Background: Protein N-terminal methyltransferases (NTMTs) methylate protein N-terminal ␣-amines. Results: Inhibition pattern and methylation progress analyses were performed to determine the kinetic mechanism and processivity of NTMT1. Conclusion: NTMT1 utilizes a random sequential Bi Bi mechanism and proceeds in a distributive manner. Significance: This information provides a rational basis for developing specific inhibitors targeting NTMT1.

The protein N-terminal methyltransferase 1 (NTMT1) methylates the α-N-terminal amines of proteins. NTMT1 is upregulated in a variety of cancers and knockdown of NTMT1 results in cell mitotic defects. Therefore, NTMT1 inhibitors could be potential anticancer therapeutics. This study describes the design and synthesis of the first inhibitor targeting NTMT1. A novel bisubstrate analogue (NAM-TZ-SPKRIA) was shown to be a potent inhibitor (Ki = 0.20 μM) for NTMT1 and was selective versus protein lysine methyltransferase G9a and arginine methyltransferase 1. NAM-TZ-SPKRIA was found to exhibit a competitive inhibition pattern for both substrates, and mass spectrometry experiments revealed that the inhibitor substantially suppressed the methylation progression. Our results demonstrate the feasibility of using a triazole group to link an S-adenosyl-L-methionine analog with a peptide substrate to construct bisubstrate analogues as NTMT1 potent and selective inhibitors. This study lays a foundation to further discover small molecule NTMT1 inhibitors to interrogate its biological functions, and suggests a general strategy for the development of selective protein methyltransferase inhibitors.

We report the first chemical synthesis of SAM–peptide conjugates through alkyl linkers to prepare bisubstrate analogs for protein methyltransferases. We demonstrate its application by developing a series of bisubstrate inhibitors for protein N-terminal methyltransferase 1 and the most potent one exhibits a Ki value of 310 ± 55 nM.

8-Nitrobenzothiazinones (BTZs) typified by the second-generation analogue PBTZ169 are a new class of antitubercular agents. The activity of BTZs and lipophilicity are tightly coupled since the molecular target DprE1 is located in the mycobacterial cell envelope. A series of analogues was designed to address the notorious insolubility of the BTZs while preserving the required lipophilicity. This was accomplished by decreasing the molecular planarity and symmetry through bioisosteric replacement of the piperazine moiety of PBTZ169 with spirocyclic and bicyclic diamines. Several promising compounds with improved aqueous solubilities were identified with potent antitubercular activity. Compound 5 was identified as the most promising candidate based on its excellent antitubercular activity (MIC of 32 nM), more than 1000-fold improvement in solubility, 2-fold lower clearance in mouse and human microsomes relative to PBTZ169, and promising pharmacokinetic parameters.

Protein methylation and acetylation play important roles in biological processes, and misregulation of these modifications is involved in various diseases. Therefore, it is critical to understand the activities of the enzymes responsible for these modifications. Herein we describe a sensitive method for ratiometric quantification of methylated and acetylated peptides via MALDI-MS by direct spotting of enzymatic methylation and acetylation reaction mixtures without tedious purification procedures. The quantifiable detection limit for peptides with our method is approximately 10 fmol. This is achieved by increasing the signal-to-noise ratio through the addition of NH4H2PO4 to the matrix solution and reduction of the matrix α-cyanohydroxycinnamic acid concentration to 2 mg/ml. We have demonstrated the application of this method in enzyme kinetic analysis and inhibition studies. The unique feature of this method is the simultaneous quantification of multiple peptide species for investigation of processivity mechanisms. Its wide buffer compatibility makes it possible to be adapted to investigate the activity of any protein methyltransferase or acetyltransferase.

1. The aim of this study was to investigate the inhibitory effect of morusin on Glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) isoforms and cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYP450s). We also investigated the metabolism of morusin in human, rat, dog, monkey, and minipig liver microsomes. 2. 100 μM of morusin exhibited strong inhibition on all UGTs and CYP450s. The half inhibition concentration (IC50) values for CYP3A4, CYP1A2, CYP2C9, CYP2E1, UGT1A6, UGT1A7, and UGT1A8 were 2.13, 1.27, 3.18, 9.28, 4.23, 0.98, and 3.00 μM, and the inhibition kinetic parameters (Ki) were 1.34, 1.16, 2.98, 6.23, 4.09, 0.62, and 2.11 μM, respectively. 3. Metabolism of morusin exhibited significant species differences. The quantities of M1 from minipig, monkey, dog, and rat were 7.8, 11.9, 2.0, and 6.3-fold of human levels. The Km values in HLMs, RLMs, MLMs, DLMs, and PLMs were 7.84, 22.77, 14.32, 9.13, and 22.83 μM, and Vmax for these species were 0.09, 1.23, 1.43, 0.15, and 0.75 nmol/min/mg, respectively. CLint (intrinsic clearance) values (Vmax/Km) for morusin obeyed the following order: monkey > rat > minipig > dog > human. CLH (hepatic clearance) values for humans, dogs, and rats were calculated to be 8.28, 17.38, and 35.12 mL/min/kg body weight, respectively. 4. This study provided vital information to understand the inhibitory potential and metabolic behavior of morusin among various species.

The aim of this study was to establish and evaluate a simultaneous amplification and testing method for detection of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (SAT-TB assay) in clinical specimens by using isothermal RNA amplification and real-time fluorescence detection. In the SAT-TB assay, a 170-bp M. tuberculosis 16S rRNA fragment is reverse transcribed to DNA by use of Moloney murine leukemia virus (M-MLV) reverse transcriptase, using specific primers incorporating the T7 promoter sequence, and undergoes successive cycles of amplification using T7 RNA polymerase. Using a real-time PCR instrument, hybridization of an internal 6-carboxyfluorescein-4-[4-(dimethylamino)phenylazo] benzoic acid N-succinimidyl ester (FAM-DABCYL)-labeled fluorescent probe can be used to detect RNA amplification. The SAT-TB assay takes less than 1.5 h to perform, and the sensitivity of the assay for detection of M. tuberculosis H37Rv is 100 CFU/ml. The TB probe has no cross-reactivity with nontuberculous mycobacteria or other common respiratory tract pathogens. For 253 pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) specimens and 134 non-TB specimens, the SAT-TB results correlated with 95.6% (370/387 specimens) of the Bactec MGIT 960 culture assay results. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of the SAT-TB test for the diagnosis of PTB were 67.6%, 100%, 100%, and 62.0%, respectively, compared to 61.7%, 100%, 100%, and 58.0% for Bactec MGIT 960 culture. For PTB diagnosis, the sensitivities of the SAT-TB and Bactec MGIT 960 culture methods were 97.6% and 95.9%, respectively, for smear-positive specimens and 39.2% and 30.2%, respectively, for smear-negative specimens. In conclusion, the SAT-TB assay is a novel, simple test with a high specificity which may enhance the detection rate of TB. It is therefore a promising tool for rapid diagnosis of M. tuberculosis infection in clinical microbiology laboratories.T he rapid and accurate diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) plays a critical role in its successful management, as it is essential to treat patients with the appropriate therapy as soon as possible to minimize the risk of transmission. A number of tests based on nucleic acid amplification (NAA) have been developed to identify Mycobacterium tuberculosis in clinical specimens rapidly and directly (8,34,35,44). Among the approved commercial NAA methods, the amplified M. tuberculosis direct test (MTD test; Gen-Probe) detects M. tuberculosis RNA by using a specific isothermal transcription-mediated amplification method (21). The MTD test has been shown to be a sensitive, specific, and rapid method for use with clinical samples (9, 17, 18); however, it requires the use of expensive specialized detection equipment, which prevents the assay from being applied widely in clinical laboratories. The aim of this study was to report and evaluate a simultaneous amplification and testing method for detection of the M. tuberculosis complex (SAT-TB assay) for use with clinical sputum specimens, based on real-time fluorescence dete...

Ebola virus is the causative agent of Ebola virus disease in humans. The lethality of Ebola virus infection is about 50%, supporting the urgent need to develop anti-Ebola drugs. Glycoprotein (GP) is the only surface protein of the Ebola virus, which is functionally critical for the virus to attach and enter the host cells, and is a promising target for anti-Ebola virus drug development. In this study, using the recombinant HIV-1/Ebola pseudovirus platform we previously established, we evaluated a small molecule library containing various quinoline compounds for anti-Ebola virus entry inhibitors. Some of the quinoline compounds specifically inhibited the entry of the Ebola virus. Among them, compound SYL1712 was the most potent Ebola virus entry inhibitor with an IC50 of ~1 μM. The binding of SYL1712 to the vial glycoprotein was computationally modeled and was predicted to interact with specific residues of GP. We used the time of the addition assay to show that compound SYL1712 blocks Ebola GP-mediated entry. Finally, consistent with being an Ebola virus entry inhibitor, compound SYL1712 inhibited infectious Ebola virus replication in tissue culture under biosafety level 4 containment, with an IC50 of 2 μM. In conclusion, we identified several related molecules with a diaryl-quinoline scaffold as potential anti-EBOV entry inhibitors, which can be further optimized for anti-Ebola drug development.