Targeting TLRs with the Derivatives of Mimosa Pudica: An In Silico Approach

Abstract

Inflammation is a set of proteins and immune cell interactions that can arise in any part of the human body in response to an infection and an autoimmune reaction. Although this process aims for recovery from infection, dysregulated inflammation leads to persistent tissue damage by myeloid and lymphoid cells. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are one of the key molecules for the activation of innate immune cells and pro-inflammatory reactions. Therefore, they are recognized as potential targets for treating inflammatory conditions. TLRs are type I transmembrane proteins, playing a crucial role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. TLRs comes under the family of pattern recognition receptors (PRR) which identify and recognize a wide range of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs). In the present study, an Indian medicinal plant, Mimosa pudica, widely used in the traditional 'Siddha' and 'Ayurvedha' formulations, has been chosen to target TLRs in silico. M. pudica was studied for its various activities, including anti-inflammatory. However, their mechanism of activity is not established yet. The metabolites of M. pudica were retrieved from the IMPPAT database, and their binding affinity against the targets was studied. Further, the ADMET studies revealed good gastrointestinal absorption for seven- and blood-brain barrier crossing ability for two compounds. The two compounds, β-carotene, and turgorin, could be investigated as candidate drugs, further using in vitro and in vivo analysis.