0000000000002708
AUTHOR
Maria Galvez-llompart
Alzheimer: A Decade of Drug Design. Why Molecular Topology can be an Extra Edge?
Background The last decade was characterized by a growing awareness about the severity of dementia in the field of age-related and no age-related diseases and about the importance to invest resources in the research of new, effective treatments. Among the dementias, Alzheimer's plays a substantial role because of its extremely high incidence and fatality. Several pharmacological strategies have been tried but still now, Alzheimer keeps being an untreatable disease. In literature, the number of QSAR related drug design attempts about new treatments for Alzheimer is huge, but only few results can be considered noteworthy. Providing a detailed analysis of the actual situation and reporting the…
Drugs Repurposing for Coronavirus Treatment: Computational Study Based On Molecular Topology
The present communication illustrates the results of a computational study based on molecular topology, focused on the repositioning of drugs to treat the SARS-CoV-2 virus, better known as coronavirus, responsible for the COVID-19 disease. Using lopinavir, a well-known viral protease inhibitor as the reference drug, a mathematical pattern is found allowing the screening of the market drugs, searching for potential candidates to inhibit the said enzyme. This way new possible therapeutic alternatives to fight the coronavirus are found. Results indicate that antivirals such as brecanavir, as well as various groups of drugs, among which are antibiotics of the macrolide family (azithromycin, cla…
Chemistry Explained by Topology: An Alternative Approach
Molecular topology can be considered an application of graph theory in which the molecular structure is characterized through a set of graph-theoretical descriptors called topological indices. Molecular topology has found applications in many different fields, particularly in biology, chemistry, and pharmacology. The first topological index was introduced by H. Wiener in 1947 [1]. Although its very first application was the prediction of the boiling points of the alkanes, the Wiener index has demonstrated since then a predictive capability far beyond that. Along with the Wiener index, in this paper we focus on a few pioneering topological indices, just to illustrate the connection between p…
What place does molecular topology have in today’s drug discovery?
Introduction: Most methods in molecular and drug design are currently based on physicochemical descriptors. However, molecular topology, which relies on topological descriptors, has also shown value for molecular design even if it does not take into account the physical or chemical properties of ligands and receptors, including the ligand-receptor interaction itself. Areas covered: Herein, the authors provide new insights into the importance of molecular topology according to some of the latest discoveries in physics and chemistry. Furthermore, the authors report on the most significant achievements in drug design using molecular topology over the last 5 years and give their expert perspect…
Biodegradability Prediction of Fragrant Molecules by Molecular Topology
Biodegradability is a key property in the development of safer fragrances. In this work we present a green methodology for its preliminary assessment. The structure of various fragrant molecules is characterized by computing a large set of topological indices. Those relevant to biodegradability are selected by means of a hybrid stepwise selection method to build a linear classifier. This model is compared with a more complex artificial neural network trained with the indices previously found. After validation, the models show promise for time and cost reduction in the development of new, safer fragrances. The methodology presented could easily be adapted to many quasi-big data problems in R…
Molecular topology applied to the discovery of 1-benzyl-2-(3-fluorophenyl)-4-hydroxy-3-(3-phenylpropanoyl)-2H-pyrrole-5-one as a non-ligand-binding-pocket antiandrogen
We report the discovery of 1-benzyl-2-(3- fluorophenyl)-4-hydroxy-3-(3-phenylpropanoyl)-2H-pyrrole- 5-one as a novel non-ligand binding pocket (non-LBP) antagonist of the androgen receptor (AR) through the application of molecular topology techniques. This compound, validated through time-resolved fluorescence resonance energy transfer and fluorescence polarization biological assays, provides the basis for lead optimization and structure−activity relationship analysis of a new series of non-LBP AR antagonists. Induced-fit docking and molecular dynamics studies have been performed to establish a consistent hypothesis for the interaction of the new active molecule on the AR surface. Refereed/…
How Molecular Topology Can Help in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Drug Development: A Revolutionary Paradigm for a Merciless Disease
r Abstract: Even if amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is still considered an orphan disease to date, its prevalence among the population is growing fast. Despite the efforts made by researchers and pharmaceutical companies, the cryptic information related to the biological and physiological onset mechanisms, as well as the complexity in identifying specific pharmacological targets, make it almost impossible to find effective treatments. Furthermore, because of complex ethical and economic aspects, it is usually hard to find all the necessary resources when searching for drugs for new orphan diseases. In this context, computational methods, based either on receptors or ligands, share the capabil…
Molecular Topology QSAR Strategy for Crop Protection: New Natural Fungicides with Chitin Inhibitory Activity
Nowadays, crop protection is a major concern and how to proceed is a delicate point of contention. New products must be safe and ecofriendly in accordance with the actual legislation. In this context, we present a quantitative structure-activity relationship strategy based on molecular topology as a tool for generating natural products as potential fungicides following a mechanism of action based on the synthesis of chitin inhibition (chitinase inhibition). Two discriminant equations using statistical linear discriminant analysis were used to identify three potential candidates (1-methylxanthine, hematommic acid, and antheraxanthin). The equations showed accuracy and specificity levels abov…
Modeling anti-allergic natural compounds by molecular topology.
Molecular topology has been applied to the search of QSAR models able to identify the anti-allergic activity of a wide group of heterogeneous compounds. Through the linear discriminant analysis and artificial neural networks, correct classification percentages above 85% for both the training set and the test set have been obtained. After carrying out a virtual screening with a natural product library, about thirty compounds with theoretical anti-allergic activity have been selected. Among them, hesperidin, naringin, salinomycin, sorbitol, curcumol, myricitrin, diosmin and kinetin stand out. Some of these compounds have already been referenced as having anti-allergic activity.
Novel Cancer Chemotherapy Hits by Molecular Topology: Dual Akt and Beta-Catenin Inhibitors
Background and purposeColorectal and prostate cancers are two of the most common types and cause of a high rate of deaths worldwide. Therefore, any strategy to stop or at least slacken the development and progression of malignant cells is an important therapeutic choice. The aim of the present work is the identification of novel cancer chemotherapy agents. Nowadays, many different drug discovery approaches are available, but this paper focuses on Molecular Topology, which has already demonstrated its extraordinary efficacy in this field, particularly in the identification of new hit and lead compounds against cancer. This methodology uses the graph theoretical formalism to numerically chara…
Computational screening of structure directing agents for the synthesis of zeolites. A simplified model
Abstract Zeolite micropores become more energetically stable by the occlusion of organic structure directing agents (templates). This energetic stabilisation, if approximated by van der Waals zeo-template interactions, can be calculated in a fast way by using modern computing techniques incorporating big data handling algorithms for massive screening. A software suite is presented which calculates an arbitrarily large 2-D matrix (template×zeolite) giving the zeo-template van der Waals interaction energy corresponding to the minimum energy conformation assuming one template molecule in a pure silica zeolite unit cell. With the goal of simplicity, the software only needs two coordinate input …
Molecular topology as a novel approach for drug discovery
Molecular topology (MT) has emerged in recent years as a powerful approach for the in silico generation of new drugs. One key part of MT is that, in the process of drug design/discovery, there is no need for an explicit knowledge of a drug's mechanism of action unlike other drug discovery methods.In this review, the authors introduce the topic by explaining briefly the most common methodology used today in drug design/discovery and address the most important concepts of MT and the methodology followed (QSAR equations, LDA, etc.). Furthermore, the significant results achieved, from this approach, are outlined and discussed.The results outlined herein can be explained by considering that MT r…
Application of Molecular Topology for the Prediction of Reaction Yields and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Heterocyclic Amidine Derivatives
Topological-mathematical models based on multiple linear regression analyses have been built to predict the reaction yields and the anti-inflammatory activity of a set of heterocylic amidine derivatives, synthesized under environmental friendly conditions, using microwave irradiation. Two models with three variables each were selected. The models were validated by cross-validation and randomization tests. The final outcome demonstrates a good agreement between the predicted and experimental results, confirming the robustness of the method. These models also enabled the screening of virtual libraries for new amidine derivatives predicted to show higher values of reaction yields and anti-infl…
Discovery of novel anti-inflammatory drug-like compounds by aligning in silico and in vivo screening: The nitroindazolinone chemotype
In this report, we propose the combination of computational methods and in vivo primary screening in zebrafish larvae and confirmatory in mice models as a novel strategy to accelerate anti-inflammatory drug discovery. Initially, a database of 1213 organic chemicals with great structural variability - 587 of them anti-inflammatory agents plus 626 compounds with other clinical uses - was divided into training and test groups. Atom-based quadratic indices - a TOMOCOMD-CARDD molecular descriptors family - and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) were used to develop a total of 13 models to describe the anti-inflammatory activity. The best model (Eq. (13)) shows an accuracy of 87.70% in the traini…
Molecular topology: A new strategy for antimicrobial resistance control
The control of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) seems to have come to an impasse. The use and abuse of antibacterial drugs has had major consequences on the genetic mutability of both pathogenic and nonpathogenic microorganisms, leading to the development of new highly resistant strains. Because of the complexity of this situation, an in silico strategy based on QSAR molecular topology was devised to identify synthetic molecules as antimicrobial agents not susceptible to one or several mechanisms of resistance such as: biofilms formation (BF), ionophore (IA) activity, epimerase (EI) activity or SOS system (RecA inhibition). After selecting a group of 19 compounds, five of them showed signific…
Application of Molecular Topology to the Prediction of Water Quality Indices of Alkylphenol Pollutants
In this paper, topological-mathematical models based on multilineal regression analysis have been built as a model of the degradability of 26 alkylphenols through the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) and Biochemical Oxigen Demand (BOD5). Two models with three-variable were selected (r2= 0.8793 and q2=0.8075 for log(1/COD) and r2= 0.8928 and q2=0.8327 for log(1/BOD5). The models were validated by cross-validation, internal validation and randomization tests. The results, which stand in good accordance with the obtained results, confirm the robustness of the method.
The Prediction of Human Intestinal Absorption Based on the Molecular Structure
Human Intestinal Absorption (HIA) has been modeled many times by using classification models. However, regression models are scarce. Here, Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) are implemented for this purpose. A dataset of structurally diverse chemicals with their respective experimental HIA were used to design robust, true predictive and widespread applicable ANN models. An input variables pool was made up of structural invariants calculated by using either Dragon or our software Desmol 1. The selection of best variables was performed following three steps using the entire dataset of molecules. Firstly, variables poorly correlated with the experimental data were eliminated. Secondly, input va…
Modeling Drug-Induced Anorexia by Molecular Topology
Molecular topology (MT) has demonstrated to be a very good technique for describing molecular structures and to predict physical, chemical, and biological properties of compounds. In this paper, a topological-mathematical model based on MT has been developed for identifying drug compounds showing anorexia as a side effect. An external validation (test set) has been carried out, yielding over an 80% correct classification in the active and inactive compounds. These results reinforce the role of MT as a potential useful tool for predicting drug side effects.
Latest advances in molecular topology applications for drug discovery
Molecular topology (MT) has emerged in recent years as a powerful approach for the in silico generation of new drugs. In the last decade, its application has become more and more popular among the leading research groups in the field of quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR) and drug design. This has, in turn, contributed to the rapid development of new techniques and applications of MT in QSAR studies, as well as the introduction of new topological indices.This review collates the main innovative techniques in the field of MT and provides a description of the novel topological indices recently introduced, through an exhaustive recompilation of the most significant works carri…
Molecular topology - dissimilar similarities.
The present paper depicts the role of molecular topology in the study of similarity–dissimilarity between molecular structures. It proves that molecular topology represents a very useful tool for getting common patterns of pharmacological activity and hence an efficient approach for the search of novel lead drugs.
QSAR methods for the discovery of new inflammatory bowel disease drugs
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) represents an important class of chronic gastrointestinal tract disease. And although there are already several useful treatments to reduce and control the symptoms, there is still no cure. One drug discovery technique used is the computer-aided (in silico) discovery approach which has largely demonstrated efficacy. Computational techniques, when used in combination with traditional drug discovery methodology, greatly increase the chance of drug discovery in a sustainable and economical fashion.This review aims to provide the most recent and important advances of in silico IBD drug discovery. While this review is mainly focused on QSAR methods, especially th…
Identification of New Templates for the Synthesis of BEA, BEC, and ISV Zeolites Using Molecular Topology and Monte Carlo Techniques
The presence of organic structure directing agents (templates) in the synthesis of zeolites allows the synthesis to be directed, in many cases, toward structures in which there is a large stabilization between the template and the zeolite micropore due to dispersion interactions. Although other factors are also important (temperature, pH, Si/Al ratio, etc.), systems with strong zeolite-template interactions are good candidates for an application of new computational algorithms, for instance those based in molecular topology (MT), that can be used in combination with large databases of organic molecules. Computational design of new templates allows the synthesis of existing and new zeolites …
Application of molecular topology for the prediction of the reaction times and yields under solvent-free conditions
Ball milling and conventional magnetic stirring can be used to support different laboratory techniques with a highly efficient mixing of reagents under solvent-free conditions. By using multilinear regression and linear discriminant analysis, topological-mathematical models have been built to predict the yield and the reaction time for organocatalytic reactions, Suzuki reactions and reactions of synthesis of heterocyclic compounds. The results from the in silico predictions confirm the usefulness of the approach followed.
QSAR multi-target in drug discovery: a review.
The main purpose of the present review is to summarize the most significant works up to date in the field of multi-target QSAR (mt-QSAR), in order to emphasize the importance that this technique has acquired over the last decade. Unlike traditional QSAR techniques, mt-QSAR permits to calculate the probability of activity of a given compound against different biological or pharmacological targets. In simple terms, a single equation for multiple outputs. To emphasize more the importance of the mt-QSAR in the field of drug discovery, we also present a novel mt-QSAR model, made on purpose by our research group, for the prediction of the susceptibility of Gram + and Gram - anaerobic bacteria.
Modeling Natural Anti-Inflammatory Compounds by Molecular Topology
One of the main pharmacological problems today in the treatment of chronic inflammation diseases consists of the fact that anti-inflammatory drugs usually exhibit side effects. The natural products offer a great hope in the identification of bioactive lead compounds and their development into drugs for treating inflammatory diseases. Computer-aided drug design has proved to be a very useful tool for discovering new drugs and, specifically, Molecular Topology has become a good technique for such a goal. A topological-mathematical model, obtained by linear discriminant analysis, has been developed for the search of new anti-inflammatory natural compounds. An external validation obtained with …
Macrolides May Prevent Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Entry into Cells: A Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship Study and Experimental Validation
The global pandemic caused by the emerging severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is threatening the health and economic systems worldwide. Despite the enormous efforts of scientists and clinicians around the world, there is still no drug or vaccine available worldwide for the treatment and prevention of the infection. A rapid strategy for the identification of new treatments is based on repurposing existing clinically approved drugs that show antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 infection. In this study, after developing a quantitative structure activity relationship analysis based on molecular topology, several macrolide antibiotics are identified as promising SARS-…
Computational analysis of macrolides as SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitors: a pattern recognition study based on molecular topology and validated by molecular docking
Since the outbreak of the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, much has been discussed about the effectiveness of treatments based on hydroxychloroquine combined with azithromycin or another macrolide. However, few articles have dealt with the possibility of using macrolides alone in treating the disease. In the present article, the authors' hypothesis centers on the possibility that macrolides are effective against SARS-CoV-2 by inhibiting the virus protease. In support of this hypothesis, significant results are collected by following an in silico strategy based on a combination of molecular topology and docking. The results are in accordance with recent clinical data generated during the pandemi…
Advances in the molecular modeling and quantitative structure–activity relationship-based design for antihistamines
Nowadays the use of antihistamines (AH) is increasing steadily. These drugs are able to act on a variety of pathological conditions of the organism. A number of computer-aided (in silico) approaches have been developed to discover and develop novel AH drugs. Among these methods stand the ones based on drug-receptor docking, thermodynamics, as well as the quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR).This review collates the most recent advances in the use of computer approaches for the search and characterization of novel AH drugs. Within the QSAR methods, particular attention will be paid to those based on molecular topology (MT) because of their demonstrated efficacy in discovering…
Targeting the JAK/STAT Pathway: A Combined Ligand- and Target-Based Approach
Janus kinases (JAKs) are a family of proinflammatory enzymes able to mediate the immune responses and the inflammatory cascade by modulating multiple cytokine expressions as well as various growth factors. In the present study, the inhibition of the JAK-signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) signaling pathway is explored as a potential strategy for treating autoimmune and inflammatory disorders. A computationally driven approach aimed at identifying novel JAK inhibitors based on molecular topology, docking, and molecular dynamics simulations was carried out. For the best candidates selected, the inhibitory activity against JAK2 was evaluated in vitro. Two hit compounds with…
Introduction to molecular topology: basic concepts and application to drug design.
In this review it is dealt the use of molecular topology (MT) in the selection and design of new drugs. After an introduction of the actual methods used for drug design, the basic concepts of MT are defined, including examples of calculation of topological indices, which are numerical descriptors of molecular structures. The goal is making this calculation familiar to the potential students and allowing a straightforward comprehension of the topic. Finally, the achievements obtained in this field are detailed, so that the reader can figure out the great interest of this approach.
DesMol2, an Effective Tool for the Construction of Molecular Libraries and Its Application to QSAR Using Molecular Topology
A web application, DesMol2, which offers two main functionalities, is presented: the construction of molecular libraries and the calculation of topological indices. These functionalities are explained through a practical example of research of active molecules to the formylpeptide receptor (FPR), a receptor associated with chronic inflammation in systemic amyloidosis and Alzheimer&rsquo