Pharmacological network study on the effect of 6-gingerol on cervical cancer using computerized databases

Cervical cancer (CC) is the most frequent cancer in the female population worldwide. Although there are treatments available, they are ineffective and cause adverse effects. 6-gingerol is an active component in ginger with anticancer activity. This research aims to discover the mechanism by which 6-gingerol act as an anticancer agent on CC through a pharmacological network using bioinformatics databases. From MalaCard, Swiss Target Prediction, Comparative Toxicogenomics Database, and Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform, we obtained the target genes for 6-gingerol and CC and matched them. We got 26 genes and analyzed them in ShinyGO-0.76.3 and DAVID-Bioinformatics Resources. Then, we generated a protein-protein interaction network in Cytoscape and obtained 12 hub genes. Hub genes were analyzed in Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis and TISIDB. In addition, molecular docking studies were performed between target proteins with 6-gingerol using SwissDock database. Finally, molecular dynamics studies for three proteins with the lowest interaction energy were implemented using Gromacs software. According to gene ontology results, 6-gingerol is involved in processes of apoptosis, cell cycle, and protein kinase complexes, affecting mitochondria and pathways related to HPV infection. CTNNB1 gene was negatively correlated with CD8+ infiltration but was not associated with a higher survival rate. Furthermore, the molecular docking study showed that 6-gingerol has a high binding to proteins, and the molecular dynamics showed a stable interaction of 6-gingerol to AKT1, CCNB1, and CTNNB1 proteins. Conclusion, our work helps to understand the anticancer activity of 6-gingerol in CC that should be studied experimentally.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Structural homology between 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase and Mycobacterium tuberculosis Inh-A enzyme: Dehydroepiandrosterone as a potential co-adjuvant treatment in diabetes-tuberculosis comorbidity

Metabolic syndrome is considered the precursor of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Tuberculosis is a leading infection that constitutes a global threat remaining a major cause of morbi-mortality in developing countries. People with type 2 diabetes mellitus are more likely to suffer from infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. For both type 2 diabetes mellitus and tuberculosis, there is pulmonary production of anti-inflammatory glucocorticoids mediated by the enzyme 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1). The adrenal hormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) counteracts the glucocorticoid effects of cytokine production due to the inhibition of 11β-HSD1. Late advanced tuberculosis has been associated with the suppression of the Th1 response, evidenced by a high ratio of cortisol/DHEA. In a murine model of metabolic syndrome, we determined whether DHEA treatment modifies the pro-inflammatory cytokines due to the inhibition of the 11β-HSD1 expression. Since macrophages express 11β-HSD1, our second goal was incubating them with DHEA and Mycobacterium tuberculosis to show that the microbicide effect was increased by DHEA. Enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase (InhA) is an essential enzyme of Mycobacterium tuberculosis involved in the mycolic acid synthesis. Because 11β-HSD1 and InhA are members of a short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase family of enzymes, we hypothesize that DHEA could be an antagonist of InhA. Our results demonstrate that DHEA has a direct microbicide effect against Mycobacterium tuberculosis; this effect was supported by in silico docking analysis and the molecular dynamic simulation studies between DHEA and InhA. Thus, DHEA increases the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the lung, inactivates GC by 11β-HSD1, and inhibits mycobacterial InhA. The multiple functions of DHEA suggest that this hormone or its synthetic analogs could be an efficient co-adjuvant for tuberculosis treatment.

Human Biotransformation Pathway of Temephos Using an In Silico Approach

Temephos is an organophosphorothioate (OPT) larvicide used for controlling vectors of diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika. OPTs require a metabolic activation mediated by cytochrome P540 (CYP) to cause toxic effects, such as acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity inhibition. There is no information about temephos biotransformation in humans, and it is considered to have low toxicity in mammals. Recent studies have reported that temephos-oxidized derivatives cause AChE inhibition. The aim of this study was to propose the human biotransformation pathway of temephos using in silico tools. The metabolic pathway was proposed using the MetaUltra program of MultiCase software as well as the Way2Drug and Xenosite web servers. The results show the following three essential reactions of phase I metabolism: (1) S-oxidation, (2) oxidative desulfurization, and (3) dephosphorylation, as well as the formation of 19 possible intermediary metabolites. Temephos dephosphorylation is the most likely reaction, and it enables phase II metabolism for glucuronidation to be excreted. However, the CYP-dependent metabolism showed that temephos oxon can be formed, which could lead to toxic effects in mammals. CYP2B6, 2C9, and 2C19 are the main isoforms involved in temephos metabolism, and CYP3A4 and 2D6 have minor contributions. According to computational predictions, the highest probability of temephos metabolism is dephosphorylation and phase II reactions that do not produce cholinergic toxic effects; nonetheless, the participation of CYPs is highly possible if the primary reaction is depleted.