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Virtual Screening of FDA-Approved Drugs for Enhanced Binding with Mitochondrial Aldehyde Dehydrogenase. MOLECULES (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 27:molecules27248773. [PMID: 36557906 PMCID: PMC9781114 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27248773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Revised: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) is a potential target for the treatment of substance use disorders such as alcohol addiction. Here, we adopted computational methods of molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, docking, and molecular mechanics Poisson-Boltzmann surface area (MM-PBSA) analysis to perform a virtual screening of FDA-approved drugs, hitting potent inhibitors against ALDH2. Using MD-derived conformations as receptors, butenafine (net charge q = +1 e) and olaparib (q = 0) were selected as promising compounds with a low toxicity and a binding strength equal to or stronger than previously reported potent inhibitors of daidzin and CVT-10216. A few negatively charged compounds were also hit from the docking with the Autodock Vina software, while the MM-PBSA analysis yielded positive binding energies (unfavorable binding) for these compounds, mainly owing to electrostatic repulsion in association with a negatively charged receptor (q = -6 e for ALDH2 plus the cofactor NAD+). This revealed a deficiency of the Vina scoring in dealing with strong charge-charge interactions between binding partners, due to its built-in protocol of not using atomic charges for electrostatic interactions. These observations indicated a requirement of further verification using MD and/or MM-PBSA after docking prediction. The identification of key residues for the binding implied that the receptor residues at the bottom and entrance of the substrate-binding hydrophobic tunnel were able to offer additional interactions with different inhibitors such as π-π, π-alkyl, van der Waals contacts, and polar interactions, and that the rational use of these interactions is beneficial to the design of potent inhibitors against ALDH2.
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Fu Q, Liu X, Li Y, Wang P, Wu T, Xiao H, Zhao Y, Liao Q, Song Z. Discovery of New Inhibitors of eEF2K from Traditional Chinese Medicine Based on In Silico Screening and In Vitro Experimental Validation. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27154886. [PMID: 35956836 PMCID: PMC9369671 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27154886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2022] [Revised: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase (eEF2K) is a highly conserved α kinase and is increasingly considered as an attractive therapeutic target for cancer as well as other diseases. However, so far, no selective and potent inhibitors of eEF2K have been identified. In this study, pharmacophore screening, homology modeling, and molecular docking methods were adopted to screen novel inhibitor hits of eEF2K from the traditional Chinese medicine database (TCMD), and then cytotoxicity assay and western blotting were performed to verify the validity of the screen. Resultantly, after two steps of screening, a total of 1077 chemicals were obtained as inhibitor hits for eEF2K from all 23,034 compounds in TCMD. Then, to verify the validity, the top 10 purchasable chemicals were further analyzed. Afterward, Oleuropein and Rhoifolin, two reported antitumor chemicals, were found to have low cytotoxicity but potent inhibitory effects on eEF2K activity. Finally, molecular dynamics simulation, pharmacokinetic and toxicological analyses were conducted to evaluate the property and potential of Oleuropein and Rhoifolin to be drugs. Together, by integrating in silico screening and in vitro biochemical studies, Oleuropein and Rhoifolin were revealed as novel eEF2K inhibitors, which will shed new lights for eEF2K-targeting drug development and anticancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Ziyi Song
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +86-771-3235635
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Liu Z, Jiang A, Wang Y, Xu P, Zhang Q, Wang Y, He S, Wang N, Jin H, Zhang B. In silico, synthesis and anticancer evaluation of benzamide tryptamine derivatives as novel eEF2K inhibitors. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2022; 67:128759. [PMID: 35483594 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2022.128759] [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: 01/26/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase (eEF2K), a member of the atypical α-kinase family, is highly expressed in a variety of tumor tissues. Inhibition of eEF2K function can effectively kill cancer cells without affecting the function of normal cells. Therefore, eEF2K is a promising new target for cancer therapy. In this study, a series of benzamide tryptamine derivatives were designed and synthesized as novel eEF2K inhibitors. The druggability properties of the synthesized compounds were predicted in silico and performed well. The MTT assay indicated that most of these compounds displayed good antiproliferative activity against human leukemia CCRF-CEM and K562 cell lines. The structure-activity relationship (SAR) revealed that substituents with different electronic effects on the C5 position of indole ring or C2', C4' positions of benzene ring have a great influence on the anti-proliferative activity. Among them, 5j demonstrated the highest anti-proliferative activity with IC50 value of 1.63-3.54 μM. this compound displayed an effective eEF2K inhibition by down-regulated the level of phosphorylated eEF2 in CCRF-CEM cells. Additionally, the western blot analysis further revealed that 5j also significantly affected eEF2K-related signaling pathways. Anticancer mechanism studies have shown that 5j arrested the cell cycle in G0/G1 and induced CCRF-CEM cells apoptosis. Furthermore, 5j activated cleaved caspase-9, 8, 3 and cleaved PARP in a time-dependent manner, which suggesting that 5j induced cancer cells apoptosis through both intrinsic and extrinsic pathways. In summary, benzamide tryptamine derivative 5j represents a novel and promising lead structure for the development of eEF2K inhibitors in cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zedong Liu
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China
| | - Aili Jiang
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yaqi Wang
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China
| | - Pei Xu
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China
| | - Qiting Zhang
- Institute of Drug Discovery Technology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yinda Wang
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China
| | - Shan He
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China; Ningbo Institute of Marine Medicine, Peking University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315800, China
| | - Ning Wang
- Institute of Drug Discovery Technology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Haixiao Jin
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Bin Zhang
- Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Kenneth Li Marine Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Department of Marine Pharmacy, College of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315800, Zhejiang, China.
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Stitou M, Toufik H, Akabli T, Lamchouri F. Virtual screening of PEBP1 inhibitors by combining 2D/3D-QSAR analysis, hologram QSAR, homology modeling, molecular docking analysis, and molecular dynamic simulations. J Mol Model 2022; 28:145. [PMID: 35545728 DOI: 10.1007/s00894-022-05143-6] [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: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Human phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein 1 (hPEBP1) is a novel target affecting many cellular signaling pathways involved in the formation of metastases. It can be used in the treatment of many cases of cancer. For these reasons, pharmaceutical companies use computational approaches, including multi-QSAR (2D, 3D, and hologram QSAR) analysis, homology modeling, molecular docking analysis, and molecular dynamic simulations, to speed up the drug discovery process. In this paper, QSAR modeling was conducted using two quantum chemistry optimization methods (AM1 and DFT levels). As per PLS results, we found that the DFT/B3LYP method presents high predictability according to 2D-QSAR, CoMFA, CoMSIA, and hologram QSAR studies, with Q2 of 0.81, 0.67, 0.79, and 0.67, and external power with R2pred of 0.78, 0.58, 0.66, and 0.56, respectively. This result has been validated by CoMFA/CoMSIA graphics, which suggests that electrostatic fields combined with hydrogen bond donor/acceptor fields are beneficial to the antiproliferative activity. While the hologram QSAR models show the contributions of each fragment in improving the activity. The results from QSAR analyses revealed that ursolic acids with heterocyclic rings could improve the activities. Ramachandran plot validated the modeled PEBP1 protein. Molecular docking and MD simulations revealed that the hydrophobic and hydrogen bond interactions are dominant in the PEBP1's pocket. These results were used to predict in silico structures of three new compounds with potential anticancer activity. Similar molecular docking stability studies and molecular dynamics simulations were conducted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mourad Stitou
- Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modeling, Health & Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University of Fez, Taza Gare, B.P 1223, Taza, Morocco
| | - Hamid Toufik
- Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modeling, Health & Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University of Fez, Taza Gare, B.P 1223, Taza, Morocco.
| | - Taoufik Akabli
- Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modeling, Health & Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University of Fez, Taza Gare, B.P 1223, Taza, Morocco
| | - Fatima Lamchouri
- Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modeling, Health & Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University of Fez, Taza Gare, B.P 1223, Taza, Morocco
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Zhu S, Liao M, Tan H, Zhu L, Chen Y, He G, Liu B. Inhibiting Eukaryotic Elongation Factor 2 Kinase: An Update on Pharmacological Small-Molecule Compounds in Cancer. J Med Chem 2021; 64:8870-8883. [PMID: 34162208 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c02218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase (eEF2K), a member of the atypical protein kinase family of alpha-kinases, is well-known as a negative regulator of protein synthesis by phosphorylating eEF2. Notably, eEF2K functions as a key regulator of several cellular processes, leading to tumorigenesis. To date, some small-molecule compounds have been reported as potential eEF2K inhibitors in cancer drug discovery. However, an ideal targeted drug design still faces huge challenges. Alternatively, other design strategies, such as repurposed drugs, dual-target drugs, and drug combination strategies, provide insights into the improvement of cancer treatment. Here, we summarize the crucial eEF2K-modulating pathways in cancer, including AMPK, REDD1, and Src. Moreover, we discuss the inhibition of eEF2K with single-target inhibitors, repurposed drugs, dual-target inhibitors, drug combination strategies, and other emerging technologies for therapeutic purposes. Together, these inspiring findings provide insights into a promising strategy for inhibiting eEF2K with small-molecule compounds to improve potential cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiou Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Minru Liao
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Huidan Tan
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Lingjuan Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Yi Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Gu He
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Bo Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
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Santana K, do Nascimento LD, Lima e Lima A, Damasceno V, Nahum C, Braga RC, Lameira J. Applications of Virtual Screening in Bioprospecting: Facts, Shifts, and Perspectives to Explore the Chemo-Structural Diversity of Natural Products. Front Chem 2021; 9:662688. [PMID: 33996755 PMCID: PMC8117418 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2021.662688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural products are continually explored in the development of new bioactive compounds with industrial applications, attracting the attention of scientific research efforts due to their pharmacophore-like structures, pharmacokinetic properties, and unique chemical space. The systematic search for natural sources to obtain valuable molecules to develop products with commercial value and industrial purposes remains the most challenging task in bioprospecting. Virtual screening strategies have innovated the discovery of novel bioactive molecules assessing in silico large compound libraries, favoring the analysis of their chemical space, pharmacodynamics, and their pharmacokinetic properties, thus leading to the reduction of financial efforts, infrastructure, and time involved in the process of discovering new chemical entities. Herein, we discuss the computational approaches and methods developed to explore the chemo-structural diversity of natural products, focusing on the main paradigms involved in the discovery and screening of bioactive compounds from natural sources, placing particular emphasis on artificial intelligence, cheminformatics methods, and big data analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kauê Santana
- Instituto de Biodiversidade, Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará, Santarém, Brazil
| | | | - Anderson Lima e Lima
- Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Brazil
| | - Vinícius Damasceno
- Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Brazil
| | - Claudio Nahum
- Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Naturais, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Brazil
| | | | - Jerônimo Lameira
- Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, Brazil
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Bibi M, Qureshi NA, Sadiq A, Farooq U, Hassan A, Shaheen N, Asghar I, Umer D, Ullah A, Khan FA, Salman M, Bibi A, Rashid U. Exploring the ability of dihydropyrimidine-5-carboxamide and 5-benzyl-2,4-diaminopyrimidine-based analogues for the selective inhibition of L. major dihydrofolate reductase. Eur J Med Chem 2020; 210:112986. [PMID: 33187806 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2020.112986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2020] [Revised: 10/27/2020] [Accepted: 10/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
To tackle leishmaniasis, search for efficient therapeutic drug targets should be pursued. Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) is considered as a key target for the treatment of leishmaniasis. In current study, we are interested in the design and synthesis of selective antifolates targeting DHFR from L. major. We focused on the development of new antifolates based on 3,4-dihydropyrimidine-2-one and 5-(3,5-dimethoxybenzyl)pyrimidine-2,4-diamine motif. Structure activity relationship (SAR) studies were performed on 4-phenyl ring of dihydropyrimidine (26-30) template. While for 5-(3,5-dimethoxybenzyl)pyrimidine-2,4-diamine, the impact of different amino acids (valine, tryptophan, phenylalanine, and glutamic acid) and two carbon linkers were explored (52-59). The synthesized compounds were assayed against LmDHFR. Compound 59 with the IC50 value of 0.10 μM appeared as potent inhibitors of L. major. Selectivity for parasite DHFR over human DHFR was also determined. Derivatives 55-59 demonstrated excellent selectivity for LmDHFR. Highest selectivity for LmDHFR was shown by compounds 56 (SI = 84.5) and 58 (SI = 87.5). Compounds Antileishmanial activity against L. major and L. donovani promastigotes was also performed. To explore the interaction pattern of the synthesized compounds with biological macromolecules, the docking studies were carried out against homology modelled LmDHFR and hDHFR targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Bibi
- Department of Chemistry, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan
| | | | - Abdul Sadiq
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Malakand, Chakdara, 18000, Dir (L), KP, Pakistan
| | - Umar Farooq
- Department of Chemistry, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan
| | - Abbas Hassan
- Department of Chemistry, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, 45320, Pakistan
| | - Nargis Shaheen
- Department of Animal Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, 45320, Pakistan
| | - Irfa Asghar
- Department of Biotechnology, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan
| | - Duaa Umer
- Department of Biotechnology, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan
| | - Azmat Ullah
- Department of Chemistry, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan
| | - Farhan A Khan
- Department of Chemistry, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Salman
- Department of Microbiology, National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad, 45320, Pakistan
| | - Ahtaram Bibi
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Physical Sciences, Kohat University of Science and Technology, 26000, Kohat, KP, Pakistan
| | - Umer Rashid
- Department of Chemistry, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus, 22060, Pakistan.
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Iron Chelation Properties of Green Tea Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate (EGCG) in Colorectal Cancer Cells: Analysis on Tfr/Fth Regulations and Molecular Docking. EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 2020; 2020:7958041. [PMID: 32280356 PMCID: PMC7115142 DOI: 10.1155/2020/7958041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2019] [Revised: 01/23/2020] [Accepted: 02/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
In many studies, green tea epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) has already shown its therapeutic effects in colorectal cancer cells (CRC). However, its mechanism of actions in CRC is poorly elucidated. Hence, this study attempts to elucidate the mechanism of actions of green tea ECGG via iron chelation activity in CRC. In order to investigate this property, HT-29 cell lines (CRC) were treated with EGCG for 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h. From western blot analysis, EGCG had upregulated transferrin receptor (TfR) protein and downregulated Ferritin-H (FtH) protein indicating that iron chelation activity has occurred in CRC. Meanwhile, the molecular docking study demonstrated that EGCG is able to strongly interact the ferritin protein with a high binding affinity (−7.3 kcal/mol) via strong hydrogen bindings to glutamic acid 64 and lysine 71; two moderate hydrogen bindings to asparagine 74 and a hydrophobic interaction to the hydrophobic pocket of lysine 71. The strong interaction predicted between EGCG to ferritin may lead to inhibition of ferritin by EGCG, thus supporting the downregulation of FtH observed in in vitro studies. Molecular docking study of TfR to EGCG cannot be modulated based on the in vitro results. In conclusion, EGCG possesses iron chelator property in CRC and this potential could be further exploited for CRC treatment.
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