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Patel D, Huma ZE, Duncan D. Reversible Covalent Inhibition─Desired Covalent Adduct Formation by Mass Action. ACS Chem Biol 2024; 19:824-838. [PMID: 38567529 PMCID: PMC11040609 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.3c00805] [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] [Received: 12/30/2023] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Covalent inhibition has seen a resurgence in the last several years. Although long-plagued by concerns of off-target effects due to nonspecific reactions leading to covalent adducts, there has been success in developing covalent inhibitors, especially within the field of anticancer therapy. Covalent inhibitors can have an advantage over noncovalent inhibitors since the formation of a covalent adduct may serve as an additional mode of selectivity due to the intrinsic reactivity of the target protein that is absent in many other proteins. Unfortunately, many covalent inhibitors form irreversible adducts with off-target proteins, which can lead to considerable side-effects. By designing the inhibitor to form reversible covalent adducts, one can leverage competing on/off kinetics in complex formation by taking advantage of the law of mass action. Although covalent adducts do form with off-target proteins, the reversible nature of inhibition prevents accumulation of the off-target adduct, thus limiting side-effects. In this perspective, we outline important characteristics of reversible covalent inhibitors, including examples and a guide for inhibitor development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Dustin Duncan
- Department of Chemistry, Brock
University, St. Catharines, Ontario L2S 3A1, Canada
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2
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Zhang XL, Xiao W, Qian JP, Yang WJ, Xu H, Xu XD, Zhang GW. The Role and Application of Fibroblast Activating Protein. Curr Mol Med 2024; 24:1097-1110. [PMID: 37259211 DOI: 10.2174/1566524023666230530095305] [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: 08/07/2022] [Revised: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Fibroblast activation protein-α (FAP), a type-II transmembrane serine protease, is rarely expressed in normal tissues but highly abundant in pathological diseases, including fibrosis, arthritis, and cancer. Ever since its discovery, we have deciphered its structure and biological properties and continue to investigate its roles in various diseases while attempting to utilize it for targeted therapy. To date, no significant breakthroughs have been made in terms of efficacy. However, in recent years, several practical applications in the realm of imaging diagnosis have been discovered. Given its unique expression in a diverse array of pathological tissues, the fundamental biological characteristics of FAP render it a crucial target for disease diagnosis and immunotherapy. To obtain a more comprehensive understanding of the research progress of FAP, its biological characteristics, involvement in diseases, and recent targeted application research have been reviewed. Moreover, we explored its development trend in the direction of clinical diagnoses and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Lou Zhang
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wang Xiao
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jian-Ping Qian
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wan-Jun Yang
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hao Xu
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xing-da Xu
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guo-Wei Zhang
- Division of Hepatobiliopancreatic Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
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3
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Wang G, Moitessier N, Mittermaier AK. Computational and biophysical methods for the discovery and optimization of covalent drugs. Chem Commun (Camb) 2023; 59:10866-10882. [PMID: 37609777 DOI: 10.1039/d3cc03285j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
Drugs that act by covalently attaching to their targets have been used to treat human diseases for over a hundred years. However, the deliberate design of covalent drugs was discouraged due to concerns of toxicity and off-target effects. Recent successes in covalent drug discovery have sparked fresh interest in this field. New screening and testing methods aimed at covalent inhibitors can play pivotal roles in facilitating the discovery process. This feature article focuses on computational and biophysical advances originating from our labs over the past decade and how these approaches have contributed to the design of prolyl oligopeptidase (POP) and SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro covalent inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guanyu Wang
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec H3A 0B8, Canada.
| | - Nicolas Moitessier
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec H3A 0B8, Canada.
| | - Anthony K Mittermaier
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec H3A 0B8, Canada.
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4
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Liu W, Jiang J, Lin Y, You Q, Wang L. Insight into Thermodynamic and Kinetic Profiles in Small-Molecule Optimization. J Med Chem 2022; 65:10809-10847. [PMID: 35969687 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c00682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Structure-activity relationships (SARs) and structure-property relationships (SPRs) have been considered the most important factors during the drug optimization process. For medicinal chemists, improvements in the potencies and druglike properties of small molecules are regarded as their major goals. Among them, the binding affinity and selectivity of small molecules on their targets are the most important indicators. In recent years, there has been growing interest in using thermodynamic and kinetic profiles to analyze ligand-receptor interactions, which could provide not only binding affinities but also detailed binding parameters for small-molecule optimization. In this perspective, we are trying to provide an insight into thermodynamic and kinetic profiles in small-molecule optimization. Through a highlight of strategies on the small-molecule optimization with specific cases, we aim to put forward the importance of structure-thermodynamic relationships (STRs) and structure-kinetic relationships (SKRs), which could provide more guidance to find safe and effective small-molecule drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Design and Optimization, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China.,Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Jingsheng Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Yating Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Design and Optimization, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China.,Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Qidong You
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Design and Optimization, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China.,Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Lei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Design and Optimization, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China.,Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, China
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Plescia J, Hédou D, Pousse ME, Labarre A, Dufresne C, Mittermaier A, Moitessier N. Modulating the selectivity of inhibitors for prolyl oligopeptidase inhibitors and fibroblast activation protein-α for different indications. Eur J Med Chem 2022; 240:114543. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2022.114543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Labarre A, Stille JK, Patrascu MB, Martins A, Pottel J, Moitessier N. Docking Ligands into Flexible and Solvated Macromolecules. 8. Forming New Bonds─Challenges and Opportunities. J Chem Inf Model 2022; 62:1061-1077. [PMID: 35133156 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.1c00701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Over the years, structure-based design programs and specifically docking small molecules to proteins have become prominent in drug discovery. However, many of these computational tools have been developed to primarily dock enzyme inhibitors (and ligands to other protein classes) relying heavily on hydrogen bonds and electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. In reality, many drug targets either feature metal ions, can be targeted covalently, or are simply not even proteins (e.g., nucleic acids). Herein, we describe several new features that we have implemented into Fitted to broaden its applicability to a wide range of covalent enzyme inhibitors and to metalloenzymes, where metal coordination is essential for drug binding. This updated version of our docking program was tested for its ability to predict the correct binding mode of drug-sized molecules in a large variety of proteins. We also report new datasets that were essential to demonstrate areas of success and those where additional efforts are required. This resource could be used by other program developers to assess their own software.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Labarre
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal H3A 0B8, Quebec, Canada
| | - Julia K Stille
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal H3A 0B8, Quebec, Canada
| | - Mihai Burai Patrascu
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal H3A 0B8, Quebec, Canada
| | - Andrew Martins
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal H3A 0B8, Quebec, Canada
| | - Joshua Pottel
- Molecular Forecaster Inc., 7171, rue Frederick-Banting, Montreal H4S 1Z9, Quebec, Canada
| | - Nicolas Moitessier
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal H3A 0B8, Quebec, Canada.,Molecular Forecaster Inc., 7171, rue Frederick-Banting, Montreal H4S 1Z9, Quebec, Canada
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Fu A, Wang H, Huo T, Li X, Fu W, Huang R, Cao Z. A Novel Chemiluminescence Probe for Sensitive Detection of Fibroblast Activation Protein-Alpha In Vitro and in Living Systems. Anal Chem 2021; 93:6501-6507. [PMID: 33866786 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.1c00413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Fibroblast activation protein-alpha (FAPα) is a key modulator of the microenvironment in multiple pathologies and is becoming the next pan-cancer target for cancer diagnostics and therapeutics. Chemiluminescence (CL) luminophores are considered as one of the most sensitive families of probes for detection and imaging applications due to their high signal-to-noise ratio. Until now, however, no such effective CL probe was reported for FAPα detection. Herein, we developed a novel CL probe for the detection of endogenous FAPα activity by incorporating FAPα-specific dipeptide substrates (glycine-proline) to the improved Schaap's adamantylidene-dioxetane. In this manner, we designed three CL probes (CFCL, BFCL, and QFCL) with the dipeptide substrate blocked by N-terminal benzyloxycarbonyl, N-tert-butoxycarbonyl or N-quinoline-4-carboxylic acid, respectively, which was used as the masking group to restrain the chemiexcitation energy. Probe CFCL exhibited the optimal specificity for the discrimination of FAPα from dipeptidase IV and prolyl oligopeptidase, which was elucidated by molecular docking simulation. Upon FAPα cleavage, CFCL was turned on for the highly selective and sensitive detection of FAPα with a limit of detection of 0.785 ng/mL. Furthermore, the ability of CFCL to image FAPα was effectively demonstrated in vitro, including various biological samples (plasma and tissue preparations), and in living systems (tumor cells and tumor-bearing mice). Furthermore, this newly established probe could be easily extended to evaluate FAPα inhibitors. Overall, we anticipate that probe CFCL will offer a facile and cost-effective alternative in the early detection of pathologies, individual tailoring of drug therapy, and drug screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anchen Fu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bioactive Small Molecules & Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Hongbo Wang
- China State Institute of Pharmaceutical Industry, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Taotao Huo
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bioactive Small Molecules & Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Xinwei Li
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bioactive Small Molecules & Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Wei Fu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bioactive Small Molecules & Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Rongqin Huang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bioactive Small Molecules & Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
| | - Zhijuan Cao
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bioactive Small Molecules & Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, P. R. China
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Kelly JM, Jeitner TM, Ponnala S, Williams C, Nikolopoulou A, DiMagno SG, Babich JW. A Trifunctional Theranostic Ligand Targeting Fibroblast Activation Protein-α (FAPα). Mol Imaging Biol 2021; 23:686-696. [PMID: 33721173 DOI: 10.1007/s11307-021-01593-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 02/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Fibroblast activation protein-α (FAPα) is uniquely expressed in activated fibroblasts, including cancer-associated fibroblasts that populate tumor stroma and contribute to proliferation and immunosuppression. Radiolabeled FAPα inhibitors enable imaging of multiple human cancers, but time-dependent clearance from tumors currently limits their utility as FAPα-targeted radiotherapeutics. We sought to increase the area under the curve (AUC) by constructing a trifunctional ligand that binds FAPα with high affinity and also binds albumin and theranostic radiometals. PROCEDURES RPS-309 comprised a FAPα-targeting moiety, an albumin-binding group, and 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid (DOTA). Inhibition of recombinant human FAPα (rhFAPα) was determined by colorimetric assay. Affinity for human serum albumin (HSA) was determined by high-performance affinity chromatography. The tissue distribution of [68Ga]Ga-RPS-309 in SW872 tumor xenograft-bearing mice was imaged by microPET/CT and quantified by biodistribution studies performed from 30 min to 3 h post injection (p.i.). The biodistribution of [177Lu]Lu-RPS-309 was determined at 4, 24, and 96 h p.i. RESULTS RPS-309 inhibits rhFAPα with IC50 = 7.3 ± 1.4 nM. [68Ga]Ga-RPS-309 is taken up specifically by FAPα-expressing cells and binds HSA with Kd = 4.6 ± 0.1 μM. Uptake of the radiolabeled ligand in tumors was evident from 30 min p.i. (> 5 %ID/g) and was significantly reduced by co-injection of RPS-309. Specific skeletal uptake was also observed. Activity in tumors was constant through 4 h p.i., but cleared significantly by 24 h. The AUC in this period was 127 (%ID/g) × h. CONCLUSIONS RPS-309 is a high-affinity FAPα inhibitor with prolonged plasma residence. Introduction of the albumin-binding group did not compromise FAPα binding. Although initial tumor uptake was high and FAPα-specific, RPS-309 also progressively cleared from tumors. Nevertheless, RPS-309 incorporates multiple sites in which structural diversity can be introduced, and therefore serves as a platform for future structure-activity relationship studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- James M Kelly
- Molecular Imaging Innovations Institute (MI3), Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Thomas M Jeitner
- Molecular Imaging Innovations Institute (MI3), Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Shashikanth Ponnala
- Molecular Imaging Innovations Institute (MI3), Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA
- Angion Biomedica Corp., Uniondale, NY, 11553, USA
| | - Clarence Williams
- Molecular Imaging Innovations Institute (MI3), Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Anastasia Nikolopoulou
- Molecular Imaging Innovations Institute (MI3), Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA
- Citigroup Biomedical Imaging Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10021, USA
- The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, Spring House, PA, 19477, USA
| | - Stephen G DiMagno
- Departments of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Chemistry, UIC College of Pharmacy, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - John W Babich
- Molecular Imaging Innovations Institute (MI3), Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA.
- Citigroup Biomedical Imaging Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10021, USA.
- Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, 10065, USA.
- Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, Belfer Research Building, Room 1600, 413 E 69th St, New York, NY, 10021, USA.
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9
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Design and discovery of boronic acid drugs. Eur J Med Chem 2020; 195:112270. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2020.112270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Revised: 03/22/2020] [Accepted: 03/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
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10
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Plescia J, Dufresne C, Janmamode N, Wahba AS, Mittermaier AK, Moitessier N. Discovery of covalent prolyl oligopeptidase boronic ester inhibitors. Eur J Med Chem 2020; 185:111783. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2019.111783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2019] [Revised: 10/09/2019] [Accepted: 10/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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Huang Y, Wei L, Han X, Chen H, Ren Y, Xu Y, Song R, Rao L, Su C, Peng C, Feng L, Wan J. Discovery of novel allosteric site and covalent inhibitors of FBPase with potent hypoglycemic effects. Eur J Med Chem 2019; 184:111749. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2019.111749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2019] [Revised: 09/20/2019] [Accepted: 09/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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