Pharmacology and antitumor activity of ABC294640, a selective inhibitor of sphingosine kinase-2

Attenuation of arthritis in rodents by a novel orally-available inhibitor of sphingosine kinase

Pro-inflammatory cytokines like TNF-α activate sphingosine kinase (SK). Therefore, inhibition of SK is a potential molecular target for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

AIMS

The primary goal of this study was to assess the efficacy of ABC249640 (a selective SK-2 inhibitor) in two models of rodent arthritis. A secondary goal was to evaluate the pharmacological profile of ABC294640, when given in combination with methotrexate.

METHODS

The efficacy of ABC294640 was determined by paw diameter/volume measurements, histological evaluations, and micro-CT analyses.

RESULTS

ABC294640 attenuated both collagen-induced arthritis in mice, as well as adjuvant-induced arthritis in rats. With the adjuvant arthritis model, the prophylactic efficacy profile of ABC294640 was similar to indomethacin. Of note, ABC294640 reduced the bone and cartilage degradation, associated with adjuvant-induced arthritis. Rats treated with a suboptimal dose of MTX (50 μg/kg/day) in combination with ABC249640 (100 mg/kg/day) had better anti-arthritis effects in the adjuvant model, than treatment with either agent alone.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that ABC249640 is an orally available drug candidate with a good pre-clinical efficacy profile for the prevention and/or treatment of RA.

Suppression of colitis-driven colon cancer in mice by a novel small molecule inhibitor of sphingosine kinase

Sphingolipid metabolism is driven by inflammatory cytokines. These cascade of events include the activation of sphingosine kinase (SK), and subsequent production of the mitogenic and proinflammatory lipid sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P). Overall, S1P is one of the crucial components in inflammation, making SK an excellent target for the development of new anti-inflammatory drugs. We have recently shown that SK inhibitors suppress colitis and hypothesize here that the novel SK inhibitor, ABC294640, prevents the development of colon cancer. In an azoxymethane (AOM)/dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) mouse model, there was a dose-dependent decrease in tumor incidence with SK inhibitor treatment. The tumor incidence (number of animals with tumors per group) in the vehicle, ABC294640 (20 mg/kg) and ABC294640 (50 mg/kg) groups were 80, 40 and 30%, respectively. Tumor multiplicity (number of tumors per animal) also decreased from 2.1 ± 0.23 tumors per animal in the AOM + DSS + vehicle group to 1.2 ± 0 tumors per animal in the AOM + DSS + ABC294640 (20 mg/kg) and to 0.8 ± 0.4 tumors per animal in the AOM + DSS + ABC294640 (50 mg/kg) group. Importantly, with ABC294640, there were no observed toxic side effects. To explore mechanisms, we isolated cells from the colon (CD45-, representing primarily colon epithelial cells) and (CD45+, representing primarily colon inflammatory cells) then measured known targets of SK that control cell survival. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that the inhibition of SK activity by our novel SK inhibitor modulates key pathways involved in cell survival and may be a viable treatment strategy for the chemoprevention colitis-driven colon cancer.

Sphingosine 1-phosphate and cancer

There is substantial evidence that sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) is involved in cancer. S1P regulates processes such as inflammation, which can drive tumorigenesis; neovascularization, which provides cancer cells with nutrients and oxygen; and cell growth and survival. This occurs at multiple levels and involves S1P receptors, sphingosine kinases, S1P phosphatases and S1P lyase. This Review summarizes current research findings and examines the potential for new therapeutics designed to alter S1P signalling and function in cancer.

Combined anticancer effects of sphingosine kinase inhibitors and sorafenib

The pro-apoptotic lipid sphingosine is phosphorylated by sphingosine kinases 1 and 2 (SK1 and SK2) to generate the mitogenic lipid sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P). We previously reported that inhibition of SK activity delays tumor growth in a mouse mammary adenocarcinoma model. Because SK inhibitors and the multikinase inhibitor sorafenib both suppress the MAP kinase pathway, we hypothesized that their combination may provide enhanced inhibition of tumor growth. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of two SK inhibitors, ABC294640 (a SK2-specific inhibitor) and ABC294735 (a dual SK1/SK2 inhibitor), alone and in combination with sorafenib on human pancreatic adenocarcinoma (Bxpc-3) and kidney carcinoma (A-498) cells in vitro and in vivo. Exposure of either Bxpc-3 or A-498 cells to combinations of ABC294640 and sorafenib or ABC294735 and sorafenib resulted in synergistic cytotoxicity, associated with activation of caspases 3/7 and DNA fragmentation. Additionally, strong decreases in ERK phosphorylation were observed in Bxpc-3 and A-498 cells exposed to either the sorafenib/ABC294640 or the sorafenib/ABC294735 combination. Oral administration of either ABC294640 or ABC294735 to mice led to a delay in tumor growth in both xenograft models without overt toxicity to the animals. Tumor growth delay was potentiated by co-administration of sorafenib. These studies show that combination of an SK inhibitor with sorafenib causes synergistic inhibition of cell growth in vitro, and potentiates antitumor activity in vivo. Thus, a foundation is established for clinical trials evaluating the efficacy of combining these signaling inhibitors.

Control of metabolism and signaling of simple bioactive sphingolipids: Implications in disease

Simple bioactive sphingolipids include ceramide, sphingosine and their phosphorylated forms sphingosine 1-phosphate and ceramide 1-phosphate. These molecules are crucial regulators of cell functions. In particular, they play important roles in the regulation of angiogenesis, apoptosis, cell proliferation, differentiation, migration, and inflammation. Decoding the mechanisms by which these cellular functions are regulated requires detailed understanding of the signaling pathways that are implicated in these processes. Most importantly, the development of inhibitors of the enzymes involved in their metabolism may be crucial for establishing new therapeutic strategies for treatment of disease.

A novel sphingosine kinase inhibitor induces autophagy in tumor cells

The sphingolipids ceramide, sphingosine, and sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) regulate cell signaling, proliferation, apoptosis, and autophagy. Sphingosine kinase-1 and -2 (SK1 and SK2) phosphorylate sphingosine to form S1P, shifting the balanced activity of these lipids toward cell proliferation. We have previously reported that pharmacological inhibition of SK activity delays tumor growth in vivo. The present studies demonstrate that the SK2-selective inhibitor 3-(4-chlorophenyl)-adamantane-1-carboxylic acid (pyridin-4-ylmethyl)amide (ABC294640) induces nonapoptotic cell death that is preceded by microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 cleavage, morphological changes in lysosomes, formation of autophagosomes, and increases in acidic vesicles in A-498 kidney carcinoma cells. ABC294640 caused similar autophagic responses in PC-3 prostate and MDA-MB-231 breast adenocarcinoma cells. Simultaneous exposure of A-498 cells to ABC294640 and 3-methyladenine, an inhibitor of autophagy, switched the mechanism of toxicity to apoptosis, but decreased the potency of the SK2 inhibitor, indicating that autophagy is a major mechanism for tumor cell killing by this compound. Induction of the unfolded protein response by the proteasome inhibitor N-(benzyloxycarbonyl)leucinylleucinylleucinal Z-Leu-Leu-Leu-al (MG-132) or the heat shock protein 90 inhibitor geldanamycin synergistically increased the cytotoxicity of ABC294640 in vitro. In severe combined immunodeficient mice bearing A-498 xenografts, daily administration of ABC294640 delayed tumor growth and elevated autophagy markers, but did not increase terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling-positive cells in the tumors. These data suggest that ABC294640 promotes tumor cell autophagy, which ultimately results in nonapoptotic cell death and a delay of tumor growth in vivo. Consequently, ABC294640 may effectively complement anticancer drugs that induce tumor cell apoptosis.