Inhibition of Peroxidase Activity of Cytochrome c: De Novo Compound Discovery and Validation

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Ahmet Bakan1, Alexandr A Kapralov1, Hulya Bayir1

  • 1Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine (A.B., F.H., I.B.), and Department of Environmental and Occupational Health (A.A.K., H.B., V.E.K.), University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Molecular Pharmacology
|June 17, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Researchers identified drugs that inhibit cytochrome c peroxidase activity, a key step in apoptosis. This finding offers a new strategy to control programmed cell death by targeting mitochondrial permeability.

Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Cytochrome c (cyt c) release from mitochondria triggers apoptosis.
  • Mitochondrial permeability pore opening, enhanced by cyt c's peroxidase activity, is crucial for apoptosis.
  • Inhibiting cyt c's peroxidase activity, particularly its heme group access, can control apoptosis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify compounds that inhibit the peroxidase activity of cytochrome c.
  • To explore therapeutic strategies for controlling apoptosis by targeting cyt c.

Main Methods:

  • Druggability simulations
  • Pharmacophore modeling
  • Virtual screening
  • In vitro fluorescence measurements

Main Results:

  • Identified three repurposable drugs that inhibit cyt c peroxidase activity.
  • Identified seven novel compounds that inhibit cyt c peroxidase activity.
  • Validated the compounds' efficacy in inhibiting peroxidase activity.

Conclusions:

  • Blocking access to the heme group of cyt c is an effective strategy to reduce its peroxidase activity.
  • The identified drugs and compounds show potential for therapeutic intervention in apoptosis-related conditions.

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