scholarly journals Allosteric inhibition of Aurora-A kinase by a synthetic VNAR nanobody

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Selena G. Burgess ◽  
Arkadiusz Oleksy ◽  
Tommaso Cavazza ◽  
Mark W. Richards ◽  
Isabelle Vernos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinases ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Catalytic Domain ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Protein Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Single Domain ◽  
Atp Binding ◽  
Aurora A Kinase ◽  
Aurora A ◽  
Allosteric Site

AbstractThe vast majority of clinically-approved protein kinase inhibitors target the ATP binding pocket directly. Consequently, many inhibitors have broad selectivity profiles and most have significant off-target effects. Allosteric inhibitors are generally more selective, but are difficult to identify because allosteric binding sites are often unknown or poorly characterized, and there is no clearly preferred approach to generating hit matter. Aurora-A is activated through binding of TPX2 to an allosteric site on the kinase catalytic domain, and this knowledge could be exploited to generate an inhibitor. However, it is currently unclear how to design such a compound because a small molecule or peptide mimetic of TPX2 would be expected to activate, not inhibit the kinase. Here, we generated an allosteric inhibitor of Aurora-A kinase based on a synthetic, VNAR single domain nanobody scaffold, IgNARV-D01. Biochemical studies and a crystal structure of the Aurora-A/IgNARV-D01 complex show that the nanobody overlaps with the TPX2 binding site. In contrast with the binding of TPX2, which stabilizes an active conformation of the kinase, binding of the nanobody stabilizes an inactive conformation, in which the αC-helix is distorted, the canonical Lys-Glu salt bridge is broken, and the regulatory (R-) spine is disrupted by an additional hydrophobic side chain from the activation loop. These studies illustrate how nanobodies can be used to characterize the regulatory mechanisms of kinases and provide a rational basis for structure-guided design of allosteric Aurora-A kinase inhibitors.SignificanceProtein kinases are commonly dysregulated in cancer and inhibitors of protein kinases are key therapeutic drugs. However, this strategy is often undermined by a lack of selectivity since the ATP binding pocket that kinase inhibitors usually target is highly conserved. Inhibitors that target allosteric sites are more selective but more difficult to generate. Here we identify a single domain antibody (nanobody) to target an allosteric pocket on the catalytic domain of Aurora-A kinase and demonstrate that the mechanism is antagonistic to a physiologically-relevant allosteric activator, TPX2. This work will enable the development of allosteric Aurora-A inhibitors as potential therapeutics, and provide a model for the development of tools to investigate allosteric modes of kinase inhibition.

scholarly journals Allosteric inhibition of Aurora-A kinase by a synthetic vNAR domain

Open Biology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (7) ◽  
pp. 160089 ◽  
Author(s):  
Selena G. Burgess ◽  
Arkadiusz Oleksy ◽  
Tommaso Cavazza ◽  
Mark W. Richards ◽  
Isabelle Vernos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Catalytic Domain ◽  
Salt Bridge ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Protein Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Single Domain ◽  
Aurora A Kinase ◽  
Aurora A ◽  
Allosteric Site ◽  
Kinase Catalytic Domain

The vast majority of clinically approved protein kinase inhibitors target the ATP-binding pocket directly. Consequently, many inhibitors have broad selectivity profiles and most have significant off-target effects. Allosteric inhibitors are generally more selective, but are difficult to identify because allosteric binding sites are often unknown or poorly characterized. Aurora-A is activated through binding of TPX2 to an allosteric site on the kinase catalytic domain, and this knowledge could be exploited to generate an inhibitor. Here, we generated an allosteric inhibitor of Aurora-A kinase based on a synthetic, vNAR single domain scaffold, vNAR-D01. Biochemical studies and a crystal structure of the Aurora-A/vNAR-D01 complex show that the vNAR domain overlaps with the TPX2 binding site. In contrast with the binding of TPX2, which stabilizes an active conformation of the kinase, binding of the vNAR domain stabilizes an inactive conformation, in which the αC-helix is distorted, the canonical Lys-Glu salt bridge is broken and the regulatory (R-) spine is disrupted by an additional hydrophobic side chain from the activation loop. These studies illustrate how single domain antibodies can be used to characterize the regulatory mechanisms of kinases and provide a rational basis for structure-guided design of allosteric Aurora-A kinase inhibitors.

scholarly journals 7-(2-Anilinopyrimidin-4-yl)-1-benzazepin-2-ones Designed by a “Cut and Glue” Strategy Are Dual Aurora A/VEGF-R Kinase Inhibitors

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1611
Author(s):  
Mehmet Karatas ◽  
Apirat Chaikuad ◽  
Bianca Berger ◽  
Michael H. G. Kubbutat ◽  
Frank Totzke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinases ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Kinase Inhibitor ◽  
Protein Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Vegf Receptor ◽  
Aurora A Kinase ◽  
Aurora A ◽  
Single Digit ◽  
Wide Range

Although overexpression and hyperactivity of protein kinases are causative for a wide range of human cancers, protein kinase inhibitors currently approved as cancer drugs address only a limited number of these enzymes. To identify new chemotypes addressing alternative protein kinases, the basic structure of a known PLK1/VEGF-R2 inhibitor class was formally dissected and reassembled. The resulting 7-(2-anilinopyrimidin-4-yl)-1-benzazepin-2-ones were synthesized and proved to be dual inhibitors of Aurora A kinase and VEGF receptor kinases. Crystal structures of two representatives of the new chemotype in complex with Aurora A showed the ligand orientation in the ATP binding pocket and provided the basis for rational structural modifications. Congeners with attached sulfamide substituents retained Aurora A inhibitory activity. In vitro screening of two members of the new kinase inhibitor family against the cancer cell line panel of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) showed antiproliferative activity in the single-digit micromolar concentration range in the majority of the cell lines.

scholarly journals Targeting the trypanosome kinetochore with CLK1 protein kinase inhibitors

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel Saldivia ◽  
Srinivasa P.S. Rao ◽  
Eric Fang ◽  
Elmarie Myburgh ◽  
Elaine Brown ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Protein Kinases ◽  
Cell Cycle Progression ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Competitive Inhibition ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Protein Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Kinetochore Assembly ◽  
Phenotypic Screen ◽  
Novel Drug

ABSTRACTThe kinetochore is a macromolecular structure that assembles on the centromeres of chromosomes and provides the major attachment point for spindle microtubules during mitosis. In Trypanosoma brucei the proteins that make up the kinetochore are highly divergent, with the inner kinetochore comprising at least 20 distinct and essential proteins (KKT1-20) that include four protein kinases, CLK1 (KKT10), CLK2 (KKT19), KKT2 and KKT3. We performed a phenotypic screen of T. brucei bloodstream forms with a Novartis kinase-focused inhibitor library, which identified a number of selective inhibitors with potent pan-kinetoplastid activity. Deconvolution of an amidobenzimidazole series using a selection of 37 T. brucei mutants that over-express known essential protein kinases identified CLK1 as the primary target. Biochemical studies show that the irreversible competitive inhibition of CLK1 is dependent on a Michael acceptor forming an irreversible bond with C215 in the ATP binding pocket, a residue that is not present in human CLK1, thereby providing selectivity. Chemical inhibition of CLK1 impairs inner kinetochore recruitment and compromises cell cycle progression, leading to cell death. We show that KKT2 is a substrate for CLK1 and identify phosphorylation of S508 to be essential for KKT2 function and for kinetochore assembly. We propose that CLK1 is part of a novel signalling cascade that controls kinetochore function via phosphorylation of the inner kinetochore protein kinase KKT2. This work highlights a novel drug target for trypanosomatid parasitic protozoa and a new chemical tool for investigating the function of their divergent kinetochores.

scholarly journals Aromatic Rings as Molecular Determinants for the Molecular Recognition of Protein Kinase Inhibitors

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1776
Author(s):  
Yan Zhu ◽  
Saad Alqahtani ◽  
Xiche Hu
Keyword(s):  
Hydrogen Bonding ◽  
Molecular Recognition ◽  
Protein Kinases ◽  
Aromatic Ring ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Atp Binding ◽  
Aromatic Rings ◽  
Π Interactions ◽  
Molecular Determinants

Protein kinases are key enzymes in many signal transduction pathways, and play a crucial role in cellular proliferation, differentiation, and various cell regulatory processes. However, aberrant function of kinases has been associated with cancers and many other diseases. Consequently, competitive inhibition of the ATP binding site of protein kinases has emerged as an effective means of curing these diseases. Over the past three decades, thousands of protein kinase inhibitors (PKIs) with varying molecular frames have been developed. Large-scale data mining of the Protein Data Bank resulted in a database of 2139 non-redundant high-resolution X-ray crystal structures of PKIs bound to protein kinases. This provided us with a unique opportunity to study molecular determinants for the molecular recognition of PKIs. A chemoinformatic analysis of 2139 PKIs resulted in findings that PKIs are “flat” molecules with high aromatic ring counts and low fractions of sp3 carbon. All but one PKI possessed one or more aromatic rings. More importantly, it was found that the average weighted hydrogen bond count is inversely proportional to the number of aromatic rings. Based on this linear relationship, we put forward the exchange rule of hydrogen bonding interactions and non-bonded π-interactions. Specifically, a loss of binding affinity caused by a decrease in hydrogen bonding interactions is compensated by a gain in binding affinity acquired by an increase in aromatic ring-originated non-bonded interactions (i.e., π–π stacking interactions, CH–π interactions, cation–π interactions, etc.), and vice versa. The very existence of this inverse relationship strongly suggests that both hydrogen bonding and aromatic ring-originated non-bonded interactions are responsible for the molecular recognition of PKIs. As an illustration, two representative PKI–kinase complexes were employed to examine the relative importance of different modes of non-bonded interactions for the molecular recognition of PKIs. For this purpose, two FDA-approved PKI drugs, ibrutinib and lenvatinib, were chosen. The binding pockets of both PKIs were thoroughly examined to identify all non-bonded intermolecular interactions. Subsequently, the strengths of interaction energies between ibrutinib and its interacting residues in tyrosine kinase BTK were quantified by means of the double hybrid DFT method B2PLYP. The resulting energetics for the binding of ibrutinib in tyrosine kinase BTK showed that CH–π interactions and π–π stacking interactions between aromatic rings of the drug and hydrophobic residues in its binding pocket dominate the binding interactions. Thus, this work establishes that, in addition to hydrogen bonding, aromatic rings function as important molecular determinants for the molecular recognition of PKIs. In conclusion, our findings support the following pharmacophore model for ATP-competitive kinase inhibitors: a small molecule features a scaffold of one or more aromatic rings which is linked with one or more hydrophilic functional groups. The former has the structural role of acting as a scaffold and the functional role of participating in aromatic ring-originated non-bonded interactions with multiple hydrophobic regions in the ATP binding pocket of kinases. The latter ensure water solubility and form hydrogen bonds with the hinge region and other hydrophilic residues of the ATP binding pocket.

scholarly journals Crizotinib acts as ABL1 inhibitor combining ATP-binding with allosteric inhibition and is active against native BCR-ABL1 and its resistance and compound mutants BCR-ABL1T315I and BCR-ABL1T315I-E255K

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Afsar Ali Mian ◽  
Isabella Haberbosch ◽  
Hazem Khamaisie ◽  
Abed Agbarya ◽  
Larissa Pietsch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Binding Site ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Philadelphia Chromosome ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Atp Binding ◽  
Atp Binding Site ◽  
Lung Cancer Patients

AbstractResistance remains the major clinical challenge for the therapy of Philadelphia chromosome–positive (Ph+) leukemia. With the exception of ponatinib, all approved tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are unable to inhibit the common “gatekeeper” mutation T315I. Here we investigated the therapeutic potential of crizotinib, a TKI approved for targeting ALK and ROS1 in non-small cell lung cancer patients, which inhibited also the ABL1 kinase in cell-free systems, for the treatment of advanced and therapy-resistant Ph+ leukemia. By inhibiting the BCR-ABL1 kinase, crizotinib efficiently suppressed growth of Ph+ cells without affecting growth of Ph− cells. It was also active in Ph+ patient-derived long-term cultures (PD-LTCs) independently of the responsiveness/resistance to other TKIs. The efficacy of crizotinib was confirmed in vivo in syngeneic mouse models of BCR-ABL1- or BCR-ABL1T315I-driven chronic myeloid leukemia–like disease and in BCR-ABL1-driven acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Although crizotinib binds to the ATP-binding site, it also allosterically affected the myristol binding pocket, the binding site of GNF2 and asciminib (former ABL001). Therefore, crizotinib has a seemingly unique double mechanism of action, on the ATP-binding site and on the myristoylation binding pocket. These findings strongly suggest the clinical evaluation of crizotinib for the treatment of advanced and therapy-resistant Ph+ leukemia.

scholarly journals Structural basis for subtype-specific inhibition of the P2X7 receptor

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akira Karasawa ◽  
Toshimitsu Kawate
Keyword(s):  
P2x7 Receptor ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Drug Binding ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
Atp Binding ◽  
Allosteric Site ◽  
Channel Opening ◽  
A Site ◽  
Novel Drug

The P2X7 receptor is a non-selective cation channel activated by extracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Chronic activation of P2X7 underlies many health problems such as pathologic pain, yet we lack effective antagonists due to poorly understood mechanisms of inhibition. Here we present crystal structures of a mammalian P2X7 receptor complexed with five structurally-unrelated antagonists. Unexpectedly, these drugs all bind to an allosteric site distinct from the ATP-binding pocket in a groove formed between two neighboring subunits. This novel drug-binding pocket accommodates a diversity of small molecules mainly through hydrophobic interactions. Functional assays propose that these compounds allosterically prevent narrowing of the drug-binding pocket and the turret-like architecture during channel opening, which is consistent with a site of action distal to the ATP-binding pocket. These novel mechanistic insights will facilitate the development of P2X7-specific drugs for treating human diseases.

scholarly journals Identification of tetracycline combinations as EphB1 tyrosine kinase inhibitors for treatment of neuropathic pain

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (10) ◽  
pp. e2016265118
Author(s):  
Mahmoud S. Ahmed ◽  
Ping Wang ◽  
Ngoc Uyen Nhi Nguyen ◽  
Yuji Nakada ◽  
Ivan Menendez-Montes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neuropathic Pain ◽  
Tyrosine Kinase ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Catalytic Domain ◽  
Therapeutic Option ◽  
Atp Binding ◽  
Approved Drugs ◽  
Fda Approved Drugs

Previous studies have demonstrated that the synaptic EphB1 receptor tyrosine kinase is a major mediator of neuropathic pain, suggesting that targeting the activity of this receptor might be a viable therapeutic option. Therefore, we set out to determine if any FDA-approved drugs can act as inhibitors of the EphB1 intracellular catalytic domain. An in silico screen was first used to identify a number of tetracycline antibiotics which demonstrated potential docking to the ATP-binding catalytic domain of EphB1. Kinase assays showed that demeclocycline, chlortetracycline, and minocycline inhibit EphB1 kinase activity at low micromolar concentrations. In addition, we cocrystallized chlortetracycline and EphB1 receptor, which confirmed its binding to the ATP-binding domain. Finally, in vivo administration of the three-tetracycline combination inhibited the phosphorylation of EphB1 in the brain, spinal cord, and dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and effectively blocked neuropathic pain in mice. These results indicate that demeclocycline, chlortetracycline, and minocycline can be repurposed for treatment of neuropathic pain and potentially for other indications that would benefit from inhibition of EphB1 receptor kinase activity.

Benzo[e]pyrimido[5,4-b][1,4]diazepin-6(11H)-one derivatives as Aurora A kinase inhibitors: LQTA-QSAR analysis and detailed systematic validation of the developed model

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 965-974 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashish M. Kanhed ◽  
Radha Charan Dash ◽  
Nishant Parmar ◽  
Tarun Kumar Das ◽  
Rajani Giridhar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Aurora A Kinase ◽  
Aurora A ◽  
Qsar Analysis

scholarly journals Crystal structure of microtubule affinity-regulating kinase 4 catalytic domain in complex with a pyrazolopyrimidine inhibitor

2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
John S. Sack ◽  
Mian Gao ◽  
Susan E. Kiefer ◽  
Joseph E. Myers ◽  
John A. Newitt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Crystal Structure ◽  
Catalytic Domain ◽  
Neurofibrillary Tangle ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Atp Binding ◽  
Activation Loop ◽  
Serine Threonine Kinase ◽  
Atp Binding Site ◽  
Threonine Kinase ◽  
Catalytic Loop

Microtubule-associated protein/microtubule affinity-regulating kinase 4 (MARK4) is a serine/threonine kinase involved in the phosphorylation of MAP proteins that regulate microtubule dynamics. Abnormal activity of MARK4 has been proposed to contribute to neurofibrillary tangle formation in Alzheimer's disease. The crystal structure of the catalytic and ubiquitin-associated domains of MARK4 with a potent pyrazolopyrimidine inhibitor has been determined to 2.8 Å resolution with anRworkof 22.8%. The overall structure of MARK4 is similar to those of the other known MARK isoforms. The inhibitor is located in the ATP-binding site, with the pyrazolopyrimidine group interacting with the inter-lobe hinge region while the aminocyclohexane moiety interacts with the catalytic loop and the DFG motif, forcing the activation loop out of the ATP-binding pocket.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document