Computer-aided identification of a novel pyruvate kinase M2 activator compound

The aim of this study was to obtain antitumour molecules targeting to activate PKM2 through adequate computational methods combined with biological activity experiments.

The structure-based virtual screening was utilized to screen effective activator targeting PKM2 from ZINC database. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to evaluate the stability of the small molecule-binding PKM2 complex systems. Then, cell survival experiments, glutaraldehyde crosslinking reaction, western blot, and qPCR experiments were used to detect the effects of top hits on various cancer cells and the targeting specificity of PKM2.

Two small molecules in 1,5-2H-pyrrole-dione were obtained after virtual screening. In vitro experiments demonstrated that ZINC08383544 specifically activated PKM2 and affected the expression of upstream and downstream genes of PKM2 during glycolysis, leading to the inhibition of tumour cell growth. These results indicate that ZINC08383544 conforms to the characteristics of PKM2 activator and is potential to be a novel PKM2 activator as antitumour drug.

This work proves that ZINC08383544 promotes the formation of PKM2 tetramer, effectively blocks PKM2 nuclear translocation, and inhibits the growth of tumour, and ZINC08383544 may be a novel activator of PKM2. This work may provide a good choice of drug or molecular fragments for the antitumour strategy targeting PKM2. Screening of targeted drugs by combination of virtual screening and bioactivity experiments is a rapid method for drug discovery.