
in Brno, Zemedelska 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- Central
European Institute of Technology, Brno University
of Technology, Purkynova
123, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Artur Krężel
- Department
of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, F. Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383 Wrocław, Poland
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27
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Lushpa VA, Goncharuk MV, Lin C, Zalevsky AO, Talyzina IA, Luginina AP, Vakhrameev DD, Shevtsov MB, Goncharuk SA, Arseniev AS, Borshchevskiy VI, Wang X, Mineev KS. Modulation of Toll-like receptor 1 intracellular domain structure and activity by Zn 2+ ions. Commun Biol 2021; 4:1003. [PMID: 34429510 PMCID: PMC8385042 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02532-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play an important role in the innate immune response. While a lot is known about the structures of their extracellular parts, many questions are still left unanswered, when the structural basis of TLR activation is analyzed for the TLR intracellular domains. Here we report the structure and dynamics of TLR1 toll-interleukin like (TIR) cytoplasmic domain in crystal and in solution. We found that the TLR1-TIR domain is capable of specific binding of Zn with nanomolar affinity. Interactions with Zn are mediated by cysteine residues 667 and 686 and C667 is essential for the Zn binding. Potential structures of the TLR1-TIR/Zn complex were predicted in silico. Using the functional assays for the heterodimeric TLR1/2 receptor, we found that both Zn addition and Zn depletion affect the activity of TLR1, and C667A mutation disrupts the receptor activity. Analysis of C667 position in the TLR1 structure and possible effects of C667A mutation, suggests that zinc-binding ability of TLR1-TIR domain is critical for the receptor activation. Lushpa et al report the structure and dynamics of the TLR1 toll-interleukin like (TIR) cytoplasmic domain in both crystal and solution. They demonstrate that the TLR1 TIR domain is capable of specific binding of Zn with nanomolar affinity, which appears to be critical for receptor activation, and provide potential structures TLR1-TIR/Zn complex based on in silico data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vladislav A Lushpa
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia.,Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Dolgoprudny, Russia
| | - Marina V Goncharuk
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia
| | - Cong Lin
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, Jilin, China
| | - Arthur O Zalevsky
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia
| | - Irina A Talyzina
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia.,Center of Life Sciences, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Moscow, Russia
| | | | | | | | - Sergey A Goncharuk
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia.,Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Dolgoprudny, Russia
| | | | - Valentin I Borshchevskiy
- Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Dolgoprudny, Russia.,Institute of Biological Information Processing (IBI-7: Structural Biochemistry), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich, Germany.,JuStruct: Jülich Center for Structural Biology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich, Germany
| | - Xiaohui Wang
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, Jilin, China.,Department of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Konstantin S Mineev
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia. .,Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Dolgoprudny, Russia.
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28
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King E, Aitchison E, Li H, Luo R. Recent Developments in Free Energy Calculations for Drug Discovery. Front Mol Biosci 2021; 8:712085. [PMID: 34458321 PMCID: PMC8387144 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2021.712085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 07/27/2021] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
The grand challenge in structure-based drug design is achieving accurate prediction of binding free energies. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations enable modeling of conformational changes critical to the binding process, leading to calculation of thermodynamic quantities involved in estimation of binding affinities. With recent advancements in computing capability and predictive accuracy, MD based virtual screening has progressed from the domain of theoretical attempts to real application in drug development. Approaches including the Molecular Mechanics Poisson Boltzmann Surface Area (MM-PBSA), Linear Interaction Energy (LIE), and alchemical methods have been broadly applied to model molecular recognition for drug discovery and lead optimization. Here we review the varied methodology of these approaches, developments enhancing simulation efficiency and reliability, remaining challenges hindering predictive performance, and applications to problems in the fields of medicine and biochemistry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward King
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
| | - Erick Aitchison
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
| | - Han Li
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
| | - Ray Luo
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States
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29
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Li P. Bridging the 12-6-4 Model and the Fluctuating Charge Model. Front Chem 2021; 9:721960. [PMID: 34368089 PMCID: PMC8339297 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2021.721960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2021] [Accepted: 07/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Metal ions play important roles in various biological systems. Molecular dynamics (MD) using classical force field has become a popular research tool to study biological systems at the atomic level. However, meaningful MD simulations require reliable models and parameters. Previously we showed that the 12-6 Lennard-Jones nonbonded model for ions could not reproduce the experimental hydration free energy (HFE) and ion-oxygen distance (IOD) values simultaneously when ion has a charge of +2 or higher. We discussed that this deficiency arises from the overlook of the ion-induced dipole interaction in the 12-6 model, and this term is proportional to 1/r4 based on theory. Hence, we developed the 12-6-4 model and showed it could solve this deficiency in a physically meaningful way. However, our previous research also found that the 12-6-4 model overestimated the coordination numbers (CNs) for some highly charged metal ions. And we attributed this artifact to that the current 12-6-4 scheme lacks a correction for the interactions among the first solvation shell water molecules. In the present study, we considered the ion-included dipole interaction by using the 12-6 model with adjusting the atomic charges of the first solvation shell water molecules. This strategy not only considers the ion-induced dipole interaction between ion and the first solvation shell water molecules but also well accounts for the increased repulsion among these water molecules compared to the bulk water molecules. We showed this strategy could well reproduce the experimental HFE and IOD values for Mg2+, Zn2+, Al3+, Fe3+, and In3+ and solve the CN overestimation issue of the 12-6-4 model for Fe3+ and In3+. Moreover, our simulation results showed good agreement with previous ab initio MD simulations. In addition, we derived the physical relationship between the C4 parameter and induced dipole moment, which agreed well with our simulation results. Finally, we discussed the implications of the present work for simulating metalloproteins. Due to the fluctuating charge model uses a similar concept to the 12-6 model with adjusting atomic charges, we believe the present study builds a bridge between the 12-6-4 model and the fluctuating charge model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pengfei Li
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
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30
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Hognon C, Monari A. Staring at the Naked Goddess: Unraveling the Structure and Reactivity of Artemis Endonuclease Interacting with a DNA Double Strand. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26133986. [PMID: 34210101 PMCID: PMC8271620 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26133986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2021] [Revised: 06/23/2021] [Accepted: 06/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Artemis is an endonuclease responsible for breaking hairpin DNA strands during immune system adaptation and maturation as well as the processing of potentially toxic DNA lesions. Thus, Artemis may be an important target in the development of anticancer therapy, both for the sensitization of radiotherapy and for immunotherapy. Despite its importance, its structure has been resolved only recently, and important questions concerning the arrangement of its active center, the interaction with the DNA substrate, and the catalytic mechanism remain unanswered. In this contribution, by performing extensive molecular dynamic simulations, both classically and at the hybrid quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics level, we evidenced the stable interaction modes of Artemis with a model DNA strand. We also analyzed the catalytic cycle providing the free energy profile and key transition states for the DNA cleavage reaction.
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31
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Sala D, Giachetti A, Rosato A. Insights into the Dynamics of the Human Zinc Transporter ZnT8 by MD Simulations. J Chem Inf Model 2021; 61:901-912. [PMID: 33508935 PMCID: PMC8023586 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.0c01139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
ZnT8 is a human zinc(II) transporter expressed at the membrane of secretory granules where it contributes to insulin storage importing zinc ions from the cytosol. In the human population, the two most common ZnT8 variants carry an arginine (R325) or a tryptophan (W325) in position 325. The former variant has the most efficient kinetics in zinc transport and has been correlated to a higher risk of developing insulin resistance. On the contrary, the W325 variant is less active and protects against type-2-diabetes. Here, we used molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to investigate the main differences between the R325 and W325 variants in the interaction with zinc(II) ions. Our simulations suggested that the position of the metal ion within the transport site was not the same for the two variants, underlying a different rearrangement of the transmembrane (TM) helices in the channel. The W325 variant featured a peculiar zinc environment not detected in the experimental structures. With respect to conformational dynamics, we observed that the R325 variant was significantly more flexible than W325, with the main role played by the transmembrane domain (TMD) and the C-terminal domain (CTD). This dynamics affected the packing of the TM helices and thus the channel accessibility from the cytosol. The dimer interface that keeps the two TM channels in contact became looser in both variants upon zinc binding to the transport site, suggesting that this may be an important step toward the switch from the inward- to the outward-facing state of the protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Sala
- Magnetic
Resonance Center (CERM), University of Florence, Via Luigi Sacconi 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Andrea Giachetti
- Consorzio
Interuniversitario di Risonanze Magnetiche di Metallo Proteine, Via Luigi Sacconi 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Antonio Rosato
- Magnetic
Resonance Center (CERM), University of Florence, Via Luigi Sacconi 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Florence, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
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32
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Macchiagodena M, Pagliai M, Andreini C, Rosato A, Procacci P. Upgraded AMBER Force Field for Zinc-Binding Residues and Ligands for Predicting Structural Properties and Binding Affinities in Zinc-Proteins. ACS OMEGA 2020; 5:15301-15310. [PMID: 32637803 PMCID: PMC7331063 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.0c01337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/13/2020] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
We developed a novel force field in the context of AMBER parameterization for glutamate and aspartate zinc(II)-binding residues. The interaction between the zinc ion and the coordinating atoms is represented by a spherical nonbonded parameterization. The polarization effect due to the zinc ion has been taken into account by redefining the atomic charges on the residues through accurate quantum mechanical calculations. The new zinc-binding ASP and GLU residues, along with the CYS and HIS zinc-binding residues, parameterized in a recent work [Macchiagodena M.;J. Chem. Inf. Model.2019, 59, 3803-3816], allow users to reliably simulate 96% of the Zn-proteins available in the Protein Data Bank. The upgraded force field for zinc(II)-bound residues has been tested performing molecular dynamics simulations with an explicit solvent and comparing the structural information with experimental data for five different proteins binding zinc(II) with GLU, ASP, HIS, and CYS. We further validated our approach by evaluating the binding free energy of (R)-2-benzyl-3-nitropropanoic acid to carboxypeptidase A using a recently developed nonequilibrium alchemical method. We demonstrated that in this setting it is crucial to take into account polarization effects also on the metal-bound inhibitor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Macchiagodena
- Dipartimento
di Chimica “Ugo Schiff”, Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Marco Pagliai
- Dipartimento
di Chimica “Ugo Schiff”, Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Claudia Andreini
- Dipartimento
di Chimica “Ugo Schiff”, Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
- Magnetic
Resonance Center (CERM), Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via L. Sacconi 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Antonio Rosato
- Dipartimento
di Chimica “Ugo Schiff”, Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
- Magnetic
Resonance Center (CERM), Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via L. Sacconi 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Piero Procacci
- Dipartimento
di Chimica “Ugo Schiff”, Università
degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
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33
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Macchiagodena M, Pagliai M, Procacci P. Identification of potential binders of the main protease 3CL pro of the COVID-19 via structure-based ligand design and molecular modeling. Chem Phys Lett 2020; 750:137489. [PMID: 32313296 PMCID: PMC7165110 DOI: 10.1016/j.cplett.2020.137489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Revised: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
We have applied a computational strategy, using a combination of virtual screening, docking and molecular dynamics techniques, aimed at identifying possible lead compounds for the non-covalent inhibition of the main protease 3CLpro of the SARS-CoV2 Coronavirus. Based on the X-ray structure (PDB code: 6LU7), ligands were generated using a multimodal structure-based design and then docked to the monomer in the active state. Docking calculations show that ligand-binding is strikingly similar in SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV2 main proteases. The most potent docked ligands are found to share a common binding pattern with aromatic moieties connected by rotatable bonds in a pseudo-linear arrangement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Macchiagodena
- Dipartimento di Chimica "Ugo Schiff", Universitá degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, Sesto Fiorentino I-50019 Italy
| | - Marco Pagliai
- Dipartimento di Chimica "Ugo Schiff", Universitá degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, Sesto Fiorentino I-50019 Italy
| | - Piero Procacci
- Dipartimento di Chimica "Ugo Schiff", Universitá degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, Sesto Fiorentino I-50019 Italy
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34
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Song LF, Sengupta A, Merz KM. Thermodynamics of Transition Metal Ion Binding to Proteins. J Am Chem Soc 2020; 142:6365-6374. [PMID: 32141296 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.0c01329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Modeling the thermodynamics of a transition metal (TM) ion assembly be it in proteins or in coordination complexes affords us a better understanding of the assembly and function of metalloclusters in diverse application areas including metal organic framework design, TM-based catalyst design, the trafficking of TM ions in biological systems, and drug design in metalloprotein platforms. While the structural details of TM ions bound to metalloproteins are generally well understood via experimental and computational approaches, accurate studies describing the thermodynamics of TM ion binding are rare. Herein, we demonstrate that we can obtain accurate structural and absolute binding free energies of Co2+ and Ni2+ to the enzyme glyoxalase I using an optimized 12-6-4 (m12-6-4) potential. Critically, this model simultaneously reproduces the solvation free energy of the individual TM ions and reproduces the thermodynamics of TM ion-ligand coordination as well as the thermodynamics of TM ion binding to a protein active site unlike extant models. We find the incorporation of the thermodynamics associated with protonation state changes for the TM ion (un)binding to be crucial. The high accuracy of m12-6-4 potential in this study presents an accurate route to explore more complicated processes associated with TM cluster assembly and TM ion transport.
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