Like many coactivators, the GACKIX domain of the master coactivator CBP/p300 recognizes transcriptional activators of diverse sequence composition via dynamic binding surfaces. The conformational dynamics of GACKIX that underlie its function also render it especially challenging for structural characterization. We find that the ligand discovery strategy of Tethering is an effective method for identifying small molecule fragments that stabilize the GACKIX domain and enables, for the first time, the crystallographic characterization of this important motif. The 2.0 Å resolution structure of GACKIX complexed to a small molecule was further analyzed by molecular dynamics simulations, revealing the importance of specific side chain motions that remodel the activator binding site in order to accommodate binding partners of distinct sequence and size. More broadly, these results suggest that Tethering can be a powerful strategy for identifying small molecule stabilizers of conformationally malleable proteins, thus facilitating their structural characterization and accelerating the discovery of small molecule modulators.

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Small molecules that reconstitute the binding mode(s) of a protein and in doing so elicit a programmed functional response offer considerable advantages in the control of complex biological processes. The development challenges of such molecules are significant, however. Many protein-protein interactions require multiple points of contact over relatively large surface areas. More significantly, several binding modes can be superimposed upon a single sequence within a protein, and a true small molecule replacement must be pre-programmed for such multi-modal binding. This is the case for the transcriptional activation domain or TAD of transcriptional activators as these mofifs utilize a poorly characterized multi-partner binding profile in order to stimulate gene expression. Here we describe a unique class of small molecules that exhibit both function and a binding profile analogous to natural transcriptional activation domains. Of particular note, the small molecules are the first reported to bind to the KIX domain within the CREB binding protein (CBP) at a site that is utilized by natural activators. Further, a comparison of functional and non-functional small molecules indicates that an interaction with CBP is a key contributor to transcriptional activity. Taken together, the evidence suggests that the small molecule TADs mimic both the function and mechanism of their natural counterparts and thus present a framework for the broader development of small molecule transcriptional switches.Transcriptional activators are essential for high fidelity transcription, responsible for seeking out particular genes and up-regulating them to precise levels in a signal-responsive fashion.(1,2) Indeed, the altered transcription patterns observed in disease states can often be attributed to malfunctioning and/or mis-regulated transcriptional activators.(3-6) Alterations in the function of the tumor suppressor p53, for example, are found in >50% of all human cancers; (7,8) similarly, constitutively active NF-κB, an activator that regulates genes responsible for apoptosis, inflammatory response, and proliferation, is observed in inflammatory disorders and most cancers.(9,10) There is thus tremendous interest in the development of activator artificial transcription factors (activator ATFs), nonnatural molecules programmed to perform the same function as endogenous activators, as both mechanistic tools and as transcription-targeted therapeutic agents. (2,(11)(12)(13)(14) The architecture of activator ATFs is analogous to that of their natural counterparts in that they minimally consist of a DNA binding domain (DBD) that confers gene-targeting specificity and a transcriptional activation domain (TAD) that controls *Corresponding author, amapp@umich.edu.. The challenges associated with small molecule TAD discovery are due in large part to the scarcity of molecular-level details regarding natural TAD function. The largest and most well studied class of activators is the amphipathic class, characterized by interspersed polar a...

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