Characterization of the interaction between bovine serum albumin and doxycycline by chemiluminescence and molecular docking

The interaction of bovine serum albumin with doxycycline was investigated using chemiluminescence and molecular docking. Doxycycline at concentrations from 1.0 to 2.5 × 10³ pmol · L^?1 quenched the chemiluminescence from the luminol–bovine serum albumin system. The data were analyzed using a chemiluminescence mathematic model for protein–ligand interaction, log(I₀ – I)/I] = logK + nlogD]. The binding constant of bovine serum albumin with doxycycline was 3.36 × 10⁵ L · mol^?1 at 298 K with one binding site. The binding constant, enthalpy change, entropy change, and binding free energy change showed that the bonding of doxycycline to bovine serum albumin was spontaneous and enthalpy driven via hydrogen bonding and van der Waals forces. Further molecular docking analysis substantiated that doxycycline was well positioned in the pocket at the subdomain IIA (site I) of bovine serum albumin with a binding constant of 3.31 × 10⁵ L · mol^?1. Doxycycline served as both a hydrogen acceptor and donor and mainly interacted with the Arg217 residue through four hydrogen bonds with an average length of 2.55 Å. The chemiluminescence mechanism of doxycycline on luminol–bovine serum albumin system was evaluated, showing that a ternary complex of luminol–bovine serum albumin–doxycycline was formed with luminol and doxycycline at sites III and I of bovine serum albumin.