Quantitative examination of the approximations in the monopole and dipole theories of intermolecular interactions

Anisotropic, Polarizable Molecular Mechanics Studies of Inter- and Intramolecular Interactions and Ligand-Macromolecule Complexes. A Bottom-Up Strategy

We present an overview of the SIBFA polarizable molecular mechanics procedure, which is formulated and calibrated on the basis of quantum chemistry (QC). It embodies nonclassical effects such as electrostatic penetration, exchange-polarization, and charge transfer. We address the issues of anisotropy, nonadditivity, and transferability by performing parallel QC computations on multimolecular complexes. These encompass multiply H-bonded complexes and polycoordinated complexes of divalent cations. Recent applications to the docking of inhibitors to Zn-metalloproteins are presented next, namely metallo-beta-lactamase, phosphomannoisomerase, and the nucleocapsid of the HIV-1 retrovirus. Finally, toward third-generation intermolecular potentials based on density fitting, we present the development of a novel methodology, the Gaussian electrostatic model (GEM), which relies on ab initio-derived fragment electron densities to compute the components of the total interaction energy. As GEM offers the possibility of a continuous electrostatic model going from distributed multipoles to densities, it allows an inclusion of short-range quantum effects in the molecular mechanics energies. The perspectives of an integrated SIBFA/GEM/QM procedure are discussed.

Polarization and bonding of the intrinsic characteristic contours of hydrogen and fluorine atoms of forming a hydrogen fluoride molecule based on anab initiostudy

The spatial changing feature of the shapes and sizes of the system consisted of one hydrogen atom and one fluorine atom of forming a hydrogen fluoride molecule is investigated. We give formalism of the potential acting on an electron in a molecule and derive its concrete expression in Hartree-Fock self-consistent molecular orbital theory including configuration interaction. The program of calculating the potential acting on an electron in a molecule is programmed and compiled in the framework of the MELD program package. We formulate briefly the approach of the molecular intrinsic characteristic contour (MICC) which is defined in terms of the classical turning points of electronic motion. The MICC for a molecular system is intrinsic and can be calculated by means of an ab initio CI method. Then, the polarization and bonding features of the intrinsic characteristic contours of hydrogen and fluorine atoms forming a hydrogen fluoride molecule are presented and discussed from ab initio calculations. Furthermore, electron density distribution as an added dimension has been demonstrated on the changing MICC and thus the vivid polarization and bonding features for a chemical process have been shown. It seems that at the early stage (internuclear distance Ind=5.0-20.0 a.u.) the fluorine atom gives more enthusiastic with the sensitive and expanded polarization to welcome coupling with the hydrogen atom while the latter has little response even "shy" with shrinking a bit its size at the beginning of putting the two atoms into a system and it is only around the critical point, the contact point (Ind=4.73 a.u.), that both of them stretch their hands and arms to meet and then fuse together.

Intramolecular interaction energies in model alanine and glycine tetrapeptides. Evaluation of anisotropy, polarization, and correlation effects. A parallel ab initio HF/MP2, DFT, and polarizable molecular mechanics study

An extension of the SIBFA polarizable molecular mechanics procedure to flexible oligopeptides is reported. The procedure is evaluated by computing the relative conformational energies, deltaE(conf), of the alanine tetrapeptide in 10 representative conformations, which were originally derived by Beachy et al. (J Am Chem Soc 1997, 119, 5908) to benchmark molecular mechanics procedures with respect to ab initio computations. In the present study, a particular emphasis is on the separable nature of the components of the energy and the particular impact of the polarization energy component on deltaE(conf). We perform comparisons with respect to single-point HF, DFT, LMP2, and MP2 computations done at the SIBFA-derived energy minima. Such comparisons are made first for the 10 conformers derived from phi/psi torsional angle energy-minimization (the rigid rotor approach), and, in a second step, after allowing additional relaxation of the C(alpha) centered valence angles. In both series of energy-minimization, the SIBFA deltaE(conf) compared best with the LMP2 results using the 6-311G** basis set, the rms being 1.3 kcal/mol. In the absence of the polarization component, the rms is 3.5 kcal/mol. In both series of minimizations, the magnitudes of deltaE(conf), computed as differences with respect to the most stable conformer taken as energy zero, decrease along the series: HF > DFT > LMP2 > SIBFA > MP2, indicative of increasing stabilization of the most highly folded conformers.

Theoretical study of the self-association of amphotericin B

The aim of this present work is the study of self-association of amphotericin B (AmB) at a molecular levels, because of its importance in the toxicity of this antibiotic. Molecular mechanics calculations have been performed considering different conformations of the polar head of AmB, the two most stable ones we have determined (B and C) and the one issued from the X-ray data. Our calculations have shown that both head-to-head and head-to-tail stable dimers were found within an energy range between -30 and -40 kcal/mol, the very stable head-to-head dimer with the polar head within C conformation having an energy of -46.8 kcal/mol. We have shown that both electrostatic and Van der Waals terms contribute to the total interaction energy but their relative weight depends on the conformation of the polar head and on the head-to-head and head-to-tail structures involved in the dimer. Thus the electrostatic contribution does no particularly stabilize the head-to-tail dimer. Furthermore an explicit calculation of the dipole moment in the ground state of AmB has disproved the current assertion upon the greatest stabilization of head-to-tail dimers by electrostatic dipole-dipole interaction. Among all the dimers we have calculated, we have found a group denoted G1 with a geometrical structure consistent with absorption data, namely a blue-shift of the dimer main absorption band with regard to the monomer one. In this group G1 we have found two isoenergetic (-38.8 kcal/mol) very stable head-to-head and head-to-tail dimers. We have found that, as a rule, the self-association of AmB in dimers is more favourable than the complexation with the cholesterol and, in a less extent, with the ergosterol. It seems that these features could be also observed for some trimers, that we have roughly calculated.