The Structural Basis for Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug Inhibition of Human Dihydrofolate Reductase

J Med Chem. 2020 Aug 13;63(15):8314-8324. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c00546. Epub 2020 Jul 28.

Abstract

Although nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) target primarily cyclooxygenase enzymes, a subset of NSAIDs containing carboxylate groups also has been reported to competitively inhibit dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR). In this study, we have characterized NSAID interactions with human DHFR based on kinetic, NMR, and X-ray crystallographic methods. The NSAIDs target a region of the folate binding site that interacts with the p-aminobenzoyl-l-glutamate (pABG) moiety of folate and inhibit cooperatively with ligands that target the adjacent pteridine-recognition subsite. NSAIDs containing benzoate or salicylate groups were identified as having the highest potency. Among those tested, diflunisal, a salicylate derivative not previously identified to have anti-folate activity, was found to have a Ki of 34 μM, well below peak plasma diflunisal levels reached at typical dosage levels. The potential of these drugs to interfere with the inflammatory process by multiple pathways introduces the possibility of further optimization to design dual-targeted analogs.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / chemistry*
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / pharmacology*
  • Binding Sites / drug effects
  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • Drug Design
  • Folic Acid / metabolism
  • Folic Acid Antagonists / chemistry*
  • Folic Acid Antagonists / pharmacology*
  • Humans
  • Models, Molecular
  • Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase / chemistry
  • Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase / metabolism*

Substances

  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal
  • Folic Acid Antagonists
  • Folic Acid
  • Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase