Unraveling the Binding Mechanism of Alzheimer’s Drugs with Irisin: Spectroscopic, Calorimetric, and Computational Approaches

The prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been a major health concern for a long time. Despite recent progress, there is still a strong need to develop effective disease-modifying therapies. Several drugs have already been approved to retard the progression of AD-related symptoms; however, there is a need to develop an effective carrier system for the delivery of drugs to combat such diseases. In recent years, various biological macromolecules, including proteins, have been used as carriers for drug delivery. Irisin is a beneficial hormone in such diseases, including AD and related pathologies. Herein, the interaction mechanism of irisin with AD drugs such as memantine, galantamine, and fluoxetine is investigated. Fluorescence studies revealed that the above drugs bind to irisin with significant affinity, with fluoxetine having the highest binding affinity. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) complemented the spontaneous binding of these drugs with irisin, delineating various associated thermodynamic and binding parameters. Molecular docking further validated the fluorescence and ITC results and unfolded the mechanism that hydrogen bonding governs the binding of fluoxetine to irisin with a significant binding score, i.e., −6.3 kcal/mol. We believe that these findings provide a promising solution to fight against AD as well as a platform for further research to utilize irisin in the drug-delivery system for an effective therapeutic strategy.