Binding mechanism of oseltamivir and influenza neuraminidase suggests perspectives for the design of new anti-influenza drugs

PLoS Comput Biol. 2022 Jul 28;18(7):e1010343. doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010343. eCollection 2022 Jul.

Abstract

Oseltamivir is a widely used influenza virus neuraminidase (NA) inhibitor that prevents the release of new virus particles from host cells. However, oseltamivir-resistant strains have emerged, but effective drugs against them have not yet been developed. Elucidating the binding mechanisms between NA and oseltamivir may provide valuable information for the design of new drugs against NA mutants resistant to oseltamivir. Here, we conducted large-scale (353.4 μs) free-binding molecular dynamics simulations, together with a Markov State Model and an importance-sampling algorithm, to reveal the binding process of oseltamivir and NA. Ten metastable states and five major binding pathways were identified that validated and complemented previously discovered binding pathways, including the hypothesis that oseltamivir can be transferred from the secondary sialic acid binding site to the catalytic site. The discovery of multiple new metastable states, especially the stable bound state containing a water-mediated hydrogen bond between Arg118 and oseltamivir, may provide new insights into the improvement of NA inhibitors. We anticipated the findings presented here will facilitate the development of drugs capable of combating NA mutations.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antiviral Agents / chemistry
  • Antiviral Agents / pharmacology
  • Drug Resistance, Viral / genetics
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / chemistry
  • Humans
  • Influenza, Human*
  • Neuraminidase / chemistry
  • Oseltamivir* / chemistry
  • Oseltamivir* / metabolism
  • Oseltamivir* / pharmacology

Substances

  • Antiviral Agents
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • Oseltamivir
  • Neuraminidase

Grants and funding

This work was supported by grants from Discipline Construction Project of Guangdong Medical University (4SG21279P to XL), Disciplinary Construction of Posts for Zhujiang Scholars (4SG21005G to ZH), Shenzhen Fund for Guangdong Provincial High-level Clinical Key Specialties (SZGSP012 to WW) and Shenzhen Key Medical Discipline construction Fund (SZXK032 to WW) and General project of Guangdong Natural Science Foundation (2021A1515011403 to XL). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.