Highly Precise Prediction of Micro‐ and Supra‐p <i>K</i> <sub>a</sub> Based on 3D Descriptors Integrating Non‐Covalent Interactions
Accurate pK<sub>a</sub> prediction is crucial for understanding proton dissociation in complex molecular systems. However, existing models often face challenges in addressing subtle stereoelectronic effects and conformational flexibility. This study presents H-SPOC, a localized 3D descriptor that captures covalent and non-covalent interactions and incorporates solvent effects to predict site-specific pK<sub>a</sub> values accurately. H-SPOC was validated on multiple benchmark datasets, including SAMPL6, SAMPL7, and SAMPL8, where it outperformed state-of-the-art methods. H-SPOC also proved versatile across various applications, including 2-acetoxybenzoic acid (the main components of aspirin) non-equilibrium conformations, glycine's microstate distributions, and the stereoelectronic anomalies of Janus Sponge and Meldrum's Acid. It addressed challenging supra-pK<sub>a</sub> predictions in crystalline environments and accurately correlated pK<sub>a</sub> with reaction rates, selectivity, tautomerism, and pharmacokinetic properties. With its chemically intuitive design and computational efficiency, H-SPOC provides an efficient framework for rapid and precise micro- and supra-pK<sub>a</sub> predictions, offering significant potential in drug discovery, catalysis, and materials science.
Authors
- Sanzhong Luo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8714-4047)
- Chi Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8304-322X)
- Long Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2185-6890)
- Siyuan Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6002-3779)
Institutions
- Unité Matériaux et Transformations (FR)
- Tsinghua University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Angewandte Chemie International Edition
- Published
- 2025-02-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202424069
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Free Radicals and Antioxidants
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.74