Recent advancements in pharmacological strategies to modulate energy balance for combating obesity

The prevalence of obesity along with its related metabolic diseases has increased globally in recent decades. Obesity originates from a heterogeneous physiological state, which is further complicated by the influence of factors such as genetic, behavioural, and environmental. Lifestyle interventions including exercise and diet have limited success, necessitating the development of pharmacological approaches. Mechanistically, strategies target either reducing energy intake or increasing consumption through metabolism boosting. Current drugs lower energy intake via inducing satiety or inhibiting substrate absorption, while targeting mitochondria or cytosolic energy sensors has shown limited success due to toxicity. Nonshivering thermogenesis (NST) has provided hope for activating these processes selectively without significant side effects. The internet-based marketing of plant-based formulations for enhancing metabolism has surged. This review compiles scientific articles, magazines, newspapers, and online resources on anti-obesity drug development. Combination therapy of metabolic boosters and established anti-obesity compounds appears to be a promising future approach that requires further research.

Planispine A Sensitized Cancer Cells to Cisplatin by Inhibiting the Fanconi Anemia Pathway

The use of cisplatin as a chemotherapeutic drug is impeded by the development of drug resistance. Combination therapies of a chemosensitizer for cisplatin have been studied, but with little success, and the search for an effective combination therapy is continuing. Our earlier reports have shown that Zanthoxylum armatum DC. extract enhances the apoptotic effect of cisplatin in cancer cell lines. In this study, we purified and identified the bioactive phytocompound through bio-assay-guided purification, using column chromatography and HPLC. Chemical characterization using NMR and mass spectrometry revealed the compound as planispine A, with molecular structure C₂₅H₃₀O₆ and molecular weight, 426.16 g/mol. Planispine A was found to inhibit cancer cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner and to sensitize the cancer cells to cisplatin-augmented apoptotic cell death, in a caspase-dependent manner. A combination of planispine A and cisplatin induced S-phase cell cycle arrest, and reduced the expression of survival proteins such as cyclin D1. Interestingly, planispine A inhibits the Fanconi anemia pathway, as shown by reduced FANCD2 foci formation and FANCD2 monoubiquitination, which revealed the molecular mechanism of chemo-sensitization of cancer cells to cisplatin. Evaluation of this combination therapy in cisplatin-resistant tumors may lead to more efficient cisplatin treatment.

Whole-body endothermy: ancient, homologous and widespread among the ancestors of mammals, birds and crocodylians

The whole‐body (tachymetabolic) endothermy seen in modern birds and mammals is long held to have evolved independently in each group, a reasonable assumption when it was believed that its earliest appearances in birds and mammals arose many millions of years apart. That assumption is consistent with current acceptance that the non‐shivering thermogenesis (NST) component of regulatory body heat originates differently in each group: from skeletal muscle in birds and from brown adipose tissue (BAT) in mammals. However, BAT is absent in monotremes, marsupials, and many eutherians, all whole‐body endotherms. Indeed, recent research implies that BAT‐driven NST originated more recently and that the biochemical processes driving muscle NST in birds, many modern mammals and the ancestors of both may be similar, deriving from controlled ‘slippage’ of Ca²⁺ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca²⁺‐ATPase (SERCA) in skeletal muscle, similar to a process seen in some fishes. This similarity prompted our realisation that the capacity for whole‐body endothermy could even have pre‐dated the divergence of Amniota into Synapsida and Sauropsida, leading us to hypothesise the homology of whole‐body endothermy in birds and mammals, in contrast to the current assumption of their independent (convergent) evolution. To explore the extent of similarity between muscle NST in mammals and birds we undertook a detailed review of these processes and their control in each group. We found considerable but not complete similarity between them: in extant mammals the ‘slippage’ is controlled by the protein sarcolipin (SLN), in birds the SLN is slightly different structurally and its role in NST is not yet proved. However, considering the multi‐millions of years since the separation of synapsids and diapsids, we consider that the similarity between NST production in birds and mammals is consistent with their whole‐body endothermy being homologous. If so, we should expect to find evidence for it much earlier and more widespread among extinct amniotes than is currently recognised. Accordingly, we conducted an extensive survey of the palaeontological literature using established proxies. Fossil bone histology reveals evidence of sustained rapid growth rates indicating tachymetabolism. Large body size and erect stature indicate high systemic arterial blood pressures and four‐chambered hearts, characteristic of tachymetabolism. Large nutrient foramina in long bones are indicative of high bone perfusion for rapid somatic growth and for repair of microfractures caused by intense locomotion. Obligate bipedality appeared early and only in whole‐body endotherms. Isotopic profiles of fossil material indicate endothermic levels of body temperature. These proxies led us to compelling evidence for the widespread occurrence of whole‐body endothermy among numerous extinct synapsids and sauropsids, and very early in each clade's family tree. These results are consistent with and support our hypothesis that tachymetabolic endothermy is plesiomorphic in Amniota. A hypothetical structure for the heart of the earliest endothermic amniotes is proposed. We conclude that there is strong evidence for whole‐body endothermy being ancient and widespread among amniotes and that the similarity of biochemical processes driving muscle NST in extant birds and mammals strengthens the case for its plesiomorphy.

Targeting peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma for generation of antidiabetic drug

The incidence of Diabetes Mellitus (DM) has increased to alarming levels not only in developed countries but also in developing and underdeveloped countries. Scientific data have made it clear by now that patients with DM are predisposed to many other diseases. One of the worst associations of DM is with obesity and the number of DM patients with obesity is increasing at a very fast pace due to dramatic change in life style around the world in last few decades. This necessitates the discovery of new drugs to treat increasing numbers of people with both DM and obesity. Peroxisome Proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) is a well known target for DM and thiazolidiniones (TZDs; a common class of antidiabetic drug) which includes rosiglitazone and pioglitazone act through PPARγ. Recent studies have demonstrated that PPARγ apart from being important in glucose utilization also plays a critical role in lipid metabolism and energy homeostasis affecting long-term metabolic status. The possibility of selective modulation of PPARγ has opened up a whole new avenue of research and has the potential of producing some drug which can simultaneously fight both DM and obesity, without the side-effects of the currently available PPARγ modulators. Here, we discuss various aspects of selective modulation of PPARγ action.

Ligand based virtual screening and biological evaluation of inhibitors of chorismate mutase (Rv1885c) from Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv

We have identified new lead candidates that possess inhibitory activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv chorismate mutase by a ligand-based virtual screening optimized for lead evaluation in combination with in vitro enzymatic assay. The initial virtual screening using a ligand-based pharmacophore model identified 95 compounds from an in-house small molecule database of 15,452 compounds. The obtained hits were further evaluated by molecular docking and 15 compounds were short listed based on docking scores and the other scoring functions and subjected to biological assay. Chorismate mutase activity assays identified four compounds as inhibitors of M. tuberculosis chorismate mutase (MtCM) with low K(i) values. The structural models for these ligands in the chorismate mutase binding site will facilitate medicinal chemistry efforts for lead optimization against this protein.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv ESAT-6-CFP-10 complex formation confers thermodynamic and biochemical stability

The 6-kDa early secretory antigenic target (ESAT-6) and culture filtrate protein-10 (CFP-10), expressed from the region of deletion-1 (RD1) of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv, are known to play a key role in virulence. In this study, we explored the thermodynamic and biochemical changes associated with the formation of the 1 : 1 heterodimeric complex between ESAT-6 and CFP-10. Using isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), we precisely determined the association constant and free energy change for formation of the complex to be 2 x 10(7) M(-1) and -9.95 kcal.mol(-1), respectively. Strikingly, the thermal unfolding of the ESAT-6-CFP-10 heterodimeric complex was completely reversible, with a T(m) of 53.4 degrees C and DeltaH of 69 kcal.mol(-1). Mixing of ESAT-6 and CFP-10 at any temperature below the T(m) of the complex led to induction of helical conformation, suggesting molecular recognition between specific segments of unfolded ESAT-6 and CFP-10. Enhanced biochemical stability of the complex was indicated by protection of ESAT-6 and an N-terminal fragment of CFP-10 from proteolysis with trypsin. However, the flexible C-terminal of CFP-10 in the complex, which has been shown to be responsible for binding to macrophages and monocytes, was cleaved by trypsin. In the presence of phospholipid membranes, ESAT-6, but not CFP-10 and the complex, showed an increase in alpha-helical content and enhanced thermal stability. Overall, complex formation resulted in structural changes, enhanced thermodynamic and biochemical stability, and loss of binding to phospholipid membranes. These features of complex formation probably determine the physiological role of ESAT-6, CFP-10 and/or the complex in vivo. The ITC and thermal unfolding approach described in this study can readily be applied to characterization of the 11 other pairs of ESAT-6 family proteins and for screening ESAT-6 and CFP-10 mutants.