AI is a viable alternative to high throughput screening: a 318-target study

: High throughput screening (HTS) is routinely used to identify bioactive small molecules. This requires physical compounds, which limits coverage of accessible chemical space. Computational approaches combined with vast on-demand chemical libraries can access far greater chemical space, provided that the predictive accuracy is sufficient to identify useful molecules. Through the largest and most diverse virtual HTS campaign reported to date, comprising 318 individual projects, we demonstrate that our AtomNet® convolutional neural network successfully finds novel hits across every major therapeutic area and protein class. We address historical limitations of computational screening by demonstrating success for target proteins without known binders, high-quality X-ray crystal structures, or manual cherry-picking of compounds. We show that the molecules selected by the AtomNet® model are novel drug-like scaffolds rather than minor modifications to known bioactive compounds. Our empirical results suggest that computational methods can substantially replace HTS as the first step of small-molecule drug discovery

Identification and characterization of the first substrates of the Greatwall kinase, study of their functions during the cell cycle

Au cours de la division cellulaire, l'information génétique doit être transmise de façon précise et identique de la cellule mère aux cellules filles. Le génome est répliqué au cours de la phase S tandis que la distribution des deux copies entre les cellules filles se fait au cours de la mitose. L'initiation et le maintien de la mitose nécessite un équilibre contrôlé entre les activités des kinases et des phosphatases. La protéine kinase Greatwall est requise pour l'entrée et le maintien de la mitose à travers l'inhibition de la PP2A, la principale phosphatase qui déphosphoryle les substrats du complexe Cdk1-cycline B. Au cours de ce travail, nous avons entrepris l'étude structure/fonction de la protéine kinase Greatwall qui nous a permis de caractériser ses mécanismes d'activation. Nos résultats montrent que Greatwall appartient à la famille des AGC kinases mais qu'elle présente la particularité d'être contrôlée par des mécanismes qui lui sont propres: l'activation de la protéine, qui se fait en deux étapes, est différente de celle décrite pour les autres membres de cette famille de kinases. Par la suite, nous avons identifié deux substrats de la protéine kinase Greatwall, Arpp19 (cAMP-Regulated Phosphoprotein 19) et l'alpha-Endosulfine (ENSA). Nous avons montré qu'une fois phosphorylées par Greatwall, ces deux protéines s'associent à la PP2A et inhibent cette phosphatase. Malgré le fait que ces deux substrats soient capables d'inhiber la PP2A, seul Arpp19 endogène est responsable de l'inhibition de la phosphatase pour promouvoir l'entrée en mitose dans le modèle des extraits d'ovocytes de xénope. Nous nous intéressons à présent à l'étude du rôle d'ENSA.During cell division, genetic information must be transmitted from the mother cell to the daughter cell in an accurate and identical way. During the S phase the genome is replicated while an equal distribution of two copies of DNA between the daughter cells is made during mitosis. Initiation and maintenance of mitosis require a controlled balance between kinase and phosphatase activities. Greatwall kinase is essential for mitotic entry and maintenance through the inhibition of PP2A, the main phosphatase that dephosphorylates Cdk1/cycline B mitotic substrates. Here we investigate the mechanisms regulating Greatwall. Our results show that Greatwall is a member of the AGC family of kinases that appears to be regulated by a unique two-step mechanism that differs from the other members of this family. Furthermore we identified Arpp19 (cAMP-Regulated Phosphoprotein 19) and alpha-Endosulfine (ENSA) as two substrates of Greatwall that, when phosphorylated by this kinase, associate with and inhibit PP2A. Despite the fact that these two substrates are able to inhibit PP2A, only endogenous Arpp19 is responsible for the phosphatase inhibition at mitotic entry in xenopus egg extratcs. Roles of ENSA are currently under investigation

Greatwall, un nouveau gardien de la mitose

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Ensa controls S-phase length by modulating Treslin levels

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Ensa controls S-phase length by modulating Treslin levels.

The Greatwall/Ensa/PP2A-B55 pathway is essential for controlling mitotic substrate phosphorylation and mitotic entry. Here, we investigate the effect of the knockdown of the Gwl substrate, Ensa, in human cells. Unexpectedly, Ensa knockdown promotes a dramatic extension of S phase associated with a lowered density of replication forks. Notably, Ensa depletion results in a decrease of Treslin levels, a pivotal protein for the firing of replication origins. Accordingly, the extended S phase in Ensa-depleted cells is completely rescued by the overexpression of Treslin. Our data herein reveal a new mechanism by which normal cells regulate S-phase duration by controlling the ubiquitin-proteasome degradation of Treslin in a Gwl/Ensa-dependent pathway.The Greatwall/Ensa/PP2A-B55 pathway controls mitotic substrate phosphorylation and mitotic entry. Here the authors show that cells regulate S phase duration by controlling the ubiquitin-proteasome degradation of Treslin in a Gwl/Ensa-dependent pathway

The substrate of Greatwall kinase, Arpp19, controls mitosis by inhibiting protein phosphatase 2A.

International audienceInitiation and maintenance of mitosis require the activation of protein kinase cyclin B-Cdc2 and the inhibition of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), which, respectively, phosphorylate and dephosphorylate mitotic substrates. The protein kinase Greatwall (Gwl) is required to maintain mitosis through PP2A inhibition. We describe how Gwl activation results in PP2A inhibition. We identified cyclic adenosine monophosphate-regulated phosphoprotein 19 (Arpp19) and α-Endosulfine as two substrates of Gwl that, when phosphorylated by this kinase, associate with and inhibit PP2A, thus promoting mitotic entry. Conversely, in the absence of Gwl activity, Arpp19 and α-Endosulfine are dephosphorylated and lose their capacity to bind and inhibit PP2A. Although both proteins can inhibit PP2A, endogenous Arpp19, but not α-Endosulfine, is responsible for PP2A inhibition at mitotic entry in Xenopus egg extracts