Quantitative structure-activity relationship study on the biodegradation of acid dyestuffs

Quantitative structure-biodegradability relationships （QSBRs） were established to develop predictive models and mechanistic explanations for acid dyestuffs as well as biological activities. With a total of four descriptors, molecular weight （MW）, energies of the highest occupied molecular orbital （EHOMO）, the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital （ELUMO）, and the excited state （EES）, calculated using quantum chemical semi-empirical methodology, a series of models were analyzed between the dye biodegradability and each descriptor. Results showed that EHOMO and Mw were the dominant parameters controlling the biodegradability of acid dyes. A statistically robust QSBR model was developed for all studied dyes, with the combined application of EHOMO and Mw. The calculated biodegradations fitted well with the experimental data monitored in a facultative-aerobic process, indicative of the reliable prediction and mechanistic character of the developed model.

New Descriptors of Amino Acids and Its Applications to Peptide Quantitative Structure-activity Relationship

A new set of descriptors, HSEHPCSV （component score vector of hydrophobic, steric, and electronic properties together with hydrogen bonding contributions）, were derived from principal component analyses of 95 physicochemical variables of 20 natural amino acids separately according to different kinds of properties described, namely, hydrophobic, steric, and electronic properties as well as hydrogen bonding contributions. HSEHPCSV scales were then employed to express structures of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, bitter tasting thresholds and bactericidal 18 peptide, and to construct QSAR models based on partial least square （PLS）. The results obtained are as follows： the multiple correlation coefficient （R2cum） of 0.846, 0.917 and 0.993, leave-one-out cross validated Q2cm of 0.835, 0.865 and 0.899, and root-mean-square error for estimated error （RMSEE） of 0.396, 0.187and 0.22, respectively. Satisfactory results showed that, as new amino acid scales, data of HSEHPCSV may be a useful structural expression methodology＇for the studies on peptide QSAR （quantitative structure-activity relationship） due to many advantages such as plentiful structural information, definite physical and chemical meaning and easy interpretation.

Quantitative Structure-activity Relationship Study on the Antioxidant Activity of Carotenoids

Carotenoids are a family of effective active oxygen scavengers, which can reduce the danger of occurrence of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cataract, cancer, and so on. The quantitative structure-activity relationship （QSAR） equation between carotenoids and antioxidant activity was established by quantum chemistry AM1, molecular mechanism （MM＋） and stepwise regression analysis methods, and the model was evaluated by leave-one-out approach. The results showed that the significant molecular descriptors related to the antioxidant activity of carotenoids were the energy difference （E_HL） between the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital （LUMO） and the highest occupied molecular orbital （HOMO） and ionization energy （Eiso）. The model showed a good predictive ability （Q^2 〉 0.5）.

Quantitative Structure-activity Relationship Studies on the Antioxidant Activity and Gap Junctional Communication of Carotenoids

The antioxidant and gap junctional communication（GJC） activities of carotenoids are known to be the two main anticancer mechanisms.Quantitative structure-activity relationship（QSAR） models of the two activities were developed using stepwise regression and multilayer perceptron neural network based on the calculated descriptors of quantum chemistry.The results showed that the significant molecular descriptor related to the antioxidant activity of carotenoids was the HOMO-LUMO energy gap（EHL） and the molecular descriptor related to the GJC was the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy（ELUMO）.The two models of antioxidant activity both showed good predictive power,but the predictive power of the neural network QSAR model of antioxidant activity was better.In addition,the two GJC models have similar,moderate predictive power.The possible mechanisms of antioxidant activity and GJC of carotenoids were discussed.

Quantitative Structure-activity Relationship(QSAR) Study of Toxicity of Substituted Aromatic Compounds to Photobacterium Phosphoreum

With the artificial neural network（ANN） method combined with the multiple linear regression（MLR）,based on a series of quantum chemical descriptors and molecular connectivity indexes,quantitative structure-activity relationship（QSAR） models to predict the acute toxicity（-lgEC50） of substituted aromatic compounds to Photobacterium phosphoreum were established.Four molecular descriptors that appear in the MLR model,namely,the second order valence molecular connectivity index（2XV）,the energy of the highest occupied molecular orbital（EHOMO）,the logarithm of n-octyl alcohol/water partition coefficient（logKow） and the Connolly molecular area（MA）,were inputs of the ANN model.The root-mean-square error（RMSE） of the training and validation sets of the ANN model are 0.1359 and 0.2523,and the correlation coefficient（R） is 0.9810 and 0.8681,respectively.The leave-one-out（LOO） cross validated correlation coefficient（Q L2OO） of the MLR and ANN models is 0.6954 and 0.6708,respectively.The result showed that the two methods are complementary in the calculations.The regression method gave support to the neural network with physical explanation,and the neural network method gave a more accurate model for QSAR.In addition,some insights into the structural factors affecting the acute toxicity and toxicity mechanism of substituted aromatic compounds were discussed.

Quantitative Structure-activity Relationship Models of Monomer Reactivity

The reactivity parameters,Q and e,in the Q-e scheme reflect the reactivities of a monomer(or a radical)in free-radical copolymerizations.By applying multiple linear regression(MLR)analysis,the optimal quantitative structure-activity relationship(QSAR)model for the reactivity parameter lnQ was developed based on five descriptors(NAF,NOF,EαLUMO,EβHOMO,and EβLUMO)and 69 monomers with the root mean square(rms)error of 0.61.The optimal MLR model of the parameter e obtained from five descriptors(TOcl,NpN,NSO,EαHOMO and DH)and 68 monomers produced rms error of 0.42.Compared with previous models,the two optimal MLR models in this paper show satisfactory statistical characteristics.The feasibility of combining 2D descriptors obtained from the monomers and 3D descriptors calculated from the radical structures(formed from monomers+H )to predict parameters Q and e has been demonstrated.

Some substrates of P-glycoprotein targeting <i>β</i>-amyloid clearance by quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR)/membrane-interaction (MI)-QSAR analysis

The pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) putatively involves a compromised blood-brain barrier (BBB). In particular, the importance of brain-to-blood transport of brain-derived metabolites across the BBB has gained increasing attention as a potential mechanism in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders such as AD, which is characterized by the aberrant polymerization and accumulation of specific misfolded proteins, particularly β-amyloid (Aβ), a neuropathological hallmark of AD. P-glycoprotein (P-gp), a major component of the BBB, plays a role in the etiology of AD through Aβ clearance from the brain. Our QSAR models on a series of purine-type and propafenone-type substrates of P-gp showed that the interaction between P-gp and its modulators depended on Molar Refractivity, LogP, and Shape Attribute of drugs it transports. Meanwhile, another model on BBB partitioning of some compounds revealed that BBB partitioning relied upon the polar surface area, LogP, Balaban Index, the strength of a molecule combined with the membrane-water complex, and the changeability of the structure of a solute-membrane-water complex. The predictive model on BBB partitioning contributes to the discovery of some molecules through BBB as potential AD therapeutic drugs. Moreover, the interaction model of P-gp and modulators for treatment of multidrug resistance (MDR) indicates the discovery of some molecules to increase Aβ clearance from the brain and reduce Aβ brain accumulation by regulating BBB P-gp in the early stages of AD. The mechanism provides a new insight into the therapeutic strategy for AD.

Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship Study of Some Antipsychotics by Multiple Linear Regressions

The retention behavior and lipophilicity parameters of some antiphychotics were determined using reversed-phase thin layer chromatography. Quantitative structure-activity relationships studies have been performed to correlate the molecular characteristics of observed compounds with their retention as well as with their chromatographically determinated lipophilicity parameters. The effect of different organic modifiers (acetone, tetrahydrofuran, and methanol) has been studied. The retention of investigated compounds decreases linearly with increasing concentration of organic modifier. The chemical structures of the antipsychotics have been characterized by molecular descriptors which are calculated from the structure and related to chromatographically determinated lipophilicity parameters by multiple linear regression analysis. This approach gives us the possibility to gain insight into factors responsible for the retention as well as lipophilicity of the investigated set of the compounds. The most prominent factors affecting lipophilicity of the investigated substances are Solubility, Energy of the highest occupied molecular orbital, and Energy of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital. The obtained models were used for interpretation of the lipophilicity of the investigated compounds. The prediction results are in good agreement with the experimental value. This study provides good information about pharmacologically important physico-chemical parameters of observed antipsychotics relevant to variations in molecular lipophilicity and chromatographic behavior. Established QSAR models could be helpful in design of novel multitarget antipsychotic compounds.

Genotoxicity of substituted nitrobenzenes and the quantitative structure－activity relationship

The genotoxicity of 22 substituted nitrobenzenes were evaluated by the chromosome aberrations test in in vitro human peripheral lymphocytes.18 of 22 compounds exhibit genotoxic activities.Quantitative structure-activity relationship model was established to correlate the genotoxicity of substituted nitrobenzenes with the characteristics of the substituents on benzene ring.

Quantum Chemical Study on Structure-activity Relationship of Several Kinds of Drugs

The structure-activity relationship of several drugs with similar structure has been investigated by using ab initio method. The relation between the dipole moments and biological activities of these drugs was judged after comparing their geometric structures, dipole moments and inhibitory concentrations. In principle, new drug molecule could be reasonably designed by altering the place of groups and ultimately, the potential drug could be screened by comparing the dipole moments of obtained molecules.

Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship Studies of Benzoxazinone Derivative Antithrombotic Drug Using New Three-dimensional Structure Descriptors

A novel three-dimensional holographic vector of atomic interaction field（3D-HoVAIF） was used to describe the chemical structures of 23 benzoxazinone derivatives as antithrombotic drugs.Here a quantitative structure activity relationship（QSAR） model was built by partial least-squares（PLS） regression.The estimation stability and prediction ability of the model were strictly analyzed by both internal and external validations.The correlation coefficients of established PLS model,leave-one-out（LOO） cross-validation,and predicted values versus experimental ones of external samples were R2=0.899,RCV2=0.854 and Qext2=0.868,respectively.These values indicated that the built PLS model had both favorable estimation stability and good prediction capabilities.Furthermore,the satisfactory results showed that 3D-HoVAIF could preferably express the information related to the biological activity of benzoxazinone derivatives.

Machine Learning-Based Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship and ADMET Prediction Models for ERα Activity of Anti-Breast Cancer Drug Candidates

Breast cancer is presently one of the most common malignancies worldwide,with a higher fatality rate.In this study,a quantitative structure-activity relationship(QSAR)model of compound biological activity and ADMET(Absorption,Distribution,Metabolism,Excretion,Toxicity)properties prediction model were performed using estrogen receptor alpha(ERα)antagonist information collected from compound samples.We first utilized grey relation analysis(GRA)in conjunction with the random forest(RF)algorithm to identify the top 20 molecular descriptor variables that have the greatest influence on biological activity,and then we used Spearman correlation analysis to identify 16 independent variables.Second,a QSAR model of the compound were developed based on BP neural network(BPNN),genetic algorithm optimized BP neural network(GA-BPNN),and support vector regression(SVR).The BPNN,the SVR,and the logistic regression(LR)models were then used to identify and predict the ADMET properties of substances,with the prediction impacts of each model compared and assessed.The results reveal that a SVR model was used in QSAR quantitative prediction,and in the classification prediction of ADMET properties:the SVR model predicts the Caco-2 and hERG(human Ether-a-go-go Related Gene)properties,the LR model predicts the cytochrome P450 enzyme 3A4 subtype(CYP3A4)and Micronucleus(MN)properties,and the BPNN model predicts the Human Oral Bioavailability(HOB)properties.Finally,information entropy theory is used to validate the rationality of variable screening,and sensitivity analysis of the model demonstrates that the constructed model has high accuracy and stability,which can be used as a reference for screening probable active compounds and drug discovery.

Quantitative Correlation of Chromatographic Retention and Acute Toxicity for Alkyl(1-phenylsulfonyl) Cycloalkane Carboxylates and Their Structural Parameters by DFT

Twenty eight alkyl(1-phenylsulfonyl) cycloalkane carboxylates were computed at the B3LYP/6-31G* level. Based on linear solvation energy theory, two quantitative correlation equations of the molecular structures of alkyl(1-phenylsulfonyl) cycloalkane carboxylate com- pounds to their chromatographic retention (capacity factor lgKW) and the toxicity for photo- bacterium phosphoreum (–lgEC50) were developed by using the molecular structural parameters as theoretical descriptors (r2 = 0.9501, 0.9488). The two quantitative correlation equations were consequently cross validated by leave-one-out (LOO) validation method with q2 of 0.9113 and 0.9281, respectively. The result showed that the two equations achieved in this work by B3LYP/6-31G* are both more advantageous than those from AM1, and can be used to predict the lgKW and –lgEC50 of congeneric organics.

Quantitative Correlation of the Acute Toxicity of Phenylthio-carboxylates with Their Structural and Thermodynamic Parameters by DFT Calculation

Phenylthio-carboxylates were computed at the B3LYP/6-31G* level with DFT method. Based on linear solvation energy theory, the structural parameters were firstly taken as theoretical descriptors, and the corresponding linear solvation energy relationship (LSER) equation (r = 0.8989) to the toxicity of photobacterium phosphoreum (–lgEC50) was thus obtained. Then the structural and thermodynamic parameters were taken as theoretical descriptors, and as a result the other corresponding correlation equation (r = 0.9274) relating to –lgEC50 was provided. The two equations achieved in this work by B3LYP/6-31G* are both more advantageous than that from AM1.

Correlation of Quantitative Structure and Inhibition Phytotoxicity for Aromatic Compounds Using Ab Initio Method

29 aromatic compounds were computed at the HF/6-31G^＊ level. Based on linear solvation energy theory firstly, the parameters of molecular structure were taken as theoretical descriptors, and the corresponding linear solvation energy relationship （LSER） （r^2= 0.8993, q^2=0.8559） between the structural parameters and inhibition phytotoxicity to the seed germination rate of cucumis （-lgGC50） was thus obtained. Then the parameters of molecular structure and thermodynamics were taken as theoretical descriptors, and as a result the other corresponding correlation equation （r^2=0.9268, q^2=0.8960） relating to -lgGC50 was achieved. The two equations obtained in this work by HF/6-31G^＊ are both more advantageous than that from AM 1.

Artificial Neural Networks Applied to the Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship Study of Para-substituted Phenols

The artificial neural network (ANN) model with back-propagation of error is used to study the quantitative structure-activity relationship of para-substituted phenol derivatives between the biological activity and the physicochemical property parameters. Network parameters are optimized, and an empirical rule for dynamically adjusting the network’s learning rate is proposed to improve the network’s performance. The results showthat the three-layer ANN model gives satisfactory performance, with f(x)=1/(1+exp(-x)) as the network node’s input-output transformation function and the number of hidden nodes 10. The network gives the mean square error (rose) of 0.036 when predicting the biological activity of 26 para-substituted phenol derivatives. This result compares favourably with that obtained by the conventional methods.

Holographic quantitative structure-activity relationship for prediction of the toxicity of polybrominated diphenyl ether congeners

Polybrominated diphenyl ether congeners (PBDEs) might activate the AhR (aromatic hydrocarbon receptor) signal transduction,and thus might have an adverse effect on the health of humans and wildlife. Because of the limited experimental data,it is important and necessary to develop structure-based models for prediction of the toxicity of the compounds. In this study,a new molecular structure representation,molecular hologram,was employed to investigate the quantitative relationship between toxicity and molecular structures for 18 PBDEs. The model with the significant correlation and robustness (r2 = 0.991,q2LOO = 0.917) was developed. To verify the robustness and prediction capacity of the derived model,14 PBDEs were randomly selected from the database as the training set,while the rest were used as the test set. The results generated under the same modeling conditions as the optimal model are as follows:r2 = 0.988,q2LOO = 0.598,r2pred = 0.955,and RMSE (root-mean-square of errors) = 0.155,suggesting the excellent ability of the derived model to predict the toxicity of PBDEs. Furthermore,the structural features and molecular mechanism related to the toxicity of PBDEs were explored using HQSAR color coding.

Prediction of Stability for Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Transformer Insulation Oil Through Three-dimensional Quantitative Structure-activity Relationship Pharmacophore Model and Full Factor Experimental Design

Based on the obtained data of half-lives（t1/2） for 31 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners（PCBs）, 3D quantitative structure-activity relationship（QSAR） pharmacophore was used to establish a 3D QSAR model to predict the t1/2 values of the remaining 178 PCBs, using the structural parameters as independent variables and lgt1/2 values as the dependent variable. Among this process, the whole data set（31 compounds） was divided into a training set（24 compounds） for model generation and a test set（7 compounds） for model validation. Then, the full factor experimental design was used to research the potential second-order interactional effect between different substituent positions, obtaining the final regulation scheme for PCB. At last, a 3D QSAR pharmacophore model was established to validate the reasonable regulation targeting typical PCB with respect to half-lives and thermostability. As a result, the cross-validation correlation coefficient（q2） obtained by the 3D QSAR model was 0.845（〉0.5） and the coefficient of determination（r2） obtained was 0.936（〉0.9）, indicating that the models were robust and predictive. CoMSIA analyses upon steric, electrostatic and hydrophobic fields were 0.7%, 85.9%, and 13.4%, respectively. The electrostatic field was determined to be a primary factor governing the tt/2. From CoMSIA contour maps, tl/2 increased when substi- tuents possessed electropositive groups at the 2＇-, 3-, Y-, 5- and 5＇- positions and electronegative groups at the 3-, 3＇-, 5-, 6- and 6＇- positions, which could increase the PCB stability in transformer insulation oil. Modification of two typical PCB congeners（PCB-77 and PCB-81） showed that the lgtl/2 for three selected modified compounds increased by 13%（average ratio） compared with that of each congener and the thermostability of them were higher, validating the reasonability of the regulatory scheme obtained from the 3D QSAR model. These results are expected to be beneficial in predicting tl/2 values of PCB homologues and derivatives and in providing a theoretical foundation for further elucidation of the stability of PCBs.

Ionic liquids as the effective technology for enhancing transdermal drug delivery: Design principles, roles, mechanisms, and future challenges

Ionic liquids (ILs) have been proven to be an effective technology for enhancing drug transdermal absorption. However, due to the unique structural components of ILs, the design of efficient ILs and elucidation of action mechanisms remain to be explored. In this review, basic design principles of ideal ILs for transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) are discussed considering melting point, skin permeability, and toxicity, which depend on the molar ratios, types, functional groups of ions and inter-ionic interactions. Secondly, the contributions of ILs to the development of TDDS through different roles are described: as novel skin penetration enhancers for enhancing transdermal absorption of drugs;as novel solvents for improving the solubility of drugs in carriers;as novel active pharmaceutical ingredients (API-ILs) for regulating skin permeability, solubility, release, and pharmacokinetic behaviors of drugs;and as novel polymers for the development of smart medical materials. Moreover, diverse action mechanisms, mainly including the interactions among ILs, drugs, polymers, and skin components, are summarized. Finally, future challenges related to ILs are discussed, including underlying quantitative structure-activity relationships, complex interaction forces between anions, drugs, polymers and skin microenvironment, long-term stability, and in vivo safety issues. In summary, this article will promote the development of TDDS based on ILs.

Novel quantitative structure activity relationship models for predicting hexadecane/air partition coefficients of organic compounds

Predicting the logarithm of hexadecane/air partition coefficient(L)for organic compounds is crucial for understanding the environmental behavior and fate of organic compounds and developing prediction models with polyparameter linear free energy relationships.Herein,two quantitative structure activity relationship(QSAR)models were developed with 1272 L values for the organic compounds by using multiple linear regression(MLR)and support vector machine(SVM)algorithms.On the basis of the OECD principles,the goodness of fit,robustness and predictive ability for the developed models were evaluated.The SVM model was first developed,and the predictive capability for the SVM model is slightly better than that for the MLR model.The applicability domain(AD)of these two models has been extended to include more kinds of emerging pollutants,i.e.,oraganosilicon compounds.The developed QSAR models can be used for predicting L values of various organic compounds.The van derWaals interactions between the organic compound and the hexadecane have a significant effect on the L value of the compound.These in silico models developed in current study can provide an alternative to experimental method for high-throughput obtaining L values of organic compounds.