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Wang Y, Xue F, Cheng W, Zhao Q, Song N, Shi Z, Liu H, Li Y, Tang Q, Liu Q, Wang Y, Zhang F, Jiang X. Design and Synthesis of Novel Ultralong-Acting Peptides as EDP-EBP Interaction Inhibitors for Pulmonary Fibrosis Treatment. J Med Chem 2024; 67:6624-6637. [PMID: 38588467 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c00067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
The increased remodeling of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in pulmonary fibrosis (PF) generates bioactive ECM fragments called matricryptins, which include elastin-derived peptides (EDPs). The interaction between EDPs and their receptors, including elastin-binding protein (EBP), plays a crucial role in exacerbating fibrosis. Here, we present LXJ-02 for the first time, a novel ultralong-acting inhibitor that disrupts the EDPs/EBP peptide-protein interaction, promoting macrophages to secrete matrix metalloproteinase-12 (MMP-12), and showing great promise as a stable peptide. MMP-12 has traditionally been implicated in promoting inflammation and fibrosis in various acute and chronic diseases. However, we reveal a novel role of LXJ-02 that activates the macrophage-MMP-12 axis to increase MMP-12 expression and degrade ECM components like elastin. This leads to the preventing of PF while also improving EDP-EBP interaction. LXJ-02 effectively reverses PF in mouse models with minimal side effects, holding great promise as an excellent therapeutic agent for lung fibrosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yixiang Wang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
- The First School of Clinical Medicine & The First Hospital, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China
| | - Fanghan Xue
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Wei Cheng
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Qian Zhao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Nazi Song
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Zihan Shi
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Han Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Yu Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Qinglin Tang
- Shenzhen Turier Biotech. Co. Ltd, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Qi Liu
- Shenzhen Turier Biotech. Co. Ltd, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Yiqing Wang
- The First School of Clinical Medicine & The First Hospital, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China
- Gansu International Scientific and Technological Cooperation Base of Reproductive Medicine Transformation Application & Key Laboratory for Reproductive Medicine and Embryo of Gansu Province, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China
| | - Fangfang Zhang
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China
| | - Xianxing Jiang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
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Song P, Wang S, Han R, Wang H, Hu B, Luan J, Zhang H, Wang Z, Ma C, Wang J. Insights into the selective mechanism of PDE2/9a inhibitors from silico aspects. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2024:1-18. [PMID: 38525932 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2024.2331098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
The selective design of competitive enzyme inhibitors is an extremely difficult task but necessary work for certain types of systems, such as the phosphodiesterase (PDE) system addressed in this article. In the PDE family, PDE2A and PDE9 respectively target the central nervous system and heart failure, and share many conserved amino acids at their binding sites. Therefore, gaining a deep understanding of the selective mechanisms of PDE2A/9A is crucial for designing highly selective drugs. In this study, various computer-aided drug design (CADD) methods, including molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations (MD), and binding free energy calculations, are employed to explore the selective mechanisms of PDE2A/9A. Overall, our research results indicate a selective design strategy for PDE2A, which involves incorporating hydrophobic or aromatic moieties into the molecular structure to better accommodate the hydrophobic pocket of PDE2A. Additionally, it is recommended to introduce functional groups capable of forming connections with selective residues, such as Phe830 and Gln812 for PDE2A, or Ala452 and Tyr424 for PDE9A, to enhance the selectivity of inhibitors targeting PDE2A/9A. This achievement is anticipated to pave the way for the development of innovative and selective small molecules targeting PDE2A/9A.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pengfei Song
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Shizhun Wang
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruiheng Han
- Pharmaceutical department, Avanc Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., China
| | - Hanxun Wang
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Baichun Hu
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiasi Luan
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Medical Devices, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Haoyu Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhijian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Chao Ma
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
| | - Jian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Structure-Based Drug Design &Discovery of Ministry of Education, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Intelligent Drug Design and New Drug Discovery of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, People's Republic of China
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Wu W, Wang Z, Zhang H, Zhang X, Tian H. circGRHPR inhibits aberrant epithelial-mesenchymal transformation progression of lung epithelial cells associated with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Cell Biol Toxicol 2024; 40:7. [PMID: 38267743 PMCID: PMC10808371 DOI: 10.1007/s10565-024-09839-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
Air pollution has greatly increased the risk of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been found to play a significant role in the advancement of IPF, but there is limited evidence of correlation between circRNAs and lung epithelial cells (LECs) in IPF. This research aimed to explore the influence of circRNAs on the regulation of EMT progression in LECs, with the objective of elucidating its mechanism and establishing its association with IPF. Our results suggested that the downregulation of circGRHPR in peripheral blood of clinical cases was associated with the diagnosis of IPF. Meanwhile, we found that circGRHPR was downregulated in transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-β1)-induced A549 and Beas-2b cells. It is a valid model to study the abnormal EMT progression of IPF-associated LECs in vitro. The overexpression of circGRHPR inhibited the abnormal EMT progression of TGF-β1-induced LECs. Furthermore, as the sponge of miR-665, circGRHPR released the expression of E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase NEDD4-like (NEDD4L), thus promoting its downstream transforming growth factor beta receptor 2 (TGFBR2) ubiquitination. It is helpful to reduce the response of LECs to TGF-β1 signaling. In summary, circGRHPR/miR-665/NEDD4L axis inhibited the abnormal EMT progression of TGF-β1-induced LECs by promoting TGFBR2 ubiquitination, which provides new ideas and potential targets for the treatment of IPF.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wensi Wu
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, No. 107, Wenhua West Road, Lixia District, Jinan, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhi Wang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital, No. 107, Yanjiang West Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, 510120, People's Republic of China
| | - Huiying Zhang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, No. 107, Wenhua West Road, Lixia District, Jinan, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaojun Zhang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, No. 107, Wenhua West Road, Lixia District, Jinan, 250012, People's Republic of China.
| | - Hui Tian
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, No. 107, Wenhua West Road, Lixia District, Jinan, 250012, People's Republic of China.
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