1
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Forget S, Juillé M, Duboué-Dijon E, Stirnemann G. Simulation-Guided Conformational Space Exploration to Assess Reactive Conformations of a Ribozyme. J Chem Theory Comput 2024. [PMID: 38958594 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.4c00294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/04/2024]
Abstract
Self-splicing ribozymes are small ribonucleic acid (RNA) enzymes that catalyze their own cleavage through a transphosphoesterification reaction. While this process is involved in some specific steps of viral RNA replication and splicing, it is also of importance in the context of the (putative) first autocatalytic RNA-based systems that could have preceded the emergence of modern life. The uncatalyzed phosphoester bond formation is thermodynamically very unfavorable, and many experimental studies have focused on understanding the molecular features of catalysis in these ribozymes. However, chemical reaction paths are short-lived and not easily characterized by experimental approaches, so molecular simulation approaches appear as an ideal tool to unveil the molecular details of the reaction. Here, we focus on the model hairpin ribozyme. We show that identifying a relevant initial conformation for reactivity studies, which is frequently overlooked in mixed quantum-classical studies that predominantly concentrate on the chemical reaction itself, can be highly challenging. These challenges stem from limitations in both available experimental structures (which are chemically altered to prevent self-cleavage) and the accuracy of force fields, together with the necessity for comprehensive sampling. We show that molecular dynamics simulations, combined with extensive conformational phase space exploration with Hamiltonian replica-exchange simulations, enable us to characterize the relevant conformational basins of the minimal hairpin ribozyme in the ligated state prior to self-cleavage. We find that what is usually considered a canonical reactive conformation with active site geometries and hydrogen-bond patterns that are optimal for the addition-elimination reaction with general acid/general base catalysis is metastable and only marginally populated. The thermodynamically stable conformation appears to be consistent with the expectations of a mechanism that does not require the direct participation of ribozyme residues in the reaction. While these observations may suffer from forcefield inaccuracies, all investigated forcefields lead to the same conclusions upon proper sampling, contrasting with previous investigations on shorter timescales suggesting that at least one reparametrization of the Amber99 forcefield allowed to stabilize aligned active site conformations. Our study demonstrates that identifying the most pertinent reactant state conformation holds equal importance alongside the accurate determination of the thermodynamics and kinetics of the chemical steps of the reaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sélène Forget
- PASTEUR, Département de chimie, École Normale Supérieure, PSL University, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, 24 rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Marie Juillé
- PASTEUR, Département de chimie, École Normale Supérieure, PSL University, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, 24 rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Elise Duboué-Dijon
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Guillaume Stirnemann
- PASTEUR, Département de chimie, École Normale Supérieure, PSL University, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, 24 rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France
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2
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Zhang Z, Mlýnský V, Krepl M, Šponer J, Stadlbauer P. Mechanical Stability and Unfolding Pathways of Parallel Tetrameric G-Quadruplexes Probed by Pulling Simulations. J Chem Inf Model 2024; 64:3896-3911. [PMID: 38630447 PMCID: PMC11094737 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.4c00227] [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: 02/08/2024] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Guanine quadruplex (GQ) is a noncanonical nucleic acid structure formed by guanine-rich DNA and RNA sequences. Folding of GQs is a complex process, where several aspects remain elusive, despite being important for understanding structure formation and biological functions of GQs. Pulling experiments are a common tool for acquiring insights into the folding landscape of GQs. Herein, we applied a computational pulling strategy─steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulations─in combination with standard molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to explore the unfolding landscapes of tetrameric parallel GQs. We identified anisotropic properties of elastic conformational changes, unfolding transitions, and GQ mechanical stabilities. Using a special set of structural parameters, we found that the vertical component of pulling force (perpendicular to the average G-quartet plane) plays a significant role in disrupting GQ structures and weakening their mechanical stabilities. We demonstrated that the magnitude of the vertical force component depends on the pulling anchor positions and the number of G-quartets. Typical unfolding transitions for tetrameric parallel GQs involve base unzipping, opening of the G-stem, strand slippage, and rotation to cross-like structures. The unzipping was detected as the first and dominant unfolding event, and it usually started at the 3'-end. Furthermore, results from both SMD and standard MD simulations indicate that partial spiral conformations serve as a transient ensemble during the (un)folding of GQs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengyue Zhang
- Institute
of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
- CEITEC−Central
European Institute of Technology, Masaryk
University, Kamenice
5, Brno 625 00, Czech Republic
- National
Center for Biomolecular Research,
Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, Brno 625 00, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtěch Mlýnský
- Institute
of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
| | - Miroslav Krepl
- Institute
of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute
of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Stadlbauer
- Institute
of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
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3
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Dabin A, Stirnemann G. Atomistic simulations of RNA duplex thermal denaturation: Sequence- and forcefield-dependence. Biophys Chem 2024; 307:107167. [PMID: 38262278 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpc.2023.107167] [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] [Received: 10/02/2023] [Revised: 12/26/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Double-stranded RNA is the end-product of template-based replication, and is also the functional state of some biological RNAs. Similarly to proteins and DNA, they can be denatured by temperature, with important physiological and technological implications. Here, we use an in silico strategy to probe the thermal denaturation of RNA duplexes. Following previous results that were obtained on a few different duplexes, and which nuanced the canonical 2-state picture of nucleic acid denaturation, we here specifically address three different aspects that greatly improve our description of the temperature-induced dsRNA separation. First, we investigate the effect of the spatial distribution of weak and strong base-pairs among the duplex sequence. We show that the deviations from the two-state dehybridization mechanism are more pronounced when a strong core is flanked with weak extremities, while duplexes with a weak core but strong extremities exhibit a two-state behavior, which can be explained by the key role played by base fraying. This was later verified by generating artificial hairpin or circular states containing one or two locked duplex extremities, which results in an important reinforcement of the entire HB structure of the duplex and higher melting temperatures. Finally, we demonstrate that our results are little sensitive to the employed combination of RNA and water forcefields. The trends in thermal stability among the different sequences as well as the observed unfolding mechanisms (and the deviations from a two-state scenario) remain the same regardless of the employed atomistic models. However, our study points to possible limitations of recent reparametrizations of the Amber RNA forcefield, which sometimes results in duplexes that readily denature under ambient conditions, in contradiction with available experimental results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aimeric Dabin
- CNRS Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, Université de Paris Cité, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Guillaume Stirnemann
- PASTEUR, Département de chimie, École normale supérieure, PSL University, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, 75005 Paris, France.
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4
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Pokorná P, Mlýnský V, Bussi G, Šponer J, Stadlbauer P. Molecular dynamics simulations reveal the parallel stranded d(GGGA) 3GGG DNA quadruplex folds via multiple paths from a coil-like ensemble. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 261:129712. [PMID: 38286387 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.129712] [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] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024]
Abstract
G-quadruplexes (G4s) are non-canonical nucleic acid structures that fold through complex processes. Characterization of the G4 folding landscape may help to elucidate biological roles of G4s but is challenging both experimentally and computationally. Here, we achieved complete folding of a three-quartet parallel DNA G4 with (GGGA)3GGG sequence using all-atom explicit-solvent enhanced-sampling molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The simulations suggested early formation of guanine stacks in the G-tracts, which behave as semi-rigid blocks in the folding process. The folding continues via the formation of a collapsed compact coil-like ensemble. Structuring of the G4 from the coil then proceeds via various cross-like, hairpin, slip-stranded and two-quartet ensembles and can bypass the G-triplex structure. Folding of the parallel G4 does not appear to involve any salient intermediates and is a multi-pathway process. We also carried out an extended set of simulations of parallel G-hairpins. While parallel G-hairpins are extremely unstable when isolated, they are more stable inside the coil structure. On the methodology side, we show that the AMBER DNA force field predicts the folded G4 to be less stable than the unfolded ensemble, uncovering substantial force-field issues. Overall, we provide unique atomistic insights into the folding landscape of parallel-stranded G4 but also reveal limitations of current state-of-the-art MD techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pavlína Pokorná
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtěch Mlýnský
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
| | - Giovanni Bussi
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), via Bonomea 265, Trieste 34136, Italy
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Stadlbauer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, Brno 61200, Czech Republic.
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5
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Gajarsky M, Stadlbauer P, Sponer J, Cucchiarini A, Dobrovolna M, Brazda V, Mergny JL, Trantirek L, Lenarcic Zivkovic M. DNA Quadruplex Structure with a Unique Cation Dependency. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2024; 63:e202313226. [PMID: 38143239 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202313226] [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: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023]
Abstract
DNA quadruplex structures provide an additional layer of regulatory control in genome maintenance and gene expression and are widely used in nanotechnology. We report the discovery of an unprecedented tetrastranded structure formed from a native G-rich DNA sequence originating from the telomeric region of Caenorhabditis elegans. The structure is defined by multiple properties that distinguish it from all other known DNA quadruplexes. Most notably, the formation of a stable so-called KNa-quadruplex (KNaQ) requires concurrent coordination of K+ and Na+ ions at two distinct binding sites. This structure provides novel insight into G-rich DNA folding under ionic conditions relevant to eukaryotic cell physiology and the structural evolution of telomeric DNA. It highlights the differences between the structural organization of human and nematode telomeric DNA, which should be considered when using C. elegans as a model in telomere biology, particularly in drug screening applications. Additionally, the absence/presence of KNaQ motifs in the host/parasite introduces an intriguing possibility of exploiting the KNaQ fold as a plausible antiparasitic drug target. The structure's unique shape and ion dependency and the possibility of controlling its folding by using low-molecular-weight ligands can be used for the design or discovery of novel recognition DNA elements and sensors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Gajarsky
- Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
- Current address: Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Petr Stadlbauer
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Kralovopolska 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiri Sponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Kralovopolska 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Anne Cucchiarini
- Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
- Laboratoire d'Optique et Biosciences, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS, Inserm, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, 91120, Palaiseau, France
| | - Michaela Dobrovolna
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Kralovopolska 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Chemistry, Brno University of Technology, Purkynova 464, 61200, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Vaclav Brazda
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Kralovopolska 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Chemistry, Brno University of Technology, Purkynova 464, 61200, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jean-Louis Mergny
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Kralovopolska 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
- Laboratoire d'Optique et Biosciences, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS, Inserm, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, 91120, Palaiseau, France
| | - Lukas Trantirek
- Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Martina Lenarcic Zivkovic
- Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
- Slovenian NMR Centre, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
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6
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Love O, Winkler L, Cheatham TE. van der Waals Parameter Scanning with Amber Nucleic Acid Force Fields: Revisiting Means to Better Capture the RNA/DNA Structure through MD. J Chem Theory Comput 2024; 20:625-643. [PMID: 38157247 PMCID: PMC10809421 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.3c01164] [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: 10/20/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Molecular dynamics simulations can be used in combination with experimental techniques to uncover the intricacies of biomolecular structure, dynamics, and the resulting interactions. However, many noncanonical nucleic acid structures have proven to be challenging to replicate in accurate agreement with experimental data, often attributed to known force field deficiencies. A common force field criticism is the handling of van der Waals (vdW) parameters, which have not been updated since the regular use of Ewald's methods became routine. This work dives into the effects of minute vdW radii shifts on RNA tetranucleotide, B-DNA, and Z-DNA model systems described by commonly used Amber force fields. Using multidimensional replica exchange molecular dynamics (M-REMD), the GACC RNA tetranucleotide demonstrated changes in the structural distribution between the NMR minor and anomalous structure populations based on the O2' vdW radii scanning. However, no significant change in the NMR Major conformation population was observed. There were minimal changes in the B-DNA structure but there were more substantial improvements in Z-DNA structural descriptions, specifically with the Tumuc1 force field. This occurred with both LJbb vdW radii adjustments and incorporation of the CUFIX nonbonded parameter modifications. Though the limited vdW modifications tested did not provide a universal fix to the challenge of simulating the various known nucleic acid structures, they do provide direction and a greater understanding for future force field development efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Thomas E. Cheatham
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry,
College of Pharmacy, University of Utah, 2000 East 30 South Skaggs 306, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, United States
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7
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Flauzino JMR, Nalepa MA, Chronopoulos DD, Šedajová V, Panáček D, Jakubec P, Kührová P, Pykal M, Banáš P, Panáček A, Bakandritsos A, Otyepka M. Click and Detect: Versatile Ampicillin Aptasensor Enabled by Click Chemistry on a Graphene-Alkyne Derivative. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2023; 19:e2207216. [PMID: 36703534 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202207216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Tackling the current problem of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) requires fast, inexpensive, and effective methods for controlling and detecting antibiotics in diverse samples at the point of interest. Cost-effective, disposable, point-of-care electrochemical biosensors are a particularly attractive option. However, there is a need for conductive and versatile carbon-based materials and inks that enable effective bioconjugation under mild conditions for the development of robust, sensitive, and selective devices. This work describes a simple and fast methodology to construct an aptasensor based on a novel graphene derivative equipped with alkyne groups prepared via fluorographene chemistry. Using click chemistry, an aptamer is immobilized and used as a successful platform for the selective determination of ampicillin in real samples in the presence of interfering molecules. The electrochemical aptasensor displayed a detection limit of 1.36 nM, high selectivity among other antibiotics, the storage stability of 4 weeks, and is effective in real samples. Additionally, structural and docking simulations of the aptamer shed light on the ampicillin binding mechanism. The versatility of this platform opens up wide possibilities for constructing a new class of aptasensor based on disposable screen-printed carbon electrodes usable in point-of-care devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- José M R Flauzino
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Martin-Alex Nalepa
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Demetrios D Chronopoulos
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Veronika Šedajová
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - David Panáček
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Jakubec
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Petra Kührová
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Pykal
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Pavel Banáš
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
| | - Aleš Panáček
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, Olomouc, 771 46, Czech Republic
| | - Aristides Bakandritsos
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
- Nanotechnology Centre, Centre of Energy and Environmental Technologies, VSB - Technical University of Ostrava, 17. listopadu 2172/15, 708 00, Ostrava-Poruba, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Otyepka
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 783 71, Czech Republic
- IT4Innovations, VSB - Technical University of Ostrava, 17. listopadu 2172/15, Ostrava-Poruba, 708 00, Czech Republic
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8
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Galer P, Wang B, Plavec J, Šket P. Unveiling the structural mechanism of a G-quadruplex pH-Driven switch. Biochimie 2023; 214:73-82. [PMID: 37573019 DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2023.08.002] [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] [Received: 06/21/2023] [Revised: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023]
Abstract
The human telomere oligonucleotide, d[TAGGG(TTAGGG)2TTAGG] (TAGGG), can adopt two distinct 2-G-quartet G-quadruplex structures at pH 7.0 and 5.0, referred to as the TD and KDH+ forms, respectively. By using a combination of NMR and computational techniques, we determined high-resolution structures of both forms, which revealed unique loop architectures, base triples, and base pairs that play a crucial role in the pH-driven structural transformation of TAGGG. Our study demonstrated that TAGGG represents a reversible pH-driven switch system where the stability and pH-induced structural transformation of the G-quadruplexes are influenced by the terminal residues and base triples. Gaining insight into the factors that regulate the formation of G-quadruplexes and their pH-sensitive structural equilibrium holds great potential for the rational design of novel DNA based pH-driven switches. These advancements in understanding create exciting opportunities for applications in the field of nanotechnology, specifically in the development of bio-nano-motors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petra Galer
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Baifan Wang
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Janez Plavec
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia; EN-FIST Center of Excellence, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia; Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Primož Šket
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
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9
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Li J, Luo S, Ouyang X, Wu G, Deng Z, He X, Zhao YL. Understanding base and backbone contributions of phosphorothioate DNA for molecular recognition with SBD proteins. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2023; 25:29289-29302. [PMID: 37876253 DOI: 10.1039/d3cp02820h] [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: 10/26/2023]
Abstract
Bacterial DNA phosphorothioate (PT) modification provides a specific anchoring site for sulfur-binding proteins (SBDs). Besides, their recognition patterns include phosphate links and bases neighboring the PT-modified site, thereby bringing about genome sequence-dependent properties in PT-related epigenetics. Here, we analyze the contributions of the DNA backbone (phosphates and deoxyribose) and bases bound with two SBD proteins in Streptomyces pristinaespiralis and coelicolor (SBDSco and SBDSpr). The chalcogen-hydrophobic interactions remained constantly at the anchoring site while the adjacent bases formed conditional and distinctive non-covalent interactions. More importantly, SBD/PT-DNA interactions were not limited within the traditional "4-bp core" range from 5'-I to 3'-III but extended to upstream 5'-II and 5'-III bases and even 5''-I to 5''-III at the non-PT-modified complementary strand. From the epigenetic viewpoint, bases 3'-II, 5''-I, and 5''-III of SBDSpr and 3'-II, 5''-II, and 5''-III of SBDSco present remarkable differentiations in the molecular recognitions. From the protein viewpoint, H102 in SBDSpr and R191 in SBDSco contribute significantly while proline residues at the PT-bound site are strictly conserved for the PT-chalcogen bond. The mutual and make-up mutations are proposed to alter the SBD/PT-DNA recognition pattern, besides additional chiral phosphorothioate modifications on phosphates 5'-II, 5'-II, 3'-I, and 3'-II.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiayi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
| | - Shenggan Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
| | - Xingyu Ouyang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
| | - Geng Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
| | - Zixin Deng
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
| | - Xinyi He
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
| | - Yi-Lei Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
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10
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Zalar M, Wang B, Plavec J, Šket P. Insight into Tetramolecular DNA G-Quadruplexes Associated with ALS and FTLD: Cation Interactions and Formation of Higher-Ordered Structure. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:13437. [PMID: 37686239 PMCID: PMC10487854 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241713437] [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: 07/18/2023] [Revised: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The G4C2 hexanucleotide repeat expansion in the c9orf72 gene is a major genetic cause of familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), with the formation of G-quadruplexes directly linked to the development of these diseases. Cations play a crucial role in the formation and structure of G-quadruplexes. In this study, we investigated the impact of biologically relevant potassium ions on G-quadruplex structures and utilized 15N-labeled ammonium cations as a substitute for K+ ions to gain further insights into cation binding and exchange dynamics. Through nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate that the single d(G4C2) repeat, in the presence of 15NH4+ ions, adopts a tetramolecular G-quadruplex with an all-syn quartet at the 5'-end. The movement of 15NH4+ ions through the central channel of the G-quadruplex, as well as to the bulk solution, is governed by the vacant cation binding site, in addition to the all-syn quartet at the 5'-end. Furthermore, the addition of K+ ions to G-quadruplexes folded in the presence of 15NH4+ ions induces stacking of G-quadruplexes via their 5'-end G-quartets, leading to the formation of stable higher-ordered species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matja Zalar
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.Z.); (B.W.); (J.P.)
| | - Baifan Wang
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.Z.); (B.W.); (J.P.)
| | - Janez Plavec
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.Z.); (B.W.); (J.P.)
- EN-FIST Center of Excellence, Trg OF 13, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Večna pot 113, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Primož Šket
- Slovenian NMR Center, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (M.Z.); (B.W.); (J.P.)
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11
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Dabin A, Stirnemann G. Toward a Molecular Mechanism of Complementary RNA Duplexes Denaturation. J Phys Chem B 2023. [PMID: 37389985 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.3c00908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/02/2023]
Abstract
RNA duplexes are relatively rare but play very important biological roles. As an end-product of template-based RNA replication, they also have key implications for hypothetical primitive forms of life. Unless they are specifically separated by enzymes, these duplexes denature upon a temperature increase. However, mechanistic and kinetic aspects of RNA (and DNA) duplex thermal denaturation remain unclear at the microscopic level. We propose an in silico strategy that probes the thermal denaturation of RNA duplexes and allows for an extensive conformational space exploration along a wide temperature range with atomistic precision. We show that this approach first accounts for the strong sequence and length dependence of the duplexes melting temperature, reproducing the trends seen in the experiments and predicted by nearest-neighbor models. The simulations are then instrumental at providing a molecular picture of the temperature-induced strand separation. The textbook canonical "all-or-nothing" two-state model, very much inspired by the protein folding mechanism, can be nuanced. We demonstrate that a temperature increase leads to significantly distorted but stable structures with extensive base-fraying at the extremities, and that the fully formed duplexes typically do not form around melting. The duplex separation therefore appears as much more gradual than commonly thought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aimeric Dabin
- CNRS Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, PSL University, Université de Paris, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Guillaume Stirnemann
- CNRS Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, PSL University, Université de Paris, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005, Paris, France
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12
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Kolganova NA, Tsvetkov VB, Stomakhin AA, Surzhikov SA, Timofeev EN, Varizhuk IV. Alpha-Deoxyguanosine to Reshape the Alpha-Thrombin Binding Aptamer. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24098406. [PMID: 37176113 PMCID: PMC10179326 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24098406] [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: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Modification of DNA aptamers is aimed at increasing their thermodynamic stability, and improving affinity and resistance to biodegradation. G-quadruplex DNA aptamers are a family of affinity ligands that form non-canonical DNA assemblies based on a G-tetrads stack. Modification of the quadruplex core is challenging since it can cause complete loss of affinity of the aptamer. On the other hand, increased thermodynamic stability could be a worthy reward. In the current paper, we developed new three- and four-layer modified analogues of the thrombin binding aptamer with high thermal stability, which retain anticoagulant activity against alpha-thrombin. In the modified aptamers, one or two G-tetrads contained non-natural anti-preferred alpha-deoxyguanosines at specific positions. The use of this nucleotide analogue made it possible to control the topology of the modified structures. Due to the presence of non-natural tetrads, we observed some decrease in the anticoagulant activity of the modified aptamers compared to the natural prototype. This negative effect was completely compensated by conjugation of the aptamers with optimized tripeptide sequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia A Kolganova
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Vladimir B Tsvetkov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, 119435 Moscow, Russia
- Institute of Biodesign and Complex System Modeling, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 119146 Moscow, Russia
- A.V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Andrey A Stomakhin
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Sergei A Surzhikov
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Edward N Timofeev
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Irina V Varizhuk
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
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13
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Zhang Z, Šponer J, Bussi G, Mlýnský V, Šulc P, Simmons CR, Stephanopoulos N, Krepl M. Atomistic Picture of Opening-Closing Dynamics of DNA Holliday Junction Obtained by Molecular Simulations. J Chem Inf Model 2023; 63:2794-2809. [PMID: 37126365 PMCID: PMC10170514 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.3c00358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
Holliday junction (HJ) is a noncanonical four-way DNA structure with a prominent role in DNA repair, recombination, and DNA nanotechnology. By rearranging its four arms, HJ can adopt either closed or open state. With enzymes typically recognizing only a single state, acquiring detailed knowledge of the rearrangement process is an important step toward fully understanding the biological function of HJs. Here, we carried out standard all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the spontaneous opening-closing transitions, which revealed complex conformational transitions of HJs with an involvement of previously unconsidered "half-closed" intermediates. Detailed free-energy landscapes of the transitions were obtained by sophisticated enhanced sampling simulations. Because the force field overstabilizes the closed conformation of HJs, we developed a system-specific modification which for the first time allows the observation of spontaneous opening-closing HJ transitions in unbiased MD simulations and opens the possibilities for more accurate HJ computational studies of biological processes and nanomaterials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengyue Zhang
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- CEITEC─Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- National Center for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Giovanni Bussi
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), via Bonomea 265, 34136 Trieste, Italy
| | - Vojtěch Mlýnský
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Šulc
- Biodesign Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave, Tempe, 85287 Arizona, United States
| | - Chad R Simmons
- Biodesign Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave, Tempe, 85287 Arizona, United States
| | - Nicholas Stephanopoulos
- Biodesign Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave, Tempe, 85287 Arizona, United States
| | - Miroslav Krepl
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacky University Olomouc, Slechtitelu 241/27, 783 71 Olomouc, Czech Republic
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14
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Liebl K, Zacharias M. Toward Force Fields with Improved Base Stacking Descriptions. J Chem Theory Comput 2023; 19:1529-1536. [PMID: 36795949 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.2c01121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/18/2023]
Abstract
Recent DNA force fields indicate good performance in describing flexibility and structural stability of double-stranded B-DNA. However, it is not clear how accurately base stacking interactions are represented that are critical for simulating structure formation processes and conformational changes. Based on the equilibrium nucleoside association and base pair nicking, we find that the recent Tumuc1 force field improves the description of base stacking compared to previous state-of-the-art force fields. Nevertheless, base pair stacking is still overstabilized compared to experiment. We propose a rapid method to reweight calculated free energies of stacking upon force field modifications in order to generate improved parameters. A decrease of the Lennard-Jones attraction between nucleo-bases alone appears insufficient; however, adjustments in the partial charge distribution on base atoms could help to further improve the force field description of base stacking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Korbinian Liebl
- Department of Chemistry, Chicago Center for Theoretical Chemistry, Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, and James Franck Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, United States
| | - Martin Zacharias
- Physics Department and Center of Protein Assemblies, Technical University of Munich, Garching 85748, Germany
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15
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Mechanism of Chiral-Selective Aminoacylation of an RNA Minihelix Explored by QM/MM Free-Energy Simulations. Life (Basel) 2023; 13:life13030722. [PMID: 36983877 PMCID: PMC10057131 DOI: 10.3390/life13030722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2023] [Revised: 03/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/03/2023] [Indexed: 03/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Aminoacylation of a primordial RNA minihelix composed of D-ribose shows L-amino acid preference over D-amino acid without any ribozymes or enzymes. This preference in the amino acylation reaction likely plays an important role in the establishment of homochirality in L-amino acid in modern proteins. However, molecular mechanisms of the chiral selective reaction remain unsolved mainly because of difficulty in direct observation of the reaction at the molecular scale by experiments. For seeking a possible mechanism of the chiral selectivity, quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) umbrella sampling molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the aminoacylation reactions in a modeled RNA were performed to investigate differences in their free-energy profiles along the reactions for L- and D-alanine and its physicochemical origin. The reaction is initiated by approaching a 3′-oxygen of the RNA minihelix to the carbonyl carbon of an aminoacyl phosphate oligonucleotide. The QM/MM umbrella sampling MD calculations showed that the height of the free-energy barrier for L-alanine aminoacylation reaction was 17 kcal/mol, which was 9 kcal/mol lower than that for the D-alanine system. At the transition state, the distance between the negatively charged 3′-oxygen and the positively charged amino group of L-alanine was shorter than that of D-alanine, which was caused by the chirality difference of the amino acid. These results indicate that the transition state for L-alanine is more electrostatically stabilized than that for D-alanine, which would be a plausible mechanism previously unexplained for chiral selectivity in the RNA minihelix aminoacylation.
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16
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Varizhuk IV, Tsvetkov VB, Toropygin IY, Stomakhin AA, Kolganova NA, Surzhikov SA, Timofeev EN. The Regioselective Conjugation of the 15-nt Thrombin Aptamer with an Optimized Tripeptide Sequence Greatly Increases the Anticoagulant Activity of the Aptamer. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:pharmaceutics15020604. [PMID: 36839926 PMCID: PMC9967020 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15020604] [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: 12/02/2022] [Revised: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Currently, oligonucleotide therapy has emerged as a new paradigm in the treatment of human diseases. In many cases, however, therapeutic oligonucleotides cannot be used directly without modification. Chemical modification or the conjugation of therapeutic oligonucleotides is required to increase their stability or specificity, improve their affinity or inhibitory characteristics, and address delivery issues. Recently, we proposed a conjugation strategy for a 15-nt G-quadruplex thrombin aptamer aimed at extending the recognition interface of the aptamer. In particular, we have prepared a series of designer peptide conjugates of the thrombin aptamer, showing improved anticoagulant activity. Herein, we report a new series of aptamer-peptide conjugates with optimized peptide sequences. The anti-thrombotic activity of aptamer conjugates was notably improved. The lead conjugate, TBA-GLE, was able to inhibit thrombin-induced coagulation approximately six-fold more efficiently than the unmodified aptamer. In terms of its anticoagulant activity, the TBA-GLE conjugate approaches NU172, one of the most potent G-quadruplex thrombin aptamers. Molecular dynamics studies have confirmed that the principles applied to the design of the peptide side chain are efficient instruments for improving aptamer characteristics for the proposed TBA conjugate model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina V. Varizhuk
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Vladimir B. Tsvetkov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, 119435 Moscow, Russia
- Institute of Biodesign and Complex System Modeling, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 119146 Moscow, Russia
| | - Ilya Yu. Toropygin
- Department of Proteomics, V.N. Orekhovich Research Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow 119832, Russia
| | - Andrey A. Stomakhin
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Natalia A. Kolganova
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Sergei A. Surzhikov
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Edward N. Timofeev
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
- Correspondence:
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17
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Kristoffersen E, Coletta A, Lund L, Schiøtt B, Birkedal V. Inhibited complete folding of consecutive human telomeric G-quadruplexes. Nucleic Acids Res 2023; 51:1571-1582. [PMID: 36715345 PMCID: PMC9976873 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 12/24/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Noncanonical DNA structures, termed G-quadruplexes, are present in human genomic DNA and are important elements in many DNA metabolic processes. Multiple sites in the human genome have G-rich DNA stretches able to support formation of several consecutive G-quadruplexes. One of those sites is the telomeric overhang region that has multiple repeats of TTAGGG and is tightly associated with both cancer and aging. We investigated the folding of consecutive G-quadruplexes in both potassium- and sodium-containing solutions using single-molecule FRET spectroscopy, circular dichroism, thermal melting and molecular dynamics simulations. Our observations show coexistence of partially and fully folded DNA, the latter consisting of consecutive G-quadruplexes. Following the folding process over hours in sodium-containing buffers revealed fast G-quadruplex folding but slow establishment of thermodynamic equilibrium. We find that full consecutive G-quadruplex formation is inhibited by the many DNA structures randomly nucleating on the DNA, some of which are off-path conformations that need to unfold to allow full folding. Our study allows describing consecutive G-quadruplex formation in both nonequilibrium and equilibrium conditions by a unified picture, where, due to the many possible DNA conformations, full folding with consecutive G-quadruplexes as beads on a string is not necessarily achieved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emil Laust Kristoffersen
- Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Andrea Coletta
- Department of Chemistry, Aarhus University, Langelandsgade 140, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Line Mørkholt Lund
- Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Birgit Schiøtt
- Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark,Department of Chemistry, Aarhus University, Langelandsgade 140, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
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18
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Mechanistic Insights of Polyphenolic Compounds from Rosemary Bound to Their Protein Targets Obtained by Molecular Dynamics Simulations and Free-Energy Calculations. Foods 2023; 12:foods12020408. [PMID: 36673500 PMCID: PMC9858269 DOI: 10.3390/foods12020408] [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: 12/05/2022] [Revised: 01/09/2023] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Rosemary represents an important medicinal plant that has been attributed with various health-promoting properties, especially antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic activities. Carnosic acid, carnosol, and rosmanol, as well as the phenolic acid ester rosmarinic acid, are the main compounds responsible for these actions. In our earlier research, we carried out an inverse molecular docking at the proteome scale to determine possible protein targets of the mentioned compounds. Here, we subjected the previously identified ligand-protein complexes with HIV-1 protease, K-RAS, and factor X to molecular dynamics simulations coupled with free-energy calculations. We observed that carnosic acid and rosmanol act as viable binders of the HIV-1 protease. In addition, carnosol represents a potential binder of the oncogene protein K-RAS. On the other hand, rosmarinic acid was characterized as a weak binder of factor X. We also emphasized the importance of water-mediated hydrogen-bond networks in stabilizing the binding conformation of the studied polyphenols, as well as in mechanistically explaining their promiscuous nature.
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19
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The development of nucleic acids force fields: From an unchallenged past to a competitive future. Biophys J 2022:S0006-3495(22)03932-7. [PMID: 36540025 PMCID: PMC10398263 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2022.12.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 11/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Molecular dynamics simulations have strongly matured as a method to study biomolecular processes. Their validity, however, is determined by the accuracy of the underlying force fields that describe the forces between all atoms. In this article, we review the development of nucleic acids force fields. We describe the early attempts in the 1990s and emphasize their strong influence on recent force fields. State-of-the-art force fields still use the same Lennard-Jones parameters derived 25 years ago in spite of the fact that these parameters were in general not fitted for nucleic acids. In addition, electrostatic parameters also are deprecated, which may explain some of the current force field deficiencies. We compare different force fields for various systems and discuss new tests of the recently developed Tumuc1 force field. The OL-force fields and Tumuc1 are arguably the best force fields to describe the DNA double helix. However, no force field is flawless. In particular, the description of sugar-puckering remains a problem for nucleic acids force fields. Future refinements are required, so we review methods for force field refinement and give an outlook to the future of force fields.
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20
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Paloncýová M, Pykal M, Kührová P, Banáš P, Šponer J, Otyepka M. Computer Aided Development of Nucleic Acid Applications in Nanotechnologies. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2022; 18:e2204408. [PMID: 36216589 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202204408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2022] [Revised: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Utilization of nucleic acids (NAs) in nanotechnologies and nanotechnology-related applications is a growing field with broad application potential, ranging from biosensing up to targeted cell delivery. Computer simulations are useful techniques that can aid design and speed up development in this field. This review focuses on computer simulations of hybrid nanomaterials composed of NAs and other components. Current state-of-the-art molecular dynamics simulations, empirical force fields (FFs), and coarse-grained approaches for the description of deoxyribonucleic acid and ribonucleic acid are critically discussed. Challenges in combining biomacromolecular and nanomaterial FFs are emphasized. Recent applications of simulations for modeling NAs and their interactions with nano- and biomaterials are overviewed in the fields of sensing applications, targeted delivery, and NA templated materials. Future perspectives of development are also highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markéta Paloncýová
- Regional Center of Advanced Technologies and Materials, The Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Pykal
- Regional Center of Advanced Technologies and Materials, The Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Petra Kührová
- Regional Center of Advanced Technologies and Materials, The Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Pavel Banáš
- Regional Center of Advanced Technologies and Materials, The Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Regional Center of Advanced Technologies and Materials, The Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 779 00, Czech Republic
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, v. v. i., Královopolská 135, Brno, 612 65, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Otyepka
- Regional Center of Advanced Technologies and Materials, The Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacký University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 27, Olomouc, 779 00, Czech Republic
- IT4Innovations, VŠB - Technical University of Ostrava, 17. listopadu 2172/15, Ostrava-Poruba, 708 00, Czech Republic
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21
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Pokorná P, Krepl M, Campagne S, Šponer J. Conformational Heterogeneity of RNA Stem-Loop Hairpins Bound to FUS-RNA Recognition Motif with Disordered RGG Tail Revealed by Unbiased Molecular Dynamics Simulations. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:9207-9221. [PMID: 36348631 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c06168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
RNA-protein complexes use diverse binding strategies, ranging from structurally well-defined interfaces to completely disordered regions. Experimental characterization of flexible segments is challenging and can be aided by atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Here, we used an extended set of microsecond-scale MD trajectories (400 μs in total) to study two FUS-RNA constructs previously characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The FUS protein contains a well-structured RNA recognition motif domain followed by a presumably disordered RGG tail that binds RNA stem-loop hairpins. Our simulations not only provide several suggestions complementing the experiments but also reveal major methodological difficulties in studies of such complex RNA-protein interfaces. Despite efforts to stabilize the binding via system-specific force-field adjustments, we have observed progressive distortions of the RNA-protein interface inconsistent with experimental data. We propose that the dynamics is so rich that its converged description is not achievable even upon stabilizing the system. Still, after careful analysis of the trajectories, we have made several suggestions regarding the binding. We identify substates in the RNA loops, which can explain the NMR data. The RGG tail localized in the minor groove remains disordered, sampling countless transient interactions with the RNA. There are long-range couplings among the different elements contributing to the recognition, which can lead to allosteric communication throughout the system. Overall, the RNA-FUS systems form dynamical ensembles that cannot be fully represented by single static structures. Thus, albeit imperfect, MD simulations represent a viable tool to investigate dynamic RNA-protein complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pavlína Pokorná
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.,National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Miroslav Krepl
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Sébastien Campagne
- INSERM U1212, CNRS UMR 5320, ARNA Laboratory, University of Bordeaux, 146 rue Léo Saignat, 33076 Bordeaux Cedex, France
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic
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22
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To probe the binding of TMPyP4 to c-MYC G-quadruplex with in water and in imidazolium-based ionic liquids using spectroscopy coupled with molecular dynamics simulations. J Mol Liq 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.molliq.2022.120097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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23
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Structural insight into the bulge-containing KRAS oncogene promoter G-quadruplex bound to berberine and coptisine. Nat Commun 2022; 13:6016. [PMID: 36224201 PMCID: PMC9556435 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-33761-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/08/2022] Open
Abstract
KRAS is one of the most highly mutated oncoproteins, which is overexpressed in various human cancers and implicated in poor survival. The G-quadruplex formed in KRAS oncogene promoter (KRAS-G4) is a transcriptional modulator and amenable to small molecule targeting. However, no available KRAS-G4-ligand complex structure has yet been determined, which seriously hinders the structure-based rational design of KRAS-G4 targeting drugs. In this study, we report the NMR solution structures of a bulge-containing KRAS-G4 bound to berberine and coptisine, respectively. The determined complex structure shows a 2:1 binding stoichiometry with each compound recruiting the adjacent flacking adenine residue to form a "quasi-triad plane" that stacks over the two external G-tetrads. The binding involves both π-stacking and electrostatic interactions. Moreover, berberine and coptisine significantly lowered the KRAS mRNA levels in cancer cells. Our study thus provides molecular details of ligand interactions with KRAS-G4 and is beneficial for the design of specific KRAS-G4-interactive drugs.
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24
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Fukal J, Zgarbová M, Jurečka P, Šebera J, Sychrovský V. Probabilistic Interpretation of NMR J-Couplings Determines BI-BII State Equilibria in DNA. J Chem Theory Comput 2022; 18:6989-6999. [PMID: 36206364 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.2c00733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Interpretation of 3JP,H3' NMR scalar spin-spin coupling constants in DNA becomes more reliable by including distinct structural states such as BI and BII, using the weighted-static or, better still, the recently implemented adiabatic-MD (Ad-MD) method. The calculation method employs an adiabatic ("Ad") dependence of 3JP,H3' coupling on NMR-assigned torsion angle, ε, weighted by P(ε) probability distribution calculated by molecular dynamics (MD). Ad-MD calculations enable cross-validation of the bsc1, OL15, and OL21 force fields and various parametrizations of the Karplus equation describing the dependence of 3JP,H3' coupling on ε torsion (KE). The mean absolute deviation of Ad-MD 3JP,H3' couplings from the experimental values in Dickerson-Drew DNA is comparable to the scatter of 3JP,H3' couplings among four separate NMR experiments. A commonly accepted assumption of homogeneity of one kind of structure-dynamic state within DNA (BI or BII) is questionable because the principal characteristics of relevant P(ε) probabilities (shapes and positioning) vary with DNA sequence. The theory outlined in the present work sets limits to future reparameterization of MD force fields, as relevant to NMR data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiří Fukal
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo náměstí 2, 166 10 Praha 6, Czech Republic.,Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc, 17. listopadu 12, 77146 Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Marie Zgarbová
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc, 17. listopadu 12, 77146 Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Jurečka
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc, 17. listopadu 12, 77146 Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Jakub Šebera
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo náměstí 2, 166 10 Praha 6, Czech Republic
| | - Vladimír Sychrovský
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo náměstí 2, 166 10 Praha 6, Czech Republic.,Department of Electrotechnology, Electrical Engineering, Czech Technical University, Technická 2, 166 27 Praha 6, Czech Republic
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25
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Zirbel CL, Auffinger P. Lone Pair…π Contacts and Structure Signatures of r(UNCG) Tetraloops, Z-Turns, and Z-Steps: A WebFR3D Survey. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27144365. [PMID: 35889236 PMCID: PMC9323530 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27144365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 07/04/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Z-DNA and Z-RNA have long appeared as oddities to nucleic acid scientists. However, their Z-step constituents are recurrently observed in all types of nucleic acid systems including ribosomes. Z-steps are NpN steps that are isostructural to Z-DNA CpG steps. Among their structural features, Z-steps are characterized by the presence of a lone pair…π contact that involves the stacking of the ribose O4′ atom of the first nucleotide with the 3′-face of the second nucleotide. Recently, it has been documented that the CpG step of the ubiquitous r(UNCG) tetraloops is a Z-step. Accordingly, such r(UNCG) conformations were called Z-turns. It has also been recognized that an r(GAAA) tetraloop in appropriate conditions can shapeshift to an unusual Z-turn conformation embedding an ApA Z-step. In this report, we explore the multiplicity of RNA motifs based on Z-steps by using the WebFR3D tool to which we added functionalities to be able to retrieve motifs containing lone pair…π contacts. Many examples that underscore the diversity and universality of these motifs are provided as well as tutorial guidance on using WebFR3D. In addition, this study provides an extensive survey of crystallographic, cryo-EM, NMR, and molecular dynamics studies on r(UNCG) tetraloops with a critical view on how to conduct database searches and exploit their results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig L. Zirbel
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA;
| | - Pascal Auffinger
- Architecture et Réactivité de l’ARN, UPR 9002, Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire du CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, 67084 Strasbourg, France
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +33-3-8841-7049; Fax: +33-3-8860-2218
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26
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Tucker MR, Piana S, Tan D, LeVine MV, Shaw DE. Development of Force Field Parameters for the Simulation of Single- and Double-Stranded DNA Molecules and DNA-Protein Complexes. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:4442-4457. [PMID: 35694853 PMCID: PMC9234960 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c10971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
![]()
Although molecular
dynamics (MD) simulations have been used extensively
to study the structural dynamics of proteins, the role of MD simulation
in studies of nucleic acid based systems has been more limited. One
contributing factor to this disparity is the historically lower level
of accuracy of the physical models used in such simulations to describe
interactions involving nucleic acids. By modifying nonbonded and torsion
parameters of a force field from the Amber family of models, we recently
developed force field parameters for RNA that achieve a level of accuracy
comparable to that of state-of-the-art protein force fields. Here
we report force field parameters for DNA, which we developed by transferring
nonbonded parameters from our recently reported RNA force field and
making subsequent adjustments to torsion parameters. We have also
modified the backbone charges in both the RNA and DNA parameter sets
to make the treatment of electrostatics compatible with our recently
developed variant of the Amber protein and ion force field. We name
the force field resulting from the union of these three parameter
sets (the new DNA parameters, the revised RNA parameters, and the
existing protein and ion parameters) DES-Amber. Extensive
testing of DES-Amber indicates that it can describe the thermal stability
and conformational flexibility of single- and double-stranded DNA
systems with a level of accuracy comparable to or, especially for
disordered systems, exceeding that of state-of-the-art nucleic acid
force fields. Finally, we show that, in certain favorable cases, DES-Amber
can be used for long-timescale simulations of protein–nucleic
acid complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Stefano Piana
- D. E. Shaw Research, New York, New York 10036, United States
| | - Dazhi Tan
- D. E. Shaw Research, New York, New York 10036, United States
| | | | - David E Shaw
- D. E. Shaw Research, New York, New York 10036, United States.,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, New York 10032, United States
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27
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Severov V, Tsvetkov V, Barinov N, Babenko V, Klinov D, Pozmogova G. Spontaneous DNA Synapsis by Forming Noncanonical Intermolecular Structures. Polymers (Basel) 2022; 14:polym14102118. [PMID: 35632001 PMCID: PMC9144187 DOI: 10.3390/polym14102118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2022] [Revised: 05/14/2022] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
We report the spontaneous formation of DNA-DNA junctions in solution in the absence of proteins visualised using atomic force microscopy. The synapsis position fits with potential G-quadruplex (G4) sites. In contrast to the Holliday structure, these conjugates have an affinity for G4 antibodies. Molecular modelling was used to elucidate the possible G4/IM-synaptic complex structures. Our results indicate a new role of the intermolecular noncanonical structures in chromatin architecture and genomic rearrangement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viacheslav Severov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Malaya Pirogovskaya Str. 1a, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (N.B.); (V.B.); (D.K.); (G.P.)
- Correspondence: (V.S.); (V.T.)
| | - Vladimir Tsvetkov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Malaya Pirogovskaya Str. 1a, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (N.B.); (V.B.); (D.K.); (G.P.)
- Institute of Biodesign and Complex System Modeling, I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Trubetskaya Str. 8-2, 119991 Moscow, Russia
- A.V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Leninsky prospect Str. 29, 119991 Moscow, Russia
- Correspondence: (V.S.); (V.T.)
| | - Nikolay Barinov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Malaya Pirogovskaya Str. 1a, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (N.B.); (V.B.); (D.K.); (G.P.)
| | - Vladislav Babenko
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Malaya Pirogovskaya Str. 1a, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (N.B.); (V.B.); (D.K.); (G.P.)
| | - Dmitry Klinov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Malaya Pirogovskaya Str. 1a, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (N.B.); (V.B.); (D.K.); (G.P.)
- Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University), 6 Miklukho-Maklaya str.6, 117198 Moscow, Russia
| | - Galina Pozmogova
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, Malaya Pirogovskaya Str. 1a, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (N.B.); (V.B.); (D.K.); (G.P.)
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28
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Westwood MN, Johnson CC, Oyler NA, Meints GA. Kinetics and thermodynamics of BI-BII interconversion altered by T:G mismatches in DNA. Biophys J 2022; 121:1691-1703. [PMID: 35367235 PMCID: PMC9117933 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2022.03.031] [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: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 10/26/2021] [Accepted: 03/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
T:G mismatches in DNA result in humans primarily from deamination of methylated CpG sites. They are repaired by redundant systems, such as thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) and methyl-binding domain enzyme (MBD4), and maintenance of these sites has been implicated in epigenetic processes. The process by which these enzymes identify a canonical DNA base in the incorrect basepairing context remains a mystery. However, the conserved contacts of the repair enzymes with the DNA backbone suggests a role for protein-phosphate interaction in the recognition and repair processes. We have used 31P NMR to investigate the energetics of DNA backbone BI-BII interconversion, and for this work have focused on alterations to the activation barriers to interconversion and the effect of a mismatch compared with canonical DNA. We have found that alterations to the ΔG of interconversion for T:G basepairs are remarkably similar to U:G basepairs in the form of stepwise differences in ΔG of 1-2 kcal/mol greater than equivalent steps in unmodified DNA, suggesting a universality of this result for TDG substrates. Likewise, we see perturbations to the free energy (∼1 kcal/mol) and enthalpy (2-5 kcal/mol) of activation for the BI-BII interconversion localized to the phosphates flanking the mismatch. Overall our results strongly suggest that the perturbed backbone energetics in T:G basepairs play a significant role in the recognition process of DNA repair enzymes.
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Affiliation(s)
- M N Westwood
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri
| | - C C Johnson
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri
| | - Nathan A Oyler
- Department of Chemistry, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, Missouri
| | - Gary A Meints
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri.
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29
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Rocca R, Scionti F, Nadai M, Moraca F, Maruca A, Costa G, Catalano R, Juli G, Di Martino MT, Ortuso F, Alcaro S, Tagliaferri P, Tassone P, Richter SN, Artese A. Chromene Derivatives as Selective TERRA G-Quadruplex RNA Binders with Antiproliferative Properties. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2022; 15:ph15050548. [PMID: 35631373 PMCID: PMC9147070 DOI: 10.3390/ph15050548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 04/20/2022] [Accepted: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
In mammalian cells, telomerase transcribes telomeres in large G-rich non-coding RNA, known as telomeric repeat-containing RNA (TERRA), which folds into noncanonical nucleic acid secondary structures called G-quadruplexes (G4s). Since TERRA G4 has been shown to be involved in telomere length and translation regulation, it could provide valuable insight into fundamental biological processes, such as cancer growth, and TERRA G4 binders could represent an innovative strategy for cancer treatment. In this work, the three best candidates identified in our previous virtual screening campaign on bimolecular DNA/RNA G4s were investigated on the monomolecular Tel DNA and TERRA G4s by means of molecular modelling simulations and in vitro and in cell analysis. The results obtained in this work highlighted the stabilizing power of all the three candidates on TERRA G4. In particular, the two compounds characterized by a chromene scaffold were selective TERRA G4 binders, while the compound with a naphthyridine core acted as a dual Tel/TERRA G4-binder. A biophysical investigation by circular dichroism confirmed the relative stabilization efficiency of the compounds towards TERRA and Tel G4s. The TERRA G4 stabilizing hits showed good antiproliferative activity against colorectal and lung adenocarcinoma cell lines. Lead optimization to increase TERRA G4 stabilization may provide new powerful tools against cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberta Rocca
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (R.R.); (G.J.); (M.T.D.M.); (P.T.); (P.T.)
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
| | - Francesca Scionti
- Institute for Biomedical Research and Innovation (IRIB), National Research Council of Italy (CNR), 98164 Messina, Italy;
| | - Matteo Nadai
- Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padua, Via A. Gabelli 63, 35121 Padua, Italy;
| | - Federica Moraca
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Napoli Federico II, Via D. Montesano 49, 80131 Napoli, Italy
| | - Annalisa Maruca
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Health Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Giosuè Costa
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Health Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Raffaella Catalano
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Health Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Giada Juli
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (R.R.); (G.J.); (M.T.D.M.); (P.T.); (P.T.)
| | - Maria Teresa Di Martino
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (R.R.); (G.J.); (M.T.D.M.); (P.T.); (P.T.)
| | - Francesco Ortuso
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Health Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Stefano Alcaro
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Health Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Pierosandro Tagliaferri
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (R.R.); (G.J.); (M.T.D.M.); (P.T.); (P.T.)
| | - Pierfrancesco Tassone
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (R.R.); (G.J.); (M.T.D.M.); (P.T.); (P.T.)
| | - Sara N. Richter
- Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padua, Via A. Gabelli 63, 35121 Padua, Italy;
- Correspondence: (S.N.R.); (A.A.)
| | - Anna Artese
- Net4science Srl, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (F.M.); (A.M.); (G.C.); (R.C.); (F.O.); (S.A.)
- Department of Health Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Campus “Salvatore Venuta”, Viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
- Correspondence: (S.N.R.); (A.A.)
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30
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Khavani M, Mehranfar A, Vahid H. Application of amino acid ionic liquids for increasing the stability of DNA in long term storage. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2022:1-15. [PMID: 35467487 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2022.2067239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
The structural stability of DNA is important because of its biological activity. DNAs due to their inherent chemical properties are not stable in an aqueous solution, therefore, a long period of storage of DNA at the ambient condition in bioscience is of importance. Ionic liquids (ILs) as interesting alternatives compared to organic solvents and water due to their considerable properties can be used as new agents to increase the stability of DNA for a long period of storage. In this article, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and quantum chemistry calculations were applied to investigate the effects of amino acid ionic liquids ([BMIM][Ala], [BMIM][Gly], [BMIM][Val], [BMIM][Pro] and [BMIM][Leu]) on the dynamical behavior and the structural stability of calf thymus DNA. Based on the obtained MD results ILs enter into the solvation shell of the DNA and push away the water molecules from the DNA surface. Structural analysis shows that [BMIM]+ cations can occupy the DNA minor groove without disturbing the double-helical structure of DNA. ILs due to strong electrostatic and van der Waals (vdW) interactions with the DNA structure contribute to the stability of the double-helical structure. Quantum chemistry calculations indicate that the interactions between the [BMIM]+ cation and DNA structure has an electrostatic character. Moreover, this cation forms a more stable complex with the CGCG region of the DNA in comparison with AATT base pairs. Overall, the results of this study can provide new insight into the application of ILs for maintaining DNA stability during long-term storage.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Khavani
- Department of Chemistry and Materials Science, School of Chemical Engineering, Aalto University, Aalto, Finland.,Molecular Cell Biomechanics Laboratory, Departments of Bioengineering and Mechanical Engineering, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA
| | - Aliyeh Mehranfar
- Department of Chemistry and Materials Science, School of Chemical Engineering, Aalto University, Aalto, Finland
| | - Hossein Vahid
- Department of Chemistry and Materials Science, School of Chemical Engineering, Aalto University, Aalto, Finland.,Department of Applied Physics, Aalto University, Aalto, Finland
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31
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Li J, Wan H, Zhang H, Wang XL, Liu G, Wu G, He X, Deng Z, Zhao YL. Molecular recognition between bacterial phosphorothioate DNA and sulfur-binding domain (SBD): competition between the water cage and chalcogen-hydrophobic packet. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2022; 24:9176-9187. [PMID: 35383346 DOI: 10.1039/d2cp00291d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Bacterial DNA phosphorothioation (PT) physiologically and stereo-specifically replaces a non-bridging oxygen in a phosphate link with a sulfur atom, which can be recognized by a highly conserved sulfur-binding domain (SBD). Here we conducted thermodynamic integration (TI), molecular dynamics simulation, and quantum chemical calculations to decipher the specific molecular interactions between PT-DNA and SBD in Streptomyces coelicolor type IV restriction enzyme ScoMcrA. The TI-calculated binding affinity of (5'-CCGRp-PSGCCGG-3')2 is larger than that of (5'-CCGGCCGG-3')2 by about 7.4-7.7 kcal mol-1. The binding difference dominantly stems from hydration energy of non-phosphorothioate DNA (9.8-10.6 kcal mol-1) in aqueous solution, despite the persistent preference of 2.6-3.2 kcal mol-1 in the DNA-SBD MD simulations. Furthermore, the quantum chemical calculations reveal an unusual non-covalent interaction in the phosphorothioate-binding scenario, where the PS⋯NP165 chalcogen bond prevails the PS⋯HCβ vdW interactions from the adjacent residues H116-R117-Y164-P165-A168. Thus, the chalcogen-hydrophobic interaction pulls PT-DNA into the SBD binding pocket while the water cage pulls a normal DNA molecule out. The synergetic mechanism suggests the special roles of the proline pyrrolidine group in the SBD proteins, consistent with the experimental observations in the X-ray crystallography and structural bioinformatics analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiayi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Haibo Wan
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Haoqing Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Xiao-Lei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Guang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Geng Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Xinyi He
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Zixin Deng
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Yi-Lei Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
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32
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Abstract
![]()
We
explore the process of base-flipping for four central bases,
adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine, in a deoxyribonucleic acid
(DNA) duplex using the energy landscape perspective. NMR imino-proton
exchange and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy studies have been
used in previous experiments to obtain lifetimes for bases in paired
and extrahelical states. However, the difference of almost 4 orders
of magnitude in the base-flipping rates obtained by the two methods
implies that they are exploring different pathways and possibly different
open states. Our results support the previous suggestion that minor
groove opening may be favored by distortions in the DNA backbone and
reveal links between sequence effects and the direction of opening,
i.e., whether the base flips toward the major or the minor groove
side. In particular, base flipping along the minor groove pathway
was found to align toward the 5′ side of the backbone. We find
that bases align toward the 3′ side of the backbone when flipping
along the major groove pathway. However, in some cases for cytosine
and thymine, the base flipping along the major groove pathway also
aligns toward the 5′ side. The sequence effect may be caused
by the polar interactions between the flipping-base and its neighboring
bases on either of the strands. For guanine flipping toward the minor
groove side, we find that the equilibrium constant for opening is
large compared to flipping via the major groove. We find that the
estimated rates of base opening, and hence the lifetimes of the closed
state, obtained for thymine flipping through small and large angles
along the major groove differ by 6 orders of magnitude, whereas for
thymine flipping through small angles along the minor groove and large
angles along the major groove, the rates differ by 3 orders of magnitude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicy
- Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Lensfield Road, Cambridge, CB2 1EW, U.K
| | - Debayan Chakraborty
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, United States
| | - David J. Wales
- Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Lensfield Road, Cambridge, CB2 1EW, U.K
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33
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Tsvetkov VB, Varizhuk IV, Kurochkin NN, Surzhikov SA, Smirnov IP, Stomakhin AA, Kolganova NA, Timofeev EN. Anticoagulant Oligonucleotide-Peptide Conjugates: Identification of Thrombin Aptamer Conjugates with Improved Characteristics. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23073820. [PMID: 35409180 PMCID: PMC8998821 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23073820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Oligonucleotide–peptide conjugates (OPCs) are a promising class of biologically active compounds with proven potential for improving nucleic acid therapeutics. OPCs are commonly recognized as an efficient instrument to enhance the cellular delivery of therapeutic nucleic acids. In addition to this application field, OPCs have an as yet unexplored potential for the post-SELEX optimization of DNA aptamers. In this paper, we report the preparation of designer thrombin aptamer OPCs with peptide side chains anchored to a particular thymidine residue of the aptamer. The current conjugation strategy utilizes unmodified short peptides and support-bound protected oligonucleotides with activated carboxyl functionality at the T3 thymine nucleobase. The respective modification of the oligonucleotide strand was implemented using N3-derivatized thymidine phosphoramidite. Aptamer OPCs retained the G-quadruplex architecture of the parent DNA structure and showed minor to moderate stabilization. In a series of five OPCs, conjugates bearing T3–Ser–Phe–Asn (SFN) or T3–Tyr–Trp–Asn (YWN) side chains exhibited considerably improved anticoagulant characteristics. Molecular dynamics studies of the aptamer OPC complexes with thrombin revealed the roles of the amino acid nature and sequence in the peptide subunit in modulating the anticoagulant activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vladimir B. Tsvetkov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (V.B.T.); (I.P.S.)
- Institute of Biodesign and Complex System Modeling, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 119146 Moscow, Russia
| | - Irina V. Varizhuk
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (I.V.V.); (N.N.K.); (S.A.S.); (A.A.S.); (N.A.K.)
| | - Nikolay N. Kurochkin
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (I.V.V.); (N.N.K.); (S.A.S.); (A.A.S.); (N.A.K.)
| | - Sergei A. Surzhikov
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (I.V.V.); (N.N.K.); (S.A.S.); (A.A.S.); (N.A.K.)
| | - Igor P. Smirnov
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, 119435 Moscow, Russia; (V.B.T.); (I.P.S.)
| | - Andrey A. Stomakhin
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (I.V.V.); (N.N.K.); (S.A.S.); (A.A.S.); (N.A.K.)
| | - Natalia A. Kolganova
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (I.V.V.); (N.N.K.); (S.A.S.); (A.A.S.); (N.A.K.)
| | - Edward N. Timofeev
- Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (I.V.V.); (N.N.K.); (S.A.S.); (A.A.S.); (N.A.K.)
- Correspondence:
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34
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Borisova E, Nishimura K, An Y, Takami M, Li J, Song D, Matsuo-Takasaki M, Luijkx D, Aizawa S, Kuno A, Sugihara E, Sato TA, Yumoto F, Terada T, Hisatake K, Hayashi Y. Structurally-discovered KLF4 variants accelerate and stabilize reprogramming to pluripotency. iScience 2022; 25:103525. [PMID: 35106457 PMCID: PMC8786646 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.103525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Revised: 09/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Non-genetically modified somatic cells can only be inefficiently and stochastically reprogrammed to pluripotency by exogenous expression of reprogramming factors. Low competence of natural reprogramming factors may prevent the majority of cells to successfully and synchronously reprogram. Here we screened DNA-interacting amino acid residues in the zinc-finger domain of KLF4 for enhanced reprogramming efficiency using alanine-substitution scanning methods. Identified KLF4 L507A mutant accelerated and stabilized reprogramming to pluripotency in both mouse and human somatic cells. By testing all the variants of L507 position, variants with smaller amino acid residues in the KLF4 L507 position showed higher reprogramming efficiency. L507A bound more to promoters or enhancers of pluripotency genes, such as KLF5, and drove gene expression of these genes during reprogramming. Molecular dynamics simulations predicted that L507A formed additional interactions with DNA. Our study demonstrates how modifications in amino acid residues of DNA-binding domains enable next-generation reprogramming technology with engineered reprogramming factors. KLF4 L507A variant accelerates and stabilizes reprogramming to pluripotency KLF4 L507A has distinctive features of transcriptional binding and activation KLF4 L507A may acquire a unique conformation with additional DNA interaction Smaller amino acid residues in L507 position cause higher reprogramming efficiency
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Affiliation(s)
- Evgeniia Borisova
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan.,Laboratory of Gene Regulation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Ken Nishimura
- Laboratory of Gene Regulation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Yuri An
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan
| | - Miho Takami
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan.,Laboratory of Gene Regulation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Jingyue Li
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan.,Laboratory of Gene Regulation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Dan Song
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan
| | - Mami Matsuo-Takasaki
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan
| | - Dorian Luijkx
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan
| | - Shiho Aizawa
- Laboratory of Gene Regulation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Akihiro Kuno
- Laboratory of Animal Resource Center, Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan.,Ph.D. Program in Human Biology, School of Integrative and Global Majors, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Eiji Sugihara
- Research and Development Center for Precision Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-2 Kasuga, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8550, Japan.,The Center for Joint Research Facilities Support, Research Promotion and Support Headquarters, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Aichi 470-1192, Japan
| | - Taka-Aki Sato
- Research and Development Center for Precision Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-2 Kasuga, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8550, Japan
| | - Fumiaki Yumoto
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization in Tsukuba, 1-1 Oho, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0801, Japan
| | - Tohru Terada
- Department of Biotechnology, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Koji Hisatake
- Laboratory of Gene Regulation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Yohei Hayashi
- iPS Cell Advanced Characterization and Development Team, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan
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35
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Fukal J, Buděšínský M, Páv O, Jurečka P, Zgarbová M, Šebera J, Sychrovský V. The Ad-MD method to calculate NMR shift including effects due to conformational dynamics: The 31 P NMR shift in DNA. J Comput Chem 2022; 43:132-143. [PMID: 34729803 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.26778] [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: 08/05/2021] [Revised: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
A method for averaging of NMR parameters by molecular dynamics (MD) has been derived from the method of statistical averaging in MD snapshots, benchmarked and applied to structurally dynamic interpretation of the 31 P NMR shift (δ31P ) in DNA phosphates. The method employs adiabatic dependence of an NMR parameter on selected geometric parameter(s) that is weighted by MD-calculated probability distribution(s) for the geometric parameter(s) (Ad-MD method). The usage of Ad-MD for polymers is computationally convenient when one pre-calculated structural dependence of an NMR parameter is employed for all chemically equivalent units differing only in dynamic behavior. The Ad-MD method is benchmarked against the statistical averaging method for δ31P in the model phosphates featuring distinctively different structures and dynamic behavior. The applicability of Ad-MD is illustrated by calculating 31 P NMR spectra in the Dickerson-Drew DNA dodecamer. δ31P was calculated with the B3LYP/IGLO-III/PCM(water) and the probability distributions for the torsion angles adjacent to the phosphorus atoms in the DNA phosphates were calculated using the OL15 force field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiří Fukal
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Miloš Buděšínský
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Páv
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Jurečka
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc, Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Marie Zgarbová
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc, Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Jakub Šebera
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Vladimír Sychrovský
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.,Department of Electrotechnology, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Czech Technical University, Prague, Czech Republic
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36
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Gertzen CGW, Gohlke H. Molecular Modeling and Simulations of DNA and RNA: DNAzyme as a Model System. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2439:153-170. [PMID: 35226321 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2047-2_11] [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: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Nowadays, the structural dynamics of DNA and RNA is accessible on an atomistic level on a micro- to millisecond time scale via molecular dynamics simulations. However, as DNA or RNA are highly charged molecules, performing such simulations is challenging as to the representation of intramolecular electrostatic interactions and those to solvent molecules and ions. This is particularly true for DNAzymes, where DNA and RNA backbones can come as close as 2.4 Å with their charged phosphate groups during the catalytic cycle. Here, we present tools to simulate the structural dynamics of a DNAzyme, with a focus on detailed instructions for the Amber suite of programs. Furthermore, we will show how to analyze metal ion binding within the DNAzyme.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christoph G W Gertzen
- Institute for Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Center for Structural Studies (CSS), Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Holger Gohlke
- Institute for Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
- John von Neumann Institute for Computing (NIC), Jülich Supercomputing Centre (JSC), Institute of Biological Information Processing (IBI-7: Structural Biochemistry) and Institute of Bio- and Geoscences (IBG-4: Bioinformatics), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich, Germany.
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37
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Watson G, Velasco-Berrelleza V, Noy A. Atomistic Molecular Dynamics Simulations of DNA in Complex 3D Arrangements for Comparison with Lower Resolution Structural Experiments. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2476:95-109. [PMID: 35635699 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2221-6_8] [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: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Atomic-level computer simulations are a very useful tool for describing the structure and dynamics of complex biomolecules such as DNA and for providing detail at a resolution where experimental techniques cannot arrive. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of mechanically distorted DNA caused by agents like supercoiling and protein binding are computationally challenging due to the large size of the associated systems and timescales. However, nowadays they are achievable thanks to the efficient usage of GPU and to the improvements of continuum solvation models. This together with the concurrent improvements in the resolution of single-molecule experiments, such as atomic force microscopy (AFM), makes possible the convergence between the two. Here we present detailed protocols for doing so: for performing molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of DNA adopting complex three-dimensional arrangements and for comparing the outcome of the calculations with single-molecule experimental data with a lower resolution than atomic.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Watson
- Department of Physics, University of York, Heslington, York, UK
| | | | - Agnes Noy
- Department of Physics, University of York, Heslington, York, UK.
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38
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Mráziková K, Šponer J, Mlýnský V, Auffinger P, Kruse H. Short-Range Imbalances in the AMBER Lennard-Jones Potential for (Deoxy)Ribose···Nucleobase Lone-Pair···π Contacts in Nucleic Acids. J Chem Inf Model 2021; 61:5644-5657. [PMID: 34738826 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.1c01047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The lone-pair···π (lp···π) (deoxy)ribose···nucleobase stacking is a recurring interaction in Z-DNA and RNAs that is characterized by sub-van der Waals lp···π contacts (<3.0 Å). It is a part of the structural signature of CpG Z-step motifs in Z-DNA and r(UNCG) tetraloops that are known to behave poorly in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Although the exact origin of the MD simulation issues remains unclear, a significant part of the problem might be due to an imbalanced description of nonbonded interactions, including the characteristic lp···π stacking. To gain insights into the links between lp···π stacking and MD, we present an in-depth comparison between accurate large-basis-set double-hybrid Kohn-Sham density functional theory calculations DSD-BLYP-D3/ma-def2-QZVPP (DHDF-D3) and data obtained with the nonbonded potential of the AMBER force field (AFF) for NpN Z-steps (N = G, A, C, and U). Among other differences, we found that the AFF overestimates the DHDF-D3 lp···π distances by ∼0.1-0.2 Å, while the deviation between the DHDF-D3 and AFF descriptions sharply increases in the short-range region of the interaction. Based on atom-in-molecule polarizabilities and symmetry-adapted perturbation theory analysis, we inferred that the DHDF-D3 versus AFF differences partly originate in identical nucleobase carbon atom Lennard-Jones (LJ) parameters despite the presence/absence of connected electron-withdrawing groups that lead to different effective volumes or vdW radii. Thus, to precisely model the very short CpG lp···π contact distances, we recommend revision of the nucleobase atom LJ parameters. Additionally, we suggest that the large discrepancy between DHDF-D3 and AFF short-range repulsive part of the interaction energy potential may significantly contribute to the poor performances of MD simulations of nucleic acid systems containing Z-steps. Understanding where, and if possible why, the point-charge-type effective potentials reach their limits is vital for developing next-generation FFs and for addressing specific issues in contemporary MD simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klaudia Mráziková
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.,National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.,Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacky University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 241/27, 783 71 Olomouc-Holice, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtěch Mlýnský
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.,Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute (CATRIN), Palacky University Olomouc, Šlechtitelů 241/27, 783 71 Olomouc-Holice, Czech Republic
| | - Pascal Auffinger
- Architecture and Reactivity of RNA, University of Strasbourg, Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology of the CNRS, 67084 Strasbourg, France
| | - Holger Kruse
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic
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Dickerhoff J, Brundridge N, McLuckey SA, Yang D. Berberine Molecular Recognition of the Parallel MYC G-Quadruplex in Solution. J Med Chem 2021; 64:16205-16212. [PMID: 34677968 PMCID: PMC8614230 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c01508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The medicinal natural product berberine is one of the most actively studied and pursued G-quadruplex (G4)-ligands. The major G-quadruplex formed in the promoter region of the MYC oncogene (MycG4) is an attractive drug target and a prominent example and model structure for parallel G-quadruplexes. G4-targeted berberine derivatives have been actively developed; however, the analogue design was based on a previous crystal structure in which berberine binds as a dimer to a parallel G-quadruplex. Herein, we show that in solution, the binding mode and stoichiometry of berberine are substantially different from the crystal structure: berberine binds as a monomer to MycG4 using a base-recruitment mechanism with a reversed orientation in that the positively charged convex side is actually positioned above the tetrad center. Our structure provides a physiologically relevant basis for the future structure-based rational design of G4-targeted berberine derivatives, and this study demonstrates that it is crucial to validate the ligand-DNA interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Dickerhoff
- Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Purdue University, 575 W Stadium Avenue, West Lafayette, Indiana 47904, United States
| | - Nicole Brundridge
- Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Scott A McLuckey
- Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Danzhou Yang
- Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Purdue University, 575 W Stadium Avenue, West Lafayette, Indiana 47904, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
- Purdue Center for Cancer Research, and Purdue Institute for Drug Discovery, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
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40
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Liebl K, Zacharias M. Tumuc1: A New Accurate DNA Force Field Consistent with High-Level Quantum Chemistry. J Chem Theory Comput 2021; 17:7096-7105. [PMID: 34662102 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.1c00682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
An accurate molecular mechanics force field forms the basis of Molecular Dynamics simulations to obtain a realistic view of the structure and dynamics of biomolecules such as DNA. Although frequently updated to improve agreement with available experimental data, DNA force fields still rely in part on parameters introduced more than 20 years ago. We have developed an entirely new DNA force field, Tumuc1, derived from quantum mechanical calculations to obtain a consistent set of bonded parameters and partial atomic charges. The performance of the force field was extensively tested on a variety of DNA molecules. It excels in accuracy of B-DNA simulations but also performs very well on other types of DNA structures and structure formation processes such as hairpin folding, duplex formation, and dynamics of DNA-protein complexes. It can complement existing force fields in order to provide an increasingly accurate description of the structure and dynamics of DNA during simulation studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Korbinian Liebl
- Physics Department and Center of Protein Assemblies, Technical University of Munich, James-Franck-Str. 1, Garching 85748, Germany
| | - Martin Zacharias
- Physics Department and Center of Protein Assemblies, Technical University of Munich, James-Franck-Str. 1, Garching 85748, Germany
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41
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Veenis AJ, Li P, Soudackov AV, Hammes-Schiffer S, Bevilacqua PC. Investigation of the p Ka of the Nucleophilic O2' of the Hairpin Ribozyme. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:11869-11883. [PMID: 34695361 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c06546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Small ribozymes cleave their RNA phosphodiester backbone by catalyzing a transphosphorylation reaction wherein a specific O2' functions as the nucleophile. While deprotonation of this alcohol through its acidification would increase its nucleophilicity, little is known about the pKa of this O2' in small ribozymes, in part because high pKa's are not readily accessible experimentally. Herein, we turn to molecular dynamics to calculate the pKa of the nucleophilic O2' in the hairpin ribozyme and to study interactions within the active site that may impact its value. We estimate the pKa of the nucleophilic O2' in the wild-type hairpin ribozyme to be 18.5 ± 0.8, which is higher than the reference compound, and identify a correlation between proper positioning of the O2' for nucleophilic attack and elevation of its pKa. We find that monovalent ions may play a role in depression of the O2' pKa, while the exocyclic amine appears to be important for organizing the ribozyme active site. Overall, this study suggests that the pKa of the O2' is raised in the ground state and lowers during the course of the reaction owing to positioning and metal ion interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pengfei Li
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States.,Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60660, United States
| | - Alexander V Soudackov
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
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42
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Zgarbová M, Šponer J, Jurečka P. Z-DNA as a Touchstone for Additive Empirical Force Fields and a Refinement of the Alpha/Gamma DNA Torsions for AMBER. J Chem Theory Comput 2021; 17:6292-6301. [PMID: 34582195 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.1c00697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Although current AMBER force fields are relatively accurate for canonical B-DNA, many noncanonical structures are still described incorrectly. As noncanonical motifs are attracting increasing attention due to the role they play in living organisms, further improvement is desirable. Here, we have chosen the Z-DNA molecule, which can be considered a touchstone of the universality of empirical force fields, since the noncanonical α and γ backbone conformations native to Z-DNA are also found in protein-DNA complexes, i-motif DNA, and other noncanonical DNAs. We show that spurious α/γ conformations occurring in simulations with current AMBER force fields, OL15 and bsc1, are largely due to inaccurate α/γ parametrization. Moreover, stabilization of native Z-DNA substates involving γ = trans conformations appears to be in conflict with the correct description of the canonical B-DNA structure. Because the balance of the native and spurious conformations is influenced by nonadditive effects, this is a difficult case for an additive dihedral energy scheme such as AMBER. We propose new α/γ parameters, denoted OL21, and show that they improve the stability of native α/γ Z-DNA substates while keeping the canonical DNA description virtually unchanged, thus representing a reasonable compromise within the additive force field framework. Although further extensive testing is needed, the new modification appears to be a promising step toward a more reliable description of noncanonical DNA motifs and provides the best performance for Z-DNA molecules among current AMBER force fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Zgarbová
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacky University, 17. listopadu 12, 77146 Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Jurečka
- Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacky University, 17. listopadu 12, 77146 Olomouc, Czech Republic
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43
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Strelnikov IA, Kovaleva NA, Zubova EA. Variability of the DNA Backbone Geometry in DNA-Protein Complexes: Experimental Data Analysis. J Chem Inf Model 2021; 61:4783-4794. [PMID: 34529915 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.1c00506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
We have analyzed and compared the available experimental data (PDB) on the backbone geometry of the DNA in solution (NMR), in crystals (X-rays), and in complexes with proteins (X-rays and cryo-electron microscopy). The deoxyribose (pseudorotational angle τ0) and ε/ζ (BI-BII transition in phosphates) flexibilities are practically the same in the four samples. The α/γ mobility is minimal in crystalline DNA: on the histograms, there is one canonical and one noncanonical t/t peak. The α/γ mobility increases in DNA solutions (three more noncanonical peaks) and is maximal in DNA-protein complexes (another additional peak). On a large amount of data, we have confirmed that the three main degrees of freedom of the sugar-phosphate backbone are "orthogonal": changes in any of the angles τ0, (ζ-ε), and (γ-α) occur, as a rule, at a constant (usually canonical) value of any other. In the DNA-protein complexes, none of the geometrical parameters commonly used to distinguish the A and B forms of DNA, except for Zp and its simpler analog Zp', show an unambiguous correlation with τ0. Proteins, binding to DNA, in 59% of cases change the local shape of the helix up to the characteristic of the A-form without switching the deoxyribose conformation from south to north. However, we have found simple local characteristics of one nucleotide that correlate with the angles τ0 and (ζ-ε). These are the angles C3'C1'N* and C4'C3'P(2), respectively. They are orthogonal in DNA-protein complexes exactly as the pair τ0 and (ζ-ε). Most characteristics of DNA in complexes with proteins are the same in X-ray and in cryo-EM data, except for the histogram for the angle τ0. We offer a possible explanation for this difference. We also discuss the artifacts on the ε/ζ histogram for DNA in solutions caused by the currently used NMR refinement protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan A Strelnikov
- N.N. Semenov Federal Research Center for Chemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 4 Kosygin Street, Moscow 119991, Russia
| | - Natalya A Kovaleva
- N.N. Semenov Federal Research Center for Chemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 4 Kosygin Street, Moscow 119991, Russia
| | - Elena A Zubova
- N.N. Semenov Federal Research Center for Chemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 4 Kosygin Street, Moscow 119991, Russia
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44
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Ryazantsev DY, Myshkin MY, Alferova VA, Tsvetkov VB, Shustova EY, Kamzeeva PN, Kovalets PV, Zaitseva ER, Baleeva NS, Zatsepin TS, Shenkarev ZO, Baranov MS, Kozlovskaya LI, Aralov AV. Probing GFP Chromophore Analogs as Anti-HIV Agents Targeting LTR-III G-Quadruplex. Biomolecules 2021; 11:biom11101409. [PMID: 34680042 PMCID: PMC8533149 DOI: 10.3390/biom11101409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2021] [Revised: 09/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Green fluorescent protein (GFP) chromophore and its congeners draw significant attention mostly for bioimaging purposes. In this work we probed these compounds as antiviral agents. We have chosen LTR-III DNA G4, the major G-quadruplex (G4) present in the long terminal repeat (LTR) promoter region of the human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1), as the target for primary screening and designing antiviral drug candidates. The stabilization of this G4 was previously shown to suppress viral gene expression and replication. FRET-based high-throughput screening (HTS) of 449 GFP chromophore-like compounds revealed a number of hits, sharing some general structural features. Structure-activity relationships (SAR) for the most effective stabilizers allowed us to establish structural fragments, important for G4 binding. Synthetic compounds, developed on the basis of SAR analysis, exhibited high LTR-III G4 stabilization level. NMR spectroscopy and molecular modeling revealed the possible formation of LTR-III G4-ligand complex with one of the lead selective derivative ZS260.1 positioned within the cavity, thus supporting the LTR-III G4 attractiveness for drug targeting. Selected compounds showed moderate activity against HIV-I (EC50 1.78–7.7 μM) in vitro, but the activity was accompanied by pronounced cytotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dmitriy Y. Ryazantsev
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
| | - Mikhail Yu. Myshkin
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
| | - Vera A. Alferova
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
- Gause Institute of New Antibiotics, B. Pirogovskaya 11, 119021 Moscow, Russia
| | - Vladimir B. Tsvetkov
- World-Class Research Center “Digital Biodesign and Personalized Healthcare”, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 8/2 Trubetskaya Str., 119146 Moscow, Russia;
- Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine of Federal Medical Biological Agency, 119435 Moscow, Russia
| | - Elena Y. Shustova
- Chumakov Federal Scientific Center for Research and Development of Immune-and-Biological Products of Russian Academy of Sciences, 108819 Moscow, Russia;
| | - Polina N. Kamzeeva
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
- D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia, 9 Miusskaya Sq., 125047 Moscow, Russia
| | - Polina V. Kovalets
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
| | - Elvira R. Zaitseva
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
- D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia, 9 Miusskaya Sq., 125047 Moscow, Russia
| | - Nadezhda S. Baleeva
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
- Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Ostrovitianov 1, 117997 Moscow, Russia
| | - Timofei S. Zatsepin
- Center for Life Sciences, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, 121205 Moscow, Russia;
| | - Zakhar O. Shenkarev
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
| | - Mikhail S. Baranov
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
- Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Ostrovitianov 1, 117997 Moscow, Russia
| | - Liubov I. Kozlovskaya
- Chumakov Federal Scientific Center for Research and Development of Immune-and-Biological Products of Russian Academy of Sciences, 108819 Moscow, Russia;
- Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 119991 Moscow, Russia
- Correspondence: (L.I.K.); (A.V.A.)
| | - Andrey V. Aralov
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia; (D.Y.R.); (M.Y.M.); (V.A.A.); (P.N.K.); (P.V.K.); (E.R.Z.); (N.S.B.); (Z.O.S.); (M.S.B.)
- G4_Interact, USERN, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy
- Correspondence: (L.I.K.); (A.V.A.)
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45
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Ustimova MA, Fedorov YV, Tsvetkov VB, Tokarev SD, Shepel NA, Fedorova OA. Helical aggregates of bis(styryl) dyes formed by DNA templating. J Photochem Photobiol A Chem 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jphotochem.2021.113378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
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46
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Photochemical synthesis, intercalation with DNA and antitumor evaluation in vitro of benzo[d]thiazolo[3,2-a]quinolin-10-ium derivatives. Bioorg Chem 2021; 115:105267. [PMID: 34426158 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2021.105267] [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: 05/28/2021] [Revised: 07/18/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
A new anticancer benzo[d]thiazolo[3,2-a]quinolin-10-ium derivatives were synthesized and characterized. Anticancer evaluation in vitro against four cancer cell lines including adenocarcinomic human alveolar basal epithelial cells (A549), hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2), prostate cancer (PC3) and breast cancer (MCF7) indicated that some of prepared compounds shows higher selectivity in comparison with doxorubicin. DNA interaction studies by optical, CD, NMR spectroscopies showed the high affinity of benzothiazole ligands towards the dsDNA. The ligand-DNA interaction occurs through the intercalation of benzo[d]thiazolo[3,2-a]quinolin-10-ium derivatives with nucleic acid. The investigation of formed ligand - DNA complexes by docking and molecular dynamic calculations was applied for analysis of the relationship between structure and anticancer activity. The results suggested that benzo[d]thiazolo[3,2-a]quinolin-10-ium derivatives might serve as a novel scaffold for the future development to new antitumor agents.
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Kejnovská I, Stadlbauer P, Trantírek L, Renčiuk D, Gajarský M, Krafčík D, Palacký J, Bednářová K, Šponer J, Mergny JL, Vorlíčková M. G-Quadruplex Formation by DNA Sequences Deficient in Guanines: Two Tetrad Parallel Quadruplexes Do Not Fold Intramolecularly. Chemistry 2021; 27:12115-12125. [PMID: 34145655 DOI: 10.1002/chem.202100895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Guanine quadruplexes (G4s) are noncanonical forms of nucleic acids that are frequently found in genomes. The stability of G4s depends, among other factors, on the number of G-tetrads. Three- or four-tetrad G4s and antiparallel two-tetrad G4s have been characterized experimentally; however, the existence of an intramolecular (i. e., not dimeric or multimeric) two-tetrad parallel-stranded DNA G4 has never been experimentally observed. Many sequences compatible with two-tetrad G4 can be found in important genomic regions, such as promoters, for which parallel G4s predominate. Using experimental and theoretical approaches, the propensity of the model sequence AATGGGTGGGTTTGGGTGGGTAA to form an intramolecular parallel-stranded G4 upon increasing the number of GGG-to-GG substitutions has been studied. Deletion of a single G leads to the formation of intramolecular G4s with a stacked G-triad, whose topology depends on the location of the deletion. Removal of another guanine from another G-tract leads to di- or multimeric G4s. Further deletions mostly prevent the formation of any stable G4. Thus, a solitary two-tetrad parallel DNA G4 is not thermodynamically stable and requires additional interactions through capping residues. However, transiently populated metastable two-tetrad species can associate to form stable dimers, the dynamic formation of which might play additional delicate roles in gene regulation. These findings provide essential information for bioinformatics studies searching for potential G4s in genomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iva Kejnovská
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Stadlbauer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Lukáš Trantírek
- Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/3, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Daniel Renčiuk
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Gajarský
- Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/3, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Daniel Krafčík
- Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/3, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Palacký
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Klára Bednářová
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jean-Louis Mergny
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Michaela Vorlíčková
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 65, Brno, Czech Republic
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48
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Peterková K, Durník I, Marek R, Plavec J, Podbevšek P. c-kit2 G-quadruplex stabilized via a covalent probe: exploring G-quartet asymmetry. Nucleic Acids Res 2021; 49:8947-8960. [PMID: 34365512 PMCID: PMC8421218 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkab659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 07/12/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Several sequences forming G-quadruplex are highly conserved in regulatory regions of genomes of different organisms and affect various biological processes like gene expression. Diverse G-quadruplex properties can be modulated via their interaction with small polyaromatic molecules such as pyrene. To investigate how pyrene interacts with G-rich DNAs, we incorporated deoxyuridine nucleotide(s) with a covalently attached pyrene moiety (Upy) into a model system that forms parallel G-quadruplex structures. We individually substituted terminal positions and positions in the pentaloop of the c-kit2 sequence originating from the KIT proto-oncogene with Upy and performed a detailed NMR structural study accompanied with molecular dynamic simulations. Our results showed that incorporation into the pentaloop leads to structural polymorphism and in some cases also thermal destabilization. In contrast, terminal positions were found to cause a substantial thermodynamic stabilization while preserving topology of the parent c-kit2 G-quadruplex. Thermodynamic stabilization results from π–π stacking between the polyaromatic core of the pyrene moiety and guanine nucleotides of outer G-quartets. Thanks to the prevalent overall conformation, our structures mimic the G-quadruplex found in human KIT proto-oncogene and could potentially have antiproliferative effects on cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kateřina Peterková
- Slovenian NMR Centre, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.,National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-625 00 Brno, Czechia.,Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Večna pot 113, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Ivo Durník
- National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-625 00 Brno, Czechia.,CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czechia
| | - Radek Marek
- National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-625 00 Brno, Czechia.,CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czechia.,Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czechia
| | - Janez Plavec
- Slovenian NMR Centre, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.,Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Večna pot 113, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.,EN-FIST Centre of Excellence, Trg OF 13, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Peter Podbevšek
- Slovenian NMR Centre, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
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49
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Mulliri S, Laaksonen A, Spanu P, Farris R, Farci M, Mingoia F, Roviello GN, Mocci F. Spectroscopic and In Silico Studies on the Interaction of Substituted Pyrazolo[1,2-a]benzo[1,2,3,4]tetrazine-3-one Derivatives with c-Myc G4-DNA. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:6028. [PMID: 34199659 PMCID: PMC8199725 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22116028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 05/29/2021] [Accepted: 05/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Herein we describe a combined experimental and in silico study of the interaction of a series of pyrazolo[1,2-a]benzo[1,2,3,4]tetrazin-3-one derivatives (PBTs) with parallel G-quadruplex (GQ) DNA aimed at correlating their previously reported anticancer activities and the stabilizing effects observed by us on c-myc oncogene promoter GQ structure. Circular dichroism (CD) melting experiments were performed to characterize the effect of the studied PBTs on the GQ thermal stability. CD measurements indicate that two out of the eight compounds under investigation induced a slight stabilizing effect (2-4 °C) on GQ depending on the nature and position of the substituents. Molecular docking results allowed us to verify the modes of interaction of the ligands with the GQ and estimate the binding affinities. The highest binding affinity was observed for ligands with the experimental melting temperatures (Tms). However, both stabilizing and destabilizing ligands showed similar scores, whilst Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations, performed across a wide range of temperatures on the GQ in water solution, either unliganded or complexed with two model PBT ligands with the opposite effect on the Tms, consistently confirmed their stabilizing or destabilizing ability ascertained by CD. Clues about a relation between the reported anticancer activity of some PBTs and their ability to stabilize the GQ structure of c-myc emerged from our study. Furthermore, Molecular Dynamics simulations at high temperatures are herein proposed for the first time as a means to verify the stabilizing or destabilizing effect of ligands on the GQ, also disclosing predictive potential in GQ-targeting drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Mulliri
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Cagliari, I-09042 Monserrato, Italy; (S.M.); (R.F.); (M.F.)
| | - Aatto Laaksonen
- State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 210009, China
- Division of Physical Chemistry, Department of Materials and Environmental Chemistry, Arrhenius Laboratory, Stockholm University, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
- Centre of Advanced Research in Bionanoconjugates and Biopolymers, Petru Poni Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 700487 Iasi, Romania
- Department of Engineering Sciences and Mathematics, Division of Energy Science, Luleå University of Technology, SE-97187 Luleå, Sweden
| | - Pietro Spanu
- Istituto di Chimica Biomolecolare, ICB-CNR-Trav. La Crucca 3, 07100 Sassari, Italy;
| | - Riccardo Farris
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Cagliari, I-09042 Monserrato, Italy; (S.M.); (R.F.); (M.F.)
| | - Matteo Farci
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Cagliari, I-09042 Monserrato, Italy; (S.M.); (R.F.); (M.F.)
| | - Francesco Mingoia
- Istituto per lo Studio dei Materiali Nanostrutturati ISMN-CNR, Via U. La Malfa 153, I-90146 Palermo, Italy;
| | - Giovanni N. Roviello
- Istituto di Biostrutture e Bioimmagini, IBB-CNR, Via Mezzocannone 16, I-80134 Naples, Italy
| | - Francesca Mocci
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Cagliari, I-09042 Monserrato, Italy; (S.M.); (R.F.); (M.F.)
- Centre of Advanced Research in Bionanoconjugates and Biopolymers, Petru Poni Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 700487 Iasi, Romania
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50
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Szabla R, Zdrowowicz M, Spisz P, Green NJ, Stadlbauer P, Kruse H, Šponer J, Rak J. 2,6-diaminopurine promotes repair of DNA lesions under prebiotic conditions. Nat Commun 2021; 12:3018. [PMID: 34021158 PMCID: PMC8139960 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23300-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
High-yielding and selective prebiotic syntheses of RNA and DNA nucleotides involve UV irradiation to promote the key reaction steps and eradicate biologically irrelevant isomers. While these syntheses were likely enabled by UV-rich prebiotic environment, UV-induced formation of photodamages in polymeric nucleic acids, such as cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs), remains the key unresolved issue for the origins of RNA and DNA on Earth. Here, we demonstrate that substitution of adenine with 2,6-diaminopurine enables repair of CPDs with yields reaching 92%. This substantial self-repairing activity originates from excellent electron donating properties of 2,6-diaminopurine in nucleic acid strands. We also show that the deoxyribonucleosides of 2,6-diaminopurine and adenine can be formed under the same prebiotic conditions. Considering that 2,6-diaminopurine was previously shown to increase the rate of nonenzymatic RNA replication, this nucleobase could have played critical roles in the formation of functional and photostable RNA/DNA oligomers in UV-rich prebiotic environments. UV-induced photodamage that likely occurred during the prebiotic synthesis of DNA and RNA is still an untackled issue for their origin on early Earth. Here, the authors show that substitution of 2,6-diaminopurine for adenine enables repair of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers with high yields, and demonstrate that both 2,6-diaminopurine and adenine nucleosides can be formed under the same prebiotic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafał Szabla
- EaStCHEM School of Chemistry, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. .,Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.
| | | | - Paulina Spisz
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Gdańsk, Gdańsk, Poland
| | | | - Petr Stadlbauer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Holger Kruse
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Janusz Rak
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Gdańsk, Gdańsk, Poland
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