Lynn M. McGregor, Meredith L. Jenkins, Caitlin Kerwin, John E. Burke, and Kevan M. Shokat
Biochemistry, Article ASAP
DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.7b00271
There is growing interest in reversible and irreversible covalent inhibitors that target noncatalytic amino acids in target proteins. With a goal of targeting oncogenic K-Ras variants (e.g., G12D) by expanding the types of amino acids that can be targeted by covalent inhibitors, we survey a set of electrophiles for their ability to label carboxylates. We functionalized an optimized ligand for the K-Ras switch II pocket with a set of electrophiles previously reported to react with carboxylates and characterized the ability of these compounds to react with model nucleophiles and oncogenic K-Ras proteins. Here, we report that aziridines and stabilized diazo groups preferentially react with free carboxylates over thiols. Although we did not identify a warhead that potently labels K-Ras G12D, we were able to study the interactions of many electrophiles with K-Ras, as most of the electrophiles rapidly label K-Ras G12C. We characterized the resulting complexes by crystallography, hydrogen/deuterium exchange, and differential scanning fluorimetry. Our results both demonstrate the ability of a noncatalytic cysteine to react with a diverse set of electrophiles and emphasize the importance of proper spatial arrangements between a covalent inhibitor and its intended nucleophile. We hope that these results can expand the range of electrophiles and nucleophiles of use in covalent protein modulation.
A blog highlighting recent publications in the area of covalent modification of proteins, particularly relating to covalent-modifier drugs. @CovalentMod on Twitter, @covalentmod@mstdn.science on Mastodon, and @covalentmod.bsky.social on BlueSky
Targeting KRAS Diversity: Covalent Modulation of G12X and Beyond in Cancer Therapy
Tonia Kirschner, Matthias P. Müller, and Daniel Rauh Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2024 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c02403 The GTPase KRAS...
-
Linqi Cheng Yixian Wang, Yiming Guo, Sophie S. Zhang Han Xiao C ell Chemical Biology, 2024 Volume 31, 3, 428 - 445 https://doi.org/10.10...
-
Cravatt, B.; Njomen, E.; Hayward, R.; DeMeester, K.; Ogasawara, D.; Dix, M.; Nguyen, T.; Ashby, P.; Simon, G.; Schreiber, S.; Melillo, B. C...
-
Grob, N. M.; Remarcik, C.; Rössler, S. L.; Wong, J. Y. K.; Wang, J. C. K.; Tao, J.; Smith, C. L.; Loas, A.; Buchwald, S. L.; Eaton, D. L.; P...