Discovery of new potent hits against intracellular Trypanosoma cruzi by QSAR-based virtual screening

European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry
2019.0

Abstract

Chagas disease is a neglected tropical disease (NTD) caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi and is primarily transmitted to humans by the feces of infected Triatominae insects during their blood meal. The disease affects 6-8 million people, mostly in Latin America countries, and kills more people in the region each year than any other parasite-born disease, including malaria. Moreover, patient numbers are currently increasing in non-endemic, developed countries, such as Australia, Japan, Canada, and the United States. The treatment is limited to one drug, benznidazole, which is only effective in the acute phase of the disease and is very toxic. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop new, safer, and effective drugs against the chronic phase of Chagas disease. Using a QSAR-based virtual screening followed by in vitro experimental evaluation, we report herein the identification of novel potent and selective hits against T. cruzi intracellular stage. We developed and validated binary QSAR models for prediction of anti-trypanosomal activity and cytotoxicity against mammalian cells using the best practices for QSAR modeling. These models were then used for virtual screening of a commercial database, leading to the identification of 39 virtual hits. Further in vitro assays showed that seven compounds were potent against intracellular T. cruzi at submicromolar concentrations (EC50 < 1 μM) and were very selective (SI > 30). Furthermore, other six compounds were also inside the hit criteria for Chagas disease, which presented activity at low micromolar concentrations (EC50 < 10 μM) against intracellular T. cruzi and were also selective (SI > 15). Moreover, we performed a multi-parameter analysis for the comparison of tested compounds regarding their balance between potency, selectivity, and predicted ADMET properties. In the next studies, the most promising compounds will be submitted to additional in vitro and in vivo assays in acute model of Chagas disease, and can be further optimized for the development of new promising drug candidates against this important yet neglected disease.

Knowledge Graph

Similar Paper

Discovery of new potent hits against intracellular Trypanosoma cruzi by QSAR-based virtual screening
European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2019.0
Discovery and Optimization of a Compound Series Active against Trypanosoma cruzi, the Causative Agent of Chagas Disease
Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2020.0
Ligand-based design, synthesis, and experimental evaluation of novel benzofuroxan derivatives as anti-Trypanosoma cruzi agents
European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2013.0
Discovery and Optimization of 5-Amino-1,2,3-triazole-4-carboxamide Series against Trypanosoma cruzi
Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2017.0
Anti-T. cruzi activities and QSAR studies of 3-arylquinoxaline-2-carbonitrile di-N-oxides
Bioorganic &amp; Medicinal Chemistry Letters 2010.0
Hit-to-lead optimization of novel 2-alkylaminomethylquinoline derivatives as anti-chagas agents
European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2020.0
Synthesis and biological evaluation of new long-chain squaramides as anti-chagasic agents in the BALB/c mouse model
Bioorganic &amp; Medicinal Chemistry 2019.0
Efficacy of 2-hydroxy-3-phenylsulfanylmethyl-[1,4]-naphthoquinone derivatives against different Trypanosoma cruzi discrete type units: Identification of a promising hit compound
European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2018.0
Image-Based High-Throughput Drug Screening Targeting the Intracellular Stage of Trypanosoma cruzi , the Agent of Chagas' Disease
Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 2010.0
In Vitro and in Vivo Anti-Trypanosoma cruzi Activity of New Arylamine Mannich Base-Type Derivatives
Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2016.0