The rational search for PDE10A inhibitors from Sophora flavescens roots using pharmacophore- and docking-based virtual screening

Phosphodiesterase 10A (PDE10A) has been confirmed to be an important target for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders. The purpose of the present study was to identify PDE10A inhibitors from herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. Pharmacophore and molecular docking techniques were used to virtually screen the chemical molecule database of Sophora flavescens, a well-known Chinese herb that has been used for improving mental health and regulating the CNS. The pharmacophore model generated recognized the common functional groups of known PDE10A inhibitors. In addition, molecular docking was used to calculate the binding affinity of ligand-PDE10A interactions and to investigate the possible binding pattern. Virtual screening based on the pharmacophore model and molecular docking was performed to identify potential PDE10A inhibitors from S. flavescens. The results demonstrated that nine hits from S. flavescens were potential PDE10A inhibitors, and their biological activity was further validated using literature mining. A total of two compounds were reported to inhibit cyclic adenosine monophosphate phosphodiesterase, and one protected against glutamate-induced oxidative stress in the CNS. The remaining six compounds require further bioactivity validation. The results of the present study demonstrated that this method was a time- and cost-saving strategy for the identification of bioactive compounds from traditional Chinese medicine.