Directed evolution identifies high-affinity cystine-knot peptide agonists and antagonists of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling.

Developing peptide-based tools to fine-tune growth signaling pathways, in particular molecules with exquisite selectivity and high affinities, opens up opportunities for cellular reprogramming in tissue regeneration. Here, we present a library based on cystine-knot peptides (CKPs) that incorporate multiple loops for randomization and selection via directed evolution. Resulting binders could be assembled into multimeric structures to fine-tune cellular signaling. An example is presented for the Wnt pathway, which plays a key role in the homeostasis and regeneration of tissues such as lung, skin, and intestine. We discovered picomolar affinity CKP agonists of the human LPR6 receptor by exploring the limits of the topological manipulation of LRP6 dimerization. Structural analyses revealed that the agonists bind at the first ß-propeller domain of LRP6, mimicking the natural Wnt inhibitors DKK1 and SOST. However, the CKP agonists exhibit a different mode of action as they amplify the signaling of natural Wnt ligands but do not activate the pathway by themselves. In an alveolosphere organoid model, the CKP agonists induced alveolar stem cell activity. They also stimulated growth in primary human intestinal organoids. The approach described here advances the important frontier of next-generation agonist design and could be applied to other signaling pathways to discover tunable agonist ligands.

Direct Comparison of 4 Very Early Rule-Out Strategies for Acute Myocardial Infarction Using High-Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin I.

BACKGROUND: Four strategies for very early rule-out of acute myocardial infarction using high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) have been identified. It remains unclear which strategy is most attractive for clinical application. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled unselected patients presenting to the emergency department with symptoms suggestive of acute myocardial infarction. The final diagnosis was adjudicated by 2 independent cardiologists. Hs-cTnI levels were measured at presentation and after 1 hour in a blinded fashion. We directly compared all 4 hs-cTnI-based rule-out strategies: limit of detection (LOD, hs-cTnI<2 ng/L), single cutoff (hs-cTnI<5 ng/L), 1-hour algorithm (hs-cTnI<5 ng/L and 1-hour change<2 ng/L), and the 0/1-hour algorithm recommended in the European Society of Cardiology guideline combining LOD and 1-hour algorithm. RESULTS: Among 2828 enrolled patients, acute myocardial infarction was the final diagnosis in 451 (16%) patients. The LOD approach ruled out 453 patients (16%) with a sensitivity of 100% (95% confidence interval [CI], 99.2%-100%), the single cutoff 1516 patients (54%) with a sensitivity of 97.1% (95% CI, 95.1%-98.3%), the 1-hour algorithm 1459 patients (52%) with a sensitivity of 98.4% (95% CI, 96.8%-99.2%), and the 0/1-hour algorithm 1463 patients (52%) with a sensitivity of 98.4% (95% CI, 96.8%-99.2%). Predefined subgroup analysis in early presenters (≤2 hours) revealed significantly lower sensitivity (94.2%, interaction P=0.03) of the single cutoff, but not the other strategies. Two-year survival was 100% with LOD and 98.1% with the other strategies (P<0.01 for LOD versus each of the other strategies). CONCLUSIONS: All 4 rule-out strategies balance effectiveness and safety equally well. The single cutoff should not be applied in early presenters, whereas the 3 other strategies seem to perform well in this challenging subgroup. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00470587.

Ebselen, a Small-Molecule Capsid Inhibitor of HIV-1 Replication.

The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) capsid plays crucial roles in HIV-1 replication and thus represents an excellent drug target. We developed a high-throughput screening method based on a time-resolved fluorescence resonance energy transfer (HTS-TR-FRET) assay, using the C-terminal domain (CTD) of HIV-1 capsid to identify inhibitors of capsid dimerization. This assay was used to screen a library of pharmacologically active compounds, composed of 1,280in vivo-active drugs, and identified ebselen [2-phenyl-1,2-benzisoselenazol-3(2H)-one], an organoselenium compound, as an inhibitor of HIV-1 capsid CTD dimerization. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic analysis confirmed the direct interaction of ebselen with the HIV-1 capsid CTD and dimer dissociation when ebselen is in 2-fold molar excess. Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry revealed that ebselen covalently binds the HIV-1 capsid CTD, likely via a selenylsulfide linkage with Cys198 and Cys218. This compound presents anti-HIV activity in single and multiple rounds of infection in permissive cell lines as well as in primary peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Ebselen inhibits early viral postentry events of the HIV-1 life cycle by impairing the incoming capsid uncoating process. This compound also blocks infection of other retroviruses, such as Moloney murine leukemia virus and simian immunodeficiency virus, but displays no inhibitory activity against hepatitis C and influenza viruses. This study reports the use of TR-FRET screening to successfully identify a novel capsid inhibitor, ebselen, validating HIV-1 capsid as a promising target for drug development.

Chasing Phosphoarginine Proteins: Development of a Selective Enrichment Method Using a Phosphatase Trap.

Arginine phosphorylation is an emerging post-translational protein modification implicated in the bacterial stress response. Although early reports suggested that arginine phosphorylation also occurs in higher eukaryotes, its overall prevalence was never studied using modern mass spectrometry methods, owing to technical difficulties arising from the acid lability of phosphoarginine. As shown recently, the McsB and YwlE proteins from Bacillus subtilis function as a highly specific protein arginine kinase and phosphatase couple, shaping the phosphoarginine proteome. Using a B. subtilis ΔywlE strain as a source for arginine-phosphorylated proteins, we were able to adapt mass spectrometry (MS) protocols to the special chemical properties of the arginine modification. Despite this progress, the analysis of protein arginine phosphorylation in eukaryotes is still challenging, given the great abundance of serine/threonine phosphorylations that would compete with phosphoarginine during the phosphopeptide enrichment procedure, as well as during data-dependent MS acquisition. We thus set out to establish a method for the selective enrichment of arginine-phosphorylated proteins as an initial step in the phosphoproteomic analysis. For this purpose, we developed a substrate-trapping mutant of the YwlE phosphatase that retains binding affinity toward arginine-phosphorylated proteins but cannot hydrolyze the captured substrates. By testing a number of active site substitutions, we identified a YwlE mutant (C9A) that stably binds to arginine-phosphorylated proteins. We further improved the substrate-trapping efficiency by impeding the oligomerization of the phosphatase mutant. The engineered YwlE trap efficiently captured arginine-phosphorylated proteins from complex B. subtilis ΔywlE cell extracts, thus facilitating identification of phosphoarginine sites in the large pool of cellular protein modifications. In conclusion, we present a novel tool for the selective enrichment and subsequent MS analysis of arginine phosphorylation, which is a largely overlooked protein modification that might be important for eukaryotic cell signaling.

Quantitative phosphoproteomics reveals the role of protein arginine phosphorylation in the bacterial stress response.

Arginine phosphorylation is an emerging protein modification implicated in the general stress response of Gram-positive bacteria. The modification is mediated by the arginine kinase McsB, which phosphorylates and inactivates the heat shock repressor CtsR. In this study, we developed a mass spectrometric approach accounting for the peculiar chemical properties of phosphoarginine. The improved methodology was used to analyze the dynamic changes in the Bacillus subtilis arginine phosphoproteome in response to different stress situations. Quantitative analysis showed that a B. subtilis mutant lacking the YwlE arginine phosphatase accumulated a strikingly large number of arginine phosphorylations (217 sites in 134 proteins), however only a minor fraction of these sites was increasingly modified during heat shock or oxidative stress. The main targets of McsB-mediated arginine phosphorylation comprise central factors of the stress response system including the CtsR and HrcA heat shock repressors, as well as major components of the protein quality control system such as the ClpCP protease and the GroEL chaperonine. These findings highlight the impact of arginine phosphorylation in orchestrating the bacterial stress response.

Synthesis and Use of a Phosphonate Amidine to Generate an Anti-Phosphoarginine-Specific Antibody.

Protein arginine phosphorylation is a post-translational modification (PTM) that is important for bacterial growth and virulence. Despite its biological relevance, the intrinsic acid lability of phosphoarginine (pArg) has impaired studies of this novel PTM. Herein, we report for the first time the development of phosphonate amidines and sulfonate amidines as isosteres of pArg and then use these mimics as haptens to develop the first high-affinity sequence independent anti-pArg specific antibody. Employing this anti-pArg antibody, we further showed that arginine phosphorylation is induced in Bacillus subtilis during oxidative stress. Overall, we expect this antibody to see widespread use in analyzing the biological significance of arginine phosphorylation. Additionally, the chemistry reported here will facilitate the generation of pArg mimetics as highly potent inhibitors of the enzymes that catalyze arginine phosphorylation/dephosphorylation.

Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 catalyzes substrate dimethylation in a distributive fashion.

Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) is a histone-modifying enzyme whose activity is aberrantly upregulated in various cancers and thereby contributes to a progrowth phenotype. Indeed, knockdown of PRMT5 leads to growth arrest and apoptosis, suggesting that inhibitors targeting this enzyme may have therapeutic utility in oncology. To aid the development of inhibitors targeting PRMT5, we initiated mechanistic studies geared to understand how PRMT5 selectively catalyzes the symmetric dimethylation of its substrates. Toward that end, we characterized the regiospecificity and processivity of bacterially expressed Caenorhabditis elegans PRMT5 (cPRMT5), insect cell-expressed human PRMT5 (hPRMT5), and human PRMT5 complexed with methylosome protein 50 (MEP50), i.e., the PRMT5·MEP50 complex. Our studies confirm that arginine 3 is the only site of methylation in both histone H4 and H4 tail peptide analogues and that sites distal to the site of methylation promote the efficient symmetric dimethylation of PRMT5 substrates by increasing the affinity of the monomethylated substrate for the enzyme. Additionally, we show for the first time that both cPRMT5 and the hPRMT5·MEP50 complex catalyze substrate dimethylation in a distributive manner, which is assisted by long-range interactions. Finally, our data confirm that MEP50 plays a key role in substrate recognition and activates PRMT5 activity by increasing its affinity for protein substrates. In total, our results suggest that it may be possible to allosterically inhibit PRMT5 by targeting binding pockets outside the active site.

Chemical and biological methods to detect post-translational modifications of arginine.

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of protein embedded arginines are increasingly being recognized as playing an important role in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic biology, and it is now clear that these PTMs modulate a number of cellular processes including DNA binding, gene transcription, protein-protein interactions, immune system activation, and proteolysis. There are currently four known enzymatic PTMs of arginine (i.e., citrullination, methylation, phosphorylation, and ADP-ribosylation), and two non-enzymatic PTMs [i.e., carbonylation, advanced glycation end-products (AGEs)]. Enzymatic modification of arginine is tightly controlled during normal cellular function, and can be drastically altered in response to various second messengers and in different disease states. Non-enzymatic arginine modifications are associated with a loss of metabolite regulation during normal human aging. This abnormally large number of modifications to a single amino acid creates a diverse set of structural perturbations that can lead to altered biological responses. While the biological role of methylation has been the most extensively characterized of the arginine PTMs, recent advances have shown that the once obscure modification known as citrullination is involved in the onset and progression of inflammatory diseases and cancer. This review will highlight the reported arginine PTMs and their methods of detection, with a focus on new chemical methods to detect protein citrullination.

S-nitrosylation of microtubule-associated protein 1B mediates nitric-oxide-induced axon retraction.

Treatment of cultured vertebrate neurons with nitric oxide leads to growth-cone collapse, axon retraction and the reconfiguration of axonal microtubules. We show that the light chain of microtubule-associated protein (MAP) 1B is a substrate for S-nitrosylation in vivo, in cultured cells and in vitro. S-nitrosylation occurs at Cys 2457 in the COOH terminus. Nitrosylation of MAP1B leads to enhanced interaction with microtubules and correlates with the inhibition of neuroblastoma cell differentiation. We further show, in dorsal root ganglion neurons, that MAP1B is necessary for neuronal nitric oxide synthase control of growth-cone size, growth-cone collapse and axon retraction. These results reveal an S-nitrosylation-dependent signal-transduction pathway that is involved in regulation of the axonal cytoskeleton and identify MAP1B as a major component of this pathway. We propose that MAP1B acts by inhibiting a microtubule- and dynein-based mechanism that normally prevents axon retraction.

Potency-Enhanced Peptidomimetic VHL Ligands with Improved Oral Bioavailability.

The von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) protein plays a pivotal role in regulating the hypoxic stress response and has been extensively studied and utilized in the targeted protein degradation field, particularly in the context of bivalent degraders. In this study, we present a comprehensive peptidomimetic structure-activity relationship (SAR) approach, combined with cellular NanoBRET target engagement assays to enhance the existing VHL ligands. Through systematic modifications of the molecule, we identified the 1,2,3-triazole group as an optimal substitute of the left-hand side amide bond that yields 10-fold higher binding activity. Moreover, incorporating conformationally constrained alterations on the methylthiazole benzylamine moiety led to the development of highly potent VHL ligands with picomolar binding affinity and significantly improved oral bioavailability. We anticipate that our optimized VHL ligand, GNE7599, will serve as a valuable tool compound for investigating the VHL pathway and advancing the field of targeted protein degradation.

Cystine-knot peptide inhibitors of HTRA1 bind to a cryptic pocket within the active site region.

Cystine-knot peptides (CKPs) are naturally occurring peptides that exhibit exceptional chemical and proteolytic stability. We leveraged the CKP carboxypeptidase A1 inhibitor as a scaffold to construct phage-displayed CKP libraries and subsequently screened these collections against HTRA1, a trimeric serine protease implicated in age-related macular degeneration and osteoarthritis. The initial hits were optimized by using affinity maturation strategies to yield highly selective and potent picomolar inhibitors of HTRA1. Crystal structures, coupled with biochemical studies, reveal that the CKPs do not interact in a substrate-like manner but bind to a cryptic pocket at the S1' site region of HTRA1 and abolish catalysis by stabilizing a non-competent active site conformation. The opening and closing of this cryptic pocket is controlled by the gatekeeper residue V221, and its movement is facilitated by the absence of a constraining disulfide bond that is typically present in trypsin fold serine proteases, thereby explaining the remarkable selectivity of the CKPs. Our findings reveal an intriguing mechanism for modulating the activity of HTRA1, and highlight the utility of CKP-based phage display platforms in uncovering potent and selective inhibitors against challenging therapeutic targets.

Cyanopyrrolidine Inhibitors of Ubiquitin Specific Protease 7 Mediate Desulfhydration of the Active-Site Cysteine.

Ubiquitin specific protease 7 (USP7) regulates the protein stability of key cellular regulators in pathways ranging from apoptosis to neuronal development, making it a promising therapeutic target. Here we used an engineered, activated variant of the USP7 catalytic domain to perform structure-activity studies of electrophilic peptidomimetic inhibitors. Employing this USP7 variant, we found that inhibitors with a cyanopyrrolidine warhead unexpectedly promoted a ß-elimination reaction of the initial covalent adducts, thereby converting the active-site cysteine residue to dehydroalanine. We determined that this phenomenon is specific for the USP7 catalytic cysteine and that structural features of the inhibitor and protein microenvironment impact elimination rates. Using comprehensive docking studies, we propose that the characteristic conformational dynamics of USP7 allow access to conformations that promote the ligand-induced elimination. Unlike in conventional reversible-covalent inhibition, the compounds described here irreversibly destroy a catalytic residue while simultaneously converting the inhibitor to a nonelectrophilic byproduct. Accordingly, this unexpected finding expands the scope of covalent inhibitor modalities and offers intriguing insights into enzyme-inhibitor dynamics.

Lead Optimization Yields High Affinity Frizzled 7-Targeting Peptides That Modulate Clostridium difficile Toxin B Pathogenicity in Epithelial Cells.

Frizzled 7 (FZD7) receptors have been shown to play a central role in intestinal stem cell regeneration and, more recently, in Clostridium difficile pathogenesis. Yet, targeting FZD7 receptors with small ligands has not been explored as an approach to block C. difficile pathogenesis. Here, we report the discovery of high affinity peptides that selectively bind to FZD7 receptors. We describe an integrated approach for lead optimization, utilizing structure-based rational design and directed evolution, to enhance the peptide binding affinity while still maintaining FZD7 receptor selectivity. This work yielded new peptide leads with picomolar binding constants to FZD7 as measured by biophysical methods. The new peptides block the interaction between C. difficile toxin B (TcdB) and FZD receptors and perturb C. difficile pathogenesis in epithelial cells. As such, our findings provide a proof of concept that targeting FZD receptors could be a viable pharmacological approach to protect epithelial cells from TcdB pathogenicity.

A structural mechanism for directing corepressor-selective inverse agonism of PPARγ.

Small chemical modifications can have significant effects on ligand efficacy and receptor activity, but the underlying structural mechanisms can be difficult to predict from static crystal structures alone. Here we show how a simple phenyl-to-pyridyl substitution between two common covalent orthosteric ligands targeting peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma converts a transcriptionally neutral antagonist (GW9662) into a repressive inverse agonist (T0070907) relative to basal cellular activity. X-ray crystallography, molecular dynamics simulations, and mutagenesis coupled to activity assays reveal a water-mediated hydrogen bond network linking the T0070907 pyridyl group to Arg288 that is essential for corepressor-selective inverse agonism. NMR spectroscopy reveals that PPARγ exchanges between two long-lived conformations when bound to T0070907 but not GW9662, including a conformation that prepopulates a corepressor-bound state, priming PPARγ for high affinity corepressor binding. Our findings demonstrate that ligand engagement of Arg288 may provide routes for developing corepressor-selective repressive PPARγ ligands.

Defining a conformational ensemble that directs activation of PPARγ.

The nuclear receptor ligand-binding domain (LBD) is a highly dynamic entity. Crystal structures have defined multiple low-energy LBD structural conformations of the activation function-2 (AF-2) co-regulator-binding surface, yet it remains unclear how ligand binding influences the number and population of conformations within the AF-2 structural ensemble. Here, we present a nuclear receptor co-regulator-binding surface structural ensemble in solution, viewed through the lens of fluorine-19 (19F) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and molecular simulations, and the response of this ensemble to ligands, co-regulator peptides and heterodimerization. We correlate the composition of this ensemble with function in peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) utilizing ligands of diverse efficacy in co-regulator recruitment. While the co-regulator surface of apo PPARγ and partial-agonist-bound PPARγ is characterized by multiple thermodynamically accessible conformations, the full and inverse-agonist-bound PPARγ co-regulator surface is restricted to a few conformations which favor coactivator or corepressor binding, respectively.

Modification of the Orthosteric PPARγ Covalent Antagonist Scaffold Yields an Improved Dual-Site Allosteric Inhibitor.

GW9662 and T0070907 are widely used commercially available irreversible antagonists of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ). These antagonists covalently modify Cys285 located in an orthosteric ligand-binding pocket embedded in the PPARγ ligand-binding domain and are used to block binding of other ligands. However, we recently identified an alternate/allosteric ligand-binding site in the PPARγ LBD to which ligand binding is not inhibited by these orthosteric covalent antagonists. Here, we developed a series of analogs based on the orthosteric covalent antagonist scaffold with the goal of inhibiting both orthosteric and allosteric cellular activation of PPARγ by MRL20, an orthosteric agonist that also binds to an allosteric site. Our efforts resulted in the identification of SR16832 (compound 22), which functions as a dual-site covalent inhibitor of PPARγ transcription by PPARγ-binding ligands. Molecular modeling, protein NMR spectroscopy structural analysis, and biochemical assays indicate the inhibition of allosteric activation occurs in part through expansion of the 2-chloro-5-nitrobenzamidyl orthosteric covalent antagonist toward the allosteric site, weakening of allosteric ligand binding affinity, and inducing conformational changes not competent for cellular PPARγ activation. Furthermore, SR16832 better inhibits binding of rosiglitazone, a thiazolidinedione (TZD) that weakly activates PPARγ when cotreated with orthosteric covalent antagonists, and may better inhibit binding of endogenous PPARγ ligands such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) compared to orthosteric covalent antagonists. Compounds such as SR16832 may be useful chemical tools to use as a dual-site bitopic orthosteric and allosteric covalent inhibitor of ligand binding to PPARγ.

Protein Arginine Methylation and Citrullination in Epigenetic Regulation.

The post-translational modification of arginine residues represents a key mechanism for the epigenetic control of gene expression. Aberrant levels of histone arginine modifications have been linked to the development of several diseases including cancer. In recent years, great progress has been made in understanding the physiological role of individual arginine modifications and their effects on chromatin function. The present review aims to summarize the structural and functional aspects of histone arginine modifying enzymes and their impact on gene transcription. We will discuss the potential for targeting these proteins with small molecules in a variety of disease states.

Activity-Based Profiling Reveals a Regulatory Link between Oxidative Stress and Protein Arginine Phosphorylation.

Protein arginine phosphorylation is a recently discovered modification that affects multiple cellular pathways in Gram-positive bacteria. In particular, the phosphorylation of arginine residues by McsB is critical for regulating the cellular stress response. Given that the highly efficient protein arginine phosphatase YwlE prevents arginine phosphorylation under non-stress conditions, we hypothesized that this enzyme negatively regulates arginine phosphorylation and acts as a sensor of cell stress. To evaluate this hypothesis, we developed the first suite of highly potent and specific SO3-amidine-based YwlE inhibitors. With these protein arginine phosphatase-specific probes, we demonstrated that YwlE activity is suppressed by oxidative stress, which consequently increases arginine phosphorylation, thereby inducing the expression of stress-response genes, which is critical for bacterial virulence. Overall, we predict that these novel chemical tools will be widely used to study the regulation of protein arginine phosphorylation in multiple organisms.

Probing the Complex Binding Modes of the PPARγ Partial Agonist 2-Chloro-N-(3-chloro-4-((5-chlorobenzo[d]thiazol-2-yl)thio)phenyl)-4-(trifluoromethyl)benzenesulfonamide (T2384) to Orthosteric and Allosteric Sites with NMR Spectroscopy.

In a previous study, a cocrystal structure of PPARγ bound to 2-chloro-N-(3-chloro-4-((5-chlorobenzo[d]thiazol-2-yl)thio)phenyl)-4-(trifluoromethyl)benzenesulfonamide (1, T2384) revealed two orthosteric pocket binding modes attributed to a concentration-dependent biochemical activity profile. However, 1 also bound an alternate/allosteric site that could alternatively account for the profile. Here, we show ligand aggregation afflicts the activity profile of 1 in biochemical assays. However, ligand-observed fluorine (19F) and protein-observed NMR confirms 1 binds PPARγ with two orthosteric binding modes and to an allosteric site.