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Sai M, Vietor J, Kornmayer M, Egner M, López-García Ú, Höfner G, Pabel J, Marschner JA, Wein T, Merk D. Structure-Guided Design of Nurr1 Agonists Derived from the Natural Ligand Dihydroxyindole. J Med Chem 2023; 66:13556-13567. [PMID: 37751901 PMCID: PMC10578347 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c00852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
The neuroprotective transcription factor Nurr1 was recently found to bind the dopamine metabolite 5,6-dihydroxyindole (DHI) providing access to Nurr1 ligand design from a natural template. We screened a custom set of 14 k extended DHI analogues in silico for optimized descendants to select 24 candidates for microscale synthesis and in vitro testing. Three out of six primary hits were validated as novel Nurr1 agonists with up to sub-micromolar binding affinity, highlighting the druggability of the Nurr1 surface region lining helix 12. In vitro profiling confirmed cellular target engagement of DHI descendants and demonstrated remarkable additive effects of combined Nurr1 agonist treatment, indicating diverse binding sites mediating Nurr1 activation, which may open new avenues in Nurr1 modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Moritz Kornmayer
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Markus Egner
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Úrsula López-García
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Georg Höfner
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Jörg Pabel
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Julian A. Marschner
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Thomas Wein
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Daniel Merk
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
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Munoz-Tello P, Lin H, Khan P, de Vera IMS, Kamenecka TM, Kojetin DJ. Assessment of NR4A Ligands That Directly Bind and Modulate the Orphan Nuclear Receptor Nurr1. J Med Chem 2020; 63:15639-15654. [PMID: 33289551 PMCID: PMC8006468 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c00894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Nurr1/NR4A2 is an orphan nuclear receptor transcription factor implicated as a drug target for neurological disorders including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Previous studies identified small-molecule NR4A nuclear receptor modulators, but it remains unclear if these ligands affect transcription via direct binding to Nurr1. We assessed 12 ligands reported to affect NR4A activity for Nurr1-dependent and Nurr1-independent transcriptional effects and the ability to bind the Nurr1 ligand-binding domain (LBD). Protein NMR structural footprinting data show that amodiaquine, chloroquine, and cytosporone B bind the Nurr1 LBD; ligands that do not bind include C-DIM12, celastrol, camptothecin, IP7e, isoalantolactone, ethyl 2-[2,3,4-trimethoxy-6-(1-octanoyl)phenyl]acetate (TMPA), and three high-throughput screening hit derivatives. Importantly, ligands that modulate Nurr1 transcription also show Nurr1-independent effects on transcription in a cell type-specific manner, indicating that care should be taken when interpreting the functional response of these ligands in transcriptional assays. These findings should help focus medicinal chemistry efforts that desire to optimize Nurr1-binding ligands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Munoz-Tello
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, 33458, USA
| | - Hua Lin
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, Florida 33458, USA
| | - Pasha Khan
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, Florida 33458, USA
| | - Ian Mitchelle S. de Vera
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, 33458, USA
| | - Theodore M. Kamenecka
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, Florida 33458, USA
| | - Douglas J. Kojetin
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, 33458, USA
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, Florida 33458, USA
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Abstract
The Ccr4-Not complex is an essential multi-subunit protein complex that plays a fundamental role in eukaryotic mRNA metabolism and has a multitude of different roles that impact eukaryotic gene expression . It has a conserved core of three Not proteins, the Ccr4 protein, and two Ccr4 associated factors, Caf1 and Caf40. A fourth Not protein, Not4, is conserved, but is only a stable subunit of the complex in yeast. Certain subunits have been duplicated during evolution, with functional divergence, such as Not3 in yeast, and Ccr4 or Caf1 in human. However the complex includes only one homolog for each protein. In addition, species-specific subunits are part of the complex, such as Caf130 in yeast or Not10 and Not11 in human. Two conserved catalytic functions are associated with the complex, deadenylation and ubiquitination . The complex adopts an L-shaped structure, in which different modules are bound to a large Not1 scaffold protein. In this chapter we will summarize our current knowledge of the architecture of the complex and of the structure of its constituents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martine A Collart
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1 rue Michel Servet, Geneva, Switzerland.
| | - Olesya O Panasenko
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1 rue Michel Servet, Geneva, Switzerland
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Bruning JM, Wang Y, Oltrabella F, Tian B, Kholodar SA, Liu H, Bhattacharya P, Guo S, Holton JM, Fletterick RJ, Jacobson MP, England PM. Covalent Modification and Regulation of the Nuclear Receptor Nurr1 by a Dopamine Metabolite. Cell Chem Biol 2019; 26:674-685.e6. [PMID: 30853418 PMCID: PMC7185887 DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2019.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2018] [Revised: 11/06/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Nurr1, a nuclear receptor essential for the development, maintenance, and survival of midbrain dopaminergic neurons, is a potential therapeutic target for Parkinson's disease, a neurological disorder characterized by the degeneration of these same neurons. Efforts to identify Nurr1 agonists have been hampered by the recognition that it lacks several classic regulatory elements of nuclear receptor function, including the canonical ligand-binding pocket. Here we report that the dopamine metabolite 5,6-dihydroxyindole (DHI) binds directly to and modulates the activity of Nurr1. Using biophysical assays and X-ray crystallography, we show that DHI binds to the ligand-binding domain within a non-canonical pocket, forming a covalent adduct with Cys566. In cultured cells and zebrafish, DHI stimulates Nurr1 activity, including the transcription of target genes underlying dopamine homeostasis. These findings suggest avenues for developing synthetic Nurr1 ligands to ameliorate the symptoms and progression of Parkinson's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- John M Bruning
- Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacogenomics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Yan Wang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Francesca Oltrabella
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Boxue Tian
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Svetlana A Kholodar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Harrison Liu
- Bioengineering Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Paulomi Bhattacharya
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Su Guo
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - James M Holton
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Robert J Fletterick
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Matthew P Jacobson
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Pamela M England
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA.
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de Vera IMS, Munoz-Tello P, Zheng J, Dharmarajan V, Marciano DP, Matta-Camacho E, Giri PK, Shang J, Hughes TS, Rance M, Griffin PR, Kojetin DJ. Defining a Canonical Ligand-Binding Pocket in the Orphan Nuclear Receptor Nurr1. Structure 2018; 27:66-77.e5. [PMID: 30416039 DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2018.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2018] [Revised: 08/17/2018] [Accepted: 10/05/2018] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Nuclear receptor-related 1 protein (Nurr1/NR4A2) is an orphan nuclear receptor (NR) that is considered to function without a canonical ligand-binding pocket (LBP). A crystal structure of the Nurr1 ligand-binding domain (LBD) revealed no physical space in the conserved region where other NRs with solvent accessible apo-protein LBPs bind synthetic and natural ligands. Using solution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry, and molecular dynamics simulations, we show that the putative canonical Nurr1 LBP is dynamic with high solvent accessibility, exchanges between two or more conformations on the microsecond-to-millisecond timescale, and can expand from the collapsed crystallized conformation to allow binding of unsaturated fatty acids. These findings should stimulate future studies to probe the ligandability and druggability of Nurr1 for both endogenous and synthetic ligands, which could lead to new therapeutics for Nurr1-related diseases, including Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Mitchelle S de Vera
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Paola Munoz-Tello
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Jie Zheng
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | | | - David P Marciano
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA; Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Edna Matta-Camacho
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Pankaj Kumar Giri
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Jinsai Shang
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Travis S Hughes
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Mark Rance
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Biochemistry and Microbiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USA
| | - Patrick R Griffin
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA; Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Douglas J Kojetin
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA; Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA.
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Paliga D, Raudzus F, Leppla SH, Heumann R, Neumann S. Lethal Factor Domain-Mediated Delivery of Nurr1 Transcription Factor Enhances Tyrosine Hydroxylase Activity and Protects from Neurotoxin-Induced Degeneration of Dopaminergic Cells. Mol Neurobiol 2018; 56:3393-3403. [PMID: 30121937 PMCID: PMC6476859 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-018-1311-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2018] [Accepted: 08/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The orphan transcription factor nuclear receptor-related 1 protein (Nurr1, also known as NR4A2) plays a key role in embryonic development and maintenance of mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Nurr1 deficiency is associated with Parkinson’s disease where dopaminergic neurons degenerate suggesting that counter-regulation of Nurr1 activity may have therapeutic effects. Here, we bacterially expressed and isolated a human Nurr1 fusion protein containing a N-terminal cell delivery domain derived from detoxified anthrax lethal factor followed by wild type ubiquitin with deubiquitinating enzyme recognition site for intracellular cleavage. Addition of the Nurr1 fusion protein to dopaminergic SH-SY5Y cells generated a cleaved, cytosolic Nurr1-containing fragment which was associated with increased levels of tyrosine hydroxylase, the rate-limiting enzyme in dopamine synthesis. Promoter-activity assays confirmed that exposure of cells to full-length Nurr1 fusion protein activated not only its cognate human tyrosine hydroxylase promoter but also the corresponding mouse sequence, although at a reduced efficiency. Using 6-hydroxydopamine as a dopaminergic cell specific neurotoxin, we demonstrate that full-length Nurr1 fusion protein promotes a concentration-dependent protection from this toxic insult. Altogether, the enhancement of tyrosine hydroxylase in naïve dopaminergic cells and the protective effects in a cellular model of Parkinson’s disease suggest that full-length Nurr1 fusion protein may contribute to the development of a novel concept of protein-based therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis Paliga
- Department of Biochemistry II - Molecular Neurobiochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Fabian Raudzus
- Department of Biochemistry II - Molecular Neurobiochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Stephen H Leppla
- Laboratory of Parasitic Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Rolf Heumann
- Department of Biochemistry II - Molecular Neurobiochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Sebastian Neumann
- Department of Biochemistry II - Molecular Neurobiochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
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Kim TE, Seo JS, Yang JW, Kim MW, Kausar R, Joe E, Kim BY, Lee MA. Nurr1 represses tyrosine hydroxylase expression via SIRT1 in human neural stem cells. PLoS One 2013; 8:e71469. [PMID: 23977047 PMCID: PMC3743743 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0071469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2013] [Accepted: 06/28/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Nurr1 is an orphan nuclear receptor best known for its essential role in the development and maintenance of midbrain dopaminergic (DA) neurons. During DA neurogenesis, Nurr1 directly targets human tyrosine hydroxylase (hTH). Here we investigated this targeting to identify the molecular mechanisms by which Nurr1 regulates DA neurogenesis. We previously cloned the hTH promoter and found three consensus elements for Nurr1 binding: NBRE-A, -B, and -C. In the present study, gel retardation and luciferase assays using hTH constructs showed that Nurr1 preferentially bound to NBRE-A, through which it mediated transcriptional activity. Furthermore, Nurr1 displayed dual-function transcriptional activities depending on the cell type. In DA-like SH-SY5Y cells, Nurr1 dose-dependently stimulated hTH-3174 promoter activity by 7- to 11-fold. However, in the human neural stem cell (hNSC) line HB1.F3, Nurr1 strongly repressed transcription from the same promoter. This repression was relieved by mutation of only the NBRE-A element and by nicotinamide [an inhibitor of class III histone deacetylases (HDACs), such as SIRT1], but not by trichostatin A (an inhibitor of class I and II HDACs). SIRT1 was strongly expressed in the nucleus of HB1.F3 cells, while it was localized in the cytoplasm in SH-SY5Y cells. ChIP assays of HB1.F3 cells showed that Nurr1 overexpression significantly increased the SIRT1 occupancy of the NBRE-A hTH promoter region, while low SIRT1 levels were observed in control cells. In contrast, no significant SIRT1 recruitment was observed in SH-SY5Y cells. These results indicate that differential SIRT1 localization may be involved in hTH gene regulation. Overall, our findings suggest that Nurr1 exists in dual transcriptional complexes, including co-repressor complexes that can be remodeled to become co-activators and can fine-tune hTH gene transcription during human DA neurogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tae Eun Kim
- Brain Disease Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Ji Sun Seo
- Brain Disease Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Jae Won Yang
- Brain Disease Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Min Woong Kim
- Brain Disease Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Rukhsana Kausar
- Brain Disease Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Eunhye Joe
- Department of Pharmacology, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Bo Yeon Kim
- Chemical Biology Research Center, and World Class Institute, KRIBB, Ochang, Korea
| | - Myung Ae Lee
- Brain Disease Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
- * E-mail:
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Michiels P, Atkins K, Ludwig C, Whittaker S, van Dongen M, Günther U. Assignment of the orphan nuclear receptor Nurr1 by NMR. Biomol NMR Assign 2010; 4:101-105. [PMID: 20300892 DOI: 10.1007/s12104-010-9210-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2009] [Accepted: 01/25/2010] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
The orphan nuclear receptor Nurr1 has been implicated in a number of conditions including Parkinson's disease and Schizophrenia. As such, it is of interest to study its interactions with other proteins, possibly mediated by small molecules, considering possible use as a drug target. We produced (2)H, (15)N, (13)C labelled-Nurr1 to generate the backbone amide NH, carbonyl C', C(alpha) and C(beta) assignments. About 84.0% of residues could be assigned. Most of the 37 missing assignments fall in 3 regions of the protein. Two of these surround a putative ligand-binding region of Nurr1, suggesting that this region of the protein is flexible, despite the ligand-binding pocket being filled with hydrophobic side-chains from residues surrounding the ligand binding pocket.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Michiels
- Solvay Pharmaceuticals Research Laboratories, Hannover, Germany
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