Functional Investigations of p53 Acetylation Enabled by Heterobifunctional Molecules.

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) dynamically regulate the critical stress response and tumor suppressive functions of p53. Among these, acetylation events mediated by multiple acetyltransferases lead to differential target gene activation and subsequent cell fate. However, our understanding of these events is incomplete due to, in part, the inability to selectively and dynamically control p53 acetylation. We recently developed a heterobifunctional small molecule system, AceTAG, to direct the acetyltransferase p300/CBP for targeted protein acetylation in cells. Here, we expand AceTAG to leverage the acetyltransferase PCAF/GCN5 and apply these tools to investigate the functional consequences of targeted p53 acetylation in human cancer cells. We demonstrate that the recruitment of p300/CBP or PCAF/GCN5 to p53 results in distinct acetylation events and differentiated transcriptional activities. Further, we show that chemically induced acetylation of multiple hotspot p53 mutants results in increased stabilization and enhancement of transcriptional activity. Collectively, these studies demonstrate the utility of AceTAG for functional investigations of protein acetylation.

Mechanistic differences between linear vs. spirocyclic dialkyldiazirine probes for photoaffinity labeling.

Dialkyldiazirines have emerged as a photo-reactive group of choice for interactome mapping in live cell experiments. Upon irradiation, 'linear' dialkyldiazirines produce dialkylcarbenes which are susceptible to both intramolecular reactions and unimolecular elimination processes, as well as diazoalkanes, which also participate in intermolecular labeling. Cyclobutylidene has a nonclassical bonding structure and is stable enough to be captured in bimolecular reactions. Cyclobutanediazirines have more recently been studied as photoaffinity probes based on cyclobutylidene, but the mechanism, especially with respect to the role of putative diazo intermediates, was not fully understood. Here, we show that photolysis (365 nm) of cyclobutanediazirines can produce cyclobutylidene intermediates as evidenced by formation of their expected bimolecular and unimolecular products, including methylenecyclopropane derivatives. Unlike linear diazirines, cyclobutanediazirine photolysis in the presence of tetramethylethylene produces a [2 + 1] cycloaddition adduct. By contrast, linear diazirines produce diazo compounds upon low temperature photolysis in THF, whereas diazo compounds are not detected in similar photolyses of cyclobutanediazirines. Diazocyclobutane, prepared by independent synthesis, is labile, reactive toward water and capable of protein alkylation. The rate of diazocyclobutane decomposition is not affected by 365 nm light, suggesting that the photochemical conversion of diazocyclobutane to cyclobutylidene is not an important pathway. Finally, chemical proteomic studies revealed that a likely consequence of this primary conversion to a highly reactive carbene is a marked decrease in labeling by cyclobutanediazirine-based probes relative to linear diazirine counterparts both at the individual protein and proteome-wide levels. Collectively, these observations are consistent with a mechanistic picture for cyclobutanediazirine photolysis that involves carbene chemistry with minimal formation of diazo intermediates, and contrasts with the photolyses of linear diazirines where alkylation by diazo intermediates plays a more significant role.

Chemoproteomic development of SLC15A4 inhibitors with anti-inflammatory activity.

SLC15A4 is an endolysosome-resident transporter linked with autoinflammation and autoimmunity. Specifically, SLC15A4 is critical for Toll-like receptors (TLRs) 7-9 as well as nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-containing protein (NOD) signaling in several immune cell subsets. Notably, SLC15A4 is essential for the development of systemic lupus erythematosus in murine models and is associated with autoimmune conditions in humans. Despite its therapeutic potential, the availability of quality chemical probes targeting SLC15A4 functions is limited. In this study, we used an integrated chemical proteomics approach to develop a suite of chemical tools, including first-in-class functional inhibitors, for SLC15A4. We demonstrate that these inhibitors suppress SLC15A4-mediated endolysosomal TLR and NOD functions in a variety of human and mouse immune cells; we provide evidence of their ability to suppress inflammation in vivo and in clinical settings; and we provide insights into their mechanism of action. Our findings establish SLC15A4 as a druggable target for the treatment of autoimmune and autoinflammatory conditions.

Enhanced mapping of small-molecule binding sites in cells.

Photoaffinity probes are routinely utilized to identify proteins that interact with small molecules. However, despite this common usage, resolving the specific sites of these interactions remains a challenge. Here we developed a chemoproteomic workflow to determine precise protein binding sites of photoaffinity probes in cells. Deconvolution of features unique to probe-modified peptides, such as their tendency to produce chimeric spectra, facilitated the development of predictive models to confidently determine labeled sites. This yielded an expansive map of small-molecule binding sites on endogenous proteins and enabled the integration with multiplexed quantitation, increasing the throughput and dimensionality of experiments. Finally, using structural information, we characterized diverse binding sites across the proteome, providing direct evidence of their tractability to small molecules. Together, our findings reveal new knowledge for the analysis of photoaffinity probes and provide a robust method for high-resolution mapping of reversible small-molecule interactions en masse in native systems.

Chemoproteomic mapping of human milk oligosaccharide (HMO) interactions in cells.

Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are a family of unconjugated soluble glycans found in human breast milk that exhibit a myriad of biological activity. While recent studies have uncovered numerous biological functions for HMOs (antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory & probiotic properties), the receptors and protein binding partners involved in these processes are not well characterized. This can be attributed largely in part to the low affinity and transient nature of soluble glycan-protein interactions, precluding the use of traditional characterization techniques to survey binding partners in live cells. Here, we present the use of synthetic photoactivatable HMO probes to capture, enrich and identify HMO protein targets in live cells using mass spectrometry-based chemoproteomics. Following initial validation studies using purified lectins, we profiled the targets of HMO probes in live mouse macrophages. Using this strategy, we mapped hundreds of HMO binding partners across multiple cellular compartments, including many known glycan-binding proteins as well as numerous proteins previously not known to bind glycans. We expect our findings to inform future investigations of the diverse roles of how HMOs may regulate protein function.

A Chemical Proteomic Map of Heme-Protein Interactions.

Heme is an essential cofactor for many human proteins as well as the primary transporter of oxygen in blood. Recent studies have also established heme as a signaling molecule, imparting its effects through binding with protein partners rather than through reactivity of its metal center. However, the comprehensive annotation of such heme-binding proteins in the human proteome remains incomplete. Here, we describe a strategy which utilizes a heme-based photoaffinity probe integrated with quantitative proteomics to map heme-protein interactions across the proteome. In these studies, we identified 350+ unique heme-protein interactions, the vast majority of which were heretofore unknown and consist of targets from diverse functional classes, including transporters, receptors, enzymes, transcription factors, and chaperones. Among these proteins is the immune-related interleukin receptor-associated kinase 1 (IRAK1), where we provide preliminary evidence that heme agonizes its catalytic activity. Our findings should improve the current understanding of heme's regulation as well as its signaling functions and facilitate new insights of its roles in human disease.

Targeted Protein Acetylation in Cells Using Heterobifunctional Molecules.

Protein acetylation is a central event in orchestrating diverse cellular processes. However, current strategies to investigate protein acetylation in cells are often nonspecific or lack temporal and magnitude control. Here, we developed an acetylation tagging system, AceTAG, to induce acetylation of targeted proteins. The AceTAG system utilizes bifunctional molecules to direct the lysine acetyltransferase p300/CBP to proteins fused with the small protein tag FKBP12F36V, resulting in their induced acetylation. Using AceTAG, we induced targeted acetylation of a diverse array of proteins in cells, specifically histone H3.3, the NF-κB subunit p65/RelA, and the tumor suppressor p53. We demonstrate that targeted acetylation with the AceTAG system is rapid, selective, reversible and can be controlled in a dose-dependent fashion. AceTAG represents a useful strategy to modulate protein acetylation and should enable the exploration of targeted acetylation in basic biological and therapeutic contexts.

Evaluation of fully-functionalized diazirine tags for chemical proteomic applications.

The use of photo-affinity reagents for the mapping of noncovalent small molecule-protein interactions has become widespread. Recently, several 'fully-functionalized' (FF) chemical tags have been developed wherein a photoactivatable capture group, an enrichment handle, and a functional group for synthetic conjugation to a molecule of interest are integrated into a single modular tag. Diazirine-based FF tags in particular are increasingly employed in chemical proteomic investigations; however, despite routine usage, their relative utility has not been established. Here, we systematically evaluate several diazirine-containing FF tags, including a terminal diazirine analog developed herein, for chemical proteomic investigations. Specifically, we compared the general reactivity of five diazirine tags and assessed their impact on the profiles of various small molecules, including fragments and known inhibitors revealing that such tags can have profound effects on the proteomic profiles of chemical probes. Our findings should be informative for chemical probe design, photo-affinity reagent development, and chemical proteomic investigations.

The Druggability of Solute Carriers.

The transport of materials across membranes is a vital process for all aspects of cellular function, including growth, metabolism, and communication. Protein transporters are the molecular gates that control this movement and serve as key points of regulation for these processes, thus representing an attractive class of therapeutic targets. With more than 400 members, the solute carrier (SLC) membrane transport proteins are the largest family of transporters, yet, they are pharmacologically underexploited relative to other protein families and many of the available chemical tools possess suboptimal selectivity and efficacy. Fortuitously, there is increased interest in elucidating the physiological roles of SLCs as well as growing recognition of their therapeutic potential. This Perspective provides an overview of the SLC superfamily, including their biochemical and functional features, as well as their roles in various human diseases. In particular, we explore efforts and associated challenges toward drugging SLCs, as well as highlight opportunities for future drug discovery.

T315 Decreases Acute Myeloid Leukemia Cell Viability through a Combination of Apoptosis Induction and Autophagic Cell Death.

T315, an integrin-linked kinase (ILK) inhibitor, has been shown to suppress the proliferation of breast cancer, stomach cancer and chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells. Here we demonstrate that T315 decreases cell viability of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cell lines (HL-60 and THP-1) and primary leukemia cells from AML patients in a dose-responsive manner. Normal human bone marrow cells are less sensitive than leukemia cells to T315. T315 down regulates protein kinase B (Akt) and p-Akt and induces caspase activation, poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) cleavage, apoptosis and autophagy through an ILK-independent manner. Interestingly, pretreatment with autophagy inhibitors rescues cells from apoptosis and concomitant PARP cleavage, which implicates a key role of autophagic cell death in T315-mediated cytotoxicity. T315 also demonstrates efficacy in vivo, suppressing the growth of THP-1 xenograft tumors in athymic nude mice when administered intraperitoneally. This study shows that autophagic cell death and apoptosis cooperatively contribute to the anticancer activity of T315 in AML cells. In conclusion, the complementary roles of apoptotic and autophagic cell death should be considered in the future assessment of the translational value of T315 in AML therapy.

Zinc(II)-catalyzed intermolecular hydrative aldol reactions of 2-en-1-ynamides with aldehydes and water to form branched aldol products regio- and stereoselectively.

This work describes zinc(II)-catalyzed hydrative aldol reactions of 2-en-1-ynamides with aldehydes and water to afford branched aldol products regio- and stereoselectively. The anti and syn selectivity can be modulated by the sizes of sulfonamides to yield E- and Z-configured zinc(II) dienolates selectively. This new reaction leads to enantiopure aldol products by using a cheap chiral sulfonamide. The mechanistic analysis reveals that the sulfonamide amides of the substrates can trap a released proton to generate dual acidic sites to activate a carbonyl allylation reaction.

ZnII - and AuI-catalyzed regioselective hydrative oxidations of 3-en-1-ynes with Selectfluor: realization of 1,4-dioxo and 1,4-oxohydroxy functionalizations.

Catalytic 1,4-dioxo functionalizations of 3-en-1-ynes to (Z)- and (E)-2-en-1,4-dicarbonyl compounds are described. This regioselective difunctionalization was achieved in one-pot operation through initial alkyne hydration followed by in situ Selectfluor oxidation. The presence of pyridine alters the reaction chemoselectivity to give 4-hydroxy-2-en-1-carbonyl products instead. A cooperative action of pyridine and Zn(II) assists the hydrolysis of key oxonium intermediate.

Gold-catalyzed formal cycloaddition of 2-ethynylbenzyl ethers with organic oxides and α-diazoesters.

A world of possibilities: Gold-catalyzed reactions of 2-ethynylbenzyl ethers with organic oxides and α-diazoesters gave 1,3-dihydroisobenzofuran and naphthalene derivatives, respectively (see scheme; EWG = electron-withdrawing group). Mechanisms for the formation of the formal cycloadducts were elucidated by isotope labeling.

Gold-catalyzed reactions between alkenyldiazo carbonyl species and acetals.

In the presence of catalyst IPrAuSbF6 catalyst (IPr = 1,3-bis(diisopropylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene), alkenyldiazo carbonyl species react with organic acetals to give E-configured alkyl 3,5-dimethoxy-5-pent-2-enoates stereoselectively. This reaction sequence comprises an initial Prins-type reaction, followed by gold carbene formation.

Gold-catalyzed formal [3 + 3] and [4 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of nitrosobenzenes with alkenylgold carbenoids.

We report two new formal cycloaddition reactions between nitrosobenzenes and alkenylgold carbenoids. We obtained quinoline oxides 3 in satisfactory yields from the gold-catalyzed [3 + 3]-cycloadditions between nitrosobenzenes and alkenyldiazo esters 1. For propargyl esters 5, its resulting gold carbenes react with nitrosobenzene to give alkenylimine 8, followed by a [4 + 2]-cycloaddition with nitrosobenzene.

Gold-catalyzed stereoselective synthesis of azacyclic compounds through a redox/[2 + 2 + 1] cycloaddition cascade of nitroalkyne substrates.

We report a new redox/cycloaddition cascade on readily available 1-alkynyl-2-nitrobenzenes that produces complex azacyclic compounds stereoselectively. The core structures of the resulting products are constructed through a formal [2 + 2 + 1] cycloaddition among α-carbonyl carbenoids, nitroso species, and external alkenes.