Computational Analysis of New Designed Peptides Designed to Target GnRHR-R and PSMA on Prostate Cancer Cells

Graduate #6
Discipline: Biological Sciences
Subcategory: Cancer Research

Vincent Hembrick-Holloman - Tuskegee University
Co-Author(s): Manikanthan Bhavaraju, Ahmad Bin Salam, Timothy Turner, and Mohamed O. Abdalla

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Prostate cancer is the most prevalent and the second leading cause of cancer deaths among men in the United States. The incidence and mortality rate of prostate cancer in African-Americans has steadily increased since 1950s to the present point, where it is the highest of any group in America. As long as the cancer is localized, therapy is available. Unfortunately for patients with hormone refractory disease, a few treatment options are available once the tumor has spread and metastasized beyond the prostate. Receptors specifically over-expressed on the surface of the prostate cancer cells, like the Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) and Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone Receptor (GnRHR) offer ideal therapeutic targeting sites. There is always imperative need for effective targeting peptides that can accurately and successfully guide, and bind a drug delivery vehicle to these over-expressed receptors. A peptide targeted drug delivery vehicle, predicated upon strong binding and subsequent internalization, ensures the maximum delivery of its drug load into the cancer cells. Thus, the corner stone for the success of a cancer targeting peptide is for it to have an exceptionally high affinity for differentially over-expressed receptors on the cell membrane of the cancer cells in question.

Therefore, in this study, we utilized molecular modeling which is of immense importance to the early prediction of binding affinities and specificities of novel peptides specifically designed to target over expressed cancer receptors. The molecular modeling results for these targeting peptides will be corroborated by using protein-protein interaction techniques such as surface plasmon resonance and microscale thermophoresis.

Not Submitted

Funder Acknowledgement(s): National Science Foundation

Faculty Advisor: Shaik Zainuddin, szainuddin@mytu.tuskegee.edu