Francisco E. Torres

Higher Throughput Calorimetry: Opportunities, Approaches and Challenges

Higher throughput thermodynamic measurements can provide value in structure-based drug discovery during fragment screening, hit validation, and lead optimization. Enthalpy can be used to detect and characterize ligand binding, and changes that affect the interaction of protein and ligand can sometimes be detected more readily from changes in the enthalpy of binding than from the corresponding free-energy changes or from protein-ligand structures. Newer, higher throughput calorimeters are being incorporated into the drug discovery process. Improvements in titration calorimeters come from extensions of a mature technology and face limitations in scaling. Conversely, array calorimetry, an emerging technology, shows promise for substantial improvements in throughput and material utilization, but improved sensitivity is needed.

Rapid mixing of sub-microlitre drops by magnetic micro-stirring

We demonstrate rapid mixing of sub-microlitre droplets (250 nl) using miniaturized magnetic stir bars (400 μm × 200 μm × 15 μm). The stir bars are fabricated using laser micromachining and placed on the substrate on which the drops are manipulated. They are activated by an externally applied magnetic field and used in combination with on-demand drop merging in enthalpy arrays. This technique results in a 10-fold increase in mixing rate, and a mixing time constant of about 2 s. Drop mixing times are measured by Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and verified by thermodynamic measurements of binding and enzymatic reactions.

Fragment-Based Screening for Inhibitors of PDE4A Using Enthalpy Arrays and X-ray Crystallography

Fragment-based screening has typically relied on X-ray or nuclear magnetic resonance methods to identify low-affinity ligands that bind to therapeutic targets. These techniques are expensive in terms of material and time, so it useful to have a higher throughput method to reliably prescreen a fragment library to identify a subset of compounds for structural analysis. Calorimetry provides a label-free method to assay binding and enzymatic activity that is unaffected by the spectroscopic properties of the sample. Conventional microcalorimetry is hampered by requiring large quantities of reagents and long measurement times. Nanocalorimeters can overcome these limitations of conventional isothermal titration calorimetry. Here we have used enthalpy arrays, which are arrays of nanocalorimeters, to perform an enzyme activity-based fragment screen for competitive inhibitors of phosphodiesterase 4A (PDE4A). Several inhibitors with K I <2 mM were identified and moved to X-ray crystallization trials. Although the co-crystals did not yield high-resolution data, evidence of binding was observed, and the chemical structures of the hits were consistent with motifs of known PDE4 inhibitors. This study shows how array calorimetry can be used as a prescreening method for fragment-based lead discovery with enzyme targets and provides a list of candidate fragments for inhibition of PDE4A.

Identification and Optimization of PDE10A Inhibitors Using Fragment-Based Screening by Nanocalorimetry and X-ray Crystallography.

Fragment-based lead discovery (FBLD) is a technique in which small, low-complexity chemical fragments of 6 to 15 heavy atoms are screened for binding to or inhibiting activity of the target. Hits are then linked and/or elaborated into tightly binding ligands, ideally yielding early lead compounds for drug discovery. Calorimetry provides a label-free method to assay binding and enzymatic activity that is unaffected by the spectroscopic properties of the sample. Conventional microcalorimetry is hampered by requiring large quantities of reagents and long measurement times. Nanocalorimeters can overcome these limitations of conventional isothermal titration calorimetry. Here we use enthalpy arrays, which are arrays of nanocalorimeters, to perform an enzyme activity-based fragment screen for competitive inhibitors of phosphodiesterase 10A (PDE10A). Two dozen fragments with KI <2 mM were identified and moved to crystal soaking trials. All soak experiments yielded high-resolution diffraction, with two-thirds of the fragments yielding high-resolution co-crystal structures with PDE10A. The structural information was used to elaborate fragment hits, yielding leads with KI <1 µM. This study shows how array calorimetry can be used as a prescreening method for fragment-based lead discovery with enzyme targets and paired successfully with an X-ray crystallography secondary screen.

Accurate glucose detection in a small etalon

We are developing a continuous glucose monitor for subcutaneous long-term implantation. This detector contains a double chamber Fabry-Perot-etalon that measures the differential refractive index (RI) between a reference and a measurement chamber at 850 nm. The etalon chambers have wavelength dependent transmission maxima which dependent linearly on the RI of their contents. An RI difference of ▵n=1.5·10-6 changes the spectral position of a transmission maximum by 1pm in our measurement. By sweeping the wavelength of a single-mode Vertical-Cavity-Surface-Emitting-Laser (VCSEL) linearly in time and detecting the maximum transmission peaks of the etalon we are able to measure the RI of a liquid. We have demonstrated accuracy of ▵n=±3.5·10-6 over a ▵n-range of 0 to 1.75·10-4 and an accuracy of 2% over a ▵nrange of 1.75·10-4 to 9.8·10-4. The accuracy is primarily limited by the reference measurement. The RI difference between the etalon chambers is made specific to glucose by the competitive, reversible release of Concanavalin A (ConA) from an immobilized dextran matrix. The matrix and ConA bound to it, is positioned outside the optical detection path. ConA is released from the matrix by reacting with glucose and diffuses into the optical path to change the RI in the etalon. Factors such as temperature affect the RI in measurement and detection chamber equally but do not affect the differential measurement. A typical standard deviation in RI is ±1.4·10-6 over the range 32°C to 42°C. The detector enables an accurate glucose specific concentration measurement.