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Knappeová B, Mlýnský V, Pykal M, Šponer J, Banáš P, Otyepka M, Krepl M. Comprehensive Assessment of Force-Field Performance in Molecular Dynamics Simulations of DNA/RNA Hybrid Duplexes. J Chem Theory Comput 2024. [PMID: 39012172 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.4c00601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/17/2024]
Abstract
Mixed double helices formed by RNA and DNA strands, commonly referred to as hybrid duplexes or hybrids, are essential in biological processes like transcription and reverse transcription. They are also important for their applications in CRISPR gene editing and nanotechnology. Yet, despite their significance, the hybrid duplexes have been seldom modeled by atomistic molecular dynamics methodology, and there is no benchmark study systematically assessing the force-field performance. Here, we present an extensive benchmark study of polypurine tract (PPT) and Dickerson-Drew dodecamer hybrid duplexes using contemporary and commonly utilized pairwise additive and polarizable nucleic acid force fields. Our findings indicate that none of the available force-field choices accurately reproduces all the characteristic structural details of the hybrid duplexes. The AMBER force fields are unable to populate the C3'-endo (north) pucker of the DNA strand and underestimate inclination. The CHARMM force field accurately describes the C3'-endo pucker and inclination but shows base pair instability. The polarizable force fields struggle with accurately reproducing the helical parameters. Some force-field combinations even demonstrate a discernible conflict between the RNA and DNA parameters. In this work, we offer a candid assessment of the force-field performance for mixed DNA/RNA duplexes. We provide guidance on selecting utilizable force-field combinations and also highlight potential pitfalls and best practices for obtaining optimal performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbora Knappeová
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 612 00, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtěch Mlýnský
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 612 00, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Pykal
- Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute, CATRIN, Palacký University, Křížkovského 511/8, Olomouc 779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 612 00, Czech Republic
| | - Pavel Banáš
- Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute, CATRIN, Palacký University, Křížkovského 511/8, Olomouc 779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Otyepka
- Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute, CATRIN, Palacký University, Křížkovského 511/8, Olomouc 779 00, Czech Republic
- IT4Innovations, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, 17. listopadu 2172/15, Ostrava-Poruba 708 00, Czech Republic
| | - Miroslav Krepl
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 612 00, Czech Republic
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Wan L, He A, Li J, Guo P, Han D. High-Resolution NMR Structures of Intrastrand Hairpins Formed by CTG Trinucleotide Repeats. ACS Chem Neurosci 2024; 15:868-876. [PMID: 38319692 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.3c00769] [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] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
The CAG and CTG trinucleotide repeat expansions cause more than 10 human neurodegenerative diseases. Intrastrand hairpins formed by trinucleotide repeats contribute to repeat expansions, establishing them as potential drug targets. High-resolution structural determination of CAG and CTG hairpins poses as a long-standing goal to aid drug development, yet it has not been realized due to the intrinsic conformational flexibility of repetitive sequences. We herein investigate the solution structures of CTG hairpins using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and found that four CTG repeats with a clamping G-C base pair was able to form a stable hairpin structure. We determine the first solution NMR structure of dG(CTG)4C hairpin and decipher a type I folding geometry of the TGCT tetraloop, wherein the two thymine residues form a T·T loop-closing base pair and the first three loop residues continuously stack. We further reveal that the CTG hairpin can be bound and stabilized by a small-molecule ligand, and the binding interferes with replication of a DNA template containing CTG repeats. Our determined high-resolution structures lay an important foundation for studying molecular interactions between native CTG hairpins and ligands, and benefit drug development for trinucleotide repeat expansion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liqi Wan
- Institute of Molecular Medicine (IMM), Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200127, China
- Hangzhou Institute of Medicine (HIM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310022, China
| | - Axin He
- Institute of Molecular Medicine (IMM), Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200127, China
- Hangzhou Institute of Medicine (HIM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310022, China
| | - Jinxing Li
- ReviR Therapeutics, Shenzhen Bay Hi-Tech Ecological Park, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518067, China
| | - Pei Guo
- Hangzhou Institute of Medicine (HIM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310022, China
| | - Da Han
- Institute of Molecular Medicine (IMM), Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200127, China
- Hangzhou Institute of Medicine (HIM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310022, China
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