[Molecular docking and 3D-QSAR on 16alpha,17alpha-cycloalkanoprogesterone analogues as progesterone receptor ligands]

A series of 42 steroid ligands was used to predict a binding affinity to progesterone receptor. The molecules were the derivatives of 16alpha,17alpha-cycloalkanoprogesterones. Different methods of prediction were used and analyzed such as CoMFA and artificial neural networks. The best result (Q2 = 0.91) was obtained for a combination of molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulation and artificial neural networks. A predictive power of the model was validated by a group of 8 pentarans synthesized separately and tested in vitro (R2test = 0.77). This model can be used to determine the affinity level of the ligand to progesterone receptor and accurate ranking of binding compounds.