In silico screening for agonists and blockers of the β(2) adrenergic receptor: implications of inactive and activated...

Ten crystal structures of the β(2) adrenergic receptor have been published, reflecting different signaling states. Here, through controlled-docking experiments, we examined the implications of using inactive or activated structures on the in silico screening for agonists and blockers of the receptor. Specifically, we targeted the crystal structures solved in complex with carazolol (2RH1), the neutral antagonist alprenalol, the irreversible agonist FAUC50 (3PDS), and the full agonist BI-167017 (3P0G). Our results indicate that activated structures favor agonists over blockers, whereas inactive structures favor blockers over agonists. This tendency is more marked for activated than for inactive structures. Additionally, agonists tend to receive more favorable docking scores when docked at activated rather than inactive structures, while blockers do the opposite. Hence, the difference between the docking scores attained with an activated and an inactive structure is an excellent means for the classification of ligands into agonists and blockers as we determined through receiver operating characteristic curves and linear discriminant analysis. With respect to virtual screening, all structures prioritized well agonists and blockers over nonbinders. However, inactive structures worked better for blockers and activated structures worked better for agonists, respectively. Notably, the combination of individual docking experiments through receptor ensemble docking resulted in an excellent performance in the retrieval of both agonists and blockers. Finally, we demonstrated that the induced-fit docking of agonists is a viable way of modifying an inactive crystal structure and bias it toward the in silico recognition of agonists rather than blockers.