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Faraji N, Daly NL, Arab SS, Khosroushahi AY. In silico design of potential Mcl-1 peptide-based inhibitors. J Mol Model 2024; 30:108. [PMID: 38499818 DOI: 10.1007/s00894-024-05901-8] [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: 12/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024]
Abstract
CONTEXT BIM (Bcl-2 interacting mediator of apoptosis)-derived peptides that specifically target over-expressed Mcl-1 (myeloid cell leukemia-1) protein and induce apoptosis are potentially anti-cancer agents. Since the helicity of BIM-derived peptides has a crucial role in their functionality, a range of strategies have been used to increase the helicity including the introduction of unnatural residues and stapling methods that have some drawbacks such as the accumulation in the liver. To avoid these drawbacks, this study aimed to design a more helical peptide by utilizing bioinformatics algorithms and molecular dynamics simulations without exploiting unnatural residues and stapling methods. MM-PBSA results showed that the mutations of A4fE and A2eE in analogue 5 demonstrate a preference towards binding with Mcl-1. As evidenced by Circular dichroism results, the helicity increases from 18 to 34%, these findings could enhance the potential of analogue 5 as an anti-cancer agent targeting Mcl-1. The applied strategies in this research could shed light on the in silico peptide design. Moreover, analogue 5 as a drug candidate can be evaluated in vitro and in vivo studies. METHODS The sequence of the lead peptide was determined using the ApInAPDB database and PRALINE program. Contact finder and PDBsum web server softwares were used to determine the contact involved amino acids in complex with Mcl-1. All identified salt bridge contributing residues were unaltered to preserve the binding affinity. After proposing novel analogues, their secondary structures were predicted by Cham finder web server software and GOR, Neural Network, and Chou-Fasman algorithms. Finally, molecular dynamics simulations run for 100 ns were done using the GROMACS, version 5.0.7, with the CHARMM36 force field. MM-PBSA was used to assess binding affinity specificity in targeting Mcl-1 and Bcl-xL (B-cell lymphoma extra-large).
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Affiliation(s)
- Naser Faraji
- Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Medical Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Daneshgah Street, Tabriz, Iran
- Drug Applied Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
| | - Norelle L Daly
- Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD, 4870, Australia
| | - Seyed Shahriar Arab
- Department of Biophysics, Faculty of Biological Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Ahmad Yari Khosroushahi
- Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Medical Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Daneshgah Street, Tabriz, Iran.
- Drug Applied Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
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Bilodeau CL, Lau EY, Roush DJ, Snyder MA, Cramer SM. Behavior of Water Near Multimodal Chromatography Ligands and Its Consequences for Modulating Protein-Ligand Interactions. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:6112-6120. [PMID: 34097423 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c01549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Multimodal chromatography is a powerful approach for purifying proteins that uses ligands containing multiple modes of interaction. Recent studies have shown that selectivity in multimodal chromatographic separations is a function of the ligand structure and geometry. Here, we performed molecular dynamics simulations to explore how the ligand structure and geometry affect ligand-water interactions and how these differences in solution affect the nature of protein-ligand interactions. Our investigation focused on three chromatography ligands: Capto MMC, Nuvia cPrime, and Prototype 4, a structural variant of Nuvia cPrime. First, the solvation characteristics of each ligand were quantified via three metrics: average water density, fluctuations, and residence time. We then explored how solvation was perturbed when the ligand was bound to the protein surface and found that the probability of the phenyl ring dewetting followed the order: Capto MMC > Prototype 4 > Nuvia cPrime. To explore how these differences in dewetting affect protein-ligand interactions, we calculated the probability of each ligand binding to different types of residues on the protein surface and found that the probability of binding to a hydrophobic residue followed the same order as the dewetting behavior. This study illustrates the role that wetting and dewetting play in modulating protein-ligand interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille L Bilodeau
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110 Eighth Street, Troy, New York 12180, United States.,Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Edmond Y Lau
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94550, United States
| | - David J Roush
- Biologics Process R&D, Merck & Co., Inc., 2000 Galloping Hill Road, Kenilworth, New Jersey 07033, United States
| | - Mark A Snyder
- Process Chromatography Division, Bio-Rad Laboratories, 6000 James Watson Drive, Hercules, California 94547, United States
| | - Steven M Cramer
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110 Eighth Street, Troy, New York 12180, United States
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Mahmoudi Gomari M, Rostami N, Omidi-Ardali H, Arab SS. Insight into molecular characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein following D614G point mutation, a molecular dynamics study. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2021; 40:5634-5642. [PMID: 33475020 PMCID: PMC7832383 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2021.1872418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Undoubtedly, the SARS-CoV-2 has become a major concern for all societies due to its catastrophic effects on public health. In addition, mutations and changes in the structure of the virus make it difficult to design effective treatment. Moreover, the amino acid sequence of a protein is a major factor in the formation of the second and tertiary structure in a protein. Amino acid replacement can have noticeable effects on the folding of a protein, especially if an asymmetric change (substitution of polar residue with non-polar, charged with an uncharged, positive charge with a negative charge, or large residue with small residue) occurs. D614G as a spike mutant of SARS-CoV-2 previously identified as an associated risk factor with a high mortality rate of this virus. Using structural bioinformatics, our group determined that D614G mutation could cause extensive changes in SARS-CoV-2 behavior including the secondary structure, receptor binding pattern, 3D conformation, and stability of it. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Neda Rostami
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Arak University, Iran
| | - Hossein Omidi-Ardali
- Clinical Biochemistry Research Center, Basic Health Sciences Institute, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran
| | - Seyed Shahriar Arab
- Department of Biophysics, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
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Gudhka RB, Bilodeau CL, McCallum SA, McCoy MA, Roush DJ, Snyder MA, Cramer SM. Identification of preferred multimodal ligand-binding regions on IgG1 F C using nuclear magnetic resonance and molecular dynamics simulations. Biotechnol Bioeng 2020; 118:809-822. [PMID: 33107976 DOI: 10.1002/bit.27611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Revised: 10/02/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
In this study, the binding of multimodal chromatographic ligands to the IgG1 FC domain were studied using nuclear magnetic resonance and molecular dynamics simulations. Nuclear magnetic resonance experiments carried out with chromatographic ligands and a perdeuterated 15 N-labeled FC domain indicated that while single-mode ion exchange ligands interacted very weakly throughout the FC surface, multimodal ligands containing negatively charged and aromatic moieties interacted with specific clusters of residues with relatively high affinity, forming distinct binding regions on the FC . The multimodal ligand-binding sites on the FC were concentrated in the hinge region and near the interface of the CH 2 and CH 3 domains. Furthermore, the multimodal binding sites were primarily composed of positively charged, polar, and aliphatic residues in these regions, with histidine residues exhibiting some of the strongest binding affinities with the multimodal ligand. Interestingly, comparison of protein surface property data with ligand interaction sites indicated that the patch analysis on FC corroborated molecular-level binding information obtained from the nuclear magnetic resonance experiments. Finally, molecular dynamics simulation results were shown to be qualitatively consistent with the nuclear magnetic resonance results and to provide further insights into the binding mechanisms. An important contribution to multimodal ligand-FC binding in these preferred regions was shown to be electrostatic interactions and π-π stacking of surface-exposed histidines with the ligands. This combined biophysical and simulation approach has provided a deeper molecular-level understanding of multimodal ligand-FC interactions and sets the stage for future analyses of even more complex biotherapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ronak B Gudhka
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA.,Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA
| | - Camille L Bilodeau
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA.,Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA
| | - Scott A McCallum
- Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA
| | - Mark A McCoy
- Biologics and Vaccines, Downstream Purification Development and Engineering, Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, New Jersey, USA
| | - David J Roush
- Biologics and Vaccines, Downstream Purification Development and Engineering, Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, New Jersey, USA
| | - Mark A Snyder
- Process Chromatography Division, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Hercules, California, USA
| | - Steven M Cramer
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA.,Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA
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Bilodeau CL, Lau EY, Cramer SM, Garde S. The Role of Ligand-Ligand Interactions in Multimodal Ligand Conformational Equilibria and Surface Pattern Formation. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2020; 36:9054-9063. [PMID: 32589849 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.0c00707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Multimodal chromatography uses multiple modes of interaction such as charge, hydrophobic, or hydrogen bonding to separate proteins. Recently, we used molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to show that ligands immobilized on surfaces can interact and associate with neighboring ligands to form hydrophobic and charge patches, which may have important implications for the nature of protein-surface interactions. Here, we study interfacial systems of increasing complexity-from a single immobilized multimodal ligand to high density surfaces-to better understand how ligand behavior is affected by the presence of a surface and the presence of other ligands in the vicinity, and how this behavior scales to larger systems. We find that tethering a ligand to a surface restricts its conformations to a subset of those observed in free solution, yet the ligand maintains flexibility in the plane of the surface and can form contacts with neighboring ligands. We find that although the formation of a contact between two neighboring ligands is slightly unfavorable, three neighboring ligands exhibit a preference for the formation of a fully connected cluster. To explore how these trends in ligand association extend to a larger surface with high density of ligands, we performed coarse-grained Monte Carlo (MC) simulations of a 132-ligand surface using ligand interactions parametrized based on free energies obtained from the three-ligand MD simulations. Despite their simplicity, the coarse-grained simulations qualitatively capture the cluster size distribution of ligands observed in detailed MD simulations. Quantitative differences between the two suggest opportunities for improvements in the coarse-grained energy function for efficient predictions of cluster and pattern formations. Our approach presents a promising route to the engineering of multimodal patterns for future chromatographic resin design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille L Bilodeau
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110 Eighth Street, Troy, New York 12180, United States of America
| | - Edmond Y Lau
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94550, United States of America
| | - Steven M Cramer
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110 Eighth Street, Troy, New York 12180, United States of America
| | - Shekhar Garde
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110 Eighth Street, Troy, New York 12180, United States of America
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Bilodeau CL, Lau EY, Roush D, Garde S, Cramer SM. Formation of Ligand Clusters on Multimodal Chromatographic Surfaces. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2019; 35:16770-16779. [PMID: 31603330 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b01925] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Multimodal chromatography is a powerful tool which uses multiple modes of interaction, such as charge and hydrophobicity, to purify protein-based therapeutics. In this work, we performed molecular dynamics simulations of a series of multimodal cation-exchange ligands immobilized on a hydrophilic self-assembled monolayer surface at the commercially relevant surface density (1 ligand/nm2). We found that ligands that were flexible and terminated in a hydrophobic group had a propensity to aggregate on the surface, while less flexible ligands containing a hydrophobic group closer to the surface did not aggregate. For aggregating ligands, this resulted in the formation of a surface pattern that contained relatively large patches of hydrophobicity and charge whose sizes exceeded the length scale of the individual ligands. On the other hand, lowering the surface density to 1 ligand/3 nm2 reduced or eliminated this aggregation behavior. In addition, the introduction of a flexible linker (corresponding to the commercially available ligand) enhanced cluster formation and allowed aggregation to occur at lower surface densities. Further, the use of flexible linkers enabled hydrophobic groups to collapse to the surface, reducing their accessibility. Finally, we developed an approach for quantifying differences in the observed surface patterns by calculating distributions of the patch size and patch length. This clustering phenomenon is likely to play a key role in governing protein-surface interactions in multimodal chromatography. This new understanding of multimodal surfaces has important implications for developing improved predictive models and designing new classes of multimodal separation materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille L Bilodeau
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies , Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute , 110 Eighth Street , Troy , New York 12180 , United States
| | - Edmond Y Lau
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate , Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory , Livermore , California 94550 , United States
| | - David Roush
- Biologics Process R&D , Merck & Co., Inc. , 2000 Galloping Hill Road , Kenilworth , New Jersey 07033 , United States
| | - Shekhar Garde
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies , Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute , 110 Eighth Street , Troy , New York 12180 , United States
| | - Steven M Cramer
- Howard P. Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies , Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute , 110 Eighth Street , Troy , New York 12180 , United States
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