Orexin receptors exert a neuroprotective effect in Alzheimer's disease (AD) via heterodimerization with GPR103

Orexins are neuropeptides that regulate the sleep-wake cycle and feeding behaviour. QRFP is a newly discovered neuropeptide which exerts similar orexigenic activity, thus playing an important role in energy homeostasis and regulation of appetite. The exact expression and signalling characteristics and physiological actions of QRFP and its receptor GPR103 are poorly understood. Alzheimerâ €™ s disease (AD) patients experience increased nocturnal activity, excessive daytime sleepiness, and weight loss. We hypothesised therefore that orexins and QRFP might be implicated in the pathophysiology of AD. We report that the down-regulation of hippocampal orexin receptors (OXRs) and GPR103 particularly in the cornu ammonis (CA) subfield from AD patients suffering from early onset familial AD (EOFAD) and late onset familial AD (LOAD). Using an in vitro model we demonstrate that this downregulation is due to to Aβ-plaque formation and tau hyper-phosphorylation. Transcriptomics revealed a neuroprotective role for both orexins and QRFP. Finally we provide conclusive evidence using BRET and FRET that OXRs and GPR103 form functional hetero-dimers to exert their effects involving activation of ERK 1/2. Pharmacological intervention directed at the orexigenic system may prove to be an attractive avenue towards the discovery of novel therapeutics for diseases such as AD and improving neuroprotective signalling pathways

Accounting for conformational variability in protein-ligand docking with nmr-guided rescoring

A key component to success in structure-based drug design is reliable information on protein-ligand interactions. Recent development in NMR techniques has accelerated this process by overcoming some of the limitations of X-ray crystallography and computational protein-ligand docking. In this work we present a new scoring protocol based on NMR-derived interligand INPHARMA NOEs to guide the selection of computationally generated docking modes. We demonstrate the performance in a range of scenarios, encompassing traditionally difficult cases such as docking to homology models and ligand dependent domain rearrangements. Ambiguities associated with sparse experimental information are lifted by searching a consensus solution based on simultaneously fitting multiple ligand pairs. This study provides a previously unexplored integration between molecular modeling and experimental data, in which interligand NOEs represent the key element in the rescoring algorithm. The presented protocol should be widely applicable for protein-ligand docking also in a different context from drug design and highlights the important role of NMR-based approaches to describe intermolecular ligand-receptor interactions. © 2013 American Chemical Society

Accounting for Conformational Variability in Protein–Ligand Docking with NMR-Guided Rescoring

A key component to success in structure-based drug design is reliable information on protein–ligand interactions. Recent development in NMR techniques has accelerated this process by overcoming some of the limitations of X-ray crystallography and computational protein–ligand docking. In this work we present a new scoring protocol based on NMR-derived interligand INPHARMA NOEs to guide the selection of computationally generated docking modes. We demonstrate the performance in a range of scenarios, encompassing traditionally difficult cases such as docking to homology models and ligand dependent domain rearrangements. Ambiguities associated with sparse experimental information are lifted by searching a consensus solution based on simultaneously fitting multiple ligand pairs. This study provides a previously unexplored integration between molecular modeling and experimental data, in which interligand NOEs represent the key element in the rescoring algorithm. The presented protocol should be widely applicable for protein–ligand docking also in a different context from drug design and highlights the important role of NMR-based approaches to describe intermolecular ligand–receptor interactions

Analysis of structure and function relationships of an autoantigenic peptide of insulin bound to H-2K(d) that stimulates CD8 T cells in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus

The recognition of MHC–peptide complexes by T cells is governed by structural considerations that are determined by the sequences of the individual components and their interaction with each other. We have studied the function of a highly diabetogenic CD8 T cell clone that is specific for insulin B15-23:H-2K(d). We have then related this to modeled MHC–peptide structures. The native peptide binds poorly to H-2K(d), because of the small glycine residue at peptide position p9 that is incapable of productive interactions with the hydrophobic residues of pocket F. In addition, electrostatic repulsions between the peptide glutamate residue at position 7 and 152D of the MHC molecule heavy chain contribute to the poor binding. However, B chain peptide 15-23 bound to K(d) shows excellent T cell stimulation and the induction of CD8 cytotoxic T cells. Peptide substitution has also shown that p6G is likely to be a T cell antigen receptor interaction site. Our studies have shown that the predictions seen in the models correlate closely with the observed effects in functional assays and provide insight into how this peptide, which would not be predicted to stimulate these cells on H-2K(d) binding studies alone, could activate such highly pathogenic T cells