Hydroperoxidation of Docosahexaenoic Acid by Human ALOX12 and pigALOX15-mini-LOX.

Human lipoxygenase 12 (hALOX12) catalyzes the conversion of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) into mainly 14S-hydroperoxy-4Z,7Z,10Z,12E,16Z,19Z-docosahexaenoic acid (14S-H(p)DHA). This hydroperoxidation reaction is followed by an epoxidation and hydrolysis process that finally leads to maresin 1 (MaR1), a potent bioactive specialized pro-resolving mediator (SPM) in chronic inflammation resolution. By combining docking, molecular dynamics simulations, and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations, we have computed the potential energy profile of DHA hydroperoxidation in the active site of hALOX12. Our results describe the structural evolution of the molecular system at each step of this catalytic reaction pathway. Noteworthy, the required stereospecificity of the reaction leading to MaR1 is explained by the configurations adopted by DHA bound to hALOX12, along with the stereochemistry of the pentadienyl radical formed after the first step of the mechanism. In pig lipoxygenase 15 (pigALOX15-mini-LOX), our calculations suggest that 14S-H(p)DHA can be formed, but with a stereochemistry that is inadequate for MaR1 biosynthesis.

Functional Characterization of Mouse and Human Arachidonic Acid Lipoxygenase 15B (ALOX15B) Orthologs and of Their Mutants Exhibiting Humanized and Murinized Reaction Specificities.

The arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15B (ALOX15B) orthologs of men and mice form different reaction products when arachidonic acid is used as the substrate. Tyr603Asp+His604Val double mutation in mouse arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15b humanized the product pattern and an inverse mutagenesis strategy murinized the specificity of the human enzyme. As the mechanistic basis for these functional differences, an inverse substrate binding at the active site of the enzymes has been suggested, but experimental proof for this hypothesis is still pending. Here we expressed wildtype mouse and human arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15B orthologs as well as their humanized and murinized double mutants as recombinant proteins and analyzed the product patterns of these enzymes with different polyenoic fatty acids. In addition, in silico substrate docking studies and molecular dynamics simulation were performed to explore the mechanistic basis for the distinct reaction specificities of the different enzyme variants. Wildtype human arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15B converted arachidonic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid to their 15-hydroperoxy derivatives but the Asp602Tyr+Val603His exchange murinized the product pattern. The inverse mutagenesis strategy in mouse arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15b (Tyr603Asp+His604Val exchange) humanized the product pattern with these substrates, but the situation was different with docosahexaenoic acid. Here, Tyr603Asp+His604Val substitution in mouse arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15b also humanized the specificity but the inverse mutagenesis (Asp602Tyr+Val603His) did not murinize the human enzyme. With linoleic acid Tyr603Asp+His604Val substitution in mouse arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15b humanized the product pattern but the inverse mutagenesis in human arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15B induced racemic product formation. Amino acid exchanges at critical positions of human and mouse arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15B orthologs humanized/murinized the product pattern with C20 fatty acids, but this was not the case with fatty acid substrates of different chain lengths. Asp602Tyr+Val603His exchange murinized the product pattern of human arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15B with arachidonic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, and docosahexaenoic acid. An inverse mutagenesis strategy on mouse arachidonic acid lipoxygenase 15b (Tyr603Asp+His604Val exchange) did humanize the reaction products with arachidonic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid, but not with docosahexaenoic acid.

Different Structures-Similar Effect: Do Substituted 5-(4-Methoxyphenyl)-1H-indoles and 5-(4-Methoxyphenyl)-1H-imidazoles Represent a Common Pharmacophore for Substrate Selective Inhibition of Linoleate Oxygenase Activity of ALOX15?

Mammalian 15-lipoxygenases (ALOX15) are lipid peroxidizing enzymes that exhibit variable functionality in different cancer and inflammation models. The pathophysiological role of linoleic acid- and arachidonic acid-derived ALOX15 metabolites rendered this enzyme a target for pharmacological research. Several indole and imidazole derivatives inhibit the catalytic activity of rabbit ALOX15 in a substrate-specific manner, but the molecular basis for this allosteric inhibition remains unclear. Here, we attempt to define a common pharmacophore, which is critical for this allosteric inhibition. We found that substituted imidazoles induce weaker inhibitory effects when compared with the indole derivatives. In silico docking studies and molecular dynamics simulations using a dimeric allosteric enzyme model, in which the inhibitor occupies the substrate-binding pocket of one monomer, whereas the substrate fatty acid is bound at the catalytic center of another monomer within the ALOX15 dimer, indicated that chemical modification of the core pharmacophore alters the enzyme-inhibitor interactions, inducing a reduced inhibitory potency. In our dimeric ALOX15 model, the structural differences induced by inhibitor binding are translated to the hydrophobic dimerization cluster and affect the structures of enzyme-substrate complexes. These data are of particular importance since substrate-specific inhibition may contribute to elucidation of the putative roles of ALOX15 metabolites derived from different polyunsaturated fatty acids in mammalian pathophysiology.

Three-Photon Infrared Stimulation of Endogenous Neuroreceptors in Vivo.

To interrogate neural circuits and crack their codes, in vivo brain activity imaging must be combined with spatiotemporally precise stimulation in three dimensions using genetic or pharmacological specificity. This challenge requires deep penetration and focusing as provided by infrared light and multiphoton excitation, and has promoted two-photon photopharmacology and optogenetics. However, three-photon brain stimulation in vivo remains to be demonstrated. We report the regulation of neuronal activity in zebrafish larvae by three-photon excitation of a photoswitchable muscarinic agonist at 50 pM, a billion-fold lower concentration than used for uncaging, and with mid-infrared light of 1560 nm, the longest reported photoswitch wavelength. Robust, physiologically relevant photoresponses allow modulating brain activity in wild-type animals with spatiotemporal and pharmacological precision. Computational calculations predict that azobenzene-based ligands have high three-photon absorption cross-section and can be used directly with pulsed infrared light. The expansion of three-photon pharmacology will deeply impact basic neurobiology and neuromodulation phototherapies.

The role of acetylated cyclooxygenase-2 in the biosynthesis of resolvin precursors derived from eicosapentaenoic acid.

Specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators (SPMs) are natural bioactive agents actively involved in inflammation resolution. SPMs act when uncontrolled inflammatory processes are developed, for instance, in patients of COVID-19 or other diseases. The so-called resolution pharmacology aims at developing new treatments based on the use of SPMs as agonists, which promote inflammation resolution without unwanted side effects. It has been shown that the biosynthesis of SPMs called eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)-derived E-series resolvins is initiated by aspirin-acetylated COX-2 from EPA, leading to 18-hydroperoxy-eicosapentaenoic acid (18-HpEPE). However, there are many open questions concerning the intriguing role of aspirin in the molecular mechanism of resolvin formation. Our MD simulations, combined with QM/MM calculations, show that the potential energy barriers for the H16-abstraction from EPA, required for forming 18-HpEPE, are higher than for the H13-abstraction, thus explaining why 18-HpEPE is a marginal product of COX-2 catalysis. By contrast, in the aspirin-acetylated COX-2/EPA complex, the H16proS-abstraction energy barriers are somewhat lower than the H13proS energy barriers and much smaller than the H16-transfer barriers in the wild type COX-2/EPA system. Those results agree with the experimental observation that aspirin favours the synthesis of several SPMs known as aspirin-triggered resolvins. In the following step of the catalytic mechanism, the calculated O2 addition to C18 is preferred versus the addition to C14 which also agrees with 18R-HEPE and 18S-HEPE being the main products from EPA in aspirin-acetylated COX-2.

On the Computational Design of Azobenzene-Based Multi-State Photoswitches.

In order to theoretically design multi-state photoswitches with specific properties, an exhaustive computational study is first carried out for an azobenzene dimer that has been recently synthesized and experimentally studied. This study allows for a full comprehension of the factors that govern the photoactivated isomerization processes of these molecules so to provide a conceptual/computational protocol that can be applied to generic multi-state photoswitches. From this knowledge a new dimer with a similar chemical design is designed and also fully characterized. Our theoretical calculations predict that the new dimer proposed is one step further in the quest for a double photoswitch, where the four metastable isomers could be selectively interconverted through the use of different irradiation sequences.

Predicting the Electronic Absorption Band Shape of Azobenzene Photoswitches.

Simulations based on molecular dynamics coupled to excitation energy calculations were used to generate simulated absorption spectra for a family of halide derivatives of azobenzene, a family of photoswitch molecules with a weak absorption band around 400-600 nm and potential uses in living tissue. This is a case where using the conventional approach in theoretical spectroscopy (estimation of absorption maxima based on the vertical transition from the potential energy minimum on the ground electronic state) does not provide valid results that explain how the observed band shape extends towards the low energy region of the spectrum. The method affords a reasonable description of the main features of the low-energy UV-Vis spectra of these compounds. A bathochromic trend was detected linked to the size of the halide atom. Analysis of the excitation reveals a correlation between the energy of the molecular orbital where excitation starts and the energy of the highest occupied atomic orbital of the free halide atom. This was put to the test with a new brominated compound with good results. The energy level of the highest occupied orbital on the free halide was identified as a key factor that strongly affects the energy gap in the photoswitch. This opens the way for the design of bathochromically shifted variants of the photoswitch with possible applications.

Theoretical Characterization of the Step-by-Step Mechanism of Conversion of Leukotriene A4 to Leukotriene B4 Catalysed by the Enzyme Leukotriene A4 Hydrolase.

LTA4H is a bifunctional zinc metalloenzyme that converts leukotriene A4 (LTA4) into leukotriene B4 (LTB4), one of the most potent chemotactic agents involved in acute and chronic inflammatory diseases. In this reaction, LTA4H acts as an epoxide hydrolase with a unique and fascinating mechanism, which includes the stereoselective attachment of one water molecule to the carbon backbone of LTA4 several methylene units away from the epoxide moiety. By combining Molecular Dynamics simulations and Quantum Mechanics/Molecular Mechanics calculations, we obtained a very detailed molecular picture of the different consecutive steps of that mechanism. By means of a rather unusual 1,7-nucleophilic substitution through a clear SN1 mechanism, the epoxide opens and the triene moiety of the substrate twists in such a way that the bond C6-C7 adopts its cis (Z) configuration, thus exposing the R face of C12 to the addition of a water molecule hydrogen-bonded to ASP375. Thus, the two stereochemical features that are required for the bioactivity of LTB4 appear to be closely related. The noncovalent π-π stacking interactions between the triene moiety and two tyrosines (TYR267 and, especially, TYR378) that wrap the triene system along the whole reaction explain the preference for the cis configuration inside LTA4H.

Accounting for the instantaneous disorder in the enzyme-substrate Michaelis complex to calculate the Gibbs free energy barrier of an enzyme reaction.

Many enzyme reactions present instantaneous disorder. These dynamic fluctuations in the enzyme-substrate Michaelis complexes generate a wide range of energy barriers that cannot be experimentally observed, but that determine the measured kinetics of the reaction. These individual energy barriers can be calculated using QM/MM methods, but then the problem is how to deal with this dispersion of energy barriers to provide kinetic information. So far, the most usual procedure has implied the so-called exponential average of the energy barriers. In this paper, we discuss the foundations of this method, and we use the free energy perturbation theory to derive an alternative equation to get the Gibbs free energy barrier of the enzyme reaction. In addition, we propose a practical way to implement it. We have chosen four enzyme reactions as examples. In particular, we have studied the hydrolysis of a glycosidic bond catalyzed by the enzyme Thermus thermophilus ß-glycosidase, and the mutant Y284P Ttb-gly, and the hydrogen abstraction reactions from C13 and C7 of arachidonic acid catalyzed by the enzyme rabbit 15-lipoxygenase-1.

Conformational Heterogeneity and Cooperative Effects of Mammalian ALOX15.

Arachidonic acid lipoxygenases (ALOXs) have been suggested to function as monomeric enzymes, but more recent data on rabbit ALOX15 indicated that there is a dynamic monomer-dimer equilibrium in aqueous solution. In the presence of an active site ligand (the ALOX15 inhibitor RS7) rabbit ALOX15 was crystalized as heterodimer and the X-ray coordinates of the two monomers within the dimer exhibit subtle structural differences. Using native polyacrylamide electrophoresis, we here observed that highly purified and predominantly monomeric rabbit ALOX15 and human ALOX15B are present in two conformers with distinct electrophoretic mobilities. In silico docking studies, molecular dynamics simulations, site directed mutagenesis experiments and kinetic measurements suggested that in aqueous solutions the two enzymes exhibit motional flexibility, which may impact the enzymatic properties.

A protocol to obtain multidimensional quantum tunneling corrections derived from QM(DFT)/MM calculations for an enzyme reaction.

The significance of tunneling contributions to the rate constants of enzymatic reactions has been described at length using experimental evidence as well as theoretical computations. Within the frame of variational transition state theory (VTST), tunneling corrections are included using the so-called ground-state tunneling transmission coefficient. For the calculation of those enzymatic rate constants using the ensemble-averaged extension of VTST on QM/MM potential energy surfaces, the transmission coefficient at a given temperature is averaged over a set of coefficient values, each one obtained from an individual minimum energy path (MEP). However, the calculation of accurate QM/MM MEPs for tunneling calculations, also using a reliable QM method like DFT, is highly costly in enzyme models. For this reason, more affordable methodologies have been used. In this paper, we validate a feasible computational strategy to compute multidimensional tunneling corrections that describes better than cheaper alternatives the physics of the hydrogen abstraction from linoleic acid catalyzed by the enzyme 15-rLOX-1. Our recommendations to obtain better values of kinetic isotope effects and, especially, of rate constants are based on multidimensional small-curvature tunneling (SCT) coefficients derived from electrostatic embedding QM(DFT)/MM MEPs. The MEPs used must be calculated with a small enough step-size. Also, the number of gradients and Hessians along the reaction path must be checked to cover the whole tunneling region and to obtain converged adiabatic potential energy profiles. Distinguished reaction coordinates (DCPs) that are commonly used to describe enzyme reaction mechanisms are not adequate for tunneling calculations in such biological systems.

Deciphering the grounds of the suitability of acylhydrazones as efficient photoswitches.

Many efforts are currently being devoted to designing molecular photoswitches with specific properties. In this sense, a recent publication [D. J. van Dijken et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2015, 137, 14982-14991] has synthesized and analyzed the photochromic properties of a large set of acylhydrazones (ACHs), a relatively unexploited class of potential photoswitches with two stable E and Z isomers. This study has revealed a very diverse and complex pattern of the absorption/emission properties of ACHs depending on the substituents attached to the ACH motif. In this work, high level theoretical calculations are performed on a representative set of the experimentally studied ACHs in order to analyze, at the molecular level, the reasons behind the different photochemistries experimentally observed. This systematic study allows for the classification of the full set of ACHs into just four categories. The two more common groups display a small, either positive or negative, shift of the maximum wavelength of absorption between the E and Z isomers. Less common, but far more interesting from a practical point of view, are the compounds that show a large (>100 nm) Stokes shift. This behavior may arise from two different situations. The most common one implies the possibility of an intramolecular proton transfer in the excited electronic state of the less stable Z isomer. The less likely scenario would also involve a loss of the azidic proton through an intermolecular proton transfer that would take place with the aid of the solvent.

Evolutionary alteration of ALOX15 specificity optimizes the biosynthesis of antiinflammatory and proresolving lipoxins.

ALOX15 (12/15-lipoxygenase) orthologs have been implicated in maturational degradation of intracellular organelles and in the biosynthesis of antiinflammatory and proresolving eicosanoids. Here we hypothesized that lower mammals (mice, rats, pigs) express 12-lipoxygenating ALOX15 orthologs. In contrast, 15-lipoxygenating isoforms are found in higher primates (orangutans, men), and these results suggest an evolution of ALOX15 specificity. To test this hypothesis we first cloned and characterized ALOX15 orthologs of selected Catarrhini representing different stages of late primate evolution and found that higher primates (men, chimpanzees) express 15-lipoxygenating orthologs. In contrast, lower primates (baboons, rhesus monkeys) express 12-lipoxygenating enzymes. Gibbons, which are flanked in evolution by rhesus monkeys (12-lipoxygenating ALOX15) and orangutans (15-lipoxygenating ALOX15), express an ALOX15 ortholog with pronounced dual specificity. To explore the driving force for this evolutionary alterations, we quantified the lipoxin synthase activity of 12-lipoxygenating (rhesus monkey, mouse, rat, pig, humIle418Ala) and 15-lipoxygenating (man, chimpanzee, orangutan, rabbit, ratLeu353Phe) ALOX15 variants and found that, when normalized to their arachidonic acid oxygenase activities, the lipoxin synthase activities of 15-lipoxygenating ALOX15 variants were more than fivefold higher (P < 0.01) [corrected]. Comparative molecular dynamics simulations and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations indicated that, for the 15-lipoxygenating rabbit ALOX15, the energy barrier for C13-hydrogen abstraction (15-lipoxygenation) was 17 kJ/mol lower than for arachidonic acid 12-lipoxygenation. In contrast, for the 12-lipoxygenating Ile418Ala mutant, the energy barrier for 15-lipoxygenation was 10 kJ/mol higher than for 12-lipoxygenation. Taken together, our data suggest an evolution of ALOX15 specificity, which is aimed at optimizing the biosynthetic capacity for antiinflammatory and proresolving lipoxins.

Mutagenesis of Sequence Determinants of Truncated Porcine ALOX15 Induces Changes in the Reaction Specificity by Altering the Catalytic Mechanism of Initial Hydrogen Abstraction.

The reaction specificity of lipoxygenases is of physiological relevance since the various oxygenation products exhibit different biological activities. Among mammalian ALOX15 orthologs there are arachidonic acid 12- and 15-lipoxygenating enzymes and recent studies suggested an evolutionary switch in that reaction specificity during late primate development. Previous reports showed that 12-lipoxygenating ALOX15 orthologs can be converted to 15-lipoxygenating enzymes by site-directed mutagenesis of some sequence determinants. Unfortunately, the molecular basis for those alterations are not well understood. Here, the arachidonic acid 12-lipoxygenating N-terminal truncation variant of pig ALOX15, for which a crystal structure is available, was used to explore the catalytic mechanism of the specificity switch induced by mutagenesis of Val418 and Val419 sequence determinants. We found that Val418Ile+Val419Met double mutant is dominantly 15-lipoxygenating. Docking and MD simulations, and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations indicated that the wildtype energy barrier for arachidonic acid 15-lipoxygenation is 3.4 kcal mol-1 higher than for 12-lipoxygenation. In contrast, for the Val418Ile+Val419Met double mutant the energy barrier for 12-lipoxygenation is 6.0 kcal mol-1 higher than for 15-lipoxygenation. Our data suggest that enzyme-substrate complex geometries determine the value of these energy barriers and, as a consequence, the reaction specificity of ALOX15 orthologs.

Ultrafast action chemistry in slow motion: atomistic description of the excitation and fluorescence processes in an archetypal fluorescent protein.

We report quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical non-adiabatic molecular dynamics simulations on the electronically excited state of green fluorescent protein mutant S65T/H148D. We examine the driving force of the ultrafast (τ < 50 fs) excited-state proton transfer unleashed by absorption in the A band at 415 nm and propose an atomistic description of the two dynamical regimes experimentally observed [Stoner Ma et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2008, 130, 1227]. These regimes are explained in terms of two sets of successive dynamical events: first the proton transfers quickly from the chromophore to the acceptor Asp148. Thereafter, on a slower time scale, there are geometrical changes in the cavity of the chromophore that involve the distance between the chromophore and Asp148, the planarity of the excited-state chromophore, and the distance between the chromophore and Tyr145. We find two different non-radiative relaxation channels that are operative for structures in the reactant region and that can explain the mismatch between the decay of the emission of A* and the rise of the emission of I*, as well as the temperature dependence of the non-radiative decay rate.

Computational insights into active site shaping for substrate specificity and reaction regioselectivity in the EXTL2 retaining glycosyltransferase.

Glycosyltransferases are enzymes that catalyze a monosaccharide transfer reaction from a donor to an acceptor substrate with the synthesis of a new glycosidic bond. They are highly substrate specific and regioselective, even though the acceptor substrate often presents multiple reactive groups. Currently, many efforts are dedicated to the development of biocatalysts for glycan synthesis and, therefore, a better understanding of how natural enzymes achieve this goal can be of valuable help. To gain a deeper insight into the catalytic strategies used by retaining glycosyltransferases, the wild type EXTL2 (CAZy family GT64) and four mutant forms (at positions 293 and 246) were studied using QM(DFT)/MM calculations and molecular dynamics simulations. Existing hypotheses on the roles of Arg293, an enigmatic residue in the CAZy family GT64 that seemed to contradict a mechanism through an oxocarbenium intermediate, and of Asp246 have been tested. We also provide a molecular interpretation for the results of site-directed mutagenesis experiments. Moreover, we have investigated why an Asp, and not a Glu like in the family GT6, is found on the ß-face of the transferred GlcNAc. It is predicted that an Asp246Glu mutant of EXTL2 would be unable to catalyze the α-1,4 transfer. The results herein presented clarify the roles that Arg293, Asp246 and Leu213 have at different stages of the catalytic process (for binding but also for efficient chemical reaction). Altogether, we provide a molecular view that connects the identity and conformation of these residues to the substrate specificity and regioselectivity of the enzyme, illustrating a delicate interplay between all these aspects.

Understanding how cAMP-dependent protein kinase can catalyze phosphoryl transfer in the presence of Ca2+ and Sr2+: a QM/MM study.

Recent experimental results have challenged conventional views on the role metals play in the chemistry of protein kinases because it has been shown that (cAMP)-dependent protein kinase (PKA) is active in the presence of other divalent alkaline earth metal cations besides physiological Mg2+ ions. This has raised the important possibility that Ca2+ may also be a physiological cofactor of protein kinases. In this work, QM/MM calculations, at the DFT and MP2 levels for the QM part, on complete solvated models of PKAc-M2ATP-substrate ternary complexes, with PKAc as the catalytic subunit of PKA, M denoting Ca2+ or Sr2+ and substrate denoting SP20 or Kemptide, have been carried out for the overall phosphoryl transfer reaction. In accordance with the experimental data, our theoretical results show for the first time at the molecular level how the overall PKAc-catalyzed phosphorylation of SP20, via a dissociative mechanism, is plausible with Ca2+ and Sr2+. The viability of the catalytic reaction with Kemptide and Ca2+ is also verified here. The energy barrier of the rate-limiting phosphoryl-transfer step does not depend on different coordination environments of the alkaline earth metal cations whereas the proton-transfer step region is metal dependent making the global chemical process more exoergic on going from Mg2+ to Sr2+. This trend is in agreement with the less effective release of the phosphorylated product observed experimentally in the presence of Ca2+versus Mg2+, and would explain also the lower activity of PKAc with Ca2+, since phospho-substrate and ADP releases are rate limiting for catalytic turnover. For the same reason, we predict an even lower activity of PKAc with Sr2+. Moreover, the active sites of the in silico reactant and product complexes and the available X-ray crystallographic structures show good agreement.

Inhibition of Mammalian 15-Lipoxygenase by Three Ebselen-like Drugs. A QM/MM and MM/PBSA Comparative Study.

Ebselen is a potent competitive inhibitor of the active form of rabbit 15-lipoxygenase, an enzyme involved in many inflammatory diseases. Light-induced Z-to-E isomerization of the ebselen-like 2-(3-benzylidene)-3-oxo-2,3-dihydrobenzo[b]thiophene-7-carboxylic acid methyl ester (BODTCM) molecule was used to convert the weak (Z)-BOTDCM inhibitor into the (E)-isomer with much higher inhibitory capacity. In this study, the binding modes of ebselen, (E)-BOTDCM and (Z)-BOTDCM, have been analyzed to provide molecular insights on the inhibitory potency of ebselen and on the geometric-isomer specificity of (E)- and (Z)-BOTDCM inhibitors. The inhibitor-enzyme structures obtained from docking and molecular dynamics simulations as well as from QM/MM calculations show that the inhibitor molecules are not coordinated to the nonheme iron in the active site. Thermal motion allows ebselen and (E)-BOTDCM to visit a wide range of the configurational space competing with the polyunsaturated fatty acid for binding at the active site. Both molecules present similar MM/PBSA binding free energies. The energy penalty for the bigger geometric deformation undergone by (E)-BODTCM would explain its lower inhibitor potency. The (Z)-isomer is the weakest inhibitor because thermal motion moves it to a region very far from the first coordination sphere of Fe, where it could not compete with the fatty acid substrate.

The Quest for Photoswitches Activated by Near-Infrared Light: A Theoretical Study of the Photochemistry of BF2 -Coordinated Azo Derivatives.

Recently synthesized BF2 -coordinated azo derivatives have been proposed as photoswitches that operate in the optical window (λ=600-1200 nm) for use in bioimaging applications. Herein, we have theoretically analyzed these compounds and modified some substituents to analyze which properties of the molecule govern its photochemistry. Our results compare rather well with the available experimental data, so our methodology, based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations for the ground electronic state and time-dependent-DFT for the first excited electronic state, is validated. Through systematic modification of different substituents of the parent system, we designed compounds that are predicted to operate fully within the optical window. We also analyzed several molecules for which the cis isomer is the more stable isomer, a quite unusual result for azobenzene derivatives that is a much coveted property for some applications of these photoactive molecules in pharmacology. Our results also provide insight into other properties relevant for photoswitches, such as the thermal stability of the less stable isomer and the magnitude of the gap between the wavelengths of the radiation that activates each isomerization process, which must be as large as possible to improve the yield of each photoisomerization. From a more general perspective, our results may provide a step towards the rational design of new photoswitches that fulfill a set of desired characteristics.

Is Regioselectivity in the Enzyme-Catalyzed Hydroperoxidation of Arachidonic Acid Necessarily Determined by Hydrogen Abstraction? The Case of Rabbit Leu597Ala/Ile663Ala ALOX15 Mutant.

Molecular dynamics simulations and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations were performed on the in silico Leu597Ala/Ile663Ala double mutant of rabbit ALOX15 (12/15 lipoxygenase). The computational results suggested that subtle steric hindrance by the conserved Leu597 and C-terminal Ile663 residues disturbed H10 abstractions in wildtype ALOX15 (which abstracts H13), but if these two bulky residues were mutated to smaller ones, H10 abstraction was no longer impeded and the regioselectivity of the initial H-abstraction step was changed. However, site-directed mutagenesis with HPLC analysis of the products of the whole oxidation process showed that the regioselectivity of the hydroperoxidation was not altered. This disagreement may be explained by the conformational reorganization of the system needed to rotate the -OO. group from an antarafacial to a suprafacial arrangement prior to back-hydrogen transfer. After H10 abstraction and O2 insertion, the evolution of the peroxy radical at C12 was sterically impeded, whereas peroxyl group rotation at C15 (after H13 abstraction) could easily evolve to a suprafacial arrangement, which thus led to the final product. For this reason, the global regiospecificity was not affected in the mutant. These findings exemplify that the regioselectivity of initial hydrogen abstraction and the regioselectivity of the final product do not necessarily coincide (in fact, they can be opposite) for the hydroperoxidation of arachidonic acid catalyzed by a lipoxygenase.