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de Oliveira MVD, da Costa KS, Silva JRA, Lameira J, Lima AH. Role of UDP-N-acetylmuramic acid in the regulation of MurA activity revealed by molecular dynamics simulations. Protein Sci 2024; 33:e4969. [PMID: 38532715 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4969] [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: 10/14/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
The peptidoglycan biosynthesis pathway plays a vital role in bacterial cells, and facilitates peptidoglycan layer formation, a fundamental structural component of the bacterial cell wall. The enzymes in this pathway are candidates for antibiotic development, as most do not have mammalian homologues. The UDP-N-acetylglucosamine (UNAG) enolpyruvyl transferase enzyme (MurA) in the peptidoglycan pathway cytoplasmic step is responsible for the phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP)-UNAG catalytic reaction, forming UNAG enolpyruvate and inorganic phosphate. Reportedly, UDP-N-acetylmuramic acid (UNAM) binds tightly to MurA forming a dormant UNAM-PEP-MurA complex and acting as a MurA feedback inhibitor. MurA inhibitors are complex, owing to competitive binding interactions with PEP, UNAM, and UNAG at the MurA active site. We used computational methods to explore UNAM and UNAG binding. UNAM showed stronger hydrogen-bond interactions with the Arg120 and Arg91 residues, which help to stabilize the closed conformation of MurA, than UNAG. Binding free energy calculations using end-point computational methods showed that UNAM has a higher binding affinity than UNAG, when PEP is attached to Cys115. The unbinding process, simulated using τ-random acceleration molecular dynamics, showed that UNAM has a longer relative residence time than UNAG, which is related to several complex dissociation pathways, each with multiple intermediate metastable states. This prevents the loop from opening and exposing the Arg120 residue to accommodate UNAG and potential new ligands. Moreover, we demonstrate the importance of Cys115-linked PEP in closed-state loop stabilization. We provide a basis for evaluating novel UNAM analogues as potential MurA inhibitors. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: MurA is a critical enzyme involved in bacterial cell wall biosynthesis and is involved in antibiotic resistance development. UNAM can remain in the target protein's active site for an extended time compared to its natural substrate, UNAG. The prolonged interaction of this highly stable complex known as the 'dormant complex' comprises UNAM-PEP-MurA and offers insights into antibiotic development, providing potential options against drug-resistant bacteria and advancing our understanding of microbial biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maycon Vinicius Damasceno de Oliveira
- Laboratório de Planejamento e Desenvolvimento de Fármacos, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Pará, Brazil
| | - Kauê S da Costa
- Institute of Biodiversity, Federal University of Western Pará, Santarém, Pará, Brazil
| | - José Rogério A Silva
- Laboratório de Planejamento e Desenvolvimento de Fármacos, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Pará, Brazil
- Catalysis and Peptide Research Unit, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
| | - Jerônimo Lameira
- Laboratório de Planejamento e Desenvolvimento de Fármacos, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Pará, Brazil
| | - Anderson H Lima
- Laboratório de Planejamento e Desenvolvimento de Fármacos, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Pará, Brazil
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2
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Mihalovits LM, Kollár L, Bajusz D, Knez D, Bozovičar K, Imre T, Ferenczy GG, Gobec S, Keserű GM. Molecular Mechanism of Labelling Functional Cysteines by Heterocyclic Thiones. Chemphyschem 2024; 25:e202300596. [PMID: 37888491 DOI: 10.1002/cphc.202300596] [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: 08/21/2023] [Revised: 10/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Heterocyclic thiones have recently been identified as reversible covalent warheads, consistent with their mild electrophilic nature. Little is known so far about their mechanism of action in labelling nucleophilic sidechains, especially cysteines. The vast number of tractable cysteines promotes a wide range of target proteins to examine; however, our focus was put on functional cysteines. We chose the main protease of SARS-CoV-2 harboring Cys145 at the active site that is a structurally characterized and clinically validated target of covalent inhibitors. We screened an in-house, cysteine-targeting covalent inhibitor library which resulted in several covalent fragment hits with benzoxazole, benzothiazole and benzimidazole cores. Thione derivatives and Michael acceptors were selected for further investigations with the objective of exploring the mechanism of inhibition of the thiones and using the thoroughly characterized Michael acceptors for benchmarking our studies. Classical and hybrid quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical (QM/MM) molecular dynamics simulations were carried out that revealed a new mechanism of covalent cysteine labelling by thione derivatives, which was supported by QM and free energy calculations and by a wide range of experimental results. Our study shows that the molecular recognition step plays a crucial role in the overall binding of both sets of molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Levente M Mihalovits
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Levente Kollár
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Organic Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Műegyetem rkp. 3., 1111, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Dávid Bajusz
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Damijan Knez
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva cesta 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Krištof Bozovičar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva cesta 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Tímea Imre
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
- MS Metabolomics Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
| | - György G Ferenczy
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Stanislav Gobec
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva cesta 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - György M Keserű
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Organic Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Műegyetem rkp. 3., 1111, Budapest, Hungary
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Dewachter L, Brooks AN, Noon K, Cialek C, Clark-ElSayed A, Schalck T, Krishnamurthy N, Versées W, Vranken W, Michiels J. Deep mutational scanning of essential bacterial proteins can guide antibiotic development. Nat Commun 2023; 14:241. [PMID: 36646716 PMCID: PMC9842644 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-35940-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Deep mutational scanning is a powerful approach to investigate a wide variety of research questions including protein function and stability. Here, we perform deep mutational scanning on three essential E. coli proteins (FabZ, LpxC and MurA) involved in cell envelope synthesis using high-throughput CRISPR genome editing, and study the effect of the mutations in their original genomic context. We use more than 17,000 variants of the proteins to interrogate protein function and the importance of individual amino acids in supporting viability. Additionally, we exploit these libraries to study resistance development against antimicrobial compounds that target the selected proteins. Among the three proteins studied, MurA seems to be the superior antimicrobial target due to its low mutational flexibility, which decreases the chance of acquiring resistance-conferring mutations that simultaneously preserve MurA function. Additionally, we rank anti-LpxC lead compounds for further development, guided by the number of resistance-conferring mutations against each compound. Our results show that deep mutational scanning studies can be used to guide drug development, which we hope will contribute towards the development of novel antimicrobial therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liselot Dewachter
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. .,VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology, Leuven, Belgium.
| | | | | | | | | | - Thomas Schalck
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Wim Versées
- Structural Biology Brussels, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.,VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Wim Vranken
- Structural Biology Brussels, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.,VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology, Brussels, Belgium.,Interuniversity Institute of Bioinformatics in Brussels, ULB-VUB, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Jan Michiels
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. .,VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology, Leuven, Belgium.
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Windaryanti D, Gabriel CS, Hidayat IW, Zainuddin A, Dharsono HDA, Satari MH, Kurnia D. The Potential of 24-Propylcholestrol as Antibacterial Oral Bacteria of Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212 and Inhibitor Biofilms Formation: in vitro and in silico Study. Adv Appl Bioinform Chem 2022; 15:99-111. [PMID: 36578792 PMCID: PMC9792223 DOI: 10.2147/aabc.s372337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Uncontrolled biofilm can cause several diseases such as dental caries, gingivitis, and periodontitis. Dental caries is a disease caused by the accumulation of plaque-containing pathogenic bacteria, including Enterococcus faecalis. These bacteria infect the root canals of teeth and colonize to form biofilms. Biofilm inhibition is carried out by interfering with cell wall formation metabolism. MurA enzyme has a role in peptidoglycan biosynthesis of cell walls. Enterococcal surface protein (Esp) is the main contributor of E. faecalis to form biofilms. In addition, inhibition of biofilms by interfering with the quorum sensing (QS) system, suppressing gelatinase virulence factors by blocking autoinducers gelatinase biosynthesis-activating pheromone (GBAP). Purpose Knowing the potential of Piper betel Linn. compounds as antibacterial in vitro and antibiofilm agents against E. faecalis in silico. Patients and Methods The compounds were purified by a bioactivity-guided chromatographic method. Antibacterial activity was tested by disc diffusion method, in vitro studies. In silico study, compound P. betel L. was used as the test ligand and compared with positive control fosfomycin, ambuic acid, quercetin, and taxifolin. The proteins used MurA, Esp, GBAP, and gelatinase were docking with the Autodock Vina PyRx 0.8 followed by the PYMOL program and visualized with the Discovery Studio 2020 program. Results An antibacterial compound was identified 24-propylcholesterol which can inhibit the activity of E. faecalis ATCC 29212 with MIC value of 78.1 µg/mL and MBC value of 156.3 µg/mL. Molecular docking results showed the binding affinity of 24-propylcholesterol with MurA, ESP, GBAP, and gelatinase enzymes was -7.6, -8.7, -5.3, and -7.9 kcal/mol. Conclusion 24-propylcholesterol has potential as an antibacterial against E. faecalis and as an antibiofilm through in silico inhibition of QS. However, further research is needed in vitro and in vivo to determine the effectiveness of these compounds as antibacterial and antibiofilm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Devi Windaryanti
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia
| | - Christine Sondang Gabriel
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia
| | - Ika Wiani Hidayat
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia
| | - Achmad Zainuddin
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia
| | - Hendra Dian Adhita Dharsono
- Department of Conservative Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Jawa Barat, Indonesia
| | - Mieke Hemiawati Satari
- Department of Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Jawa Barat, Indonesia
| | - Dikdik Kurnia
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia,Correspondence: Dikdik Kurnia, Jl. Raya Bandung Sumedang km.21, Hegarmanah, Jatinangor, Kabupaten Sumedang, Sumedang, Jawa Barat, 45363, Indonesia, Tel/Fax +022 7794391, Email
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Grabrijan K, Hrast M, Proj M, Dolšak A, Zdovc I, Imre T, Petri L, Ábrányi-Balogh P, Keserű GM, Gobec S. Covalent inhibitors of bacterial peptidoglycan biosynthesis enzyme MurA with chloroacetamide warhead. Eur J Med Chem 2022; 243:114752. [PMID: 36126388 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2022.114752] [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: 06/22/2022] [Revised: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
MurA (UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase) catalyzes the first committed step in the cytoplasmic part of peptidoglycan biosynthesis and is a validated target enzyme for antibacterial drug discovery; the inhibitor fosfomycin has been used clinically for decades. Like fosfomycin, most MurA inhibitors are small heterocyclic compounds that inhibit the enzyme by forming a covalent bond with the active site cysteine. The reactive chloroacetamide group was selected from a series of suitable electrophilic thiol-reactive warheads. The predominantly one-step synthesis led to the construction of the final library of 47 fragment-sized chloroacetamide compounds. Several new E. coli MurA inhibitors were identified, with the most potent compound having an IC50 value in the low micromolar range. The electrophilic reactivity of all chloroacetamide fragments in our library was evaluated by a high-throughput spectrophotometric assay using the reduced Ellman reagent as a surrogate for the cysteine thiol. LC-MS/MS experiments confirmed the covalent binding of the most potent inhibitor to Cys115 of the digested MurA enzyme. The covalent binding was further investigated by a biochemical time-dependent assay and a dilution assay, which confirmed the irreversible and time-dependent mode of action. The efficacy of chloroacetamide derivatives against MurA does not correlate with their thiol reactivity, making the active fragments valuable starting points for fragment-based development of new antibacterial agents targeting MurA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarina Grabrijan
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
| | - Martina Hrast
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
| | - Matic Proj
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
| | - Ana Dolšak
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
| | - Irena Zdovc
- Veterinary Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Gerbičeva 60, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
| | - Tímea Imre
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, H-1117, Budapest, Hungary; MS Proteomics Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, H-1117, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - László Petri
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, H-1117, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - Péter Ábrányi-Balogh
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, H-1117, Budapest, Hungary; Department of Organic Chemistry and Technology, Budapest University of Technology, Szt. Gellért tér 4., H-1117, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - György M Keserű
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt. 2, H-1117, Budapest, Hungary; Department of Organic Chemistry and Technology, Budapest University of Technology, Szt. Gellért tér 4., H-1117, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - Stanislav Gobec
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
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de Oliveira MVD, Furtado RM, da Costa KS, Vakal S, Lima AH. Advances in UDP-N-Acetylglucosamine Enolpyruvyl Transferase (MurA) Covalent Inhibition. Front Mol Biosci 2022; 9:889825. [PMID: 35936791 PMCID: PMC9346081 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2022.889825] [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: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 06/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Peptidoglycan is a cross-linked polymer responsible for maintaining the bacterial cell wall integrity and morphology in Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The peptidoglycan pathway consists of the enzymatic reactions held in three steps: cytoplasmic, membrane-associated, and periplasmic. The Mur enzymes (MurA-MurF) are involved in a cytoplasmic stage. The UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (MurA) enzyme is responsible for transferring the enolpyruvate group from phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) to UDP-N-acetylglucosamine (UNAG) to form UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvate (EP-UNAG). Fosfomycin is a natural product analogous to PEP that acts on the MurA target enzyme via binding covalently to the key cysteine residue in the active site. Similar to fosfomycin, other MurA covalent inhibitors have been described with a warhead in their structure that forms a covalent bond with the molecular target. In MurA, the nucleophilic thiolate of Cys115 is pointed as the main group involved in the warhead binding. Thus, in this minireview, we briefly describe the main recent advances in the design of MurA covalent inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Renan Machado Furtado
- Laboratório de Planejamento e Desenvolvimento de Fármacos, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Brazil
| | - Kauê S. da Costa
- Institute of Biodiversity, Federal University of Western Pará, Santarém, Brazil
| | - Serhii Vakal
- Structural Bioinformatics Laboratory, Biochemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Anderson H. Lima
- Laboratório de Planejamento e Desenvolvimento de Fármacos, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Brazil
- *Correspondence: Anderson H. Lima,
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Heliawati L, Lestari S, Hasanah U, Ajiati D, Kurnia D. Phytochemical Profile of Antibacterial Agents from Red Betel Leaf (Piper crocatum Ruiz and Pav) against Bacteria in Dental Caries. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27092861. [PMID: 35566225 PMCID: PMC9101570 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27092861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Revised: 04/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Based on data from The Global Burden of Disease Study in 2016, dental and oral health problems, especially dental caries, are a disease experienced by almost half of the world’s population (3.58 billion people). One of the main causes of dental caries is the pathogenesis of Streptococcus mutans. Prevention can be achieved by controlling S. mutans using an antibacterial agent. The most commonly used antibacterial for the treatment of dental caries is chlorhexidine. However, long-term use of chlorhexidine has been reported to cause resistance and some side effects. Therefore, the discovery of a natural antibacterial agent is an urgent need. A natural antibacterial agent that can be used are herbal medicines derived from medicinal plants. Piper crocatum Ruiz and Pav has the potential to be used as a natural antibacterial agent for treating dental and oral health problems. Several studies reported that the leaves of P. crocatum Ruiz and Pav contain secondary metabolites such as essential oils, flavonoids, alkaloids, terpenoids, tannins, and phenolic compounds that are active against S. mutans. This review summarizes some information about P. crocatum Ruiz and Pav, various isolation methods, bioactivity, S. mutans bacteria that cause dental caries, biofilm formation mechanism, antibacterial properties, and the antibacterial mechanism of secondary metabolites in P. crocatum Ruiz and Pav.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leny Heliawati
- Study Program of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Pakuan, Bogor 16143, Indonesia; (S.L.); (U.H.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +62-8521-615-0330
| | - Seftiana Lestari
- Study Program of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Pakuan, Bogor 16143, Indonesia; (S.L.); (U.H.)
| | - Uswatun Hasanah
- Study Program of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Pakuan, Bogor 16143, Indonesia; (S.L.); (U.H.)
| | - Dwipa Ajiati
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang 45363, Indonesia; (D.A.); (D.K.)
| | - Dikdik Kurnia
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang 45363, Indonesia; (D.A.); (D.K.)
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Raina D, Kumar C, Kumar V, Khan IA, Saran S. Potential Inhibitors Targeting Escherichia coli UDP-N-Acetylglucosamine Enolpyruvyl Transferase (MurA): An Overview. Indian J Microbiol 2022; 62:11-22. [PMID: 35068599 PMCID: PMC8758813 DOI: 10.1007/s12088-021-00988-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest challenges that is escalating and affecting humanity across the globe. To overcome this increasing burden of resistance, discovering novel hits by targeting the enzymes involved in peptidoglycan (murein) biosynthesis has always been considered better in antimicrobial drug discovery. UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (MurA) enzyme has been identified as essential for Escherichia coli survival and catalyzes the early-stage step in bacterial cell wall synthesis. The present article gives a brief overview of the role of enzymes in peptidoglycan synthesis and MurA enzyme (previously known as MurZ in E. coli), in particular, including its structural and active site features. This review also provides an insight into the current knowledge of the reported MurA inhibitors, their mechanism of action and drawbacks of these hits that hinder their clinical trials, which would be helpful for synthesis and discovering potent molecules. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12088-021-00988-6.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diksha Raina
- Fermentation and Microbial Biotechnology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu Tawi, 180001 India ,Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, 201002 India
| | - Chetan Kumar
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, 201002 India ,Natural Product and Medicinal Chemistry Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu Tawi, 180001 India
| | - Vinod Kumar
- Fermentation and Microbial Biotechnology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu Tawi, 180001 India ,Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, 201002 India
| | - Inshad Ali Khan
- Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Central University of Rajasthan, Ajmer, Rajasthan 305817 India
| | - Saurabh Saran
- Fermentation and Microbial Biotechnology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu Tawi, 180001 India ,Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, 201002 India
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Funes Chabán M, Hrast M, Frlan R, Graikioti DG, Athanassopoulos CM, Carpinella MC. Inhibition of MurA Enzyme from Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus by Diterpenes from Lepechinia meyenii and Their Synthetic Analogs. Antibiotics (Basel) 2021; 10:1535. [PMID: 34943747 PMCID: PMC8698320 DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics10121535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Enzymes MurA and MurF, involved in bacterial cell wall synthesis, have been validated as targets for the discovery of novel antibiotics. A panel of plant-origin antibacterial diterpenes and synthetic analogs derived therefrom were investigated for their inhibitory properties on these enzymes from Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Six compounds were proven to be effective for inhibiting MurA from both bacteria, with IC50 values ranging from 1.1 to 25.1 µM. To further mechanistically investigate the nature of binding and to explain the activity, these compounds were docked into the active site of MurA from E. coli. The aromatic ring of the active compounds showed a T-shaped π-π interaction with the phenyl ring of Phe328, and at least one hydrogen bond was formed between the hydroxy groups and Arg120 and/or Arg91. The results disclosed here establish new chemical scaffolds for the development of novel entities targeting MurA as potential antibiotics to combat the threat of pathogenic bacteria, particularly resistant strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Macarena Funes Chabán
- Fine Chemical and Natural Products Laboratory, IRNASUS CONICET-UCC, Universidad Católica de Córdoba, Córdoba 5016, Argentina;
| | - Martina Hrast
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.H.); (R.F.)
| | - Rok Frlan
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.H.); (R.F.)
| | - Dafni G. Graikioti
- Synthetic Organic Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, 26504 Patras, Greece; (D.G.G.); (C.M.A.)
| | - Constantinos M. Athanassopoulos
- Synthetic Organic Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, 26504 Patras, Greece; (D.G.G.); (C.M.A.)
| | - María Cecilia Carpinella
- Fine Chemical and Natural Products Laboratory, IRNASUS CONICET-UCC, Universidad Católica de Córdoba, Córdoba 5016, Argentina;
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Abstract
Covalent drugs offer higher efficacy and longer duration of action than their noncovalent counterparts. Significant advances in computational methods for modeling covalent drugs are poised to shift the paradigm of small molecule therapeutics within the next decade. This viewpoint discusses the advantages of a two-state model for ranking reversible and irreversible covalent ligands and of more complex models for dissecting reaction mechanisms. The relation between these models highlights the complexity and diversity of covalent drug binding and provides opportunities for mechanism-based rational design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Lyna Luo
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, California 91709, United States
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Mihalovits LM, Ferenczy GG, Keserű GM. Mechanistic and thermodynamic characterization of oxathiazolones as potent and selective covalent immunoproteasome inhibitors. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2021; 19:4486-4496. [PMID: 34471494 PMCID: PMC8379283 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2021.08.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2021] [Revised: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The ubiquitin–proteasome system is responsible for the degradation of proteins and plays a critical role in key cellular processes. While the constitutive proteasome (cPS) is expressed in all eukaryotic cells, the immunoproteasome (iPS) is primarily induced during disease processes, and its inhibition is beneficial in the treatment of cancer, autoimmune disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. Oxathiazolones were reported to selectively inhibit iPS over cPS, and the inhibitory activity of several oxathiazolones against iPS was experimentally determined. However, the detailed mechanism of the chemical reaction leading to irreversible iPS inhibition and the key selectivity drivers are unknown, and separate characterization of the noncovalent and covalent inhibition steps is not available for several compounds. Here, we investigate the chemical reaction between oxathiazolones and the Thr1 residue of iPS by quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) simulations to establish a plausible reaction mechanism and to determine the rate-determining step of covalent complex formation. The modelled binding mode and reaction mechanism are in line with the selective inhibition of iPS versus cPS by oxathiazolones. The kinact value of several ligands was estimated by constructing the potential of mean force of the rate-determining step by QM/MM simulations coupled with umbrella sampling. The equilibrium constant Ki of the noncovalent complex formation was evaluated by classical force field-based thermodynamic integration. The calculated Ki and kinact values made it possible to analyse the contribution of the noncovalent and covalent steps to the overall inhibitory activity. Compounds with similar intrinsic reactivities exhibit varying selectivities for iPS versus cPS owing to subtle differences in the binding modes that slightly affect Ki, the noncovalent affinity, and importantly alter kinact, the covalent reactivity of the bound compounds. A detailed understanding of the inhibitory mechanism of oxathiazolones is useful in designing iPS selective inhibitors with improved drug-like properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Levente M Mihalovits
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2, Budapest 1117, Hungary
| | - György G Ferenczy
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2, Budapest 1117, Hungary
| | - György M Keserű
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2, Budapest 1117, Hungary
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Mihalovits LM, Ferenczy GG, Keserű GM. Affinity and Selectivity Assessment of Covalent Inhibitors by Free Energy Calculations. J Chem Inf Model 2020; 60:6579-6594. [PMID: 33295760 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.0c00834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Covalent inhibitors have been gaining increased attention in drug discovery due to their beneficial properties such as long residence time, high biochemical efficiency, and specificity. Optimization of covalent inhibitors is a complex task that involves parallel monitoring of the noncovalent recognition elements and the covalent reactivity of the molecules to avoid potential idiosyncratic side effects. This challenge calls for special design protocols, including a variety of computational chemistry methods. Covalent inhibition proceeds through multiple steps, and calculating free energy changes of the subsequent binding events along the overall binding process would help us to better control the design of drug candidates. Inspired by the recent success of free energy calculations on reversible binders, we developed a complex protocol to compute free energies related to the noncovalent and covalent binding steps with thermodynamic integration and hybrid quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical (QM/MM) potential of mean force (PMF) calculations, respectively. In optimization settings, we examined two therapeutically relevant proteins complexed with congeneric sets of irreversible cysteine targeting covalent inhibitors. In the selectivity paradigm, we studied the irreversible binding of covalent inhibitors to phylogenetically close targets by a mutational approach. The results of the calculations are in good agreement with the experimental free energy values derived from the inhibition and kinetic constants (Ki and kinact) of the enzyme-inhibitor binding. The proposed method might be a powerful tool to predict the potency, selectivity, and binding mechanism of irreversible covalent inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Levente M Mihalovits
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar Tudósok Körútja 2, Budapest 1117, Hungary
| | - György G Ferenczy
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar Tudósok Körútja 2, Budapest 1117, Hungary
| | - György M Keserű
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar Tudósok Körútja 2, Budapest 1117, Hungary
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Hamilton DJ, Ábrányi-Balogh P, Keeley A, Petri L, Hrast M, Imre T, Wijtmans M, Gobec S, de Esch IJP, Keserű GM. Bromo-Cyclobutenaminones as New Covalent UDP- N-Acetylglucosamine Enolpyruvyl Transferase (MurA) Inhibitors. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2020; 13:ph13110362. [PMID: 33153141 PMCID: PMC7692735 DOI: 10.3390/ph13110362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2020] [Revised: 10/29/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Drug discovery programs against the antibacterial target UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (MurA) have already resulted in covalent inhibitors having small three- and five-membered heterocyclic rings. In the current study, the reactivity of four-membered rings was carefully modulated to obtain a novel family of covalent MurA inhibitors. Screening a small library of cyclobutenone derivatives led to the identification of bromo-cyclobutenaminones as new electrophilic warheads. The electrophilic reactivity and cysteine specificity have been determined in a glutathione (GSH) and an oligopeptide assay, respectively. Investigating the structure-activity relationship for MurA suggests a crucial role for the bromine atom in the ligand. In addition, MS/MS experiments have proven the covalent labelling of MurA at Cys115 and the observed loss of the bromine atom suggests a net nucleophilic substitution as the covalent reaction. This new set of compounds might be considered as a viable chemical starting point for the discovery of new MurA inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- David J. Hamilton
- Division of Medicinal Chemistry, Amsterdam Institute of Molecular and Life Sciences (AIMMS), Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1108, 1081 HZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (D.J.H.); (M.W.); (I.J.P.d.E.)
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt 2, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (P.Á.-B.); (A.K.); (L.P.)
| | - Péter Ábrányi-Balogh
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt 2, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (P.Á.-B.); (A.K.); (L.P.)
| | - Aaron Keeley
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt 2, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (P.Á.-B.); (A.K.); (L.P.)
| | - László Petri
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt 2, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (P.Á.-B.); (A.K.); (L.P.)
| | - Martina Hrast
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.H.); (S.G.)
| | - Tímea Imre
- MS Metabolomics Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt 2, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary;
| | - Maikel Wijtmans
- Division of Medicinal Chemistry, Amsterdam Institute of Molecular and Life Sciences (AIMMS), Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1108, 1081 HZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (D.J.H.); (M.W.); (I.J.P.d.E.)
| | - Stanislav Gobec
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 7, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.H.); (S.G.)
| | - Iwan J. P. de Esch
- Division of Medicinal Chemistry, Amsterdam Institute of Molecular and Life Sciences (AIMMS), Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1108, 1081 HZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (D.J.H.); (M.W.); (I.J.P.d.E.)
| | - György Miklós Keserű
- Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok krt 2, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (P.Á.-B.); (A.K.); (L.P.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +36-1-382-6821
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