Investigation of Zika virus methyl transferase inhibitors using steered molecular dynamics.

Zika virus (ZIKV) spread is considered a major public health threat by the World Health Organization (WHO). There are no vaccines or drugs available to control the infection of the Zika virus, therefore a highly effective medicinal molecule is urgently required. In this study, a computationally intensive investigation was performed to identify a potent natural compound that could inhibit the ZIKV NS5 methyltransferase. This research approach is based on target-based drug identification principles where the native inhibitor SAH (S-adenosylhomocysteine) of ZIKV NS5 methyltransferase was selected as a reference. High-throughput virtual screening and tanimoto similarity coefficient were applied to the natural compound library for ranking the potential candidates. The top five compounds were selected for interaction analysis, MD simulation, total binding free energy through MM/GBSA, and steered MD simulation. Among these compounds, Adenosine 5'-monophosphate monohydrate, Tubercidin, and 5-Iodotubercidin showed stable binding to the protein compared to the native compound, SAH. These three compounds also showed less fluctuations in RMSF in contrast to native compound. Additionally, the same interacting residues observed in SAH also made strong interactions with these three compounds. Adenosine 5'-monophosphate monohydrate and 5-Iodotubercidin had greater total binding free energies than the reference ligand. Moreover, the dissociation resistance of all three compounds was equivalent to that of the reference ligand. This study suggested binding properties of three-hit compounds that could be used to develop drugs against Zika virus infections.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

5-Iodotubercidin Inhibits the Growth of Insulinoma Cells by Inducing Apoptosis.

INTRODUCTION: 5-Iodotubercidin, a type of purine derivative, has attracted increasing attention in tumor chemotherapy because of its potential as an antitumor agent in recent years. In this study, we confirmed the effects on apoptosis in insulinoma cell lines induced by 5-iodotubercidin and tried to illuminate the underlying mechanisms. METHODS: We used 5-iodotubercidin in the treatment of insulinoma cells and the cell proliferation was examined using CCK-8 assay, colony-forming assays, and insulinoma animal models. Cell apoptosis was examined using TUNEL assays and Western blotting. Cellular DNA damage was shown by comet assay and immunofluorescence. The expression of apoptosis-regulating proteins and DNA damage biomarker was investigated by Western blotting. Subcutaneous inoculation of the insulinoma cells into nude mice was to measure blood glucose, insulin levels, and tumor growth. ATM siRNA and p53 siRNA were used as loss-of-function targets to evaluate 5-iodotubercidin treatment. RESULTS: 5-Iodotubercidin inhibited the proliferation of insulinoma cells and induced DNA damage and cell apoptosis. Moreover, 5-iodotubercidin induced ATM and p53 activated. In vivo, 5-iodotubercidin inhibited the growth of Ins-1 and Min-6 cells xenografts in nude mice. CONCLUSION: 5-Iodotubercidin induces DNA damage leading to insulinoma cells apoptosis by activating ATM/p53 pathway. Therefore, this is a potential strategy for treating insulinoma.

ATP-driven reactions are required for the assembly of large stress granules.

Stress granules (SGs) are functional messenger ribonucleoprotein aggregates, and their assembly is an important cellular process required for remodeling the signaling network to cope with extensive environmental stresses. SG formation is a stepwise process that involves the formation of a stable core followed by a less stable outer shell, and this process is often hampered by faulty regulation of protein phosphorylation. It remains unclear, however, which kinase activity is essential for SG formation. Here, we screened small molecule library of kinase inhibitors using a well-validated fluorogenic SG probe. Our screen, time-lapse microscopy, and biochemical analyses identified an ATP-mimetic SG inhibitor that selectively interferes with the fusion and growth, rather than the initial assembly, of SG core structures into the large assemblies. Thus, SGs utilize ATP-dependent chemical reactions to achieve their functional architectures.

5'-Iodotubercidin represses insulinoma-associated-1 expression, decreases cAMP levels, and suppresses human neuroblastoma cell growth.

Insulinoma-associated-1 (INSM1) is a key protein functioning as a transcriptional repressor in neuroendocrine differentiation and is activated by N-Myc in human neuroblastoma (NB). INSM1 modulates the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-AKT Ser/Thr kinase (AKT)-glycogen synthase kinase 3ß (GSK3ß) signaling pathway through a positive-feedback loop, resulting in N-Myc stabilization. Accordingly, INSM1 has emerged as a critical player closely associated with N-Myc in facilitating NB cell growth. Here, an INSM1 promoter-driven luciferase-based screen revealed that the compound 5'-iodotubercidin suppresses adenosine kinase (ADK), an energy pathway enzyme, and also INSM1 expression and NB tumor growth. Next, we sought to dissect how the ADK pathway contributes to NB tumor cell growth in the context of INSM1 expression. We also found that 5'-iodotubercidin inhibits INSM1 expression and induces an intra- and extracellular adenosine imbalance. The adenosine imbalance, which triggers adenosine receptor-3 signaling that decreases cAMP levels and AKT phosphorylation and enhances GSK3ß activity. We further observed that GSK3ß then phosphorylates ß-catenin and promotes the cytoplasmic proteasomal degradation pathway. 5'-Iodotubercidin treatment and INSM1 inhibition suppressed extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) activity and the AKT signaling pathways required for NB cell proliferation. The 5'-iodotubercidin treatment also suppressed ß-catenin, lymphoid enhancer-binding factor 1 (LEF-1), cyclin D1, N-Myc, and INSM1 levels, ultimately leading to apoptosis via caspase-3 and p53 activation. The identification of the signaling pathways that control the proliferation of aggressive NB reported here suggests new options for combination treatments of NB patients.

Efeitos da 5-iodotubercidina em linhagens de melanoma humano parentais e resistentes ao inibidor de BRAF / Effects of 5-iodotubercidin on human melanoma lines of parental and resistant to the BRAF inhibitor

O melanoma é responsável por menos de 5% dos cânceres de pele, porém, 95% das mortes ocorrem devido a ocorrência de metástases. O melanoma metastático é refratário às terapias convencionais e rapidamente adquire resistência às terapias como as oncogene-dirigidas, como o inibidor de BRAF, da via de MAPK. Estudos prévios de screening in silico do nosso grupo, onde se utilizou as bases de dados TCGA e GEO, identificaram o gene adenosina quinase (ADK) como sendo diferencialmente expresso entre o melanoma invasivo e os nevus. A 5-iodotubercidina (5-ITu) é um potente inibidor farmacológico da ADK que dentre os diversos efeitos relatados na literatura destaca-se pelo potencial genotóxico. Os danos no DNA são os principais ativadores de checkpoint do ciclo celular, que levam a parada do ciclo celular transitória ou permanente, além de induzir morte celular, levando a hipótese de que ADK possa ser potencial agente anti-melanoma. Este trabalho objetivou avaliar a expressão do gene ADK em melanomas humanos e quimiorresistentes ao inibidor de BRAF (iBRAF), avaliou os impactos de 5-ITu sobre a proliferação, progressão do ciclo celular e morte celular e por fim avaliamos sua capacidade de aumentar a sensibilidade das células. Foi realizado PCR em tempo real para avaliar os níveis de expressão de mRNA de ADK em linhagens de melanoma e na cultura primária de melanócitos; a fim de avaliar a citotoxicidade de 5-ITu foram realizados os ensaios de exclusão por azul de tripan e de apoptose - Anexina V e PI e em modelo de esferoide, usando live/dead; também foi avaliada a influência de 5-ITu sobre a capacidade clonogênica e seus efeitos sobre a proliferação celular, a partir dos ensaios de ciclo celular e avaliação de marcadores de proliferação por imunofluorescência; as linhagens foram submetidas a diferentes regimes de tratamento com 5-ITu e o iBRAF, a fim de avaliar a curva de crescimento e a sensibilidade ao iBRAF por MTT níveis de expressão de mRNA de ADK maiores nas linhagens tumorais em relação aos melanócitos. 5-ITu mostrou-se capaz de inibir a proliferação (IC50) das linhagens de melanoma em concentrações de 1,9 a 3,5 µM. 5-ITu não foi capaz de induzir inviabilidade celular, apesar de reduzir a quantidade de células viáveis em todas as condições de tratamento, também não foi capaz de induzir aumento significativo de células apoptóticas, nem mesmo necróticas. No entanto, o tratamento com 5-ITu reduziu a capacidade clonogênica de linhagens de melanoma e promoveu parada de ciclo celular nas fases G1 e G2/M, levou ao aumento da população subG1. O tratamento com 5-ITu promoveu a redução da expressão de marcadores de proliferação, como ki67, e a combinação de tratamentos 5-ITu e iBraf foi capaz de aumentar o tempo de dobramento das linhagens de melanoma, embora tenha se mostrado incapaz de sensibilizar as células de melanoma ao tratamento com iBRAF. Desse modo, pode-se concluir que 5-ITu induz o efeito citostático e se mostra um potente agente antiproliferativo para melanoma parental e resistente

Melanoma accounts for less than 5% of skin cancers, but 95% of deaths occur due to metastases. Metastatic melanoma is refractory to conventional therapies and rapidly acquires resistance to therapies such as oncogene-directed, such as the BRAF inhibitor, of the MAPK pathway. Previous studies of screening in silico of our group, using the databases TCGA and GEO, identified the adenosine kinase gene (ADK) as differentially expressed between invasive melanoma and nevus. 5-iodotubercidin (5-ITu) is a potent pharmacological inhibitor of ADK that among the several effects reported in the literature stands out for the genotoxic potential. DNA damage is the main activator of the cell cycle checkpoint, which leads to transient or permanent cell cycle arrest, in addition to inducing cell death, leading to the hypothesis that ADK may be a potential anti-melanoma agent. This work aimed to evaluate the expression of the ADK gene in human melanomas and chemoresistants to the BRAF inhibitor (iBRAF), evaluated the impacts of 5-ITu on proliferation, cell cycle progression and cell death and finally we evaluated its ability to increase the sensitivity of cells. Real-time PCR was performed to assess the levels of ADK mRNA expression in melanoma lines and primary melanocyte culture; in order to evaluate the cytotoxicity of 5-ITu, the trypan blue and apoptosis - Annexin V and PI exclusion and blue spheroid models were performed using live / dead; the influence of 5-ITu on the clonogenic capacity and its effects on cell proliferation, from the cell cycle assays and the evaluation of proliferation markers by immunofluorescence; the cell lines were submitted to different treatment regimens with 5-ITu and iBRAF in order to evaluate the growth curve and the sensitivity to iBRAF by MTT levels of mRNA expression of ADK higher in the tumor lines in relation to the melanocytes. 5-ITu was able to inhibit the proliferation (IC 50) of melanoma lines at concentrations of 1.9 to 3.5 181;M. 5-ITu was not able to induce cell non-viability, although it reduced the amount of viable cells in all treatment conditions, nor was it able to induce a significant increase in apoptotic or even necrotic cells. However, treatment with 5-ITu reduced the clonogenic capacity of melanoma cells and promoted cell cycle arrest in the G1 and G2 / M phases, leading to an increase in the subG1 population. Treatment with 5-ITu promotes the reduction of expression of proliferation markers, such as ki67, and the combination of 5-ITu and iBRAF treatments was able to increase the doubling time of melanoma cells, although it has been shown to be unable to sensitize melanoma cells to treatment with iBRAF. Thus, it can be concluded that 5-ITu induces the cytostatic effect and shows a potent antiproliferative agent for parental and resistant melanoma

Crystal structure of ADP-dependent glucokinase from Methanocaldococcus jannaschii in complex with 5-iodotubercidin reveals phosphoryl transfer mechanism.

ADP-dependent glucokinase (ADPGK) is an alternative novel glucose phosphorylating enzyme in a modified glycolysis pathway of hyperthermophilic Archaea. In contrast to classical ATP-dependent hexokinases, ADPGK utilizes ADP as a phosphoryl group donor. Here, we present a crystal structure of archaeal ADPGK from Methanocaldococcus jannaschii in complex with an inhibitor, 5-iodotubercidin, d-glucose, inorganic phosphate, and a magnesium ion. Detailed analysis of the architecture of the active site allowed for confirmation of the previously proposed phosphorylation mechanism and the crucial role of the invariant arginine residue (Arg197). The crystal structure shows how the phosphate ion, while mimicking a ß-phosphate group, is positioned in the proximity of the glucose moiety by arginine and the magnesium ion, thus providing novel insights into the mechanism of catalysis. In addition, we demonstrate that 5-iodotubercidin inhibits human ADPGK-dependent T cell activation-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) release and downstream gene expression, and as such it may serve as a model compound for further screening for hADPGK-specific inhibitors.

Inhibitory effect of 5-iodotubercidin on pigmentation.

Melanin pigments are the primary contributors for the skin color. They are produced in melanocytes and then transferred to keratinocytes, eventually giving various colors on skin surface. Although many depigmenting and/or skin-lightening agents have been developed, there is still a growing demand on materials for reducing pigmentation. We attempted to find materials for depigmentation and/or skin-lightening using the small molecule compounds commercially available, and found that 5-iodotubercidin had inhibitory potential on pigmentation. When HM3KO melanoma cells were treated with 5-iodotubercidin, pigmentation was dramatically reduced. The 5-iodotubercidin decreased the protein level for pigmentation-related molecules such as MITF, tyrosinase, and TRP1. In addition, 5-iodotubercidin decreased the phosphorylation of CREB, while increased the phosphorylation of AKT and ERK. These data suggest that 5-iodotubercidin inhibits melanogenesis via the regulation of intracellular signaling related with pigmentation. Finally, 5-iodotubercidin markedly inhibited the melanogenesis of zebrafish embryos, an in vivo evaluation model for pigmentation. Together, these data suggest that 5-iodotubercidin can be developed as a depigmenting and/or skin-lightening agent.

Slowly on, Slowly off: Bisubstrate-Analogue Conjugates of 5-Iodotubercidin and Histone H3 Peptide Targeting Protein Kinase Haspin.

The atypical protein kinase haspin is a key player in mitosis by catalysing the phosphorylation of Thr3 in histone H3, and thus ensuring the normal function of the chromosomal passenger complex. Here, we report the development of bisubstrate-analogue inhibitors targeting haspin. The compounds were constructed by linking 5-iodotubercidin to the N terminus of histone H3 peptide. The new conjugates show high affinity (sub-nanomolar KD ) towards haspin as well as slow kinetics of association and dissociation (residence time of several hours). This reflects a unique binding mode and translated into improved selectivity. The latter was confirmed in a biochemical binding/displacement assay with a panel of ten protein kinases, in a thermal shift assay with off-targets of 5-iodotubercidin (adenosine kinase and the Cdc2-like kinase family) and in assay with spiked HeLa cell lysate.

Cytokinesis defect in BY-2 cells caused by ATP-competitive kinase inhibitors.

Cytokinesis is last but not least in cell division as it completes the formation of the two cells. The main role in cell plate orientation and expansion have been assigned to microtubules and kinesin proteins. However, recently we reported severe cytokinesis defect in BY-2 cells not accompanied by changes in microtubules dynamics. Here we also confirmed that distribution of kinesin NACK1 is not the cause of cytokinesis defect. We further explored inhibition of the cell plate expansion by ATP-competitive inhibitors. Two different inhibitors, 5-Iodotubercidin and ML-7 resulted in a very similar phenotype, which indicates that they target same protein cascade. Interestingly, in our previous study we showed that 5-Iodotubercidin treatment affects concentration of actin filaments on the cell plate, while ML-7 is inhibitor of myosin light chain kinase. Although not directly, it indicates importance of actomyosin complex in plant cytokinesis.