Advances in Membrane-Bound Catechol-O-Methyltransferase Stability Achieved Using a New Ionic Liquid-Based Storage Formulation.

Membrane-bound catechol-O-methyltransferase (MBCOMT), present in the brain and involved in the main pathway of the catechol neurotransmitter deactivation, is linked to several types of human dementia, which are relevant pharmacological targets for new potent and nontoxic inhibitors that have been developed, particularly for Parkinson's disease treatment. However, the inexistence of an MBCOMT 3D-structure presents a blockage in new drugs' design and clinical studies due to its instability. The enzyme has a clear tendency to lose its biological activity in a short period of time. To avoid the enzyme sequestering into a non-native state during the downstream processing, a multi-component buffer plays a major role, with the addition of additives such as cysteine, glycerol, and trehalose showing promising results towards minimizing hMBCOMT damage and enhancing its stability. In addition, ionic liquids, due to their virtually unlimited choices for cation/anion paring, are potential protein stabilizers for the process and storage buffers. Screening experiments were designed to evaluate the effect of distinct cation/anion ILs interaction in hMBCOMT enzymatic activity. The ionic liquids: choline glutamate [Ch][Glu], choline dihydrogen phosphate ([Ch][DHP]), choline chloride ([Ch]Cl), 1- dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C12mim]Cl), and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C4mim]Cl) were supplemented to hMBCOMT lysates in a concentration from 5 to 500 mM. A major potential stabilizing effect was obtained using [Ch][DHP] (10 and 50 mM). From the DoE 146% of hMBCOMT activity recovery was obtained with [Ch][DHP] optimal conditions (7.5 mM) at -80 °C during 32.4 h. These results are of crucial importance for further drug development once the enzyme can be stabilized for longer periods of time.

Development of a bioreactor system for cytotoxic evaluation of pharmacological compounds in living cells using NMR spectroscopy.

INTRODUCTION: The evaluation of drug's cytotoxicity is a crucial step in the development of new pharmacological compounds. 31P NMR can be a tool for toxicological screening, as it enables the study of drugs' cytotoxicity and their effect on cell energy metabolism in a real-time, in a non- invasive and non-destructive way. This paper details a step-by-step protocol to implement a bioreactor system able to maintain cell viability during NMR acquisitions, at high cell densities and for several hours, enabling toxicological evaluation of pharmacological compounds in living cells. METHOD: HeLa cells were immobilized in agarose gel threads and continuously perfused with oxygenated medium inside a 5 mm NMR tube. Signals corresponding to intracellular high-energy phosphorous compounds were continuously monitored by 31P NMR to assess cell energy levels, intracellular pH and intracellular free Mg2+ concentrations ([Mg2+]f) under control and in the presence of two different cytotoxic drugs, calix-NH2 or 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). RESULTS: The bioreactor system was effective in maintaining cell energy levels as well as intracellular pH and [Mg2+]f along time, with a good 31P NMR signal to noise ratio. Calix-NH2 and 5-FU decreased cell energy levels by 35% and 39%, respectively, with a negligible increase in intracellular [Mg2+]f, and without affecting intracellular pH. DISCUSSION: The immobilization and perfusion system here detailed, along with 31P NMR, is useful in toxicological evaluation of new pharmacological compounds, enabling the continuous assessment of drugs' effect on energy levels, intracellular pH and [Mg2+]f in intact cells, for several hours without compromising cell viability.

Trends in protein-based biosensor assemblies for drug screening and pharmaceutical kinetic studies.

The selection of natural and chemical compounds for potential applications in new pharmaceutical formulations constitutes a time-consuming procedure in drug screening. To overcome this issue, new devices called biosensors, have already demonstrated their versatility and capacity for routine clinical diagnosis. Designed to perform analytical analysis for the detection of a particular analyte, biosensors based on the coupling of proteins to amperometric and optical devices have shown the appropriate selectivity, sensibility and accuracy. During the last years, the exponential demand for pharmacokinetic studies in the early phases of drug development, along with the need of lower molecular weight detection, have led to new biosensor structure materials with innovative immobilization strategies. The result has been the development of smaller, more reproducible biosensors with lower detection limits, and with a drastic reduction in the required sample volumes. Therefore in order to describe the main achievements in biosensor fields, the present review has the main aim of summarizing the essential strategies used to generate these specific devices, that can provide, under physiological conditions, a credible molecule profile and assess specific pharmacokinetic parameters.

Selectivity of arginine chromatography in promoting different interactions using synthetic oligonucleotides as model.

Arginine has been effectively used in several chromatography methodologies to improve recovery, resolution, and to suppress aggregation. Recently, arginine chromatography was used to fully separate supercoiled and open circular plasmid DNA isoforms. The specific recognition of supercoiled plasmid isoform by arginine was hypothesised to be due to the ability of arginine matrix to be involved in complex interactions that are partly dependent on the conformation of the DNA molecule. In light of these considerations a study was conducted to understand the several interactions that a DNA molecule can promote with the arginine support, in accordance with the chromatographic conditions established. Consequently, knowing the ideal conditions to promote the specific interactions, it could be possible to perform a more targeted and efficient purification. This work describes the chromatography of oligonucleotides with sizes up to 30 bases on the arginine-agarose gel. The effect of several conditions like hydrophobic character of the individual bases, molecular mass of the oligonucleotides, presence of secondary structures, temperature and elution buffer composition (salt and arginine supplemented buffer) was investigated. According to previous atomic data referent to possible interactions between amino acids and DNA nucleotides, arginine can preferentially interact with guanine by hydrogen bond, but other interactions (ionic interactions, van der Waals contacts, water mediated bonds) may also be present and become dominant depending on the conditions used. The results also revealed that the application of arginine in the elution buffer led to an effective elution of oligonucleotides from the arginine chromatographic support by a competition strategy. In general, it was suggested that the affinity interaction promoted by the arginine support is responsible for the specific recognition of particular oligonucleotide bases, involving multiple interactions.