Identification of Potent Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitors as New Candidates for Alzheimer Disease via Virtual Screening, Molecular Docking, Dynamic Simulation, and Molecular Mechanics-Poisson-Boltzmann Surface Area Calculations.

Huperzine A (HUP) plays a crucial role in Alzheimer's therapy by enhancing cognitive function through increased cholinergic activity as a reversible acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor. Despite some limitations being seen in AChE inhibitors, ongoing research remains dedicated to finding innovative and more effective treatments for Alzheimer's disease. To achieve the goal of the discovery of potential HUP analogues with improved physicochemical properties, less toxic properties, and high biological activity, many in silico methods were applied. Based on the acetylcholinesterase-ligand complex, an e-pharmacophore model was developed. Subsequently, a virtual screening involving a collection of 1762 natural compounds, sourced from the PubChem database, was performed. This screening yielded 131 compounds that exhibited compatibility with the established pharmacophoric hypothesis. These selected ligands were then subjected to molecular docking within the active site of the 4EY5 receptor. As a result, we identified four compounds that displayed remarkable docking scores and exhibited low free binding energy to the target. These top four compounds, CID_162895946, CID_44461278, CID_44285285, and CID_81108419, were submitted to ADMET prediction and molecular dynamic simulations, yielding encouraging findings in terms of their pharmacokinetic characteristics and stability. Finally, the molecular dynamic simulation, cross-dynamic correlation matrix, free energy landscape, and MM-PBSA calculations demonstrated that two ligands from the selected ligands formed very resilient complexes with the enzyme acetylcholinesterase, with significant binding affinity. Therefore, these two compounds are recommended for further experimental research as possible (AChE) inhibitors.

Marine-Derived Compounds as Potential Inhibitors of Hsp90 for Anticancer and Antimicrobial Drug Development: A Comprehensive In Silico Study.

Marine compounds constitute a diverse and invaluable resource for the discovery of bioactive substances with promising applications in the pharmaceutical development of anti-inflammatory and antibacterial agents. In this study, a comprehensive methodology was employed, encompassing pharmacophore modeling, virtual screening, in silico ADMET assessment (encompassing aspects of absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity), and molecular dynamics simulations. These methods were applied to identify new inhibitors targeting the Hsp90 protein (heat shock protein 90), commencing with a diverse assembly of compounds sourced from marine origins. During the virtual screening phase, an extensive exploration was conducted on a dataset comprising 31,488 compounds sourced from the CMNPD database, characterized by a wide array of molecular structures. The principal objective was the development of structure-based pharmacophore models, a valuable approach when the pool of known ligands is limited. The pharmacophore model DDRRR was successfully constructed within the active sites of the Hsp90 crystal structure. Subsequent docking studies led to the identification of six compounds (CMNPD 22591, 9335, 10015, 360799, 15115, and 20988) demonstrating substantial binding affinities, each with values below -8.3 kcal/mol. In the realm of in silico ADMET predictions, five of these compounds exhibited favorable pharmacokinetic properties. Furthermore, molecular dynamics simulations and total binding energy calculations using MM-PBSA indicated that these marine-derived compounds formed exceptionally stable complexes with the Hsp90 receptor over a 100-nanosecond simulation period. These findings underscore the considerable potential of these novel marine compounds as promising candidates for anticancer and antimicrobial drug development.

Discovery of novel potent drugs for influenza by inhibiting the vital function of neuraminidase via fragment-based drug design (FBDD) and molecular dynamics simulation strategies.

The current work describes a fragment linking methodology to generate new neuraminidase inhibitors. A total number of 28,977 fragments from Zinc 20 have been obtained and screened for neuraminidase receptor affinity. Using Schrödinger software, the highest-scoring 270 fragment hits (with scores greater than -7.6) were subjected to fragment combining to create 100 new molecules. These 100 novel compounds were studied using XP docking to evaluate the molecular interaction modes and their binding affinity to neuraminidase receptor. The top ten molecules were selected, for ADMET, drug-likeness features. Based on these characteristics, the best four developed molecules and Zanamivir were submitted to a molecular dynamics simulation investigation to estimate their dynamics within the neuraminidase receptor using Gromacs software. All MD simulation findings show that the generated complexes are very stable when compared to the clinical inhibitor (Zanamivir). In addition, the four designed neuraminidase inhibitors formed very stable complexes with neuraminidase receptor (with total binding energies ranging from -83.50 to -107.85 Kj/mol) according to the total binding energy calculated by MM-PBSA. For the objective of developing new influenza medications, these novel molecules have the potential to be further evaluated in vitro and in vivo for influenza drug discovery.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Pharmacophore-based virtual screening, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics studies for the discovery of novel FLT3 inhibitors.

FLT3 is considered a potential target of acute myeloid leukemia therapy. In this study, we applied a computer-aided methodology unifying molecular docking and pharmacophore screening to identify potent inhibitors against FLT3. To investigate the pharmacophore area and binding mechanism of FLT3, the reported co-crystallized Gilteritinib ligand was docked into the active site using Glide XP. Based on the docking results, we identified structure-based pharmacophore characteristics resistant to potent FLT3 inhibitors. The best hypothesis was corroborated using test and decoy sets, and the verified hypo was utilized to screen the chemical database. The hits from the pharmacophore-based screening were then screened again using a structure-based method that included molecular docking at various precisions; the selected molecules were further examined and refined using drug-like filters and ADMET analysis. Finally, two hits were picked out for molecular dynamic simulation. The results showed two hits were expected to have potent inhibitory activity and excellent ADMET characteristics, and they might be used as new leads in the development of FLT3 inhibitors.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Unsymmetrical aromatic disulfides as SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitors: Molecular docking, molecular dynamics, and ADME scoring investigations.

COVID-19 pandemic caused by very severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) agent is an ongoing major global health concern. The disease has caused more than 452 million affected cases and more than 6 million death worldwide. Hence, there is an urgency to search for possible medications and drug treatments. There are no approved drugs available to treat COVID-19 yet, although several vaccine candidates are already available and some of them are listed for emergency use by the world health organization (WHO). Identifying a potential drug candidate may make a significant contribution to control the expansion of COVID-19. The in vitro biological activity of asymmetric disulfides against coronavirus through the inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro) protein was reported. Due to the lack of convincing evidence those asymmetric disulfides have favorable pharmacological properties for the clinical treatment of Coronavirus, in silico evaluation should be performed to assess the potential of these compounds to inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 Mpro. In this context, we report herein the molecular docking for a series of 40 unsymmetrical aromatic disulfides as SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitor. The optimal binding features of disulfides within the binding pocket of SARS-CoV-2 endoribonuclease protein (Protein Data Bank [PDB]: 6LU7) was described. Studied compounds were ranked for potential effectiveness, and those have shown high molecular docking scores were proposed as novel drug candidates against SARS-CoV-2. Moreover, the outcomes of drug similarity and ADME (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Excretion) analyses have may have the effectiveness of acting as medicines, and would be of interest as promising starting point for designing compounds against SARS-CoV-2. Finally, the stability of these three compounds in the complex with Mpro was validated through molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, in which they displayed stable trajectory and molecular properties with a consistent interaction profile.

Combined Pharmacophore Modeling, 3D-QSAR, Molecular Docking and Molecular Dynamics Study on Indolyl-aryl-sulfone Derivatives as New HIV1 Inhibitors.

The present study deals with the in silico of 45 indolyl-aryl-sulfones known as anti-HIV1. The data were collected from recent previously reported inhibitors and divided into a sub-set of 33 compounds as the training set and the remaining 12 compounds were kept in the test set. The selected pharmacophore-ADRRR-yielded a statistically significant 3D-QSAR model containing high confidence scores (R2 = 0.930, Q2 = 0.848, and RMSE = 0.460). The predictive power of the established pharmacophore model was validated with an external test (r2 = 0.848). A systematic virtual screening workflow shows an enrichment factor and has revealed a high predictive power. Then the model was used to screen the filtered PubChem database mapping all chemical features of model pharmacophore. The recognized hits were further assessed by in silico ADMET studies. Molecular dynamics also used to explore the stability of obtained complexes. Finally, these selected compounds are probably to become a good lead molecule for the development of effective anti-HIV-1 drugs.

In silico investigation of phytoconstituents from Cameroonian medicinal plants towards COVID-19 treatment.

In silico studies performed on the metabolites of four Cameroonian medicinal plants with a view to propose potential molecules to fight against COVID-19 were carried out. At first, molecular docking was performed for a set of 84 selected phytochemicals with SARS-CoV-2 main protease (PDB ID: 6lu7) protein. It was further followed by assessing the pharmacokinetics and pharmacological abilities of 15 compounds, which showed low binding energy values. As the screening criteria for their ADMET properties were performed, only two compounds have shown suitable pharmacological properties for human administration which were shortlisted. Furthermore, the stability of binding of these compounds was assessed by performing molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Based on further analysis through molecular dynamics simulations and reactivity studies, it was concluded that only the Pycnanthuquinone C (17) and the Pycnanthuquinone A (18) extracted from the Pycnanthus angolensis could be considered as candidate inhibitors for targeted protein. Indeed, we expect that these compounds could show excellent in vitro and in vivo activity against SARS-CoV-2. Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11224-022-01939-7.

Design of novel benzimidazole derivatives as potential α-amylase inhibitors using QSAR, pharmacokinetics, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics simulation studies.

In the present study, a quantitative relationship between the biological inhibitory activity of alpha-amylase and molecular structures of novel benzimidazole derivatives is analyzed in silico. The best QSAR model screened via MLR technique indicated that the exact mass, topological diameter and numerical rotational bonding structural properties of benzimidazole derivatives highly affect the bioactivity of these compounds against α-amylase. Based on the structural properties identified via linear QSAR model favorable for improving pIC50 of benzimidazole derivatives, fourteen new molecules bearing benzimidazole radicals were designed and their biological inhibitory activity against α-amylase was improved. QSAR model predictions showed that the designed molecules exhibited a higher potential biological level activity IC50 than acarbose used in positive control (IC50= 1.46 µM). Screening of drug-like properties, pharmacokinetics and toxicity of the proposed molecules led to select three molecules as candidates for use as drug aid to ingest starch and glycogen. As a result, using molecular docking simulations, the docking poses of the three molecules inside the α-amylase receptor pocket (PDB code: 1HNY) were predicted. Also, the most important potential interactions between the active amino acid sites in α-amylase protein pocket and the proposed drug molecules were described. The obtained hypotheses regarding the stability of the proposed molecules inside α-amylase pocket were validated by carrying out molecular dynamic simulations in aqueous background similar to the ones of proteins. The DM results confirmed the optimal stability of the α-amylase backbone with the drug molecules proposed in this computational investigation.

Combined molecular docking and dynamics simulations studies of natural compounds as potent inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2 main protease.

Main protease (Mpro) of SARS-CoV-2 is a key CoV enzyme that plays a pivotal role in mediating viral replication and transcription, making it an attractive drug target for SARS-CoV-2 the new strain of coronavirus. In this study, we evaluated biologically active compounds present in medicinal plants as potential SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitors, using a molecular docking study with Autodock Vina software. Top seven compounds Afzelin, Phloroglucinol, Myricetin-3-O- rutinosid Tricin 7-neohesperidoside, Silybin, Kaempferol and Silychristin among 50 molecules of natural Origin (Algerian Medicinal plants) were selected which had better and significantly low binding energy as compared to the reference molecule with binding affinities of -9.3, -9.3, -9, -8.9, -8.5, 8.3 and -8.3 kcal mol-1 respectively. Then, we analyzed the ADME properties of the best 7 ligands using the Web server SwissADME. Two of small molecules have been shown to be the ideal candidates for further drug development. Finally, the stability of the both compounds complexed with Mpro was validated through molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, they displayed stable trajectory (RMSD, RMSF) and molecular properties with consistent interaction profile in molecular dynamics simulations, moreover, Silybin could form more stable complex with Mpro than Silychristin.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Multi-combined 3D-QSAR, docking molecular and ADMET prediction of 5-azaindazole derivatives as LRRK2 tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

The enzyme Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) has become a target of therapeutic interest in Parkinson research.Athree-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationships(3D-QSAR) study was performed on twenty six azaindazole derivatives as LRRK2 inhibitorsobtained using rigid body alignment (Distill). CoMFA and CoMSIA model shave achieved high activity-descriptor relationship efficiency of 96% and 93% as shown by the regression-coefficient (R2=0.961 and 0.933) and were found statistically significant with cross validated coefficient (Q2CV= 0.625 and 0.554), respectively.3D-QSAR models were externally validated by a test set of sixbioactive compounds showing satisfactory predicted correlation coefficient (R2pred) of 0.865 and 0.853 for CoMFA and CoMSIA models, respectively. Besides, Y-randomization test was also performed to ensure the robustness of the obtained3D-QSAR models. This study provides valuable clues to design new compounds against LRRK2. Docking studies suggested that the ligand (new designed compound C2) has more potential than the ligand of reference 4K4 and confirm the obtained results from 3D-QSAR studies. Furthermore, the newly designed compounds and ligand of reference 4K4 were analyzed for their ADMET properties and drug likeness. These results would be of great help in leading optimization for developing new anti-Parkinson drug. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Cameroonian medicinal plants as potential candidates of SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an ongoing pandemic instigated by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which changed the daily train of the world's population and cause several dead. Despite the significant efforts made in developing vaccines and therapeutic drugs, there is currently no available effective treatment against this new coronavirus infection, hence the need to continue research which is aimed at limiting the progression of this virus. The present study which has as objective to carry out in silico studies on the metabolites of some Cameroonian medicinal plants of the Asteraceae family with a view to propose potential molecules to fight against COVID-19. The selected plants are commonly used to treat respiratory infectious diseases, and for this reason they may contain some constituents which could exhibit an antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. In this work, a set of 74 naturally occurring compounds are computed with SARS-CoV-2 main protease protein (PDB ID: 6lu7) and spike protein (PDB ID: 6m0j) for their affinity and stability using binding energy analysis and molecular docking. Chrysoeriol-7-O-ß-D-glucuronopyranoside (compound 16) has showed promising results including excellent Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion (ADME) parameters as well as insignificant toxicity. Finally, the stability of this compound is complex with the two proteins validated through molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, they displayed stable trajectory and molecular properties with consistent interaction profile in molecular dynamics simulations. These findings call for further in vitro and in vivo challenges of phytoconstituents against the COVID-19 as a potential agent to fight the spread of this dramatic pandemic.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Combined 3D-{QSAR} and Molecular Docking Analysis of Thienopyrimidine Derivatives as Staphylococcus aureus Inhibitors.

The discovery of antibacterials is considered one of the greatest medical achievements of all time. In this work, a combination of three computational analyzes: 3D-QSAR, molecular docking and ADME evaluation were applied in thienopyrimidine derivatives intended toward gram-positive bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. The validity of 3D-QSAR model was tested with a set of data which is divided into a training and a test set. The two models constructed (CoMFA and CoMSIA) show good statistical reliability (q2 = 0.758; r2 = 0.96; r2pred = 0.783) and (q2 = 0.744; r2 = 0.97; r2pred = 0.625) respectively. In addition, docking methods were applied to understand the structural features responsible for the affinity of the ligands in the binding of S. aureus DNA gyrase. Drug likeness and ADME analysis applied in this series of new proposed compounds, have shown that the five lead molecules would have the potential to be effective drugs and could be used as a starting point for designing compounds against Staphylococcus aureus.

Combined docking methods and molecular dynamics to identify effective antiviral 2, 5-diaminobenzophenonederivatives against SARS-CoV-2.

The aim of this work is to contribute to the research in finding lead compounds for clinical use, to identify new drugs that target the SARS-CoV-2 virus main protease (Mpro). In this study, we used molecular docking strategies to analyze 2.5-diaminobenzophenone compounds against Malaria and to compare results with the Nelfinavir as a FDA-approved HIV-1 protease inhibitor recommended for the treatment of COVID-19. These efforts identified the potential compounds against SAR-COV-2 Mpro with the docking scores ranges from -6.1 to -7.75 kcal/mol, which exhibited better interactions than the Nelfinavir. Among thirty-six studied, compounds 20c, 24c, 30c, 34c, 35c and 36c showed the highest affinity and involved in forming hydrophobic interactions with Glu166, Thr24, Thr25, and Thr26 residues and forming H-bonding interactions with Gln189, Cys145, and His41residues. Pharmacokinetic properties and toxicity (ADMET) were also determined for identified compounds. This study result in the identification of two compounds 35 and 36 having high binding affinity, good pharmacokinetics properties and lowest toxicity. The structural stability and dynamics of lead compounds within the active site of 3CLpro was also examined using molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Essential dynamics demonstrated that the two complexes remain stable during the entire duration of simulation. We have shown that these two lead molecules would have the potential to act as promising drug-candidates and would be of interest as starting point for designing compounds against the SARS-CoV-2.