Further insights on the structural aspects of PLA(2) inhibition by gamma-hydroxybutenolide-containing natural products: a comparative study on petrosaspongiolides M-R.

Petrosaspongiolides M-R (PM-PR, 1-5) are marine sesterterpenes structurally characterised by a gamma-hydroxybutenolide moiety. They have shown an in vitro and in vivo potent anti-inflammatory activity, mediated by specific inhibition of secretory phospholipase A(2) (sPLA(2) enzymes). The molecular mechanism underlying the sub-micromolar irreversible inhibition of the bee-venom PLA(2) (bvPLA(2)) by PM has been clarified combining mass spectrometry (MS) and molecular modelling approaches. The N-terminal amino group (Ile-1 residue), recently identified as the unique PM covalent binding site on this enzyme, selectively delivers a nucleophilic attack onto the masked aldehyde at C-25 of the pharmacophoric gamma-hydroxybutenolide ring of PM, giving rise to a Schiff base. In the attempt of broadening the knowledge of the mechanism at molecular level of PLA(2) inactivation by this family of compounds, we performed a comparative analysis on petrosaspongiolides M-R, whose results are discussed in this paper. Firstly, the amount of bvPLA(2) enzyme covalently modified after incubation with each of petrosaspongiolides M-R was measured and resulted to be in good agreement with pharmacological in vitro data. Then, a full characterisation of the bvPLA(2) adduct with PR, one of the least active and most structurally different among petrosaspongiolides, by LC-MS, MS(n), and computational methods, confirmed the same inhibition mechanism and covalent binding site already found for PM. Finally, extensive molecular docking studies performed in comparison on the PM-PLA(2) and PR-PLA(2) complexes provided critical insight on how the balance between non-covalent and covalent inhibitor-enzyme interactions may affect the final potency exhibited by the various compounds of the petrosaspongiolide family.