Identification of an Allosteric Binding Site on Human Lysosomal Alpha-Galactosidase Opens the Way to New Pharmacological Chaperones for Fabry Disease

PLoS One. 2016 Oct 27;11(10):e0165463. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0165463. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Personalized therapies are required for Fabry disease due to its large phenotypic spectrum and numerous different genotypes. In principle, missense mutations that do not affect the active site could be rescued with pharmacological chaperones. At present pharmacological chaperones for Fabry disease bind the active site and couple a stabilizing effect, which is required, to an inhibitory effect, which is deleterious. By in silico docking we identified an allosteric hot-spot for ligand binding where a drug-like compound, 2,6-dithiopurine, binds preferentially. 2,6-dithiopurine stabilizes lysosomal alpha-galactosidase in vitro and rescues a mutant that is not responsive to a mono-therapy with previously described pharmacological chaperones, 1-deoxygalactonojirimycin and galactose in a cell based assay.

MeSH terms

  • Allosteric Site / drug effects
  • Animals
  • COS Cells
  • Catalytic Domain
  • Chlorocebus aethiops
  • Fabry Disease / drug therapy*
  • Fabry Disease / enzymology
  • Fabry Disease / genetics
  • Humans
  • Lysosomes / enzymology*
  • Molecular Docking Simulation
  • Mutation
  • Purines / metabolism
  • Purines / pharmacology
  • Purines / therapeutic use
  • alpha-Galactosidase / chemistry*
  • alpha-Galactosidase / genetics
  • alpha-Galactosidase / metabolism*

Substances

  • Purines
  • 2,6-dithiopurine
  • alpha-Galactosidase