Conformational preferences for 3-piperideines: an Ab initio and molecular mechanics study.

Conformational preferences in alkyl- as well as Ph-substituted 3-piperideines (1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridines) have been characterized by ab initio and molecular mechanics calculations. A set of rules and subrules for estimation of the conformational equilibrium (in terms of preferred substituent orientation) in these systems. with differently positioned ring substituent (-s), is presented. Examples of the revision of some previous stereochemical assignments demonstrate the reliability of these rules.

Factors determining the relative stability of anionic tetrahedral complexes in serine protease catalysis and inhibition.

Quantum mechanical ab initio (RHF/6-31+G*//RHF/3-21G) calculations were used to simulate the formation of the tetrahedral complex intermediate (TC) in serine protease active site by substrates and transition-state analog inhibitors. The enzyme active site was simulated by an assembly of the amino acids participating in catalysis, whereas the substrates and inhibitors were simulated by small ligands, acetamide (1) and trifluoroacetone (2), respectively. For the first time, the principal factors determining the relative stability of the TC in serine proteases are arranged according to their energy contributions. These include (a) formation of the new covalent bond between Ser195 O(gamma) and the electrophilic center of a ligand; (b) stabilization of the oxyanion in the oxyanion hole; (c) basic catalysis by His57; and (d) hydrogen bond between Asp102 carboxylate and N(delta) of the protonated His57. We have directly calculated the gas-phase relative free energy of formation of TC(AS)(2) and TC(AS)(1), the value of DeltaDeltaG(g)[TC(AS)(2,1)]. It is DeltaE(cov), the relative energy of the new covalent bond between the enzyme and the ligand formed in a TC that determines the experimentally observed large difference in the stability of TCs formed by substrates and TS-analog inhibitors of serine proteases. We demonstrated that the relative stability of TCs formed by a series of mono- and dipeptide amides and TFKs, derived from experimental kinetic data, can be rather well approximated by the sum of the theoretically calculated value of DeltaDeltaG(g)[TC(AS)(2, 1)] and the difference in hydration free energies of isolated ligands.

Structural and mechanistic aspects of 3C proteases from the Picornavirus family.

Picornavirus 3C proteases are prime targets for rational drug design. This viral protease appears in a large number of viruses from the Picornavirus family that cause serious disease syndromes, and it has an important role in the life cycle of the virus, processing the translation product of the Picornavirus genome by progressive co- and posttranslational cleavages. It is, therefore, important to gain structural and mechanistic information about this family of enzymes. We concentrate in this paper on the specific features of the 3C; particularly, we are trying to show that the 3C constitute a new family to enzymes which is neither a serine- nor a cysteine-type protease. General basic theory on the behavior of sulfur nucleophile vs the behavior of oxygen nucleophile regarding the nucleophilic attack on carbonyl compounds and the possible determinants in the structure of 3C viral proteases of rhinovirus 1A are being discussed.