scholarly journals Design of Curcumin and Flavonoid Derivatives with Acetylcholinesterase and Beta-Secretase Inhibitory Activities Using in Silico Approaches

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (16) ◽  
pp. 3644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thai-Son Tran ◽  
Minh-Tri Le ◽  
Thanh-Dao Tran ◽  
The-Huan Tran ◽  
Khac-Minh Thai

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and beta-secretase (BACE-1) are the two crucial enzymes involved in the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease. The former is responsible for many defects in cholinergic signaling pathway and the latter is the primary enzyme in the biosynthesis of beta-amyloid as the main component of the amyloid plaques. These both abnormalities are found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. In this study, in silico models were developed, including 3D-pharmacophore, 2D-QSAR (two-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationship), and molecular docking, to screen virtually a database of compounds for AChE and BACE-1 inhibitory activities. A combinatorial library containing more than 3 million structures of curcumin and flavonoid derivatives was generated and screened for drug-likeness and enzymatic inhibitory bioactivities against AChE and BACE-1 through the validated in silico models. A total of 47 substances (two curcumins and 45 flavonoids), with remarkable predicted pIC50 values against AChE and BACE-1 ranging from 4.24–5.11 (AChE) and 4.52–10.27 (BACE-1), were designed. The in vitro assays on AChE and BACE-1 were performed and confirmed the in silico results. The study indicated that, by using in silico methods, a series of curcumin and flavonoid structures were generated with promising predicted bioactivities. This would be a helpful foundation for the experimental investigations in the future. Designed compounds which were the most feasible for chemical synthesis could be potential candidates for further research and lead optimization.

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (17) ◽  
pp. 3916
Author(s):  
Thai-Son Tran ◽  
Minh-Tri Le ◽  
Thi-Cam-Vi Nguyen ◽  
The-Huan Tran ◽  
Thanh-Dao Tran ◽  
...  

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and beta-secretase (BACE-1) are two attractive targets in the discovery of novel substances that could control multiple aspects of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Chalcones are the flavonoid derivatives with diverse bioactivities, including AChE and BACE-1 inhibition. In this study, a series of N-substituted-4-phenothiazine-chalcones was synthesized and tested for AChE and BACE-1 inhibitory activities. In silico models, including two-dimensional quantitative structure–activity relationship (2D-QSAR) for AChE and BACE-1 inhibitors, and molecular docking investigation, were developed to elucidate the experimental process. The results indicated that 13 chalcone derivatives were synthesized with relatively high yields (39–81%). The bioactivities of these substances were examined with pIC50 3.73–5.96 (AChE) and 5.20–6.81 (BACE-1). Eleven of synthesized chalcones had completely new structures. Two substances AC4 and AC12 exhibited the highest biological activities on both AChE and BACE-1. These substances could be employed for further researches. In addition to this, the present study results suggested that, by using a combination of two types of predictive models, 2D-QSAR and molecular docking, it was possible to estimate the biological activities of the prepared compounds with relatively high accuracy.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 1934578X1701200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia Diukendjieva ◽  
Merilin Al Sharif ◽  
Petko Alov ◽  
Tania Pencheva ◽  
Ivanka Tsakovska ◽  
...  

Silymarin, the active constituent of Silybum marianum (milk thistle), and its main component, silybin, are products with well-known hepatoprotective, cytoprotective, antioxidant, and chemopreventative properties. Despite substantial in vitro and in vivo investigations of these flavonolignans, their mechanisms of action and potential toxic effects are not fully defined. In this study we explored important ADME/Tox properties and biochemical interactions of selected flavonolignans using in silico methods. A quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSAR) model based on data from a parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA) was used to estimate bioavailability after oral administration. Toxic effects and metabolic transformations were predicted using the knowledge-based expert systems Derek Nexus and Meteor Nexus (Lhasa Ltd). Potential estrogenic activity of the studied silybin congeners was outlined. To address further the stereospecificity of this effect the stereoisomeric forms of silybin were docked into the ligand-binding domain of the human estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) (MOE software, CCG). According to our results both stereoisomers can be accommodated into the ERα active site, but different poses and interactions were observed for silybin A and silybin B.


ADMET & DMPK ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Winiwarter ◽  
Ernst Ahlberg ◽  
Edmund Watson ◽  
Ioana Oprisiu ◽  
Mickael Mogemark ◽  
...  

<p>Each year the pharmaceutical industry makes thousands of compounds, many of which do not meet the desired efficacy or pharmacokinetic properties, describing the absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) behavior. Parameters such as lipophilicity, solubility and metabolic stability can be measured in high throughput in vitro assays. However, a compound needs to be synthesized in order to be tested. In silico models for these endpoints exist, although with varying quality. Such models can be used before synthesis and, together with a potency estimation, influence the decision to make a compound. In practice, it appears that often only one or two predicted properties are considered prior to synthesis, usually including a prediction of lipophilicity. While it is important to use all information when deciding which compound to make, it is somewhat challenging to combine multiple predictions unambiguously. This work investigates the possibility of combining in silico ADME predictions to define the minimum required potency for a specified human dose with sufficient confidence. Using a set of drug discovery compounds,in silico predictions were utilized to compare the relative ranking based on minimum potency calculation with the outcomes from the selection of lead compounds. The approach was also tested on a set of marketed drugs and the influence of the input parameters investigated.</p>


Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (11) ◽  
pp. 2600 ◽  
Author(s):  
Piya Temviriyanukul ◽  
Varittha Sritalahareuthai ◽  
Kriskamol Na Jom ◽  
Butsara Jongruaysup ◽  
Somying Tabtimsri ◽  
...  

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. To fight the disease, natural products, including mulberry, with antioxidant activities and inhibitory activities against key enzymes (acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), and beta-secretase 1 (BACE-1)) are of interest. However, even in the same cultivars, mulberry trees grown in different populated locations might possess disparate amounts of phytochemical profiles, leading to dissimilar health properties, which cause problems when comparing different cultivars of mulberry. Therefore, this study aimed to comparatively investigate the phytochemicals, antioxidant activities, and inhibitory activities against AChE, BChE, and BACE-1, of twenty-seven Morus spp. cultivated in the same planting area in Thailand. The results suggested that Morus fruit samples were rich in phenolics, especially cyanidin, kuromanin, and keracyanin. Besides, the aqueous Morus fruit extracts exhibited antioxidant activities, both in single electron transfer (SET) and hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) mechanisms, while strong inhibitory activities against AD key enzymes were observed. Interestingly, among the twenty-seven Morus spp., Morus sp. code SKSM 810191 with high phytochemicals, antioxidant activities and in vitro anti-AD properties is a promising cultivar for further developed as a potential mulberry resource with health benefits against AD.


2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 215-221
Author(s):  
Haroon Khan ◽  
Muhammad Zafar ◽  
Helena Den-Haan ◽  
Horacio Perez-Sanchez ◽  
Mohammad Amjad Kamal

Aim and Objective: Lipoxygenase (LOX) enzymes play an important role in the pathophysiology of several inflammatory and allergic diseases including bronchial asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, allergic conjunctivitis, rheumatoid arthritis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Inhibitors of the LOX are believed to be an ideal approach in the treatment of diseases caused by its over-expression. In this regard, several synthetic and natural agents are under investigation worldwide. Alkaloids are the most thoroughly investigated class of natural compounds with outstanding past in clinically useful drugs. In this article, we have discussed various alkaloids of plant origin that have already shown lipoxygenase inhibition in-vitro with possible correlation in in silico studies. Materials and Methods: Molecular docking studies were performed using MOE (Molecular Operating Environment) software. Among the ten reported LOX alkaloids inhibitors, derived from plant, compounds 4, 2, 3 and 1 showed excellent docking scores and receptor sensitivity. Result and Conclusion: These compounds already exhibited in vitro lipoxygenase inhibition and the MOE results strongly correlated with the experimental results. On the basis of these in vitro assays and computer aided results, we suggest that these compounds need further detail in vivo studies and clinical trial for the discovery of new more effective and safe lipoxygenase inhibitors. In conclusion, these results might be useful in the design of new and potential lipoxygenase (LOX) inhibitors.


Author(s):  
Nidhi Sharma ◽  
Arti Singh ◽  
Ruchika Sharma ◽  
Anoop Kumar

Aim: The aim of the study was to find out the role of auranofin as a promising broad spectrum antibacterial agent. Methods: In-vitro assays (Percentage growth retardation, Bacterial growth kinetics, Biofilm formation assay) and In-silico study (Molegro virtual docker (MVD) version 6.0 and Molecular operating environment (MOE) version 2008.10 software). Results: The in vitro assays have shown that auranofin has good antibacterial activity against Gram positive and Gram negative bacterial strains. Further, auranofin has shown synergistic activity in combination with ampicillin against S. aureus and B. subtilis whereas in combination with neomycin has just shown additive effect against E. coli, P. aeruginosa and B. pumilus. In vivo results have revealed that auranofin alone and in combination with standard drugs significantly decreased the bioburden in zebrafish infection model as compared to control. The molecular docking study have shown good interaction of auranofin with penicillin binding protein (2Y2M), topoisomerase (3TTZ), UDP-3-O-[3- hydroxymyristoyl] N-acetylglucosaminedeacetylase (3UHM), cell adhesion protein (4QRK), β-lactamase (5CTN) and arylsulphatase (1HDH) enzyme as that of reference ligand which indicate multimodal mechanism of action of auranofin. Finally, MTT assay has shown non-cytotoxic effect of auranofin. Conclusion: In conclusion, auranofin in combination with existing antibiotics could be developed as a broad spectrum antibacterial agent; however, further studies are required to confirm its safety and efficacy. This study provides possibility of use of auranofin apart from its established therapeutic indication in combination with existing antibiotics to tackle the problem of resistance.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 116-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashwani Kumar ◽  
Vineet Mehta ◽  
Utkarsh Raj ◽  
Pritish Kumar Varadwaj ◽  
Malairaman Udayabanu ◽  
...  

Background: Cholinesterase inhibitors are the first line of therapy for the management of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), however, it is now established that they provide only temporary and symptomatic relief, besides, having several inherited side-effects. Therefore, an alternative drug discovery method is used to identify new and safer ‘disease-modifying drugs’. Methods: Herein, we screened 646 small molecules of natural origin having reported pharmacological and functional values through in-silico docking studies to predict safer neuromodulatory molecules with potential to modulate acetylcholine metabolism. Further, the potential of the predicted molecules to inhibit acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity and their ability to protect neurons from degeneration was determined through in-vitro assays. Results: Based on in-silico AChE interaction studies, we predicted quercetin, caffeine, ascorbic acid and gallic acid to be potential AChE inhibitors. We confirmed the AChE inhibitory potential of these molecules through in-vitro AChE inhibition assay and compared results with donepezil and begacestat. Herbal molecules significantly inhibited enzyme activity and inhibition for quercetin and caffeine did not show any significant difference from donepezil. Further, the tested molecules did not show any neurotoxicity against primary (E18) hippocampal neurons. We observed that quercetin and caffeine significantly improved neuronal survival and efficiently protected hippocampal neurons from HgCl2 induced neurodegeneration, which other molecules, including donepezil and begacestat, failed to do. Conclusion: Quercetin and caffeine have the potential as “disease-modifying drugs” and may find application in the management of neurological disorders such as AD.


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