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Dean TT, Jelú-Reyes J, Allen AC, Moore TW. Peptide-Drug Conjugates: An Emerging Direction for the Next Generation of Peptide Therapeutics. J Med Chem 2024; 67:1641-1661. [PMID: 38277480 PMCID: PMC10922862 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c01835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2024]
Abstract
Building on recent advances in peptide science, medicinal chemists have developed a hybrid class of bioconjugates, called peptide-drug conjugates, that demonstrate improved efficacy compared to peptides and small molecules independently. In this Perspective, we discuss how the conjugation of synergistic peptides and small molecules can be used to overcome complex disease states and resistance mechanisms that have eluded contemporary therapies because of their multi-component activity. We highlight how peptide-drug conjugates display a multi-factor therapeutic mechanism similar to that of antibody-drug conjugates but also demonstrate improved therapeutic properties such as less-severe off-target effects and conjugation strategies with greater site-specificity. The many considerations that go into peptide-drug conjugate design and optimization, such as peptide/small-molecule pairing and chemo-selective chemistries, are discussed. We also examine several peptide-drug conjugate series that demonstrate notable activity toward complex disease states such as neurodegenerative disorders and inflammation, as well as viral and bacterial targets with established resistance mechanisms.
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Xue S, Xu W, Wang L, Xu L, Calcul L, Teng P, Lu L, Jiang S, Cai J. Rational Design of Sulfonyl-γ-AApeptides as Highly Potent HIV-1 Fusion Inhibitors with Broad-Spectrum Activity. J Med Chem 2023; 66:13319-13331. [PMID: 37706450 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c01412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
The HIV-1 epidemic has significant social and economic implications for public health. Developing new antivirus drugs to eradicate drug resistance is still urgently needed. Herein, we demonstrated that sulfonyl-γ-AApeptides could be designed to mimic MTSC22EK, one potent HIV fusion inhibitor derived from CHR. The best two sequences revealed comparable activity to MTSC22EK in an authentic HIV-1 infection assay and exhibited broad-spectrum anti-HIV-1 activity to many HIV-1 clinical isolates. Furthermore, sulfonyl-γ-AApeptides show remarkable resistance to proteolysis and favorable permeability in PAMPA-GIT and PAMPA-BBB assays, suggesting that both sequences could control HIV-1 within the central nervous system and possess promising oral bioavailability. Mechanistic investigations suggest that these sulfonyl-γ-AApeptides function by mimicking the CHR of gp41 and tightly bind with NHR, thereby inhibiting the formation of the 6-HB structure necessary for HIV-1 fusion. Overall, our results suggest that sulfonyl-γ-AApeptides represent a new generation of anti-HIV-1 fusion inhibitors. Moreover, this design strategy could be adopted to modulate many of the PPIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Songyi Xue
- Department of Chemistry, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33620, United States
| | - Wei Xu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Lei Wang
- Department of Chemistry, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33620, United States
| | - Ling Xu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Laurent Calcul
- Department of Chemistry, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33620, United States
| | - Peng Teng
- Department of Chemistry, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33620, United States
| | - Lu Lu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Shibo Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Jianfeng Cai
- Department of Chemistry, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33620, United States
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Xu L, Wang C, Xu W, Xing L, Zhou J, Pu J, Fu M, Lu L, Jiang S, Wang Q. A dePEGylated Lipopeptide-Based Pan-Coronavirus Fusion Inhibitor Exhibits Potent and Broad-Spectrum Anti-HIV-1 Activity without Eliciting Anti-PEG Antibodies. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24119779. [PMID: 37298729 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24119779] [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: 04/11/2023] [Revised: 05/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
We previously identified a lipopeptide, EK1C4, by linking cholesterol to EK1, a pan-CoV fusion inhibitory peptide via a polyethylene glycol (PEG) linker, which showed potent pan-CoV fusion inhibitory activity. However, PEG can elicit antibodies to PEG in vivo, which will attenuate its antiviral activity. Therefore, we designed and synthesized a dePEGylated lipopeptide, EKL1C, by replacing the PEG linker in EK1C4 with a short peptide. Similar to EK1C4, EKL1C displayed potent inhibitory activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and other coronaviruses. In this study, we found that EKL1C also exhibited broad-spectrum fusion inhibitory activity against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection by interacting with the N-terminal heptad repeat 1 (HR1) of viral gp41 to block six-helix bundle (6-HB) formation. These results suggest that HR1 is a common target for the development of broad-spectrum viral fusion inhibitors and EKL1C has potential clinical application as a candidate therapeutic or preventive agent against infection by coronavirus, HIV-1, and possibly other class I enveloped viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling Xu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Chao Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Wei Xu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Lixiao Xing
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Jie Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Jing Pu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Mingming Fu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Lu Lu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Shibo Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Qian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
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Wang C, Li Q, Sun L, Wang X, Wang H, Zhang W, Li J, Liu Y, Lu L, Jiang S. An Artificial Peptide-Based Bifunctional HIV-1 Entry Inhibitor That Interferes with Viral Glycoprotein-41 Six-Helix Bundle Formation and Antagonizes CCR5 on the Host Cell Membrane. Viruses 2023; 15:v15051038. [PMID: 37243126 DOI: 10.3390/v15051038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 04/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is characterized by high variability and drug resistance. This has necessitated the development of antivirals with a new chemotype and therapy. We previously identified an artificial peptide with non-native protein sequence, AP3, with the potential to inhibit HIV-1 fusion through targeting hydrophobic grooves on the N-terminal heptad repeat trimer of viral glycoprotein gp41. Here, a small-molecule HIV-1 inhibitor targeting chemokine coreceptor CCR5 on the host cell was integrated into the AP3 peptide, producing a novel dual-target inhibitor with improved activity against multiple HIV-1 strains including those resistant to the currently used anti-HIV-1 drug enfuvirtide. Its superior antiviral potency in comparison with the respective pharmacophoric moieties is in consonance with the dual binding of viral gp41 and host factor CCR5. Therefore, our work provides a potent artificial peptide-based bifunctional HIV-1 entry inhibitor and highlights the multitarget-directed ligands approach in the development of novel therapeutic anti-HIV-1 agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chao Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Qing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Lujia Sun
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong An Road, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Xinling Wang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong An Road, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Huan Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Wenpeng Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Jiahui Li
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing 100850, China
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design and Discovery of the Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design and Discovery of the Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China
| | - Lu Lu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong An Road, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Shibo Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong An Road, Shanghai 200032, China
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Wang C, Wang H, Wang X, Sun L, Wang Q, Li Q, Liang R, Dou D, Yu F, Lu L, Jiang S. Multitargeted drug design strategy for discovery of short-peptide-based HIV-1 entry inhibitors with high potency. Eur J Med Chem 2023; 252:115294. [PMID: 36944281 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2023.115294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
Abstract
The development of short-peptide-based inhibitors to prevent HIV-1 entry into the host cell has been rewarded with limited success. Herein, we report a multitarget-directed ligand strategy to generate a series of short-peptide HIV-1 entry inhibitors that integrated the pharmacological activities of a peptide fusion inhibitor able to disrupt HIV-1 gp41 glycoprotein hexameric coiled-coil assembly and a small-molecule CCR5 antagonist that blocks the interaction between HIV-1 and its coreceptor. Among these inhibitors, dual-target 23-residue peptides SP12T and SP12L displayed dramatically increased inhibitory activities against HIV-1 replication as compared to the marketed 36-residue peptide T20. Moreover, results suggested that SP12T and SP12L successfully performed a dual-targeting mechanism. It can be concluded that these short-peptide-based HIV-1 entry inhibitors have potential for further development as candidates for a novel multitarget therapy to treat HIV-1 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chao Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing, 100850, China.
| | - Huan Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing, 100850, China
| | - Xinling Wang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong an Road, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Lujia Sun
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong an Road, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Qian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong an Road, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Qing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27 Tai-Ping Road, Beijing, 100850, China
| | - Ruiying Liang
- Hebei Center for Wildlife Health, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding, 071001, China
| | - Dou Dou
- Hebei Center for Wildlife Health, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding, 071001, China
| | - Fei Yu
- Hebei Center for Wildlife Health, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding, 071001, China.
| | - Lu Lu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong an Road, Shanghai, 200032, China.
| | - Shibo Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Fudan University, 131 Dong an Road, Shanghai, 200032, China.
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Synthesis of Oleanolic Acid-Dithiocarbamate Conjugates and Evaluation of Their Broad-Spectrum Antitumor Activities. Molecules 2023; 28:molecules28031414. [PMID: 36771080 PMCID: PMC9920998 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28031414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Revised: 01/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Efficient and mild synthetic routes for bioactive natural product derivatives are of current interest for drug discovery. Herein, on the basis of the pharmacophore hybrid strategy, we report a two-step protocol to obtain a series of structurally novel oleanolic acid (OA)-dithiocarbamate conjugates in mild conditions with high yields. Moreover, biological evaluations indicated that representative compound 3e exhibited the most potent and broad-spectrum antiproliferative effects against Panc1, A549, Hep3B, Huh-7, HT-29, and Hela cells with low cytotoxicity on normal cells. In terms of the IC50 values, these OA-dithiocarbamate conjugates were up to 30-fold more potent than the natural product OA. These compounds may be promising hit compounds for the development of novel anti-cancer drugs.
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Secchi M, Vangelista L. Rational Engineering of a Sub-Picomolar HIV-1 Blocker. Viruses 2022; 14:v14112415. [PMID: 36366513 PMCID: PMC9695723 DOI: 10.3390/v14112415] [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: 09/09/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
With the aim of rationally devising a refined and potent HIV-1 blocker, the cDNA of CCL5 5p12 5m, an extremely potent CCR5 antagonist, was fused to that of C37, a gp41-targeted fusion inhibitor. The resulting CCL5 5p12 5m-C37 fusion protein was expressed in E. coli and proved to be capable of inhibiting R5 HIV-1 strains with low to sub-picomolar IC50, maintaining its antagonism toward CCR5. In addition, CCL5 5p12 5m-C37 inhibits R5/X4 and X4 HIV-1 strains in the picomolar concentration range. The combination of CCL5 5p12 5m-C37 with tenofovir (TDF) exhibited a synergic effect, promoting this antiviral cocktail. Interestingly, a CCR5-targeted combination of maraviroc (MVC) with CCL5 5p12 5m-C37 led to a synergic effect that could be explained by an extensive engagement of different CCR5 conformational populations. Within the mechanism of HIV-1 entry, the CCL5 5p12 5m-C37 chimera may fit as a powerful blocker in several instances. In its possible consideration for systemic therapy or pre-exposure prophylaxis, this protein design represents an interesting lead in the combat of HIV-1 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimiliano Secchi
- Protein Engineering and Therapeutics Group, Department of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele, 20132 Milan, Italy
- DNA Enzymology and Molecular Virology Unit, Institute of Molecular Genetics, National Research Council, 27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Luca Vangelista
- Protein Engineering and Therapeutics Group, Department of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele, 20132 Milan, Italy
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Nazarbayev University, Nur-Sultan 010000, Kazakhstan
- Correspondence:
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