New human papilloma virus E2 transcription factor mimics: A tripyrrole-peptide conjugate with tight and specific DNA-recognition

Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the main causative agent of cervical cancer, particularly high risk strains such us HPV-16, -18 and -31. The viral encoded E2 protein acts as a transcriptional modulator and exerts a key role in viral DNA replication. Thus, E2 constitutes an attractive targe...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Wetzler, D.E., Comin, M.J., Krajewski, K., Gallo, M.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2011
País:Argentina
Institución:Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales
Repositorio:Biblioteca Digital (UBA-FCEN)
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:paperaa:paper_19326203_v6_n7_p_Wetzler
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_19326203_v6_n7_p_Wetzler
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:distamycin A
DNA
peptide
protein E2
transcription factor
unclassified drug
antivirus agent
biomimetic material
DNA binding protein
E2 protein, Human papillomavirus type 16
oncoprotein
peptide fragment
pyrrole derivative
virus DNA
alpha helix
article
circular dichroism
computer model
conjugation
DNA synthesis
gel mobility shift assay
Human papillomavirus type 16
nonhuman
nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy
protein DNA binding
protein interaction
protein structure
amino acid sequence
chemical structure
chemistry
enzyme specificity
genetics
metabolism
molecular genetics
nucleotide sequence
papillomavirus infection
physiology
protein secondary structure
synthesis
Human papillomavirus
Amino Acid Sequence
Antiviral Agents
Base Sequence
Biomimetic Materials
Distamycins
DNA, Viral
DNA-Binding Proteins
Human papillomavirus 16
Models, Molecular
Molecular Sequence Data
Oncogene Proteins, Viral
Papillomavirus Infections
Peptide Fragments
Protein Structure, Secondary
Pyrroles
Substrate Specificity
Descripción
Sumario:Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the main causative agent of cervical cancer, particularly high risk strains such us HPV-16, -18 and -31. The viral encoded E2 protein acts as a transcriptional modulator and exerts a key role in viral DNA replication. Thus, E2 constitutes an attractive target for developing antiviral agents. E2 is a homodimeric protein that interacts with the DNA target through an α-helix of each monomer. However, a peptide corresponding to the DNA recognition helix of HPV-16 E2 binds DNA with lower affinity than its full-length DNA binding domain. Therefore, in an attempt to promote the DNA binding of the isolated peptide, we have designed a conjugate compound of the E2 α-helix peptide and a derivative of the antibiotic distamycin, which involves simultaneous minor- and major-groove interactions. Methodology/Principal Findings: An E2 α-helix peptide-distamycin conjugate was designed and synthesized. It was characterized by NMR and CD spectroscopy, and its DNA binding properties were investigated by CD, DNA melting and gel shift experiments. The coupling of E2 peptide with distamycin does not affect its structural properties. The conjugate improves significantly the affinity of the peptide for specific DNA. In addition, stoichiometric amounts of specific DNA increase meaningfully the helical population of the peptide. The conjugate enhances the DNA binding constant 50-fold, maintaining its specificity. Conclusions/Significance: These results demonstrate that peptide-distamycin conjugates are a promising tool to obtain compounds that bind the E2 target DNA-sequences with remarkable affinity and suggest that a bipartite major/minor groove binding scaffold can be a useful approach for therapeutic treatment of HPV infection. © 2011 Wetzler et al.