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Publication Abstract from PubMed

The secretory glutaminyl cyclase (sQC) and Golgi-resident glutaminyl cyclase (gQC) are responsible for N-terminal protein pyroglutamation and associated with various human diseases. Although several sQC/gQC inhibitors have been reported, only one inhibitor, PQ912, is currently undergoing clinic trials for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. We report an X-ray crystal structure of sQC complexed with PQ912, revealing that the benzimidazole makes "anchor" interactions with the active site zinc ion and catalytic triad. Structure-guided design and optimization led to a series of new benzimidazole derivatives exhibiting nanomolar inhibition for both sQC and gQC. In a MPTP-induced Parkinson's disease (PD) mouse model, BI-43 manifested efficacy in mitigating locomotor deficits through reversing dopaminergic neuronal loss, reducing microglia, and decreasing levels of the sQC/gQC substrates, alpha-synuclein, and CCL2. This study not only offers structural basis and new leads for drug discovery targeting sQC/gQC but also provides evidence supporting sQC/gQC as potential targets for PD treatment.

X-ray Structure-Guided Discovery of a Potent Benzimidazole Glutaminyl Cyclase Inhibitor That Shows Activity in a Parkinson's Disease Mouse Model.,Mou J, Ning XL, Wang XY, Hou SY, Meng FB, Zhou C, Wu JW, Li C, Jia T, Wu X, Wu Y, Chen Y, Li GB J Med Chem. 2024 May 31. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c00049. PMID:38817193^[1]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.