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Friedman AJ, Padgette HM, Kramer L, Liechty ET, Donovan GW, Fox JM, Shirts MR. Biophysical Rationale for the Selective Inhibition of PTP1B over TCPTP by Nonpolar Terpenoids. J Phys Chem B 2023; 127:8305-8316. [PMID: 37729547 PMCID: PMC10694825 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.3c03791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/22/2023]
Abstract
Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) are emerging drug targets for many diseases, including cancer, autoimmunity, and neurological disorders. A high degree of structural similarity between their catalytic domains, however, has hindered the development of selective pharmacological agents. Our previous research uncovered two unfunctionalized terpenoid inhibitors that selectively inhibit PTP1B over T-cell PTP (TCPTP), two PTPs with high sequence conservation. Here, we use molecular modeling, with supporting experimental validation, to study the molecular basis of this unusual selectivity. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations suggest that PTP1B and TCPTP share a h-bond network that connects the active site to a distal allosteric pocket; this network stabilizes the closed conformation of the catalytically essential WPD loop, which it links to the L-11 loop and neighboring α3 and α7 helices on the other side of the catalytic domain. Terpenoid binding to either of two proximal C-terminal sites─an α site and a β site─can disrupt the allosteric network; however, binding to the α site forms a stable complex only in PTP1B. In TCPTP, two charged residues disfavor binding at the α site in favor of binding at the β site, which is conserved between the two proteins. Our findings thus indicate that minor amino acid differences at the poorly conserved α site enable selective binding, a property that might be enhanced with chemical elaboration, and illustrate more broadly how minor differences in the conservation of neighboring─yet functionally similar─allosteric sites can affect the selectivity of inhibitory scaffolds (e.g., fragments).
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Affiliation(s)
- Anika J Friedman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Hannah M Padgette
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Levi Kramer
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Evan T Liechty
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Gregory W Donovan
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Jerome M Fox
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Michael R Shirts
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
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Friedman AJ, Padgette HM, Kramer L, Liechty ET, Donovan GW, Fox JM, Shirts MR. A biophysical rationale for the selective inhibition of PTP1B over TCPTP by nonpolar terpenoids. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.17.537234. [PMID: 37131728 PMCID: PMC10153121 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.17.537234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) are emerging drug targets for many diseases, including type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cancer. However, a high degree of structural similarity between the catalytic domains of these enzymes has made the development of selective pharmacological inhibitors an enormous challenge. Our previous research uncovered two unfunctionalized terpenoid inhibitors that selectively inhibit PTP1B over TCPTP, two PTPs with high sequence conservation. Here, we use molecular modeling with experimental validation to study the molecular basis of this unusual selectivity. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations indicate that PTP1B and TCPTP contain a conserved h-bond network that connects the active site to a distal allosteric pocket; this network stabilizes the closed conformation of the catalytically influential WPD loop, which it links to the L-11 loop and α 3 and α 7 helices-the C-terminal side of the catalytic domain. Terpenoid binding to either of two proximal allosteric sites-an α site and a β site-can disrupt the allosteric network. Interestingly, binding to the α site forms a stable complex with only PTP1B; in TCPTP, where two charged residues disfavor binding at the α site, the terpenoids bind to the β site, which is conserved between the two proteins. Our findings indicate that minor amino acid differences at the poorly conserved α site enable selective binding, a property that might be enhanced with chemical elaboration, and illustrate, more broadly, how minor differences in the conservation of neighboring-yet functionally similar-allosteric sites can have very different implications for inhibitor selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anika J Friedman
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Hannah M Padgette
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Levi Kramer
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Evan T Liechty
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Gregory W Donovan
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Jerome M Fox
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Michael R Shirts
- University of Colorado Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
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Unlocking the magic in mycelium: Using synthetic biology to optimize filamentous fungi for biomanufacturing and sustainability. Mater Today Bio 2023; 19:100560. [PMID: 36756210 PMCID: PMC9900623 DOI: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2023.100560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Filamentous fungi drive carbon and nutrient cycling across our global ecosystems, through its interactions with growing and decaying flora and their constituent microbiomes. The remarkable metabolic diversity, secretion ability, and fiber-like mycelial structure that have evolved in filamentous fungi have been increasingly exploited in commercial operations. The industrial potential of mycelial fermentation ranges from the discovery and bioproduction of enzymes and bioactive compounds, the decarbonization of food and material production, to environmental remediation and enhanced agricultural production. Despite its fundamental impact in ecology and biotechnology, molds and mushrooms have not, to-date, significantly intersected with synthetic biology in ways comparable to other industrial cell factories (e.g. Escherichia coli,Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Komagataella phaffii). In this review, we summarize a suite of synthetic biology and computational tools for the mining, engineering and optimization of filamentous fungi as a bioproduction chassis. A combination of methods across genetic engineering, mutagenesis, experimental evolution, and computational modeling can be used to address strain development bottlenecks in established and emerging industries. These include slow mycelium growth rate, low production yields, non-optimal growth in alternative feedstocks, and difficulties in downstream purification. In the scope of biomanufacturing, we then detail previous efforts in improving key bottlenecks by targeting protein processing and secretion pathways, hyphae morphogenesis, and transcriptional control. Bringing synthetic biology practices into the hidden world of molds and mushrooms will serve to expand the limited panel of host organisms that allow for commercially-feasible and environmentally-sustainable bioproduction of enzymes, chemicals, therapeutics, foods, and materials of the future.
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Kramer L, Sarkar A, Foderaro T, Markley AL, Lee J, Edstrom H, Sharma S, Gill E, Traylor MJ, Fox JM. Genetically Encoded Detection of Biosynthetic Protease Inhibitors. ACS Synth Biol 2023; 12:83-94. [PMID: 36574400 PMCID: PMC10072156 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.2c00384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Proteases are an important class of drug targets that continue to drive inhibitor discovery. These enzymes are prone to resistance mutations, yet their promise for treating viral diseases and other disorders continues to grow. This study develops a general approach for detecting microbially synthesized protease inhibitors and uses it to screen terpenoid pathways for inhibitory compounds. The detection scheme relies on a bacterial two-hybrid (B2H) system that links protease inactivation to the transcription of a swappable reporter gene. This system, which can accomodate multiple biochemical outputs (i.e., luminescence and antibiotic resistance), permitted the facile incorporation of four disease-relevant proteases. A B2H designed to detect the inactivation of the main protease of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 enabled the identification of a terpenoid inhibitor of modest potency. An analysis of multiple pathways that make this terpenoid, however, suggested that its production was necessary but not sufficient to confer a survival advantage in growth-coupled assays. This finding highlights an important challenge associated with the use of genetic selection to search for inhibitors─notably, the influence of pathway toxicity─and underlines the value of including multiple pathways with overlapping product profiles in pathway screens. This study provides a detailed experimental framework for using microbes to screen libraries of biosynthetic pathways for targeted protease inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Levi Kramer
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80303, United States
| | - Ankur Sarkar
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80303, United States
| | - Tom Foderaro
- Think Bioscience, Inc., 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Andrew L Markley
- Think Bioscience, Inc., 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Jessica Lee
- Think Bioscience, Inc., 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Hannah Edstrom
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80303, United States
| | - Shajesh Sharma
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80303, United States
| | - Eden Gill
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80303, United States
| | - Matthew J Traylor
- Think Bioscience, Inc., 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Jerome M Fox
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado80303, United States
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Friedman AJ, Liechty ET, Kramer L, Sarkar A, Fox JM, Shirts MR. Allosteric Inhibition of PTP1B by a Nonpolar Terpenoid. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:8427-8438. [PMID: 36223525 PMCID: PMC10040085 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c05423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) are promising drug targets for treating a wide range of diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and neurological disorders, but their conserved active sites have complicated the design of selective therapeutics. This study examines the allosteric inhibition of PTP1B by amorphadiene (AD), a terpenoid hydrocarbon that is an unusually selective inhibitor. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations carried out in this study suggest that AD can stably sample multiple neighboring sites on the allosterically influential C-terminus of the catalytic domain. Binding to these sites requires a disordered α7 helix, which stabilizes the PTP1B-AD complex and may contribute to the selectivity of AD for PTP1B over TCPTP. Intriguingly, the binding mode of AD differs from that of the most well-studied allosteric inhibitor of PTP1B. Indeed, biophysical measurements and MD simulations indicate that the two molecules can bind simultaneously. Upon binding, both inhibitors destabilize the α7 helix by disrupting interactions at the α3-α7 interface and prevent the formation of hydrogen bonds that facilitate closure of the catalytically essential WPD loop. These findings indicate that AD is a promising scaffold for building allosteric inhibitors of PTP1B and illustrate, more broadly, how unfunctionalized terpenoids can engage in specific interactions with protein surfaces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anika J Friedman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Evan T Liechty
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Levi Kramer
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Ankur Sarkar
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Jerome M Fox
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
| | - Michael R Shirts
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado80309, United States
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Striving for sustainable biosynthesis: discovery, diversification, and production of antimicrobial drugs in Escherichia coli. Biochem Soc Trans 2022; 50:1315-1328. [PMID: 36196987 DOI: 10.1042/bst20220218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Revised: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
New antimicrobials need to be discovered to fight the advance of multidrug-resistant pathogens. A promising approach is the screening for antimicrobial agents naturally produced by living organisms. As an alternative to studying the native producer, it is possible to use genetically tractable microbes as heterologous hosts to aid the discovery process, facilitate product diversification through genetic engineering, and ultimately enable environmentally friendly production. In this mini-review, we summarize the literature from 2017 to 2022 on the application of Escherichia coli and E. coli-based platforms as versatile and powerful systems for the discovery, characterization, and sustainable production of antimicrobials. We highlight recent developments in high-throughput screening methods and genetic engineering approaches that build on the strengths of E. coli as an expression host and that led to the production of antimicrobial compounds. In the last section, we briefly discuss new techniques that have not been applied to discover or engineer antimicrobials yet, but that may be useful for this application in the future.
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Sarkar A, Foderaro T, Kramer L, Markley AL, Lee J, Traylor MJ, Fox JM. Evolution-Guided Biosynthesis of Terpenoid Inhibitors. ACS Synth Biol 2022; 11:3015-3027. [PMID: 35984356 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.2c00188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Terpenoids, the largest and most structurally diverse group of natural products, include a striking variety of biologically active compounds, from flavors to medicines. Despite their well-documented biochemical versatility, the evolutionary processes that generate new functional terpenoids are poorly understood and difficult to recapitulate in engineered systems. This study uses a synthetic biochemical objective─a transcriptional system that links the inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), a human drug target, to the expression of a gene for antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli (E. coli)─to evolve a terpene synthase to produce enzyme inhibitors. Site saturation mutagenesis of poorly conserved residues on γ-humulene synthase (GHS), a promicuous enzyme, yielded mutants that improved fitness (i.e., the antibiotic resistance of E. coli) by reducing GHS toxicity and/or by increasing inhibitor production. Intriguingly, a combination of two mutations enhanced the titer of a minority product─a terpene alcohol that inhibits PTP1B─by over 50-fold, and a comparison of similar mutants enabled the identification of a site where mutations permit efficient hydroxylation. Findings suggest that the plasticity of terpene synthases enables an efficient sampling of structurally distinct starting points for building new functional molecules and provide an experimental framework for exploiting this plasticity in activity-guided screens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankur Sarkar
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80303, United States
| | - Tom Foderaro
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Levi Kramer
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80303, United States
| | - Andrew L Markley
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Jessica Lee
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Matthew J Traylor
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Jerome M Fox
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80303, United States
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Kang L, Han T, Cong H, Yu B, Shen Y. Recent research progress of biologically active peptides. Biofactors 2022; 48:575-596. [PMID: 35080058 DOI: 10.1002/biof.1822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
With the rapid development of molecular biology and biochemical technology, great progress has been made in the study of peptides. Peptides are easy to digest and absorb, with lowering of blood pressure and cholesterol, improving immunity, regulating hormones, antibacterial, and antiviral effects. Peptides also have physiological regulation and biological metabolism functions with applications in the fields of feed production and biomedical research. In the future, the research focus of bioactive peptides will focus on their efficient preparation and application. This article introduces a comprehensive review of the types, synthesis, functionalization, and bio-related applications of bioactive peptides. For this aim, we introduced in detail various biopeptides and then presented the production methods of bioactive peptides, such as enzymatic synthesis, microbial fermentation, chemical synthesis, and others. The applications of bioactive peptides for anticancers, immune therapy, antibacterial, and other applications have been introduced and discussed. And discussed the development prospects of biologically active peptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linlin Kang
- Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Tingting Han
- Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Hailin Cong
- Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
- State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Bing Yu
- Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
- State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Youqing Shen
- Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
- Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, Center for Bionanoengineering, and Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
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Recent Updates on Development of Protein-Tyrosine Phosphatase 1B Inhibitors for Treatment of Diabetes, Obesity and Related Disorders. Bioorg Chem 2022; 121:105626. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2022.105626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2021] [Revised: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
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