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In silico screening of neurokinin receptor antagonists as a therapeutic strategy for neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease.

ABSTRACT: Neuroinflammation is one of the detrimental factors leading to neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurodegenerative disorders. The activation of microglial neurokinin 1 receptor (NK1R) by substance P (SP) enhances neuroinflammation which is mediated through pro-inflammatory pathways involving NFkB, ERK1/2, and P38 and thus projects the scope and importance of NK1R inhibitors. Emphasizing the inhibitory role of N Acetyl L Tryptophan (L-NAT) on NK1R, this is the first in silico screening of L-NAT mediated NK1R antagonism. In addition, FDA- approved ligands were screened for their potential NK1R antagonism. The L-NAT was docked in XP (Extra Precision) mode while FDA-approved ligands were screened in HTVS (High Throughput Virtual Screening), SP (Standard Precision), and XP mode onto NK1R (PDB:6HLO). The L-NAT and top 3 compounds FDA-approved ligands were subjected to molecular dynamics (MD) studies of 100 ns simulation time. The XP docking of L-NAT, indacaterol, modafinil and alosetron showed good docking scores. Their 100 ns MD showed brief protein-ligand interactions with an acceptable root mean square deviation. The protein-ligand contacts depicted pi-pi stacking, pi-cation, hydrogen bonds, and water bridges with the amino acids necessary for NK1R inhibition. The variable colour band intensities on the protein-ligand contact map indicated their binding strength with amino acids. The molecular mechanics/generalized born surface area (MM-GBSA) scores suggested favourable binding free energy of the complexes. Thus, our study predicted the ability of L-NAT, indacaterol, modafinil, and alosetron as capable NK1R inhibitors that can aid to curb neuroinflammation in conditions of AD which could be further ascertained in subsequent studies.

SUBMITTER: Satarker S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8885547 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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In silico screening of neurokinin receptor antagonists as a therapeutic strategy for neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease.

Satarker Sairaj S Maity Swastika S Mudgal Jayesh J Nampoothiri Madhavan M

Molecular diversity 20210731 1

Neuroinflammation is one of the detrimental factors leading to neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurodegenerative disorders. The activation of microglial neurokinin 1 receptor (NK1R) by substance P (SP) enhances neuroinflammation which is mediated through pro-inflammatory pathways involving NFkB, ERK1/2, and P38 and thus projects the scope and importance of NK1R inhibitors. Emphasizing the inhibitory role of N Acetyl L Tryptophan (L-NAT) on NK1R, this is the first in silic ...[more]

PMID: 34331670

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Project description:BackgroundAlzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder worldwide. Clinically, AD is characterized by impairments of memory and cognitive functions. Accumulation of amyloid-β (Aβ) and neurofibrillary tangles are the prominent neuropathologies in patients with AD. Strong evidence indicates that an imbalance between production and degradation of key proteins contributes to the pathogenesis of AD. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) plays a key role in maintaining protein homeostasis as it regulates both protein synthesis and degradation. A key regulator of mTOR activity is the proline-rich AKT substrate 40 kDa (PRAS40), which directly binds to mTOR and reduces its activity. Notably, AD patients have elevated levels of phosphorylated PRAS40, which correlate with Aβ and tau pathologies as well as cognitive deficits. Physiologically, PRAS40 phosphorylation is regulated by Pim1, a protein kinase of the protoconcogene family. Here, we tested the effects of a selective Pim1 inhibitor (Pim1i), on spatial reference and working memory and AD-like pathology in 3xTg-AD mice.ResultsWe have identified a Pim1i that crosses the blood brain barrier and reduces PRAS40 phosphorylation. Pim1i-treated 3xTg-AD mice performed significantly better than their vehicle treated counterparts as well as non-transgenic mice. Additionally, 3xTg-AD Pim1i-treated mice showed a reduction in soluble and insoluble Aβ40 and Aβ42 levels, as well as a 45.2 % reduction in Aβ42 plaques within the hippocampus. Furthermore, phosphorylated tau immunoreactivity was reduced in the hippocampus of Pim1i-treated 3xTg-AD mice by 38 %. Mechanistically, these changes were linked to a significant increase in proteasome activity.ConclusionThese results suggest that reductions in phosphorylated PRAS40 levels via Pim1 inhibition reduce Aβ and Tau pathology and rescue cognitive deficits by increasing proteasome function. Given that Pim1 inhibitors are already being tested in ongoing human clinical trials for cancer, the results presented here may open a new venue of drug discovery for AD by developing more Pim1 inhibitors.

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In silico screening of neurokinin receptor antagonists as a therapeutic strategy for neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease.

Publications

In silico screening of neurokinin receptor antagonists as a therapeutic strategy for neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease.

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