化学蛋白质组学在天然产物分子靶标鉴定中的应用

绿色新农药的开发和利用有利于农业的可持续发展,基于天然产物进行活性先导发现及作用机制研究是重要的新农药创制策略,然而其作用靶标和作用机制难以确定,阻碍了其在新农药中的应用。因此发现化合物新靶点对于新农药创制来说是一项既重要又艰巨的任务。化学蛋白质组学作为后基因组时代的新技术,目前已经成为研究药物靶点的重要手段之一。本文对基于化学蛋白组学的化合物作用分子靶点发现方法和典型案例进行探析,介绍这些技术的主要原理、应用以及各自的优点和局限性,旨在阐述基于化学蛋白质组学发现药物作用靶标的最新方法,并为天然产物靶点及新农药创制研究提供参考。     

综述与专论：靶向蛋白质降解技术研究进展

靶向蛋白质降解技术可有效克服DNA敲除、RNA干扰等传统药物靶点确认及干扰策略的局限性。近年来,一系列新型靶向蛋白质降解技术不断涌现,在药物研发领域展现出极好的应用前景。本文综述了靶向蛋白质降解技术的最新研究进展,重点介绍各种技术的作用机制、应用情况、技术优势及目前存在问题,以期为药物靶点确认及新药开发提供有力理论及技术支持。     

靶向蛋白质降解技术研究进展

靶向蛋白质降解技术可有效克服DNA敲除、RNA干扰等传统药物靶点确认及干扰策略的局限性。近年来,一系列新型靶向蛋白质降解技术不断涌现,在药物研发领域展现出极好的应用前景。本文综述了靶向蛋白质降解技术的最新研究进展,重点介绍各种技术的作用机制、应用情况、技术优势及目前存在问题,以期为药物靶点确认及新药开发提供有力理论及技术支持。     

基于亲和探针的药物靶点鉴定技术研究进展

药物靶点的鉴定和相关研究在药学研究领域具有重要的理论指导意义和实用价值。利用亲和探针偶联靶分子的方法是目前发现药 物靶点的主要手段之一。该方法可从分子水平发现药物的作用靶点,从而对药物的分子作用机制提供细胞水平的直接证据。从 DNA 和小 分子药物探针的构筑和应用入手,对近些年鉴定 DNA 损伤识别蛋白的研究进展进行了较为详尽的讨论,并简要介绍目前探索小分子药物 作用靶点的主流技术。作为亲和偶联鉴定药物作用靶点方法的重要组成部分,亲和探针设计的合理性关系到方法本身的可操作性以及鉴 定结果的可靠性。从多个角度对 DNA 探针和小分子药物探针的设计经验进行了较为系统的总结,例如经典的亲和纯化分离方法,以及更 为高效的光激发共价偶联技术等。这些方法和思路为探索 DNA 损伤相关蛋白质的功能以及小分子药物的细胞作用机制提供了丰富的研究 工具,有助于从分子水平理解药物的作用机制。     

基于斑马鱼模型和动态分子对接技术探讨西洋参抗缺氧作用及潜在靶点CSCD

本研究利用斑马鱼模型和动态分子对接技术研究西洋参抗缺氧(hypoxia)的作用及潜在靶点。以AB系斑马鱼为实验动物,无水硫酸钠为造模剂诱导形成斑马鱼幼鱼缺氧模型,综合评价西洋参的抗缺氧作用。借助网络药理学技术筛选西洋参活性成分以及缺氧相关共有靶点;并使用STRING平台和Cytoscape 3.8.2软件构建蛋白-蛋白作用网络图,寻找西洋参抗缺氧可能的潜在靶点;利用动态分子对接技术验证活性成分与关键靶点的结合能力和稳定性。斑马鱼体内实验显示,西洋参提取物可明显增加斑马鱼在缺氧条件下的存活率,减轻因缺氧导致的神经行为状态(P<0.05),且呈剂量依赖性相关。共筛选获得西洋参7个潜在活性成分和5个抗缺氧潜在靶点;动态分子对接结果显示,西洋参关键活性成分与靶点之间有良好的结合能力,其中TNF、HSP90AA1与活性成分稳定结合,可能为西洋参抗缺氧的关键潜在靶点。综上,本实验建立的斑马鱼幼鱼抗缺氧模型可以快速简便地评价西洋参样品的抗缺氧活性,动态分子对接的结果显示该作用可能通过TNF以及HSP90AA1等靶点发挥作用,为后续西洋参抗缺氧机制研究提供了参考依据。     

化学基因组学在抗真菌药物研究中的应用CSCD

真菌感染特别是侵袭性感染严重威胁人类健康,而我们应对真菌感染的药物种类却很少。基于细胞表型变化的抗真菌药物筛选,容易获得活性先导物,但后续对其作用靶点和作用机制的研究通常需要耗费更多的时间和精力,这已成为抗真菌药物研发的瓶颈。识别活性化合物的分子靶点,对于进一步优化改造先导物获得高效低毒的候选药物至关重要。化学基因组学能在活细胞基因组水平上发现先导物的作用靶点,利用该策略,近年来已有多个抗真菌先导物发现了作用靶点。该文主要介绍了化学基因组学的技术特点,以及近年来在发现抗真菌先导物作用靶点方面的应用。     

2 型糖尿病治疗药物研究进展

2 型糖尿病（T2DM）是一种代谢障碍性疾病。传统抗糖尿病药物具有不同程度的副作用,如低血糖、胃肠道反应、体重增加、 心血管风险等,因此开发作用于新靶点和新作用机制的T2DM 治疗新药成为当前研究的热点。目前基于新靶点设计的糖尿病治疗新药有 些已上市,且获得良好的降糖效果,但大部分药物仍处于临床或临床前研究阶段,其疗效和安全性有待进一步临床验证。综述传统抗糖 尿病药物、T2DM 药物新靶点及基于新靶点设计的抗糖尿病新药的研究进展。     

药物靶标配体高通量筛选的亲和质谱技术研究

疾病相关的药物靶标蛋白与小分子化合物的亲和作用研究是当今新药研发的热点领域,基于靶蛋白与配体亲和作用的筛选技术已成为与基于靶蛋白活性高通量筛选技术高度互补的药物先导化合物发现关键技术。本文综述了亲和质谱技术用于筛选和检测指定靶蛋白的小分子配体的基本原理和主要优势,详细介绍了该技术应用于大规模化合物库筛选、分子片段库筛选、天然产物粗提物筛选和蛋白质与胞内代谢物相互作用研究领域的主要进展。     

天然产物活性成分抗肝癌分子机制的研究进展

肝癌作为高发病率和高死亡率的恶性肿瘤之一,存在术后复发率高、癌细胞易转移、多药耐药、机体免疫力低下、治疗预后不佳等问题;当前缺乏行之有效的治疗手段,因此迫切寻找安全、高效低毒的新型抗肝癌药物。天然产物富含多类活性成分,如多糖、黄酮、皂苷、生物碱等,具有优先杀伤或抑制癌细胞、毒副作用小、不易产生耐药性、增强机体免疫的作用,且为多靶点、环节效应的特征,是探索新型抗肿瘤药物的重要资源库。目前,从天然产物中提取活性成分,并探究其抗肝癌作用机制是筛选肝癌治疗药物及作用靶点的重要途径和研究热点。本文将从天然产物活性成分抑制肝癌细胞增殖的作用机制进行综述,揭示诱导肝癌细胞凋亡的作用途径,以期为抗肝癌药物的研发与利用提供理论依据。     

药物靶点的选择和验证

药物靶点的选择和验证是药物开发研究中一个重要的环节.随着现代分子生物学技术的发展和人类基因组计划的完成,出现了大量可供治疗干预的新型分子靶点,对这些新型分子靶点进行验证成为药物开发科学家所面临的重要任务.为此,就药物靶点及其选择、验证所需的分子技术基础作一简要综述.     

Natural products as probes in pharmaceutical research

From the start of the pharmaceutical research natural products played a key role in drug discovery and development. Over time many discoveries of fundamental new biology were triggered by the unique biological activity of natural products. Unprecedented chemical structures, novel chemotypes, often pave the way to investigate new biology and to explore new pathways and targets. This review summarizes the recent results in the area with a focus on research done in the laboratories of Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research. We aim to put the technological advances in target identification techniques in the context to the current revival of phenotypic screening and the increasingly complex biological questions related to drug discovery.     

How can natural products serve as a viable source of lead compounds for the development of new/novel anti-malarials?

Malaria continues to be an enormous global health challenge, with millions of new infections and deaths reported annually. This is partly due to the development of resistance by the malaria parasite to the majority of established anti-malarial drugs, a situation that continues to hamper attempts at controlling the disease. This has spurred intensive drug discovery endeavours geared towards identifying novel, highly active anti-malarial drugs, and the identification of quality leads from natural sources would greatly augment these efforts. The current reality is that other than compounds that have their foundation in historic natural products, there are no other compounds in drug discovery as part of lead optimization projects and preclinical development or further that have originated from a natural product start-point in recent years. This paper briefly presents both classical as well as some more modern, but underutilized, approaches that have been applied outside the field of malaria, and which could be considered in enhancing the potential of natural products to provide or inspire the development of anti-malarial lead compounds.     

New aspects of natural products in drug discovery

During the past 15 years, most large pharmaceutical companies have decreased the screening of natural products for drug discovery in favor of synthetic compound libraries. Main reasons for this include the incompatibility of natural product libraries with high-throughput screening and the marginal improvement in core technologies for natural product screening in the late 1980s and early 1990 s. Recently, the development of new technologies has revolutionized the screening of natural products. Applying these technologies compensates for the inherent limitations of natural products and offers a unique opportunity to re-establish natural products as a major source for drug discovery. Examples of these new advances and technologies are described in this review.     

Tools and methodologies capable of isolating and identifying a target molecule for a bioactive compound

Elucidating the mechanism of action of bioactive compounds, such as commonly used pharmaceutical drugs and biologically active natural products, in the cells and the living body is important in drug discovery research. To this end, isolation and identification of target protein(s) for the bioactive compound are essential in understanding its function fully. And, development of reliable tools and methodologies capable of addressing efficiently identification and characterization of the target proteins based on the bioactive compounds accelerates drug discovery research. Affinity-based isolation and identification of target molecules for the bioactive compounds is a classic, but still powerful approach. This paper introduces recent progress on affinity chromatography system, focusing on development of practical affinity matrices and useful affinity-based methodologies on target identification. Beneficial affinity chromatography systems with using practical tools and useful methodologies facilitate chemical biology and drug discovery research.     

Current situation and future usage of anticancer drug databases

Cancer is a deadly disease with increasing incidence and mortality rates and affects the life quality of millions of people per year. The past 15 years have witnessed the rapid development of targeted therapy for cancer treatment, with numerous anticancer drugs, drug targets and related gene mutations been identified. The demand for better anticancer drugs and the advances in database technologies have propelled the development of databases related to anticancer drugs. These databases provide systematic collections of integrative information either directly on anticancer drugs or on a specific type of anticancer drugs with their own emphases on different aspects, such as drug–target interactions, the relationship between mutations in drug targets and drug resistance/sensitivity, drug–drug interactions, natural products with anticancer activity, anticancer peptides, synthetic lethality pairs and histone deacetylase inhibitors. We focus on a holistic view of the current situation and future usage of databases related to anticancer drugs and further discuss their strengths and weaknesses, in the hope of facilitating the discovery of new anticancer drugs with better clinical outcomes.     

Natural product drug discovery: the successful optimization of ISP-1 and halichondrin B

The concept that natural products provide excellent leads for drug discovery, ultimately producing viable drugs, is a widely accepted view. Natural products embody inherent structural complexity and biological activity which often leads to new targets, pathways, or modes of action. The challenge lies in identifying quality natural product scaffolds that can ultimately result in a drug. Two recently approved drugs originating from unlikely natural product leads, ISP-1 and halichondrin B, were examples of such high quality scaffolds. In initial testing, both compounds displayed excellent in vitro potency, but more importantly were amenable to chemical optimization. This combination of unique biological activity plus the generation of structural activity relationships (SAR) may be early indicators of a high quality natural product scaffold worthy of additional studies.     

Natural products drug discovery research in India: status and appraisal

Discovery of a new drug is time consuming and laborious process. Natural products have long been a thriving source for the discovery of new drugs due to their chemical diversity and ability to act on various biological targets. The phytochemical exploration of indigeneous flora has contributed to some extent in this race for the discovery of new drugs. The traditional Indian systems of medicine has been a part of our lifestyle since ages and the classical texts like Ayurveda and Charak Samhita have served as materia medica for this purpose. This review focuses on the contributions made from India in the drug discovery and development process and provides future directions in the area.     

Role of natural product diversity in chemical biology

Through the natural selection process, natural products possess a unique and vast chemical diversity and have been evolved for optimal interactions with biological macromolecules. Owing to their diversity, target affinity, and specificity, natural products have demonstrated enormous potential as modulators of biomolecular function, been an essential source for drug discovery, and provided design principles for combinatorial library development.     

A mouse model-based screening platform for the identification of immune activating compounds such as natural products for novel cancer immunotherapies

The therapy of cancer continues to be a challenge aggravated by the evolution of resistance against current medications. As an alternative for the traditional tripartite treatment options of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, immunotherapy is gaining increasing attention due to the opportunity of more targeted approaches. Promising targets are antigen-presenting cells which drive innate and adaptive immune responses. The discovery and emergence of new drugs and lead structures can be inspired by natural products which comprise many highly bioactive molecules. The development of new drugs based on natural products is hampered by the current lack of guidelines for screening these structures for immune activating compounds. In this work, we describe a phenotypic preclinical screening pipeline for first-line identification of promising natural products using the mouse as a model system. Favorable compounds are defined to be non-toxic to immune target cells, to show direct anti-tumor effects and to be immunostimulatory at the same time. The presented screening pipeline constitutes a useful tool and aims to integrate immune activation in experimental approaches early on in drug discovery. It supports the selection of natural products for later chemical optimization, direct application in in vivo mouse models and clinical trials and promotes the emergence of new innovative drugs for cancer treatment.