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Rodrigues CM, Bento CC, Moraes CB, Gomes C, Ioshino RS, Freitas-Junior LH, de Castro Spadari C, Ishida K, Vilegas W, Carvalho JCS, Ferreira MJP, Carbone V, Piacente S, Molina de Angelo R, Honorio KM, Sannomiya M. A potential antiviral against COVID-19 obtained from Byrsonima coccolobifolia leaves extract. Fitoterapia 2024; 173:105820. [PMID: 38211642 DOI: 10.1016/j.fitote.2024.105820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
In this study, we specifically focused on the crude methanolic leaf extract of Byrsonima coccolobifolia, investigating its antifungal potential against human pathogenic fungi and its antiviral activity against COVID-19. Through the use of high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization ion trap tandem mass spectrometry, direct infusion electrospray ionization ion trap tandem mass spectrometry, and chromatographic dereplication procedures, we identified galloyl quinic acid derivatives, catechin derivatives, proanthocyanidins, and flavonoid glycosides. The broth dilution assay revealed that the methanolic leaf extract of B. coccolobifolia exhibits antifungal activity against Cryptococcus neoformans (IC50 = 4 μg/mL). Additionally, docking studies were conducted to elucidate the interactions between the identified compounds and the central residues at the binding site of biological targets associated with COVID-19. Furthermore, the extract demonstrated an in vitro half-maximum effective concentration (EC50 = 7 μg/mL) and exhibited significant selectivity (>90%) toward SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clenilson Martins Rodrigues
- Laboratory of Chemistry and Biomass and Biofuels, Embrapa Agronergy, Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation, Brasília, DF, Brazil
| | | | - Carolina Borsoi Moraes
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Cecilia Gomes
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil; Municipal University of Sao Caetano do Sul (USCS), Campus Centro, 09521-160, Sao Caetano, SP, Brazil
| | - Rafaella Sayuri Ioshino
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Cristina de Castro Spadari
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Kelly Ishida
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Wagner Vilegas
- Institute of Biosciences, UNESP - Sao Paulo State University, Sao Vicente, SP, Brazil
| | | | | | - Virginia Carbone
- National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Food Sciences (CNR-ISA), Avellino, Italy
| | - Sonia Piacente
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II n. 132, I-84084 Fisciano, SA, Italy
| | | | - Kathia Maria Honorio
- School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Miriam Sannomiya
- School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil.
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2
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Vital VG, Silva MR, Santos VT, Lobo FG, Xander P, Zauli RC, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Barbosa CG, Pellosi DS, Silva RAG, Paganotti A, Vasconcellos SP. Micro-Addition of Silver to Copper: One Small Step in Composition, a Change for a Giant Leap in Biocidal Activity. Materials (Basel) 2024; 17:917. [PMID: 38399167 PMCID: PMC10890504 DOI: 10.3390/ma17040917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 02/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024]
Abstract
The use of copper as an antimicrobial agent has a long history and has gained renewed interest in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, the authors investigated the antimicrobial properties of an alloy composed of copper with a small percentage of silver (Cu-0.03% wt.Ag). The alloy was tested against various pathogens, including Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and the H1N1 virus, using contact exposure tests. Results showed that the alloy was capable of inactivating these pathogens in two hours or less, indicating its strong antimicrobial activity. Electrochemical measurements were also performed, revealing that the small addition of silver to copper promoted a higher resistance to corrosion and shifted the formation of copper ions to higher potentials. This shift led to a slow but continuous release of Cu2+ ions, which have high biocidal activity. These findings show that the addition of small amounts of silver to copper can enhance its biocidal properties and improve its effectiveness as an antimicrobial material.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vitor G. Vital
- Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas—ICAQF, Universidade Federal de São Paulo—UNIFESP, Diadema 09913-030, Brazil (P.X.); (R.C.Z.)
| | - Márcio R. Silva
- Department of Research and Development, Termomecanica São Paulo S.A., São Bernardo do Campo 09612-000, Brazil
| | - Vinicius T. Santos
- Department of Research and Development, Termomecanica São Paulo S.A., São Bernardo do Campo 09612-000, Brazil
| | - Flávia G. Lobo
- Department of Research and Development, Termomecanica São Paulo S.A., São Bernardo do Campo 09612-000, Brazil
| | - Patrícia Xander
- Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas—ICAQF, Universidade Federal de São Paulo—UNIFESP, Diadema 09913-030, Brazil (P.X.); (R.C.Z.)
| | - Rogéria C. Zauli
- Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas—ICAQF, Universidade Federal de São Paulo—UNIFESP, Diadema 09913-030, Brazil (P.X.); (R.C.Z.)
| | - Carolina B. Moraes
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-000, Brazil
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Cecíla G. Barbosa
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Diogo S. Pellosi
- Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba 81531-980, Brazil
| | - Ricardo A. G. Silva
- Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas—ICAQF, Universidade Federal de São Paulo—UNIFESP, Diadema 09913-030, Brazil (P.X.); (R.C.Z.)
| | - André Paganotti
- Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas—ICAQF, Universidade Federal de São Paulo—UNIFESP, Diadema 09913-030, Brazil (P.X.); (R.C.Z.)
| | - Suzan P. Vasconcellos
- Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas—ICAQF, Universidade Federal de São Paulo—UNIFESP, Diadema 09913-030, Brazil (P.X.); (R.C.Z.)
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3
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Rodrigues-Jesus MJ, Teixeira de Pinho Favaro M, Venceslau-Carvalho AA, de Castro-Amarante MF, da Silva Almeida B, de Oliveira Silva M, Andreata-Santos R, Gomes Barbosa C, Brito SCM, Freitas-Junior LH, Boscardin SB, de Souza Ferreira LC. Nano-multilamellar lipid vesicles promote the induction of SARS-CoV-2 immune responses by a protein-based vaccine formulation. Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine 2022; 45:102595. [PMID: 36031045 PMCID: PMC9420030 DOI: 10.1016/j.nano.2022.102595] [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] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Revised: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The development of safe and effective vaccine formulations against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) represents a hallmark in the history of vaccines. Here we report a COVID-19 subunit vaccine based on a SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein receptor binding domain (RBD) incorporated into nano-multilamellar vesicles (NMV) associated with monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA). The results based on immunization of C57BL/6 mice demonstrated that recombinant antigen incorporation into NMVs improved antibody and T-cell responses without inducing toxic effects under both in vitro and in vivo conditions. Administration of RBD-NMV-MPLA formulations modulated antigen avidity and IgG subclass responses, whereas MPLA incorporation improved the activation of CD4+/CD8+ T-cell responses. In addition, immunization with the complete vaccine formulation reduced the number of doses required to achieve enhanced serum virus-neutralizing antibody titers. Overall, this study highlights NMV/MPLA technology, displaying the performance improvement of subunit vaccines against SARS-CoV-2, as well as other infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Josiane Rodrigues-Jesus
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Division of Infectious Diseases and International Health, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Marianna Teixeira de Pinho Favaro
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Scientific Platform Pasteur/USP, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Aléxia Adrianne Venceslau-Carvalho
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Scientific Platform Pasteur/USP, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Maria Fernanda de Castro-Amarante
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Scientific Platform Pasteur/USP, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Bianca da Silva Almeida
- Laboratory of Antigen Targeting for Dendritic Cells, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Mariângela de Oliveira Silva
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Scientific Platform Pasteur/USP, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Laboratory of Antigen Targeting for Dendritic Cells, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Robert Andreata-Santos
- Retrovirology Laboratory, Immunology and Microbiology Department, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Cecilia Gomes Barbosa
- Phenotypic Screening Platform of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences of the University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Samantha Carvalho Maia Brito
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Phenotypic Screening Platform of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences of the University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Silvia Beatriz Boscardin
- Laboratory of Antigen Targeting for Dendritic Cells, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Luís Carlos de Souza Ferreira
- Laboratory of Vaccine Development, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Scientific Platform Pasteur/USP, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
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4
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Nolasco P, Borsoi J, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Pereira LV. Human induced pluripotent stem cells as a tool for disease modeling and drug screening for COVID-19. Genet Mol Biol 2020; 44:e20200198. [PMID: 33275129 PMCID: PMC7737100 DOI: 10.1590/1678-4685-gmb-2020-0198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2020] [Accepted: 09/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The emergence of the new corona virus (SARS-CoV-2) and the resulting COVID-19 pandemic requires fast development of novel prevention and therapeutic strategies. These rely on understanding the biology of the virus and its interaction with the host, and on agnostic phenotypic screening for compounds that prevent viral infection. In vitro screenings of compounds are usually performed in human or animal-derived tumor or immortalized cell lines due to their ease of culturing. However, these platforms may not represent the tissues affected by the disease in vivo, and therefore better models are needed to validate and expedite drug development, especially in face of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this scenario, human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are a powerful research tool due to their ability to generate normal differentiated cell types relevant for the disease. Here we discuss the different ways hiPSCs can contribute to COVID-19 related research, including modeling the disease in vitro and serving as a platform for drug screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Nolasco
- Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Genética e Biologia Evolutiva, Laboratório Nacional de Células-tronco Embrionárias (LaNCE), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Juliana Borsoi
- Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Genética e Biologia Evolutiva, Laboratório Nacional de Células-tronco Embrionárias (LaNCE), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Carolina Borsoi Moraes
- Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Departamento de Microbiologia, Phenotypic Screening Platform, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Lygia Veiga Pereira
- Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Genética e Biologia Evolutiva, Laboratório Nacional de Células-tronco Embrionárias (LaNCE), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
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5
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Sabino CP, Sellera FP, Sales-Medina DF, Machado RRG, Durigon EL, Freitas-Junior LH, Ribeiro MS. UV-C (254 nm) lethal doses for SARS-CoV-2. Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther 2020; 32:101995. [PMID: 32916328 PMCID: PMC7477605 DOI: 10.1016/j.pdpdt.2020.101995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Revised: 09/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
We developed a controlled assay to investigate the UV-C inactivation kinetics for SARS-CoV-2. We established the UV-C lethal doses for the virus in vitro. LD90 for SARS-CoV-2 was reached at 0.016 mJ/cm2. LD99.999 was achieved at 108.714 mJ/cm2 with exposure time less than 50 s.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caetano P Sabino
- Department of Clinical Analysis, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; BioLambda, Scientific and Commercial LTD, São Paulo, Brazil.
| | - Fábio P Sellera
- Department of Internal Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; School of Veterinary Medicine, Metropolitan University of Santos, Santos, Brazil
| | - Douglas F Sales-Medina
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Edison Luiz Durigon
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Martha S Ribeiro
- Center for Lasers and Applications, Nuclear and Energy Research Institute (IPEN-CNEN/SP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
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6
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Franco CH, Warhurst DC, Bhattacharyya T, Au HYA, Le H, Giardini MA, Pascoalino BS, Torrecilhas AC, Romera LMD, Madeira RP, Schenkman S, Freitas-Junior LH, Chatelain E, Miles MA, Moraes CB. Novel structural CYP51 mutation in Trypanosoma cruzi associated with multidrug resistance to CYP51 inhibitors and reduced infectivity. Int J Parasitol Drugs Drug Resist 2020; 13:107-120. [PMID: 32688218 PMCID: PMC7369355 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpddr.2020.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2019] [Revised: 05/29/2020] [Accepted: 06/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Ergosterol biosynthesis inhibitors, such as posaconazole and ravuconazole, have been proposed as drug candidates for Chagas disease, a neglected infectious tropical disease caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. To understand better the mechanism of action and resistance to these inhibitors, a clone of the T. cruzi Y strain was cultured under intermittent and increasing concentrations of ravuconazole until phenotypic stability was achieved. The ravuconazole-selected clone exhibited loss in fitness in vitro when compared to the wild-type parental clone, as observed in reduced invasion capacity and slowed population growth in both mammalian and insect stages of the parasite. In drug activity assays, the resistant clone was above 300-fold more tolerant to ravuconazole than the sensitive parental clone, when the half-maximum effective concentration (EC50) was considered. The resistant clones also showed reduced virulence in vivo, when compared to parental sensitive clones. Cross-resistance to posaconazole and other CYP51 inhibitors, but not to other antichagasic drugs that act independently of CYP51, such as benznidazole and nifurtimox, was also observed. A novel amino acid residue change, T297M, was found in the TcCYP51 gene in the resistant but not in the sensitive clones. The structural effects of the T297M, and of the previously described P355S residue changes, were modelled to understand their impact on interaction with CYP51 inhibitors. A ravuconazole-resistant T. cruzi clone presented reduced in vitro and in vivo fitness. The ravuconazole-resistant clone presented cross-resistance to other CYP51 inhibitors. There was no cross-resistance to benznidazole and nifurtimox. Resistance is associated with a novel structural mutation in the TcCYP51 protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caio H Franco
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, Brazil; Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - David C Warhurst
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Tapan Bhattacharyya
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Ho Y A Au
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Hai Le
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Miriam A Giardini
- Institut Pasteur Korea, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
| | - Bruno S Pascoalino
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Ana Claudia Torrecilhas
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Lavinia M D Romera
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Rafael Pedro Madeira
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Sergio Schenkman
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Parasitology, UNIFESP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil; Institut Pasteur Korea, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
| | - Eric Chatelain
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Michael A Miles
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, Brazil; Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil; Institut Pasteur Korea, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Diadema, SP, Brazil.
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Alcântara LM, Ferreira TCS, Fontana V, Chatelain E, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH. A Multi-Species Phenotypic Screening Assay for Leishmaniasis Drug Discovery Shows That Active Compounds Display a High Degree of Species-Specificity. Molecules 2020; 25:E2551. [PMID: 32486239 PMCID: PMC7321149 DOI: 10.3390/molecules25112551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [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: 05/08/2020] [Revised: 05/23/2020] [Accepted: 05/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
High genetic and phenotypic variability between Leishmania species and strains within species make the development of broad-spectrum antileishmanial drugs challenging. Thus, screening panels consisting of several diverse Leishmania species can be useful in enabling compound prioritization based on their spectrum of activity. In this study, a robust and reproducible high content assay was developed, and 1280 small molecules were simultaneously screened against clinically relevant cutaneous and visceral species: L. amazonensis, L. braziliensis, and L. donovani. The assay is based on THP-1 macrophages infected with stationary phase promastigotes and posterior evaluation of both compound antileishmanial activity and host cell toxicity. The profile of compound activity was species-specific, and out of 51 active compounds, only 14 presented broad-spectrum activity against the three species, with activities ranging from 52% to 100%. Notably, the compounds CB1954, Clomipramine, Maprotiline, Protriptyline, and ML-9 presented pan-leishmanial activity, with efficacy greater than 70%. The results highlight the reduced number of compound classes with pan-leishmanial activity that might be available from diversity libraries, emphasizing the need to screen active compounds against a panel of species and strains. The assay reported here can be adapted to virtually any Leishmania species without the need for genetic modification of parasites, providing the basis for the discovery of broad spectrum anti-leishmanial agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura M. Alcântara
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP 13083-970, Brazil; (L.M.A.); (T.C.S.F.); (V.F.)
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Thalita C. S. Ferreira
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP 13083-970, Brazil; (L.M.A.); (T.C.S.F.); (V.F.)
- Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, SP 05503-900, Brazil
| | - Vanessa Fontana
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP 13083-970, Brazil; (L.M.A.); (T.C.S.F.); (V.F.)
| | - Eric Chatelain
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland;
| | - Carolina B. Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP 13083-970, Brazil; (L.M.A.); (T.C.S.F.); (V.F.)
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP 13083-970, Brazil; (L.M.A.); (T.C.S.F.); (V.F.)
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP 05508-900, Brazil
- Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, SP 05503-900, Brazil
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8
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Moraes CB, Witt G, Kuzikov M, Ellinger B, Calogeropoulou T, Prousis KC, Mangani S, Di Pisa F, Landi G, Iacono LD, Pozzi C, Freitas-Junior LH, Dos Santos Pascoalino B, Bertolacini CP, Behrens B, Keminer O, Leu J, Wolf M, Reinshagen J, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Santarem N, Venturelli A, Wrigley S, Karunakaran D, Kebede B, Pöhner I, Müller W, Panecka-Hofman J, Wade RC, Fenske M, Clos J, Alunda JM, Corral MJ, Uliassi E, Bolognesi ML, Linciano P, Quotadamo A, Ferrari S, Santucci M, Borsari C, Costi MP, Gul S. Accelerating Drug Discovery Efforts for Trypanosomatidic Infections Using an Integrated Transnational Academic Drug Discovery Platform. SLAS Discov 2020; 24:346-361. [PMID: 30784368 PMCID: PMC6484532 DOI: 10.1177/2472555218823171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
According to the World Health Organization, more than 1 billion people are at risk of or are affected by neglected tropical diseases. Examples of such diseases include trypanosomiasis, which causes sleeping sickness; leishmaniasis; and Chagas disease, all of which are prevalent in Africa, South America, and India. Our aim within the New Medicines for Trypanosomatidic Infections project was to use (1) synthetic and natural product libraries, (2) screening, and (3) a preclinical absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion-toxicity (ADME-Tox) profiling platform to identify compounds that can enter the trypanosomatidic drug discovery value chain. The synthetic compound libraries originated from multiple scaffolds with known antiparasitic activity and natural products from the Hypha Discovery MycoDiverse natural products library. Our focus was first to employ target-based screening to identify inhibitors of the protozoan Trypanosoma brucei pteridine reductase 1 ( TbPTR1) and second to use a Trypanosoma brucei phenotypic assay that made use of the T. brucei brucei parasite to identify compounds that inhibited cell growth and caused death. Some of the compounds underwent structure-activity relationship expansion and, when appropriate, were evaluated in a preclinical ADME-Tox assay panel. This preclinical platform has led to the identification of lead-like compounds as well as validated hits in the trypanosomatidic drug discovery value chain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina B Moraes
- 1 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil.,2 Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo-SP, Brazil
| | - Gesa Witt
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Maria Kuzikov
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Bernhard Ellinger
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Theodora Calogeropoulou
- 4 National Hellenic Research Foundation, Institute of Biology, Medicinal Chemistry and Biotechnology, Athens, Greece
| | - Kyriakos C Prousis
- 4 National Hellenic Research Foundation, Institute of Biology, Medicinal Chemistry and Biotechnology, Athens, Greece
| | - Stefano Mangani
- 5 Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Flavio Di Pisa
- 5 Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Giacomo Landi
- 5 Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Lucia Dello Iacono
- 5 Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Cecilia Pozzi
- 5 Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- 1 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil.,2 Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo-SP, Brazil
| | - Bruno Dos Santos Pascoalino
- 1 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil
| | - Claudia P Bertolacini
- 1 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil
| | - Birte Behrens
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Oliver Keminer
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Jennifer Leu
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Markus Wolf
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Jeanette Reinshagen
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- 6 Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, Porto, Portugal
| | - Nuno Santarem
- 6 Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, Porto, Portugal
| | | | | | | | | | - Ina Pöhner
- 9 Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Müller
- 9 Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Joanna Panecka-Hofman
- 9 Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Heidelberg, Germany.,11 Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Rebecca C Wade
- 9 Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, Heidelberg, Germany.,12 Center for Molecular Biology (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany.,13 Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Martina Fenske
- 14 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME, Aachen, Germany
| | - Joachim Clos
- 15 Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
| | | | | | - Elisa Uliassi
- 17 Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | | | - Pasquale Linciano
- 18 Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Antonio Quotadamo
- 18 Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Stefania Ferrari
- 18 Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Matteo Santucci
- 18 Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Chiara Borsari
- 18 Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Maria Paola Costi
- 18 Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Sheraz Gul
- 3 Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology-ScreeningPort, Hamburg, Germany
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9
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Cintra GAS, Neto BAD, Carvalho PHPR, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH. Expanding the Biological Application of Fluorescent Benzothiadiazole Derivatives: A Phenotypic Screening Strategy for Anthelmintic Drug Discovery Using Caenorhabditis elegans. SLAS Discov 2019; 24:755-765. [PMID: 31180789 DOI: 10.1177/2472555219851130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The current methodologies used to identify promising new anthelmintic compounds rely on subjective microscopic examination of worm motility or involve genetic modified organisms. We describe a new methodology to detect worm viability that takes advantage of the differential incorporation of the fluorescent molecular marker propidium iodide and the 2,1,3-benzothiadiazole core, which has been widely applied in light technology. The new assay developed could be validated using the "Pathogen Box" library. By use of this bioassay, it was possible to identify three molecules with activity against Caenorhabditis elegans that were previously described as effective in in vitro assays against other pathogens, such as Schistosoma mansoni, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Plasmodium falciparum, accelerating the identification of molecules with anthelmintic potential. The current fluorescence-based bioassay may be used for assessing C. elegans viability. The described methodology replaces the subjectivity of previous assays and provides an enabling technology that is useful for rapid in vitro screens of both natural and synthetic compound libraries. It is expected that the results obtained from these robust in vitro screens would select the most effective compounds for follow-up in vivo experimentation with pathogenic helminths.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovana A S Cintra
- 1 Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB), Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.,2 Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.,3 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Brenno A D Neto
- 4 Laboratory of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília, Brazil
| | - Pedro H P R Carvalho
- 4 Laboratory of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília, Brazil
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- 1 Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB), Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.,2 Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.,3 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- 1 Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB), Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.,2 Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.,3 Laboratório Nacional de Biociências, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, Campinas, SP, Brazil
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10
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Melo-Filho CC, Braga RC, Muratov EN, Franco CH, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Andrade CH. Discovery of new potent hits against intracellular Trypanosoma cruzi by QSAR-based virtual screening. Eur J Med Chem 2018; 163:649-659. [PMID: 30562700 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2018.11.062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2018] [Revised: 11/21/2018] [Accepted: 11/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Chagas disease is a neglected tropical disease (NTD) caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi and is primarily transmitted to humans by the feces of infected Triatominae insects during their blood meal. The disease affects 6-8 million people, mostly in Latin America countries, and kills more people in the region each year than any other parasite-born disease, including malaria. Moreover, patient numbers are currently increasing in non-endemic, developed countries, such as Australia, Japan, Canada, and the United States. The treatment is limited to one drug, benznidazole, which is only effective in the acute phase of the disease and is very toxic. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop new, safer, and effective drugs against the chronic phase of Chagas disease. Using a QSAR-based virtual screening followed by in vitro experimental evaluation, we report herein the identification of novel potent and selective hits against T. cruzi intracellular stage. We developed and validated binary QSAR models for prediction of anti-trypanosomal activity and cytotoxicity against mammalian cells using the best practices for QSAR modeling. These models were then used for virtual screening of a commercial database, leading to the identification of 39 virtual hits. Further in vitro assays showed that seven compounds were potent against intracellular T. cruzi at submicromolar concentrations (EC50 < 1 μM) and were very selective (SI > 30). Furthermore, other six compounds were also inside the hit criteria for Chagas disease, which presented activity at low micromolar concentrations (EC50 < 10 μM) against intracellular T. cruzi and were also selective (SI > 15). Moreover, we performed a multi-parameter analysis for the comparison of tested compounds regarding their balance between potency, selectivity, and predicted ADMET properties. In the next studies, the most promising compounds will be submitted to additional in vitro and in vivo assays in acute model of Chagas disease, and can be further optimized for the development of new promising drug candidates against this important yet neglected disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cleber C Melo-Filho
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goiás - UFG, Rua 240, Qd.87, Goiania, GO, 74605-510, Brazil
| | - Rodolpho C Braga
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goiás - UFG, Rua 240, Qd.87, Goiania, GO, 74605-510, Brazil
| | - Eugene N Muratov
- Laboratory for Molecular Modeling, Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Chemical Technology, Odessa National Polytechnic University, 1. Shevchenko Ave., Odessa, 65000, Ukraine
| | - Caio Haddad Franco
- National Laboratory of Biosciences (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, 13083-970, Brazil
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- National Laboratory of Biosciences (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, 13083-970, Brazil; Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- National Laboratory of Biosciences (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, 13083-970, Brazil; Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, 05508-900, Brazil
| | - Carolina Horta Andrade
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goiás - UFG, Rua 240, Qd.87, Goiania, GO, 74605-510, Brazil.
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11
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Mota AR, Correa JR, de Andrade LP, Assumpção JA, de Souza Cintra GA, Freitas-Junior LH, da Silva WA, de Oliveira HCB, Neto BAD. From Live Cells to Caenorhabditis elegans: Selective Staining and Quantification of Lipid Structures Using a Fluorescent Hybrid Benzothiadiazole Derivative. ACS Omega 2018; 3:3874-3881. [PMID: 30023883 PMCID: PMC6044862 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.8b00434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
The current article describes the synthesis, characterization, and application of a designed hybrid fluorescent BTD-coumarin (2,1,3-benzothiadiazole-coumarin) derivative (named BTD-Lip). The use of BTD-Lip for live-cells staining showed excellent results, and lipid droplets (LDs) could be selectively stained. When compared with the commercially available dye (BODIPY) for LD staining, it was noted that the designed hybrid fluorescence was capable of staining a considerable larger number of LDs in both live and fixed cells (ca. 40% more). The new dye was also tested on live Caenorhabditis elegans (complex model) and showed an impressive selectivity inside the worm, whereas the commercial dye showed no selectivity in the complex model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alberto
A. R. Mota
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
| | - Jose R. Correa
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
| | - Lorena P. de Andrade
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
| | - José A.
F. Assumpção
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
| | - Giovana A. de Souza Cintra
- Departamento
de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), 05508-900 São
Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Departamento
de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), 05508-900 São
Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil
| | - Wender A. da Silva
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
| | - Heibbe C. B. de Oliveira
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
| | - Brenno A. D. Neto
- Laboratory
of Medicinal and Technological Chemistry, University of Brasília (IQ-UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, P.O. Box 4478, Brasília-DF CEP 70904970, Brazil
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12
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Uliassi E, Piazzi L, Belluti F, Mazzanti A, Kaiser M, Brun R, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Gul S, Kuzikov M, Ellinger B, Borsari C, Costi MP, Bolognesi ML. Development of a Focused Library of Triazole-Linked Privileged-Structure-Based Conjugates Leading to the Discovery of Novel Phenotypic Hits against Protozoan Parasitic Infections. ChemMedChem 2018; 13:678-683. [PMID: 29451361 DOI: 10.1002/cmdc.201700786] [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] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Protozoan infections caused by Plasmodium, Leishmania, and Trypanosoma spp. contribute significantly to the burden of infectious diseases worldwide, causing severe morbidity and mortality. The inadequacy of available treatments calls for cost- and time-effective drug discovery endeavors. To this end, we envisaged the triazole linkage of privileged structures as an effective drug design strategy to generate a focused library of high-quality compounds. The versatility of this approach was combined with the feasibility of a phenotypic assay, integrated with early ADME-tox profiling. Thus, an 18-membered library was efficiently assembled via Huisgen cycloaddition of phenothiazine, biphenyl, and phenylpiperazine scaffolds. The resulting 18 compounds were then tested against seven parasite strains, and counter-screened for selectivity against two mammalian cell lines. In parallel, hERG and cytochrome P450 (CYP) inhibition, and mitochondrial toxicity were assessed. Remarkably, 10-((1-(3-([1,1'-biphenyl]-3-yloxy)propyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-5-yl)methyl)-10H-phenothiazine (7) and 10-(3-(1-(3-([1,1'-biphenyl]-3-yloxy)propyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)propyl)-10H-phenothiazine (12) showed respective IC50 values of 1.8 and 1.9 μg mL-1 against T. cruzi, together with optimal selectivity. In particular, compound 7 showed a promising ADME-tox profile. Thus, hit 7 might be progressed as an antichagasic lead.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Uliassi
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Lorna Piazzi
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Federica Belluti
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Andrea Mazzanti
- Department of Industrial Chemistry "Toso Montonari", Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Viale del Risorgimento 4, 40136, Bologna, Italy
| | - Marcel Kaiser
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, 4002, Basel, Switzerland.,University of Basel, Petersplatz 1, 4003, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Reto Brun
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, 4002, Basel, Switzerland.,University of Basel, Petersplatz 1, 4003, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), 13083-100, Campinas, Brazil.,Present address: Instituto Butantan & Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, 05508-900, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), 13083-100, Campinas, Brazil.,Present address: Instituto Butantan & Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, 05508-900, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Sheraz Gul
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology ScreeningPort, 22525, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Maria Kuzikov
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology ScreeningPort, 22525, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Bernhard Ellinger
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology ScreeningPort, 22525, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Chiara Borsari
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | - Maria Paola Costi
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | - Maria Laura Bolognesi
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
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13
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Linciano P, Moraes CB, Alcantara LM, Franco CH, Pascoalino B, Freitas-Junior LH, Macedo S, Santarem N, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Gul S, Witt G, Kuzikov M, Ellinger B, Ferrari S, Luciani R, Quotadamo A, Costantino L, Costi MP. Aryl thiosemicarbazones for the treatment of trypanosomatidic infections. Eur J Med Chem 2018; 146:423-434. [PMID: 29407968 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2018.01.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2017] [Revised: 01/12/2018] [Accepted: 01/14/2018] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Basing on a library of thiadiazole derivatives showing anti-trypanosomatidic activity, we have considered the thiadiazoles opened forms and reaction intermediates, thiosemicarbazones, as compounds of interest for phenotypic screening against Trypanosoma brucei (Tb), intracellular amastigote form of Leishmania infantum (Li) and Trypanosoma cruzi (Tc). Similar compounds have already shown interesting activity against the same organisms. The compounds were particularly effective against T. brucei and T. cruzi. Among the 28 synthesized compounds, the best one was (E)-2-(4-((3.4-dichlorobenzyl)oxy)benzylidene) hydrazinecarbothioamide (A14) yielding a comparable anti-parasitic activity against the three parasitic species (TbEC50 = 2.31 μM, LiEC50 = 6.14 μM, TcEC50 = 1.31 μM) and a Selectivity Index higher than 10 with respect to human macrophages, therefore showing a pan-anti-trypanosomatidic activity. (E)-2-((3'.4'-dimethoxy-[1.1'-biphenyl]-3-yl)methyle ne) hydrazinecarbothioamide (A12) and (E)-2-(4-((3.4-dichlorobenzyl)oxy)benzylidene)hydrazine carbothioamide (A14) were able to potentiate the anti-parasitic activity of methotrexate (MTX) when evaluated in combination against T. brucei, yielding a 6-fold and 4-fold respectively Dose Reduction Index for MTX. The toxicity profile against four human cell lines and a panel of in vitro early-toxicity assays (comprising hERG, Aurora B, five cytochrome P450 isoforms and mitochondrial toxicity) demonstrated the low toxicity for the thosemicarbazones class in comparison with known drugs. The results confirmed thiosemicarbazones as a suitable chemical scaffold with potential for the development of properly decorated new anti-parasitic drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pasquale Linciano
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Laura M Alcantara
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Caio H Franco
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Bruno Pascoalino
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Sara Macedo
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal; Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal
| | - Nuno Santarem
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal; Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal
| | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal; Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal; Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Sheraz Gul
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Gesa Witt
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Maria Kuzikov
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Bernhard Ellinger
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Stefania Ferrari
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Rosaria Luciani
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Antonio Quotadamo
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Luca Costantino
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Maria Paola Costi
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy.
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14
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Uliassi E, Fiorani G, Krauth-Siegel RL, Bergamini C, Fato R, Bianchini G, Carlos Menéndez J, Molina MT, López-Montero E, Falchi F, Cavalli A, Gul S, Kuzikov M, Ellinger B, Witt G, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Borsari C, Costi MP, Bolognesi ML. Crassiflorone derivatives that inhibit Trypanosoma brucei glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase ( Tb GAPDH) and Trypanosoma cruzi trypanothione reductase ( Tc TR) and display trypanocidal activity. Eur J Med Chem 2017; 141:138-148. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2017.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2017] [Revised: 09/18/2017] [Accepted: 10/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
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15
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Silva DG, Ribeiro JF, De Vita D, Cianni L, Franco CH, Freitas-Junior LH, Moraes CB, Rocha JR, Burtoloso AC, Kenny PW, Leitão A, Montanari CA. A comparative study of warheads for design of cysteine protease inhibitors. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2017; 27:5031-5035. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2017.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2017] [Revised: 09/28/2017] [Accepted: 10/01/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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16
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Linciano P, Dawson A, Pöhner I, Costa DM, Sá MS, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Luciani R, Gul S, Witt G, Ellinger B, Kuzikov M, Gribbon P, Reinshagen J, Wolf M, Behrens B, Hannaert V, Michels PAM, Nerini E, Pozzi C, di Pisa F, Landi G, Santarem N, Ferrari S, Saxena P, Lazzari S, Cannazza G, Freitas-Junior LH, Moraes CB, Pascoalino BS, Alcântara LM, Bertolacini CP, Fontana V, Wittig U, Müller W, Wade RC, Hunter WN, Mangani S, Costantino L, Costi MP. Exploiting the 2-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole Scaffold To Inhibit Trypanosoma brucei Pteridine Reductase in Support of Early-Stage Drug Discovery. ACS Omega 2017; 2:5666-5683. [PMID: 28983525 PMCID: PMC5623949 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.7b00473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2017] [Accepted: 08/11/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Pteridine reductase-1 (PTR1) is a promising drug target for the treatment of trypanosomiasis. We investigated the potential of a previously identified class of thiadiazole inhibitors of Leishmania major PTR1 for activity against Trypanosoma brucei (Tb). We solved crystal structures of several TbPTR1-inhibitor complexes to guide the structure-based design of new thiadiazole derivatives. Subsequent synthesis and enzyme- and cell-based assays confirm new, mid-micromolar inhibitors of TbPTR1 with low toxicity. In particular, compound 4m, a biphenyl-thiadiazole-2,5-diamine with IC50 = 16 μM, was able to potentiate the antitrypanosomal activity of the dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor methotrexate (MTX) with a 4.1-fold decrease of the EC50 value. In addition, the antiparasitic activity of the combination of 4m and MTX was reversed by addition of folic acid. By adopting an efficient hit discovery platform, we demonstrate, using the 2-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole scaffold, how a promising tool for the development of anti-T. brucei agents can be obtained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pasquale Linciano
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Alice Dawson
- Biological Chemistry &
Drug Discovery, School of Life Sciences, The Wellcome Trust Building, University of Dundee, Dow Street, Dundee DD1
5EH, U.K.
| | - Ina Pöhner
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - David M. Costa
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Monica S. Sá
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Rosaria Luciani
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Sheraz Gul
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Gesa Witt
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Maria Kuzikov
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Philip Gribbon
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Markus Wolf
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Birte Behrens
- Fraunhofer-IME SP, Schnackenburgallee 114, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Véronique Hannaert
- Research Unit for Tropical
Diseases, de Duve Institute and Laboratory of Biochemistry, Université catholique de Louvain, Avenue Hippocrate 74, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Paul A. M. Michels
- Research Unit for Tropical
Diseases, de Duve Institute and Laboratory of Biochemistry, Université catholique de Louvain, Avenue Hippocrate 74, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Erika Nerini
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Cecilia Pozzi
- University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Flavio di Pisa
- University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Giacomo Landi
- University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Nuno Santarem
- Instituto de Investigação
e Inovação em Saúde, Instituto de Biologia Molecular
e Celular, and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Stefania Ferrari
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Puneet Saxena
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Sandra Lazzari
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Cannazza
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Carolina B. Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Bruno S. Pascoalino
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Laura M. Alcântara
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Claudia P. Bertolacini
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Vanessa Fontana
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências CNPEM,
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000, CEP 13083-970 Campinas/SP, Brasil
| | - Ulrike Wittig
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Müller
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Rebecca C. Wade
- Molecular
and Cellular Modeling Group and Scientific Databases and Visualization
(SDBV) Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical
Studies, Schloss-Wolfsbrunnenweg
35, D-69118 Heidelberg, Germany
- Center for Molecular Biology (ZMBH), DKFZ−ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
- Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 205, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - William N. Hunter
- Biological Chemistry &
Drug Discovery, School of Life Sciences, The Wellcome Trust Building, University of Dundee, Dow Street, Dundee DD1
5EH, U.K.
| | | | - Luca Costantino
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Maria P. Costi
- Dipartimento di
Scienze della Vita, Università degli
Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
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17
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Gomes MN, Alcântara LM, Neves BJ, Melo-Filho CC, Freitas-Junior LH, Moraes CB, Ma R, Franzblau SG, Muratov E, Andrade CH. Computer-aided discovery of two novel chalcone-like compounds active and selective against Leishmania infantum. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2017; 27:2459-2464. [PMID: 28434763 PMCID: PMC6020026 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2017.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [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: 02/15/2017] [Revised: 03/29/2017] [Accepted: 04/01/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Leishmaniasis are infectious diseases caused by parasites of genus Leishmania that affect affects 12 million people in 98 countries mainly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Effective treatments for this disease are urgently needed. In this study, we present a computer-aided approach to investigate a set of 32 recently synthesized chalcone and chalcone-like compounds to act as antileishmanial agents. As a result, nine most promising compounds and three potentially inactive compounds were experimentally evaluated against Leishmania infantum amastigotes and mammalian cells. Four compounds exhibited EC50 in the range of 6.2-10.98μM. In addition, two compounds, LabMol-65 and LabMol-73, exhibited cytotoxicity in macrophages >50μM that resulted in better selectivity compared to standard drug amphotericin B. These two compounds also demonstrated low cytotoxicity and high selectivity towards Vero cells. The results of target fishing followed by homology modeling and docking studies suggest that these chalcone compounds could act in Leishmania because of their interaction with cysteine proteases, such as procathepsin L. Finally, we have provided structural recommendations for designing new antileishmanial chalcones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcelo N Gomes
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goias, Rua 240, Qd.87, Setor Leste Universitário, Goiania, Goias 74605-510, Brazil
| | - Laura M Alcântara
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. d Instituto Butantan - Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo 05503-900, Brazil
| | - Bruno J Neves
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goias, Rua 240, Qd.87, Setor Leste Universitário, Goiania, Goias 74605-510, Brazil; Postgraduate Program on Society, Technology and Enviroment, University Center of Anápolis/UniEVANGELICA, Anápolis, Goiás 75083-515, Brazil
| | - Cleber C Melo-Filho
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goias, Rua 240, Qd.87, Setor Leste Universitário, Goiania, Goias 74605-510, Brazil
| | | | - Carolina B Moraes
- Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory (LNBio), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), 13083-970, Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. d Instituto Butantan - Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo 05503-900, Brazil
| | - Rui Ma
- Institute for Tuberculosis Research, University of Illinois at Chicago, 833 South Wood Street, Chicago, IL 60612, United States
| | - Scott G Franzblau
- Institute for Tuberculosis Research, University of Illinois at Chicago, 833 South Wood Street, Chicago, IL 60612, United States
| | - Eugene Muratov
- Laboratory for Molecular Modeling, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States; Department of Chemical Technology, Odessa National Polytechnic University, Odessa 65000, Ukraine; Currently Visiting Professor at Universidade Federal de Goias, Goiania, Brazil
| | - Carolina Horta Andrade
- LabMol - Laboratory for Molecular Modeling and Drug Design, Faculdade de Farmacia, Universidade Federal de Goias, Rua 240, Qd.87, Setor Leste Universitário, Goiania, Goias 74605-510, Brazil.
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18
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Di Pisa F, Landi G, Dello Iacono L, Pozzi C, Borsari C, Ferrari S, Santucci M, Santarem N, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Moraes CB, Alcantara LM, Fontana V, Freitas-Junior LH, Gul S, Kuzikov M, Behrens B, Pöhner I, Wade RC, Costi MP, Mangani S. Chroman-4-One Derivatives Targeting Pteridine Reductase 1 and Showing Anti-Parasitic Activity. Molecules 2017; 22:molecules22030426. [PMID: 28282886 PMCID: PMC6155272 DOI: 10.3390/molecules22030426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2017] [Revised: 03/01/2017] [Accepted: 03/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Flavonoids have previously been identified as antiparasitic agents and pteridine reductase 1 (PTR1) inhibitors. Herein, we focus our attention on the chroman-4-one scaffold. Three chroman-4-one analogues (1–3) of previously published chromen-4-one derivatives were synthesized and biologically evaluated against parasitic enzymes (Trypanosoma brucei PTR1–TbPTR1 and Leishmania major–LmPTR1) and parasites (Trypanosoma brucei and Leishmania infantum). A crystal structure of TbPTR1 in complex with compound 1 and the first crystal structures of LmPTR1-flavanone complexes (compounds 1 and 3) were solved. The inhibitory activity of the chroman-4-one and chromen-4-one derivatives was explained by comparison of observed and predicted binding modes of the compounds. Compound 1 showed activity both against the targeted enzymes and the parasites with a selectivity index greater than 7 and a low toxicity. Our results provide a basis for further scaffold optimization and structure-based drug design aimed at the identification of potent anti-trypanosomatidic compounds targeting multiple PTR1 variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavio Di Pisa
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy.
| | - Giacomo Landi
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy.
| | - Lucia Dello Iacono
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy.
| | - Cecilia Pozzi
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy.
| | - Chiara Borsari
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy.
| | - Stefania Ferrari
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy.
| | - Matteo Santucci
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy.
| | - Nuno Santarem
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal and Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal.
| | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal and Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal.
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas SP13083-100, Brazil.
| | - Laura M Alcantara
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas SP13083-100, Brazil.
| | - Vanessa Fontana
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas SP13083-100, Brazil.
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas SP13083-100, Brazil.
- GARDE, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo SP05503-900, Brazil.
| | - Sheraz Gul
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Maria Kuzikov
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Birte Behrens
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, D-22525 Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Ina Pöhner
- Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, 69118 Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Rebecca C Wade
- Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies, 69118 Heidelberg, Germany.
- Center for Molecular Biology (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
- Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Maria Paola Costi
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy.
| | - Stefano Mangani
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy.
- Magnetic Resonance Center CERM, University of Florence, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy.
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19
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Balfour MN, Franco CH, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Stefani HA. Synthesis and trypanocidal activity of a library of 4-substituted 2-(1H-pyrrolo[3,2-c]pyridin-2-yl)propan-2-ols. Eur J Med Chem 2017; 128:202-212. [PMID: 28189084 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2017.01.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2016] [Revised: 01/26/2017] [Accepted: 01/27/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
A library of 16 4-substituted 2-(1H-pyrrolo[3,2-c]pyridin-2-yl)propan-2-ols 17-32 has been synthesized for use in biological testing against Trypanosoma cruzi, the protozoan parasite that causes Chagas disease. The 4-substituted 2-(1H-pyrrolo[3,2-c]pyridin-2-yl)propan-2-ols 17-32 were subjected to biological testing to evaluate their efficacy against intracellular Trypanosoma cruzi (Y strain) amastigotes infecting U2OS human cells, with benznidazole as a reference compound. The assay was performed in duplicate (two independent experiments) and submitted to High Content Analysis (HCA) for determination of trypanocidal activity. Three of the tested compounds presented relatively high trypanocidal activity (19, 22 and 29), however severe host cell toxicity was observed concomitantly. Chemical optimization of the highly active compounds and the synthesis of more compounds for biological testing against Trypanosoma cruzi will be required to improve selectivity and so that a structure-activity relationship can be generated to provide a more insightful analysis of both chemical and biological aspects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael N Balfour
- Departamento de Farmácia, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Caio H Franco
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas, SP, Brazil.
| | - Hélio A Stefani
- Departamento de Farmácia, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
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20
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Borsari C, Santarem N, Torrado J, Olías AI, Corral MJ, Baptista C, Gul S, Wolf M, Kuzikov M, Ellinger B, Witt G, Gribbon P, Reinshagen J, Linciano P, Tait A, Costantino L, Freitas-Junior LH, Moraes CB, Bruno Dos Santos P, Alcântara LM, Franco CH, Bertolacini CD, Fontana V, Tejera Nevado P, Clos J, Alunda JM, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Ferrari S, Costi MP. Methoxylated 2'-hydroxychalcones as antiparasitic hit compounds. Eur J Med Chem 2016; 126:1129-1135. [PMID: 28064141 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2016.12.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2016] [Revised: 12/06/2016] [Accepted: 12/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Chalcones display a broad spectrum of pharmacological activities. Herein, a series of 2'-hydroxy methoxylated chalcones was synthesized and evaluated towards Trypanosoma brucei, Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania infantum. Among the synthesized library, compounds 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8 were the most potent and selective anti-T. brucei compounds (EC50 = 1.3-4.2 μM, selectivity index >10-fold). Compound 4 showed the best early-tox and antiparasitic profile. The pharmacokinetic studies of compound 4 in BALB/c mice using hydroxypropil-β-cyclodextrins formulation showed a 7.5 times increase in oral bioavailability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Borsari
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | - Nuno Santarem
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal and Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180, Porto, Portugal
| | - Juan Torrado
- Complutense University of Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ana Isabel Olías
- Complutense University of Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Hospital 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain
| | - María Jesús Corral
- Complutense University of Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Hospital 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain
| | - Catarina Baptista
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal and Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180, Porto, Portugal
| | - Sheraz Gul
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Markus Wolf
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Maria Kuzikov
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Bernhard Ellinger
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Gesa Witt
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Philip Gribbon
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Jeanette Reinshagen
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology Screening Port, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Pasquale Linciano
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | - Annalisa Tait
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | - Luca Costantino
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | | | - Carolina B Moraes
- Brazilian Centre for Research in Energy and Materials, Campinas, Brazil
| | | | | | | | | | - Vanessa Fontana
- Brazilian Centre for Research in Energy and Materials, Campinas, Brazil
| | | | - Joachim Clos
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, D-20359, Hamburg, Germany
| | - José María Alunda
- Complutense University of Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Hospital 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain
| | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180 Porto, Portugal and Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, 4150-180, Porto, Portugal
| | - Stefania Ferrari
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy
| | - Maria Paola Costi
- University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125, Modena, Italy.
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21
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Gaspar L, Moraes CB, Freitas-Junior LH, Ferrari S, Costantino L, Costi MP, Coron RP, Smith TK, Siqueira-Neto JL, McKerrow JH, Cordeiro-da-Silva A. Current and Future Chemotherapy for Chagas Disease. Curr Med Chem 2016; 22:4293-312. [PMID: 26477622 DOI: 10.2174/0929867322666151015120804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2015] [Revised: 09/15/2015] [Accepted: 10/15/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Human American trypanosomiasis, commonly called Chagas disease, is one of the most neglected illnesses in the world and remains one of the most prevalent chronic infectious diseases of Latin America with thousands of new cases every year. The only treatments available have been introduced five decades ago. They have serious, undesirable side effects and disputed benefits in the chronic stage of the disease - a characteristic and debilitating cardiomyopathy and/or megavisceras. Several laboratories have therefore focused their efforts in finding better drugs. Although recent years have brought new clinical trials, these are few and lack diversity in terms of drug mechanism of action, thus resulting in a weak drug discovery pipeline. This fragility has been recently exposed by the failure of two candidates; posaconazole and E1224, to sterilely cure patients in phase 2 clinical trials. Such setbacks highlight the need for continuous, novel and high quality drug discovery and development efforts to discover better and safer treatments. In this article we will review past and current findings on drug discovery for Trypanosoma cruzi made by academic research groups, industry and other research organizations over the last half century. We also analyze the current research landscape that is now better placed than ever to deliver alternative treatments for Chagas disease in the near future.
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22
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Silva FT, Franco CH, Favaro DC, Freitas-Junior LH, Moraes CB, Ferreira EI. Design, synthesis and antitrypanosomal activity of some nitrofurazone 1,2,4-triazolic bioisosteric analogues. Eur J Med Chem 2016; 121:553-560. [PMID: 27318979 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2016.04.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2016] [Revised: 04/25/2016] [Accepted: 04/26/2016] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Chagas disease, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, is a parasitosis that predominates in Latin America. It is estimated that 25 million people are under the risk of infection and, in 2008, more than 10 thousand deaths were registered. The only two drugs available in the therapeutics, nifurtimox and benznidazole, showed to be more effective in the acute phase of the disease. However, there is no standard treatment protocol effective for the chronic phase. Nitrofurazone (NF), an antimicrobial drug, has activity against T. cruzi, although being toxic. Considering the need for new antichagasic drugs, the existence of promising new therapeutic targets, as 14α-sterol demethylase and cruzain, and employing the bioisosterism and molecular hybridization approaches, four novel compounds were synthesized, characterized by melting point range, elemental analysis, IR and NMR spectroscopy. The compounds were tested against T. cruzi amastigotes in infected U2OS cells. All compounds showed selectivity towards T. cruzi and showed trypanomicidal activity in low micromolar range. The compound 3 showed potency similar to benznidazole, but lower efficacy. These results highlight the importance of the 1,2,4-triazole, thiosemicarbazonic and nitro group moieties for designing new efficient compounds, potentially for the chronic phase of Chagas disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fredson T Silva
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, Avenida Prof. Lineu Prestes, 580, Bl. 13, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Caio H Franco
- National Laboratory of Biosciences, National Center for Research on Energy and Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10000, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Denize C Favaro
- Institute of Chemistry, University of São Paulo, Avenida Prof. Lineu Prestes, 748, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Department of Chemistry, Institute of Exact Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- National Laboratory of Biosciences, National Center for Research on Energy and Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10000, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- National Laboratory of Biosciences, National Center for Research on Energy and Materials, Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10000, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Elizabeth I Ferreira
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, Avenida Prof. Lineu Prestes, 580, Bl. 13, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
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Faria J, Moraes CB, Song R, Pascoalino BS, Lee N, Siqueira-Neto JL, Cruz DJM, Parkinson T, Ioset JR, Cordeiro-da-Silva A, Freitas-Junior LH. Drug discovery for human African trypanosomiasis: identification of novel scaffolds by the newly developed HTS SYBR Green assay for Trypanosoma brucei. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 20:70-81. [PMID: 25342146 DOI: 10.1177/1087057114556236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) is a vector-transmitted tropical disease caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma brucei. High-throughput screening (HTS) of small-molecule libraries in whole-cell assays is one of the most frequently used approaches in drug discovery for infectious diseases. To aid in drug discovery efforts for HAT, the SYBR Green assay was developed for T. brucei in a 384-well format. This semi-automated assay is cost- and time-effective, robust, and reproducible. The SYBR Green assay was compared to the resazurin assay by screening a library of 4000 putative kinase inhibitors, revealing a superior performance in terms of assay time, sensitivity, simplicity, and reproducibility, and resulting in a higher hit confirmation rate. Although the resazurin assay allows for comparatively improved detection of slow-killing compounds, it also has higher false-positive rates that are likely to arise from the assay experimental conditions. The compounds with the most potent antitrypanosomal activity were selected in both screens and grouped into 13 structural clusters, with 11 new scaffolds as antitrypanosomal agents. Several of the identified compounds had IC50 <1 µM coupled with high selectivity toward the parasite. The core structures of the scaffolds are shown, providing promising new starting points for drug discovery for HAT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana Faria
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea Parasite Disease Group, Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Carolina B Moraes
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil
| | - Rita Song
- MedChem & Chemical Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Bruno S Pascoalino
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil
| | - Nakyung Lee
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Jair L Siqueira-Neto
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Deu John M Cruz
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Tanya Parkinson
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), Geneva, Switzerland
| | | | - Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva
- Parasite Disease Group, Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM), Campinas-SP, Brazil
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24
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Oh S, Kim S, Kong S, Yang G, Lee N, Han D, Goo J, Siqueira-Neto JL, Freitas-Junior LH, Song R. Synthesis and biological evaluation of 2,3-dihydroimidazo[1,2-a]benzimidazole derivatives against Leishmania donovani and Trypanosoma cruzi. Eur J Med Chem 2014; 84:395-403. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2014.07.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2013] [Revised: 07/09/2014] [Accepted: 07/10/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Lee S, Lim D, Lee E, Lee N, Lee HG, Cechetto J, Liuzzi M, Freitas-Junior LH, Song JS, Bae MA, Oh S, Ayong L, Park SB. Discovery of Carbohybrid-Based 2-Aminopyrimidine Analogues As a New Class of Rapid-Acting Antimalarial Agents Using Image-Based Cytological Profiling Assay. J Med Chem 2014; 57:7425-34. [DOI: 10.1021/jm5009693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sukjun Lee
- Early
Discovery Program, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Donghyun Lim
- WCU
Department of Biophysics and Chemical Biology, Seoul National University, San 56-1, Shilim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151-747, Korea
| | - Eunyoung Lee
- Early
Discovery Program, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Nakyung Lee
- Center
for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Hong-gun Lee
- Center
for Core Technologies, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Jonathan Cechetto
- Center
for Core Technologies, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Michel Liuzzi
- Early
Discovery Program, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center
for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Jin Sook Song
- Drug
Discovery Platform Technology Group, Drug Discovery Division, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon 305-600, Korea
| | - Myung Ae Bae
- Drug
Discovery Platform Technology Group, Drug Discovery Division, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon 305-600, Korea
| | - Sangmi Oh
- Medicinal
Chemistry and Chemical Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Lawrence Ayong
- Early
Discovery Program, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Korea
| | - Seung Bum Park
- WCU
Department of Biophysics and Chemical Biology, Seoul National University, San 56-1, Shilim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151-747, Korea
- Department
of Chemistry, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-747, Korea
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Kwon YJ, Heo J, Wong HEE, Cruz DJM, Velumani S, da Silva CT, Mosimann ALP, Duarte Dos Santos CN, Freitas-Junior LH, Fink K. Kinome siRNA screen identifies novel cell-type specific dengue host target genes. Antiviral Res 2014; 110:20-30. [PMID: 25046486 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2014.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2014] [Revised: 07/06/2014] [Accepted: 07/10/2014] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Dengue is a global emerging infectious disease, with no specific treatment available. To identify novel human host cell targets important for dengue virus infection and replication, an image-based high-throughput siRNA assay screening of a human kinome siRNA library was conducted using human hepatocyte cell line Huh7 infected with a recent dengue serotype 2 virus isolate BR DEN2 01-01. In the primary siRNA screening of 779 kinase-related genes, knockdown of 22 genes showed a reduction in DENV-2 infection. Conversely, knockdown of 8 genes enhanced viral infection. To assess host cell specificity, the confirmed hits were tested in the DENV-infected monocytic cell line U937. While the expression of EIF2AK3, ETNK2 and SMAD7 was regulated in both cell lines after infection, most kinases were hepatocyte-specific. Monocytic cells represent initial targets of infection and an antiviral treatment targeting these cells is probably most effective to reduce initial viral load. In turn, infection of the liver could contribute to pathogenesis, and the novel hepatocyte-specific human targets identified here could be important for dengue infection and pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yong-Jun Kwon
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, 696 Sampyeong-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, South Korea
| | - Jinyeong Heo
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, 696 Sampyeong-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, South Korea
| | - Hazel E E Wong
- Singapore Immunology Network, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, 8A Biomedical Groove, #03-06 Immunos, Singapore 138648, Singapore
| | - Deu John M Cruz
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, 696 Sampyeong-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, South Korea
| | - Sumathy Velumani
- Singapore Immunology Network, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, 8A Biomedical Groove, #03-06 Immunos, Singapore 138648, Singapore
| | - Camila T da Silva
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, 696 Sampyeong-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, South Korea
| | - Ana Luiza P Mosimann
- Instituto Carlos Chagas, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Paraná (ICC/FIOCRUZ-PR), Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | | | - Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, 696 Sampyeong-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, South Korea.
| | - Katja Fink
- Singapore Immunology Network, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, 8A Biomedical Groove, #03-06 Immunos, Singapore 138648, Singapore.
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Moon S, Siqueira-Neto JL, Moraes CB, Yang G, Kang M, Freitas-Junior LH, Hansen MAE. An image-based algorithm for precise and accurate high throughput assessment of drug activity against the human parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. PLoS One 2014; 9:e87188. [PMID: 24503652 PMCID: PMC3913590 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [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: 05/09/2013] [Accepted: 12/20/2013] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
We present a customized high content (image-based) and high throughput screening algorithm for the quantification of Trypanosoma cruzi infection in host cells. Based solely on DNA staining and single-channel images, the algorithm precisely segments and identifies the nuclei and cytoplasm of mammalian host cells as well as the intracellular parasites infecting the cells. The algorithm outputs statistical parameters including the total number of cells, number of infected cells and the total number of parasites per image, the average number of parasites per infected cell, and the infection ratio (defined as the number of infected cells divided by the total number of cells). Accurate and precise estimation of these parameters allow for both quantification of compound activity against parasites, as well as the compound cytotoxicity, thus eliminating the need for an additional toxicity-assay, hereby reducing screening costs significantly. We validate the performance of the algorithm using two known drugs against T.cruzi: Benznidazole and Nifurtimox. Also, we have checked the performance of the cell detection with manual inspection of the images. Finally, from the titration of the two compounds, we confirm that the algorithm provides the expected half maximal effective concentration (EC50) of the anti-T. cruzi activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seunghyun Moon
- Image Mining (IM) Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Department of Mathematics, Seoul National University (SNU), Gwanak-Gu, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Jair L. Siqueira-Neto
- Center for Neglected Diseases (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Carolina Borsoi Moraes
- Center for Neglected Diseases (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Gyongseon Yang
- Chemical Biology of Pathogen (CBP) Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Myungjoo Kang
- Department of Mathematics, Seoul National University (SNU), Gwanak-Gu, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Michael A. E. Hansen
- Image Mining (IM) Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail:
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28
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Oh S, Kwon B, Kong S, Yang G, Lee N, Han D, Goo J, Siqueira-Neto JL, Freitas-Junior LH, Liuzzi M, Lee J, Song R. Synthesis and biological evaluation of 2-acetamidothiophene-3-carboxamide derivatives against Leishmania donovani. Med Chem Commun 2014. [DOI: 10.1039/c3md00299c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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29
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Cruz DJM, Bonotto RM, Gomes RGB, da Silva CT, Taniguchi JB, No JH, Lombardot B, Schwartz O, Hansen MAE, Freitas-Junior LH. Identification of novel compounds inhibiting chikungunya virus-induced cell death by high throughput screening of a kinase inhibitor library. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2013; 7:e2471. [PMID: 24205414 PMCID: PMC3814572 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2013] [Accepted: 08/27/2013] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito-borne arthrogenic alphavirus that causes acute febrile illness in humans accompanied by joint pains and in many cases, persistent arthralgia lasting weeks to years. The re-emergence of CHIKV has resulted in numerous outbreaks in the eastern hemisphere, and threatens to expand in the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, no effective treatment is currently available. The present study reports the use of resazurin in a cell-based high-throughput assay, and an image-based high-content assay to identify and characterize inhibitors of CHIKV-infection in vitro. CHIKV is a highly cytopathic virus that rapidly kills infected cells. Thus, cell viability of HuH-7 cells infected with CHIKV in the presence of compounds was determined by measuring metabolic reduction of resazurin to identify inhibitors of CHIKV-associated cell death. A kinase inhibitor library of 4,000 compounds was screened against CHIKV infection of HuH-7 cells using the resazurin reduction assay, and the cell toxicity was also measured in non-infected cells. Seventy-two compounds showing ≥50% inhibition property against CHIKV at 10 µM were selected as primary hits. Four compounds having a benzofuran core scaffold (CND0335, CND0364, CND0366 and CND0415), one pyrrolopyridine (CND0545) and one thiazol-carboxamide (CND3514) inhibited CHIKV-associated cell death in a dose-dependent manner, with EC50 values between 2.2 µM and 7.1 µM. Based on image analysis, these 6 hit compounds did not inhibit CHIKV replication in the host cell. However, CHIKV-infected cells manifested less prominent apoptotic blebs typical of CHIKV cytopathic effect compared with the control infection. Moreover, treatment with these compounds reduced viral titers in the medium of CHIKV-infected cells by up to 100-fold. In conclusion, this cell-based high-throughput screening assay using resazurin, combined with the image-based high content assay approach identified compounds against CHIKV having a novel antiviral activity - inhibition of virus-induced CPE - likely by targeting kinases involved in apoptosis. Recent outbreaks and expanding global distribution of Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in different regions of Asia, Africa and Europe necessitates the development of effective therapeutic interventions. At present, only two antiviral compounds (chloroquine and ribavirin) that inhibit viral infection in vitro have been used in clinical cases of chikungunya infections. However, neither of these compounds have shown strong efficacy in vivo. Recent attempts to identify new antiviral candidates for CHIKV using cell-based phenotypic approach have been reported. In this study, we developed a simple cell-based high-throughput assay using resazurin to identify potential anti-CHIKV compounds. This high-throughput assay is based on the metabolic reduction of resazurin to the highly fluorescent resorufin by viable cells as an indicator of activity against CHIKV-induced CPE. We screened 4,000 small molecules belonging to the BioFocus kinase inhibitor chemical library and found a cluster of related molecules with antiviral activity against CHIKV. Finally, we characterized the putative mode of action of these active compounds using an image-based high content assay and conventional virological methods (i.e., virus yield reduction assay, microneutralization assay).
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Affiliation(s)
- Deu John M. Cruz
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Rafaela M. Bonotto
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Universidade Feevale, Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Rafael G. B. Gomes
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Camila T. da Silva
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Universidade Estadual do Rio Grande do Sul - Campus Novo Hamburgo, Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Juliana B. Taniguchi
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio de Mesquita Filho”-Campus Araraquara, Araraquara, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Joo Hwan No
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Benoit Lombardot
- Image Mining Group (IMG), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Olivier Schwartz
- Virus and Immunity Unit, Department of Virology, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France
| | - Michael A. E. Hansen
- Image Mining Group (IMG), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail: ,
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Pohlit AM, Lima RBS, Frausin G, Silva LFRE, Lopes SCP, Moraes CB, Cravo P, Lacerda MVG, Siqueira AM, Freitas-Junior LH, Costa FTM. Amazonian plant natural products: perspectives for discovery of new antimalarial drug leads. Molecules 2013; 18:9219-40. [PMID: 23917112 PMCID: PMC6270278 DOI: 10.3390/molecules18089219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2013] [Revised: 07/14/2013] [Accepted: 07/18/2013] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax malaria parasites are now resistant, or showing signs of resistance, to most drugs used in therapy. Novel chemical entities that exhibit new mechanisms of antiplasmodial action are needed. New antimalarials that block transmission of Plasmodium spp. from humans to Anopheles mosquito vectors are key to malaria eradication efforts. Although P. vivax causes a considerable number of malaria cases, its importance has for long been neglected. Vivax malaria can cause severe manifestations and death; hence there is a need for P. vivax-directed research. Plants used in traditional medicine, namely Artemisia annua and Cinchona spp. are the sources of the antimalarial natural products artemisinin and quinine, respectively. Based on these compounds, semi-synthetic artemisinin-derivatives and synthetic quinoline antimalarials have been developed and are the most important drugs in the current therapeutic arsenal for combating malaria. In the Amazon region, where P. vivax predominates, there is a local tradition of using plant-derived preparations to treat malaria. Here, we review the current P. falciparum and P. vivax drug-sensitivity assays, focusing on challenges and perspectives of drug discovery for P. vivax, including tests against hypnozoites. We also present the latest findings of our group and others on the antiplasmodial and antimalarial chemical components from Amazonian plants that may be potential drug leads against malaria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrian Martin Pohlit
- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisa da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936, 69067-375 Manaus, AM, Brazil; E-Mails: (R.B.S.L.); (G.F.); (L.F.R.S.)
| | - Renata Braga Souza Lima
- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisa da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936, 69067-375 Manaus, AM, Brazil; E-Mails: (R.B.S.L.); (G.F.); (L.F.R.S.)
| | - Gina Frausin
- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisa da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936, 69067-375 Manaus, AM, Brazil; E-Mails: (R.B.S.L.); (G.F.); (L.F.R.S.)
| | - Luiz Francisco Rocha e Silva
- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisa da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936, 69067-375 Manaus, AM, Brazil; E-Mails: (R.B.S.L.); (G.F.); (L.F.R.S.)
| | - Stefanie Costa Pinto Lopes
- Departamento de Genética, Evolução e Bioagentes, Universidade Estadual de Campinas-UNICAMP, P.O. Box 6109, 13083-862 Campinas, SP, Brazil; E-Mail:
| | - Carolina Borsoi Moraes
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio) – Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNEPM) - P.O. Box 6192, 13083-970 Campinas, SP, Brazil; E-Mails: (C.B.M.); (L.H.F.-J.)
| | - Pedro Cravo
- Programa de Mestrado em Sociedade, Tecnologia e Meio Ambiente. UniEVANGÉLICA-Centro Universitário de Anápolis, 75083-515 Anapólis, GO, Brazil; E-Mail:
- Centro de Malária e Doenças Tropicais, LA/IHMT-Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 1349-008 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Marcus Vinícius Guimarães Lacerda
- Fundação de Medicina Tropical Dr. Heitor Vieira Dourado, 69040-000 Manaus, AM, Brazil; E-Mails: (M.V.G.L.); (A.M.S.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina Tropical, Universidade do Estado do Amazonas, 69040-000 Manaus, AM, Brazil
| | - André Machado Siqueira
- Fundação de Medicina Tropical Dr. Heitor Vieira Dourado, 69040-000 Manaus, AM, Brazil; E-Mails: (M.V.G.L.); (A.M.S.)
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina Tropical, Universidade do Estado do Amazonas, 69040-000 Manaus, AM, Brazil
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBio) – Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNEPM) - P.O. Box 6192, 13083-970 Campinas, SP, Brazil; E-Mails: (C.B.M.); (L.H.F.-J.)
| | - Fabio Trindade Maranhão Costa
- Departamento de Genética, Evolução e Bioagentes, Universidade Estadual de Campinas-UNICAMP, P.O. Box 6109, 13083-862 Campinas, SP, Brazil; E-Mail:
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Moon S, Lee S, Kim H, Freitas-Junior LH, Kang M, Ayong L, Hansen MAE. An image analysis algorithm for malaria parasite stage classification and viability quantification. PLoS One 2013; 8:e61812. [PMID: 23626733 PMCID: PMC3634010 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [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: 12/17/2012] [Accepted: 03/13/2013] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
With more than 40% of the world’s population at risk, 200–300 million infections each year, and an estimated 1.2 million deaths annually, malaria remains one of the most important public health problems of mankind today. With the propensity of malaria parasites to rapidly develop resistance to newly developed therapies, and the recent failures of artemisinin-based drugs in Southeast Asia, there is an urgent need for new antimalarial compounds with novel mechanisms of action to be developed against multidrug resistant malaria. We present here a novel image analysis algorithm for the quantitative detection and classification of Plasmodium lifecycle stages in culture as well as discriminating between viable and dead parasites in drug-treated samples. This new algorithm reliably estimates the number of red blood cells (isolated or clustered) per fluorescence image field, and accurately identifies parasitized erythrocytes on the basis of high intensity DAPI-stained parasite nuclei spots and Mitotracker-stained mitochondrial in viable parasites. We validated the performance of the algorithm by manual counting of the infected and non-infected red blood cells in multiple image fields, and the quantitative analyses of the different parasite stages (early rings, rings, trophozoites, schizonts) at various time-point post-merozoite invasion, in tightly synchronized cultures. Additionally, the developed algorithm provided parasitological effective concentration 50 (EC50) values for both chloroquine and artemisinin, that were similar to known growth inhibitory EC50 values for these compounds as determined using conventional SYBR Green I and lactate dehydrogenase-based assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seunghyun Moon
- Image Mining (IM) Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Department of Mathematics, Seoul National University (SNU), Gwanak-Gu, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Sukjun Lee
- Malaria Drug Discovery (MRA) Unit, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Heechang Kim
- Image Mining (IM) Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Myungjoo Kang
- Department of Mathematics, Seoul National University (SNU), Gwanak-Gu, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Lawrence Ayong
- Malaria Drug Discovery (MRA) Unit, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Michael A. E. Hansen
- Image Mining (IM) Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail:
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Alcantara LM, Kim J, Moraes CB, Franco CH, Franzoi KD, Lee S, Freitas-Junior LH, Ayong LS. Chemosensitization potential of P-glycoprotein inhibitors in malaria parasites. Exp Parasitol 2013; 134:235-43. [PMID: 23541983 DOI: 10.1016/j.exppara.2013.03.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2012] [Revised: 03/05/2013] [Accepted: 03/17/2013] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Members of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC)-type transporter superfamily have been implicated in multidrug resistance in malaria, and various mechanistic models have been postulated to explain their interaction with diverse antimalarial drugs. To gain insight into the pharmacological benefits of inhibiting ABC-type transporters in malaria chemotherapy, we investigated the in vitro chemosensitization potential of various P-glycoprotein inhibitors. A fluorescent chloroquine derivative was synthesized and used to assess the efflux dynamics of chloroquine in MDR and wild type Plasmodium falciparum parasites. This novel BODIPY-based probe accumulated in the digestive vacuole (DV) of CQ-sensitive parasites but less so in MDR cells. Pre-exposure of the MDR parasites to non-cytocidal concentrations of unlabeled chloroquine resulted in a diffused cytoplasmic retention of the probe whereas a similar treatment with the CQR-reversing agent, chlorpheniramine, resulted in DV accumulation. A diffused cytoplasmic distribution of the probe was also obtained following treatment with the P-gp specific inhibitors zosuquidar and tariquidar, whereas treatments with the tyrosine kinase inhibitors gefitinib or imatinib produced a partial accumulation within the DV. Isobologram analyses of the interactions between these inhibitors and the antimalarial drugs chloroquine, mefloquine, and artemisinin revealed distinct patterns of drug synergism, additivity and antagonism. Taken together, the data indicate that competitive tyrosine kinase and noncompetitive P-glycoprotein ATPase-specific inhibitors represent two new classes of chemosensitizing agents in malaria parasites, but caution against the indiscriminate use of these agents in antimalarial drug combinations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura M Alcantara
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, Sampyeong-dong 696, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-400, Republic of Korea
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Moraes CB, Dorval T, Contreras-Dominguez M, Dossin FDM, Hansen MAE, Genovesio A, Freitas-Junior LH. Transcription sites are developmentally regulated during the asexual cycle of Plasmodium falciparum. PLoS One 2013; 8:e55539. [PMID: 23408998 PMCID: PMC3567098 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0055539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [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: 06/16/2012] [Accepted: 12/29/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Increasing evidence shows that the spatial organization of transcription is an important epigenetic factor in eukaryotic gene regulation. The malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum shows a remarkably complex pattern of gene expression during the erythrocytic cycle, paradoxically contrasting with the relatively low number of putative transcription factors encoded by its genome. The spatial organization of nuclear subcompartments has been correlated with the regulation of virulence genes. Here, we investigate the nuclear architecture of transcription during the asexual cycle of malaria parasites. As in mammals, transcription is organized into discrete nucleoplasmic sites in P. falciparum, but in a strikingly lower number of foci. An automated analysis of 3D images shows that the number and intensity of transcription sites vary significantly between rings and trophozoites, although the nuclear volume remains constant. Transcription sites are spatially reorganized during the asexual cycle, with a higher proportion of foci located in the outermost nuclear region in rings, whereas in trophozoites, foci are evenly distributed throughout the nucleoplasm. As in higher eukaryotes, transcription sites are predominantly found in areas of low chromatin density. Immunofluorescence analysis shows that transcription sites form an exclusive nuclear compartment, different from the compartments defined by the silenced or active chromatin markers. In conclusion, these data suggest that transcription is spatially contained in discrete foci that are developmentally regulated during the asexual cycle of malaria parasites and located in areas of low chromatin density.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina B. Moraes
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Thierry Dorval
- Cell Differentiation and Toxicity Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | | | - Fernando de M. Dossin
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | | | - Auguste Genovesio
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail:
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Ku MJ, Dossin FDM, Hansen MAE, Genovesio A, Ayong L, Freitas-Junior LH. An image-based drug susceptibility assay targeting the placental sequestration of Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes. PLoS One 2012; 7:e41765. [PMID: 22952585 PMCID: PMC3430655 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0041765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [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: 01/19/2012] [Accepted: 06/27/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Placental malaria is a significant cause of all malaria-related deaths globally for which no drugs have been developed to specifically disrupt its pathogenesis. To facilitate the discovery of antimalarial drugs targeting the cytoadherence process of Plasmodium-infected erythrocytes in the placenta microvasculature, we have developed an automated image-based assay for high-throughput screening for potent cytoadherence inhibitors in vitro. Parasitized erythrocytes were drug-treated for 24 h and then allowed to adhere on a monolayer of placental BeWo cells prior to red blood cell staining with glycophorin A antibodies. Upon image-acquisition, drug effects were quantified as the proportion of treated parasitized erythrocytes to BeWo cells compared to the binding of untreated iRBCs. We confirmed the reliability of this new assay by comparing the binding ratios of CSA- and CD36-panned parasites on the placental BeWo cells, and by quantifying the effects of chondroitin sulfate A, brefeldin A, and artemisinin on the binding. By simultaneously examining the drug effects on parasite viability, we could discriminate between cytoadherence-specific inhibitors and other schizonticidal compounds. Taken together, our data establish that the developed assay is highly suitable for drug studies targeting placental malaria, and will facilitate the discovery and rapid development of new therapies against malaria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min-Je Ku
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Fernando de M. Dossin
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Michael A. E. Hansen
- Center for Core Technologies-Image Mining, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Auguste Genovesio
- Center for Core Technologies-Image Mining, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Lawrence Ayong
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail:
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Siqueira-Neto JL, Moon S, Jang J, Yang G, Lee C, Moon HK, Chatelain E, Genovesio A, Cechetto J, Freitas-Junior LH. An image-based high-content screening assay for compounds targeting intracellular Leishmania donovani amastigotes in human macrophages. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2012; 6:e1671. [PMID: 22720099 PMCID: PMC3373640 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [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: 11/09/2011] [Accepted: 04/19/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Leishmaniasis is a tropical disease threatening 350 million people from endemic regions. The available drugs for treatment are inadequate, with limitations such as serious side effects, parasite resistance or high cost. Driven by this need for new drugs, we developed a high-content, high-throughput image-based screening assay targeting the intracellular amastigote stage of different species of Leishmania in infected human macrophages. The in vitro infection protocol was adapted to a 384-well-plate format, enabling acquisition of a large amount of readouts by automated confocal microscopy. The reading method was based on DNA staining and required the development of a customized algorithm to analyze the images, which enabled the use of non-modified parasites. The automated analysis generated parameters used to quantify compound activity, including infection ratio as well as the number of intracellular amastigote parasites and yielded cytotoxicity information based on the number of host cells. Comparison of this assay with one that used the promastigote form to screen 26,500 compounds showed that 50% of the hits selected against the intracellular amastigote were not selected in the promastigote screening. These data corroborate the idea that the intracellular amastigote form of the parasite is the most appropriate to be used in primary screening assay for Leishmania. Leishmaniasis, one of the most neglected tropical diseases, affects over 2 million people each year. Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as Kala-azar, is caused by the protozoan parasites Leishmania donovani and Leishmania infantum and is fatal if left untreated. Because existing treatments are often ineffective due to parasite resistance and/or toxicity new drugs are urgently needed. Leishmaniasis is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected sandfly. In the insect vector, parasites exist as flagellated forms—promastigotes, which infect macrophage cells of the human host, where they differentiate to round forms known as amastigotes. Amastigotes and promastigotes are substantially different from a molecular perspective. Drug discovery for leishmaniasis has traditionally been complicated by the unavailability of validated drug targets and of relevant drug assays. Whole cell-based assays have been widely used, as they bypass the need for a validated target. However, they use the insect form of the parasite; indeed, the human form, the intracellular amastigote, is difficult to obtain in the laboratory in quantities compatible with drug screening. We describe here the technical advances that made it possible to adapt the intracellular amastigote form of L. donovani to a drug assay compatible with high-throughput screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jair L. Siqueira-Neto
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Seunghyun Moon
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Jiyeon Jang
- Screening Technology & Pharmacology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Gyongseon Yang
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Changbok Lee
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Hong Kee Moon
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Eric Chatelain
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Auguste Genovesio
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail: (LHFJ); (JC); (AG)
| | - Jonathan Cechetto
- Screening Technology & Pharmacology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail: (LHFJ); (JC); (AG)
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- * E-mail: (LHFJ); (JC); (AG)
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Serpeloni M, Moraes CB, Muniz JRC, Motta MCM, Ramos ASP, Kessler RL, Inoue AH, Duarte daRocha W, Yamada-Ogatta SF, Fragoso SP, Goldenberg S, Freitas-Junior LH, Ávila AR. An essential nuclear protein in trypanosomes is a component of mRNA transcription/export pathway. PLoS One 2011; 6:e20730. [PMID: 21687672 PMCID: PMC3110772 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0020730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [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: 11/26/2010] [Accepted: 05/11/2011] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In eukaryotic cells, different RNA species are exported from the nucleus via specialized pathways. The mRNA export machinery is highly integrated with mRNA processing, and includes a different set of nuclear transport adaptors as well as other mRNA binding proteins, RNA helicases, and NPC-associated proteins. The protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi is the causative agent of Chagas disease, a widespread and neglected human disease which is endemic to Latin America. Gene expression in Trypanosoma has unique characteristics, such as constitutive polycistronic transcription of protein-encoding genes and mRNA processing by trans-splicing. In general, post-transcriptional events are the major points for regulation of gene expression in these parasites. However, the export pathway of mRNA from the nucleus is poorly understood. The present study investigated the function of TcSub2, which is a highly conserved protein ortholog to Sub2/ UAP56, a component of the Transcription/Export (TREX) multiprotein complex connecting transcription with mRNA export in yeast/human. Similar to its orthologs, TcSub2 is a nuclear protein, localized in dispersed foci all over the nuclei —except the fibrillar center of nucleolus— and at the interface between dense and non-dense chromatin areas, proposing the association of TcSub2 with transcription/processing sites. These findings were analyzed further by BrUTP incorporation assays and confirmed that TcSub2 is physically associated with active RNA polymerase II (RNA pol II), but not RNA polymerase I (RNA pol I) or Spliced Leader (SL) transcription, demonstrating participation particularly in nuclear mRNA metabolism in T. cruzi. The double knockout of the TcSub2 gene is lethal in T. cruzi, suggesting it has an essential function. Alternatively, RNA interference assays were performed in Trypanosoma brucei. It allowed demonstrating that besides being an essential protein, its knockdown causes mRNA accumulation in the nucleus and decrease of translation levels, reinforcing that Trypanosoma-Sub2 (Tryp-Sub2) is a component of mRNA transcription/export pathway in trypanosomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Serpeloni
- Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, Brazil
- Laboratório de Regulação da Expressão gênica, Instituto Carlos Chagas (ICC), Curitiba, Brazil
| | - Carolina Borsoi Moraes
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea (IPK), Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | | | - Maria Cristina Machado Motta
- Departamento de Biologia Celular e Parasitologia, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Rafael Luis Kessler
- Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, Brazil
- Laboratório de Regulação da Expressão gênica, Instituto Carlos Chagas (ICC), Curitiba, Brazil
| | - Alexandre Haruo Inoue
- Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, Brazil
- Laboratório de Regulação da Expressão gênica, Instituto Carlos Chagas (ICC), Curitiba, Brazil
| | | | - Sueli Fumie Yamada-Ogatta
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Centro de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Londrina (UEL), Londrina, Brazil
| | - Stenio Perdigão Fragoso
- Laboratório de Regulação da Expressão gênica, Instituto Carlos Chagas (ICC), Curitiba, Brazil
| | - Samuel Goldenberg
- Laboratório de Regulação da Expressão gênica, Instituto Carlos Chagas (ICC), Curitiba, Brazil
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery (CND3), Institut Pasteur Korea (IPK), Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Andréa Rodrigues Ávila
- Laboratório de Regulação da Expressão gênica, Instituto Carlos Chagas (ICC), Curitiba, Brazil
- * E-mail:
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Genovesio A, Giardini MA, Kwon YJ, Dossin FDM, Choi SY, Kim NY, Kim HC, Jung SY, Schenkman S, Almeida IC, Emans N, Freitas-Junior LH. Visual genome-wide RNAi screening to identify human host factors required for Trypanosoma cruzi infection. PLoS One 2011; 6:e19733. [PMID: 21625474 PMCID: PMC3098829 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0019733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2011] [Accepted: 04/12/2011] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi is the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, a neglected tropical infection that affects millions of people in the Americas. Current chemotherapy relies on only two drugs that have limited efficacy and considerable side effects. Therefore, the development of new and more effective drugs is of paramount importance. Although some host cellular factors that play a role in T. cruzi infection have been uncovered, the molecular requirements for intracellular parasite growth and persistence are still not well understood. To further study these host-parasite interactions and identify human host factors required for T. cruzi infection, we performed a genome-wide RNAi screen using cellular microarrays of a printed siRNA library that spanned the whole human genome. The screening was reproduced 6 times and a customized algorithm was used to select as hits those genes whose silencing visually impaired parasite infection. The 162 strongest hits were subjected to a secondary screening and subsequently validated in two different cell lines. Among the fourteen hits confirmed, we recognized some cellular membrane proteins that might function as cell receptors for parasite entry and others that may be related to calcium release triggered by parasites during cell invasion. In addition, two of the hits are related to the TGF-beta signaling pathway, whose inhibition is already known to diminish levels of T. cruzi infection. This study represents a significant step toward unveiling the key molecular requirements for host cell invasion and revealing new potential targets for antiparasitic therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Auguste Genovesio
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Miriam A. Giardini
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Yong-Jun Kwon
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
- Department of Biochemistry and National Research Laboratory, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Fernando de Macedo Dossin
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Seo Yeon Choi
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Nam Youl Kim
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Hi Chul Kim
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Sung Yong Jung
- Discovery Biology Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Sergio Schenkman
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Igor C. Almeida
- Department of Biological Sciences, The Border Biomedical Research Center, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas, United States of America
| | - Neil Emans
- High Throughput Biology Group, Synthetic Biology ERA, CSIR Biosciences, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Lucio H. Freitas-Junior
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
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Ku MJ, Dossin FM, Choi Y, Moraes CB, Ryu J, Song R, Freitas-Junior LH. Quantum dots: a new tool for anti-malarial drug assays. Malar J 2011; 10:118. [PMID: 21554712 PMCID: PMC3112454 DOI: 10.1186/1475-2875-10-118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2011] [Accepted: 05/09/2011] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Malaria infects over 300 million people every year and one of the major obstacles for the eradication of the disease is parasite's resistance to current chemotherapy, thus new drugs are urgently needed. Quantum dot (QD) is a fluorescent nanocrystal that has been in the spotlight as a robust tool for visualization of live cell processes in real time. Here, a simple and efficient method using QD to directly label Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes (iRBCs) was searched in order to use the QD as a probe in an anti-malarial drug-screening assay. METHODS A range of QDs with different chemical coatings were tested for their ability to specifically bind iRBCs by immunofluorescence assay (IFA). One QD was selected and used to detect parasite growth and drug sensitivity by flow cytometry. RESULTS PEGylated-cationic QD (PCQD) was found to specifically label infected erythrocytes preferentially with late stage parasites. The detection of QD-labelled infected erythrocytes by flow cytometry was sensitive enough to monitor chloroquine anti-malarial toxicity with a drug incubation period as short as 24 h (EC50 = 113nM). A comparison of our assay with another widely used anti-malarial drug screening assay, the pLDH assay, showed that PCQD-based assay had 50% improved sensitivity in detecting drug efficacy within a parasite life cycle. An excellent Z-factor of 0.8 shows that the QD assay is suitable for high-throughput screening. CONCLUSIONS This new assay can offer a rapid and robust platform to screen novel classes of anti-malarial drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min-Je Ku
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
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Romanha AJ, Castro SLD, Soeiro MDNC, Lannes-Vieira J, Ribeiro I, Talvani A, Bourdin B, Blum B, Olivieri B, Zani C, Spadafora C, Chiari E, Chatelain E, Chaves G, Calzada JE, Bustamante JM, Freitas-Junior LH, Romero LI, Bahia MT, Lotrowska M, Soares M, Andrade SG, Armstrong T, Degrave W, Andrade ZDA. In vitro and in vivo experimental models for drug screening and development for Chagas disease. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2010; 105:233-8. [PMID: 20428688 DOI: 10.1590/s0074-02762010000200022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 260] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2009] [Accepted: 01/26/2010] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Chagas disease, a neglected illness, affects nearly 12-14 million people in endemic areas of Latin America. Although the occurrence of acute cases sharply has declined due to Southern Cone Initiative efforts to control vector transmission, there still remain serious challenges, including the maintenance of sustainable public policies for Chagas disease control and the urgent need for better drugs to treat chagasic patients. Since the introduction of benznidazole and nifurtimox approximately 40 years ago, many natural and synthetic compounds have been assayed against Trypanosoma cruzi, yet only a few compounds have advanced to clinical trials. This reflects, at least in part, the lack of consensus regarding appropriate in vitro and in vivo screening protocols as well as the lack of biomarkers for treating parasitaemia. The development of more effective drugs requires (i) the identification and validation of parasite targets, (ii) compounds to be screened against the targets or the whole parasite and (iii) a panel of minimum standardised procedures to advance leading compounds to clinical trials. This third aim was the topic of the workshop entitled Experimental Models in Drug Screening and Development for Chagas Disease, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on the 25th and 26th of November 2008 by the Fiocruz Program for Research and Technological Development on Chagas Disease and Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative. During the meeting, the minimum steps, requirements and decision gates for the determination of the efficacy of novel drugs for T. cruzi control were evaluated by interdisciplinary experts and an in vitro and in vivo flowchart was designed to serve as a general and standardised protocol for screening potential drugs for the treatment of Chagas disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alvaro José Romanha
- Programa Integrado de Doença de Chagas, Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.
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Contreras-Dominguez M, Moraes CB, Dorval T, Genovesio A, Dossin FDM, Freitas-Junior LH. A modified fluorescence in situ hybridization protocol for Plasmodium falciparum greatly improves nuclear architecture conservation. Mol Biochem Parasitol 2010; 173:48-52. [PMID: 20433875 DOI: 10.1016/j.molbiopara.2010.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2009] [Revised: 04/14/2010] [Accepted: 04/19/2010] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) has been used extensively in the study of nuclear organization and gene positioning in Plasmodium falciparum. While performing FISH with published protocols, we observed large variations in parasite nuclear morphology. We hypothesized that these inconsistencies might be due to the type of parasite preparation prior to FISH, which commonly involves air-drying, prompting us to develop a new fixation protocol. Here we show both qualitatively and quantitatively that compared to air-dried and briefly fixed parasites, longer fixation in suspension leads to improved conservation of nuclear structure and lower intra-population variation of nuclear shape as well as area after FISH development. While the fixation protocol per se does not cause detectable disruptions in nuclear morphology, it greatly influences the conservation of nuclear shape and size during the most stringent steps of FISH. The type of fixation used also influences the detection of telomeric clusters, and we show that the new fixation protocol permits improved conservation of the chromosome end cluster perinuclear distribution and higher colocalization indexes for two adjacent chromosome end probes, Rep20 and telomere. Overall, the results indicate that our alternative protocol dramatically improves conservation of the nuclear architecture compared to previously reported Plasmodium DNA-FISH protocols and highlights the necessity of carefully choosing the fixation protocol for FISH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Contreras-Dominguez
- Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery, Institut Pasteur Korea, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
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41
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Dossin FDM, Dufour A, Dusch E, Siqueira-Neto JL, Moraes CB, Yang GS, Cano MI, Genovesio A, Freitas-Junior LH. Automated nuclear analysis of Leishmania major telomeric clusters reveals changes in their organization during the parasite's life cycle. PLoS One 2008; 3:e2313. [PMID: 18545650 PMCID: PMC2396463 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0002313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [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: 03/09/2008] [Accepted: 04/20/2008] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Parasite virulence genes are usually associated with telomeres. The clustering of the telomeres, together with their particular spatial distribution in the nucleus of human parasites such as Plasmodium falciparum and Trypanosoma brucei, has been suggested to play a role in facilitating ectopic recombination and in the emergence of new antigenic variants. Leishmania parasites, as well as other trypanosomes, have unusual gene expression characteristics, such as polycistronic and constitutive transcription of protein-coding genes. Leishmania subtelomeric regions are even more unique because unlike these regions in other trypanosomes they are devoid of virulence genes. Given these peculiarities of Leishmania, we sought to investigate how telomeres are organized in the nucleus of Leishmania major parasites at both the human and insect stages of their life cycle. We developed a new automated and precise method for identifying telomere position in the three-dimensional space of the nucleus, and we found that the telomeres are organized in clusters present in similar numbers in both the human and insect stages. While the number of clusters remained the same, their distribution differed between the two stages. The telomeric clusters were found more concentrated near the center of the nucleus in the human stage than in the insect stage suggesting reorganization during the parasite's differentiation process between the two hosts. These data provide the first 3D analysis of Leishmania telomere organization. The possible biological implications of these findings are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Elodie Dusch
- Image Mining Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seoul, South Korea
| | | | - Carolina B. Moraes
- Systems Biology of Pathogens Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seoul, South Korea
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Gyong Seon Yang
- Systems Biology of Pathogens Group, Institut Pasteur Korea, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Maria Isabel Cano
- Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
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42
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Neto JLS, Lira CBB, Giardini MA, Khater L, Perez AM, Peroni LA, dos Reis JRR, Freitas-Junior LH, Ramos CHI, Cano MIN. Leishmania replication protein A-1 binds in vivo single-stranded telomeric DNA. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2007; 358:417-23. [PMID: 17498665 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2007.04.144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2007] [Accepted: 04/19/2007] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Replication protein A (RPA) is a highly conserved heterotrimeric single-stranded DNA-binding protein involved in different events of DNA metabolism. In yeast, subunits 1 (RPA-1) and 2 (RPA-2) work also as telomerase recruiters and, in humans, the complex unfolds G-quartet structures formed by the 3' G-rich telomeric strand. In most eukaryotes, RPA-1 and RPA-2 bind DNA using multiple OB fold domains. In trypanosomatids, including Leishmania, RPA-1 has a canonical OB fold and a truncated RFA-1 structural domain. In Leishmania amazonensis, RPA-1 alone can form a complex in vitro with the telomeric G-rich strand. In this work, we show that LaRPA-1 is a nuclear protein that associates in vivo with Leishmania telomeres. We mapped the boundaries of the OB fold DNA-binding domain using deletion mutants. Since Leishmania and other trypanosomatids lack homologues of known telomere end binding proteins, our results raise questions about the function of RPA-1 in parasite telomeres.
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Affiliation(s)
- J L Siqueira Neto
- Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual de São Paulo, UNESP, 18618-000 Botucatu, SP, Brazil
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43
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Freitas-Junior LH, Hernandez-Rivas R, Ralph SA, Montiel-Condado D, Ruvalcaba-Salazar OK, Rojas-Meza AP, Mâncio-Silva L, Leal-Silvestre RJ, Gontijo AM, Shorte S, Scherf A. Telomeric heterochromatin propagation and histone acetylation control mutually exclusive expression of antigenic variation genes in malaria parasites. Cell 2005; 121:25-36. [PMID: 15820676 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2005.01.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 373] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2004] [Revised: 10/05/2004] [Accepted: 01/14/2005] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Malaria parasites use antigenic variation to avoid immune clearance and increase the duration of infection in the human host. Variation at the surface of P. falciparum-infected erythrocytes is mediated by the differential control of a family of surface antigens encoded by var genes. Switching of var gene expression occurs in situ, mostly from telomere-associated loci, without detectable DNA alterations, suggesting that it is controlled by chromatin structure. We have identified chromatin modifications at telomeres that spread far into telomere-proximal regions, including var gene loci (>50 kb). One type of modification is mediated by a protein homologous to yeast Sir2 called PfSir2, which forms a chromosomal gradient of heterochromatin structure and histone hypoacetylation. Upon activation of a specific telomere-associated var gene, PfSir2 is removed from the promoter region and acetylation of histone occurs. Our data demonstrate that mutually exclusive transcription of var genes is linked to the dynamic remodeling of chromatin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucio H Freitas-Junior
- Institut Pasteur, Biology of Host-Parasite Interactions Unit-CNRS URA2581, 25, rue du Dr. Roux, 75724 Paris, France
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44
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Duraisingh MT, Voss TS, Marty AJ, Duffy MF, Good RT, Thompson JK, Freitas-Junior LH, Scherf A, Crabb BS, Cowman AF. Heterochromatin Silencing and Locus Repositioning Linked to Regulation of Virulence Genes in Plasmodium falciparum. Cell 2005; 121:13-24. [PMID: 15820675 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2005.01.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 361] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2004] [Revised: 10/06/2004] [Accepted: 01/14/2005] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum undergoes antigenic variation to evade host immune responses through switching expression of variant surface proteins encoded by the var gene family. We demonstrate that both a subtelomeric transgene and var genes are subject to reversible gene silencing. Var gene silencing involves the SIR complex as gene disruption of PfSIR2 results in activation of this gene family. We also demonstrate that perinuclear gene activation involves chromatin alterations and repositioning into a location that may be permissive for transcription. Together, this implies that locus repositioning and heterochromatic silencing play important roles in the epigenetic regulation of virulence genes in P. falciparum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manoj T Duraisingh
- The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Melbourne 3050, Australia
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Abstract
New data on the organization of plasmodial telomeres has recently become available. Telomeres form clusters of four to seven heterologous chromosome ends at the nuclear periphery in asexual and sexual parasite stages. This subnuclear compartment promotes gene conversion between members of subtelomeric virulence factor genes in heterologous chromosomes resulting in diversity of antigenic and adhesive phenotypes. This has important implications for parasite survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Scherf
- Unité de Biologie des Interactions Hôte-Parasite, CNRS URA 1960, Institut Pasteur, 25, rue du Dr Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15, France.
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46
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Acosta-Serrano A, Almeida IC, Freitas-Junior LH, Yoshida N, Schenkman S. The mucin-like glycoprotein super-family of Trypanosoma cruzi: structure and biological roles. Mol Biochem Parasitol 2001; 114:143-50. [PMID: 11378194 DOI: 10.1016/s0166-6851(01)00245-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 146] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [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: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Trypanosoma cruzi expresses at its surface large amounts of mucin-like glycoproteins. The T. cruzi mucins (TcMUC), a group of highly glycosylated GPI-anchored proteins rich in Thr, Ser, and Pro residues, are expressed in high copy numbers in both insect and mammalian stages of the parasite. These molecules are encoded by a multigene family and contain a unique type of glycosylation consisting of several sialylated O-glycans linked to the protein backbone via N-acetylglucosamine residues. The TcMUC are important because of their role in host cell invasion and the ability to induce secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and nitric oxide in activated macrophages. The TcMUC are also significant in being the major substrate for the cell surface trans-sialidase. In this review, we summarize the recent knowledge on the molecular structure and function of this family of T. cruzi glycoproteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Acosta-Serrano
- Department of Biological Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
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47
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Freitas-Junior LH, Bottius E, Pirrit LA, Deitsch KW, Scheidig C, Guinet F, Nehrbass U, Wellems TE, Scherf A. Frequent ectopic recombination of virulence factor genes in telomeric chromosome clusters of P. falciparum. Nature 2000; 407:1018-22. [PMID: 11069183 DOI: 10.1038/35039531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 419] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Persistent and recurrent infections by Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites result from the ability of the parasite to undergo antigenic variation and evade host immune attack. P. falciparum parasites generate high levels of variability in gene families that comprise virulence determinants of cytoadherence and antigenic variation, such as the var genes. These genes encode the major variable parasite protein (PfEMP-1), and are expressed in a mutually exclusive manner at the surface of the erythrocyte infected by P. falciparum. Here we identify a mechanism by which var gene sequences undergo recombination at frequencies much higher than those expected from homologous crossover events alone. These recombination events occur between subtelomeric regions of heterologous chromosomes, which associate in clusters near the nuclear periphery in asexual blood-stage parasites or in bouquet-like configurations near one pole of the elongated nuclei in sexual parasite forms. We propose that the alignment of var genes in heterologous chromosomes facilitates gene conversion and promotes the diversity of antigenic and adhesive phenotypes. The association of virulence factors with a specific nuclear subcompartment may also have implications for variation during mitotic recombination in asexual blood stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- L H Freitas-Junior
- Unité de Biologie des Interactions Hote-Parasite, CNRS URA 1960, Paris, France
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48
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Freitas-Junior LH, Porto RM, Pirrit LA, Schenkman S, Scherf A. Identification of the telomere in Trypanosoma cruzi reveals highly heterogeneous telomere lengths in different parasite strains. Nucleic Acids Res 1999; 27:2451-6. [PMID: 10352173 PMCID: PMC148447 DOI: 10.1093/nar/27.12.2451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Here we describe the cloning and characterisation of the Trypanosoma cruzi telomere. In the Y strain, it is formed by typical GGGTTA repeats with a mean size of approximately 500 bp. Adjacent to the telomere repeats we found a DNA sequence with significant homology to the T.cruzi 85 kDa surface antigen (gp85). Examination of the telomere in nine T.cruzi strains reveals differences in the organisation of chromosome ends. In one group of strains the size of the telomere repeat is relatively homogeneous and short (0.5-1.5 kb) as in the Y strain, while in the other, the length of the repeat is very heterogeneous and significantly longer, ranging in size from 1 to >10 kb. These different strains can be grouped similarly to previously existing classifications based on isoenzyme loci, rRNA genes, mini-exon gene sequences, randomly amplified polymorphic DNA and rRNA promoter sequences, suggesting that differential control of telomere length and organisation appeared as an early event in T. cruzi evolution. Two-dimensional pulsed field gel electrophoresis analysis shows that some chromosomes carry telomeres which are significantly larger than the mean telomere length. Importantly, the T.cruzi telomeres are organised in nucleosomal and non-nucleosomal chromatin.
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Affiliation(s)
- L H Freitas-Junior
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Immunologia e Parasitologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, UNIFESP, São Paulo, S.P. 04023-062, Brazil
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Abuin G, Freitas-Junior LH, Colli W, Alves MJ, Schenkman S. Expression of trans-sialidase and 85-kDa glycoprotein genes in Trypanosoma cruzi is differentially regulated at the post-transcriptional level by labile protein factors. J Biol Chem 1999; 274:13041-7. [PMID: 10224055 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.274.19.13041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
To adapt to different environments, Trypanosoma cruzi, the protozoan parasite that causes Chagas' disease, expresses a different set of proteins during development. To begin to understand the mechanism that controls this differential gene expression, we have analyzed the levels of amastin and trans-sialidase mRNAs and the mRNAs encoding members of the 85-kDa glycoprotein gene family, which are differentially expressed in the T. cruzi stages found in the mammalian host. Amastin mRNA is expressed predominantly in intracellular and proliferative amastigotes. trans-Sialidase mRNAs are found mostly in forms undergoing transformation from amastigotes to trypomastigotes inside infected cells, whereas mRNAs encoding the 85-kDa glycoproteins appear only in the infective trypomastigotes released from the cells. The genes coding for these mRNA species are constitutively transcribed in all stages of T. cruzi cells, suggesting that expression is controlled post-transcriptionally during differentiation. Inhibition of transcription by actinomycin D revealed that each mRNA species has a relatively long half-life in stages where it accumulates. In the case of the trans-sialidase and 85-kDa glycoprotein genes, mRNA accumulation was induced by treatment with the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide at the stages that preceded the normal accumulation. Therefore, mRNA stabilization may account for mRNA accumulation. mRNA degradation could be promoted by proteins with high turnover, or stabilization could be promoted by forming a complex with the translational machinery at defined times in development. Identification of the factors that induce mRNA degradation or stabilization is essential to the understanding of control of gene expression in these organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Abuin
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, R. Botucatu 862 8o A, 04023-062 São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil
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50
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Freitas-Junior LH, Briones MR, Schenkman S. Two distinct groups of mucin-like genes are differentially expressed in the developmental stages of Trypanosoma cruzi. Mol Biochem Parasitol 1998; 93:101-14. [PMID: 9662032 DOI: 10.1016/s0166-6851(98)00025-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Sialic acid acceptors of Trypanosoma cruzi are abundant mucin-like glycoproteins linked to the parasite membrane by a glycosylphosphatidyl inositol (GPI) anchor. They are heterogeneous and variable in different parasite stages. The protein portion of these mucins contains many threonine residues, and is thought to be encoded by a heterogeneous gene family. To investigate whether the high degree of heterogeneity in the mucin gene family is responsible for the diversity of mucins expressed on the parasite surface, we have studied the expression of mucin genes in several developmental stages of T. cruzi. We have found that mucins are expressed in all parasite stages. By using conserved sequences at 3' end of translated sequences of the gene family and the splice leader sequence, we have isolated 120 mucin-like cDNAs by RT-PCR from epimastigote and trypomastigote mRNAs. All transcribed genes contain conserved 5' and 3' regions, which code for the signal peptide, the sequence for GPI anchor addition, and a conserved domain rich in threonine residues. The internal portions of these genes are highly variable in size and sequence, and can be grouped in two major categories. One group contains KP(1-2)T(6-8) repeats, a motif found in mammalian mucins in the central region. This group is expressed preferentially in the trypomastigote forms ready to be released from the infected mammalian cell. The other has highly variable sequences in the central portion, and is expressed in all parasite stages. Because the number of synonymous substitutions is equivalent to the non-synonymous substitutions in the second group, they are probably evolving neutrally. On the other hand, the KP(1-2)T(6-8) containing genes have more synonymous substitutions and are most likely under a strong selective pressure. We propose that the group of KP(1-2)T(6-8) motif corresponds to the highly glycosylated mucins of the trypomastigote stages. In the other group proteolysis may remove the central domain yielding small mucins, such as the mucins found in insect derived stages of T. cruzi.
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Affiliation(s)
- L H Freitas-Junior
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, UNIFESP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
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