非对称二甲基精氨酸二甲胺水解酶-2的理论研究

利用同源模建的方法,构建了DDAH-2的三位结构.并与L-瓜氨酸、L-高半胱氨酸分别进行对接研究.其中,Asp77,Gly269,Glu27和Arg96是与L-瓜氨酸相互作用较强的残基,Asp77,His171,Asp125和Ala270是与-L高半胱氨酸相互作用较强的残基.尤其Asp77是在两种复合物中同时起重要作用的氨基酸,并且它与抑制剂之间都形成了氢键.     

二甲基精氨酸二甲胺水解酶-1的理论研究

运用分子对接和分子动力学方法研究二甲基精氨酸二甲胺水解酶-1(DDAH-1)与其抑制剂亚胺基烯丁基-L-鸟氨酸(L-VNIO)和亚胺基丙基-L-鸟氨酸(Me-L-NIO)的相互作用和结合模式,并根据实验得到的结论设计了亚胺基苯乙基-L-鸟氨酸(Ph-L-NIO)抑制剂.结果表明:L-VNIO比Me-L-NIO对DDAH-1的抑制效果更强,这个结果与实验测得L-VNIO和Me-L-NIO对DDAH-1的半抑制浓度IC50值大小一致.Phe75、Asp78、His172、Ser175和Asp268这五个氨基酸残基在三种抑制剂形成的复合物中起到非常重要的作用,从计算结果推断在这三个抑制剂中我们设计得到的Ph-L-NIO对DDAH-1的抑制效果最好.     

漆酶与酚类模式底物的结合及反应活性的理论研究

通过生物信息学分析、分子动力学模拟及量子化学计算,对21种邻对位取代酚类模式底物与漆酶的结合能力以及反应活性进行了探讨.生物信息学结构比对分析发现漆酶的活性口袋含有Asp/Glu206,Asn/His208,Asn264,Gly392和His458等保守的氨基酸残基(氨基酸残基编号以Trametes versicolor漆酶为例,PDB:1KYA);采用MM-GBSA方法计算了21种酚类模式底物与T.versicolor漆酶的结合自由能.分子力学计算结果表明,漆酶与底物的结合力主要来自Asp206和Asn264等残基与底物分子形成的分子间氢键,并且Phe265残基和酚类底物的芳香环形成π-π相互作用.量子化学计算表明,芳环上取代基的推拉电子效应显著影响协同电子转移的底物去质子化过程,其中推电子能力较强的—NH2,—OH,—OCH3和—CH CHCH3等基团能够明显增强酚羟基反应活性,而吸电子的—CONH2和—Cl则具有相反的效应.     

血管紧张素转换酶与抑制肽结合模式的分子动力学研究

应用分子模拟方法研究了血管紧张素转换酶(Angiotensin-converting enzyme,ACE)C端结构域(C-domain)与两种抑制肽(RIGLF/AHEPVK)的结合机制,预测了两个体系的结合模式,提出在C-domain-RIGLF中His353,Asp377,Asp453,Phe457,His513,Tyr523和Phe527为RIGLF主要结合残基,而在C-domainAHEPVK中Gln281,His353,Ser355,Glu384,Lys511,His513和Tyr523等残基起关键作用.应用结合自由能计算比较了两个体系的结合能力,结果表明,RIGLF和AHEPVK均与C-domain活性位点残基存在较强作用,且AHEPVK对C-domain的结合能力较强,与实验结果一致.     

多巴胺第三受体蛋白三维结构及其活性位点氨基酸残基

基于牛视紫红质模板蛋白,同源模建多巴胺第三受体（D₃R）蛋白三维结构,在1-棕榈酰-2-油酰-卵磷脂（POPC）膜-水模型环境,开展300 ns分子动力学模拟提炼优化其结构,取得稳定的D₃R蛋白三维结构（2B08-D₃R）.在该蛋白基础上,采用MP2/6-31G（d,p）方法,计算多巴胺（Dop）与氨基酸残基相互作用的结合能,确定五个残基（Asp117、Ser208、His272、Phe269和Thr276）为活性位点.五个活性位点残基分别位于D₃R蛋白跨膜螺旋区TM3、TM5和TM6,组成活性空腔结构.多巴胺分子以其苯基平面与TM2-TM7包围的圆柱体空腔平行和非共价键结合方式保留在D₃R蛋白中,与D₃R蛋白结合能E_b为-97.8 kJ·mol^-1基于3PBL D₃R突变体晶体结构,构建了另外一个含有多巴胺分子的D₃R蛋白结构（Dop-3PBL-D₃R）,确定在该蛋白结构中,多巴胺的活性位点氨基酸是Asp83、His272、Phe269、Phe268和Trp265.在该蛋白结构中,多巴胺分子同样以其苯基平面与TM2-TM7包围的圆柱体空腔平行和非共价键方式结合,与该蛋白相互作用的结合能是-80.5 kJ·mol^-1.     

含磷嘧啶类CDK9抑制剂的分子对接、3D-QSAR和分子动力学模拟

选取64个具有潜力的含磷嘧啶类细胞周期依赖性蛋白激酶(CDK9)小分子抑制剂,采用分子对接方法研究了该类小分子与CDK9的结合作用,结果表明,分子构象、氢键形成、疏水性和氨基酸残基Cys106在此类抑制剂与CDK9的结合过程中具有重要作用.在配体叠合的基础上,运用比较分子力场分析(Co MFA)、比较分子相似性指数分析(Co MSIA)和Topomer Co MFA(T-COMFA)研究了分子结构与抑制活性的关系,发现由训练集立体场、静电场和疏水场组合的Co MSIA模型为最优模型,其内部交叉验证相关系数(Q2=0.557)、非交叉验证相关系数(R2=0.959)和外部预测相关系数(r2=0.863)具有统计学意义,该模型的三维等值线图直观显示了化合物的活性与其三维结构的关系.根据这些结果设计了10个具有新结构的含磷嘧啶类化合物,分子对接和分子动力学模拟结果表明,新化合物和CDK9的结合模式与原化合物64相同,自由能分析从理论上证明了新化合物64d的CDK9抑制活性优于化合物64,并且显示含磷基团与残基Asp109的静电场能在化合物与CDK9作用过程中有重要作用.     

Urokinase片断的二级、三级结构预测及构效关系研究

urokinase(简称UK)属于絲氨酸蛋白酶,其一级结构已经测定。去掉前135个残基后得到的低分子量UK(LUK)氨基酸残基的顺序与糜胰蛋白酶、胰蛋白酶等絲氨酸蛋白酶十分类似。从二硫桥的配置来看LUK与糜胰蛋白酶比较接近,而UK对Lys侧链处肽键的专一性则和胰蛋白酶相近。在这一类酶中,起到活性中心作用的氨基酸为Ser195,His57及Asp102.在UK中此三个氨基酸都保留了下来。蛋白水解酶中起专一性作用的残基主要是     

苏丹红Ⅱ与肌红蛋白相互作用的分子模拟与实验

用荧光光谱法研究了苏丹红Ⅱ与肌红蛋白(Mb)之间的相互作用, 实验结果表明,二者结合位点数近似为1, 结合常数K=3.84×107L/mol, 有很强的相互作用. 用分子柔性对接技术模拟确定了它们之间的作用位点、作用力类型及相互作用能. 理论计算的结果表明,苏丹红Ⅱ和Mb相互作用的势能为-9419.9 kJ/mol, 静电能为-7468.8 kJ/mol, 范德华能为-1951.0 kJ/mol. 苏丹红Ⅱ与Mb中His64残基形成氢键, 苏丹红Ⅱ也能与疏水氨基酸残基, 如能产生内源荧光的Phe33、Phe43、Phe106 和 Phe138等发生作用, 这与苏丹红Ⅱ能使Mb荧光猝灭的实验结果是一致的.     

ACE抑制三肽与ACE相互作用的分子机制

4种食源性三肽IRP(Ile-Arg-Pro),IKP(Ile-Lys-Pro),GRP(Gly-Arg-Pro),IRA(Ile-ArgAla)的ACE抑制活性已得到实验证实,但其与ACE的相互作用模式与分子机制尚不清楚,本研究采用柔性分子对接方法解决这一问题。分子对接结果表明:4种三肽与ACE有相似的作用模式,氢键、亲水、疏水、静电等作用力共同对三肽与ACE的结合存在贡献,但以氢键作用为主;ACE分子中Lys511,His513,Tyr520,Tyr523等氨基酸残基为其与肽结合的重要结合位点;ACE抑制三肽中氮端氨基和碳端羧基对其抑制活性影响显著,其中氮端氨基的作用更为重要。通过以上分子机理研究可为开发强活性ACE抑制肽提供理论指导。     

SARS冠状病毒E蛋白的结构研究及功能预测

结合生物信息学方法及分子模拟手段,选择较高准确度的方法,预测了SARSE蛋白的分子结构并探讨其潜在的生物学活性和功能.研究结果表明,SARSE蛋白跨膜区25个疏水的氨基酸形成α-螺旋结构,包埋于病毒外壳磷脂双分子层中;N端10个氨基酸残基位于膜外;C端41个残基则附着于磷脂双分子膜内侧.同时发现,C端由9个氨基酸组成的劈裂是一个可能的活性部位.对分子进行进一步静电势分析证实,E蛋白C端可能的活性部位具有较大的静电势,可能的活性残基具有最大电荷密度,故有较强的结合受体或与其它蛋白相互作用的能力.     

Molecular simulation studies to reveal the binding mechanisms of shikonin derivatives inhibiting VEGFR-2 kinase

Traditional vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR-2) inhibitors can manage angiogenesis; however, severe toxicity and resistance limit their long-term applications in clinical therapy. Shikonin (SHK) and its derivatives could be promising to inhibit the VEGFR-2 mediated angiogenesis, as they are reported to bind in the catalytic kinase domain with low affinity. However, the detailed molecular insights and binding dynamics of these natural inhibitors are unknown, which is crucial for potential SHK based lead design. Therefore, the present study employed molecular modeling and simulations techniques to get insight into the binding behaviors of SHK and its two derivates, β-hydroxyisovalerylshikonin (β-HIVS) and acetylshikonin (ACS). Here the intermolecular interactions between protein and ligands were studied by induced fit docking approach, which were further evaluated by treating QM/MM (quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. The result showed that the naphthazarin ring of the SHK derivates is vital for strong binding to the catalytic domain; however, the binding stability can be modulated by the side chain modification. Because of having electrostatic potential, this ring makes essential interactions with the DFG (Asp1046 and Phe1047) motif and also allows interacting with the allosteric binding site. Taken together, the studies will advance our knowledge and scope for the development of new selective VEGFR-2 inhibitors based on SHK and its analogs.     

Influence of the distal his in imparting imidazolate character to the proximal his in heme peroxidase: (1)h NMR spectroscopic study of cyanide-inhibited his42-->ala horseradish peroxidase

The functional higher oxidation states of heme peroxidases have been proposed to be stabilized by the significant imidazolate character of the proximal His. This is induced by a "push-pull" combination effect produced by the proximal Asp that abstracts ("pulls") the axial His ring N(delta)H, along with the distal protonated His that contributes ("pushes") a strong hydrogen bond to the distal ligand. The molecular and electronic structure of the distal His mutant of cyanide-inhibited horseradish peroxidase, H42A-HRPCN, has been investigated by NMR. This complex is a valid model for the active site hydrogen-bonding network of HRP compound II. The (1)H and (15)N NMR spectral parameters characterize the relative roles of the distal His42 and proximal Asp247 in imparting imidazolate character to the axial His. 1D/2D spectra reveal a heme pocket molecular structure that is highly conserved in the mutant, except for residues in the immediate proximity of the mutation. This conserved structure, together with the observed dipolar shifts of numerous active site residue protons, allowed a quantitative determination of the orientation and anisotropies of the paramagnetic susceptibility tensor, both of which are only minimally perturbed relative to wild-type HRPCN. The quantitated dipolar shifts allowed the factoring of the hyperfine shifts to reveal that the significant changes in hyperfine shifts for the axial His and ligated (15)N-cyanide result primarily from changes in contact shifts that reflect an approximately one-third reduction in the axial His imidazolate character upon abolishing the distal hydrogen-bond to the ligated cyanide. Significant changes in side chain orientation were found for the distal Arg38, whose terminus reorients to partially fill the void left by the substituted His42 side chain. It is concluded that 1D/2D NMR can quantitate both molecular and electronic structural changes in cyanide-inhibited heme peroxidase and that, while both residues contribute, the proximal Asp247 is more important than the distal His42 in imparting imidazole character to the axial His 170.     

Stepwise Versus Concerted Mechanisms in General‐Base Catalysis by Serine Proteases

General‐base catalysis in serine proteases still poses mechanistic challenges despite decades of research. Whether proton transfer from the catalytic Ser to His and nucleophilic attack on the substrate are concerted or stepwise is still under debate, even for the classical Asp‐His‐Ser catalytic triad. To address these key catalytic steps, the transformation of the Michaelis complex to tetrahedral complex in the covalent inhibition of two prototype serine proteases was studied: chymotrypsin (with the catalytic triad) inhibition by a peptidyl trifluoromethane and GlpG rhomboid (with Ser‐His dyad) inhibition by an isocoumarin derivative. The sampled MD trajectories of averaged pK_a values of catalytic residues were QM calculated by the MD‐QM/SCRF(VS) method on molecular clusters simulating the active site. Differences between concerted and stepwise mechanisms are controlled by the dynamically changing pK_a values of the catalytic residues as a function of their progressively reduced water exposure, caused by the incoming ligand.     

表皮生长因子受体和抑制剂之间分子对接的研究

研究了表皮生长因子受体(EGFR)和4-苯胺喹唑啉类抑制剂之间的相互作用模式，表皮生长因子受体的三维结构通过同源蛋白模建的方法得到，而抑制剂和靶酶结合复合物结构则通过分子力学和分子动力学结合的方法计算得到。从模拟结果得到的抑制剂和靶酶之间的相互作用模式表明范德华相互作用、疏水相互作用以及氢键相互作用对抑制剂的活性都有重要的影响，抑制剂的苯胺部分位于活性口袋的底部，能够与受体残基的非极性侧链产生很强的范德华和疏水相互作用，抑制剂双环上的取代基团也能和活性口袋外部的部分残基形成一定的范德华和疏水性相互作用，而抑制剂喹唑啉环上的氮原子能和周围的残基形成较强的氢键相互作用，对抑制剂的活性有较大的影响，计算得到抑制剂和靶酶之间的非键相互作用能以及抑制剂和靶酶之间的相互作用信息能够很好地解释抑制剂活性和结构的关系，为全新抑制剂的设计提供了重要的结构信息。     

Deciphering the catalytic amino acid residues of l-2-haloacid dehalogenase (DehL) from Rhizobium sp. RC1: An in silico analysis

The l-2-haloacid dehalogenases (EC 3.8.1.2) specifically cleave carbon-halogen bonds in the L-isomers of halogenated organic acids. These enzymes have potential applications for the bioremediation and synthesis of various industrial products. One such enzyme is DehL, the l-2-haloacid dehalogenase from Rhizobium sp. RC1, which converts the L-isomers of 2-halocarboxylic acids into the corresponding D-hydroxycarboxylic acids. However, its catalytic mechanism has not been delineated, and to enhance its efficiency and utility for environmental and industrial applications, knowledge of its catalytic mechanism, which includes identification of its catalytic residues, is required. Using ab initio fragment molecular orbital calculations, molecular mechanics Poisson-Boltzmann surface area calculations, and classical molecular dynamic simulation of a three-dimensional model of DehL-l-2-chloropropionic acid complex, we predicted the catalytic residues of DehL and propose its catalytic mechanism. We found that when Asp13, Thr17, Met48, Arg51, and His184 were individually replaced with an alanine in silico, a significant decrease in the free energy of binding for the DehL-l-2-chloropropionic acid model complex was seen, indicating the involvement of these residues in catalysis and/or structural integrity of the active site. Furthermore, strong inter-fragment interaction energies calculated for Asp13 and L-2-chloropropionic acid, and for a water molecule and His184, and maintenance of the distances between atoms in the aforementioned pairs during the molecular dynamics run suggest that Asp13 acts as the nucleophile and His184 activates the water involved in DehL catalysis. The results of this study should be important for the rational design of a DehL mutant with improved catalytic efficiency.     

Amino acids of ricin and its polypeptides

Ricin and its corresponding polypeptides (A & B chain) were purified from castor seed. The molecular weight of ricin subunits were 29,000 and 28,000 daltons. The amino acids in ricin determined were Asp45 The22 Ser40 Glu53 Cys4 Gly96 His5 Ile21 Leu33 Lys20 Met4 Phe13 Pro37 Tyr11 Ala45 Val23 Arg20 indicating that ricin contains approximately 516 amino acid residues. The amino acids of the two subunits of ricin A and B chains were Asp23 The12 Ser21 Glu29 Cys2 Gly48 His3 Ile12, Leu17 Lys10 Met2 Phe6 Pro17 Tyr7 Ala35 Val13 Arg13 while in B chain the amino acids were Asp22 The10 Ser19 Glu25 Cys2 Gly47 His1 Ile10, Leu15 Lys11 Met1 Phe7 Pro6 Tyr5 Ala32Val11 Arg10. The total helical content of ricin came around 53.6% which is a new observation.     

Binding of the Zn2+ ion to ferric uptake regulation protein from E. coli and the competition with Fe2+ binding: a molecular modeling study of the effect on DNA binding and conformational changes of Fur

The three dimensional structure of Ferric uptake regulation protein dimer from E. coli, determined by molecular modeling, was docked on a DNA fragment (iron box) and Zn²⁺ ions were added in two steps. The first step involved the binding of one Zn²⁺ ion to what is known as the zinc site which consists of the residues Cys 92, Cys 95, Asp 137, Asp141, Arg139, Glu 140, His 145 and His 143 with an average metal-Nitrogen distance of 2.5 Å and metal-oxygen distance of 3.1–3.2 Å. The second Zn²⁺ ion is bound to the iron activating site formed from the residues Ile 50, His 71, Asn 72, Gly 97, Asp 105 and Ala 109. The binding of the second Zn²⁺ ion strengthened the binding of the first ion as indicated by the shortening of the zinc-residue distances. Fe²⁺, when added to the complex consisting of 2Zn²⁺/Fur dimer/DNA, replaced the Zn²⁺ ion in the zinc site and when a second Fe²⁺ was added, it replaced the second zinc ion in the iron activating site. The binding of both zinc and iron ions induced a similar change in Fur conformations, but shifted residues closer to DNA in a different manner. This is discussed along with a possible role for the Zn²⁺ ion in the Fur dimer binding of DNA in its repressor activity. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Conjugation and deconjugation of ubiquitin regulating the destiny of proteins

The homeostasis for a number of cellular proteins is regulated by not only phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, but also ubiquitination and deubiquitination. A number of proteins involved in the degradation of polypeptides have been isolated in various eukaryotic organisms from Saccharomyces cerevisiae to human. Recently, several deubiquitinating enzymes, classified into either the Ub C-terminal hydrolase (UCH) or the Ub-specific processing protease (UBP), have been reported. It has been shown that they contain conserved domains including Cys, His, and Asp residues throughout the enzyme. These proteins have been demonstrated that Cys and His domains are critical for deubiquitinating enzymatic activity. Recently, we have shown that the Asp domain localized between Cys and His domains is also essential for cleaving the ubiquitin from protein substrates. Mouse deubiquitinating enzymes including DUB-1, DUB-2, and DUB-2A have been isolated and they showed the expression specificity. Of these, DUB- 1 and DUB-2 are expressed in lymphocytes depending on the presence of cytokines (interleukin-3 in B-lymphocytes and interleukin-2 in T- lymphocytes, respectively), indicating that they are involved in cytokine signaling pathways. Isolation of all putative DUBs will help to identify their substrates and to regulate the homeostasis of cellular proteins, especially in proliferative cells.     

A QM/MM study on the catalytic mechanism of pyruvate decarboxylase

Pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC) is a typical thiamin diphosphate (ThDP)-dependent enzyme with widespread applications in industry. Though studies regarding the reaction mechanism of PDC have been reported, they are mainly focused on the formation of ThDP ylide and some elementary steps in the catalytic cycle, studies about the whole catalytic cycle of PDC are still not completed. In these previous studies, a major controversy is whether the key active residues (Glu473, Glu50′, Asp27′, His113′, His114′) are protonated or ionized during the reaction. To explore the catalytic mechanism and the role of key residues in the active site, three whole-enzyme models were considered, and the combined QM/MM calculations on the nonoxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate to acetaldehyde catalyzed by PDC were performed. According to our computational results, the fundamental reaction pathways, the complete energy profiles of the whole catalytic cycle, and the specific role of key residues in the common steps were obtained. It is also found that the same residue with different protonation states will lead to different reaction pathways and energy profiles. The mechanism derived from the model in which the residues (Glu473, Glu50′, Asp27′, His113′, His114′) are in their protonated states is most consistent with experimental observations. Therefore, extreme care must be taken when assigning the protonation states in the mechanism study. Because the experimental determination of protonation state is currently difficult, the combined QM/MM method provides an indirect means for determining the active-site protonation state.