Identification of a glycine‐like fragment on the strychnine molecule
- 1 January 1987
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Wiley in Journal of Neuroscience Research
- Vol. 17 (3), 209-213
- https://doi.org/10.1002/jnr.490170302
Abstract
Strychnine, a complex molecule, antagonizes in some unknown manner the action of glycine, an important inhibitory neurotransmitter in the spinal cord and brainstem of many vertebrates. To help understand the mechanism of this antagonism, we have employed modern computational methods to assess the similarities between these seemingly different molecules. An exhaustive comparison of topological and electronic features of both molecules was made. We have successfully located a glycine‐like fragment in the strychnine molecule that, when compared to glycine, exhibits both topological and electronic charge congruence. The successful location of this glycine‐like fragment allows us to speculate how the large strychnine molecule assumes its role as an antagonist against the inhibitory action of glycine, the simplest amino acid.Keywords
This publication has 26 references indexed in Scilit:
- V. Barbiturate and benzodiazepine modulation of GABA receptor binding and functionLife Sciences, 1986
- Glycine antagonists. Synthesis, structure, and biological effects of some bicyclic 5-isoxazolol zwitterionsJournal of Medicinal Chemistry, 1986
- Solubilization by CHAPS Detergent of Barbiturate‐Enhanced Benzodiazepine‐GABA Receptor ComplexJournal of Neurochemistry, 1982
- Molecular mechanics: The method and its underlying philosophyJournal of Chemical Education, 1982
- .gamma.-Aminobutyric acid agonists, antagonists, and uptake inhibitors. Design and therapeutic aspectsJournal of Medicinal Chemistry, 1981
- The structure of strychnine sulfonic acid tetrahydrateActa Crystallographica Section B: Structural Science, Crystal Engineering and Materials, 1973
- Hydrogen bond studies. 77. Electron density distribution in α-glycine: X-N difference Fourier synthesis vs ab initio calculationsThe Journal of Chemical Physics, 1973
- The effects of strychnine on the inhibition of interneurons by glycine and γ-aminobutyric acidInternational Journal of Neuropharmacology, 1969
- The distribution of glycine in cat spinal cord and rootsLife Sciences, 1965
- The depression of spinal inhibition by electrophoretically administered strychnineInternational Journal of Neuropharmacology, 1962