Abstract
The interaction between human serum albumin (HSA) and hispidin, a polyketide abundantly present in both edible and therapeutic mushrooms, was explored through multispectral methods, hydrophobic probe assays, location competition trials, and molecular docking simulations. The results of fluorescence quenching analysis showed that hispidin quenched the fluorescence of HSA by binding to it via a static mechanism. The binding of hispidin and HSA was validated further by synchronous fluorescence, three-dimensional fluorescence, and UV/vis spectroscopy analysis. The apparent binding constant (Ka) at different temperatures, the binding site number (n), the quenching constants (Ksv), the dimolecular quenching rate constants (Kq), and the thermodynamic parameters (∆G, ∆H, and ∆S) were calculated. Among these parameters, ∆H and ∆S were determined to be 98.75 kJ/mol and 426.29 J/(mol·K), respectively, both exhibiting positive values. This observation suggested a predominant contribution of hydrophobic forces in the interaction between hispidin and HSA. By employing detergents (SDS and urea) and hydrophobic probes (ANS), it became feasible to quantify alterations in Ka and surface hydrophobicity, respectively. These measurements confirmed the pivotal role of hydrophobic forces in steering the interaction between hispidin and HSA. Site competition experiments showed that there was an interaction between hispidin and HSA molecules at site I, which situates the IIA domains of HSA, which was further confirmed by the molecular docking simulation.