Multilevel Precision-Based Rational Design of Chemical Inhibitors Targeting the Hydrophobic Cleft of Toxoplasma gondii Apical Membrane Antigen 1 (AMA1).

ABSTRACT: Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular Apicomplexan parasite and a causative agent of toxoplasmosis in human. It causes encephalitis, uveitis, chorioretinitis, and congenital infection. T. gondii invades the host cell by forming a moving junction (MJ) complex. This complex formation is initiated by intermolecular interactions between the two secretory parasitic proteins-namely, apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1) and rhoptry neck protein 2 (RON2) and is critically essential for the host invasion process. By this study, we propose two potential leads, NSC95522 and NSC179676 that can efficiently target the AMA1 hydrophobic cleft, which is a hotspot for targeting MJ complex formation. The proposed leads are the result of an exhaustive conformational search-based virtual screen with multilevel pre

SUBMITTER: Vetrivel U 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4951401 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature