scholarly journals Effects of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor-activating alkaloids on anxiety-like behavior in zebrafish

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ainhoa Alzualde ◽  
Oihane Jaka ◽  
Diogo A. R. S. Latino ◽  
Omar Alijevic ◽  
Iñaki Iturria ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
In Silico ◽  
Biological Activities ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
In Silico Docking ◽  
Docking Model ◽  
Behavioral Paradigm

AbstractAlkaloids are a structurally complex group of natural products that have a diverse range of biological activities and significant therapeutic applications. In this study, we examined the acute, anxiolytic-like effects of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR)-activating alkaloids with reported neuropharmacological effects but whose effects on anxiety are less well understood. Because α4β2 nAChRs can regulate anxiety, we first demonstrated the functional activities of alkaloids on these receptors in vitro. Their effects on anxiety-like behavior in zebrafish were then examined using the zebrafish novel tank test (NTT). The NTT is a relatively high-throughput behavioral paradigm that takes advantage of the natural tendency of fish to dive down when stressed or anxious. We report for the first time that cotinine, anatabine, and methylanatabine may suppress this anxiety-driven zebrafish behavior after a single 20-min treatment. Effective concentrations of these alkaloids were well above the concentrations naturally found in plants and the concentrations needed to induce anxiolytic-like effect by nicotine. These alkaloids showed good receptor interactions at the α4β2 nAChR agonist site as demonstrated by in vitro binding and in silico docking model, although somewhat weaker than that for nicotine. Minimal or no significant effect of other compounds may have been due to low bioavailability of these compounds in the brain, which is supported by the in silico prediction of blood–brain barrier permeability. Taken together, our findings indicate that nicotine, although not risk-free, is the most potent anxiolytic-like alkaloid tested in this study, and other natural alkaloids may regulate anxiety as well.

α-Glucosidase Inhibition, Antioxidant and Docking Studies of Hydroxycoumarins and their Mono and Bis O-alkylated/acetylated Analogs

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Parvesh Singh ◽  
Nomandla Ngcoya ◽  
Ramgopal Mopuri ◽  
Nagaraju Kerru ◽  
Neha Manhas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
In Silico ◽  
Biological Activities ◽  
Wide Spectrum ◽  
Radical Scavenging Activity ◽  
Radical Scavenging ◽  
Catalytic Site ◽  
Docking Simulations ◽  
In Silico Docking ◽  
Anti Oxidant

Background: Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a complex metabolic disease illustrated by abnormally high levels of plasma glucose or hyperglycaemia. Accordingly, several α-glucosidase inhibitors have been developed for the treatment of diabetes and other degenerative disorders. While, a coumarin ring has the privilege to represent numerous natural and synthetic compounds with a wide spectrum of biological activities e.g. anti-cancer, anti-HIV, anti-viral, anti-malarial, anti-microbial, anti-convulsant, anti-hypertensive properties. Besides this, coumarins have also shown potential to inhibit α-glucosidase leading to a generation of new promising antidiabetic agents. However, the testing of O-substituted coumarins for α-glucosidase inhibition has evaded the attention of medicinal chemists. Methods: For O-alkylation/acetylation reactions, the hydroxyl coumarins (A-B) initially activated by K2CO3 in dry DMF were reacted with variedly substituted haloalkanes at room temperature under nitrogen. The synthesized compounds were tested for their α-glucosidase (from Saccharomyces cerevisiae) inhibitory activity and anti-oxidant activity using DPPH radical scavenging activity. In silico docking simulations were conducted using CDocker module in DS (Accelrys) to explore the binding modes of the representative compounds in the catalytic site of α-glucosidase. Results: All the coumarin analogues (A1, B1, A2-A10, B2-B8) including their precursors (A-B) were evaluated for their in vitro α-glucosidase inhibition using acarbose as a standard inhibitor. All the mono O-alkylated coumarins (except A1) showed significant (p <0.05) α-glucosidase inhibition relative to the hydroxyl coumarin (A) with IC50 values ranging between 11.084±0.117 to 145.24± 29.22 µg/mL. Compound 7-(benzyloxy)-4, 5-dimethyl-2H-chromen-2-one (A9) bearing a benzyl group (Ph-CH2-) at position 7 showed a remarkable (p <0.05) increase in the activity (IC50 = 11.084±0.117 µg/mL), almost four-fold more than acarbose (IC50 = 40.578±5.999 µg/mL). The introduction of –NO2 group dramatically improved the anti-oxidant activity of coumarin, while the O-alkylation/acetylation decreased the activity. Conclusion: The present study describes the synthesis of functionalized coumarins and their evaluation for α-glucosidase inhibition and antioxidant activity under in vitro conditions. Based on IC50 data, the mono O-alkylated coumarins were observed to be stronger inhibitors of α-glucosidase with respect to their bis O-alkylated analogues. Coumarin (A9) bearing O-benzyloxy group displayed the strongest α-glucosidase inhibition, even higher than the standard inhibitor acarbose. The coumarin (A10) bearing –NO2 group showed the highest anti-oxidant activity amongst the synthesized compounds, almost comparable to the ascorbic acid. Finally, in silico docking simulations revealed the role of hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic forces in locking the compounds in catalytic site of α-glucosidase.

Cholinergic drugs inhibit in vitro megakaryopoiesis via the alpha7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor

Platelets ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 390-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophia Thornton ◽  
Angelika Schedel ◽  
Sabrina Besenfelder ◽  
Harald Klüter ◽  
Peter Bugert
Keyword(s):  
Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
Cholinergic Drugs ◽  
Alpha7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor

scholarly journals IN SILICO DESIGN AND MOLECULAR DOCKING STUDIES OF SOME 1, 2-BENZISOXAZOLE DERIVATIVES FOR THEIR ANALGESIC AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 133
Author(s):  
Sarath Sasi Kumar ◽  
Anjali T
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Docking ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Analgesic Activity ◽  
In Silico ◽  
Docking Studies ◽  
Inflammatory Activity ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
Cox 2 ◽  
Anti Inflammatory

Objective: In silico design and molecular docking of 1,2-benzisoxazole derivatives for their analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity using computational methods.Methods: In silico molecular properties of 1,2-benzisoxazole derivatives were predicted using various software’s such as Chemsketch, Molinspiration, PASS and Schrodinger to select compounds having optimum drug-likeness, molecular descriptors resembling those of standard drugs and not violating the ‘Lipinski rule of 5’. Molecular docking was performed on active site of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (PDB: 2KSR) for analgesic activity and COX-2 (PDB: 6COX) for anti-inflammatory activity using Schrodinger under maestro molecular modelling environment.Results: From the results of molecular docking studies of 1,2-benzisoxazole derivatives, all the compounds showed good binding interactions with Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and COX-2. Compounds 4a and 4c showed highest binding scores (-7.46 and-7.21 respectively) with nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and exhibited maximum analgesic activity. Compound 4a showed highest binding score (-7.8) with COX-2 and exhibited maximum anti-inflammatory activity.Conclusion: All the derivatives of 1,2-benzisoxazole showed good analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity as predicted using molecular docking on respective receptors.

scholarly journals ANALYSIS OF MOLECULAR DOCKING EFFICIENCY OF CLEISTANTHIN-A, AS AN ALTERNATIVE FOR NICOTINE ADDICTION

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
A. Amala Lourthuraj ◽  
M. Masilamani Selvam ◽  
Bharathi Ravikrishnan ◽  
M. Vinoth ◽  
Waheeta Hopper
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Docking ◽  
Virtual Screening ◽  
Protein Data Bank ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
High Throughput ◽  
In Silico ◽  
Data Bank ◽  
Tobacco Consumption ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine

Objective: The present research was aimed to understand the molecular docking efficiency of a plant-derived compound cleistanthin-A and a common ingredient in tobacco consumption nicotine with nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR).Methods: The 3-D structure of nAChR was retrieved from the protein data bank (ID 5AFH). Ligand was obtained from the PUBCHEM. The in silico protocol comprised of three steps: high-throughput virtual screening (HTVS), standard preci­sion (SP) and extra precision (XP). The screened molecules were ranked accordingly using glide score. Schrödinger tool was used to perform the docking analysis.Results: The binding efficiency of the nicotine and cleistanthin-A was found to be docked at the cys-cys loop of the receptor. Based upon the glide score and glide energy it can be reported that, nicotine binding can be inhibited by the binding of cleistanthin-A to the nAChR.Conclusion: The docking efficiency of cleistanthin-A was good compared to nicotine towards nAChR. Hence, cleistanthin–A was derived as a better choice as an alternative for nicotine in smoke therapy.

scholarly journals In Silico Finding of Key Interaction Mediated α3β4 and α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Ligand Selectivity of Quinuclidine-Triazole Chemotype

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (17) ◽  
pp. 6189
Author(s):  
Kuntarat Arunrungvichian ◽  
Sumet Chongruchiroj ◽  
Jiradanai Sarasamkan ◽  
Gerrit Schüürmann ◽  
Peter Brust ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
In Silico ◽  
Amino Acid Residues ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
Selective Binding ◽  
Ligand Selectivity ◽  
Α7 Nachr ◽  
Nachr Subtype

The selective binding of six (S)-quinuclidine-triazoles and their (R)-enantiomers to nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subtypes α3β4 and α7, respectively, were analyzed by in silico docking to provide the insight into the molecular basis for the observed stereospecific subtype discrimination. Homology modeling followed by molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations revealed that unique amino acid residues in the complementary subunits of the nAChR subtypes are involved in subtype-specific selectivity profiles. In the complementary β4-subunit of the α3β4 nAChR binding pocket, non-conserved AspB173 through a salt bridge was found to be the key determinant for the α3β4 selectivity of the quinuclidine-triazole chemotype, explaining the 47–327-fold affinity of the (S)-enantiomers as compared to their (R)-enantiomer counterparts. Regarding the α7 nAChR subtype, the amino acids promoting a however significantly lower preference for the (R)-enantiomers were the conserved TyrA93, TrpA149 and TrpB55 residues. The non-conserved amino acid residue in the complementary subunit of nAChR subtypes appeared to play a significant role for the nAChR subtype-selective binding, particularly at the heteropentameric subtype, whereas the conserved amino acid residues in both principal and complementary subunits are essential for ligand potency and efficacy.

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