Aqib Sarfraz

Aqib Sarfraz


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

5Years (2022-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

View All Publications
3 August 2023 in Molecules
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
Waseem Ahmad AnsariWaseem Ahmad Ansari
Waseem Ahmad Ansari
SRSafia Obaidur Rab
Safia Obaidur Rab
SESaquib Em
Saquib Em
Aqib SarfrazAqib Sarfraz
Aqib Sarfraz
Mohd Kamil HussainMohd Kamil Hussain
Mohd Kamil Hussain
MKMohammad Faheem Khan
Mohammad Faheem Khan
Polo-like kinase-1 (PLK-1) is an essential mitotic serine/threonine (Ser/Thr) kinase that belongs to the Polo-like kinase (PLK) family and is overexpressed in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) via promotion of cell division. Therefore, PLK-1 may act as a promising target for the therapeutic cure of various cancers. Although a variety of anti-cancer drugs, both synthetic and naturally occurring, such as volasertib, onvansertib, thymoquinone, and quercetin, are available either alone or in combination with other therapies, they have limited efficacy, especially in the advanced stages of cancer. To the best of our knowledge, no anticancer agent has been reported from marine algae or microorganisms to date. Thus, the aim of the present study is a high-throughput virtual screening of phlorotannins, obtained from edible brown algae, using molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation analysis. Among these, Pentafuhalol-B (PtB) showed the lowest binding energy (best of triplicate runs) against the target protein PLK-1 as compared to the reference drug volasertib. Further, in MD simulation (best of triplicate runs), the PtB-PLK-1 complex displayed stability in an implicit water system through the formation of strong molecular interactions. Additionally, MMGBSA calculation (best of triplicate runs) was also performed to validate the PtB-PLK-1 complex binding affinities and stability. Moreover, the chemical reactivity of PtB towards the PLK-1 target was also optimised using density functional theory (DFT) calculations, which exhibited a lower HOMO-LUMO energy gap. Overall, these studies suggest that PtB binds strongly within the pocket sites of PLK-1 through the formation of a stable complex, and also shows higher chemical reactivity than the reference drug volasertib. The present study demonstrated the inhibitory nature of PtB against the PLK-1 protein, establishing its potential usefulness as a small molecule inhibitor for the treatment of different types of cancer.

6 July 2022 in Journal of Molecular Modeling
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
PDF file
MKMohammad Faheem Khan
Mohammad Faheem Khan
Waseem Ahmad AnsariWaseem Ahmad Ansari
Waseem Ahmad Ansari
TATanveer Ahamad
Tanveer Ahamad
MKMohsin Ali Khan
Mohsin Ali Khan
ZKZaw Ali Khan
Zaw Ali Khan
MKMohd Aamish Khan
Mohd Aamish Khan
1