Theoretical Studies of Cyanophycin Dipeptides as Inhibitors of Tyrosinases

The three-dimensional structure of tyrosinase has been crystallized from many species but not from Homo sapiens. Tyrosinase is a key enzyme in melanin biosynthesis, being an important target for melanoma and skin-whitening cosmetics. Several studies employed the structure of tyrosinase from Agaricus bisporus as a model enzyme. Recently, 98% of human genome proteins were elucidated by AlphaFold. Herein, the AlphaFold structure of human tyrosinase and the previous model were compared. Moreover, tyrosinase-related proteins 1 and 2 were included, along with inhibition studies employing kojic and cinnamic acids. Peptides are widely studied for their inhibitory activity of skin-related enzymes. Cyanophycin is an amino acid polymer produced by cyanobacteria and is built of aspartic acid and arginine; arginine can be also replaced by other amino acids. A new set of cyanophycin-derived dipeptides was evaluated as potential inhibitors. Aspartate–glutamate showed the strongest interaction and was chosen as a leading compound for future studies.     

Multi-Step In Silico Discovery of Natural Drugs against COVID-19 Targeting Main Protease

In continuation of our antecedent work against COVID-19, three natural compounds, namely, Luteoside C (130), Kahalalide E (184), and Streptovaricin B (278) were determined as the most promising SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M^pro) inhibitors among 310 naturally originated antiviral compounds. This was performed via a multi-step in silico method. At first, a molecular structure similarity study was done with PRD_002214, the co-crystallized ligand of M^pro (PDB ID: 6LU7), and favored thirty compounds. Subsequently, the fingerprint study performed with respect to PRD_002214 resulted in the election of sixteen compounds (7, 128, 130, 156, 157, 158, 180, 184, 203, 204, 210, 237, 264, 276, 277, and 278). Then, results of molecular docking versus M^pro PDB ID: 6LU7 favored eight compounds (128, 130, 156, 180, 184, 203, 204, and 278) based on their binding affinities. Then, in silico toxicity studies were performed for the promising compounds and revealed that all of them have good toxicity profiles. Finally, molecular dynamic (MD) simulation experiments were carried out for compounds 130, 184, and 278, which exhibited the best binding modes against M^pro. MD tests revealed that luteoside C (130) has the greatest potential to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 main protease.     

1,3-Benzodioxole Derivatives Improve the Anti-Tumor Efficiency of Arsenicals

Arsenicals have been widely used in the treatment of cancers such as leukemia and other tumors. However, their side effects limit their clinical application. Stiripentol, a second-line adjunctive treatment for epilepsy with a good safety profile, inhibits microsomal cytochrome-P450-family enzymes to extend the retention time of co-administration. Inspired by the metabolism of stiripentol, the 1,3-benzodioxole responsible for the inhibition and its metabolic derivatives were conjugated with arsenical precursors. The fabricated arsenicals were eliminated much slower in mice and maintained an efficient concentration in the blood for a longer time than that of the arsenical precursors. They also performed better in anti-proliferation by inhibiting the thioredoxin system to induce oxidative stress, and concomitantly to initiate apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. The fabricated arsenicals reversed the hemogram of tumor-bearing mice to normal and eliminated the tumor without causing damage to any organs, exhibiting a good design strategy and pre-clinical application for leukemia and other tumors.     

VHH Structural Modelling Approaches: A Critical Review

V_HH, i.e., VH domains of camelid single-chain antibodies, are very promising therapeutic agents due to their significant physicochemical advantages compared to classical mammalian antibodies. The number of experimentally solved V_HH structures has significantly improved recently, which is of great help, because it offers the ability to directly work on 3D structures to humanise or improve them. Unfortunately, most V_HHs do not have 3D structures. Thus, it is essential to find alternative ways to get structural information. The methods of structure prediction from the primary amino acid sequence appear essential to bypass this limitation. This review presents the most extensive overview of structure prediction methods applied for the 3D modelling of a given V_HH sequence (a total of 21). Besides the historical overview, it aims at showing how model software programs have been shaping the structural predictions of V_HHs. A brief explanation of each methodology is supplied, and pertinent examples of their usage are provided. Finally, we present a structure prediction case study of a recently solved V_HH structure. According to some recent studies and the present analysis, AlphaFold 2 and NanoNet appear to be the best tools to predict a structural model of V_HH from its sequence.     

Fabrication,DFT Calculation,and Molecular Docking of Two Fe(III) Imine Chelates as Anti-COVID-19 and Pharmaceutical Drug Candidate

Two tetradentate dibasic chelating Schiff base iron (III) chelates were prepared from the reaction of 2,2′-((1E,1′E)-(1,2-phenylenebis(azanylylidene))bis(methanylylidene))bis(4-bromophenol) (PDBS) and 2,2′-((1E,1′E)-((4-chloro-1,2-phenylene)bis(azanylylidene))-bis(methanylylidene))bis(4-bromophenol) (CPBS) with Fe³⁺ ions. The prepared complexes were fully characterized with spectral and physicochemical tools such as IR, NMR, CHN analysis, TGA, UV-visible spectra, and magnetic moment measurements. Moreover, geometry optimizations for the synthesized ligands and complexes were conducted using the Gaussian09 program through the DFT approach, to find the best structures and key parameters. The prepared compounds were tested as antimicrobial agents against selected strains of bacteria and fungi. The results suggests that the CPBSFe complex has the highest activity, which is close to the reference. An MTT assay was used to screen the newly synthesized compounds against a variety of cell lines, including colon cancer cells, hepatic cellular carcinoma cells, and breast carcinoma cells. The results are expressed by IC50 value, in which the 48 µg/mL value of the CPBSFe complex indicates its success as a potential anticancer agent. The antioxidant behavior of the two imine chelates was studied by DPPH assay. All the tested imine complexes show potent antioxidant activity compared to the standard Vitamin C. Furthermore, the in vitro assay and the mechanism of binding and interaction efficiency of the tested samples with the receptor of COVID-19 core protease viral protein (PDB ID: 6lu7) and the receptor of Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, PDB ID: 1fj4) were investigated using molecular docking experiments.     

Critical Assessment of a Structure-Based Screening Campaign for IDO1 Inhibitors: Tips and Pitfalls

Over the last two decades, indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) has attracted wide interest as a key player in immune regulation, fostering the design and development of small molecule inhibitors to restore immune response in tumor immunity. In this framework, biochemical, structural, and pharmacological studies have unveiled peculiar structural plasticity of IDO1, with different conformations and functional states that are coupled to fine regulation of its catalytic activity and non-enzymic functions. The large plasticity of IDO1 may affect its ligand recognition process, generating bias in structure-based drug design campaigns. In this work, we report a screening campaign of a fragment library of compounds, grounding on the use of three distinct conformations of IDO1 that recapitulate its structural plasticity to some extent. Results are instrumental to discuss tips and pitfalls that, due to the large plasticity of the enzyme, may influence the identification of novel and differentiated chemical scaffolds of IDO1 ligands in structure-based screening campaigns.     

皂苷类似物与肾素的分子对接和结合能分析

肾素是治疗高血压疾病的重要靶标之一,对肾素抑制剂大豆皂苷I及其类似物大豆皂苷II、甘草皂苷、单葡萄糖醛酸甘草皂苷元与肾素进行分子对接,采用分子动力学模拟和MMPBSA相结合的方法计算对接复合物的结合自由能,并且对各部分贡献能以及分子间相互作用进行分析。结果表明范德华力和静电相互作用是复合物形成的主要驱动力,S2和S3是肾素和皂苷相互作用重要的活性口袋,Ala229、Asp38、Asp226、Gly228和Tyr83是肾素中与这类抑制剂形成疏水作用的重要氨基酸残基,Ser230、Tyr231、Ser84则可与抑制剂形成氢键。对接结果与皂苷抑制能力吻合性较好,可为新的肾素抑制剂的发现奠定基础。     

基于网络药理学和分子对接技术研究乌梅改善消化不良的作用机制

目的 利用网络药理学和分子对接法,研究乌梅改善消化不良的分子作用机制。方法 利用TCMSP数据库挖掘乌梅潜在活性成分,通过Sea和STP数据库预测相关作用靶点;通过DisGeNET、OMIM和GeneCards 数据库筛选消化不良的相关疾病靶点;通过Venny在线平台映射筛选成分与疾病的交集靶点,使用String数据库进行蛋白质-蛋白质互作分析,通过cytoscape分析连通度、节点紧密度和介数筛选关键靶点,并利用DisGeNET数据库分析靶点类型;使用Auto dock相关软件对关键靶点与对应成分进行分子对接;采用DAVID数据库对乌梅改善消化不良的潜在作用靶点进行GO富集分析和KEGG通路分析。结果 筛选出乌梅11个潜在活性成分及其182个作用靶点,与消化不良相关的789个疾病靶点取交集,得到50个潜在作用靶点,包含SRC, EGFR, AKT1, PIK3R1等关键靶点;GO富集分析显示与生物过程相关的条目145个,与分子功能有关的条目51个,与细胞组分相关的条目有22个;KEGG通路分析显示与75条通路相关,涉及癌症中的蛋白多糖、催乳素信号通路、癌症通路、雌激素信号通路、PI3K-Akt 信号通路、Rap1 信号通路等信号通路;分子对接结果显示活性成分与关键靶点具有较好的结合活性。结论 乌梅改善消化不良作用具有多成分、多靶点、多通路的特点,可为其应用研究提供科学依据和参考。