1
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Jain AN, Brueckner AC, Jorge C, Cleves AE, Khandelwal P, Cortes JC, Mueller L. Complex peptide macrocycle optimization: combining NMR restraints with conformational analysis to guide structure-based and ligand-based design. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2023; 37:519-535. [PMID: 37535171 PMCID: PMC10505130 DOI: 10.1007/s10822-023-00524-2] [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] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023]
Abstract
Systematic optimization of large macrocyclic peptide ligands is a serious challenge. Here, we describe an approach for lead-optimization using the PD-1/PD-L1 system as a retrospective example of moving from initial lead compound to clinical candidate. We show how conformational restraints can be derived by exploiting NMR data to identify low-energy solution ensembles of a lead compound. Such restraints can be used to focus conformational search for analogs in order to accurately predict bound ligand poses through molecular docking and thereby estimate ligand strain and protein-ligand intermolecular binding energy. We also describe an analogous ligand-based approach that employs molecular similarity optimization to predict bound poses. Both approaches are shown to be effective for prioritizing lead-compound analogs. Surprisingly, relatively small ligand modifications, which may have minimal effects on predicted bound pose or intermolecular interactions, often lead to large changes in estimated strain that have dominating effects on overall binding energy estimates. Effective macrocyclic conformational search is crucial, whether in the context of NMR-based restraints, X-ray ligand refinement, partial torsional restraint for docking/ligand-similarity calculations or agnostic search for nominal global minima. Lead optimization for peptidic macrocycles can be made more productive using a multi-disciplinary approach that combines biophysical data with practical and efficient computational methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ajay N Jain
- Research and Development, BioPharmics LLC, Sonoma County, CA, USA.
| | | | | | - Ann E Cleves
- Research and Development, BioPharmics LLC, Sonoma County, CA, USA
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2
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Jain AN, Brueckner AC, Cleves AE, Reibarkh M, Sherer EC. A Distributional Model of Bound Ligand Conformational Strain: From Small Molecules up to Large Peptidic Macrocycles. J Med Chem 2023; 66:1955-1971. [PMID: 36701387 PMCID: PMC9923749 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c01744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
The internal conformational strain incurred by ligands upon binding a target site has a critical impact on binding affinity, and expectations about the magnitude of ligand strain guide conformational search protocols. Estimates for bound ligand strain begin with modeled ligand atomic coordinates from X-ray co-crystal structures. By deriving low-energy conformational ensembles to fit X-ray diffraction data, calculated strain energies are substantially reduced compared with prior approaches. We show that the distribution of expected global strain energy values is dependent on molecular size in a superlinear manner. The distribution of strain energy follows a rectified normal distribution whose mean and variance are related to conformational complexity. The modeled strain distribution closely matches calculated strain values from experimental data comprising over 3000 protein-ligand complexes. The distributional model has direct implications for conformational search protocols as well as for directions in molecular design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ajay N. Jain
- Research
& Development, BioPharmics LLC, Sonoma County, California95404, United States,
| | - Alexander C. Brueckner
- Molecular
Structure & Design, Bristol Myers Squibb, Princeton, New Jersey08543, United States
| | - Ann E. Cleves
- Research
& Development, BioPharmics LLC, Sonoma County, California95404, United States
| | - Mikhail Reibarkh
- Analytical
Research and Development, Merck & Co.
Inc., Rahway, New Jersey07065, United States
| | - Edward C. Sherer
- Analytical
Research and Development, Merck & Co.
Inc., Rahway, New Jersey07065, United States,
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3
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Ewert J, Heintze L, Jordà-Redondo M, von Glasenapp JS, Nonell S, Bucher G, Peifer C, Herges R. Photoswitchable Diazocine-Based Estrogen Receptor Agonists: Stabilization of the Active Form inside the Receptor. J Am Chem Soc 2022; 144:15059-15071. [PMID: 35952371 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.2c03649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Photopharmacology is an emerging approach in drug design and pharmacological therapy. Light is used to switch a pharmacophore between a biologically inactive and an active isomer with high spatiotemporal resolution at the site of illness, thus potentially avoiding side effects in neighboring healthy tissue. The most frequently used strategy to design a photoswitchable drug is to replace a suitable functional group in a known bioactive molecule with azobenzene. Our strategy is different in that the photoswitch moiety is closer to the drug's scaffold. Docking studies reveal a very high structural similarity of natural 17β-estradiol and the E isomers of dihydroxy diazocines, but not their Z isomers, respectively. Seven dihydroxy diazocines were synthesized and subjected to a biological estrogen reporter gene assay. Four derivatives exhibit distinct estrogenic activity after irradiation with violet light, which can be shut off with green light. Most remarkably, the photogenerated, active E form of one of the active compounds isomerizes back to the inactive Z form with a half-life of merely several milliseconds in water, but nevertheless is active for more than 3 h in the presence of the estrogen receptor. The results suggest a significant local impact of the ligand-receptor complex toward back-isomerization. Thus, drugs that are active when bound but lose their activity immediately after leaving the receptor could be of great pharmacological value because they strongly increase target specificity. Moreover, the drugs are released into the environment in their inactive form. The latter argument is particularly important for drugs that act as endocrine disruptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Ewert
- Otto-Diels-Institute of Organic Chemistry, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
| | - Linda Heintze
- Institute of Pharmacy, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | | | - Jan-Simon von Glasenapp
- Otto-Diels-Institute of Organic Chemistry, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
| | - Santi Nonell
- Institut Químic de Sarrià, Universitat Ramon Llull, 08017 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Götz Bucher
- School of Chemistry, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, U. K
| | - Christian Peifer
- Institute of Pharmacy, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Rainer Herges
- Otto-Diels-Institute of Organic Chemistry, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
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4
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Anti-diabetic potential, crystal structure, molecular docking, DFT, and optical-electrochemical studies of new dimethyl and diethyl carbamoyl-N, N′-disubstituted based thioureas. J Mol Struct 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.molstruc.2021.132207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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5
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Brown BP, Vu O, Geanes AR, Kothiwale S, Butkiewicz M, Lowe EW, Mueller R, Pape R, Mendenhall J, Meiler J. Introduction to the BioChemical Library (BCL): An Application-Based Open-Source Toolkit for Integrated Cheminformatics and Machine Learning in Computer-Aided Drug Discovery. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:833099. [PMID: 35264967 PMCID: PMC8899505 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.833099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The BioChemical Library (BCL) cheminformatics toolkit is an application-based academic open-source software package designed to integrate traditional small molecule cheminformatics tools with machine learning-based quantitative structure-activity/property relationship (QSAR/QSPR) modeling. In this pedagogical article we provide a detailed introduction to core BCL cheminformatics functionality, showing how traditional tasks (e.g., computing chemical properties, estimating druglikeness) can be readily combined with machine learning. In addition, we have included multiple examples covering areas of advanced use, such as reaction-based library design. We anticipate that this manuscript will be a valuable resource for researchers in computer-aided drug discovery looking to integrate modular cheminformatics and machine learning tools into their pipelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin P. Brown
- Chemical and Physical Biology Program, Medical Scientist Training Program, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- *Correspondence: Jens Meiler, ; Jeffrey Mendenhall, ; Benjamin P. Brown,
| | - Oanh Vu
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Alexander R. Geanes
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Sandeepkumar Kothiwale
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Mariusz Butkiewicz
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Edward W. Lowe
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Ralf Mueller
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Richard Pape
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Jeffrey Mendenhall
- Department of Chemistry, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- *Correspondence: Jens Meiler, ; Jeffrey Mendenhall, ; Benjamin P. Brown,
| | - Jens Meiler
- Department of Chemistry, Departments of Pharmacology and Biomedical Informatics, Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Institute for Drug Discovery, Leipzig University Medical School, Leipzig, Germany
- *Correspondence: Jens Meiler, ; Jeffrey Mendenhall, ; Benjamin P. Brown,
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6
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Foloppe N, Chen IJ. The reorganization energy of compounds upon binding to proteins, from dynamic and solvated bound and unbound states. Bioorg Med Chem 2021; 51:116464. [PMID: 34798378 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2021.116464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 09/26/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The intramolecular reorganization energy (ΔEReorg) of compounds upon binding to proteins is a component of the binding free energy, which has long received particular attention, for fundamental and practical reasons. Understanding ΔEReorg would benefit the science of molecular recognition and drug design. For instance, the tolerable strain energy of compounds upon binding has been elusive. Prior studies found some large ΔEReorg values (e.g. > 10 kcal/mol), received with skepticism since they imply excessive opposition to binding. Indeed, estimating ΔEReorg is technically difficult. Typically, ΔEReorg has been approached by taking two energy-minimized conformers representing the bound and unbound states, and subtracting their conformational energy. This is a drastic oversimplification, liable to conformational collapse of the unbound conformer. Instead, the present work applies extensive molecular dynamics (MD) and the modern OPLS3 force-field to simulate compounds bound and unbound states, in explicit solvent under physically relevant conditions. The thermalized unbound compounds populate multiple conformations, not reducible to one or a few energy-minimized conformers. The intramolecular energies in the bound and unbound states were averaged over pertinent conformational ensembles, and the reorganization enthalpy upon binding (ΔHReorg) deduced by subtraction. This was applied to 76 systems, including 43 approved drugs, carefully selected for i) the quality of the bioactive X-ray structures and ii) the diversity of the chemotypes, their properties and protein targets. It yielded comparatively low ΔHReorg values (median = 1.4 kcal/mol, mean = 3.0 kcal/mol). A new finding is the observation of negative ΔHReorg values. Indeed, reorganization energies do not have to oppose binding, e.g. when intramolecular interactions stabilize preferentially the bound state. Conversely, even with competing water molecules, intramolecular interactions can occur predominantly in the unbound compound, and be replaced by intermolecular counterparts upon protein binding. Such disruption of intramolecular interactions upon binding gives rise to occasional larger ΔHReorg values. Such counterintuitive larger ΔHReorg values may be rationalized as a redistribution of interactions upon binding, qualitatively compatible with binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Foloppe
- Vernalis (R&D) Ltd, Granta Park, Abington, Cambridge CB21 6GB, UK.
| | - I-Jen Chen
- Vernalis (R&D) Ltd, Granta Park, Abington, Cambridge CB21 6GB, UK.
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7
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Tong J, Zhao S. Large-Scale Analysis of Bioactive Ligand Conformational Strain Energy by Ab Initio Calculation. J Chem Inf Model 2021; 61:1180-1192. [PMID: 33630603 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.0c01197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Ligand conformational strain energy (LCSE) plays an important role in virtual screening and lead optimization. While various studies have provided insights into LCSE for small-molecule ligands in the Protein Data Bank (PDB), conclusions are inconsistent mainly due to small datasets, poor quality control of crystal structures, and molecular mechanics (MM) or low-level quantum mechanics (QM) calculations. Here, we built a high-quality dataset (LigBoundConf) of 8145 ligand-bound conformations from PDB crystal structures and calculated LCSE at the M062X-D3/ma-TZVPP (SMD)//M062X-D3/def2-SVP(SMD) level for each case in the dataset. The mean/median LCSE is 4.6/3.7 kcal/mol for 6672 successfully calculated cases, which is significantly lower than the estimates based on molecular mechanics in many previous analyses. Especially, when removing ligands with nonaromatic ring(s) that are prone to have large LCSEs due to electron density overfitting, the mean/median LCSE was reduced to 3.3/2.5 kcal/mol. We further reveal that LCSE is correlated with several ligand properties, including formal atomic charge, molecular weight, number of rotatable bonds, and number of hydrogen-bond donors and acceptors. In addition, our results show that although summation of torsion strains is a good approximation of LCSE for most cases, for a small fraction (about 6%) of our dataset, it underestimates LCSEs if ligands could form nonlocal intramolecular interactions in the unbound state. Taken together, our work provides a comprehensive profile of LCSE for ligands in PDB, which could help ligand conformation generation, ligand docking pose evaluation, and lead optimization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiahui Tong
- iHuman Institute, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China.,School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19A, Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China.,Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Suwen Zhao
- iHuman Institute, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China.,School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China
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8
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9
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Abstract
Molecular descriptors encode a variety of molecular representations for computer-assisted drug discovery. Here, we focus on the Weighted Holistic Atom Localization and Entity Shape (WHALES) descriptors, which were originally designed for scaffold hopping from natural products to synthetic molecules. WHALES descriptors capture molecular shape and partial charges simultaneously. We introduce the key aspects of the WHALES concept and provide a step-by-step guide on how to use these descriptors for virtual compound screening and scaffold hopping. The results presented can be reproduced by using the code freely available from URL: github.com/ETHmodlab/scaffold_hopping_whales .
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Grisoni
- Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, RETHINK, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Gisbert Schneider
- Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, RETHINK, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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10
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Lewis-Atwell T, Townsend PA, Grayson MN. Comparisons of different force fields in conformational analysis and searching of organic molecules: A review. Tetrahedron 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tet.2020.131865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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11
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Shen J, Elm J, Xie HB, Chen J, Niu J, Vehkamäki H. Structural Effects of Amines in Enhancing Methanesulfonic Acid-Driven New Particle Formation. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2020; 54:13498-13508. [PMID: 33091300 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c05358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Atmospheric amines can enhance methanesulfonic acid (MSA)-driven new particle formation (NPF), but the mechanism is fundamentally different compared to that of the extensively studied sulfuric acid (SA)-driven process. Generally, the enhancing potentials of amines in SA-driven NPF follow the basicity, while this is not the case for MSA-driven NPF, where structural effects dominate, making MSA-driven NPF more prominent for methylamine (MA) compared to dimethylamine (DMA). Therefore, probing structural factors determining the enhancing potentials of amines on MSA-driven NPF is key to fully understanding the contribution of MSA to NPF. Here, we performed a comparative study on DMA and MA enhancing MSA-driven NPF by examining cluster formation using computational methods. The results indicate that DMA-MSA clusters are more stable than the corresponding MA-MSA clusters for cluster sizes up to (DMA)2(MSA)2, indicating that the basicity of amines dominates the initial cluster formation. The methyl groups of DMA were found to present significant steric hindrance beyond the (DMA)2(MSA)2 cluster and this adds to the lower hydrogen bonding capacity of DMA, making the cluster growth less favorable compared to MA. This study implies that several amines could synergistically enhance MSA-driven NPF by maximizing the advantage of different amines in different amine-MSA cluster growth stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiewen Shen
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Jonas Elm
- Department of Chemistry and iClimate, Aarhus University, Langelandsgade 140, Aarhus C DK-8000, Denmark
| | - Hong-Bin Xie
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Jingwen Chen
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Junfeng Niu
- Research Center for Eco-environmental Engineering, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China
| | - Hanna Vehkamäki
- Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research/Physics, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 64 Gustaf Hällströmin katu 2a, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
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12
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Zhou J, Oldfield CJ, Yan W, Shen B, Dunker A. Identification of Intrinsic Disorder in Complexes from the Protein Data Bank. ACS OMEGA 2020; 5:17883-17891. [PMID: 32743159 PMCID: PMC7391252 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.9b03927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2019] [Accepted: 03/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
![]()
Background:
Intrinsically disordered proteins or regions (IDPs
or IDRs) lack stable structures in solution, yet often fold upon binding
with partners. IDPs or IDRs are highly abundant in all proteomes and
represent a significant modification of sequence → structure
→ function paradigm. The Protein Data Bank (PDB) includes complexes
containing disordered segments bound to globular proteins, but the
molecular mechanisms of such binding interactions remain largely unknown.
Results: In this study, we present the results of various disorder
predictions on a nonredundant set of PDB complexes. In contrast to
their structural appearances, many PDB proteins were predicted to
be disordered when separated from their binding partners. These predicted-to-be-disordered
proteins were observed to form structures depending upon various factors,
including heterogroup binding, protein/DNA/RNA binding, disulfide
bonds, and ion binding. Conclusions: This study collects many examples
of disorder-to-order transition in IDP complex formation, thus revealing
the unusual structure–function relationships of IDPs and providing
an additional support for the newly proposed paradigm of the sequence
→ IDP/IDR ensemble → function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianhong Zhou
- Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, United States
| | - Christopher J. Oldfield
- Computer Science Department, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23284, United States
| | - Wenying Yan
- School of Biology & Basic Medical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China
| | - Bairong Shen
- Institutes for Systems Genetics, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - A.Keith Dunker
- Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, United States
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13
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Prosser K, Stokes RW, Cohen SM. Evaluation of 3-Dimensionality in Approved and Experimental Drug Space. ACS Med Chem Lett 2020; 11:1292-1298. [PMID: 32551014 PMCID: PMC7294711 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.0c00121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2020] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The 3-dimensional (3D) structure of therapeutics and other bioactive molecules is an important factor in determining the strength and selectivity of their protein-ligand interactions. Previous efforts have considered the strain introduced and tolerated through conformational changes induced upon protein binding. Herein, we present an analysis of 3-dimentionality for energy-minimized structures from the DrugBank and ligands bound to proteins identified in the Protein Data Bank (PDB). This analysis reveals that the majority of molecules found in both the DrugBank and the PDB tend toward linearity and planarity, with few molecules having highly 3D conformations. Decidedly 3D geometries have been historically difficult to achieve, likely due to the synthetic challenge of making 3D organic molecules, and other considerations, such as adherence to the 'rule-of-five'. This has resulted in the dominance of planar and/or linear topologies of the molecules described here. Strategies to address the generally flat nature of these data sets are explored, including the use of 3D organic fragments and inorganic scaffolds as a means of accessing privileged 3D space. This work highlights the potential utility of libraries with greater 3D topological diversity so that the importance of molecular shape to biological behavior can be more fully understood in drug discovery campaigns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen
E. Prosser
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
| | - Ryjul W. Stokes
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
| | - Seth M. Cohen
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
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14
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de Meirelles JL, Nepomuceno FC, Peña-García J, Schmidt RR, Pérez-Sánchez H, Verli H. Current Status of Carbohydrates Information in the Protein Data Bank. J Chem Inf Model 2020; 60:684-699. [PMID: 31961683 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.9b00874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Carbohydrates are well known for their physicochemical, biological, functional, and therapeutic characteristics. Unfortunately, their chemical nature imposes severe challenges for the structural elucidation of these phenomena, impairing not only the depth of our understanding of carbohydrates but also the development of new biotechnological and therapeutic applications based on these molecules. In the recent past, the amount of structural information, obtained mainly from X-ray crystallography, has increased progressively, as well as its quality. In this context, the current work presents a global analysis of the carbohydrate information available in the Protein Data Bank (PDB). From high quality structures, it is clear that most of the data are highly concentrated on a few sets of residue types, on their monosaccharidic forms, and connected by a small diversity of glycosidic linkages. The geometries of these linkages can be mostly associated with the types of linkages instead of residues, while the level of puckering distortion was characterized, quantified, and located in a pseudorotational equilibrium landscape, not only to local minima but also to transitional states. These qualitative and quantitative analyses offer a global picture of the carbohydrate structural content in the PDB, potentially supporting the building of new models for carbohydrate-related biological phenomena at the atomistic level, including new developments on force field parameters.
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Affiliation(s)
- João L de Meirelles
- Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Biologia Celular e Molecular (PPGBCM), Centro de Biotecnologia , Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) , Av. Bento Goncalves, 9500 , Porto Alegre , Brazil 91509-900
| | - Felipe C Nepomuceno
- Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Biologia Celular e Molecular (PPGBCM), Centro de Biotecnologia , Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) , Av. Bento Goncalves, 9500 , Porto Alegre , Brazil 91509-900
| | - Jorge Peña-García
- Bioinformatics and High Performance Computing Research Group (BIO-HPC), Computer Engineering Department , Universidad Católica de Murcia (UCAM) , Murcia , Spain 30107
| | - Ricardo Rodríguez Schmidt
- Bioinformatics and High Performance Computing Research Group (BIO-HPC), Computer Engineering Department , Universidad Católica de Murcia (UCAM) , Murcia , Spain 30107
| | - Horacio Pérez-Sánchez
- Bioinformatics and High Performance Computing Research Group (BIO-HPC), Computer Engineering Department , Universidad Católica de Murcia (UCAM) , Murcia , Spain 30107
| | - Hugo Verli
- Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Biologia Celular e Molecular (PPGBCM), Centro de Biotecnologia , Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) , Av. Bento Goncalves, 9500 , Porto Alegre , Brazil 91509-900
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15
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Conformational analysis of macrocycles: comparing general and specialized methods. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2020; 34:231-252. [PMID: 31965404 PMCID: PMC7036058 DOI: 10.1007/s10822-020-00277-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Abstract Macrocycles represent an important class of medicinally relevant small molecules due to their interesting biological properties. Therefore, a firm understanding of their conformational preferences is important for drug design. Given the importance of macrocycle-protein modelling in drug discovery, we envisaged that a systematic study of both classical and recent specialized methods would provide guidance for other practitioners within the field. In this study we compare the performance of the general, well established conformational analysis methods Monte Carlo Multiple Minimum (MCMM) and Mixed Torsional/Low-Mode sampling (MTLMOD) with two more recent and specialized macrocycle sampling techniques: MacroModel macrocycle Baseline Search (MD/LLMOD) and Prime macrocycle conformational sampling (PRIME-MCS). Using macrocycles extracted from 44 macrocycle-protein X-ray crystallography complexes, we evaluated each method based on their ability to (i) generate unique conformers, (ii) generate unique macrocycle ring conformations, (iii) identify the global energy minimum, (iv) identify conformers similar to the X-ray ligand conformation after Protein Preparation Wizard treatment (X-rayppw), and (v) to the X-rayppw ring conformation. Computational speed was also considered. In addition, conformational coverage, as defined by the number of conformations identified, was studied. In order to study the relative energies of the bioactive conformations, the energy differences between the global energy minima and the energy minimized X-rayppw structures and, the global energy minima and the MCMM-Exhaustive (1,000,000 search steps) generated conformers closest to the X-rayppw structure, were calculated and analysed. All searches were performed using relatively short run times (10,000 steps for MCMM, MTLMOD and MD/LLMOD). To assess the performance of the methods, they were compared to an exhaustive MCMM search using 1,000,000 search steps for each of the 44 macrocycles (requiring ca 200 times more CPU time). Prior to our analysis, we also investigated if the general search methods MCMM and MTLMOD could also be optimized for macrocycle conformational sampling. Taken together, our work concludes that the more general methods can be optimized for macrocycle modelling by slightly adjusting the settings around the ring closure bond. In most cases, MCMM and MTLMOD with either standard or enhanced settings performed well in comparison to the more specialized macrocycle sampling methods MD/LLMOD and PRIME-MCS. When using enhanced settings for MCMM and MTLMOD, the X-rayppw conformation was regenerated with the greatest accuracy. The, MD/LLMOD emerged as the most efficient method for generating the global energy minima. Graphic abstract ![]()
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s10822-020-00277-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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16
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Abstract
There is significant potential for electronic structure methods to improve the quality of the predictions furnished by the tools of computer-aided drug design, which typically rely on empirically derived functions. In this perspective, we consider some recent examples of how quantum mechanics has been applied in predicting protein-ligand geometries, protein-ligand binding affinities and ligand strain on binding. We then outline several significant developments in quantum mechanics methodology likely to influence these approaches: in particular, we note the advent of more computationally expedient ab initio quantum mechanical methods that can provide chemical accuracy for larger molecular systems than hitherto possible. We highlight the emergence of increasingly accurate semiempirical quantum mechanical methods and the associated role of machine learning and molecular databases in their development. Indeed, the convergence of improved algorithms for solving and analyzing electronic structure, modern machine learning methods, and increasingly comprehensive benchmark data sets of molecular geometries and energies provides a context in which the potential of quantum mechanics will be increasingly realized in driving future developments and applications in structure-based drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard A Bryce
- Division of Pharmacy and Optometry, School of Health Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
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17
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Bibi S, Wang YB, Tang DX, Kamal MA, Yu H. Prospects for Discovering the Secondary Metabolites of Cordyceps Sensu Lato by the Integrated Strategy. Med Chem 2019; 17:97-120. [PMID: 31880251 DOI: 10.2174/1573406416666191227120425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2019] [Revised: 12/10/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Some species of Cordyceps sensu lato are famous Chinese herbs with significant biological activities, often used as edible food and traditional medicine in China. Cordyceps represents the largest entomopathogenic group of fungi, including 40 genera and 1339 species in three families and incertae sedis of Hypocreales. OBJECTIVE Most of the Cordyceps-derivatives have been approved clinically for the treatment of various diseases such as diabetes, cancers, inflammation, cardiovascular, renal and neurological disorders and are used worldwide as supplements and herbal drugs, but there is still need for highly efficient Cordyceps-derived drugs for fatal diseases with approval of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. METHODS Computer-aided drug design concepts could improve the discovery of putative Cordyceps- derived medicine within less time and low budget. The integration of computer-aided drug design methods with experimental validation has contributed to the successful discovery of novel drugs. RESULTS This review focused on modern taxonomy, active metabolites, and modern drug design techniques that could accelerate conventional drug design and discovery of Cordyceps s. l. Successful application of computer-aided drug design methods in Cordyceps research has been discussed. CONCLUSION It has been concluded that computer-aided drug design techniques could influence the multiple target-focused drug design, because each metabolite of Cordyceps has shown significant activities for the various diseases with very few or no side effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shabana Bibi
- Yunnan Herbal Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, Yunnan, China
| | - Yuan-Bing Wang
- Yunnan Herbal Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, Yunnan, China
| | - De-Xiang Tang
- Yunnan Herbal Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, Yunnan, China
| | - Mohammad Amjad Kamal
- King Fahd Medical Research Center, King Abdulaziz University, P. O. Box 80216, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Hong Yu
- Yunnan Herbal Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, Yunnan, China
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18
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Rai BK, Sresht V, Yang Q, Unwalla R, Tu M, Mathiowetz AM, Bakken GA. Comprehensive Assessment of Torsional Strain in Crystal Structures of Small Molecules and Protein–Ligand Complexes using ab Initio Calculations. J Chem Inf Model 2019; 59:4195-4208. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.9b00373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Gregory A. Bakken
- Simulation and Modeling Sciences, Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development, Eastern Point Road, Groton, Connecticut 06340, United States
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Ebejer JP, Finn PW, Wong WK, Deane CM, Morris GM. Ligity: A Non-Superpositional, Knowledge-Based Approach to Virtual Screening. J Chem Inf Model 2019; 59:2600-2616. [PMID: 31117509 PMCID: PMC7007185 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.8b00779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
We present Ligity, a hybrid ligand-structure-based, non-superpositional method for virtual screening of large databases of small molecules. Ligity uses the relative spatial distribution of pharmacophoric interaction points (PIPs) derived from the conformations of small molecules. These are compared with the PIPs derived from key interaction features found in protein-ligand complexes and are used to prioritize likely binders. We investigated the effect of generating PIPs using the single lowest energy conformer versus an ensemble of conformers for each screened ligand, using different bin sizes for the distance between two features, utilizing triangular sets of pharmacophoric features (3-PIPs) versus chiral tetrahedral sets (4-PIPs), fusing data for targets with multiple protein-ligand complex structures, and applying different similarity measures. Ligity was benchmarked using the Directory of Useful Decoys-Enhanced (DUD-E). Optimal results were obtained using the tetrahedral PIPs derived from an ensemble of bound ligand conformers and a bin size of 1.5 Å, which are used as the default settings for Ligity. The high-throughput screening mode of Ligity, using only the lowest-energy conformer of each ligand, was used for benchmarking against the whole of the DUD-E, and a more resource-intensive, "information-rich" mode of Ligity, using a conformational ensemble of each ligand, were used for a representative subset of 10 targets. Against the full DUD-E database, mean area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) values ranged from 0.44 to 0.99, while for the representative subset they ranged from 0.61 to 0.86. Data fusion further improved Ligity's performance, with mean AUC values ranging from 0.64 to 0.95. Ligity is very efficient compared to a protein-ligand docking method such as AutoDock Vina: if the time taken for the precalculation of Ligity descriptors is included in the comparason, then Ligity is about 20 times faster than docking. A direct comparison of the virtual screening steps shows Ligity to be over 5000 times faster. Ligity highly ranks the lowest-energy conformers of DUD-E actives, in a statistically significant manner, behavior that is not observed for DUD-E decoys. Thus, our results suggest that active compounds tend to bind in relatively low-energy conformations compared to decoys. This may be because actives-and thus their lowest-energy conformations-have been optimized for conformational complementarity with their cognate binding sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Paul Ebejer
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Biobanking , University of Malta , Msida , MSD 2080 , Malta
| | - Paul W Finn
- Oxford Drug Design Limited, Oxford Centre for Innovation , New Road , Oxford OX1 1BY , U.K.,The School of Computing , University of Buckingham , Hunter Street , Buckingham , MK18 1EG , U.K
| | - Wing Ki Wong
- Oxford Protein Informatics Group, Department of Statistics , University of Oxford , 24-29 St. Giles' , Oxford , OX1 3LB , U.K
| | - Charlotte M Deane
- Oxford Protein Informatics Group, Department of Statistics , University of Oxford , 24-29 St. Giles' , Oxford , OX1 3LB , U.K
| | - Garrett M Morris
- Oxford Protein Informatics Group, Department of Statistics , University of Oxford , 24-29 St. Giles' , Oxford , OX1 3LB , U.K
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20
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Villaseñor-Granados T, Díaz-Cervantes E, Soto-Arredondo KJ, Martínez-Alfaro M, Robles J, García-Revilla MA. Binding of Pb-Melatonin and Pb-(Melatonin-metabolites) complexes with DMT1 and ZIP8: implications for lead detoxification. Daru 2019; 27:137-148. [PMID: 30850959 PMCID: PMC6592991 DOI: 10.1007/s40199-019-00256-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
We have applied the docking methodology to characterize the binding modes of the divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) and the zinc transporter 8 (ZIP8) protein channels with: melatonin, some melatonin metabolites, and a few lead complexes of melatonin and its metabolites, in three different coordination modes (mono-coordinated, bi-coordinated and tri-coordinated). Our results show that bi-coordinated and tri-coordinated lead complexes prefer to bind inside the central region of ZIP8. Moreover, the interaction strength is larger compared with that of the free melatonin and melatonin metabolites. On the other hand, the binding modes with DMT1 of such complexes display lower binding energies, compared with the free melatonin and melatonin metabolites. Our results suggest that ZIP8 plays a major role in the translocation of Pb, bi or tri coordinated, when melatonin metabolites are present. Finally, we have characterized the binding modes responsible for the ZIP8 large affinities, found in bi-coordinated and tri-coordinated lead complexes. Our results show that such interactions are greater, because of an increase of the number of hydrogen bonds, the number and intensity of electrostatic interactions, and the interaction overlay degree in each binding mode. Our results give insight into the importance of the ZIP8 channel on lead transport and a possible elimination mechanism in lead detoxification processes. Graphical abstract .
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Affiliation(s)
- Tayde Villaseñor-Granados
- Departamento de Química, Centro de Investigaciones y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Zacatenco, Ciudad de México, Mexico
- Departamento de Farmacia, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Noria Alta S/N, C. P. 36050 Guanajuato, Gto., Mexico
| | - Erik Díaz-Cervantes
- Departamento de Farmacia, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Noria Alta S/N, C. P. 36050 Guanajuato, Gto., Mexico
- Departamento de Alimentos, Centro Interdisciplinario del Noreste (CINUG), Universidad de Guanajuato, 37975 Tierra Blanca, Guanajuato, Mexico
| | - Karla J. Soto-Arredondo
- Departamento de Farmacia, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Noria Alta S/N, C. P. 36050 Guanajuato, Gto., Mexico
| | - Minerva Martínez-Alfaro
- Departamento de Farmacia, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Noria Alta S/N, C. P. 36050 Guanajuato, Gto., Mexico
| | - Juvencio Robles
- Departamento de Farmacia, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Noria Alta S/N, C. P. 36050 Guanajuato, Gto., Mexico
| | - Marco A. García-Revilla
- Departamento de Química, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Noria Alta S/N, C. P. 36050 Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Gto. Mexico
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21
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Meaurio E, Sanchez-Rexach E, Butron A, Sarasua JR. The conformation of chloramphenicol in the ordered and disordered phases. SPECTROCHIMICA ACTA. PART A, MOLECULAR AND BIOMOLECULAR SPECTROSCOPY 2019; 211:383-392. [PMID: 30593948 DOI: 10.1016/j.saa.2018.12.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2018] [Revised: 12/05/2018] [Accepted: 12/09/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The conformational behavior of chloramphenicol (CHL) in the solid, liquid and vapor phases is revisited here by means of FTIR spectroscopy and QM methods. In the crystalline phase, both the IR analysis and QM computations discard the conformer proposed by Acharya et al. (Acta Cryst., 1979, B35:1360-1363) and support the one proposed by Chatterjee et al. (J. Cryst. Mol. Struct., 1979, 9:295-304), characterized by an intramolecular OH⋯O hydrogen bond in which the primary hydroxyl group acts as hydrogen bond donor. The conformational behavior of CHL in the liquid and gas phases has been analyzed using QM calculations. The Self-Consistent Reaction Field (SCRF) method with the Onsager solvation model has been used for the initial optimizations in solution, and the lowest energy conformers have been refined using the Solvation Model based on Density (SMD). In solution environment the intramolecular OH⋯O hydrogen bond in CHL is reversed so that the secondary hydroxyl group acts as hydrogen bond donor. In addition, the dichloroacetamide group folds back further over the phenyl ring to form an intramolecular CCl⋯π halogen bond. Two different halogen bonds are actually observed (each one with a different chlorine atom) resulting in two different stable conformers, that can be detected by FTIR spectroscopy due to the conformational sensitivity of the CO group to the conformation of the dichloroacetyl group. Finally, the stability of the conformers with the polarity of the medium is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilio Meaurio
- Department of Mining-Metallurgy Engineering and Materials Science, POLYMAT, University of The Basque Country (UPV/EHU), School of Engineering, Alameda Urquijo s/n, Bilbao, Spain.
| | - Eva Sanchez-Rexach
- Department of Mining-Metallurgy Engineering and Materials Science, POLYMAT, University of The Basque Country (UPV/EHU), School of Engineering, Alameda Urquijo s/n, Bilbao, Spain
| | - Amaia Butron
- Tecnalia, Sede Azpeitia, Área Anardi 5, E-20730 Azpeitia, Gipuzkoa, Spain
| | - Jose-Ramon Sarasua
- Department of Mining-Metallurgy Engineering and Materials Science, POLYMAT, University of The Basque Country (UPV/EHU), School of Engineering, Alameda Urquijo s/n, Bilbao, Spain
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22
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Energy windows for computed compound conformers: covering artefacts or truly large reorganization energies? Future Med Chem 2019; 11:97-118. [DOI: 10.4155/fmc-2018-0400] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The generation of 3D conformers of small molecules underpins most computational drug discovery. Thus, the conformer quality is critical and depends on their energetics. A key parameter is the empirical conformational energy window (ΔEw), since only conformers within ΔEw are retained. However, ΔEw values in use appear unrealistically large. We analyze the factors pertaining to the conformer energetics and ΔEw. We argue that more attention must be focused on the problem of collapsed low-energy conformers. That is due to artificial intramolecular stabilization and occurs even with continuum solvation. Consequently, the conformational energy of extended bioactive structures is artefactually increased, which inflates ΔEw. Thus, this Perspective highlights the issues arising from low-energy conformers and suggests improvements via empirical or physics-based strategies.
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23
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Liu G, Wan Y, Wang W, Fang S, Gu S, Ju X. Docking-based 3D-QSAR and pharmacophore studies on diarylpyrimidines as non-nucleoside inhibitors of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase. Mol Divers 2018; 23:107-121. [PMID: 30051344 DOI: 10.1007/s11030-018-9860-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/13/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Diarylpyrimidines (DAPYs), a type of effective HIV-1 non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs), have been considered as one of the most successful agents for treating AIDS. A number of structurally diverse DAPYs have been designed and synthesized in the past decade, and most of them exhibited potent anti-HIV-1 activities; however, the structure-activity relationships of recently reported DAPYs and their pharmacophore features that interacted with HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) remain to be studied. In the present study, molecular docking studies were first performed on three novel classes of DAPYs to study their binding pattern in the HIV-1 RT. Based on the docking conformations of these DAPYs, 3D-QSAR models were constructed using CoMSIA and Topomer CoMFA methods, and pharmacophore models were also built using distance comparison technique. All selected DAPYs presented preferred U- or L-shaped conformations while being docked into the non-nucleoside inhibitor-binding pocket of the HIV-1 RT. The best CoMSIA model exhibited powerful predictivity, with satisfactory statistical parameters such as a q2 of 0.572, an r2 of 0.952, and an [Formula: see text] of 0.728. Contour maps of the best CoMSIA model were in accordance with those of the Topomer CoMFA model, giving the insight into the feature requirements of DAPYs for the anti-HIV-1 activity. Three potential pharmacophore models were constructed, and each of them was consisted of five hypothesis features. All results suggested that the aromatic ring on the left wing of DAPYs and the central pyrimidine ring contained key pharmacophore features for the anti-HIV-1 activity, and also indicated that the right wing of DAPYs had potential for further structural modification to improve activity. Eight novel DAPY molecules with potential anti-HIV-1 activities were designed on the basis of the obtained results. The findings in this study might provide important information for further design and development of novel HIV-1 NNRTIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Genyan Liu
- Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China.
| | - Youlan Wan
- Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China
| | - Wenjie Wang
- Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China
| | - Sai Fang
- Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China
| | - Shuangxi Gu
- Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China.
| | - Xiulian Ju
- Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China
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24
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Khattab M, Wang F, Clayton AHA. Conformational Plasticity in Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor-Kinase Interactions Revealed with Fluorescence Spectroscopy and Theoretical Calculations. J Phys Chem B 2018; 122:4667-4679. [PMID: 29629773 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b01530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
To understand drug-protein dynamics, it is necessary to account for drug molecular flexibility and binding site plasticity. Herein, we exploit fluorescence from a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, AG1478, as a reporter of its conformation and binding site environment when complexed with its cognate kinase. Water-soluble kinases, aminoglycoside phosphotransferase APH(3')-Ia and mitogen-activated protein kinase 14 (MAPK14), were chosen for this study. On the basis of our prior work, the AG1478 conformation (planar or twisted) was inferred from the fluorescence excitation spectrum and the polarity of the AG1478-binding site was deduced from the fluorescence emission spectrum, while red-edge excitation shift (REES) probed the heterogeneity of the binding site (protein conformation and hydration) distributions in the protein conformational ensemble. In the AG1478-APH(3')-Ia complex, both twisted (or partially twisted) and planar AG1478 conformations were evidenced from emission wavelength-dependent excitation spectra. The binding site environment provided by APH(3')-Ia was moderately polar (λmax = 480 nm) with evidence for considerable heterogeneity (REES = 34 nm). In contrast, in the AG1478-MAPK14 complex, AG1478 was in a predominantly planar conformation with a lower degree of conformational heterogeneity. The binding site environment provided by the MAPK14 protein was of relatively low polarity (λmax = 430 nm) with a smaller degree of heterogeneity (REES = 11 nm). The results are compared with the available X-ray data and discussed in the context of our current understanding of tyrosine kinase inhibitor conformation and protein conformational ensembles.
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25
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Friedrich NO, Simsir M, Kirchmair J. How Diverse Are the Protein-Bound Conformations of Small-Molecule Drugs and Cofactors? Front Chem 2018; 6:68. [PMID: 29637066 PMCID: PMC5880911 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2018.00068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2018] [Accepted: 03/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Knowledge of the bioactive conformations of small molecules or the ability to predict them with theoretical methods is of key importance to the design of bioactive compounds such as drugs, agrochemicals, and cosmetics. Using an elaborate cheminformatics pipeline, which also evaluates the support of individual atom coordinates by the measured electron density, we compiled a complete set ("Sperrylite Dataset") of high-quality structures of protein-bound ligand conformations from the PDB. The Sperrylite Dataset consists of a total of 10,936 high-quality structures of 4,548 unique ligands. Based on this dataset, we assessed the variability of the bioactive conformations of 91 small molecules-each represented by a minimum of ten structures-and found it to be largely independent of the number of rotatable bonds. Sixty-nine molecules had at least two distinct conformations (defined by an RMSD greater than 1 Å). For a representative subset of 17 approved drugs and cofactors we observed a clear trend for the formation of few clusters of highly similar conformers. Even for proteins that share a very low sequence identity, ligands were regularly found to adopt similar conformations. For cofactors, a clear trend for extended conformations was measured, although in few cases also coiled conformers were observed. The Sperrylite Dataset is available for download from http://www.zbh.uni-hamburg.de/sperrylite_dataset.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nils-Ole Friedrich
- Department of Informatics, Center for Bioinformatics, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Méliné Simsir
- Department of Informatics, Center for Bioinformatics, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.,Molécules Thérapeutiques In Silico, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Paris, France
| | - Johannes Kirchmair
- Department of Informatics, Center for Bioinformatics, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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26
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Grisoni F, Ballabio D, Todeschini R, Consonni V. Molecular Descriptors for Structure-Activity Applications: A Hands-On Approach. Methods Mol Biol 2018; 1800:3-53. [PMID: 29934886 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7899-1_1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Molecular descriptors capture diverse parts of the structural information of molecules and they are the support of many contemporary computer-assisted toxicological and chemical applications. After briefly introducing some fundamental concepts of structure-activity applications (e.g., molecular descriptor dimensionality, classical vs. fingerprint description, and activity landscapes), this chapter guides the readers through a step-by-step explanation of molecular descriptors rationale and application. To this end, the chapter illustrates a case study of a recently published application of molecular descriptors for modeling the activity on cytochrome P450.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Grisoni
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.
| | - Davide Ballabio
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Todeschini
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Viviana Consonni
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
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27
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Grisoni F, Consonni V, Todeschini R. Impact of Molecular Descriptors on Computational Models. Methods Mol Biol 2018; 1825:171-209. [PMID: 30334206 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-8639-2_5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Molecular descriptors encode a wide variety of molecular information and have become the support of many contemporary chemoinformatic and bioinformatic applications. They grasp specific molecular features (e.g., geometry, shape, pharmacophores, or atomic properties) and directly affect computational models, in terms of outcome, performance, and applicability. This chapter aims to illustrate the impact of different molecular descriptors on the structural information captured and on the perceived chemical similarity among molecules. After introducing the fundamental concepts of molecular descriptor theory and application, a step-by-step retrospective virtual screening procedure guides users through the fundamental processing steps and discusses the impact of different types of molecular descriptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Grisoni
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.
| | - Viviana Consonni
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Todeschini
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Milano Chemometrics and QSAR Research Group, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
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28
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Structural and physicochemical characterization of pyridine derivative salts of anti-inflammatory drugs. J Mol Struct 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.molstruc.2017.03.086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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29
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Peach ML, Cachau RE, Nicklaus MC. Conformational energy range of ligands in protein crystal structures: The difficult quest for accurate understanding. J Mol Recognit 2017; 30:10.1002/jmr.2618. [PMID: 28233410 PMCID: PMC5553890 DOI: 10.1002/jmr.2618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2016] [Revised: 01/31/2017] [Accepted: 01/31/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
In this review, we address a fundamental question: What is the range of conformational energies seen in ligands in protein-ligand crystal structures? This value is important biophysically, for better understanding the protein-ligand binding process; and practically, for providing a parameter to be used in many computational drug design methods such as docking and pharmacophore searches. We synthesize a selection of previously reported conflicting results from computational studies of this issue and conclude that high ligand conformational energies really are present in some crystal structures. The main source of disagreement between different analyses appears to be due to divergent treatments of electrostatics and solvation. At the same time, however, for many ligands, a high conformational energy is in error, due to either crystal structure inaccuracies or incorrect determination of the reference state. Aside from simple chemistry mistakes, we argue that crystal structure error may mainly be because of the heuristic weighting of ligand stereochemical restraints relative to the fit of the structure to the electron density. This problem cannot be fixed with improvements to electron density fitting or with simple ligand geometry checks, though better metrics are needed for evaluating ligand and binding site chemistry in addition to geometry during structure refinement. The ultimate solution for accurately determining ligand conformational energies lies in ultrahigh-resolution crystal structures that can be refined without restraints.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan L Peach
- Basic Science Program, Chemical Biology Laboratory, Leidos Biomedical Research Inc., Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Raul E Cachau
- Data Science and Information Technology Program, Advanced Biomedical Computing Center, Leidos Biomedical Research Inc., Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Marc C Nicklaus
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD, USA
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30
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Yu J, Zhao LX, Park J, Lee HW, Sahu PK, Cui M, Moss SM, Hammes E, Warnick E, Gao ZG, Noh M, Choi S, Ahn HC, Choi J, Jacobson KA, Jeong LS. N 6-Substituted 5'-N-Methylcarbamoyl-4'-selenoadenosines as Potent and Selective A 3 Adenosine Receptor Agonists with Unusual Sugar Puckering and Nucleobase Orientation. J Med Chem 2017; 60:3422-3437. [PMID: 28380296 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.7b00241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Potent and selective A3 adenosine receptor (AR) agonists were identified by the replacement of 4'-oxo- or 4'-thionucleosides with bioisosteric selenium. Unlike previous agonists, 4'-seleno analogues preferred a glycosidic syn conformation and South sugar puckering, as shown in the X-ray crystal structure of 5'-N-methylcarbamoyl derivative 3p. Among the compounds tested, N6-3-iodobenzyl analogue 3d was found to be the most potent A3AR full agonist (Ki = 0.57 nM), which was ≥800- and 1900-fold selective for A1AR and A2AAR, respectively. In the N6-cycloalkyl series, 2-Cl analogues generally exhibited better hA3AR affinity than 2-H analogues, whereas 2-H > 2-Cl in the N6-3-halobenzyl series. N7 isomers 3t and 3u were much weaker in binding than corresponding N9 isomers, but compound 3t lacked A3AR activation, appearing to be a weak antagonist. 2-Cl-N6-3-iodobenzyl analogue 3p inhibited chemoattractant-induced migration of microglia/monocytes without inducing cell death at ≤50 μM. This suggests the potential for the development of 4'-selenonucleoside A3AR agonists as novel antistroke agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinha Yu
- Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University , Seoul 151-742, Korea
| | - Long Xuan Zhao
- Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University , Seoul 151-742, Korea.,College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Liaoning Normal University , Dalian 116-029, China
| | - Jongmi Park
- College of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ewha Womans University , Seoul 03760, Korea
| | - Hyuk Woo Lee
- Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University , Seoul 151-742, Korea
| | - Pramod K Sahu
- Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University , Seoul 151-742, Korea
| | - Minghua Cui
- College of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ewha Womans University , Seoul 03760, Korea
| | - Steven M Moss
- Molecular Recognition Section, Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry, National Institute of Diabetes, and Digestive and Kidney Disease, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Eva Hammes
- Molecular Recognition Section, Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry, National Institute of Diabetes, and Digestive and Kidney Disease, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Eugene Warnick
- Molecular Recognition Section, Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry, National Institute of Diabetes, and Digestive and Kidney Disease, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Zhan-Guo Gao
- Molecular Recognition Section, Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry, National Institute of Diabetes, and Digestive and Kidney Disease, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Minsoo Noh
- Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University , Seoul 151-742, Korea
| | - Sun Choi
- College of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ewha Womans University , Seoul 03760, Korea
| | - Hee-Chul Ahn
- College of Pharmacy, Dongguk University , Goyang, Gyeonggi-do 410-820, Korea
| | - Jungwon Choi
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Suwon , Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do 445-743, Korea
| | - Kenneth A Jacobson
- Molecular Recognition Section, Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry, National Institute of Diabetes, and Digestive and Kidney Disease, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Lak Shin Jeong
- Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University , Seoul 151-742, Korea
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31
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Wang Q, Sciabola S, Barreiro G, Hou X, Bai G, Shapiro MJ, Koehn F, Villalobos A, Jacobson MP. Dihedral Angle-Based Sampling of Natural Product Polyketide Conformations: Application to Permeability Prediction. J Chem Inf Model 2016; 56:2194-2206. [PMID: 27731994 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.6b00237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Macrocycles pose challenges for computer-aided drug design due to their conformational complexity. One fundamental challenge is identifying all low-energy conformations of the macrocyclic ring, which is important for modeling target binding, passive membrane permeation, and other conformation-dependent properties. Macrocyclic polyketides are medically and biologically important natural products characterized by structural and functional diversity. Advances in synthetic biology and semisynthetic methods may enable creation of an even more diverse set of non-natural product polyketides for drug discovery and other applications. However, the conformational sampling of these flexible compounds remains demanding. We developed and optimized a dihedral angle-based macrocycle conformational sampling method for macrocycles of arbitrary structure, and here we apply it to diverse polyketide natural products. First, we evaluated its performance using a data set of 37 polyketides with available crystal structures, with 9-22 rotatable bonds in the macrocyclic ring. Our optimized protocol was able to reproduce the crystal structure of polyketides' aglycone backbone within 0.50 Å RMSD for 31 out of 37 polyketides. Consistent with prior structural studies, our analysis suggests that polyketides tend to have multiple distinct low-energy structures, including the bioactive (target-bound) conformation as well as others of unknown significance. For this reason, we also introduce a strategy to improve both efficiency and accuracy of the conformational search by utilizing torsional restraints derived from NMR vicinal proton couplings to restrict the conformational search. Finally, as a first application of the method, we made blinded predictions of the passive membrane permeability of a diverse set of polyketides, based on their predicted structures in low- and high-dielectric media.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qin Wang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California , San Francisco, California 94158, United States
| | - Simone Sciabola
- Neuroscience and Pain Medicinal Chemistry, Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development , Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Gabriela Barreiro
- Neuroscience and Pain Medicinal Chemistry, Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development , Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Xinjun Hou
- Neuroscience and Pain Medicinal Chemistry, Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development , Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | | | | | | | - Anabella Villalobos
- Neuroscience and Pain Medicinal Chemistry, Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development , Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Matthew P Jacobson
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California , San Francisco, California 94158, United States
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32
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Docking optimization, variance and promiscuity for large-scale drug-like chemical space using high performance computing architectures. Drug Discov Today 2016; 21:1672-1680. [DOI: 10.1016/j.drudis.2016.06.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2016] [Revised: 05/12/2016] [Accepted: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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33
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Raghavender US. Analysis of residue conformations in peptides in Cambridge structural database and protein-peptide structural complexes. Chem Biol Drug Des 2016; 89:428-442. [DOI: 10.1111/cbdd.12862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2016] [Revised: 07/27/2016] [Accepted: 08/25/2016] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
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34
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Predicting bioactive conformations and binding modes of macrocycles. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2016; 30:841-849. [DOI: 10.1007/s10822-016-9973-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2016] [Accepted: 09/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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35
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36
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Foloppe N, Chen IJ. Towards understanding the unbound state of drug compounds: Implications for the intramolecular reorganization energy upon binding. Bioorg Med Chem 2016; 24:2159-89. [PMID: 27061672 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2016.03.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2016] [Revised: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 03/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
There has been an explosion of structural information for pharmaceutical compounds bound to biological targets, but the conformations and dynamics of compounds free in solution are poorly characterized, if at all. Yet, knowledge of the unbound state is essential to understand the fundamentals of molecular recognition, including the much debated conformational intramolecular reorganization energy of a compound upon binding (ΔEReorg). Also, dependable observation of the unbound compounds is important for ligand-based drug discovery, e.g. with pharmacophore modelling. Here, these questions are addressed with long (⩾0.5μs) state-of-the-art molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of 26 compounds (including 7 approved drugs) unbound in explicit solvent. These compounds were selected to be chemically diverse, with a range of flexibility, and good quality bioactive X-ray structures. The MD-simulated free compounds are compared to their bioactive structure and conformers generated with ad hoc sampling in vacuo or with implicit generalized Born (GB) aqueous solvation models. The GB conformational models clearly depart from those obtained in explicit solvent, and suffer from conformational collapse almost as severe as in vacuo. Thus, the global energy minima in vacuo or with GB are not suitable representations of the unbound state, which can instead be extensively sampled by MD simulations. Many, but not all, MD-simulated compounds displayed some structural similarity to their bioactive structure, supporting the notion of conformational pre-organization for binding. The ligand-protein complexes were also simulated in explicit solvent, to estimate ΔEReorg as an enthalpic difference ΔHReorg between the intramolecular energies in the bound and unbound states. This fresh approach yielded ΔHReorg values⩽6kcal/mol for 18 out of 26 compounds. For three particularly polar compounds 15⩽ΔHReorg⩽20kcal/mol, supporting the notion that ΔHReorg can be substantial. Those large ΔHReorg values correspond to a redistribution of electrostatic interactions upon binding. Overall, the study illustrates how MD simulations offer a promising avenue to characterize the unbound state of medicinal compounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Foloppe
- Vernalis (R&D) Ltd, Granta Park, Abington, Cambridge CB21 6GB, UK.
| | - I-Jen Chen
- Vernalis (R&D) Ltd, Granta Park, Abington, Cambridge CB21 6GB, UK.
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37
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Avgy-David HH, Senderowitz H. Toward Focusing Conformational Ensembles on Bioactive Conformations: A Molecular Mechanics/Quantum Mechanics Study. J Chem Inf Model 2015; 55:2154-67. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.5b00259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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38
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Wang T, Wu MB, Lin JP, Yang LR. Quantitative structure–activity relationship: promising advances in drug discovery platforms. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2015; 10:1283-300. [DOI: 10.1517/17460441.2015.1083006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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39
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Ding Y, Fang Y, Feinstein WP, Ramanujam J, Koppelman DM, Moreno J, Brylinski M, Jarrell M. GeauxDock: A novel approach for mixed-resolution ligand docking using a descriptor-based force field. J Comput Chem 2015; 36:2013-26. [PMID: 26250822 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.24031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2015] [Revised: 06/07/2015] [Accepted: 07/03/2015] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Molecular docking is an important component of computer-aided drug discovery. In this communication, we describe GeauxDock, a new docking approach that builds on the ideas of ligand homology modeling. GeauxDock features a descriptor-based scoring function integrating evolutionary constraints with physics-based energy terms, a mixed-resolution molecular representation of protein-ligand complexes, and an efficient Monte Carlo sampling protocol. To drive docking simulations toward experimental conformations, the scoring function was carefully optimized to produce a correlation between the total pseudoenergy and the native-likeness of binding poses. Indeed, benchmarking calculations demonstrate that GeauxDock has a strong capacity to identify near-native conformations across docking trajectories with the area under receiver operating characteristics of 0.85. By excluding closely related templates, we show that GeauxDock maintains its accuracy at lower levels of homology through the increased contribution from physics-based energy terms compensating for weak evolutionary constraints. GeauxDock is available at http://www.institute.loni.org/lasigma/package/dock/.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Ding
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Ye Fang
- School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Center for Computation & Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Wei P Feinstein
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Jagannathan Ramanujam
- School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Center for Computation & Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - David M Koppelman
- School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Juana Moreno
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Center for Computation & Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Michal Brylinski
- Center for Computation & Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Mark Jarrell
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Center for Computation & Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
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40
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Di Pietro ME, Aroulanda C, Celebre G, Merlet D, De Luca G. The conformational behaviour of naproxen and flurbiprofen in solution by NMR spectroscopy. NEW J CHEM 2015. [DOI: 10.1039/c5nj01753j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The conformational equilibrium of common anti-inflammatory drugs has been studied experimentally in solution by NMR in weakly ordered PBLG phases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Enrica Di Pietro
- Lab. LXNMR_S.C.An
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie Chimiche
- Università della Calabria
- Arcavacata di Rende (CS)
- Italy
| | - Christie Aroulanda
- Equipe de RMN en milieu orienté
- ICMMO
- UMR 8182 CNRS
- Université Paris-Sud
- Orsay
| | - Giorgio Celebre
- Lab. LXNMR_S.C.An
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie Chimiche
- Università della Calabria
- Arcavacata di Rende (CS)
- Italy
| | - Denis Merlet
- Equipe de RMN en milieu orienté
- ICMMO
- UMR 8182 CNRS
- Université Paris-Sud
- Orsay
| | - Giuseppina De Luca
- Lab. LXNMR_S.C.An
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie Chimiche
- Università della Calabria
- Arcavacata di Rende (CS)
- Italy
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41
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Kuppuraj G, Kruise D, Yura K. Conformational behavior of flavin adenine dinucleotide: conserved stereochemistry in bound and free states. J Phys Chem B 2014; 118:13486-97. [PMID: 25389798 DOI: 10.1021/jp507629n] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Metabolic enzymes utilize the cofactor flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) to catalyze essential biochemical reactions. Because these enzymes have been implicated in disease pathways, it will be necessary to target them via FAD-based structural analogues that can either activate/inhibit the enzymatic activity. To achieve this, it is important to explore the conformational space of FAD in the enzyme-bound and free states. Herein, we analyze X-ray crystallographic data of the enzyme-bound FAD conformations and sample conformations of the molecule in explicit water by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Enzyme-bound FAD conformations segregate into five distinct groups based on dihedral angle principal component analysis (PCA). A notable feature in the bound FADs is that the adenine base and isoalloxazine ring are oppositely oriented relative to the pyrophosphate axis characterized by near trans hypothetical dihedral angle "δV" values. Not surprisingly, MD simulations in water show final compact but not perfectly stacked ring structures in FAD. Simulation data did not reveal noticeable changes in overall conformational dynamics of the dinucleotide in reduced and oxidized forms and in the presence and/or absence of ions. During unfolding-folding dynamics, the riboflavin moiety is more flexible than the adenosine monophosphate group in the molecule. Conversely, the isoalloxazine ring is more stable than the variable adenine base. The pyrophosphate group depicts an unusually highly organized fluctuation illustrated by its dihedral angle distribution. Conformations sampled from enzymes and MD are quantified. The extent to which the protein shifts the distribution from the unbound state is discussed in terms of prevalent FAD shapes and dihedral angle population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gopi Kuppuraj
- Center for Informational Biology, Ochanomizu University , 2-1-1 Otsuka, Bunkyo, Tokyo 112-8610, Japan
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42
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Watts KS, Dalal P, Tebben AJ, Cheney DL, Shelley JC. Macrocycle Conformational Sampling with MacroModel. J Chem Inf Model 2014; 54:2680-96. [DOI: 10.1021/ci5001696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- K. Shawn Watts
- Schrödinger, Inc., 101 SW Main Street,
Suite 1300, Portland, Oregon 97204, United States
| | - Pranav Dalal
- D. E. Shaw India Software, Private Limited, Sanali Infopark, 8-2-120/113, Road No. 2, Banjara
Hills, Hyderabad 500 034, Andhra Pradesh, India
| | - Andrew J. Tebben
- Bristol-Myers Squibb, 3551 Lawrenceville
Road, Princeton, Lawrence Township, New Jersey 08648, United States
| | - Daniel L. Cheney
- Bristol-Myers Squibb, 311 Pennington−Rocky
Hill Road, Pennington, New
Jersey 08543, United States
| | - John C. Shelley
- Schrödinger, Inc., 101 SW Main Street,
Suite 1300, Portland, Oregon 97204, United States
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43
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Abstract
There is a large body of evidence that many protein-ligand cocrystal structures contain poorly refined ligand geometries. These errors result in bound structures that have nonideal bond lengths and angles, are strained, contain improbable conformations, and have bad protein-ligand contacts. Many of these problems can be greatly reduced with better refinement models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles H. Reynolds
- Gfree Bio, LLC, 3805 Old Easton Road, Doylestown, Pennsylvania 18902, United States
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44
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Remko M, Broer R, Remková A. A comparative study of the molecular structure, lipophilicity, solubility, acidity, absorption and polar surface area of coumarinic anticoagulants and direct thrombin inhibitors. RSC Adv 2014. [DOI: 10.1039/c3ra42347f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The methods of computational chemistry have been used to elucidate the molecular properties of coumarinic anticoagulants (acenocoumarol, phenprocoumon, warfarin and tecarfarin) and direct thrombin inhibitors (melagatran, dabigatran and their prodrug forms).
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Affiliation(s)
- Milan Remko
- Comenius University in Bratislava
- Faculty of Pharmacy
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry
- SK-832 32 Bratislava, Slovakia
- Center for Hemostasis and Thrombosis
| | - Ria Broer
- Department of Theoretical Chemistry
- Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials
- University of Groningen
- 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Anna Remková
- Center for Hemostasis and Thrombosis
- Hemo Medika Bratislava
- 851 04 Bratislava, Slovakia
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45
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Gioiello A, Venturoni F, Tamimi S, Custodi C, Pellicciari R, Macchiarulo A. Conformational properties of cholic acid, a lead compound at the crossroads of bile acid inspired drug discovery. MEDCHEMCOMM 2014. [DOI: 10.1039/c4md00024b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
DFT and NMR spectroscopy studies unveil three major minima conformations of cholic acid that may affect its biological properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antimo Gioiello
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco
- Università degli Studi di Perugia
- 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Francesco Venturoni
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco
- Università degli Studi di Perugia
- 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Sara Tamimi
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco
- Università degli Studi di Perugia
- 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Chiara Custodi
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco
- Università degli Studi di Perugia
- 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Roberto Pellicciari
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco
- Università degli Studi di Perugia
- 06123 Perugia, Italy
- TES Pharma S.r.l
- Perugia, Italy
| | - Antonio Macchiarulo
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco
- Università degli Studi di Perugia
- 06123 Perugia, Italy
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46
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Chen IJ, Foloppe N. Tackling the conformational sampling of larger flexible compounds and macrocycles in pharmacology and drug discovery. Bioorg Med Chem 2013; 21:7898-920. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2013.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2013] [Revised: 09/29/2013] [Accepted: 10/04/2013] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
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47
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Kotasthane A, Mulakala C, Viswanadhan VN. Applying conformational selection theory to improve crossdocking efficiency in 3-phosphoinositide dependent protein kinase-1. Proteins 2013; 82:436-51. [PMID: 23999908 DOI: 10.1002/prot.24410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2013] [Revised: 08/22/2013] [Accepted: 08/23/2013] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
The emerging picture of biomolecular recognition is that of conformational selection followed by induced-fit. Conformational selection theory states that binding partners exist in various conformations in solution, with binding involving a "selection" between complementary conformers. In this study, we devise a docking protocol that mimics conformational selection in protein-ligand binding and demonstrate that it significantly enhances crossdocking accuracy over Glide's flexible docking protocol, which is widely used in the pharmaceutical industry. Our protocol uses a pregenerated conformational ensemble to simulate ligand flexibility. The ensemble was generated by thorough conformational sampling coupled with conformer minimization. The generated conformers were then rigidly docked in the active site of the protein along with a postdocking minimization step that allows limited induced fit effects to be modeled for the ligand. We illustrate the improved performance of our protocol through crossdocking of 31 ligands to cocomplexed proteins of the kinase 3-phosphoinositide dependent protein kinase-1 extracted from the crystal structures 1H1W (ATP bound), 1OKY (staurosporine bound) and 3QD0 (bound to a potent inhibitor). Consistent with conformational selection theory, the performance of our protocol was the best for crossdocking to the cognate protein bound to the natural ligand, ATP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anuja Kotasthane
- Department of Computational Chemistry, Jubilant Biosys Limited, Yeshwanthpur, Bangalore, 560 022, Karnataka, India
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48
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Blundell CD, Packer MJ, Almond A. Quantification of free ligand conformational preferences by NMR and their relationship to the bioactive conformation. Bioorg Med Chem 2013; 21:4976-87. [PMID: 23886813 PMCID: PMC3744816 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2013.06.056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2013] [Accepted: 06/24/2013] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Accurate unbound solution 3D-structures of ligands provide unique opportunities for medicinal chemistry and, in particular, a context to understand binding thermodynamics and kinetics. Previous methods of deriving these 3D-structures have had neither the accuracy nor resolution needed for drug design and have not yet realized their potential. Here, we describe and apply a NMR methodology to the aminoglycoside streptomycin that can accurately quantify accessible 3D-space and rank the occupancy of observed conformers to a resolution that enables medicinal chemistry understanding and design. Importantly, it is based upon conventional small molecule NMR techniques and can be performed in physiologically-relevant solvents. The methodology uses multiple datasets, an order of magnitude more experimental data than previous NMR approaches and a dynamic model during refinement, is independent of computational chemistry and avoids the problem of virtual conformations. The refined set of solution 3D-shapes for streptomycin can be grouped into two major families, of which the most populated is almost identical to the 30S ribosomal subunit bioactive shape. We therefore propose that accurate unbound ligand solution conformations may, in some cases, provide a subsidiary route to bioactive shape without crystallography. This experimental technique opens up new opportunities for drug design and more so when complemented with protein co-crystal structures, SAR data and pharmacophore modeling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles D Blundell
- C4X Discovery Ltd, Unit 310 Ducie House, Ducie Street, Manchester M1 2JW, UK
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Nguyen ED, Norn C, Frimurer TM, Meiler J. Assessment and challenges of ligand docking into comparative models of G-protein coupled receptors. PLoS One 2013; 8:e67302. [PMID: 23844000 PMCID: PMC3699586 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0067302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2013] [Accepted: 05/16/2013] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The rapidly increasing number of high-resolution X-ray structures of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) creates a unique opportunity to employ comparative modeling and docking to provide valuable insight into the function and ligand binding determinants of novel receptors, to assist in virtual screening and to design and optimize drug candidates. However, low sequence identity between receptors, conformational flexibility, and chemical diversity of ligands present an enormous challenge to molecular modeling approaches. It is our hypothesis that rapid Monte-Carlo sampling of protein backbone and side-chain conformational space with Rosetta can be leveraged to meet this challenge. This study performs unbiased comparative modeling and docking methodologies using 14 distinct high-resolution GPCRs and proposes knowledge-based filtering methods for improvement of sampling performance and identification of correct ligand-receptor interactions. On average, top ranked receptor models built on template structures over 50% sequence identity are within 2.9 Å of the experimental structure, with an average root mean square deviation (RMSD) of 2.2 Å for the transmembrane region and 5 Å for the second extracellular loop. Furthermore, these models are consistently correlated with low Rosetta energy score. To predict their binding modes, ligand conformers of the 14 ligands co-crystalized with the GPCRs were docked against the top ranked comparative models. In contrast to the comparative models themselves, however, it remains difficult to unambiguously identify correct binding modes by score alone. On average, sampling performance was improved by 103 fold over random using knowledge-based and energy-based filters. In assessing the applicability of experimental constraints, we found that sampling performance is increased by one order of magnitude for every 10 residues known to contact the ligand. Additionally, in the case of DOR, knowledge of a single specific ligand-protein contact improved sampling efficiency 7 fold. These findings offer specific guidelines which may lead to increased success in determining receptor-ligand complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Dong Nguyen
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Christoffer Norn
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Thomas M. Frimurer
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jens Meiler
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt Program in Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Department of Chemistry and the Institute for Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Teixeira C, Serradji N, Amroune S, Storck K, Rogez-Kreuz C, Clayette P, Barbault F, Maurel F. Is the conformational flexibility of piperazine derivatives important to inhibit HIV-1 replication? J Mol Graph Model 2013; 44:91-103. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2013.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2013] [Revised: 04/29/2013] [Accepted: 05/05/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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