Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus

Abstract Background Monkeypox virus (MPV), an endemic pathogen in Africa, shares clinical similarities with smallpox. Recent reports indicate a concerning increase in the number of MPV cases detected outside its endemic region, highlighting the emergence of a multi-country outbreak. Given the import...

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Main Authors: Rahatul Islam, Asif Shahriar, Muhammad Ramiz Uddin, Nour Fatema
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SpringerOpen 2024-02-01
Series:Beni-Suef University Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s43088-024-00472-2
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author Rahatul Islam
Asif Shahriar
Muhammad Ramiz Uddin
Nour Fatema
author_facet Rahatul Islam
Asif Shahriar
Muhammad Ramiz Uddin
Nour Fatema
author_sort Rahatul Islam
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Monkeypox virus (MPV), an endemic pathogen in Africa, shares clinical similarities with smallpox. Recent reports indicate a concerning increase in the number of MPV cases detected outside its endemic region, highlighting the emergence of a multi-country outbreak. Given the importance of the cell surface-binding protein E8L in facilitating viral attachment to host cells, this study aimed to identify potential small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) capable of silencing E8L and thereby serving as a basis for therapeutic development. Results siRNAs have emerged as promising candidates for genetic therapies and antiviral and antibacterial treatments. In this investigation, we employed computational assays, including GC content analysis, binding free energy assessment, folding properties evaluation, melting temperature determination, and siRNA efficacy prediction. Our comprehensive analysis identified five siRNAs with high potential for effectively silencing the cell surface-binding protein of the monkeypox virus. Among these siRNAs, molecular docking revealed that “S8” (Guide-UUAUGGAUCCAAUCACUUGAU, Passenger-CAAGUGAUUGGAUCCAUAAUC) demonstrated the strongest affinity with the human argonaute-2 protein. Conclusions The siRNA “S8” represents a promising therapeutic target for developing treatments against monkeypox virus infection by specifically silencing the cell surface-binding protein E8L. Our research lays the foundation for future endeavors in genome-level therapies. It can potentially create chemically produced RNA molecules as effective antiviral drugs targeting Monkeypox virus infection. These findings contribute to advancing therapeutic strategies and offer new avenues for combating the spread of MPV, particularly in regions affected by the multi-country outbreak.
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spelling doaj.art-751684ea49f94345bb4dee8b87ce30ce2024-03-05T19:57:51ZengSpringerOpenBeni-Suef University Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences2314-85432024-02-0113111710.1186/s43088-024-00472-2Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virusRahatul Islam0Asif Shahriar1Muhammad Ramiz Uddin2Nour Fatema3Department of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Shahjalal University of Science and TechnologyDepartment of Microbiology, Stamford University BangladeshDepartment of Pharmacy, Jahangirnagar UniversityDepartment of Microbiology, Stamford University BangladeshAbstract Background Monkeypox virus (MPV), an endemic pathogen in Africa, shares clinical similarities with smallpox. Recent reports indicate a concerning increase in the number of MPV cases detected outside its endemic region, highlighting the emergence of a multi-country outbreak. Given the importance of the cell surface-binding protein E8L in facilitating viral attachment to host cells, this study aimed to identify potential small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) capable of silencing E8L and thereby serving as a basis for therapeutic development. Results siRNAs have emerged as promising candidates for genetic therapies and antiviral and antibacterial treatments. In this investigation, we employed computational assays, including GC content analysis, binding free energy assessment, folding properties evaluation, melting temperature determination, and siRNA efficacy prediction. Our comprehensive analysis identified five siRNAs with high potential for effectively silencing the cell surface-binding protein of the monkeypox virus. Among these siRNAs, molecular docking revealed that “S8” (Guide-UUAUGGAUCCAAUCACUUGAU, Passenger-CAAGUGAUUGGAUCCAUAAUC) demonstrated the strongest affinity with the human argonaute-2 protein. Conclusions The siRNA “S8” represents a promising therapeutic target for developing treatments against monkeypox virus infection by specifically silencing the cell surface-binding protein E8L. Our research lays the foundation for future endeavors in genome-level therapies. It can potentially create chemically produced RNA molecules as effective antiviral drugs targeting Monkeypox virus infection. These findings contribute to advancing therapeutic strategies and offer new avenues for combating the spread of MPV, particularly in regions affected by the multi-country outbreak.https://doi.org/10.1186/s43088-024-00472-2Monkeypox virussiRNAE8LSmall interfering RNA
spellingShingle Rahatul Islam
Asif Shahriar
Muhammad Ramiz Uddin
Nour Fatema
Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
Beni-Suef University Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences
Monkeypox virus
siRNA
E8L
Small interfering RNA
title Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
title_full Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
title_fullStr Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
title_full_unstemmed Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
title_short Immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches: siRNA prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
title_sort immunoinformatic and molecular docking approaches sirna prediction to silence cell surface binding protein of monkeypox virus
topic Monkeypox virus
siRNA
E8L
Small interfering RNA
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s43088-024-00472-2
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