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Richmond V, Falcone BN, Maier MS, Arroyo Máñez P. Putting the Puzzle Together To Get the Whole Picture: Molecular Basis of the Affinity of Two Steroid Derivatives to Acetylcholinesterase. ACS Omega 2023; 8:25610-25622. [PMID: 37483177 PMCID: PMC10357547 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c03749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that has no cure because its etiology is still unknown, and its main treatment is the administration of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors. The study of the mechanism of action of this family of compounds is critical for the design of new more potent and specific inhibitors. In this work, we study the molecular basis of an uncompetitive inhibitor (compound 1, 2β, 3α-dihydroxy-5α-cholestan-6-one disulfate), which we have proved to be a peripheral anionic site (PAS)-binding AChE inhibitor. The pipeline designed in this work is key to the development of other PAS inhibitors that not only inhibit the esterase action of the enzyme but could also modulate the non-cholinergic functions of AChE linked to the process of amylogenesis. Our studies showed that 1 inhibits the enzyme not simply by blocking the main gate but by an allosteric mechanism. A detailed and careful analysis of the ligand binding position and the protein dynamics, particularly regarding their secondary gates and active site, was necessary to conclude this. The same analysis was executed with an inactive analogue (compound 2, 2β, 3α-dihydroxy-5α-cholestan-6-one). Our first computational results showed no differences in affinity to AChE between both steroids, making further analysis necessary. This work highlights the variables to be considered and develops a refined methodology, for the successful design of new potent dual-action drugs for AD, particularly PAS inhibitors, an attractive strategy to combat AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Richmond
- Facultad
de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Química Orgánica, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
- Unidad
de Microanálisis y Métodos Físicos aplicados
a la Química Orgánica (UMYMFOR), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2 de Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
| | - Bruno N. Falcone
- Facultad
de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Química Orgánica, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
- Unidad
de Microanálisis y Métodos Físicos aplicados
a la Química Orgánica (UMYMFOR), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2 de Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
| | - Marta S. Maier
- Facultad
de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Química Orgánica, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
- Unidad
de Microanálisis y Métodos Físicos aplicados
a la Química Orgánica (UMYMFOR), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2 de Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
| | - Pau Arroyo Máñez
- Instituto
Interuniversitario de Investigación de Reconocimiento Molecular
y Desarrollo Tecnológico (IDM), Universitat
Politècnica de València, Universitat de València, Doctor Moliner 50, Burjassot, Valencia 46100, Spain
- Departamento
de Química Orgánica, Universitat
de València, Doctor Moliner 50, Burjassot, Valencia 46100, Spain
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Silva AF, Guest EE, Falcone BN, Pickett SD, Rogers DM, Hirst JD. Free energy perturbation calculations of tetrahydroquinolines complexed to the first bromodomain of BRD4. Mol Phys 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/00268976.2022.2124201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Ellen E. Guest
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | | | - Stephen D. Pickett
- GlaxoSmithKline R&D Pharmaceuticals, Computational Chemistry, Stevenage, UK
| | - David M. Rogers
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
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Abstract
The first catalytic enantioselective aza-Cope rearrangement was reported in 2008 by Rueping et al. The reaction is catalyzed by a 1,1'-bi-2-naphthol-derived (BINOL-derived) phosphoric acid and achieved high yields and enantioselectivities (up to 97 : 3 er with 75% yield). This work utilizes Density Functional Theory to understand the mechanism of the reaction and explain the origins of the enantioselectivity. An extensive conformational search was carried out to explore the different activation modes by the catalyst and, the Transition State (TS) leading to the major product was found to be 1.3 kcal mol-1 lower in energy than the TS leading to the minor product. The origin of this stabilization was rationalized with NBO and NCI analysis: it was found that the major TS has a greater number of non-bonding interactions between the substrate and the catalyst, and shows stronger H-bond interactions between H atoms in the substrate and the O atoms in the phosphate group of the catalyst.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno N Falcone
- SSPC, the SFI Research Centre for Pharmaceuticals, School of Chemistry, University College Cork, Cork, T12 K8AF, Ireland
| | - Matthew N Grayson
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK.
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Galaka T, Falcone BN, Li C, Szajnman SH, Moreno SNJ, Docampo R, Rodriguez JB. Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1-alkylaminomethyl-1,1-bisphosphonic acids against Trypanosoma cruzi and Toxoplasma gondii. Bioorg Med Chem 2019; 27:3663-3673. [PMID: 31296439 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2019.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2019] [Revised: 06/23/2019] [Accepted: 07/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
As an extension of our project aimed at the search for new chemotherapeutic agents against Chagas disease and toxoplasmosis, several 1,1-bisphosphonates were designed, synthesized and biologically evaluated against Trypanosoma cruzi and Toxoplasma gondii, the etiologic agents of these diseases, respectively. In particular, and based on the antiparasitic activity exhibited by 2-alkylaminoethyl-1,1-bisphosphonates targeting farnesyl diphosphate synthase, a series of linear 2-alkylaminomethyl-1,1-bisphosphonic acids (compounds 21-33), that is, the position of the amino group was one carbon closer to the gem-phosphonate moiety, were evaluated as growth inhibitors against the clinically more relevant dividing form (amastigotes) of T. cruzi. Although all of these compounds resulted to be devoid of antiparasitic activity, these results were valuable for a rigorous SAR study. In addition, unexpectedly, the synthetic designed 2-cycloalkylaminoethyl-1,1-bisphosphonic acids 47-49 were free of antiparasitic activity. Moreover, long chain sulfur-containing 1,1-bisphosphonic acids, such as compounds 54-56, 59, turned out to be nanomolar growth inhibitors of tachyzoites of T. gondii. As many bisphosphonate-containing molecules are FDA-approved drugs for the treatment of bone resorption disorders, their potential nontoxicity makes them good candidates to control American trypanosomiasis and toxoplasmosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamila Galaka
- Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET-FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Bruno N Falcone
- Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET-FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Catherine Li
- Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Sergio H Szajnman
- Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET-FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Silvia N J Moreno
- Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Roberto Docampo
- Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Juan B Rodriguez
- Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET-FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Falcone BN, Grayson MN, Rodriguez JB. Mechanistic Insights into a Chiral Phosphoric Acid-Catalyzed Asymmetric Pinacol Rearrangement. J Org Chem 2018; 83:14683-14687. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.joc.8b02812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno N. Falcone
- Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET-FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Matthew N. Grayson
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
| | - Juan B. Rodriguez
- Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET-FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Chao MN, Li C, Storey M, Falcone BN, Szajnman SH, Bonesi SM, Docampo R, Moreno SNJ, Rodriguez JB. Activity of Fluorine-Containing Analogues of WC-9 and Structurally Related Analogues against Two Intracellular Parasites: Trypanosoma cruzi and Toxoplasma gondii. ChemMedChem 2016; 11:2690-2702. [PMID: 27886451 PMCID: PMC5200956 DOI: 10.1002/cmdc.201600505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [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: 10/04/2016] [Revised: 10/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Two obligate intracellular parasites, Trypanosoma cruzi, the agent of Chagas disease, and Toxoplasma gondii, an agent of toxoplasmosis, upregulate the mevalonate pathway of their host cells upon infection, which suggests that this host pathway could be a potential drug target. In this work, a number of compounds structurally related to WC-9 (4-phenoxyphenoxyethyl thiocyanate), a known squalene synthase inhibitor, were designed, synthesized, and evaluated for their effect on T. cruzi and T. gondii growth in tissue culture cells. Two fluorine-containing derivatives, the 3-(3-fluorophenoxy)- and 3-(4-fluorophenoxy)phenoxyethyl thiocyanates, exhibited half-maximal effective concentration (EC50 ) values of 1.6 and 4.9 μm, respectively, against tachyzoites of T. gondii, whereas they showed similar potency to WC-9 against intracellular T. cruzi (EC50 values of 5.4 and 5.7 μm, respectively). In addition, 2-[3- (phenoxy)phenoxyethylthio]ethyl-1,1-bisphosphonate, which is a hybrid inhibitor containing 3-phenoxyphenoxy and bisphosphonate groups, has activity against T. gondii proliferation at sub-micromolar levels (EC50 =0.7 μm), which suggests a combined inhibitory effect of the two functional groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- María N. Chao
- M. N. Chao, Dr. B. N. Falcone, Dr. S. H. Szajnman, Prof. Dr. J. B. Rodriguez, Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET–FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Catherine Li
- C. Li, M. Storey, Prof. Dr. R. Docampo, Prof. Dr. S. N. J. Moreno, Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602, USA
| | - Melissa Storey
- C. Li, M. Storey, Prof. Dr. R. Docampo, Prof. Dr. S. N. J. Moreno, Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602, USA
| | - Bruno N. Falcone
- M. N. Chao, Dr. B. N. Falcone, Dr. S. H. Szajnman, Prof. Dr. J. B. Rodriguez, Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET–FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sergio H. Szajnman
- M. N. Chao, Dr. B. N. Falcone, Dr. S. H. Szajnman, Prof. Dr. J. B. Rodriguez, Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET–FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sergio M. Bonesi
- Prof. Dr. S. M. Bonesi, Departamento de Química Orgánica and CIHIDECAR (CONICET–FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Roberto Docampo
- C. Li, M. Storey, Prof. Dr. R. Docampo, Prof. Dr. S. N. J. Moreno, Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602, USA
| | - Silvia N. J. Moreno
- C. Li, M. Storey, Prof. Dr. R. Docampo, Prof. Dr. S. N. J. Moreno, Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602, USA
| | - Juan B. Rodriguez
- M. N. Chao, Dr. B. N. Falcone, Dr. S. H. Szajnman, Prof. Dr. J. B. Rodriguez, Departamento de Química Orgánica and UMYMFOR (CONICET–FCEyN), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón 2, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Rodriguez JB, Falcone BN, Szajnman SH. Approaches for Designing new Potent Inhibitors of Farnesyl Pyrophosphate Synthase. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2016; 11:307-20. [DOI: 10.1517/17460441.2016.1143814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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