Targeting the fatty acid biosynthesis enzyme, beta-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthase III (PfKASIII), in the identification of novel antimalarial agents

Apicoplast-Resident Processes: Exploiting the Chink in the Armour of Plasmodium falciparum Parasites

The discovery of a relict plastid, also known as an apicoplast (apicomplexan plastid), that houses housekeeping processes and metabolic pathways critical to Plasmodium parasites' survival has prompted increased research on identifying potent inhibitors that can impinge on apicoplast-localised processes. The apicoplast is absent in humans, yet it is proposed to originate from the eukaryote's secondary endosymbiosis of a primary symbiont. This symbiotic relationship provides a favourable microenvironment for metabolic processes such as haem biosynthesis, Fe-S cluster synthesis, isoprenoid biosynthesis, fatty acid synthesis, and housekeeping processes such as DNA replication, transcription, and translation, distinct from analogous mammalian processes. Recent advancements in comprehending the biology of the apicoplast reveal it as a vulnerable organelle for malaria parasites, offering numerous potential targets for effective antimalarial therapies. We provide an overview of the metabolic processes occurring in the apicoplast and discuss the organelle as a viable antimalarial target in light of current advances in drug discovery. We further highlighted the relevance of these metabolic processes to Plasmodium falciparum during the different stages of the lifecycle.

Structure- and ligand-based drug design methods for the modeling of antimalarial agents: a review of updates from 2012 onwards

Malaria still persists as one of the deadliest infectious disease having a huge morbidity and mortality affecting the higher population of the world. Structure and ligand-based drug design methods like molecular docking and MD simulations, pharmacophore modeling, QSAR and virtual screening are widely used to perceive the accordant correlation between the antimalarial activity and property of the compounds to design novel dominant and discriminant molecules. These modeling methods will speed-up antimalarial drug discovery, selection of better drug candidates for synthesis and to achieve potent and safer drugs. In this work, we have extensively reviewed the literature pertaining to the use and applications of various ligand and structure-based computational methods for the design of antimalarial agents. Different classes of molecules are discussed along with their target interactions pattern, which is responsible for antimalarial activity. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

One-pot access to sulfonylated naphthalenediols/hydroquinones from naphthols/phenols with sodium sulfinates in an aqueous medium

A metal-free method towards sulfonylated hydroquinones/naphthalenediols under an ambient atmosphere has been developed with up to 97% yield.

Drug targets for resistant malaria: Historic to future perspectives

New antimalarial targets are the prime need for the discovery of potent drug candidates. In order to fulfill this objective, antimalarial drug researches are focusing on promising targets in order to develop new drug candidates. Basic metabolism and biochemical process in the malaria parasite, i.e. Plasmodium falciparum can play an indispensable role in the identification of these targets. But, the emergence of resistance to antimalarial drugs is an escalating comprehensive problem with the progress of antimalarial drug development. The development of resistance has highlighted the need for the search of novel antimalarial molecules. The pharmaceutical industries are committed to new drug development due to the global recognition of this life threatening resistance to the currently available antimalarial therapy. The recent developments in the understanding of parasite biology are exhilarating this resistance issue which is further being ignited by malaria genome project. With this background of information, this review was aimed to highlights and provides useful information on various present and promising treatment approaches for resistant malaria, new progresses, pursued by some innovative targets that have been explored till date. This review also discusses modern and futuristic multiple approaches to antimalarial drug discovery and development with pictorial presentations highlighting the various targets, that could be exploited for generating promising new drugs in the future for drug resistant malaria.

The apicoplast genomes of two taxonomic units of Babesia from sheep

The apicoplast (ap) is a unique, non-photosynthetic organelle found in most apicomplexan parasites. Due to the essential roles that this organelle has, it has been widely considered as target for drugs against diseases caused by apicomplexans. Exploring the ap genomes of such parasites would provide a better understanding of their systematics and their basic molecular biology for therapeutics. However, there is limited information available on the ap genomes of apicomplexan parasites. In the present study, the ap genomes of two operational taxonomic units of Babesia (known as Babesia sp. Lintan [Bl] and Babesia sp. Xinjiang [Bx]) from sheep were sequenced, assembled and annotated using a massive parallel sequencing-based approach. Then, the gene content and gene order in these ap genomes (∼30.7kb in size) were defined and compared, and the genetic differences were assessed. In addition, a phylogenetic analysis of ap genomic data sets was carried out to assess the relationships of these taxonomic units with other apicomplexan parasites for which complete ap genomic data sets were publicly available. The results showed that the ap genomes of Bl and Bx encode 59 and 57 genes, respectively, including 2 ribosomal RNA genes, 25 transfer RNA genes and 30-32 protein-encoding genes, being similar in content to those of Babesia bovis and B. orientalis. Ap gene regions that might serve as markers for future epidemiological and population genetic studies of Babesia species were identified. Using sequence data for a subset of six protein-encoding genes, a close relationship of Bl and Bx with Babesia bovis from cattle and B. orientalis from water buffalo was inferred. Although the focus of the present study was on Babesia, we propose that the present sequencing-bioinformatic approach should be applicable to organellar genomes of a wide range of apicomplexans of veterinary importance.

Structural and dynamical aspects of Streptococcus gordonii FabH through molecular docking and MD simulations

β-Ketoacyl-ACP-synthase III (FabH or KAS III) has become an attractive target for the development of new antibacterial agents which can overcome the multidrug resistance. Unraveling the fatty acid biosynthesis (FAB) metabolic pathway and understanding structural coordinates of FabH will provide valuable insights to target Streptococcus gordonii for curing oral infection. In this study, we designed inhibitors against therapeutic target FabH, in order to block the FAB pathway. As compared to other targets, FabH has more interactions with other proteins, located on the leading strand with higher codon adaptation index value and associated with lipid metabolism category of COG. Current study aims to gain in silico insights into the structural and dynamical aspect of S. gordonii FabH via molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The FabH protein is catalytically active in dimerization while it can lock in monomeric state. Current study highlights two residues Pro88 and Leu315 that are close to each other by dimerization. The active site of FabH is composed of the catalytic triad formed by residues Cys112, His249, and Asn279 in which Cys112 is involved in acetyl transfer, while His249 and Asn279 play an active role in decarboxylation. Docking analysis revealed that among the studied compounds, methyl-CoA disulfide has highest GOLD score (82.75), binding affinity (-11 kcal/mol) and exhibited consistently better interactions. During MD simulations, the FabH structure remained stable with the average RMSD value of 1.7 Å and 1.6 Å for undocked protein and docked complex, respectively. Further, crucial hydrogen bonding of the conserved catalytic triad for exhibiting high affinity between the FabH protein and ligand is observed by RDF analysis. The MD simulation results clearly demonstrated that binding of the inhibitor with S. gordonii FabH enhanced the structure and stabilized the dimeric FabH protein. Therefore, the inhibitor has the potential to become a lead compound.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of metronidazole-thiazole derivatives as antibacterial inhibitors

A series of metronidazole-thiazole derivatives has been designed, synthesized and evaluated as potential antibacterial inhibitors. All the synthesized compounds were determined by elemental analysis, 1H NMR and MS. They were also tested for antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Bacillus thuringiensis, Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa as well as for the inhibition to FabH. The results showed that compound 5e exhibited the most potent inhibitory activity against E. coli FabH with IC50 of 4.9μM. Molecular modeling simulation studies were performed in order to predict the biological activity of proposed compounds. Toxicity assay of compounds 5a, 5b, 5d, 5e, 5g and 5i showed that they were noncytotoxic against human macrophage. The results revealed that these compounds offered remarkable viability.

Thiolactomycin-based β-ketoacyl-AcpM synthase A (KasA) inhibitors: fragment-based inhibitor discovery using transient one-dimensional nuclear overhauser effect NMR spectroscopy

Thiolactomycin (TLM) is a natural product inhibitor of KasA, the β-ketoacyl synthase A from Mycobacterium tuberculosis. To improve the affinity of TLM for KasA, a series of TLM analogs have been synthesized based on interligand NOEs between TLM and a pantetheine analog when both are bound simultaneously to the enzyme. Kinetic binding data reveal that position 3 of the thiolactone ring is a suitable position for elaboration of the TLM scaffold, and the structure-activity relationship studies provide information on the molecular features that govern time-dependent inhibition in this enzyme system. These experiments also exemplify the utility of transient one-dimensional NOE spectroscopy for obtaining interligand NOEs compared with traditional steady state two-dimensional NOESY spectroscopy.

Novel antimalarial drug targets: hope for new antimalarial drugs

Malaria is a major global threat, that results in more than 2 million deaths each year. The treatment of malaria is becoming extremely difficult due to the emergence of drug-resistant parasites, the absence of an effective vaccine, and the spread of insecticide-resistant vectors. Thus, malarial therapy needs new chemotherapeutic approaches leading to the search for new drug targets. Here, we discuss different approaches to identifying novel antimalarial drug targets. We have also given due attention to the existing validated targets with a view to develop novel, rationally designed lead molecules. Some of the important parasite proteins are claimed to be the targets; however, further in vitro or in vivo structure-function studies of such proteins are crucial to validate these proteins as suitable targets. The interactome analysis among apicoplast, mitochondrion and genomic DNA will also be useful in identifying vital pathways or proteins regulating critical pathways for parasite growth and survival, and could be attractive targets. Molecules responsible for parasite invasion to host erythrocytes and ion channels of infected erythrocytes, essential for intra-erythrocyte survival and stage progression of parasites are also becoming attractive targets. This review will discuss and highlight the current understanding regarding the potential antimalarial drug targets, which could be utilized to develop novel antimalarials.

Novel FabH inhibitors: a patent and article literature review (2000--2012)

INTRODUCTION

The traditional antimicrobial chemotherapy drugs play their effects mostly via bacterial interference with in vivo amino acids, nucleotides, amino sugars and other small molecule synthesis, or interfering the biochemical processes of these small molecules to synthesize nucleic acids, peptidoglycan and other biological macromolecules. In recent years, enzymes with single function in bacterial fatty acid synthetase system have become the genome-driven novel antibacterial drug targets. Among inhibitors of these targets, FabH inhibitors are distinguished, for their target is different from that of existing antibiotics. Therefore, discovery of FabH inhibitors might be a potential orientation to overcome bacterial resistance.

AREAS COVERED

This review summarized new patents and articles published on FabH inhibitors from 2000 to 2012.

EXPERT OPINION

The review gives a brief understanding about the background and development in the area of FabH inhibitors that aims to solve the bacterial resistance problem. This review puts emphasis on some typical small molecules, which participate in the process of FabH inhibition. Overall, the research scopes of antibacterial agents are getting broad. Fatty acid synthase (FAS) pathway has been proved to be a promising target for the therapy. However, claim of novel antibacterial agents with more active and higher specificity is still continued.

Metabolomics and malaria biology

Metabolomics has ushered in a novel and multi-disciplinary realm in biological research. It has provided researchers with a platform to combine powerful biochemical, statistical, computational, and bioinformatics techniques to delve into the mysteries of biology and disease. The application of metabolomics to study malaria parasites represents a major advance in our approach towards gaining a more comprehensive perspective on parasite biology and disease etiology. This review attempts to highlight some of the important aspects of the field of metabolomics, and its ongoing and potential future applications to malaria research.

Design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationships of pyrazole derivatives as potential FabH inhibitors

Fatty acid biosynthesis is essential for bacterial survival. FabH, beta-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) synthase III, is a particularly attractive target, since it is central to the initiation of fatty acid biosynthesis and is highly conserved among Gram-positive and -negative bacteria. Fifty-six 1-acetyl-3,5-diphenyl-4,5-dihydro-(1H)-pyrazole derivatives were synthesized and developed as potent inhibitors of FabH. This inhibitor class demonstrates strong antibacterial activity. Escherichia coli FabH inhibitory assay and docking simulation indicated that the compounds 1-(5-(4-fluorophenyl)-3-(4-methoxyphenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)ethanone (12) and 1-(5-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(4-methoxyphenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)ethanone (13) were potent inhibitors of E. coli FabH.

Lactococcus lactis fabH, encoding beta-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthase, can be functionally replaced by the Plasmodium falciparum congener

Plasmodium falciparum, in addition to scavenging essential fatty acids from its intra- and intercellular environments, possesses a functional complement of type II fatty acid synthase (FAS) enzymes targeted to the apicoplast organelle. Recent evidence suggests that products of the plasmodial FAS II system may be critical for the parasite's liver-to-blood cycle transition, and it has been speculated that endogenously generated fatty acids may be precursors for essential cofactors, such as lipoate, in the apicoplast. beta-Ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) synthase III (pfKASIII or FabH) is one of the key enzymes in the initiating steps of the FAS II pathway, possessing two functions in P. falciparum: the decarboxylative thio-Claisen condensation of malonyl-ACP and various acyl coenzymes A (acyl-CoAs; KAS activity) and the acetyl-CoA:ACP transacylase reaction (ACAT). Here, we report the generation and characterization of a hybrid Lactococcus lactis strain that translates pfKASIII instead of L. lactis fabH to initiate fatty acid biosynthesis. The L. lactis expression vector pMG36e was modified for the efficient overexpression of the plasmodial gene in L. lactis. Transcriptional analysis indicated high-efficiency overexpression, and biochemical KAS and ACAT assays confirm these activities in cell extracts. Phenotypically, the L. lactis strain expressing pfKASIII has a growth rate and fatty acid profiles that are comparable to those of the strain complemented with its endogenous gene, suggesting that pfKASIII can use L. lactis ACP as substrate and perform near-normal function in L. lactis cells. This strain may have potential application as a bacterial model for pfKASIII inhibitor prescreening.

Targeting the Lipid Metabolic Pathways for the Treatment of Malaria

The control and eventual eradication of human malaria is considered one of the most important global public health goals of the 21st Century. Malaria, caused by intraerythrocytic protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium, is by far the most lethal and among the most prevalent of the infectious diseases. Four species of Plasmodium (P. falciparum, P. malariae, P. ovale, and P. vivax) are known to be infectious to humans, and more recent cases of infection due to P. knowlesi also have been reported. These species cause approximately 300 million annual cases of clinical malaria resulting in around one million deaths mostly caused by P. falciparum. The rapid emergence of drug-resistant Plasmodium strains has severely reduced the potency of medicines commonly used to treat and block the transmission of malaria and threatens the effectiveness of combination therapy in the field. New drugs that target important parasite functions, which are not the target of current antimalarial drugs, and have the potential to act against multi-drug-resistant Plasmodium strains are urgently needed. Recent studies in P. falciparum have unraveled new metabolic pathways for the synthesis of the parasite phospholipids and fatty acids. The present review summarizes our current understanding of these pathways in Plasmodium development and pathogenesis, and provides an update on the efforts underway to characterize their importance using genetic means and to develop antimalarial therapies targeting lipid metabolic pathways.