Distinct but overlapping binding sites of agonist and antagonist at the relaxin family peptide 3 (RXFP3) receptor

Development of a synthetic relaxin-3/INSL5 chimeric peptide ligand for NanoBiT complementation binding assays

INSL5 and relaxin-3 are relaxin family peptides with important roles in gut and brain function, respectively. They mediate their actions through the class A GPCRs RXFP4 and RXFP3. RXFP4 has been proposed to be a therapeutic target for colon motility disorders whereas RXFP3 targeting could be effective for neurological conditions such as anxiety. Validation of these targets has been limited by the lack of specific ligands and the availability of robust ligand-binding assays for their development. In this study, we have utilized NanoBiT complementation to develop a SmBiT-conjugated tracer for use with LgBiT-fused RXFP3 and RXFP4. The low affinity between LgBiT:SmBiT should result in a low non-specific luminescence signal and enable the quantification of binding without the tedious separation of non-bound ligands. We used solid-phase peptide synthesis to produce a SmBiT-labelled RXFP3/4 agonist, R3/I5, where SmBiT was conjugated to the B-chain N-terminus via a PEG12 linker. Both SmBiT-R3/I5 and R3/I5 were synthesized and purified in high purity and yield. Stable HEK293T cell lines expressing LgBiT-RXFP3 and LgBiT-RXFP4 were produced and demonstrated normal signaling in response to the synthetic R3/I5 peptide. Binding was first characterized in whole-cell binding kinetic assays validating that the SmBiT-R3/I5 bound to both cell lines with nanomolar affinity with minimal non-specific binding without bound and free SmBiT-R3/I5 separation. We then optimized membrane binding assays, demonstrating easy and robust analysis of both saturation and competition binding from frozen membranes. These assays therefore provide an appropriate rigorous binding assay for the high-throughput analysis of RXFP3 and RXFP4 ligands.

Ligand recognition mechanism of the human relaxin family peptide receptor 4 (RXFP4)

Members of the insulin superfamily regulate pleiotropic biological processes through two types of target-specific but structurally conserved peptides, insulin/insulin-like growth factors and relaxin/insulin-like peptides. The latter bind to the human relaxin family peptide receptors (RXFPs). Here, we report three cryo-electron microscopy structures of RXFP4-G_i protein complexes in the presence of the endogenous ligand insulin-like peptide 5 (INSL5) or one of the two small molecule agonists, compound 4 and DC591053. The B chain of INSL5 adopts a single α-helix that penetrates into the orthosteric pocket, while the A chain sits above the orthosteric pocket, revealing a peptide-binding mode previously unknown. Together with mutagenesis and functional analyses, the key determinants responsible for the peptidomimetic agonism and subtype selectivity were identified. Our findings not only provide insights into ligand recognition and subtype selectivity among class A G protein-coupled receptors, but also expand the knowledge of signaling mechanisms in the insulin superfamily.

Indole-Containing Amidinohydrazones as Nonpeptide, Dual RXFP3/4 Agonists: Synthesis, Structure-Activity Relationship, and Molecular Modeling Studies

The central relaxin-3/RXFP3 system plays important roles in stress responses, feeding, and motivation for reward. However, exploration of its therapeutic applications has been hampered by the lack of small molecule ligands and the cross-activation of RXFP1 in the brain and RXFP4 in the periphery. Herein, we report the first structure-activity relationship studies of a series of novel nonpeptide amidinohydrazone-based agonists, which were characterized by RXFP3 functional and radioligand binding assays. Several potent and efficacious RXFP3 agonists (e.g., 10d) were identified with EC₅₀ values <10 nM. These compounds also had high potency at RXFP4 but no agonist activity at RXFP1, demonstrating > 100-fold selectivity for RXFP3/4 over RXFP1. In vitro ADME and pharmacokinetic assessments revealed that the amidinohydrazone derivatives may have limited brain permeability. Collectively, our findings provide the basis for further optimization of lead compounds to develop a suitable agonist to probe RXFP3 functions in the brain.

Effects of C-Terminal B-Chain Modifications in a Relaxin 3 Agonist Analogue

The receptor for the neuropeptide relaxin 3, relaxin family peptide 3 (RXFP3) receptor, is an attractive pharmacological target for the control of eating, addictive, and psychiatric behaviors. Several structure-activity relationship studies on both human relaxin 3 (containing 3 disulfide bonds) and its analogue A2 (two disulfide bonds) suggest that the C-terminal carboxylic acid of the tryptophan residue in the B-chain is important for RXFP3 activity. In this study, we have added amide, alcohol, carbamate, and ester functionalities to the C-terminus of A2 and compared their structures and functions. As expected, the C-terminal amide form of A2 showed lower binding affinity for RXFP3 while ester and alcohol substitutions also demonstrated lower affinity. However, while these analogues showed slightly lower binding affinity, there was no significant difference in activation of RXFP3 compared to A2 bearing a C-terminal carboxylic acid, suggesting the binding pocket is able to accommodate additional atoms.

Exploring the Use of Helicogenic Amino Acids for Optimising Single Chain Relaxin-3 Peptide Agonists

Relaxin-3 is a highly conserved two-chain neuropeptide that acts through its endogenous receptor the Relaxin Family Peptide-3 (RXFP3) receptor. The ligand/receptor system is known to modulate several physiological processes, with changes in food intake and anxiety-levels the most well studied in rodent models. Agonist and antagonist analogues based on the native two-chain peptide are costly to synthesise and not ideal drug leads. Since RXFP3 interacting residues are found in the relaxin B-chain only, this has been the focus of analogue development. The B-chain is unstructured without the A-chain support, but in single-chain variants structure can be induced by dicarba-based helical stapling strategies. Here we investigated whether alternative helical inducing strategies also can enhance structure and activity at RXFP3. Combinations of the helix inducing α-aminoisobutyric acid (Aib) were incorporated into the sequence of the relaxin-3 B-chain. Aib residues at positions 13, 17 and 18 partially reintroduce helicity and activity of the relaxin-3 B-chain, but other positions are generally not suited for modifications. We identify Thr21 as a putative new receptor contact residue important for RXFP3 binding. Cysteine residues were also incorporated into the sequence and cross-linked with dichloroacetone or α, α'-dibromo-m-xylene. However, in contrast to previously reported dicarba variants, neither were found to promote structure and RXFP3 activity.

Hydrophobic interactions of relaxin family peptide receptor 3 with ligands identified using a NanoBiT-based binding assay

Relaxin family peptide receptor 3 (RXFP3) is a G protein-coupled receptor implicated in the regulation of food intake and stress response upon activation by the neuropeptide relaxin-3. In recent studies, interactions of RXFP3 with some natural or synthetic ligands have been investigated. In the present study, we identified the hydrophobic interactions of human RXFP3 with the chimeric agonist R3/I5 and the chimeric antagonist R3(ΔB23-27)R/I5 using a newly developed NanoBiT-based homogenous binding assay. We first demonstrated that the conserved large aliphatic B15Ile and B19Ile were important for the binding of the agonist and antagonist to RXFP3, because alanine replacement significantly decreased their receptor-binding potency. Thereafter, we demonstrated that the conserved large aliphatic Leu246 and Leu248 in extracellular loop 2 were important for RXFP3 binding to the agonist and antagonist, because alanine replacement significantly decreased the binding affinity of RXFP3 for both ligands. Finally, we deduced probable hydrophobic interactions based on the ability of RXFP3 mutants to distinguish the wild-type and mutant ligands: Leu246 of RXFP3 interacted with B15Ile of both ligands, while Leu248 of RXFP3 interacted with both B15Ile and B19Ile of the agonist and antagonist. The present results not only provided new insights into the interaction mechanism of RXFP3 with agonists and antagonists, but also demonstrated usefulness of the NanoBiT-based homogenous binding assay to study the interaction mechanism of certain receptors with their ligands.

Development of Relaxin-3 Agonists and Antagonists Based on Grafted Disulfide-Stabilized Scaffolds

Relaxin-3 is a neuropeptide with important roles in metabolism, arousal, learning and memory. Its cognate receptor is the relaxin family peptide-3 (RXFP3) receptor. Relaxin-3 agonist and antagonist analogs have been shown to be able to modulate food intake in rodent models. The relaxin-3 B-chain is sufficient for receptor interactions, however, in the absence of a structural support, linear relaxin-3 B-chain analogs are rapidly degraded and thus unsuitable as drug leads. In this study, two different disulfide-stabilized scaffolds were used for grafting of important relaxin-3 B-chain residues to improve structure and stability. The use of both Veronica hederifolia Trypsin inhibitor (VhTI) and apamin grafting resulted in agonist and antagonist analogs with improved helicity. VhTI grafted peptides showed poor binding and low potency at RXFP3, on the other hand, apamin variants retained significant activity. These variants also showed improved half-life in serum from ~5 min to >6 h, and thus are promising RXFP3 specific pharmacological tools and drug leads for neuropharmacological diseases.

Intranasal administration of a stapled relaxin-3 mimetic has anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like activity in rats

Background and Purpose

Depression and anxiety are common causes of disability, and innovative tools and potential pharmacological targets are actively sought for prevention and treatment. Therapeutic strategies targeting the relaxin‐3 peptide or its primary endogenous receptor, RXFP3, for the treatment of major depression and anxiety disorders have been limited by a lack of compounds with drug‐like properties. We proposed that a hydrocarbon‐stapled mimetic of relaxin‐3, when administered intranasally, might be uniquely applicable to the treatment of these disorders.

Experimental Approach

We designed a series of hydrocarbon‐stapled relaxin‐3 mimetics and identified the most potent compound using in vitro receptor binding and activation assays. Further, we assessed the effect of intranasal delivery of relaxin‐3 and the lead stapled mimetic in rat models of anxiety and depression.

Key Results

We developed an i,i+7 stapled relaxin‐3 mimetic that manifested a stabilized α‐helical structure, proteolytic resistance, and confirmed agonist activity in receptor binding and activation in vitro assays. The stapled peptide agonist enhanced food intake after intracerebral infusion in rats, confirming in vivo activity. We showed that intranasal delivery of the lead i,i+7 stapled peptide or relaxin‐3 had orexigenic effects in rats, indicating a potential clinically translatable route of delivery. Further, intranasal administration of the lead i,i+7 stapled peptide exerted anxiolytic and antidepressant‐like activity in anxiety‐ and depression‐related behaviour paradigms.

Conclusions and Implications

Our preclinical findings demonstrate that targeting the relaxin‐3/RXFP3 receptor system via intranasal delivery of an i,i+7 stapled relaxin‐3 mimetic may represent an effective treatment approach for depression, anxiety, and related neuropsychiatric disorders.

Understanding Peptide Binding in Class A G Protein-Coupled Receptors

Many physiologic processes are controlled through the activation of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) by regulatory peptides, making peptide GPCRs particularly useful targets for major human diseases such as diabetes and cancer. Peptide GPCRs are also being evaluated as next-generation targets for the development of novel antiparasite agents and insecticides in veterinary medicine and agriculture. Resolution of crystal structures for several peptide GPCRs has advanced our understanding of peptide-receptor interactions and fueled interest in correlating peptide heterogeneity with receptor-binding properties. In this review, the knowledge of recently crystalized peptide-GPCR complexes, previously accumulated peptide structure-activity relationship studies, receptor mutagenesis, and sequence alignment are integrated to better understand peptide binding to the transmembrane cavity of class A GPCRs. Using SAR data, we show that peptide class A GPCRs can be divided into groups with distinct hydrophilic residues. These characteristic residues help explain the preference of a receptor to bind the C-terminal free carboxyl group, the C-terminal amidated group, or the N-terminal ammonium group of peptides.

Single chain peptide agonists of relaxin receptors

There are seven human relaxin family peptides that have two chains (A and B) and three disulfide bonds. The target receptors for four of these peptides are known as relaxin family peptide receptors, RXFP1-RXFP4. Detailed structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies of relaxin family peptides have been reported over the years and have led to the design of new analogs with agonistic and antagonistic properties. This review briefly summarizes the SAR of human relaxin 2 (H2 relaxin) and human relaxin 3 (H3 relaxin) leading to the design and development of single-B-chain only agonists, B7-33 and peptide 5. The physiological functions of these new peptides agonists in cellular and animal models are also described.

Binding conformation and determinants of a single-chain peptide antagonist at the relaxin-3 receptor RXFP3

The neuropeptide relaxin-3 and its receptor relaxin family peptide receptor-3 (RXFP3) play key roles in modulating behavior such as memory and learning, food intake, and reward seeking. A linear relaxin-3 antagonist (R3 B1-22R) based on a modified and truncated relaxin-3 B-chain was recently developed. R3 B1-22R is unstructured in solution; thus, the binding conformation and determinants of receptor binding are unclear. Here, we have designed, chemically synthesized, and pharmacologically characterized more than 60 analogues of R3 B1-22R to develop an extensive understanding of its structure-activity relationships. We show that the key driver for affinity is the nonnative C-terminal Arg²³ Additional contributors to binding include amino acid residues that are important also for relaxin-3 binding, including Arg¹², Ile¹⁵, and Ile¹⁹ Intriguingly, amino acid residues that are not exposed in native relaxin-3, including Phe¹⁴ and Ala¹⁷, also interact with RXFP3. We show that R3 B1-22R has a propensity to form a helical structure, and modifications that support a helical conformation are functionally well-tolerated, whereas helix breakers such as proline residues disrupt binding. These data suggest that the peptide adopts a helical conformation, like relaxin-3, upon binding to RXFP3, but that its smaller size allows it to penetrate deeper into the orthosteric binding site, creating more extensive contacts with the receptor.