Inhibition of Plasmodium falciparum Hsp90 Contributes to the Antimalarial Activities of Aminoalcohol-carbazoles.
Malaria caused by the protozoan parasite Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) remains a major public health problem throughout the developing world. One molecular target that should receive more attention is the molecular chaperone Hsp90. It is essential and highly conserved in all eukaryotes, including in protozoan parasites. We have identified an amino-alcohol carbazole (N-CBZ) as a PfHsp90-selective inhibitor by virtually docking a large set of antimalarial compounds, previously found in a phenotypic screen, into a PfHsp90-specific pocket. By correlating the ability of 30 additional N-CBZ derivatives to bind directly to PfHsp90 with their Pf-inhibitory activity, we found that these types of compounds are more likely to inhibit Pf growth if they bind PfHsp90. For plausible targets such as PfHsp90, our workflow may help identifying the molecular target for compounds found by screening large chemical libraries for a desired biological effect and, conversely, ensuring biological effectiveness for compounds affecting a particular target.
Département de Biologie Cellulaire, Université de Genève , Sciences III, 30 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, CH-1211 Genève 4, Switzerland.
Tai
T
Wang
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute , Socinstrasse 57, CH-4051 Basel, Switzerland.|University of Basel , Petersplatz 1, CH-4001 Basel, Switzerland.
Pascal
P
Mäser
Département de Biologie Cellulaire, Université de Genève , Sciences III, 30 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, CH-1211 Genève 4, Switzerland.
Didier
D
Picard
D000605:Amino Alcohols / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000962:Antimalarials / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002227:Carbazoles / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D018841:HSP90 Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D008958:Models, Molecular; D015394:Molecular Structure; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
D000605:Amino Alcohols; D000962:Antimalarials; D002227:Carbazoles; D018841:HSP90 Heat-Shock Proteins