Freezing the Dynamic Gap for Selectivity: Motion‐Based Design of Inhibitors of the Shikimate Kinase Enzyme |
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| Authors: | Verónica Prado Dr Emilio Lence Paul Thompson Prof Alastair R Hawkins Prof Concepción González‐Bello |
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| Institution: | 1. Centro Singular de Investigación en Química Biolóxica e Materiais Moleculares (CIQUS), Departamento de Química Orgánica, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain;2. Institute of Cell and Molecular Biosciences, Medical School, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Catherine Cookson Building, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK |
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| Abstract: | Shikimate kinase (SK), the fifth enzyme of the aromatic amino acid biosynthesis, is a recognized target for antibiotic drug discovery. The potential of the distinct dynamic apolar gap, which isolates the natural substrate from the solvent environment for catalysis, and the motion of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Helicobacter pylori SK enzymes, which was observed by molecular dynamics simulations, was explored for inhibition selectivity. The results of the biochemical and computational studies reveal that the incorporation of bulky groups at position C5 of 5‐aminoshikimic acid and the natural substrate enhances the selectivity for the H. pylori enzyme due to key motion differences in the shikimic acid binding domain (mainly helix α5). These studies show that the less‐exploited motion‐based design approach not only is an alternative strategy for the development of competitive inhibitors, but could also be a way to achieve selectivity against a particular enzyme among its homologues. |
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| Keywords: | antibiotics enzymes enzyme catalysis inhibitors molecular dynamics |
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