Pappu Srinivasan

Induction of apoptosis by the aqueous and ethanolic leaf extract of Vitex negundo L. in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells.

The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the anti-proliferative potential of aqueous and ethanolic extract from Vitex negundo against human breast cancer cell (MCF-7). The aqueous and ethanol extract from V. negundo potently inhibited growth of MCF-7 in a concentration-dependent manner. V. negundo pretreatment resulted in deferential cell viability and IC50 value were observed in MCF-7 cell line but not in control cell line. The above result suggested that V. negundo has a potential benefits in breast cancer cells. Keywords - Anti-cancer, anti-proliferative, breast cancer, cytotoxicity, V. negundo , MCF-7

Exploring the binding properties of agonists interacting with human TGR5 using structural modeling, molecular docking and dynamics simulations

TGR5, a G-protein coupled receptor, acts as a promising target for the treatment of diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndromes. Understanding the activation of TGR5, the structural conformation and the mode of mechanism upon binding with agonists is crucial for the development of new drugs. In the absence of experimental data, homology modeling was performed to predict the structure of TGR5. Molecular dynamics simulation of 100 ns was performed to investigate the stability of the constructed model embedded in a lipid bilayer. A combined method consisting of molecular docking and binding free energy calculations was performed to understand the binding mechanism of two experimentally proved selective TGR5 agonists. Additionally, 30 ns of protein–ligand complex dynamics were performed to reproduce the mechanism of interaction. Both agonists shared a similar binding mode and showed four common hydrogen bonding interactions with TGR5. Thus, the results could provide more knowledge on the activation of TGR5 by agonists and prove helpful in the development of novel potent agonists.

Synthesis, interactions, molecular structure, biological properties and molecular docking studies on Mn, Co, Zn complexes containing acetylacetone and pyridine ligands with DNA duplex.

Three metal complexes (1-3) of the type [Mn(acac)2(py)·H2O] (1), [Co(acac)2(py)·H2O] (2) and [Zn(acac)2(py)·H2O] (3), [Where acac=acetylacetone, py=pyridine] were synthesized and characterized by spectral (UV-vis, FT-IR, ESI-mass) analysis. The structure of complex 2 has been determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies and the configuration of ligand-coordinated to metal(II) ion was well described as distorted octahedral coordination geometry. The interaction of the complexes with CT-DNA has been explored by absorption, fluorescence, circular dichromism spectroscopy, viscosity measurements and molecular docking studies. The intrinsic binding constant Kb of complexes 1-3 with CT-DNA obtained from UV-vis absorption spectral studies were 2.1×10(4), 2.1×10(5) and 1.98×10(4)M(-1), respectively, which revealed that the complexes could interact with CT-DNA through groove binding. The results indicated that the complexes (1-3) were able to bind to DNA with different binding affinity, in the order: 2>1>3. The interaction of the compounds with bovine serum albumins were also investigated using fluorescence methods and the gel electrophoresis assay demonstrates weak cleavage ability of the pBR322 plasmid DNA in the presence of the metal complexes (1-3) with various activators. Further, the in vitro cytotoxic effect of the complexes were examined on cancerous cell line, with human breast cancer cells MCF-7.

Epitope-Based Immunoinformatics and Molecular Docking Studies of Nucleocapsid Protein and Ovarian Tumor Domain of Crimean–Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus

Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV), the fatal human pathogen is transmitted to humans by tick bite, or exposure to infected blood or tissues of infected livestock. The CCHFV genome consists of three RNA segments namely, S, M, and L. The unusual large viral L protein has an ovarian tumor (OTU) protease domain located in the N terminus. It is likely that the protein may be autoproteolytically cleaved to generate the active virus L polymerase with additional functions. Identification of the epitope regions of the virus is important for the diagnosis, phylogeny studies, and drug discovery. Early diagnosis and treatment of CCHF infection is critical to the survival of patients and the control of the disease. In this study, we undertook different in silico approaches using molecular docking and immunoinformatics tools to predict epitopes which can be helpful for vaccine designing. Small molecule ligands against OTU domain and protein–protein interaction between a viral and a host protein have been studied using docking tools.

Binding mode exploration of LuxR-thiazolidinedione analogues, e-pharmacophore-based virtual screening in the designing of LuxR inhibitors and its biological evaluation

Master quorum sensing (QS) regulator LuxR of Vibrio harveyi is a unique member of the TetR protein superfamily. Recent studies have demonstrated the contribution of thiazolidinedione analogues in blocking QS by decreasing the DNA-binding ability of LuxR. However, the precise mechanism of thiazolidinedione analogues binding to LuxR is still unclear. In the present study, molecular docking combined with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations was performed to understand the mechanism of ligand binding to the protein. The binding pattern of thiazolidinedione analogues showed strong hydrogen bonding interactions with the amine group (NH) of polar amino acid residue Asn133 and carbonyl (C=O) interaction with negatively charged amino acid residue Gln137 in the binding site of LuxR. The stability of the protein–ligand complexes was confirmed by running 50 ns of MD simulations. Further, the four-featured pharmacophore hypothesis (AHHD) consists of one acceptor (A), two hydrophobic regions (HH) and one donor (D) group was used to screen compounds from ChemBridge database. The identified hit molecules were shown to have excellent pharmacokinetic properties under the acceptable range. Based on the computational studies, ChemBridge_5343641 was selected for in vitro assays. The 1-(4-chlorophenoxy)-3-[(4,6-dimethyl-2-pyrimidinyl)thio]-2-propanol (ChemBridge_5343641) showed significant reduction in bioluminescence in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, ChemBridge_5343641 inhibits biofilm formation and motility in V. harveyi. The result from the study suggests that ChemBridge_5343641 could serve as an anti-QS molecule.

Efficacy of potential phage cocktails against Vibrio harveyi and closely related Vibrio species isolated from shrimp aquaculture environment in the south east coast of India

A diverse set of novel phages infecting the marine pathogenic Vibrio harveyi was isolated from shrimp aquaculture environments in the south east coast of India. Based on initial screening, three phages with a broad host range revealed that the growth inhibition of phage is relatively specific to V. harveyi. They were also able to infect V. alginolyticus and V. parahemolyticus that belonged to the Harveyi clade species from shrimp pond and sea coast environment samples. However, the impact of these phages on their host bacterium are well understood; a one-step growth curve experiment and transmission electron microscope (TEM) revealed three phages grouped under the Myoviridae (VHM1 and VHM2); Siphoviridae (VHS1) family. These phages were further molecular characterized with respect to phage genomic DNA isolates. The randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) digestion with HindIII, and major structural proteins were distinguished by sodium-dodecyl-sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) clearly indicated that all the phage isolates were different, even when they came from the same source, giving an insight into the diversity of phages. Evaluation of microcosm studies of Penaeus monodon larvae infected with V. harveyi (105 CFU mL-1) showed that larvae survival after 96 h in the presence of phage treatment at 109 PFU mL-1 was enhanced when compared with the control. The resolution in over survival highly recommended that this study provides the phage-based therapy which could be an innovative and eco-friendly solution against Vibrio disease in shrimp aquaculture and in the natural environment.

Exploration of potential EGFR inhibitors: a combination of pharmacophore-based virtual screening, atom-based 3D-QSAR and molecular docking analysis

Abstract Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) protein tyrosine kinases are over expressed in several human cancers and considered as a promising target for developing novel anticancer drugs. In this study, the ligand-based pharmacophore mapping and atom-based 3D-QSAR approach was carried out on a series of 40 novel pyrrolo[3, 2-d]pyrimidine derivatives acting as EGFR inhibitors. The best pharmacophore hypothesis AAADRR.295 was selected and an atom-based 3D-QSAR model was generated by applying partial least-squares algorithm. The developed model was validated and used as a 3D query in sequential virtual screening study to filter five chemical databases. The obtained compounds were further filtered according to Lipinski rule of five and fitness score. Subsequently, a multistep molecular docking study was employed on the retrieved hits and finally, 12 compounds were prioritized as potential leads against EGFR, which exhibited high docking scores, correlated binding mode to experimentally proven compounds and constructive drug-like properties. The results of this study provide detailed structural insights and emphasize the important binding features of these compounds, which may assists in the design and development of novel EGFR inhibitors.

Synthesis, molecular structure, theoretical calculation, DNA/protein interaction and cytotoxic activity of manganese(III) complex with 8-hydroxyquinoline.

Manganese(III) complex (1) [Mn(8-hq)3] (where 8-hq=8-hydroxyquinoline) has been synthesized and characterized by elemental, spectral (UV-vis, FT-IR) and thermal analysis. The structure of complex (1) has been determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies and the configuration around manganese(III) ion was elongated octahedral coordination geometry. Density functional theory calculations were performed for ligand and its complex. Binding studies of ligand and complex 1 with calf thymus DNA (CT-DNA) was investigated by absorption, fluorescence, circular dichroic (CD) spectroscopy and viscosity measurements. Absorption spectral studies revealed that ligand and complex 1 binds to DNA groove and its intrinsic binding strength has been found to be 2.57×10(4) and 2.91×10(4)M(-1). A molecular docking study confirm that the complex 1 is a minor groove binder and was stabilized through hydrogen bonding interactions. Complex 1 exhibits a good binding propensity to bovine serum albumin (BSA) protein. The in vitro cytotoxicity study of complex 1 on breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) indicate that it has the potential to act as effective anticancer drug, with IC50 values of 3.25μM. The ligand and its complex have been screened for antimicrobial activities and the complex showed better antimicrobial activity than the free ligand.

Pharmacophore modeling and structure-based virtual screening to identify potent inhibitors targeting LuxP of Vibrio harveyi.

Abstract The main aim of the study is to identify molecules that can disrupt quorum sensing (QS) system of Vibrio harveyi and therefore perhaps the production of toxins. Recently, a novel class of dioxazaborocane derivatives has been found to block AI-2 QS by targeting LuxPQ, but the mechanism of protein inhibition is still unclear. In order to investigate the possible binding modes, all the derivatives were docked into the binding site of LuxP using induced fit docking (IFD). The computed binding affinity is in good agreement with the experimental data. Resultant protein–ligand complexes were simulated using Desmond module and the result revealed better binding of ligands in the binding site of LuxP. Both pharmacophore- and structure-based virtual screening was performed to identify novel hits against LuxP. A filtering protocol, including lipinski filters, number of rotatable bonds and three levels of docking precisions were used for the selection of hits with specific properties. The virtual screening results were then combined and analyzed, which retrieved six hits with significant Glide score, binding affinity toward LuxP. The pharmacokinetic properties of the retrieved hits are in the acceptable range. Enrichment calculation was performed to validate the final hits, to discriminate the active compounds from the inactive compounds. The identified hits could serve as a base for further drug development against LuxP of Vibrio harveyi.

Bioassay-guided isolation and identification of bioactive compound from aerial parts of Luffa acutangula against lung cancer cell line NCI-H460

Abstract Luffa acutangula (Cucurbitaceae) is widely used as a traditional medicine in India and was reported to possess various pharmacological activities including its anti-proliferative effects. In this study, the bioactive compound of ethanolic extract of L. acutangula (LA) was isolated using bioassay-guided approach. Five major fractions were collected and evaluated for their anti-proliferative activity against non-small cell lung cancer cells (NCI-H460). Among the test fractions, the fraction LA/FII effectively decreased the growth of cancer cells with IC50 values of 10 µg/ml concentration. Furthermore, it significantly increased intracellular reactive oxygen species and decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential. The apoptogenic activity of fraction LA/FII was confirmed by cell shrinkage, membrane blebbing and formation of apoptotic bodies. A single bioactive compound was isolated from the active faction, LA/FII and subsequently identified as 1,8 dihydroxy-4-methylanthracene 9,10-dione (compound 1) by comparing its spectral data [Ultraviolet (UV), Infrared (IR), Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and Electrospray Ionization-Mass Spectroscopy (ESI-MS)] with literature values. This is the first report on the isolation of compound 1 from this plant.