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Cheong HH, Zuo W, Chen J, Un CW, Si YW, Wong KH, Kwok HF, Siu SWI. Identification of Anticancer Peptides from the Genome of Candida albicans: in Silico Screening, in Vitro and in Vivo Validations. J Chem Inf Model 2024; 64:6174-6189. [PMID: 39008832 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.4c00501] [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: 07/17/2024]
Abstract
Anticancer peptides (ACPs) are promising future therapeutics, but their experimental discovery remains time-consuming and costly. To accelerate the discovery process, we propose a computational screening workflow to identify, filter, and prioritize peptide sequences based on predicted class probability, antitumor activity, and toxicity. The workflow was applied to identify novel ACPs with potent activity against colorectal cancer from the genome sequences of Candida albicans. As a result, four candidates were identified and validated in the HCT116 colon cancer cell line. Among them, PCa1 and PCa2 emerged as the most potent, displaying IC50 values of 3.75 and 56.06 μM, respectively, and demonstrating a 4-fold selectivity for cancer cells over normal cells. In the colon xenograft nude mice model, the administration of both peptides resulted in substantial inhibition of tumor growth without causing significant adverse effects. In conclusion, this work not only contributes a proven computational workflow for ACP discovery but also introduces two peptides, PCa1 and PCa2, as promising candidates poised for further development as targeted therapies for colon cancer. The method as a web service is available at https://app.cbbio.online/acpep/home and the source code at https://github.com/cartercheong/AcPEP_classification.git.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong-Hin Cheong
- Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Weimin Zuo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
- Cancer Centre, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Jiarui Chen
- Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Chon-Wai Un
- Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Yain-Whar Si
- Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Koon Ho Wong
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
- MoE Frontiers Science Center for Precision Oncology, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
- Cancer Centre, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
- MoE Frontiers Science Center for Precision Oncology, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
- Cancer Centre, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, China
| | - Shirley W I Siu
- Centre for Artificial Intelligence Driven Drug Discovery, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Macao Polytechnic University, R. de Luís Gonzaga Gomes, Macau SAR 999078, China
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Estrada Marginal da Ilha Verde 14-17, Macau SAR 999078, China
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2
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Wang JH, Sung TY. ToxTeller: Predicting Peptide Toxicity Using Four Different Machine Learning Approaches. ACS OMEGA 2024; 9:32116-32123. [PMID: 39072096 PMCID: PMC11270677 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.4c04246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2024] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/25/2024] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
Examining the toxicity of peptides is essential for therapeutic peptide-based drug design. Machine learning approaches are frequently used to develop highly accurate predictors for peptide toxicity prediction. In this paper, we present ToxTeller, which provides four predictors using logistic regression, support vector machines, random forests, and XGBoost, respectively. For prediction model development, we construct a data set of toxic and nontoxic peptides from SwissProt and ConoServer databases with existence evidence levels checked. We also fully utilize the protein annotation in SwissProt to collect more toxic peptides than using keyword search alone. From this data set, we construct an independent test data set that shares at most 40% sequence similarity within itself and with the training data set. From a quite comprehensive list of 28 feature combinations, we conduct 10-fold cross-validation on the training data set to determine the optimized feature combination for model development. ToxTeller's performance is evaluated and compared with existing predictors on the independent test data set. Since toxic peptides must be avoided for drug design, we analyze strategies for reducing false-negative predictions of toxic peptides and suggest selecting models by top sensitivity instead of the widely used Matthews correlation coefficient, and also suggest using a meta-predictor approach with multiple predictors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen-Hung Wang
- Institute of Information
Science, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Ting-Yi Sung
- Institute of Information
Science, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
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3
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Yu JC, Ni K, Chen CT. ENCAP: Computational prediction of tumor T cell antigens with ensemble classifiers and diverse sequence features. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0307176. [PMID: 39024250 PMCID: PMC11257298 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307176] [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: 03/22/2024] [Accepted: 07/01/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy enhances the body's natural immune system to combat cancer, offering the advantage of lowered side effects compared to traditional treatments because of its high selectivity and efficacy. Utilizing computational methods to identify tumor T cell antigens (TTCAs) is valuable in unraveling the biological mechanisms and enhancing the effectiveness of immunotherapy. In this study, we present ENCAP, a predictor for TTCA based on ensemble classifiers and diverse sequence features. Sequences were encoded as a feature vector of 4349 entries based on 57 different feature types, followed by feature engineering and hyperparameter optimization for machine learning models, respectively. The selected feature subsets of ENCAP are primarily composed of physicochemical properties, with several features specifically related to hydrophobicity and amphiphilicity. Two publicly available datasets were used for performance evaluation. ENCAP yields an AUC (Area Under the ROC Curve) of 0.768 and an MCC (Matthew's Correlation Coefficient) of 0.522 on the first independent test set. On the second test set, it achieves an AUC of 0.960 and an MCC of 0.789. Performance evaluations show that ENCAP generates 4.8% and 13.5% improvements in MCC over the state-of-the-art methods on two popular TTCA datasets, respectively. For the third test dataset of 71 experimentally validated TTCAs from the literature, ENCAP yields prediction accuracy of 0.873, achieving improvements ranging from 12% to 25.7% compared to three state-of-the-art methods. In general, the prediction accuracy is higher for sequences of fewer hydrophobic residues, and more hydrophilic and charged residues. The source code of ENCAP is freely available at https://github.com/YnnJ456/ENCAP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen-Chieh Yu
- Department of Bioinformatics and Medical Engineering, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Kuan Ni
- Graduate Institute of Genomics and Bioinformatics, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Ching-Tai Chen
- Department of Bioinformatics and Medical Engineering, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan
- Center for Precision Health Research, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan
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4
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Matus MF, Häkkinen H. Rational Design of Targeted Gold Nanoclusters with High Affinity to Integrin αvβ3 for Combination Cancer Therapy. Bioconjug Chem 2024. [PMID: 39008847 DOI: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.4c00248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/17/2024]
Abstract
The unique attributes of targeted nano-drug delivery systems (TNDDSs) over conventional cancer therapies in suppressing off-target effects make them one of the most promising options for cancer treatment. There is evidence that the density of surface-conjugated ligands is a crucial factor in achieving the desired therapeutic efficacy of TNDDSs, but this is hardly manageable in conventional nanomaterials. In this context, ligand-protected gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) are excellent candidates for developing new TNDDSs with a unique control on their surface functionalities, thus helping to achieve enhanced delivery performance. Here, we study the interactions and binding free energies between ten different functionalized Au144(SR)60 (SR = thiolate ligand) nanoclusters and integrin αvβ3 using molecular dynamics simulations and the umbrella sampling method to obtain the optimal formulations. The AuNCs were functionalized with anticancer drugs (5-fluorouracil or signaling pathways inhibitors, such as capivasertib, linifanib, tanespimycin, and taselisib) and integrin-targeting peptides (RGD4C or QS13), and we identified the optimal mixed ligand layer to enhance their binding affinity to the cancer cell receptor. The results showed that changing the proportions of the same type of ligands on the surface of AuNCs led to differences of up to 38 kcal/mol in computed binding free energies. RGD4C as the targeting peptide resulted in greater affinity for αvβ3, and in most formulations studied, a higher amount of drug than peptide was needed. Polar and charged residues, such as Ser123, Asp150, Tyr178, Arg214, and Asp251 were found to play a significant role in AuNC binding. Our simulations also revealed that Mn2+ cations are crucial for stabilizing the αvβ3-AuNC complex. These findings demonstrate the potential of carefully designing the surface composition of TNDDSs to optimize their target affinity and specificity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Hannu Häkkinen
- Department of Physics, University of Jyväskylä, FI-40014 Jyväskylä, Finland
- Department of Chemistry, Nanoscience Center, University of Jyväskylä, FI-40014 Jyväskylä, Finland
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5
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Dai J, Ashrafizadeh M, Aref AR, Sethi G, Ertas YN. Peptide-functionalized, -assembled and -loaded nanoparticles in cancer therapy. Drug Discov Today 2024; 29:103981. [PMID: 38614161 DOI: 10.1016/j.drudis.2024.103981] [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: 09/17/2023] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 04/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/15/2024]
Abstract
The combination of peptides and nanoparticles in cancer therapy has shown synergistic results. Nanoparticle functionalization with peptides can increase their targeting ability towards tumor cells. In some cases, the peptides can develop self-assembled nanoparticles, in combination with drugs, for targeted cancer therapy. The peptides can be loaded into nanoparticles and can be delivered by other drugs for synergistic cancer removal. Multifunctional types of peptide-based nanoparticles, including pH- and redox-sensitive classes, have been introduced in cancer therapy. The tumor microenvironment remolds, and the acceleration of immunotherapy and vaccines can be provided by peptide nanoparticles. Moreover, the bioimaging and labeling of cancers can be mediated by peptide nanoparticles. Therefore, peptides can functionalize nanoparticles in targeted cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingyuan Dai
- School of Computer Science and Information Systems, Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, MO, USA
| | - Milad Ashrafizadeh
- Department of General Surgery, Institute of Precision Diagnosis and Treatment of Digestive System Tumors, Carson International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University General Hospital, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China; International Association for Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China; Shanghai Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
| | - Amir Reza Aref
- Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Gautam Sethi
- Department of Pharmacology and NUS Centre for Cancer Research (N2CR), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
| | - Yavuz Nuri Ertas
- ERNAM-Nanotechnology Research and Application Center, Erciyes University, Kayseri 38039, Turkey; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey.
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6
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Bepler T, Barrera MD, Rooney MT, Xiong Y, Kuang H, Goodell E, Goodwin MJ, Harbron E, Fu R, Mihailescu M, Narayanan A, Cotten ML. Antiviral activity of the host defense peptide piscidin 1: investigating a membrane-mediated mode of action. Front Chem 2024; 12:1379192. [PMID: 38988727 PMCID: PMC11233706 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2024.1379192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 07/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Outbreaks of viral diseases are on the rise, fueling the search for antiviral therapeutics that act on a broad range of viruses while remaining safe to human host cells. In this research, we leverage the finding that the plasma membranes of host cells and the lipid bilayers surrounding enveloped viruses differ in lipid composition. We feature Piscidin 1 (P1), a cationic host defense peptide (HDP) that has antimicrobial effects and membrane activity associated with its N-terminal region where a cluster of aromatic residues and copper-binding motif reside. While few HDPs have demonstrated antiviral activity, P1 acts in the micromolar range against several enveloped viruses that vary in envelope lipid composition. Notably, it inhibits HIV-1, a virus that has an envelope enriched in cholesterol, a lipid associated with higher membrane order and stability. Here, we first document through plaque assays that P1 boasts strong activity against SARS-CoV-2, which has an envelope low in cholesterol. Second, we extend previous studies done with homogeneous bilayers and devise cholesterol-containing zwitterionic membranes that contain the liquid disordered (Ld; low in cholesterol) and ordered (Lo, rich in cholesterol) phases. Using dye leakage assays and cryo-electron microscopy on vesicles, we show that P1 has dramatic permeabilizing capability on the Lo/Ld, an effect matched by a strong ability to aggregate, fuse, and thin the membranes. Differential scanning calorimetry and NMR experiments demonstrate that P1 mixes the lipid content of vesicles and alters the stability of the Lo. Structural studies by NMR indicate that P1 interacts with the Lo/Ld by folding into an α-helix that lies parallel to the membrane surface. Altogether, these results show that P1 is more disruptive to phase-separated than homogenous cholesterol-containing bilayers, suggesting an ability to target domain boundaries. Overall, this multi-faceted research highlights how a peptide that interacts strongly with membranes through an aromatic-rich N-terminal motif disrupt viral envelope mimics. This represents an important step towards the development of novel peptides with broad-spectrum antiviral activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tristan Bepler
- New York Structural Biology Center, New York, NY, United States
| | - Michael D. Barrera
- School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA, United States
| | - Mary T. Rooney
- Department of Applied Science, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY, United States
| | - Yawei Xiong
- Department of Applied Science, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, United States
| | - Huihui Kuang
- New York Structural Biology Center, New York, NY, United States
| | - Evan Goodell
- Department of Applied Science, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, United States
| | - Matthew J. Goodwin
- Department of Chemistry, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, United States
| | - Elizabeth Harbron
- Department of Chemistry, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, United States
| | - Riqiang Fu
- National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Tallahassee, FL, United States
| | - Mihaela Mihailescu
- Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Aarthi Narayanan
- Department of Biology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA, United States
| | - Myriam L. Cotten
- Department of Applied Science, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, United States
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, United States
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7
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Milewska S, Sadowska A, Stefaniuk N, Misztalewska-Turkowicz I, Wilczewska AZ, Car H, Niemirowicz-Laskowska K. Tumor-Homing Peptides as Crucial Component of Magnetic-Based Delivery Systems: Recent Developments and Pharmacoeconomical Perspective. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:6219. [PMID: 38892406 PMCID: PMC11172452 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25116219] [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: 04/10/2024] [Revised: 05/24/2024] [Accepted: 05/27/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer is considered to be one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and new therapeutic approaches, especially improved novel cancer treatment regimens, are in high demand. Considering that many chemotherapeutic drugs tend to have poor pharmacokinetic profiles, including rapid clearance and limited on-site accumulation, a combined approach with tumor-homing peptide (THP)-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles could lead to remarkable improvements. This is confirmed by an increasing number of papers in this field, showing that the on-target peptide functionalization of magnetic nanoparticles improves their penetration properties and ensures tumor-specific binding, which results in an increased clinical response. This review aims to highlight the potential applications of THPs in combination with magnetic carriers across various fields, including a pharmacoeconomic perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylwia Milewska
- Department of Experimental Pharmacology, Medical University of Bialystok, Szpitalna 37, 15-295 Bialystok, Poland; (S.M.); (A.S.); (N.S.); (H.C.)
| | - Anna Sadowska
- Department of Experimental Pharmacology, Medical University of Bialystok, Szpitalna 37, 15-295 Bialystok, Poland; (S.M.); (A.S.); (N.S.); (H.C.)
| | - Natalia Stefaniuk
- Department of Experimental Pharmacology, Medical University of Bialystok, Szpitalna 37, 15-295 Bialystok, Poland; (S.M.); (A.S.); (N.S.); (H.C.)
| | | | - Agnieszka Z. Wilczewska
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bialystok, Ciolkowskiego 1K, 15-245 Bialystok, Poland; (I.M.-T.); (A.Z.W.)
| | - Halina Car
- Department of Experimental Pharmacology, Medical University of Bialystok, Szpitalna 37, 15-295 Bialystok, Poland; (S.M.); (A.S.); (N.S.); (H.C.)
| | - Katarzyna Niemirowicz-Laskowska
- Department of Experimental Pharmacology, Medical University of Bialystok, Szpitalna 37, 15-295 Bialystok, Poland; (S.M.); (A.S.); (N.S.); (H.C.)
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8
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Ghafoor MH, Song BL, Zhou L, Qiao ZY, Wang H. Self-Assembly of Peptides as an Alluring Approach toward Cancer Treatment and Imaging. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2024; 10:2841-2862. [PMID: 38644736 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.4c00491] [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: 04/23/2024]
Abstract
Cancer is a severe threat to humans, as it is the second leading cause of death after cardiovascular diseases and still poses the biggest challenge in the world of medicine. Due to its higher mortality rates and resistance, it requires a more focused and productive approach to provide the solution for it. Many therapies promising to deliver favorable results, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, have come up with more negatives than positives. Therefore, a new class of medicinal solutions and a more targeted approach is of the essence. This review highlights the alluring properties, configurations, and self-assembly of peptide molecules which benefit the traditional approach toward cancer therapy while sparing the healthy cells in the process. As targeted drug delivery systems, self-assembled peptides offer a wide spectrum of conjugation, biocompatibility, degradability-controlled responsiveness, and biomedical applications, including cancer treatment and cancer imaging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Hamza Ghafoor
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, PR China
| | - Ben-Li Song
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, PR China
| | - Lei Zhou
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
| | - Zeng-Ying Qiao
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, PR China
| | - Hao Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, PR China
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9
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Liang X, Zhao H, Wang J. MA-PEP: A novel anticancer peptide prediction framework with multimodal feature fusion based on attention mechanism. Protein Sci 2024; 33:e4966. [PMID: 38532681 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4966] [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: 09/30/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
AntiCancer Peptides (ACPs) have emerged as promising therapeutic agents for cancer treatment. The time-consuming and costly nature of wet-lab discriminatory methods has spurred the development of various machine learning and deep learning-based ACP classification methods. Nonetheless, current methods encountered challenges in efficiently integrating features from various peptide modalities, thereby limiting a more comprehensive understanding of ACPs and further restricting the improvement of prediction model performance. In this study, we introduce a novel ACP prediction method, MA-PEP, which leverages multiple attention mechanisms for feature enhancement and fusion to improve ACP prediction. By integrating the enhanced molecular-level chemical features and sequence information of peptides, MA-PEP demonstrates superior prediction performance across several benchmark datasets, highlighting its efficacy in ACP prediction. Moreover, the visual analysis and case studies further demonstrate MA-PEP's reliable feature extraction capability and its promise in the realm of ACP exploration. The code and datasets for MA-PEP are available at https://github.com/liangxiaodata/MA-PEP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Liang
- School of Computer Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Provincial Key Lab on Bioinformatics, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Haochen Zhao
- School of Computer Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Provincial Key Lab on Bioinformatics, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Jianxin Wang
- School of Computer Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Provincial Key Lab on Bioinformatics, Central South University, Changsha, China
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10
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Balaji PD, Selvam S, Sohn H, Madhavan T. MLASM: Machine learning based prediction of anticancer small molecules. Mol Divers 2024:10.1007/s11030-024-10823-x. [PMID: 38554168 DOI: 10.1007/s11030-024-10823-x] [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: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/01/2024]
Abstract
Cancer, being the second leading cause of death globally. So, the development of effective anticancer treatments is crucial in the field of medicine. Anticancer peptides (ACPs) have shown promising therapeutic potential in cancer treatment compared to traditional methods. However, the process of identifying ACPs through experimental means is often time-intensive and expensive. To overcome this issue, we employed a machine learning-based approach for the first time to develop an anticancer model using small molecules. Anticancer small molecules (ACSMs) are compounds that have been developed to target and inhibit cancer cells. In this study, we used 10,000 compounds to develop the machine learning models using five algorithms such as, Random Forest (RF), Light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM), K-nearest neighbors (KNN), Decision tree (DT) and Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGB). The developed models were evaluated using the test set and top three models were identified (RF, LightGBM and XGB). Furthermore, to validate the predictive performance of our models, we have performed external validation using an FDA approved anticancer compounds/drugs. Following this analysis, we found that our LightGBM model correctly predicted 9 compounds as active. However, RF and XGB exhibited some limitations by predicting 8 and 7 compounds as active out of 10, respectively. These results demonstrate that, when compared to RF and XGB, the LightGBM model showcase robust prediction capabilities, achieving a superior accuracy of 79% with an AUC of 0.88. These findings provide promising insights into the potential of our approach for predicting anticancer small molecules, highlighting the role of machine learning in advancing cancer treatment research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Priya Dharshini Balaji
- Computational Biology Laboratory, Department of Genetic Engineering, School of Bio-Engineering, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, 603203, India
| | - Subathra Selvam
- Computational Biology Laboratory, Department of Genetic Engineering, School of Bio-Engineering, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, 603203, India
| | - Honglae Sohn
- Department of Chemistry, Department of Carbon Materials, Chosun University, Gwangju, South Korea
| | - Thirumurthy Madhavan
- Computational Biology Laboratory, Department of Genetic Engineering, School of Bio-Engineering, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, 603203, India.
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11
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Azad H, Akbar MY, Sarfraz J, Haider W, Riaz MN, Ali GM, Ghazanfar S. G-ACP: a machine learning approach to the prediction of therapeutic peptides for gastric cancer. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024:1-14. [PMID: 38450672 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2024.2323141] [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: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Conventional Gastrointestinal (GI) cancer treatments are quite expensive and have major hazards. Nowadays, a different strategy places more emphasis on creating tiny biologically active peptides that do not cause severe poisoning. Anticancer peptides (ACPs) are found through experimental screening, which is time-dependent and frequently fraught with difficulties. Gastric ACPs are emerging as a promising GI cancer treatment in the current day. It is crucial to identify novel gastric ACPs to have an improved knowledge of their functioning processes and treatment of gastric cancer. As a result of the post-genomic era's massive production of peptide sequences, rapid and effective ACPs using a computational method are essential. Several adaptive statistical techniques for distinguishing ACPs and non-ACPs have recently been developed. A variety of adapted statistically significant methods have been developed to differentiate between ACPs and non-ACPs. Despite significant progress, there is no specific model for the prediction of gastric ACPs because the specific model will predict a particular type of peptide more accurately and quickly. To overcome this, an initiative is taken for the creation of a reliable framework for the accurate identification of gastric ACPs. The current technique in particular contains four possible features along with one hybrid feature encoding mechanisms which are the target-class motif previously indicated by Amino Acid Composition, Dipeptide Composition, Tripeptide Composition (TPC), Pseudo Amino Acid Composition (PAAC), and their Hybrid. Machine Learning algorithms make high-performance and accurate prediction tools. Moreover, highly variable and ideal deep feature selection is done using an ANOVA-based F score for feature pruning. Experiments on a range of algorithms are carried out to identify the optimal operating strategy due to the diverse nature of learning. Following analysis of the empirical results, Naïve Bayes with TPC and Hybrid feature space outperforms other methods with 0.99 accuracy score on the testing dataset. To find the model generalization an external validation is carried out. In external datasets, the Extra Trees with PAAC features outperforms with the accuracy of 0.94. The comparison study shows that our suggested model will predict gastric ACPs more accurately and will be useful in drug development and gastric cancer. The predictive model can be freely accessed at https://github.com/humeraazad10/G-ACP.git.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Humera Azad
- Department of Biosciences (Bioinformatics) Islamabad, Comsats University Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Yasir Akbar
- National Institute for Genomics and Advanced Biotechnology (NIGAB), National Agricultural Research Center (NARC), Pakistan
| | | | - Waseem Haider
- Department of Biosciences (Bioinformatics) Islamabad, Comsats University Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Naeem Riaz
- National Institute for Genomics and Advanced Biotechnology (NIGAB), National Agricultural Research Center (NARC), Pakistan
| | - Ghulam Muhammad Ali
- Department of Biosciences (Bioinformatics) Islamabad, Comsats University Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Shakira Ghazanfar
- National Institute for Genomics and Advanced Biotechnology (NIGAB), National Agricultural Research Center (NARC), Pakistan
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12
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Karakaya O, Kilimci ZH. An efficient consolidation of word embedding and deep learning techniques for classifying anticancer peptides: FastText+BiLSTM. PeerJ Comput Sci 2024; 10:e1831. [PMID: 38435607 PMCID: PMC10909209 DOI: 10.7717/peerj-cs.1831] [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: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/31/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Anticancer peptides (ACPs) are a group of peptides that exhibit antineoplastic properties. The utilization of ACPs in cancer prevention can present a viable substitute for conventional cancer therapeutics, as they possess a higher degree of selectivity and safety. Recent scientific advancements generate an interest in peptide-based therapies which offer the advantage of efficiently treating intended cells without negatively impacting normal cells. However, as the number of peptide sequences continues to increase rapidly, developing a reliable and precise prediction model becomes a challenging task. In this work, our motivation is to advance an efficient model for categorizing anticancer peptides employing the consolidation of word embedding and deep learning models. First, Word2Vec, GloVe, FastText, One-Hot-Encoding approaches are evaluated as embedding techniques for the purpose of extracting peptide sequences. Then, the output of embedding models are fed into deep learning approaches CNN, LSTM, BiLSTM. To demonstrate the contribution of proposed framework, extensive experiments are carried on widely-used datasets in the literature, ACPs250 and independent. Experiment results show the usage of proposed model enhances classification accuracy when compared to the state-of-the-art studies. The proposed combination, FastText+BiLSTM, exhibits 92.50% of accuracy for ACPs250 dataset, and 96.15% of accuracy for the Independent dataset, thence determining new state-of-the-art.
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Affiliation(s)
- Onur Karakaya
- Research and Development Inc., Turkcell Technology, İstanbul, Turkey
| | - Zeynep Hilal Kilimci
- Department of Information Systems Engineering, Kocaeli University, Kocaeli, Turkey
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13
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Shanthappa PM, Melethadathil N. In silico investigations and molecular insights for designing tRNA-encoded peptides as potential therapeutics for targeting over-expressed receptors in breast cancer. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024:1-17. [PMID: 38334133 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2024.2314748] [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: 10/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024]
Abstract
tRNA- Encoded Peptides (tREPs) have recently been discovered as new functional peptides and hold promise as therapeutics for anti-parasitic applications. In this study, in silico investigations were conducted to design tRNA-encoded peptides with the potential to target over-expressed receptors in breast cancer cells. tRNA genes were translated into corresponding peptides (tREPs) using computational tools. The tREPs, which were predicted as anticancer peptides, were then screened for various ADMET properties. Molecular docking studies were conducted for three cancer target receptors, the Estrogen Receptor (ER), Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor (PPAR) and the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR). Based on the docking results, specific tREPs were screened and molecular dynamics simulations were performed, and the binding energies were further explored using MMPBSA calculations. The peptide Pep1 (DWIAWRHHNDIVSWLTCGPRFKSWS) and Pep2 (GFIAWWSRHLELAQTRFKSWWS) exhibited a good binding affinity against the Estrogen Receptor (ER) and the Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Alpha (PPAR) cancer target. The Pep1-ER and Pep1-PPAR complex maintained an average of two hydrogen bonds throughout the simulation and demonstrated a higher negative binding free energy of -72.27 kcal/mol and -65.16 kcal/mol respectively, as calculated by MMPBSA. Therefore, the tREPs designed as anticancer peptides in this study provide novel approaches for potential anticancer therapeutic modalities.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pallavi M Shanthappa
- Department of Computer Science, School of Computing, Mysuru, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, India
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14
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Ghadirian S, Tabibzadeh A, Rezvani H, Jafarzadeh M. Investigation of Fibroblast Growth Factor Peptide Antagonist on Mouse Model Breast Tumor through ERK/MAPK and PI3K/AKT Signaling Pathways. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 2024; 25:473-483. [PMID: 38415533 PMCID: PMC11077103 DOI: 10.31557/apjcp.2024.25.2.473] [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: 07/29/2023] [Accepted: 02/11/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In the majority of cancers, metastasis of tumor cells is the main cause of treatment failure. This study intended to investigate the effectiveness of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) peptide designed to inhibit tumor growth in 4T1 metastatic breast cancer through the PI3K/AKT and ERK/MAPK signal transduction pathways. METHODS The tumor was induced through 4T1 tumor graft in BALB/c mice. The designed peptide was injected intraperitoneal at three selected doses after two weeks for 14 days. The PBS and doxorubicin were used as the negative and positive control groups, respectively. Tumor size was measured and after the treatment period, the mice underwent a surgery and tumors were used for the western blot examinations. RESULTS the peptide injection was effective in reducing or inhibiting tumor growth in mice model and in vitro. The western blot analysis results showed that the p-AKT and p-ERK levels in peptide treated tumors were reduced (p<0.05). CONCLUSION The peptide injection was effective in mice model. Findings showed that in the two signal transduction pathways, the p-AKT and p-ERK levels were significantly different from the negative control group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahrzad Ghadirian
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology, Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Alireza Tabibzadeh
- Department of Virology, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Hamid Rezvani
- Department of Oncology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Mehrzad Jafarzadeh
- Endocrine Research Center, Institute of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Iran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran.
- Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Faculty of Allied Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
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15
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Rana P, Singh C, Kaushik A, Saleem S, Kumar A. Recent advances in stimuli-responsive tailored nanogels for cancer therapy; from bench to personalized treatment. J Mater Chem B 2024; 12:382-412. [PMID: 38095136 DOI: 10.1039/d3tb02650g] [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: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
To improve the quality of health in a personalized manner, better control over pharmacologically relevant cargo formulation, organ-specific targeted delivery, and on-demand release of therapeutic agents is crucial. Significant work has been put into designing and developing revolutionary nanotherapeutics approaches for the effective monitoring and personalized treatment of disease. Nanogel (NG) has attracted significant interest because of its tremendous potential in cancer therapy and its environmental stimuli responsiveness. NG is considered a next-generation delivery technology due to its benefits like as size tunability, high loading, stimuli responsiveness, prolonged drug release via in situ gelling mechanisms, stability, and its potential to provide personalized therapy from the investigation of human genes and the genes in various types of cancers and its association with a selective anticancer drug. Stimuli-responsive NGs can be used as smart nanomedicines to detect and treat cancer and can be tuned as personalized medicine as well. This comprehensive review article's major objectives include the challenges of NGs' clinical translation for cancer treatment as well as its early preclinical successes and prospects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prinsy Rana
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, Punjab, India
- M. M. College of Pharmacy, Maharishi Markandeshwar (Deemed to be University), Mullana, Ambala-133207, Haryana, India
| | - Charan Singh
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Sciences, Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University (A Central University), Srinagar, Uttarakhand-246174, India
| | - Ajeet Kaushik
- NanoBiotech Lab, Department of Environmental Engineering, Florida Polytechnic University (FPU), Lakeland, FL, 33805-8531, USA
- School of Engineering, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun 248007, India
| | - Shakir Saleem
- Department of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Saudi Electronic University, P. O. Box 93499, Riyadh 11673, Saudi Arabia
| | - Arun Kumar
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Health Sciences, Central University of South Bihar, Gaya-824209, India.
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16
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Okasha H. Fundamental Uses of Peptides as a New Model in Both Treatment and Diagnosis. Recent Pat Biotechnol 2024; 18:110-127. [PMID: 38282442 DOI: 10.2174/1872208317666230512143508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Revised: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/30/2024]
Abstract
An amino acid short chain is known as a peptide. Peptide bonds are the connections that hold the amino acids of a peptide together in a particular order. Characteristically, the shorter length of peptides helps to identify them from proteins. Different ways are used to classify peptides, including chain length, source of peptides, or their biological functions. The fact that peptides serve several purposes suggests that there is a foundation for improvement in peptide production and structure to enhance action. In addition, many patents on peptides for therapeutic and diagnostic approaches have been obtained. This review aims to give an overview of peptides used recently in treatment and diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hend Okasha
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Theodor Bilharz Research Institute, Giza, 12411, Egypt
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17
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Srivastava S, Jain P. Computational Approaches: A New Frontier in Cancer Research. Comb Chem High Throughput Screen 2024; 27:1861-1876. [PMID: 38031782 DOI: 10.2174/0113862073265604231106112203] [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: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
Cancer is a broad category of disease that can start in virtually any organ or tissue of the body when aberrant cells assault surrounding organs and proliferate uncontrollably. According to the most recent statistics, cancer will be the cause of 10 million deaths worldwide in 2020, accounting for one death out of every six worldwide. The typical approach used in anti-cancer research is highly time-consuming and expensive, and the outcomes are not particularly encouraging. Computational techniques have been employed in anti-cancer research to advance our understanding. Recent years have seen a significant and exceptional impact on anticancer research due to the rapid development of computational tools for novel drug discovery, drug design, genetic studies, genome characterization, cancer imaging and detection, radiotherapy, cancer metabolomics, and novel therapeutic approaches. In this paper, we examined the various subfields of contemporary computational techniques, including molecular docking, artificial intelligence, bioinformatics, virtual screening, and QSAR, and their applications in the study of cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shubham Srivastava
- Department of Pharmacy, IIMT College of Pharmacy, Uttar Pradesh, 201310, India
| | - Pushpendra Jain
- Department of Pharmacy, IIMT College of Pharmacy, Uttar Pradesh, 201310, India
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18
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Stefanik O, Majerova P, Kovac A, Mikus P, Piestansky J. Capillary electrophoresis in the analysis of therapeutic peptides-A review. Electrophoresis 2024; 45:120-164. [PMID: 37705480 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202300141] [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: 06/29/2023] [Revised: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
Therapeutic peptides are a growing class of innovative drugs with high efficiency and a low risk of adverse effects. These biomolecules fall within the molecular mass range between that of small molecules and proteins. However, their inherent instability and potential for degradation underscore the importance of reliable and effective analytical methods for pharmaceutical quality control, therapeutic drug monitoring, and compliance testing. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) has long time been the "gold standard" conventional method for peptide analysis, but capillary electrophoresis (CE) is increasingly being recognized as a complementary and, in some cases, superior, highly efficient, green, and cost-effective alternative technique. CE can separate peptides composed of different amino acids owing to differences in their net charge and size, determining their migration behavior in an electric field. This review provides a comprehensive overview of therapeutic peptides that have been used in the clinical environment for the last 25 years. It describes the properties, classification, current trends in development, and clinical use of therapeutic peptides. From the analytical point of view, it discusses the challenges associated with the analysis of therapeutic peptides in pharmaceutical and biological matrices, as well as the evaluation of CE as a whole and the comparison with LC methods. The article also highlights the use of microchip electrophoresis, nonaqueous CE, and nonconventional hydrodynamically closed CE systems and their applications. Overall, the article emphasizes the importance of developing new CE-based analytical methods to ensure the high quality, safety, and efficacy of therapeutic peptides in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ondrej Stefanik
- Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Nuclear Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
- Toxicological and Antidoping Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Petra Majerova
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Andrej Kovac
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Peter Mikus
- Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Nuclear Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
- Toxicological and Antidoping Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Juraj Piestansky
- Toxicological and Antidoping Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
- Department of Galenic Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
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19
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Figueiredo D, Cruz RGB, Normando AGC, Granato DC, Busso-Lopes AF, Carnielli CM, De Rossi T, Paes Leme AF. Peptidomics Strategies to Evaluate Cancer Diagnosis, Prognosis, and Treatment. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2758:401-423. [PMID: 38549027 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3646-6_22] [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: 04/02/2024]
Abstract
Peptides have potential bioactive functions, and the peptidomics landscape has been broadly investigated for various diseases, including cancer. In this chapter, we reviewed the past four years of literature available and selected 16 peer-reviewed publications exploring peptidomics in diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment in cancer research. We highlighted their main aims, mass spectrometry-based peptidomics, multi-omics, data-driven and in silico strategies, functional assays, and clinical applications. Moreover, we underscored several levels of difficulties in translating the peptidomics findings to clinical practice, aiming to learn with the accumulated knowledge and guide upcoming studies. Finally, this review reinforces the peptidomics robustness in discovering potential candidates for monitoring the several stages of cancer disease and therapeutic treatment, leveraging the management of cancer patients in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniella Figueiredo
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo G B Cruz
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Ana Gabriela Costa Normando
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Daniela C Granato
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Ariane F Busso-Lopes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Carolina M Carnielli
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Tatiane De Rossi
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Adriana Franco Paes Leme
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, LNBio, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, CNPEM, Campinas, SP, Brazil.
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20
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Solanki K, Kumar A, Khan MS, Karthikeyan S, Atre R, Zhang KY, Bezsonov E, Obukhov AG, Baig MS. Novel peptide inhibitors targeting CD40 and CD40L interaction: A potential for atherosclerosis therapy. Curr Res Struct Biol 2023; 6:100110. [PMID: 38106460 PMCID: PMC10724548 DOI: 10.1016/j.crstbi.2023.100110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Revised: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by plaque build-up in the arteries, leading to the obstruction of blood flow. Macrophages are the primary immune cells found in the atherosclerotic lesions and are directly involved in atherosclerosis progression. Macrophages are derived from extravasating blood monocytes. The monocytic CD40 receptor is important for monocyte recruitment on the endothelium expressing the CD40 ligand (CD40L). Thus, targeting monocyte/macrophage interaction with the endothelium by inhibiting CD40-CD40L interaction may be a promising strategy for attenuating atherosclerosis. Monoclonal antibodies have been used against this target but shows various complications. We used an array of computer-aided drug discovery tools and molecular docking approaches to design a therapeutic inhibitory peptide that could efficiently bind to the critical residues (82Y, 84D, and 86N) on the CD40 receptor essential for the receptor's binding to CD40L. The initial screen identified a parent peptide with a high binding affinity to CD40, but the peptide exhibited a positive hepatotoxicity score. We then designed several novel peptidomimetic derivatives with higher binding affinities to CD40, good physicochemical properties, and negative hepatotoxicity as compared to the parent peptide. Furthermore, we conducted molecular dynamics simulations for both the apo and complexed forms of the receptor with ligand, and screened peptides to evaluate their stability. The designed peptidomimetic derivatives are promising therapeutics targeting the CD40-CD40L interaction and may potentially be used to attenuate atherosclerosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kundan Solanki
- Department of Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering (BSBE), Indian Institute of Technology Indore (IITI), Simrol, Indore, 453552, India
| | - Ashutosh Kumar
- Laboratory for Structural Bioinformatics, Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, RIKEN, Tsurumi, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Mohd Shahnawaz Khan
- Department of Biochemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Subramani Karthikeyan
- Centre for Healthcare Advancement, Innovation and Research, Vellore Institute of Technology University, Chennai Campus, Chennai, 600127, India
| | - Rajat Atre
- Department of Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering (BSBE), Indian Institute of Technology Indore (IITI), Simrol, Indore, 453552, India
| | - Kam Y.J. Zhang
- Laboratory for Structural Bioinformatics, Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, RIKEN, Tsurumi, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Evgeny Bezsonov
- Laboratory of Angiopathology, Institute of General Pathology and Pathophysiology, 8 Baltiiskaya Street, 125315, Moscow, Russia
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Pathology of Cardiovascular System, Avtsyn Research Institute of Human Morphology of Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution “Petrovsky National Research Centre of Surgery”, 3 Tsyurupa Street, 117418, Moscow, Russia
- Department of Biology and General Genetics, I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University (Sechenov University), 8 Izmailovsky Boulevard, 105043, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexander G. Obukhov
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology & Physiology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA
| | - Mirza S. Baig
- Department of Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering (BSBE), Indian Institute of Technology Indore (IITI), Simrol, Indore, 453552, India
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21
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Currie C, Bjerknes C, Myklebust TÅ, Framroze B. Assessing the Potential of Small Peptides for Altering Expression Levels of the Iron-Regulatory Genes FTH1 and TFRC and Enhancing Androgen Receptor Inhibitor Activity in In Vitro Prostate Cancer Models. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:15231. [PMID: 37894914 PMCID: PMC10607736 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242015231] [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: 08/30/2023] [Revised: 10/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent research highlights the key role of iron dyshomeostasis in the pathogenesis of prostate cancer (PCa). PCa cells are heavily dependent on bioavailable iron, which frequently results in the reprogramming of iron uptake and storage pathways. Although advanced-stage PCa is currently incurable, bioactive peptides capable of modulating key iron-regulatory genes may constitute a means of exploiting a metabolic adaptation necessary for tumor growth. Recent annual increases in PCa incidence have been reported, highlighting the urgent need for novel treatments. We examined the ability of LNCaP, PC3, VCaP, and VCaP-EnzR cells to form colonies in the presence of androgen receptor inhibitors (ARI) and a series of iron-gene modulating oligopeptides (FT-001-FT-008). The viability of colonies following treatment was determined with clonogenic assays, and the expression levels of FTH1 (ferritin heavy chain 1) and TFRC (transferrin receptor) were determined with quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Peptides and ARIs combined significantly reduced PCa cell growth across all phenotypes, of which two peptides were the most effective. Colony growth suppression generally correlated with the magnitude of concurrent increases in FTH1 and decreases in TFRC expression for all cells. The results of this study provide preliminary insight into a novel approach at targeting iron dysmetabolism and sensitizing PCa cells to established cancer treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Crawford Currie
- HBC Immunology Inc., 1455 Adams Drive, Suite, Menlo Park, CA 2043, USA;
- Hofseth Biocare, Keiser Wilhelmsgate 24, 6003 Ålesund, Norway;
| | - Christian Bjerknes
- Hofseth Biocare, Keiser Wilhelmsgate 24, 6003 Ålesund, Norway;
- Department for Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 6025 Ålesund, Norway
| | - Tor Åge Myklebust
- Department of Registration, Cancer Registry of Norway, 0379 Oslo, Norway;
- Department of Research and Innovation, Møre og Romsdal Hospital Trust, 6026 Ålesund, Norway
| | - Bomi Framroze
- HBC Immunology Inc., 1455 Adams Drive, Suite, Menlo Park, CA 2043, USA;
- GPH Biotech LLC, 1455 Adams Drive, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA
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22
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Carrera-Aubesart A, Gallo M, Defaus S, Todorovski T, Andreu D. Topoisomeric Membrane-Active Peptides: A Review of the Last Two Decades. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:2451. [PMID: 37896211 PMCID: PMC10610229 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15102451] [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: 08/30/2023] [Revised: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent decades, bioactive peptides have been gaining recognition in various biomedical areas, such as intracellular drug delivery (cell-penetrating peptides, CPPs) or anti-infective action (antimicrobial peptides, AMPs), closely associated to their distinct mode of interaction with biological membranes. Exploiting the interaction of membrane-active peptides with diverse targets (healthy, tumoral, bacterial or parasitic cell membranes) is opening encouraging prospects for peptides in therapeutics. However, ordinary peptides formed by L-amino acids are easily decomposed by proteases in biological fluids. One way to sidestep this limitation is to use topoisomers, namely versions of the peptide made up of D-amino acids in either canonic (enantio) or inverted (retroenantio) sequence. Rearranging peptide sequences in this fashion provides a certain degree of native structure mimicry that, in appropriate contexts, may deliver desirable biological activity while avoiding protease degradation. In this review, we will focus on recent accounts of membrane-active topoisomeric peptides with therapeutic applications as CPP drug delivery vectors, or as antimicrobial and anticancer candidates. We will also discuss the most common modes of interaction of these peptides with their membrane targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Carrera-Aubesart
- Department of Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; (A.C.-A.); (M.G.); (S.D.); (T.T.)
| | - Maria Gallo
- Department of Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; (A.C.-A.); (M.G.); (S.D.); (T.T.)
| | - Sira Defaus
- Department of Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; (A.C.-A.); (M.G.); (S.D.); (T.T.)
| | - Toni Todorovski
- Department of Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; (A.C.-A.); (M.G.); (S.D.); (T.T.)
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Rijeka, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
| | - David Andreu
- Department of Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; (A.C.-A.); (M.G.); (S.D.); (T.T.)
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23
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Ajmal A, Ali Y, Khan A, Wadood A, Rehman AU. Identification of novel peptide inhibitors for the KRas-G12C variant to prevent oncogenic signaling. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2023; 41:8866-8875. [PMID: 36300526 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2022.2138550] [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: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/15/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRas) activating mutations are common in solid tumors, accounting for 90%, 45%, and 35% of pancreatic, colorectal, and lung cancers (LC), respectively. Each year, nearly 150k new cases (both men and women) of KRas-mutated malignancies are reported in the United States. NSCLC (non-small cell lung cancer) accounts for 80% of all LC cases. KRas mutations are found in 15% to 25% of NSCLC patients. The main cause of NSCLC is the KRas-G12C mutation. The drugs Sotorasib and Adagrasib were recently developed to treat advanced NSCLC caused by the KRas-G12C mutation. Most patients do not respond to KRas-G12C inhibitors due to cellular, molecular, and genetic resistance. Because of their safety, efficacy, and selectivity, peptide inhibitors have the potential to treat newly developing KRas mutations. Based on the KRas mutations, peptide inhibitors that are highly selective and specific to individual lung cancers can be rationally designed. The current study uses an alanine and residue scanning approach to design peptide inhibitors for KRas-G12C based on the known peptide. Our findings show that substitution of F3K, G11T, L8C, T14C, K13D, G11S, and G11P considerably enhances the binding affinity of the novel peptides, whereas F3K, G11T, L8C, and T14C peptides have higher stability and favorable binding to the altered peptides. Overall, our study paves the road for the development of potential therapeutic peptidomimetics that target the KRas-G12C complex and may inhibit the KRas and SOS complex from interacting.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amar Ajmal
- Department of Biochemistry, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, Pakistan
| | - Yasir Ali
- National Center for Bioinformatics, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Ajmal Khan
- Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Nizwa, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Abdul Wadood
- Department of Biochemistry, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, Pakistan
| | - Ashfaq Ur Rehman
- Department of Biochemistry, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, Pakistan
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
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Jalil AT, Abdulhadi MA, Al-Ameer LR, Taher WM, Abdulameer SJ, Abosaooda M, Fadhil AA. Peptide-Based Therapeutics in Cancer Therapy. Mol Biotechnol 2023:10.1007/s12033-023-00873-1. [PMID: 37768503 DOI: 10.1007/s12033-023-00873-1] [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: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
A monster called cancer is still one of the most challenging human problems and one of the leading causes of death in the world. Different types of treatment methods are used for cancer therapy; however, there are challenges such as high cost and harmful side effects in using these methods. Recent years have witnessed a surge in the development of therapeutic peptides for a wide range of diseases, notably cancer. Peptides are preferred over antibiotics, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy in the treatment of cancer due to a number of aspects, including flexibility, easy modification, low immunogenicity, and inexpensive cost of production. The use of therapeutic peptides in cancer treatment is a novel and intriguing strategy. These peptides provide excellent prospects for targeted drug delivery because of their high selectivity, specificity, small dimensions, good biocompatibility, and simplicity of modification. Target specificity and minimal toxicity are benefits of therapeutic peptides. Additionally, peptides can be used to design antigens or adjuvants for vaccine development. Here, types of therapeutic peptides for cancer therapy will be discussed, such as peptide-based cancer vaccines and tumor-targeting peptides (TTP) and cell-penetrating peptides (CPP).
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Affiliation(s)
- Abduladheem Turki Jalil
- Department of Medical Laboratories Techniques, Al-Mustaqbal University College, Hilla, Babylon, 51001, Iraq.
| | - Mohanad Ali Abdulhadi
- Department of Medical Laboratory Techniques, Al-Maarif University College, Al-Anbar, Iraq
| | - Lubna R Al-Ameer
- College of Pharmacy, Al-Zahraa University for Women, Karbala, Iraq
| | | | - Sada Jasim Abdulameer
- Biology Department, College of Education for Pure Science, Wasit University, Kut, Wasit, Iraq
| | | | - Ali A Fadhil
- Medical Technical College, Al-Farahidi University, Baghdad, Iraq
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25
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Zhang X, Zhang M, Huang S, Ohtani K, Xu L, Guo Y. Engineered Polymeric Nanovector for Intracellular Peptide Delivery in Antitumor Therapy. Int J Nanomedicine 2023; 18:5343-5363. [PMID: 37746048 PMCID: PMC10517702 DOI: 10.2147/ijn.s427536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 09/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective This study aimed to deliver a polypeptide from the Bax-BH3 domain (BHP) through the synthesis of self-assembled amphiphile nanovectors (NVs) and to assess their potential for cancer therapeutic applications and biological safety in vitro and in vivo. These findings provide valuable options for cancer intervention and a novel approach for the rational design of therapeutics. Methods We studied the antitumor activity of BHP by preparing RGDfK-PHPMA-b-Poly (MMA-alt-(Rhob-MA)) (RPPMMRA) and encapsulating it in BHP-NV. We also performed a series of characterizations and property analyses of RPPMMRA, including its size, stability, and drug-carrying capacity. The biocompatibility of RPPMMRA was evaluated in terms of cytotoxicity and hemolytic effects. The pro-apoptotic capacity of BHP was evaluated in vitro using mitochondrial membrane potential, flow cytometry, and apoptosis visualization techniques. The potential therapeutic effects of BHP on tumors were explored using reverse molecular docking. We also investigated the in vivo proapoptotic effect of BHP-NV in a nude mouse tumor model. Results NVs were successfully prepared with hydrated particle sizes ranging from 189.6 nm to 256.6 nm, spherical overall, and were able to remain stable in different media for 72 h with drug loading up to 15.2%. The NVs were be successfully internalized within 6 h with good biocompatibility. Neither BHP nor NV showed significant toxicity when administered alone, however, BHP-NV demonstrated significant side effects in vitro and in vivo. The apoptosis rate increased significantly from 14.13% to 66.34%. Experiments in vivo showed that BHP-NV exhibited significant apoptotic and tumor-suppressive effects. Conclusion A targeted fluorescent NV with high drug delivery efficiency and sustained release protected the active center of BHP, constituting BHP-NV for targeted delivery. RPPMMRA demonstrated excellent biocompatibility, stability, and drug loading ability, whereas and BHP-NV demonstrated potent antitumor effects in vivo and in vitro.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering, the Ministry of Education, National Engineering Laboratory for AIDS Vaccine, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, People’s Republic of China
| | - Mingming Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering, the Ministry of Education, National Engineering Laboratory for AIDS Vaccine, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, People’s Republic of China
| | - Sijun Huang
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering, the Ministry of Education, National Engineering Laboratory for AIDS Vaccine, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, People’s Republic of China
| | - Kiyoshi Ohtani
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Kwansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Hyogo, 669-1337, Japan
| | - Li Xu
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering, the Ministry of Education, National Engineering Laboratory for AIDS Vaccine, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, People’s Republic of China
| | - Yi Guo
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering, the Ministry of Education, National Engineering Laboratory for AIDS Vaccine, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, People’s Republic of China
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26
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Tao H, Shan S, Fu H, Zhu C, Liu B. An Augmented Sample Selection Framework for Prediction of Anticancer Peptides. Molecules 2023; 28:6680. [PMID: 37764455 PMCID: PMC10535447 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28186680] [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: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Anticancer peptides (ACPs) have promising prospects for cancer treatment. Traditional ACP identification experiments have the limitations of low efficiency and high cost. In recent years, data-driven deep learning techniques have shown significant potential for ACP prediction. However, data-driven prediction models rely heavily on extensive training data. Furthermore, the current publicly accessible ACP dataset is limited in size, leading to inadequate model generalization. While data augmentation effectively expands dataset size, existing techniques for augmenting ACP data often generate noisy samples, adversely affecting prediction performance. Therefore, this paper proposes a novel augmented sample selection framework for the prediction of anticancer peptides (ACPs-ASSF). First, the prediction model is trained using raw data. Then, the augmented samples generated using the data augmentation technique are fed into the trained model to compute pseudo-labels and estimate the uncertainty of the model prediction. Finally, samples with low uncertainty, high confidence, and pseudo-labels consistent with the original labels are selected and incorporated into the training set to retrain the model. The evaluation results for the ACP240 and ACP740 datasets show that ACPs-ASSF achieved accuracy improvements of up to 5.41% and 5.68%, respectively, compared to the traditional data augmentation method.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huawei Tao
- Key Laboratory of Food Information Processing and Control, Ministry of Education, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China; (H.T.); (S.S.); (H.F.); (C.Z.)
- Henan Engineering Laboratory of Grain IOT Technology, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China
| | - Shuai Shan
- Key Laboratory of Food Information Processing and Control, Ministry of Education, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China; (H.T.); (S.S.); (H.F.); (C.Z.)
- Henan Engineering Laboratory of Grain IOT Technology, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China
| | - Hongliang Fu
- Key Laboratory of Food Information Processing and Control, Ministry of Education, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China; (H.T.); (S.S.); (H.F.); (C.Z.)
- Henan Engineering Laboratory of Grain IOT Technology, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China
| | - Chunhua Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Food Information Processing and Control, Ministry of Education, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China; (H.T.); (S.S.); (H.F.); (C.Z.)
- Henan Engineering Laboratory of Grain IOT Technology, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China
| | - Boye Liu
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China
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Singh A, Amod A, Mulpuru V, Mishra N, Sahoo AK, Samanta SK. Finding Novel AMPs Secreted from the Human Microbiome as Potent Antibacterial and Antibiofilm Agents and Studying Their Synergistic Activity with Ag NCs. ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2023; 6:3674-3682. [PMID: 37603700 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.3c00302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/23/2023]
Abstract
Due to the enhanced resistance of bacteria to antibiotics, researchers always try to find effective alternatives to treat drug-resistant bacterial infections. In this context, we have explored antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), which are a broad class of small peptide molecules, and investigated their efficacy as potent antibacterial and antibiofilm agents. AMPs can cause cell death either through disruption of the cell membrane or by inhibiting vital intracellular functions, by binding to RNA, DNA, or intracellular components upon transversion through the cell membrane. We attempted to find potent intracellular cationic AMPs that can demonstrate antibacterial activity through interaction with DNA. As a source of AMPs, we have utilized those that are secreted from the human microbiome with the anticipation that these will be non-toxic in nature. Out of the total 1087 AMPs, 27 were screened on the basis of amino acid length and efficacy to cross the cell membrane barrier. From the list of 27 peptides, 4 candidates were selected through the docking score of these peptides with the DNA binding domain of H2A proteins. Further, the molecular dynamics simulation analysis demonstrated that 2 AMPs, i.e., peptides 7 and 25, are having considerable membrane permeation and DNA binding ability. Further, the in vitro analysis indicated that both peptides 7 and 25 could exhibit potent antibacterial and antibiofilm activities. In order to further enhance the antibiofilm potency, the above AMPs were used as supplements to silver nanoclusters (Ag NCs) to get synergistic activity. The synergistic activity of Ag NCs was found to be significantly increased with both the above AMPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anirudh Singh
- Department of Applied Sciences, Indian Institute of Information Technology Allahabad, Allahabad 211012, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Ayush Amod
- Department of Applied Sciences, Indian Institute of Information Technology Allahabad, Allahabad 211012, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Viswajit Mulpuru
- Department of Applied Sciences, Indian Institute of Information Technology Allahabad, Allahabad 211012, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Nidhi Mishra
- Department of Applied Sciences, Indian Institute of Information Technology Allahabad, Allahabad 211012, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Amaresh Kumar Sahoo
- Department of Applied Sciences, Indian Institute of Information Technology Allahabad, Allahabad 211012, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Sintu Kumar Samanta
- Department of Applied Sciences, Indian Institute of Information Technology Allahabad, Allahabad 211012, Uttar Pradesh, India
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28
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Zhou Y. HER2/neu-based vaccination with li-Key hybrid, GM-CSF immunoadjuvant and trastuzumab as a potent triple-negative breast cancer treatment. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 2023; 149:6711-6718. [PMID: 36692548 PMCID: PMC10356871 DOI: 10.1007/s00432-023-04574-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Constituting 15 to 20% of breast cancer cases, the triple-negative subtype lacks effective treatments as being less responsive to hormone-associated therapies. Alternatively, a more powerful immunotherapeutic vaccination can trigger immune recognition and destruction against breast cancer by incorporating oncological antigens such as human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2/neu). Currently, HER2/neu-based vaccines have finished three phases with breast cancer patients, in conjunction with granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) that was proven to be a promising vaccine adjuvant in other cancer trials previously. METHODS Completed HER2/neu-based vaccine trials with GM-CSF immunoadjuvants for breast cancer were summarised, and additionally, the article discussed prominent findings of vaccine effectiveness in triple-negative breast cancer, regarding li-Key hybrid in vaccine design and co-administration of anti-HER2/neu trastuzumab. RESULTS Nine clinical trials of three HER2/neu epitopes, one with li-Key hybrid, were analysed with or without the presence of trastuzumab. Immunological responses and minimal toxicities were observed in these epitopes, and disease-free survival was especially improved in the triple-negative population. CONCLUSION HER2/neu-based peptide vaccine is a safe and effective approach against breast cancer, and its benefits can be potentially furthered by combining the li-Key hybrid vaccine with targeted drugs and adjuvants selected to enhance cross-presentation for exogenous vaccine antigens. Graphical abstract was created with Biorender.com (license number: HA24UHRBV4 and FP24UHRGDD).
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Affiliation(s)
- Yihan Zhou
- Department of Oncology, Medical Sciences Division, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
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29
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Nordin ML, Azemi AK, Nordin AH, Nabgan W, Ng PY, Yusoff K, Abu N, Lim KP, Zakaria ZA, Ismail N, Azmi F. Peptide-Based Vaccine against Breast Cancer: Recent Advances and Prospects. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2023; 16:923. [PMID: 37513835 PMCID: PMC10386531 DOI: 10.3390/ph16070923] [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: 04/16/2023] [Revised: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer is considered the second-leading cancer after lung cancer and is the most prevalent cancer among women globally. Currently, cancer immunotherapy via vaccine has gained great attention due to specific and targeted immune cell activity that creates a potent immune response, thus providing long-lasting protection against the disease. Despite peptides being very susceptible to enzymatic degradation and poor immunogenicity, they can be easily customized with selected epitopes to induce a specific immune response and particulate with carriers to improve their delivery and thus overcome their weaknesses. With advances in nanotechnology, the peptide-based vaccine could incorporate other components, thereby modulating the immune system response against breast cancer. Considering that peptide-based vaccines seem to show remarkably promising outcomes against cancer, this review focuses on and provides a specific view of peptide-based vaccines used against breast cancer. Here, we discuss the benefits associated with a peptide-based vaccine, which can be a mainstay in the prevention and recurrence of breast cancer. Additionally, we also report the results of recent trials as well as plausible prospects for nanotechnology against breast cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Luqman Nordin
- Centre for Drug Delivery Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Kuala Lumpur Campus, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
- Department of Veterinary Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK), Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Bharu 16100, Kelantan, Malaysia
| | - Ahmad Khusairi Azemi
- Institute of Marine Biotechnology, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu 21030, Malaysia
| | - Abu Hassan Nordin
- Faculty of Applied Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Arau 02600, Malaysia
| | - Walid Nabgan
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Universitat Rovira I Virgili, Av. Països Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Pei Yuen Ng
- Drug and Herbal Research Centre, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
| | - Khatijah Yusoff
- National Institutes of Biotechnology, Malaysia Genome and Vaccine Institute, Jalan Bangi, Kajang 43000, Malaysia
| | - Nadiah Abu
- UKM Medical Molecular Biology Institute (UMBI), UKM Medical Centre, Jalan Ya'acob Latiff, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur 56000, Malaysia
| | - Kue Peng Lim
- Cancer Immunology & Immunotherapy Unit, Cancer Research Malaysia, No. 1 Jalan SS12/1A, Subang Jaya 47500, Malaysia
| | - Zainul Amiruddin Zakaria
- Borneo Research on Algesia, Inflammation and Neurodegeneration (BRAIN) Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, Kota Kinabalu 88400, Malaysia
| | - Noraznawati Ismail
- Institute of Marine Biotechnology, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu 21030, Malaysia
| | - Fazren Azmi
- Centre for Drug Delivery Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Kuala Lumpur Campus, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
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Muhammad Rehman H, Rehman HM, Naveed M, Khan MT, Shabbir MA, Aslam S, Bashir H. In Silico Investigation of a Chimeric IL24-LK6 Fusion Protein as a Potent Candidate Against Breast Cancer. Bioinform Biol Insights 2023; 17:11779322231182560. [PMID: 37377793 PMCID: PMC10291407 DOI: 10.1177/11779322231182560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Targeted delivery of therapeutic anticancer chimeric molecules enhances the efficacy of drug by improving cellular uptake and circulation time. Engineering the molecules to facilitate the specific interaction between chimeric protein and its receptor is critical to elucidate biological mechanism as well as accuracy in modeling of complexes. A theoretically designed novel protein-protein interfaces can serve as a bottom-up method for comprehensive understanding of interacting protein residues. This study was aimed for in silico analyses of a chimeric fusion protein against breast cancer. The amino acid sequences of the interleukin 24 (IL-24) and LK-6 peptide were used to design the chimeric fusion protein via a rigid linker. The secondary and tertiary structures along with physicochemical properties by ProtParam and solubility were predicted using online software. The validation and quality of the fusion protein was confirmed by Rampage and ERRAT2. The newly designed fusion construct has a total length of 179 amino acids. The top-ranked structure from alpha fold2 showed 18.1 KD molecular weight by ProtParam, quality factor of 94.152 by ERRAT, and a valid structure by a Ramachandran plot with 88.5% residues in the favored region. Finally, the docking and simulation studies were performed using HADDOCK and Desmond module of Schrodinger. The quality, validity, interaction analysis, and stability of the fusion protein depict a functional molecule. The fusion gene IL24-LK6 after cloning and expression in a suitable prokaryotic cell might be a useful candidate for developing a novel anticancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hafiz Muhammad Rehman
- Centre for Applied Molecular Biology (CAMB), University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
- University Institute of Medical Lab Technology, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, The University of Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Hafiz Muzzammel Rehman
- School of Biochemistry & Biotechnology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
- Department of Human Genetics and Molecular Biology, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Naveed
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Science & Technology, University of Central Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Tahir Khan
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, The University of Lahore, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Aqib Shabbir
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Science & Technology, University of Central Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Shakira Aslam
- Centre for Applied Molecular Biology (CAMB), University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Hamid Bashir
- Centre for Applied Molecular Biology (CAMB), University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
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Dempsey MP, Andersen KE, Wells BM, Taylor MA, Cashman CL, Conrad LB, Kearney CA, Conklin MB, Via ER, Doe EM, Komirisetty R, Dearborn S, Reddy ST, Farias-Eisner R. Stability Characterization of the Novel Anti-Cancer HM-10/10 HDL-Mimetic Peptide. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:10054. [PMID: 37373203 PMCID: PMC10298982 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241210054] [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: 04/15/2023] [Revised: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 06/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Epithelial adenocarcinoma of the ovary and colon are associated with the highest rates of cancer-related deaths in women in the U.S. The literature supports the role of HDL-associated apolipoproteins in the treatment of cancer and other pro-inflammatory diseases. Previously, we developed a novel 20-amino acid mimetic peptide, HM-10/10, which potently inhibits tumor development and growth in colon and ovarian cancer. Here, we report the properties of HM-10/10 relative to its stability in vitro. The results demonstrated that HM-10/10 had the highest half-life in human plasma compared to plasma from other species tested. HM-10/10 demonstrated stability in human plasma and simulated gastric environment, increasing its promise as an oral pharmaceutical. However, under conditions modeling the small intestine, HM-10/10 demonstrated significant degradation, likely due to the peptidases encountered therein. Furthermore, HM-10/10 demonstrated no evidence of time-dependent drug-drug interactions, although it demonstrated CYP450 induction slightly above cutoff. As proteolytic degradation is a common limitation of peptide-based therapeutics, we are pursuing strategies to improve the stability properties of HM-10/10 by extending its bioavailability while retaining its low toxicity profile. HM-10/10 holds promise as a new agent to address the international women's health crisis of epithelial carcinomas of the ovary and colon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael P. Dempsey
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
- David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Katelyn E. Andersen
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
- David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Brittney M. Wells
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Mitchell A. Taylor
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Clay L. Cashman
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Lesley B. Conrad
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
- David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Lynch Comprehensive Cancer Research Center, School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA
- Office of the President, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA 91766, USA
| | - Claire A. Kearney
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Mary B. Conklin
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Emily R. Via
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Emily M. Doe
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
| | - Ravikiran Komirisetty
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (R.K.); (S.T.R.)
| | - Susan Dearborn
- Charles River Laboratories International, Stone Ridge, NY 12484, USA;
| | - Srinivasa T. Reddy
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (R.K.); (S.T.R.)
- Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Interdepartmental Program in Molecular Toxicology, School of Public Health, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- California NanoSystems Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Robin Farias-Eisner
- School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA; (M.P.D.); (K.E.A.); (B.M.W.); (M.A.T.); (C.L.C.); (L.B.C.); (C.A.K.); (M.B.C.); (E.R.V.); (E.M.D.)
- David Geffen School of Medicine, The University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Lynch Comprehensive Cancer Research Center, School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA
- Office of the President, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA 91766, USA
- Office of the President, Western University of Health Sciences, Lebanon, OR 97355, USA
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Qin W, Chandra J, Abourehab MAS, Gupta N, Chen ZS, Kesharwani P, Cao HL. New opportunities for RGD-engineered metal nanoparticles in cancer. Mol Cancer 2023; 22:87. [PMID: 37226188 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-023-01784-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The advent of nanotechnology has opened new possibilities for bioimaging. Metal nanoparticles (such as gold, silver, iron, copper, etc.) hold tremendous potential and offer enormous opportunities for imaging and diagnostics due to their broad optical characteristics, ease of manufacturing technique, and simple surface modification. The arginine-glycine-aspartate (RGD) peptide is a three-amino acid sequence that seems to have a considerably greater ability to adhere to integrin adhesion molecules that exclusively express on tumour cells. RGD peptides act as the efficient tailoring ligand with a variety of benefits including non-toxicity, greater precision, rapid clearance, etc. This review focuses on the possibility of non-invasive cancer imaging using metal nanoparticles with RGD assistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Qin
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Basic and Translation of Cardiovascular Metabolic Disease, College of Pharmacy, Xi'an Medical University, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Jyoti Chandra
- Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, 110062, India
| | - Mohammed A S Abourehab
- Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, 21955, Saudi Arabia
| | - Neelima Gupta
- Dr. Harisingh Gour Vishwavidyalaya (A Central University), Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, 470003, India
| | - Zhe-Sheng Chen
- Institute for Biotechnology, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, St. John's University, Queens, New York, 11439, USA
| | - Prashant Kesharwani
- Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, 110062, India.
- Center for Transdisciplinary Research, Department of Pharmacology, Saveetha Dental College, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical science, Chennai, India.
| | - Hui-Ling Cao
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Basic and Translation of Cardiovascular Metabolic Disease, College of Pharmacy, Xi'an Medical University, Xi'an, 710021, China.
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Barman P, Joshi S, Sharma S, Preet S, Sharma S, Saini A. Strategic Approaches to Improvise Peptide Drugs as Next Generation Therapeutics. Int J Pept Res Ther 2023; 29:61. [PMID: 37251528 PMCID: PMC10206374 DOI: 10.1007/s10989-023-10524-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
In recent years, the occurrence of a wide variety of drug-resistant diseases has led to an increase in interest in alternate therapies. Peptide-based drugs as an alternate therapy hold researchers' attention in various therapeutic fields such as neurology, dermatology, oncology, metabolic diseases, etc. Previously, they had been overlooked by pharmaceutical companies due to certain limitations such as proteolytic degradation, poor membrane permeability, low oral bioavailability, shorter half-life, and poor target specificity. Over the last two decades, these limitations have been countered by introducing various modification strategies such as backbone and side-chain modifications, amino acid substitution, etc. which improve their functionality. This has led to a substantial interest of researchers and pharmaceutical companies, moving the next generation of these therapeutics from fundamental research to the market. Various chemical and computational approaches are aiding the production of more stable and long-lasting peptides guiding the formulation of novel and advanced therapeutic agents. However, there is not a single article that talks about various peptide design approaches i.e., in-silico and in-vitro along with their applications and strategies to improve their efficacy. In this review, we try to bring different aspects of peptide-based therapeutics under one article with a clear focus to cover the missing links in the literature. This review draws emphasis on various in-silico approaches and modification-based peptide design strategies. It also highlights the recent progress made in peptide delivery methods important for their enhanced clinical efficacy. The article would provide a bird's-eye view to researchers aiming to develop peptides with therapeutic applications. Graphical Abstract
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Affiliation(s)
- Panchali Barman
- Institute of Forensic Science and Criminology (UIEAST), Panjab University, Sector 14, Chandigarh, 160014 India
| | - Shubhi Joshi
- Energy Research Centre, Panjab University, Sector 14, Chandigarh, 160014 India
| | - Sheetal Sharma
- Department of Biophysics, Panjab University, Sector 25, Chandigarh, U.T 160014 India
| | - Simran Preet
- Department of Biophysics, Panjab University, Sector 25, Chandigarh, U.T 160014 India
| | - Shweta Sharma
- Institute of Forensic Science and Criminology (UIEAST), Panjab University, Sector 14, Chandigarh, 160014 India
| | - Avneet Saini
- Department of Biophysics, Panjab University, Sector 25, Chandigarh, U.T 160014 India
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Li S, Li Y, Liu Y, Wu Y, Wang Q, Jin L, Zhang D. Therapeutic Peptides for Treatment of Lung Diseases: Infection, Fibrosis, and Cancer. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24108642. [PMID: 37239989 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24108642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2023] [Revised: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Various lung diseases endanger people's health. Side effects and pharmaceutical resistance complicate the treatment of acute lung injury, pulmonary fibrosis, and lung cancer, necessitating the development of novel treatments. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are considered to serve as a viable alternative to conventional antibiotics. These peptides exhibit a broad antibacterial activity spectrum as well as immunomodulatory properties. Previous studies have shown that therapeutic peptides including AMPs had remarkable impacts on animal and cell models of acute lung injury, pulmonary fibrosis, and lung cancer. The purpose of this paper is to outline the potential curative effects and mechanisms of peptides in the three types of lung diseases mentioned above, which may be used as a therapeutic strategy in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shujiao Li
- School of Life Sciences, Liaoning University, Shenyang 110036, China
| | - Yuying Li
- School of Life Sciences, Liaoning University, Shenyang 110036, China
| | - Ying Liu
- Department of Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, National Health Commission of China, and Key Laboratory of Medical Cell Biology, Ministry of Education of China, China Medical University, Shenyang 110122, China
| | - Yifan Wu
- Department of Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, National Health Commission of China, and Key Laboratory of Medical Cell Biology, Ministry of Education of China, China Medical University, Shenyang 110122, China
| | - Qiuyu Wang
- School of Life Sciences, Liaoning University, Shenyang 110036, China
| | - Lili Jin
- School of Life Sciences, Liaoning University, Shenyang 110036, China
| | - Dianbao Zhang
- Department of Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, National Health Commission of China, and Key Laboratory of Medical Cell Biology, Ministry of Education of China, China Medical University, Shenyang 110122, China
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Mukherjee AG, Wanjari UR, Gopalakrishnan AV, Bradu P, Biswas A, Ganesan R, Renu K, Dey A, Vellingiri B, El Allali A, Alsamman AM, Zayed H, George Priya Doss C. Evolving strategies and application of proteins and peptide therapeutics in cancer treatment. Biomed Pharmacother 2023; 163:114832. [PMID: 37150032 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.114832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/30/2023] [Indexed: 05/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Several proteins and peptides have therapeutic potential and can be used for cancer therapy. By binding to cell surface receptors and other indicators uniquely linked with or overexpressed on tumors compared to healthy tissue, protein biologics enhance the active targeting of cancer cells, as opposed to the passive targeting of cells by conventional small-molecule chemotherapeutics. This study focuses on peptide medications that exist to slow or stop tumor growth and the spread of cancer, demonstrating the therapeutic potential of peptides in cancer treatment. As an alternative to standard chemotherapy, peptides that selectively kill cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue are developing. A mountain of clinical evidence supports the efficacy of peptide-based cancer vaccines. Since a single treatment technique may not be sufficient to produce favourable results in the fight against cancer, combination therapy is emerging as an effective option to generate synergistic benefits. One example of this new area is the use of anticancer peptides in combination with nonpeptidic cytotoxic drugs or the combination of immunotherapy with conventional therapies like radiation and chemotherapy. This review focuses on the different natural and synthetic peptides obtained and researched. Discoveries, manufacture, and modifications of peptide drugs, as well as their contemporary applications, are summarized in this review. We also discuss the benefits and difficulties of potential advances in therapeutic peptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anirban Goutam Mukherjee
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Biosciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore 632014, India
| | - Uddesh Ramesh Wanjari
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Biosciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore 632014, India
| | - Abilash Valsala Gopalakrishnan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Biosciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore 632014, India.
| | - Pragya Bradu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Biosciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore 632014, India
| | - Antara Biswas
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Biosciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore 632014, India
| | - Raja Ganesan
- Institute for Liver and Digestive Diseases, Hallym University, Chuncheon 24252, South Korea
| | - Kaviyarasi Renu
- Centre of Molecular Medicine and Diagnostics (COMManD), Department of Biochemistry, Saveetha Dental College & Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, Chennai 600077 Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Abhijit Dey
- Department of Life Sciences, Presidency University, Kolkata, West Bengal 700073, India
| | - Balachandar Vellingiri
- Stem cell and Regenerative Medicine/Translational Research, Department of Zoology, School of Basic Sciences, Central University of Punjab (CUPB), Bathinda 151401, Punjab, India
| | - Achraf El Allali
- African Genome Center, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Ben Guerir, Morocco.
| | - Alsamman M Alsamman
- Department of Genome Mapping, Molecular Genetics, and Genome Mapping Laboratory, Agricultural Genetic Engineering Research Institute, Giza, Egypt
| | - Hatem Zayed
- Department of Biomedical Sciences College of Health Sciences, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - C George Priya Doss
- Department of Integrative Biology, School of BioSciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India
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Ilu A, Chia MA, Cataldi TR, Labate CA, Ebiloma GU, Yusuf PO, Shuaibu MN, Balogun EO. Type-I like metalloproteinase in the venom of the West African saw-scaled carpet viper (Echis ocellatus) has anti-trypanosomal activity against African trypanosomes. Toxicon 2023; 229:107138. [PMID: 37127124 DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2023.107138] [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: 02/26/2023] [Revised: 04/26/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
African trypanosomiasis is an infectious disease caused by hemoparasites of the genus Trypanosoma and remains a major health problem in Africa - killing around 4000 people and animals worth an estimated $5 billion, annually. The absence of a vaccine and satisfactory drug against African trypanosomiasis (AT) necessitates the continued search for new chemotherapy options. Owing to the rich biochemical diversity in snake venom, it has recently become a source of therapeutic peptides that are being explored for the development of novel drug candidates for diverse ailments such as cancers and infectious diseases. To explore this, Echis ocellatus venom (EOV) was investigated for the presence of an anti-Trypanosoma factor, with the subsequent aim to isolate and identify it. Crude EOV was collected and tested in vitro on the bloodstream form (BSF) i.e. long and slender morphological form of Trypanosoma brucei and T. congolense. This initial testing was followed by a sequential anti-trypanosomal assay guided purification of EOV using ethanol precipitation, distillation, and ion exchange (IEX) chromatography to obtain the active trypanocidal component. The purified anti-Trypanosoma factor, estimated to be a 52-kDa protein on SDS-PAGE, was subjected to in-gel trypsin digestion and 2D RP HPLC-MS/MS to identify the protein. The anti-Trypanosoma factor was revealed to be a zinc-dependent metalloproteinase that contains the HEXXHXXGXXH adamalysin motif. This protein may provide a conceptual framework for the possible design of a safe and effective anti-trypanosomal peptide for the treatment of AT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ameh Ilu
- Department of Biochemistry, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria; Africa Centre of Excellence for Neglected Tropical Diseases and Forensic Biotechnology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
| | - Mathias A Chia
- Department of Botany, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
| | - Thais R Cataldi
- Department of Genetics, Laboratório Multiusuários Centralizado de Genômica Funcional Aplicada à Agropecuária e Agroenergia, University of Sao Paulo, Piracicaba, Brazil
| | - Carlos A Labate
- Department of Genetics, Laboratório Multiusuários Centralizado de Genômica Funcional Aplicada à Agropecuária e Agroenergia, University of Sao Paulo, Piracicaba, Brazil
| | - Godwin U Ebiloma
- School of Health & Life Sciences, Teesside University, Middlesbrough, United Kingdom
| | - Peter O Yusuf
- Department of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
| | - Mohammed N Shuaibu
- Department of Biochemistry, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria; Africa Centre of Excellence for Neglected Tropical Diseases and Forensic Biotechnology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria; Centre for Biotechnology Research and Training, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
| | - Emmanuel O Balogun
- Department of Biochemistry, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria; Africa Centre of Excellence for Neglected Tropical Diseases and Forensic Biotechnology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria; Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan; Center for Discovery and Innovation in Parasitic Diseases, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA.
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Thakkar R, Upreti D, Ishiguro S, Tamura M, Comer J. Computational design of a cyclic peptide that inhibits the CTLA4 immune checkpoint. RSC Med Chem 2023; 14:658-670. [PMID: 37122540 PMCID: PMC10131585 DOI: 10.1039/d2md00409g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Proteins involved in immune checkpoint pathways, such as CTLA4, PD1, and PD-L1, have become important targets for cancer immunotherapy; however, development of small molecule drugs targeting these pathways has proven difficult due to the nature of their protein-protein interfaces. Here, using a hierarchy of computational techniques, we design a cyclic peptide that binds CTLA4 and follow this with experimental verification of binding and biological activity, using bio-layer interferometry, cell culture, and a mouse tumor model. Beginning from a template excised from the X-ray structure of the CTLA4:B7-2 complex, we generate several peptide sequences using flexible docking and modeling steps. These peptides are cyclized head-to-tail to improve structural and proteolytic stability and screened using molecular dynamics simulation and MM-GBSA calculation. The standard binding free energies for shortlisted peptides are then calculated in explicit-solvent simulation using a rigorous multistep technique. The most promising peptide, cyc(EIDTVLTPTGWVAKRYS), yields the standard free energy -6.6 ± 3.5 kcal mol-1, which corresponds to a dissociation constant of ∼15 μmol L-1. The binding affinity of this peptide for CTLA4 is measured experimentally (31 ± 4 μmol L-1) using bio-layer interferometry. Treatment with this peptide inhibited tumor growth in a co-culture of Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cells and antigen primed T cells, as well as in mice with an orthotropic Lewis lung carcinoma allograft model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ravindra Thakkar
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University 1620 Denison Avenue Manhattan Kansas USA +1 785 532 6311
| | - Deepa Upreti
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University 1620 Denison Avenue Manhattan Kansas USA +1 785 532 6311
| | - Susumu Ishiguro
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University 1620 Denison Avenue Manhattan Kansas USA +1 785 532 6311
| | - Masaaki Tamura
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University 1620 Denison Avenue Manhattan Kansas USA +1 785 532 6311
| | - Jeffrey Comer
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University 1620 Denison Avenue Manhattan Kansas USA +1 785 532 6311
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Guan X, Li Z, Geng X, Lei Z, Karakoti A, Wu T, Kumar P, Yi J, Vinu A. Emerging Trends of Carbon-Based Quantum Dots: Nanoarchitectonics and Applications. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2023; 19:e2207181. [PMID: 36693792 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202207181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Carbon-based quantum dots (QDs) have emerged as a fascinating class of advanced materials with a unique combination of optoelectronic, biocompatible, and catalytic characteristics, apt for a plethora of applications ranging from electronic to photoelectrochemical devices. Recent research works have established carbon-based QDs for those frontline applications through improvements in materials design, processing, and device stability. This review broadly presents the recent progress in the synthesis of carbon-based QDs, including carbon QDs, graphene QDs, graphitic carbon nitride QDs and their heterostructures, as well as their salient applications. The synthesis methods of carbon-based QDs are first introduced, followed by an extensive discussion of the dependence of the device performance on the intrinsic properties and nanostructures of carbon-based QDs, aiming to present the general strategies for device designing with optimal performance. Furthermore, diverse applications of carbon-based QDs are presented, with an emphasis on the relationship between band alignment, charge transfer, and performance improvement. Among the applications discussed in this review, much focus is given to photo and electrocatalytic, energy storage and conversion, and bioapplications, which pose a grand challenge for rational materials and device designs. Finally, a summary is presented, and existing challenges and future directions are elaborated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinwei Guan
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - Zhixuan Li
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Xun Geng
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Zhihao Lei
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Ajay Karakoti
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Tom Wu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
- Department of Applied Physics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, 999077, P. R. China
| | - Prashant Kumar
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Jiabao Yi
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Ajayan Vinu
- Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia
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Ciulla MG, Gelain F. Structure-activity relationships of antibacterial peptides. Microb Biotechnol 2023; 16:757-777. [PMID: 36705032 PMCID: PMC10034643 DOI: 10.1111/1751-7915.14213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 01/01/2023] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides play a crucial role in innate immunity, whose components are mainly peptide-based molecules with antibacterial properties. Indeed, the exploration of the immune system over the past 40 years has revealed a number of natural peptides playing a pivotal role in the defence mechanisms of vertebrates and invertebrates, including amphibians, insects, and mammalians. This review provides a discussion regarding the antibacterial mechanisms of peptide-based agents and their structure-activity relationships (SARs) with the aim of describing a topic that is not yet fully explored. Some growing evidence suggests that innate immunity should be strongly considered for the development of novel antibiotic peptide-based libraries. Also, due to the constantly rising concern of antibiotic resistance, the development of new antibiotic drugs is becoming a priority of global importance. Hence, the study and the understanding of defence phenomena occurring in the immune system may inspire the development of novel antibiotic compound libraries and set the stage to overcome drug-resistant pathogens. Here, we provide an overview of the importance of peptide-based antibacterial sources, focusing on accurately selected molecular structures, their SARs including recently introduced modifications, their latest biotechnology applications, and their potential against multi-drug resistant pathogens. Last, we provide cues to describe how antibacterial peptides show a better scope of action selectivity than several anti-infective agents, which are characterized by non-selective activities and non-targeted actions toward pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Gessica Ciulla
- Institute for Stem-Cell Biology, Regenerative Medicine and Innovative Therapies, IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
- Center for Nanomedicine and Tissue Engineering (CNTE), ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Gelain
- Institute for Stem-Cell Biology, Regenerative Medicine and Innovative Therapies, IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
- Center for Nanomedicine and Tissue Engineering (CNTE), ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, Milan, Italy
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Quazi MZ, Park N. DNA Hydrogel-Based Nanocomplexes with Cancer-Targeted Delivery and Light-Triggered Peptide Drug Release for Cancer-Specific Therapeutics. Biomacromolecules 2023; 24:2127-2137. [PMID: 37002534 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biomac.3c00021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2023]
Abstract
Cancer therapies based on chemotherapeutic drug delive ries have been the most facilitated studies. Recently, peptide drugs have emerged as anticancer drugs due to their less immunogenicity and lower production costs compared with other synthetics. However, still, the side effects of these chemotherapeutics on healthy tissues have been a great concern to deal with, and these side effects are usually caused by off-targeted delivery and unwanted leakage. In addition, peptides are easily degraded by enzyme attacks during delivery. To address these concerns, here, we developed a robust, cancer-specific peptide drug delivery system with negligible cytotoxicity in in vitro. A peptide drug delivery vehicle (Dgel-PD-AuNP-YNGRT) was constructed by stepwise functionalization on a nanoscale DNA hydrogel (Dgel). A cell-penetrating anticancer peptide drug, Buforin IIb, was loaded within the Dgel network via electrostatic attraction followed by AuNP assembly. The AuNPs were employed as photothermal reagents for light-triggered peptide drug release. An additional peptide, including a cancer-targeting YNGRT sequence, was also bound on the Dgel for cancer-cell-targeted delivery. According to the results obtained from the studies employing cancer cells as well as normal cells, Dgel-PD-AuNP-YNGRT nanocomplexes could be delivered specifically to cancer cells, activated by light illumination, and release anticancer peptide drugs to kill cancer cells with no cytotoxicity and negligible hazardous effect on normal cell lines. The obtained cell viability assay suggests that at a high intensity (15 W/cm2), photothermally triggered released peptide drug has shown up to 44% higher kill than only peptide drug treatments in cancer cells. Similarly, the Bradford assay demonstrated that up to 90% of peptide drugs were released with our engineered Dgel-PD-AuNP-YNGRT nanocomplex. The Dgel-PD-AuNP-YNGRT nanocomplex may serve as an ideal anticancer peptide drug delivery platform for safe, cancer-specific targeting and efficient peptide drug delivery in cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohzibudin Z. Quazi
- Department of Chemistry and The Natural Science Research Institute, 116 Myongji-ro, Yongin, Gyeonggi-do 17058, Republic of Korea
| | - Nokyoung Park
- Department of Chemistry and The Natural Science Research Institute, 116 Myongji-ro, Yongin, Gyeonggi-do 17058, Republic of Korea
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Park J, Moon SK, Lee C. N-methylsansalvamide elicits antitumor effects in colon cancer cells in vitro and in vivo by regulating proliferation, apoptosis, and metastatic capacity. Front Pharmacol 2023; 14:1146966. [PMID: 37007044 PMCID: PMC10060634 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1146966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
N-methylsansalvamide (MSSV), a cyclic pentadepsipeptide, was obtained from a strain of Fusarium solani f. radicicola. The current study investigated the anti-colorectal cancer effect of MSSV. MSSV exhibited the inhibition of the proliferation in HCT116 cells via induction of G0/G1 cell cycle arrest by downregulating CDK 2, CDK6, cyclin D, and cyclin E, and upregulating p21WAF1 and p27KIP1. Decreased phosphorylation of AKT was observed in MSSV-treated cells. Moreover, MSSV treatment induced caspase-mediated apoptosis through elevating the level of cleaved caspase 3, cleaved PARP, cleaved caspase 9, and pro-apoptotic Bax. MSSV revealed the declined MMP-9 level mediated by reduction in the binding activity of AP-1, Sp-1, and NF-κB motifs, which led to the migration and invasion of HCT116 cells. In vitro metabolism with rat liver S9 fractions was performed to examine the effect of MSSV metabolites. The metabolic process enhanced the inhibitory effect of MSSV on the HCT116 cell proliferation via decline of cyclin D1 expression and AKT phosphorylation. Finally, oral administration of MSSV inhibited the tumor growth of HCT116 xenograft mice. These results suggest that MSSV is a potential anti-tumor agent in colorectal cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juhee Park
- Food Analysis Research Center, Food Industry Research Division, Korea Food Research Institute, Wanju, Republic of Korea
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, Republic of Korea
| | - Sung-Kwon Moon
- Department of Food and Nutrition, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, Republic of Korea
- *Correspondence: Sung-Kwon Moon, ; Chan Lee,
| | - Chan Lee
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, Republic of Korea
- *Correspondence: Sung-Kwon Moon, ; Chan Lee,
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42
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An Updated Review on Recent Advances in the Usage of Novel Therapeutic Peptides for Breast Cancer Treatment. Int J Pept Res Ther 2023. [DOI: 10.1007/s10989-023-10503-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/06/2023]
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Ball HL, Said H, Chapman K, Fu R, Xiong Y, Burk JA, Rosenbaum D, Veneziano R, Cotten ML. Orexin A, an amphipathic α-helical neuropeptide involved in pleiotropic functions in the nervous and immune systems: Synthetic approach and biophysical studies of the membrane-bound state. Biophys Chem 2023; 297:107007. [PMID: 37037119 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpc.2023.107007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 03/11/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023]
Abstract
This research reports on the membrane interactions of orexin A (OXA), an α-helical and amphipathic neuropeptide that contains 33 residues and two disulfide bonds in the N-terminal region. OXA, which activates the orexins 1 and 2 receptors in neural and immune cell membranes, has essential pleiotropic physiological effects, including at the levels of arousal, sleep/wakefulness, energy balance, neuroprotection, lipid signaling, the inflammatory response, and pain. As a result, the orexin system has become a prominent target to treat diseases such as sleep disorders, drug addiction, and inflammation. While the high-resolution structure of OXA has been investigated in water and bound to micelles, there is a lack of information about its conformation bound to phospholipid membranes and its receptors. NMR is a powerful method to investigate peptide structures in a membrane environment. To facilitate the NMR structural studies of OXA exposed to membranes, we present a novel synthetic scheme, leading to the production of isotopically-labeled material at high purity. A receptor activation assay shows that the 15N-labeled peptide is biologically active. Biophysical studies are performed using surface plasmon resonance, circular dichroism, and NMR to investigate the interactions of OXA with phospholipid bilayers. The results demonstrate a strong interaction between the peptide and phospholipids, an increase in α-helical content upon membrane binding, and an in-plane orientation of the C-terminal region critical to function. This new knowledge about structure-activity relationships in OXA could inspire the design of novel therapeutics that leverage the anti-inflammatory and neuro-protective functions of OXA, and therefore could help address neuroinflammation, a major issue associated with neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haydn L Ball
- Department of Chemistry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Hooda Said
- Department of Bioengineering, College of Engineering and Computing, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
| | - Karen Chapman
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Riqiang Fu
- National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Tallahassee, FL 32310, USA
| | - Yawei Xiong
- Department of Applied Science, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
| | - Joshua A Burk
- Department of Psychological Sciences, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
| | - Daniel Rosenbaum
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Remi Veneziano
- Department of Bioengineering, College of Engineering and Computing, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
| | - Myriam L Cotten
- Department of Applied Science, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA.
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Lambo DJ, Lebedenko CG, McCallum PA, Banerjee IA. Molecular dynamics, MMGBSA, and docking studies of natural products conjugated to tumor-targeted peptide for targeting BRAF V600E and MERTK receptors. Mol Divers 2023; 27:389-423. [PMID: 35505173 DOI: 10.1007/s11030-022-10430-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Recent studies have revealed that MERTK and BRAF V600E receptors have been found to be over-expressed in several types of cancers including melanoma, making these receptors targets for drug design. In this study, we have designed novel peptide conjugates with the natural products vanillic acid, thiazole-2-carboxylic acid, cinnamic acid, theanine, and protocatechuic acid. Each of these compounds was conjugated with the tumor targeting peptide sequence TAASGVRSMH, known to bind to NG2 and target tumor neovasculature. We examined their binding affinities and stability with MERTK and BRAF V600E receptors using molecular docking and molecular dynamics studies. Compared to the neat compounds, the peptide conjugates displayed higher binding affinity toward both receptors. In the case of MERTK, the most stable complexes were formed with di-theaninate-peptide, vanillate-peptide, and thiazole-2-amido peptide conjugates and binding occurred in the hinge region. Additionally, it was discovered that the peptide alone also had high binding ability and stability with the MERTK receptor. In the case of BRAF V600E, the peptide conjugates of protocatechuate, vanillate and thiazole-2-amido peptide conjugates showed the formation of the most stable complexes and binding occurred in the ATP binding cleft. Further analysis revealed that the number of hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions played a critical role in enhanced stability of the complexes. Docking studies also revealed that binding affinities for NG2 were similar to MERTK and higher for BRAF V600E. MMGBSA studies of the trajectories revealed that the protocatechuate-peptide conjugate showed the highest binding energy with BRAF V600E while the peptide-TAASGVRSMH showed the highest binding energy with MERTK. ADME studies revealed that each of the compounds showed medium to high permeability toward MDCK cells and were not hERG blockers. Furthermore, the conjugates were not CYP inhibitors or substrates, but they were found to be Pgp substrates. Our results indicated that the protocatechuate-TAASGVRSMH, thiazole-2-amido-TAASGVRSMH, and vanillate-TAASGVRSMH conjugates may be furthered developed for in vitro and in vivo studies as novel tumor targeting compounds for tumor cells over-expressing BRAF V600E, while di-theaninate-amido-TAASGVRSMH and thiazole-2-amido-TAASGVRSMH conjugates may be developed for targeting MERTK receptors. These studies provide insight into the molecular interactions of natural product-peptide conjugates and their potential for binding to and targeting MERTK and BRAF V600E receptors in developing new therapeutics for targeting cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dominic J Lambo
- Department of Chemistry, Fordham University, 441 E. Fordham Rd, Bronx, NY, 10458, USA
| | - Charlotta G Lebedenko
- Department of Chemistry, Fordham University, 441 E. Fordham Rd, Bronx, NY, 10458, USA
| | - Paige A McCallum
- Department of Chemistry, Fordham University, 441 E. Fordham Rd, Bronx, NY, 10458, USA
| | - Ipsita A Banerjee
- Department of Chemistry, Fordham University, 441 E. Fordham Rd, Bronx, NY, 10458, USA.
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Xu Q, Wang F, Jiao W, Zhang M, Xing G, Feng H, Sun X, Hu M, Zhang G. Virtual Screening-Based Peptides Targeting Spike Protein to Inhibit Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (PEDV) Infection. Viruses 2023; 15:v15020381. [PMID: 36851595 PMCID: PMC9965349 DOI: 10.3390/v15020381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2022] [Revised: 01/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Due to the rapid mutation of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), existing vaccines cannot provide sufficient immune protection for pigs. Therefore, it is urgent to design the affinity peptides for the prevention and control of this disease. In this study, we made use of a molecular docking technology for virtual screening of affinity peptides that specifically recognized the PEDV S1 C-terminal domain (CTD) protein for the first time. Experimentally, the affinity, cross-reactivity and sensitivity of the peptides were identified by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) test, separately. Subsequently, Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8), quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), Western blot and indirect immunofluorescence were used to further study the antiviral effect of different concentrations of peptide 110766 in PEDV. Our results showed that the P/N value of peptide 110766 at 450 nm reached 167, with a KD value of 216 nM. The cytotoxic test indicated that peptide 110766 was not toxic to vero cells. Results of the absolute quantitative PCR revealed that different concentrations (3.125 μM, 6.25 μM, 12.5 μM, 25 μM, 50 μM, 100 μM, 200 μM) of peptide 110766 could significantly reduce the viral load of PEDV compared with the virus group (p < 0.0001). Similarly, results of Western blot and indirect immunofluorescence also suggested that the antiviral effect of peptide 110766 at 3.125 is still significant. Based on the above research, high-affinity peptide 110766 binding to the PEDV S1-CTD protein was attained by a molecular docking technology. Therefore, designing, screening, and identifying affinity peptides can provide a new method for the development of antiviral drugs for PEDV.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Xu
- Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yang ling, Xianyang 712100, China
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Fangyu Wang
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Wenqiang Jiao
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Mengting Zhang
- Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yang ling, Xianyang 712100, China
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Guangxu Xing
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Hua Feng
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Xuefeng Sun
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Man Hu
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Gaiping Zhang
- Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yang ling, Xianyang 712100, China
- Key Laboratory for Animal Immunology, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 116# Huayuan Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China
- Longhu Modern Immunology Laboratory, Zhengzhou 450046, China
- School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center for the Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
- Correspondence:
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Zhang Y, Wang C, Zhang W, Li X. Bioactive peptides for anticancer therapies. BIOMATERIALS TRANSLATIONAL 2023; 4:5-17. [PMID: 37206303 PMCID: PMC10189813 DOI: 10.12336/biomatertransl.2023.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2022] [Revised: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Cancer is a serious concern in public health worldwide. Numerous modalities including surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, have been used for cancer therapies in clinic. Despite progress in anticancer therapies, the usage of these methods for cancer treatment is often related to deleterious side effects and multidrug resistance of conventional anticancer drugs, which have prompted the development of novel therapeutic methods. Anticancer peptides (ACPs), derived from naturally occurring and modified peptides, have received great attention in these years and emerge as novel therapeutic and diagnostic candidates for cancer therapies, because of several advantages over the current treatment modalities. In this review, the classification and properties of ACPs, the mode of action and mechanism of membrane disruption, as well as the natural sources of bioactive peptides with anticancer activities were summarised. Because of their high efficacy for inducing cancer cell death, certain ACPs have been developed to work as drugs and vaccines, evaluated in varied phases of clinical trials. We expect that this summary could facilitate the understanding and design of ACPs with increased specificity and toxicity towards malignant cells and with reduced side effects to normal cells.
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Sharma L, Bisht GS. Short Antimicrobial Peptides: Therapeutic Potential and Recent Advancements. Curr Pharm Des 2023; 29:3005-3017. [PMID: 38018196 DOI: 10.2174/0113816128248959231102114334] [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: 03/01/2023] [Revised: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
There has been a lot of interest in antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) as potential next-generation antibiotics. They are components of the innate immune system. AMPs have broad-spectrum action and are less prone to resistance development. They show potential applications in various fields, including medicine, agriculture, and the food industry. However, despite the good activity and safety profiles, AMPs have had difficulty finding success in the clinic due to their various limitations, such as production cost, proteolytic susceptibility, and oral bioavailability. To overcome these flaws, a number of solutions have been devised, one of which is developing short antimicrobial peptides. Short antimicrobial peptides do have an advantage over longer peptides as they are more stable and do not collapse during absorption. They have generated a lot of interest because of their evolutionary success and advantageous properties, such as low molecular weight, selective targets, cell or organelles with minimal toxicity, and enormous therapeutic potential. This article provides an overview of the development of short antimicrobial peptides with an emphasis on those with ≤ 30 amino acid residues as a potential therapeutic agent to fight drug-resistant microorganisms. It also emphasizes their applications in many fields and discusses their current state in clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lalita Sharma
- Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Gopal Singh Bisht
- Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Himachal Pradesh, India
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Li J, Cao F, Gao Q, Liang K, Tang Y. Improving diagnosis accuracy of non-small cell lung carcinoma on noisy data by adaptive group lasso regularized multinomial regression. Biomed Signal Process Control 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bspc.2022.104148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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49
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Liang Y, Ma X. iACP-GE: accurate identification of anticancer peptides by using gradient boosting decision tree and extra tree. SAR AND QSAR IN ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023; 34:1-19. [PMID: 36562289 DOI: 10.1080/1062936x.2022.2160011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Cancer is one of the main diseases threatening human life, accounting for millions of deaths around the world each year. Traditional physical and chemical methods for cancer treatment are extremely time-consuming, lab-intensive, expensive, inefficient and difficult to be applied in a high-throughput way. Hence, it is an urgent task to develop automated computational methods to enable fast and accurate identification of anticancer peptides (ACPs). In this paper, we develop a novel model named iACP-GE to identify ACPs. Multi-features are extracted by using binary encoding, enhanced grouped amino acid composition and BLOSUM62 encoding based on the N5C5 sequence, as well as detrended forward moving-average auto-cross correlation analysis based on physicochemical properties of 20 natural amino acids. Thus, 835 features are obtained for each sample, in order to avoid information redundancy, gradient boosting decision tree was adopted as the feature selection strategy. Then, the optimal feature subset is input to the extra tree classifier. The accuracies of ACP740 and ACP240 datasets with the 5-fold cross-validation were 90.54% and 91.25%, respectively. Experimental results indicate that iACP-GE significantly outperforms several existing models on ACP740 and ACP240 datasets and can be used as an effective tool for the identification of ACPs. The datasets and source codes for iACP-GE are available at https://github.com/yunyunliang88/iACP-GE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Liang
- School of Science, Xi'an Polytechnic University, Xi'an, P. R. China
| | - X Ma
- School of Science, Xi'an Polytechnic University, Xi'an, P. R. China
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50
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Bicak B, Kecel Gunduz S, Budama Kilinc Y, Imhof P, Gok B, Akman G, Ozel AE. Structural, spectroscopic, in silico, in vitro and DNA binding evaluations of tyrosyl-lysyl-threonine. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2022; 40:12148-12164. [PMID: 34463215 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2021.1968499] [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] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The main objective of the present study is to investigate the molecular structure and DNA binding interaction of the tyrosyl-lysyl-threonine (YKT) tripeptide, which has anticancer, antioxidant and analgesic properties, using various in silico (MD, QM, molecular docking), spectroscopic (UV, FT-IR, FTIR-ATR, Raman, gel electrophoresis) and in vitro (MCF-7 and HeLa cancer cell lines and BEAS-2B cell line) methods. The optimized geometry, vibrational wavenumbers, molecular electrostatic potential (MEP), natural bond orbital (NBO) and HOMO-LUMO (highest occupied molecular orbital- lowest unoccupied molecular orbital) calculations were carried out with Density Functional Theory (DFT) using B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) basis set to indicate conformational, vibrational and intramolecular charge transfer characteristics. The assignment of all fundamental theoretical vibration wavenumbers was performed using potential energy distribution analysis (PED). DNA is a significant pharmacological target of drugs in several diseases such as cancer. For this reason, molecular docking calculation was used to elucidate the binding and interaction between YKT tripeptide and DNA at the atomic level. Also, the dynamic behaviors of YKT and DNA was examined using MD simulations. Besides, the interaction of YKT with DNA was experimentally examined by UV titration method and agarose gel electrophoresis method. Experimental results showed that YKT was intercalatively and electrostatically bound to CT-DNA (Calf thymus DNA) and cleavage pBR322 DNA in the presence of H2O2. The pharmacokinetic profile of YKT was also obtained. Cytotoxic effect of YKT was evaluated on MCF-7, HeLa and BEAS-2B cell lines. Hence, these studies about YKT tripeptide may pave the way for the development of various cancer drugs. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bilge Bicak
- Institute of Graduate Studies in Sciences, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.,Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Serda Kecel Gunduz
- Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Yasemin Budama Kilinc
- Department of Bioengineering, Faculty of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Petra Imhof
- Computer Chemistry Center, Friedrich-Alexander University (FAU) Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Bahar Gok
- Graduate School of Natural and Applied Science, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Gizem Akman
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Ayşen E Ozel
- Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
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