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Hommel U, Hurth K, Rondeau JM, Vulpetti A, Ostermeier D, Boettcher A, Brady JP, Hediger M, Lehmann S, Koch E, Blechschmidt A, Yamamoto R, Tundo Dottorello V, Haenni-Holzinger S, Kaiser C, Lehr P, Lingel A, Mureddu L, Schleberger C, Blank J, Ramage P, Freuler F, Eder J, Bornancin F. Discovery of a selective and biologically active low-molecular weight antagonist of human interleukin-1β. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5497. [PMID: 37679328 PMCID: PMC10484922 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41190-0] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Human interleukin-1β (hIL-1β) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine involved in many diseases. While hIL-1β directed antibodies have shown clinical benefit, an orally available low-molecular weight antagonist is still elusive, limiting the applications of hIL-1β-directed therapies. Here we describe the discovery of a low-molecular weight hIL-1β antagonist that blocks the interaction with the IL-1R1 receptor. Starting from a low affinity fragment-based screening hit 1, structure-based optimization resulted in a compound (S)-2 that binds and antagonizes hIL-1β with single-digit micromolar activity in biophysical, biochemical, and cellular assays. X-ray analysis reveals an allosteric mode of action that involves a hitherto unknown binding site in hIL-1β encompassing two loops involved in hIL-1R1/hIL-1β interactions. We show that residues of this binding site are part of a conformationally excited state of the mature cytokine. The compound antagonizes hIL-1β function in cells, including primary human fibroblasts, demonstrating the relevance of this discovery for future development of hIL-1β directed therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrich Hommel
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Konstanze Hurth
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Jean-Michel Rondeau
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Anna Vulpetti
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Daniela Ostermeier
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Boettcher
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Jacob Peter Brady
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, 250 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Michael Hediger
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sylvie Lehmann
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Elke Koch
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Anke Blechschmidt
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Rina Yamamoto
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Christian Kaiser
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Philipp Lehr
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Lingel
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Luca Mureddu
- Leicester Institute of Structural and Chemical Biology, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK
| | - Christian Schleberger
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Jutta Blank
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Paul Ramage
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Felix Freuler
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Joerg Eder
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Frédéric Bornancin
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Campus, CH-4002, Basel, Switzerland.
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