| 1. |
- Abdallah, Qasem M. A., et al.
(författare)
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Minor structural modifications to alchemix influence mechanism of action and pharmacological activity
- 2012
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Ingår i: Biochemical Pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-2952 .- 1356-1839 .- 1873-2968. ; 83:11, s. 1514-1522
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Alchemix is an exemplar of a class of anthraquinone with efficacy against multidrug resistant tumours. We have explored further the mechanism of action of alchemix and investigated the effect of extending its side arm bearing the alkylating functionality with regard to DNA binding and activity against multidrug resistant cancer cells. Increasing the distance between the intercalating chromophore and the alkylating functionality of ICT2901 (propyl), ICT2902 (butyl) and ICT2903 (pentyl), led to a higher number of DNA alkylation sites, more potent topoisomerase II inhibition and generated more apoptotic and necrotic cells when analysed in p53-proficient HCT116 cells. Intriguingly, alchemix, the compound with the shortest distance between its intercalative chromophore and alkylating functionality (ethyl), did not conform to this SAR. A different toxicity pattern against DNA repair defective CHO cell lines as well as arrest of cells in Cl supports a somewhat distinct mode of action by alchemix compared with its analogues. Importantly, both alchemix and ICT2901 demonstrated greater cytotoxic activity against anthraquinone-resistant MCF-7/adr cells than wild-type MCF-7 cells. Subtle synthetic modification in this anthraquinone series has led to significant changes to the stability of DNA-compound complexes and cellular activity. Given that the failure of chemotherapy in the clinic is often associated with MDR, the results of both alchemix and ICT2901 represent important advances towards improved therapies.
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| 2. |
- Bergh Thorén, Fredrik, 1976, et al.
(författare)
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The anionic amphiphile SDS is an antagonist for the human neutrophil formyl peptide receptor 1.
- 2010
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Ingår i: Biochemical pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-2968 .- 0006-2952. ; 80:3, s. 389-95
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The anionic amphiphil sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) is commonly used to activate the superoxide-generating NADPH-oxidase complex in cell-free systems, but very little is known about the effects of SDS on intact cells. It was, however, recently shown that SDS causes a translocation and an activation of Rac (a small G-protein) in intact cells, but this signal is not in its own sufficient to activate the oxidase (Nigorikawa et al. (2004) [1]). We found that SDS acted as an antagonist for FPR1, one of the neutrophil members of the formyl peptide receptor family. Accordingly, SDS reduced superoxide anion production induced by the chemoattractant formylmethionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLF). The receptor specificity of SDS was fairly high, but the concentration range in which it worked was narrow. The length of the carbohydrate chain as well as the charge of the molecule was of importance for the antagonistic effects. Signaling through FPR2, a closely related receptor also expressed in neutrophils, was not inhibited by SDS. On the contrary, the response induced by the FPR2-specific agonist WKYMVM was primed by SDS. The precise mechanism behind the primed state is not known, but might be related to the effects earlier described for SDS on the small G-protein Rac, that is of importance for a proper transduction of the down-stream signals from the occupied receptor.
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| 3. |
- Caja, Laia, et al.
(författare)
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The tyrphostin AG1478 inhibits proliferation and induces death of liver tumor cells through EGF receptor-dependent and independent mechanisms.
- 2011
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Ingår i: Biochemical pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-2968 .- 0006-2952. ; 82:11, s. 1583-1592
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common causes of cancer-related death. Different signaling pathways are de-regulated in this pathogenesis, among them the epidermal growth factor receptor one (EGFR/Erb1). Here we show that blockage of this pathway by the tyrphostin 4-(3-chloroanilino)-6,7-dimethoxyquinazoline (AG1478) in different liver tumor cell lines promotes both inhibition of cell proliferation and induction of cell death, which are coincident with arrest in the G1 phase of the cell cycle, caspase-3 activation and DNA fragmentation. AG1478 up-regulates the expression of the pro-apoptotic member of the BCL-2 family BIM and down-regulates the expression of the anti-apoptotic BCL-XL and MCL1. Furthermore, it also decreases the levels of the caspase inhibitors HIAP2 and XIAP. The treatment of HCC cells with AG1478 enhanced the apoptosis induced by other pro-apoptotic stimuli, such as the physiological cytokine, TGF-β, highly expressed in liver tumors, or the chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin. The effects observed by AG1478 were broader than the ones seen by silencing of the EGFR with siRNA, which indicates that this drug might act on other targets different from the EGFR. In this same line of evidence, AG1478 retained some cytotoxic effects in cells where EGFR has been targeted knock-down with shRNA. Interestingly, AG1478 preferentially acts on liver tumor cells, being untransformed cells much less responsive to its cytotoxic effects. In conclusion, AG1478 could be a potential therapeutic drug to be used in HCC.
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| 4. |
- Çevik Aras, Hülya, 1975, et al.
(författare)
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A non-peptide receptor inhibitor with selectivity for one of the neutrophil formyl peptide receptors, FPR 1.
- 2012
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Ingår i: Biochemical pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-2968 .- 0006-2952. ; 83:12, s. 1655-1662
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The neutrophil formyl peptide receptors (FPR1 and FPR2) are members of the G-protein coupled receptor family. The signals generated by occupied FPRs are both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory. Accordingly, these receptors have become a therapeutic target for the development of novel drugs that may be used to reduce injuries in inflammatory diseases including asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, Alzheimer's disease and cardiovascular diseases. To support the basis for a future pharmacological characterization, we have identified a small molecular non-peptide inhibitor with selectivity for FPR1. We used the FPR1 and FPR2 specific ligands fMLF and WKYMVM, respectively, and an earlier described ratio technique, to determine inhibitory activity combined with selectivity. We show that the compound 3,5-dichloro-N-(2-chloro-5-methyl-phenyl)-2-hydroxy-benzamide (BVT173187) fulfills the criteria for an FPR1 inhibitor selective for FPR1 over FPR2, and it inhibits the same functional repertoire in neutrophils as earlier described peptide antagonists. Accordingly, the new inhibitor reduced neutrophil activation with FPR1 agonists, leading to mobilization of adhesion molecules (CR3) and the generation of superoxide anion from the neutrophil NADPH-oxidase. The effects of a number of structural analogs were determined but these were either without activity or less active/specific than BVT173187. The potency of the new inhibitor for reduction of FPR1 activity was the same as that of the earlier described FPR1 antagonist cyclosporine H, but signaling through the C5aR and CXCR (recognizing IL8) was also affected by BVT173187.
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| 5. |
- Chatzakos, Vicky, 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Inhibition of sphingosine kinase 1 enhances cytotoxicity, ceramide levels and ROS formation in liver cancer cells treated with selenite
- 2012
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Ingår i: Biochemical Pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-2952 .- 1356-1839 .- 1873-2968. ; 84:5, s. 712-721
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- High doses of selenite have been shown to induce cell death in acute myeloid leukemia and lung cancercells. In this study, we combined selenite treatment with modulators of sphingolipid metabolism in thehepatocellular carcinoma cell line Huh7. Treatment with 20 mM of selenite reduced the viability of Huh7cells by half and increased the levels of long chain C14-, C16-, C18- and C18:1- ceramides by two-fold.Inhibition of neutral sphingomyelinase with 3-O-methylsphingosine significantly reduced the cytotoxiceffect of selenite. In line with this result, selenite caused a 2.5-fold increase in the activity of neutralsphingomyelinase. The sphingosine kinase 1 (SK1) inhibitor 2-(p-hydroxyanilino)-4-(p-chlorophe-nyl)thiazole (SK1-II) sensitized the cells to the cytotoxic effects of selenite. Preincubation with 10 mM ofSK1-II prior to treatment with 10 mM of selenite caused induction of apoptosis and gave rise to a 2.5-foldincrease in C14-, C16-, C18- and C18:1- ceramides. Instead, 50 mM of SK1-II combined with 10 mM ofselenite caused accumulation of cells in G1/S phases, but less apoptosis and accumulation of ceramides.The formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) after treatment with 10 mM of selenite was maximallyenhanced by 1 mM of SK1-II. Moreover, combined treatment with SK1-II and 10 mM of selenitesynergistically reduced the number of viable Huh7 cells, while the non-tumorigenic hepatocyte cell lineMIHA remained unaffected by the same treatment. These results raise the possibility that a combinationof selenite and SK1 inhibitors could be used to treat liver cancer cells, that are regarded as drug resistant,at doses that are non-toxic to normal liver cells.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Forsman, Huamei, et al.
(författare)
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Stable formyl peptide receptor agonists that activate the neutrophil NADPH-oxidase identified through screening of a compound library.
- 2011
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Ingår i: Biochemical pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-2968 .- 0006-2952. ; 81:3, s. 402-411
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The neutrophil formyl peptide receptors (FPR1 and FPR2) are G-protein coupled receptors that can induce pro-inflammatory as well as anti-inflammatory activities when activated. Accordingly, these receptors may become therapeutic targets for the development of novel drugs to be used for reducing the inflammation induced injuries in asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular diseases and traumatic shock. We screened a library of more then 50K small compounds for an ability of the compounds to induce a transient rise in intracellular Ca(2+) in cells transfected to express FPR2 (earlier called FPRL1 or the lipoxin A(4) receptor). Ten agonist hits were selected for further analysis representing different chemical series and five new together with five earlier described molecules were further profiled. Compounds 1-10 gave rise to a calcium response in the FPR2 transfectants with EC(50) values ranging from 4×10(-9)M to 2×10(-7)M. All 10 compounds activated human neutrophils to release superoxide, and based on the potency of their activity, the three most potent activators of the neutrophil NADPH-oxidase were further characterized. These three agonists were largely resistant to inactivation by neutrophil produced reactive oxygen species and shown to trigger the same functional repertoire in neutrophils as earlier described peptide agonists. Accordingly they induced chemotaxis, granule mobilization and secretion of superoxide. Interestingly, the oxidase activity was largely inhibited by cyclosporine H, an FPR1 selective antagonist, but not by PBP10, an FPR2 selective inhibitor, suggesting that FPR1 is the preferred receptor in neutrophils for all three agonists.
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| 8. |
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| 9. |
- Garcia-Bennett, Alfonso, et al.
(författare)
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In search of the Holy Grail : Folate-targeted nanoparticles for cancer therapy
- 2011
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Ingår i: Biochemical Pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-2952 .- 1356-1839 .- 1873-2968. ; 81:8, s. 976-984
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Targeted drug therapy or "smart" drug delivery, potentially combined with simultaneous imaging modalities to monitor the delivery of drugs to specific tissues, is arguably the "holy grail" of pharmacology. Therapeutic approaches that exploit nanoparticles to deliver drugs selectively to cancer cells are currently considered one of the most promising avenues in the area of cancer therapeutics and imaging. The potential to deliver active chemotherapeutic drugs in the vicinity or directly within specific tumors via receptor mediated pathways, and to image tumors through the use of nanoparticles has been conceptually and experimentally shown for several classes of nanoparticles. Nanoparticles functionalized with the vitamin folic acid are of particular interest as a variety of malignant tumors are known to overexpress the folate receptor(s). Indeed, several nanoparticle architectures with improved retention time, administration route, biocompatibility, absorption, and clearance are being proposed and are in late stage clinical development. This commentary highlights some of the most important concepts related to nanoparticles and folate-mediated drug delivery and imaging in cancer research.
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| 10. |
- Gullbo, Joachim, et al.
(författare)
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Phenotype-based drug screening in primary ovarian carcinoma cultures identifies intracellular iron depletion as a promising strategy for cancer treatment
- 2011
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Ingår i: Biochemical Pharmacology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-2952 .- 1356-1839 .- 1873-2968. ; 82:2, s. 139-147
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Primary cultures of patient tumor cells (PCPTC) have been used for prediction of diagnosis-specific activity and individual patient response to anticancer drugs, but have not been utilized as a model for identification of novel drugs in high throughput screening. In the present study, ovarian carcinoma cells from three patients were tested in response to a library of 3000 chemically diverse compounds. Eight hits were retrieved after counter screening using normal epithelial cells, and one of the two structurally related hit compounds was selected for further preclinical evaluation. This compound, designated VLX 50, demonstrated a broad spectrum of activity when tested in a panel of PCPTCs representing different forms of leukemia and solid tumors and displayed a high tumor to normal cell activity. VLX 50 induced delayed cell death with some features of classical apoptosis. Significant in vivo activity was confirmed on primary cultures of human ovarian carcinoma cells in mice using the hollow fiber model. Mechanistic exploration was performed using gene expression analysis of drug exposed tumor cells to generate a drug-specific signature. This query signature was analyzed using the Gene Set Enrichment Analysis and the Connectivity Map database. Strong connections to hypoxia inducible factor 1 and iron chelators were retrieved. The mechanistic hypothesis of intracellular iron depletion leading to hypoxia signaling was confirmed by a series of experiments. The results indicate the feasibility of using PCPTC for cancer drug screening and that intracellular iron depletion could be a potentially important strategy for cancer therapy.
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