Protection against Oxidative Stress and Metabolic Alterations by Synthetic Peptides Derived from Erythrina edulis Seed Protein.

The ability of multifunctional food-derived peptides to act on different body targets make them promising alternatives in the prevention/management of chronic disorders. The potential of Erythrina edulis (pajuro) protein as a source of multifunctional peptides was proven. Fourteen selected synthetic peptides identified in an alcalase hydrolyzate from pajuro protein showed in vitro antioxidant, anti-hypertensive, anti-diabetic, and/or anti-obesity effects. The radical scavenging properties of the peptides could be responsible for the potent protective effects observed against the oxidative damage caused by FeSO4 in neuroblastoma cells. Moreover, their affinity towards the binding cavity of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) were predicted by molecular modeling. The results demonstrated that some peptides such as YPSY exhibited promising binding at both enzymes, supporting the role of pajuro protein as a novel ingredient of functional foods or nutraceuticals for prevention/management of oxidative stress, hypertension, and metabolic-alteration-associated chronic diseases.

Formation Mechanism of Inter-Crosslink in DNA by Nitrogen Oxides Pollutants through A Diazonium Intermediate.

Outdoor air pollution is a mixture of multiple atmospheric pollutants, among which nitrogen oxide (NOx) stands out due to its association with several diseases. NOx reactivity can conduct to DNA damage as severe as interstrand crosslinks (ICL) formation, that in turn is able to block DNA replication and transcription. Experimental studies have suggested that the ICL formation due to NOx is realized through a diazonium intermediate (DI). In this work, we have modeled the DI structure, including a DNA double-strand composed of two base pairs GC/CG, being diazotized as one of the guanine nucleotides. The structural stability of DNA with DI lesion was essayed through 500 ns molecular dynamics simulations. It was found that the DNA structure of the oligonucleotide is stable when the DI is present since the loss of a Guanine-Cytosine hydrogen bond is replaced by the presence of two cation-π interactions. Additionally, we have studied the mechanism of formation of a crosslink between the two guanine nucleobases from the modeled DI by carrying out DFT calculations at the M06-L/DNP+ level of theory. Our results show that the mechanism is thermodynamically favored by a strong stabilization of the ICL product, and the process is kinetically viable since its limiting stage is accessible.

The urokinase plasminogen activator binding to its receptor: a quantum biochemistry description within an in/homogeneous dielectric function framework with application to uPA-uPAR peptide inhibitors.

Despite being recognized as a therapeutic target in the processes of cancer cell proliferation and metastasis for over 50 years, the interaction of the urokinase plasminogen activator uPA with its receptor uPAR still needs an improved understanding. High resolution crystallographic data (PDB ) of the uPA-uPAR binding geometry was used to perform quantum biochemistry computations within the density functional theory (DFT) framework. A divide to conquer methodology considering a mixed homogeneous/inhomogeneous dielectric model and explicitly taking water molecules into account was employed to obtain a large set of uPA-uPAR residue-residue interaction energies. In order of importance, not only were Phe25 > Tyr24 > Trp30 > Ile28 shown to be the most relevant uPA residues binding it to uPAR, but the residues Lys98 > His87 > Gln40 > Asn22 > Lys23 > Val20 also had significant interaction energies, which helps to explain published experimental mutational data. Furthermore, the results obtained with the uPA-uPAR in/homogeneous dielectric function show that a high dielectric constant value ε = 40 is adequate to take into account the electrostatic environment at the interface between the proteins, while using a smaller value of ε (<10) leads to an overestimation of the uPA-uPAR binding energy. Hot spots of the uPA-uPAR binding domain were identified and a quantum biochemistry description of the uPAR blockers uPA21-30 and cyclo21,29uPA21-29[(S21C;H29C)] was performed, demonstrating that cyclization improves the stability of mimetic peptides without compromising their binding energies to uPAR.

Phylogenetic, molecular evolution and structural analyses of the WFDC1/prostate stromal protein 20 (ps20).

The WFDC1 gene is frequently down-regulated or lost in prostate cancer, and the encoded protein, ps20, has been implicated in epithelial cell behaviour and angiogenesis. However, ps20 remains largely uncharacterised with respect to its structure and interacting partners. This study characterised the evolution, functionality and structural characteristics of WFDC1/ps20 using phylogenetic reconstruction and other computational approaches. Bayesian phylogenetic analyses suggested that ps20 appeared in a common ancestor of deuterostomes-protostomes. The rate of evolutionary change within the coding regions of vertebrate WFDC1 genes and the synteny conservation in mammals differed from that of other vertebrate clades, indicating a possible functional diversity of ps20 homologues. A gene set enrichment analysis of the genes around WFDC1 (conserved synteny) showed functional relationships between the WFDC1, CDH13, CRISPLD2, IRF8 and TFPI2 genes. The molecular evolution of ps20 has been driven by purifying selection, particularly in the segments corresponding to exons 3 and 4, which encode the most conserved regions of the protein. A co-evolution analysis showed that residues within these regions co-vary with each other during the evolution of ps20. These results show that the regions corresponding to exons 3 and 4 are ps20-specific structure-function modules. Homology modelling of the exon 2-encoded polypeptide and subsequent dynamics calculus using a Gaussian network model showed that residues with high conformational flexibility are part of a loop region involved in protein-protein recognition, given the similarity with other serine protease inhibitors. Residues C96, R94, L105, and C66 are critical for the integrity and functionality of this ps20 region.

Explaining urokinase type plasminogen activator inhibition by amino-5-hydroxybenzimidazole and two naphthamidine-based compounds through quantum biochemistry.

Urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) is a biomarker and therapeutic target for several cancer types whose inhibition has been shown to slow tumor growth and metastasis. In this work, crystallographic data of uPA complexed with distinct ligands (PDB id: 1SQA, 1SQO, and 1FV9) were used to perform quantum biochemistry calculations based on the framework of density functional theory (DFT) and within the molecular fractionation with conjugated caps (MFCC) scheme. Our calculations revealed a total energy interaction of -107.30, -99.5, and -35.30 kcal mol-1 for two naphthamidine-based compounds (Ul1 and UI2) and 2-amino-5-hydroxybenzimidazole (172), respectively, which are in good agreement with known inhibitory experiments. Residues Asp189, Ser190, Cys191-Cys220, Gln192, Trp 215, Gly216, and Gly219 were identified as the main interacting amino acid residues with interaction energy contributions lower than -4.0 kcal mol-1 for uPA/UI1 and UPA/UI2 complexes. In the case of compound 172, our calculations have shown that the most important interactions occur with residues Asp189, Cys191-Cys220, and Ser190. Our results highlight the relevance of the protonation state of ligands and residues and that the naphthamidine scaffold of UI1 and UI2 is the main determinant of their potency, followed by their aminopyrimidine substitution. Altogether, the results of this work contribute to the understanding of the uPA binding mechanisms of the inhibitory compounds Ul1 and 172, stimulating the use of quantum biochemistry theoretical approaches for the development of new uPA inhibitors as new medicines for cancer treatment.

Determinación de secuencia y modelaje por homología de la lipasa de Marinobacter sp. LB / Sequence determination and homology modeling of lipase from Marinobacter sp. LB

Las lipasas de la familia I son reconocidas a nivel industrial por sus actividades catalíticas de esterificación, interesterificación y transesterificación. En esta investigación se caracterizó por análisis in silico a la lipasa de Marinobacter sp. LB aislado de las Salinas de Pilluana, San Martín. Con tal finalidad, se amplificó el gen lip mediante la reacción en cadena de la polimerasa (PCR) de punto final y la secuencia nucleotídica fue analizada in silico. Se elucidó la estructura terciaria empleando como molde a la lipasa 1EX9 de Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 y se ejecutó el acoplamiento molecular con tres sustratos. El gen lip presentó 927 pb y la proteína madura, 284 aminoácidos. La lipasa posee un peso molecular de 29.99 kDa y un pI de 8.89. Asimismo, se identificaron residuos Ser78, Asp229 e His251, típicos de la triada catalítica de una lipasa de la familia I. Además, se evidenciaron once α-hélices periféricas y siete láminasβ internas. La región del bolsillo de unión y su afinidad por lípidos fue demostrada realizando acoplamientos moleculares con trioctanoina, tributirina y trioleina, con energías de -314.28, -248.11 y -215.44 kcal/mol, respectivamente; siendo los aminoácidos de interacción Asn167, Lys106, Trp172, Thr164, Ala179. En conclusión, la estructura tridimensional de la lipasa de Marinobacter sp. LB fue construida por modelamiento homólogo y validada en base a la calidad estereoquímica y el entorno de sus aminoácidos; mientras que, los análisis de acoplamiento con sustratos de lipasas permitieron evidenciar los aminoácidos que participan en el bolsillo de unión.

Family I lipases are industrially recognized for their catalytic activities of esterification, interesterification and transesterification. In this study, Marinobacter sp. LB lipase isolated from Salinas de Pilluana, San Martín was characterized by in silico analysis. For this purpose, lip gene was amplified by conventional Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and nucleotide sequence was analyzed in silico. The tertiary structure was elucidated using the 1EX9 lipase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 as a template and molecular docking was executed with three substrates. The lip gene had 927 bp and mature protein, 284 amino acids. The lipase had a molecular weight of 29.99 kDa and pI of 8.89. Also typicall catalytic triad residues of family I lipases (Ser78, Asp229 and His251) were identified. In addition, eleven peripheral α-helixs and seven internal β-sheets were found. Binding pocket and its affinity for lipids were demonstrated by making molecular couplings with trioctanoin, tributyrin and triolein, with energies of -314.28, -248.11 and -215.44 kcal/mol, respectively; amino acids of interaction being Asn167, Lys106, Trp172, Thr164, Ala179. In conclusion, a 3D structure of Marinobacter sp. LB lipase was built using homologous modeling and validated based on the stereochemical quality and amino acids environment; while docking analysis with lipases substrates allowed to demonstrate the amino acids that participate in the binding pocket.

Human-specific features of the G-quadruplex in the androgen receptor gene promoter: A comparative structural and dynamics study.

The androgen receptor (AR) promoter contains guanine-rich regions that are able to fold into polymorphic G-quadruplex (GQ) structures, and whose deletion decreases AR gene transcription. Our attention was focused on this region because of the frequent termination of sequencing reactions during promoter methylation studies. UV and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy of synthetic oligonucleotides encompassing these guanine-rich regions suggested a parallel quadruplex topology with three guanine quartets and three side loops in the three cases. Melting curves revealed a lower thermostability of the human GQ compared to the rat/mouse QG structures, which is attributed to the presence of a longer central loop in the former. One molecular model is proposed for the highly similar sequences in the rat/mouse. Due to the polymorphism resulting from possible arrangements of the guanine tracts, two models were derived for the human GQ. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations determined that both models for the human GQ had higher flexibility and lower stability than the rodent GQ models. These properties result from the presence of a longer central loop in the human GQ models, which contains 11 and 13 nucleotides, in comparison to the 2-nucleotide long loop in the rat/mouse GQ. Overall, the unveiled structural and dynamics features provide sufficient detail for the intelligent design of drugs targeting the human AR promoter.

KLK14 interactions with HAI-1 and HAI-2 serine protease inhibitors: A molecular dynamics and relative free-energy calculations study.

Kallikrein 14 (KLK14) is a serine protease linked to several pathologies including prostate cancer and positively correlates with Gleason score. Though KLK14 functioning in cancer is poorly understood, it has been implicated in HGF/Met signaling, given that KLK14 proteolytically inhibits HGF activator-inhibitor 1 (HAI-1), which strongly inhibits pro-HGF activators, thereby contributing to tumor progression. In this work, KLK14 binding to either hepatocyte growth factor activator inhibitor type-1 (HAI-1) or type-2 (HAI-2) was essayed using homology modeling, molecular dynamic simulations and free-energy calculations through MM/PBSA and MM/GBSA. KLK14 was successfully modeled. Calculated free energies suggested higher binding affinity for the KLK14/HAI-1 interaction than for KLK14/HAI-2. This difference in binding affinity is largely explained by the higher stability of the hydrogen-bond networks in KLK14/HAI-1 along the simulation trajectory. A key arginine residue in both HAI-1 and HAI-2 is responsible for their interaction with the S1 pocket in KLK14. Additionally, MM/GBSA free-energy decomposition postulates that KLK14 Asp174 and Trp196 are hotspots for binding HAI-1 and HAI-2.

Nonenzymatic Reactions above Phospholipid Surfaces of Biological Membranes: Reactivity of Phospholipids and Their Oxidation Derivatives.

Phospholipids play multiple and essential roles in cells, as components of biological membranes. Although phospholipid bilayers provide the supporting matrix and surface for many enzymatic reactions, their inherent reactivity and possible catalytic role have not been highlighted. As other biomolecules, phospholipids are frequent targets of nonenzymatic modifications by reactive substances including oxidants and glycating agents which conduct to the formation of advanced lipoxidation end products (ALEs) and advanced glycation end products (AGEs). There are some theoretical studies about the mechanisms of reactions related to these processes on phosphatidylethanolamine surfaces, which hypothesize that cell membrane phospholipids surface environment could enhance some reactions through a catalyst effect. On the other hand, the phospholipid bilayers are susceptible to oxidative damage by oxidant agents as reactive oxygen species (ROS). Molecular dynamics simulations performed on phospholipid bilayers models, which include modified phospholipids by these reactions and subsequent reactions that conduct to formation of ALEs and AGEs, have revealed changes in the molecular interactions and biophysical properties of these bilayers as consequence of these reactions. Then, more studies are desirable which could correlate the biophysics of modified phospholipids with metabolism in processes such as aging and diseases such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, and Alzheimer's disease.

DFT study of the mechanism of the reaction of aminoguanidine with methylglyoxal.

We have studied the mechanism of the reaction between aminoguanidine (AG) and methylglyoxal (MG) by carrying out Dmol3/DFT calculations, obtaining intermediates, transition-state structures, and free-energy profiles for all of the elementary steps of the reaction. Designed models included explicit water solvent, which forms hydrogen-bond networks around the reactants and intermediate molecules, facilitating intramolecular proton transfer in some steps of the reaction mechanism. The reaction take place in four steps, namely: (1) formation of a guanylhydrazone-acetylcarbinol adduct by condensation of AG and MG; (2) dehydration of the adduct; (3) formation of an 1,2,4-triazine derivative by ring closure; and (4) dehydration with the formation of 5-methyl 3-amino-1,2,4-triazine as the final product. From a microkinetic point of view, the first dehydration step was found to be the rate-determining step for the reaction, with the reaction having an apparent activation energy of 12.65 kcal mol⁻¹. Additionally, some analogous structures of intermediates and transition states for the reaction between AG and 2,3-dicarbonyl-phosphatidylethanolamine, a possible intermediate in Amadori-glycated phosphatidylethanolamine (Amadori-PE) autooxidation, were obtained to evaluate the reaction above a phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) surface. Our results are in agreement with experimental results obtaining by other authors, showing that AG is efficient at trapping dicarbonyl compounds such as methylglyoxal, and by extension these compounds joined to biomolecules such as PE in environments such as surfaces and their aqueous surroundings.

Reactivity of a phospholipid monolayer model under periodic boundary conditions: a density functional theory study of the Schiff base formation between phosphatidylethanolamine and acetaldehyde.

A mechanism for the formation of the Schiff base between an acetaldehyde and an amine-phospholipid monolayer model based on Dmol3/density functional theory calculations under periodic boundary conditions was constructed. This is the first time such a system has been modeled to examine its chemical reactivity at this computation level. Each unit cell contains two phospholipid molecules, one acetaldehyde molecule, and nine water molecules. One of the amine-phospholipid molecules in the cell possesses a neutral amino group that is used to model the nucleophilic attack on the carboxyl group of acetaldehyde, whereas the other has a charged amino group acting as a proton donor. The nine water molecules form a hydrogen bond network along the polar heads of the phospholipids that facilitates very fast proton conduction at the interface. Using periodic boundary conditions afforded proton transfer between different cells. The reaction takes place in two steps, namely, (1) formation of a carbinolamine and (2) its dehydration to the Schiff base. The carbinolamine is the primary reaction intermediate, and dehydration is the rate-determining step of the process, consistent with available experimental evidence for similar reactions. On the basis of the results, the cell membrane surface environment may boost phospholipid glycation via a neighboring catalyst effect.

Identificación in silico de un grupo de secuencias ortólogas conservadas (COS) de Ipomoea batatas / In silico prediction of conserved ortholog set (COS) sequences from Ipomoea batatas

En el presente trabajo se describe una serie de procedimientos bioinformáticos para la predicción de un grupo secuencias ortólogas conservadas (COS) de Ipomoea batatas, así como la evaluación de su potencial utilidad para la generación de marcadores moleculares y estudios de diversidad en esta especie. Con ese propósito usando los programas BLAST X y TBLASTN se realizó una comparación reciproca por similaridad entre secuencias ESTs procedentes de librerías de cDNAs de Ipomoea batatas, propias o disponibles de modo público en la base de datos GenBank, con secuencias COS de Arabidopsis thaliana. La anotación funcional de las secuencias COS predichas en Ipomoea batatas se realizo usando los programas BLASTX, INTERPROSCAN y PSI-BLAST. Se obtuvieron en total 204 secuencias COS candidatos de Ipomoea batatas, siendo 16 secuencias provenientes de una librería generada a partir de raíces de reserva. Se evaluó de modo computacional el polimorfismo de las secuencias COS de raíces de reserva, obteniéndose SNPs en 8 secuencias, y secuencias repetidas en tandem en una de ellas.

We develop some bioinformatics procedures to predict Conserved Ortholog Set (COS) sequences from Ipomoea batatas, and evaluate their usefulness for molecular markers and diversity studies of this species. We predict orthology relationship between Ipomoea batatas ESTs sequences and Arabidopsis thaliana COS sequences, according to Best Bidirectional Hits (BBHs) criteria, realizing similarity comparison using BLAST X and TBLASTN programs. We obtained a set of 204 putative COS sequences, 16 of them belonged to storage roots. Functional annotation of sweet potato predicted sequences COS was realized using BLASTX, INTERPROSCAN and PSI-BLAST programs. We evaluate possible polymorphisms in COS candidate sequences, finding SNPs in eight sequences and tandem repeats in one of them.