Characterization of the Artemisinin Binding Site for Translationally Controlled Tumor Protein (TCTP) by Bioorthogonal Click Chemistry

Despite the fact that multiple artemisinin-alkylated proteins in Plasmodium falciparum have been identified in recent studies, the alkylation mechanism and accurate binding site of artemisinin–protein interaction have remained elusive. Here, we report the chemical-probe-based enrichment of the artemisinin-binding peptide and characterization of the artemisinin-binding site of P. falciparum translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP). A peptide fragment within the N-terminal region of TCTP was enriched and found to be alkylated by an artemisinin-derived probe. MS2 fragments showed that artemisinin could alkylate multiple amino acids from Phe12 to Tyr22 of TCTP, which was supported by labeling experiments upon site-directed mutagenesis and computational modeling studies. Taken together, the “capture-and-release” strategy affords consolidated advantages previously unavailable in artemisinin–protein binding site studies, and our results deepened the understanding of the mechanism of protein alkylation via heme-activated artemisinin

Site-Selective Protein Immobilization by Covalent Modification of GST Fusion Proteins

The immobilization of functional proteins onto solid supports using affinity tags is an attractive approach in recent development of protein microarray technologies. Among the commonly used fusion protein tags, glutathione <i>S</i>-transferase (GST) proteins have been indispensable tools for protein–protein interaction studies and have extensive applications in recombinant protein purification and reversible protein immobilization. Here, by utilizing pyrimidine-based small-molecule probes with a sulfonyl fluoride reactive group, we report a novel and general approach for site-selective immobilization of Schistosoma japonicum GST (<i>sj</i>GST) fusion proteins through irreversible and specific covalent modification of the tyrosine-111 residue of the <i>sj</i>GST tag. As demonstrated by <i>sj</i>GST-tagged eGFP and <i>sj</i>GST-tagged kinase activity assays, this immobilization approach offers the advantages of high immobilization efficiency and excellent retention of protein structure and activity

Discovery of a Series of 2,5-Diaminopyrimidine Covalent Irreversible Inhibitors of Bruton’s Tyrosine Kinase with in Vivo Antitumor Activity

Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (Btk) is an attractive drug target for treating several B-cell lineage cancers. Ibrutinib is a first-in-class covalent irreversible Btk inhibitor and has demonstrated impressive effects in multiple clinical trials. Herein, we present a series of novel 2,5-diaminopyrimidine covalent irreversible inhibitors of Btk. Compared with ibrutinib, these inhibitors exhibited a different selectivity profile for the analyzed kinases as well as a dual-action mode of inhibition of both Btk activation and catalytic activity, which counteracts a negative regulation loop for Btk. Two compounds from this series, <b>31</b> and <b>38</b>, showed potent antiproliferative activities toward multiple B-cell lymphoma cell lines, including germinal center B-cell-like diffuse large B cell lymphoma (GCB-DLBCL) cells. In addition, compound <b>31</b> significantly prevented tumor growth in a mouse xenograft model