A quantum chemical study of repair of O6-methylguanine to guanine by tyrosine: evaluation of the winged helix-turn-helix model

MGMT in TMZ-based glioma therapy: Multifaceted insights and clinical trial perspectives

Temozolomide (TMZ) is the most preferred and approved chemotherapeutic drug for either first- or second-line chemotherapy for glioma patients across the globe. In glioma patients, resistance to treatment with alkylating drugs like TMZ is known to be conferred by exalted levels of MGMT gene expression. On the contrary, epigenetic silencing through MGMT gene promoter methylation leading to subsequent reduction in MGMT transcription and protein expression, is predicted to have a response favoring TMZ treatment. Thus, MGMT protein level in cancer cells is a crucial determining factor in indicating and predicting the choice of alkylating agents in chemotherapy or choosing glioma patients directly for a second line of treatment. Thus, in-depth research is necessary to achieve insights into MGMT gene regulation that has recently enticed a fascinating interest in epigenetic, transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and post-translational levels. Furthermore, MGMT promoter methylation, stability of MGMT protein, and related subsequent adaptive responses are also important contributors to strategic developments in glioma therapy. With applications to its identification as a prognostic biomarker, thus predicting response to advanced glioma therapy, this review aims to concentrate on the mechanistic role and regulation of MGMT gene expression at epigenetic, transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and post-translational levels functioning under the control of multiple signaling dynamics.

O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase as a promising target for the treatment of temozolomide-resistant gliomas

Temozolomide (TMZ) is an alkylating agent currently used as first-line therapy for gliomas treatment due to its DNA-damaging effect. However, drug resistance occurs, preventing multi-cycle use of this chemotherapeutic agent. One of the major mechanisms of cancer drug resistance is enhanced activity of a DNA repair enzyme, O(6)-methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT), which counteracts chemotherapy-induced DNA alkylation and is a key component of chemoresistance. MGMT repairs TMZ-induced DNA lesions, O(6)-meG, by transferring the alkyl group from guanine to a cysteine residue. This review provides an overview of recent advances in the field, with particular emphasis on the inhibitors of MGMT and underlying mechanisms. Literature search was performed through PubMed and all relevant articles were reviewed, with particular attention to MGMT, its role in TMZ-resistant gliomas, effects of MGMT inhibitors and the underlying mechanisms. Several strategies are currently being pursued to improve the therapeutic efficacy of TMZ via inhibition of MGMT to reduce chemoresistance and improve overall survival. MGMT may be a promising target for the treatment of TMZ-resistant gliomas.

Repair of O6-methylguanine to guanine by cysteine in the absence and presence of histidine and by cysteine thiolate anion: a quantum chemical study

O6-methylguanine (O6mG) is known to be a potential mutagenic modification of guanine as it mispairs with thymine in DNA and causes GC to AT transversion mutation. It is experimentally known that O6mG can be repaired to guanine by the protein O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT), a cysteine residue being the main active site. In the present work, the mechanisms of repair of cis-O6-methylguanine (O6mG) to guanine due to its reaction with cysteine in the absence and presence of histidine and with cysteine thiolate anion were investigated theoretically using the B3LYP hybrid functional of density functional theory and the second order Møller-Plesset perturbation (MP2) theory. Reactant, intermediate and product complexes as well as transition states involved in these reactions were fully optimized at the B3LYP/6-31 + G* level of theory in the gas phase. The solvent effect of water was treated using the polarizable continuum model (PCM). Single point energy calculations were performed at the B3LYP/AUG-cc-pVDZ and MP2/6-31 + G* levels of theory in the gas phase and aqueous media. It is found that cysteine alone can repair the cis-O6mG to guanine, but the involvement of histidine along with cysteine lowers down the barrier energy significantly. However, when cysteine thiolate anion is used in place of cysteine, the barrier energy is strongly reduced. These results broadly support the suggestions based on experimental studies.