Crystallographic fragment screening delivers diverse chemical scaffolds for Zika virus NS2B-NS3 protease inhibitor development.
bioRxiv
; 2024 Apr 29.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38746305
ABSTRACT
Zika virus (ZIKV) infections cause microcephaly in new-borns and Guillain-Barre syndrome in adults raising a significant global public health concern, yet no vaccines or antiviral drugs have been developed to prevent or treat ZIKV infections. The viral protease NS3 and its co-factor NS2B are essential for the cleavage of the Zika polyprotein precursor into individual structural and non-structural proteins and is therefore an attractive drug target. Generation of a robust crystal system of co-expressed NS2B-NS3 protease has enabled us to perform a crystallographic fragment screening campaign with 1076 fragments. 48 binders with diverse chemical scaffolds were identified in the active site of the protease, with another 6 fragment hits observed in a potential allosteric binding site. Our work provides potential starting points for the development of potent NS2B-NS3 protease inhibitors. Furthermore, we have structurally characterized a potential allosteric binding pocket, identifying opportunities for allosteric inhibitor development.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Idioma:
En
Revista:
BioRxiv
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article