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Facchin C, Fraga-Timiraos AB, Schmitt J, Babaa N, Pannu N, Aliaga A, Larroque AL, Jean-Claude BJ. Molecular Analysis of the Superior Efficacy of a Dual Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR)-DNA-Targeting Combi-Molecule in Comparison with Its Putative Prodrugs 6-Mono-Alkylamino- and 6,6-Dialkylaminoquinazoline in a Human Osteosarcoma Xenograft Model. Cells 2023; 12:914. [PMID: 36980255 PMCID: PMC10046901 DOI: 10.3390/cells12060914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 03/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: ZR2002 is a dual EGFR-DNA-targeting combi-molecule that carries a chloroethyl group at the six-position of the quinazoline ring designed to alkylate DNA. Despite its good pharmacokinetics, ZR2002 is metabolized in vivo into dechlorinated metabolites, losing the DNA-alkylating function required to damage DNA. To increase the DNA damage activity in tumor cells in vivo, we compared ZR2002 with two of its 6-N,N-disubstituted analogs: "JS61", with a nitrogen mustard function at the six-position of the quinazoline ring, and "JS84", with an N-methyl group. Methods: Tumor xenografts were performed with the human Saos-2 osteosarcoma cell line expressing EGFR. Mice were treated with ZR2002, JS84 or JS61, and the tumor burden was measured with a caliper and CT/PET imaging. Drug metabolism was analyzed with LC-MS. EGFR and ɣ-H2AX phosphorylation were quantified via Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. Results: In vivo analysis showed that significant tumor growth inhibition was only achieved when ZR2002 was administered in its naked form. The metabolic dealkylation of JS61 and JS84 did not release sufficient concentrations of ZR2002 for the intratumoral inhibition of P-EGFR or enhanced levels of P-H2AX. Conclusions: The results in toto suggest that intratumoral concentrations of intact ZR2002 are correlated with the highest inhibition of P-EGFR and induction of DNA damage in vivo. ZR2002 may well represent a good drug candidate for the treatment of EGFR-expressing osteosarcoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caterina Facchin
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center (RI-MUHC), Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Bertrand J. Jean-Claude
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center (RI-MUHC), Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada
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Rao S, Thibault B, Peyrard L, Larroque-Lombard AL, Rupp M, Thauvin C, Jean-Claude BJ. Quantitative Analysis of the Potency of Equimolar Two-Drug Combinations and Combi-Molecules Involving Kinase Inhibitors In Vitro: The Concept of Balanced Targeting. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22179569. [PMID: 34502481 PMCID: PMC8430702 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22179569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Revised: 08/31/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The median-effect principle proposed by Chou and Talalay is the most effective approach to parameterize interactions between several agents in combination. However, this method cannot be used to evaluate the effectiveness of equimolar drug combinations, which are comparative references for dual-targeting molecular design. Here, using data acquired through the development of “combi-molecules” blocking two kinases (e.g., EGFR-c-Src and EGFR-c-Met), we established potency indices for equimolar and dual-targeted inhibitors. If the fold difference (κ) between the IC50 of the two individual kinase inhibitors was >6, the IC50 of their equimolar combination resembled that of the more potent inhibitor. Hence, the “combi-targeting” of the two kinases was considered “imbalanced” and the combination ineffective. However, if κ ≤ 6, the IC50 of the combination fell below that of each individual drug and the combi-targeting was considered “balanced” and the combination effective. We also showed that combi-molecules should be compared with equimolar combinations only under balanced conditions and propose a new parameter Ω for validating their effectiveness. A multi-targeted drug is effective if Ω < 1, where Ω is defined as the IC50 of the drug divided by that of the corresponding equimolar combination. Our study provides a methodology to determine the in vitro potency of equimolar two-drug combinations as well as combi-/hybrid molecules inhibiting two different kinase targets.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Benoît Thibault
- Correspondence: (B.T.); (B.J.J.-C.); Tel.: +1-514-934-1934 (ext. 35841) (B.J.J.-C.)
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Cuartas V, Aragón-Muriel A, Liscano Y, Polo-Cerón D, Crespo-Ortiz MDP, Quiroga J, Abonia R, Insuasty B. Anticancer activity of pyrimidodiazepines based on 2-chloro-4-anilinoquinazoline: synthesis, DNA binding and molecular docking. RSC Adv 2021; 11:23310-23329. [PMID: 35479808 PMCID: PMC9036565 DOI: 10.1039/d1ra03509f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2021] [Accepted: 06/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Multidrug resistance to chemotherapy is a critical health problem associated with mutation of the therapeutic target. Therefore, the development of anticancer agents remains a challenge to overcome cancer cell resistance. Herein, a new series of quinazoline-based pyrimidodiazepines 16a-g were synthesized by the cyclocondensation reaction of 2-chloro-4-anilinoquinazoline-chalcones 14a-g with 2,4,5,6-tetraaminopyrimidine. All quinazoline derivatives 14a-g and 16a-g were selected by the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) for testing their anticancer activity against 60 cancer cell lines of different panels of human tumors. Among the tested compounds, quinazoline-chalcone 14g displayed high antiproliferative activity with GI50 values between 0.622-1.81 μM against K-562 (leukemia), RPMI-8226 (leukemia), HCT-116 (colon cancer) LOX IMVI (melanoma), and MCF7 (breast cancer) cancer cell lines. Additionally, the pyrimidodiazepines 16a and 16c exhibited high cytostatic (TGI) and cytotoxic activity (LC50), where 16c showed high cytotoxic activity, which was 10.0-fold higher than the standard anticancer agent adriamycin/doxorubicin against ten cancer cell lines. COMPARE analysis revealed that 16c may possess a mechanism of action through DNA binding that is similar to that of CCNU (lomustine). DNA binding studies indicated that 14g and 16c interact with the calf thymus DNA by intercalation and groove binding, respectively. Compounds 14g, 16c and 16a displayed strong binding affinities to DNA, EGFR and VEGFR-2 receptors. None of the active compounds showed cytotoxicity against human red blood cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viviana Cuartas
- Heterocyclic Compounds Research Group, Department of Chemistry, Universidad del Valle A.A. 25360 Cali Colombia +57-2339-3248 +57-315-484-6665.,Center for Bioinformatics and Photonics-CIBioFI A.A. 25360 Cali Colombia
| | - Alberto Aragón-Muriel
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Catálisis y Procesos (LICAP), Departamento de Química, Universidad del Valle Cali 760001 Colombia
| | - Yamil Liscano
- Grupo de Investigación en Química y Biotecnología (QUIBIO), Universidad Santiago de Cali Cali 760035 Colombia
| | - Dorian Polo-Cerón
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Catálisis y Procesos (LICAP), Departamento de Química, Universidad del Valle Cali 760001 Colombia
| | - Maria Del Pilar Crespo-Ortiz
- Grupo de Biotecnología e Infecciones Bacterianas, Departamento de Microbiología, Universidad del Valle Cali 760043 Colombia
| | - Jairo Quiroga
- Heterocyclic Compounds Research Group, Department of Chemistry, Universidad del Valle A.A. 25360 Cali Colombia +57-2339-3248 +57-315-484-6665
| | - Rodrigo Abonia
- Heterocyclic Compounds Research Group, Department of Chemistry, Universidad del Valle A.A. 25360 Cali Colombia +57-2339-3248 +57-315-484-6665
| | - Braulio Insuasty
- Heterocyclic Compounds Research Group, Department of Chemistry, Universidad del Valle A.A. 25360 Cali Colombia +57-2339-3248 +57-315-484-6665.,Center for Bioinformatics and Photonics-CIBioFI A.A. 25360 Cali Colombia
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Grover P, Bhardwaj M, Kapoor G, Mehta L, Ghai R, Nagarajan K. Advances on Quinazoline Based Congeners for Anticancer Potential. CURR ORG CHEM 2021. [DOI: 10.2174/1385272825666210212121056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The heterocyclic compounds have a great significance in medicinal chemistry because
they have extensive biological activities. Cancer is globally the leading cause of death
and it is a challenge to develop appropriate treatment for the management of cancer. Continuous
efforts are being made to find a suitable medicinal agent for cancer therapy. Nitrogencontaining
heterocycles have received noteworthy attention due to their wide and distinctive
pharmacological activities. One of the most important nitrogen-containing heterocycles in
medicinal chemistry is ‘quinazoline’ that possesses a wide spectrum of biological properties.
This scaffold is an important pharmacophore and is considered a privileged structure. Various
substituted quinazolines displayed anticancer activity against different types of cancer. This
review highlights the recent advances in quinazoline based molecules as anticancer agents.
Several in-vitro and in-vivo models used along with the results are also included. A subpart briefing natural quinazoline
containing anticancer compounds is also incorporated in the review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Parul Grover
- KIET School of Pharmacy, KIET Group of Institutions, Delhi-NCR, Ghaziabad, 201206, India
| | - Monika Bhardwaj
- Natural Product Chemistry Division, Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu, 180001, India
| | - Garima Kapoor
- KIET School of Pharmacy, KIET Group of Institutions, Delhi-NCR, Ghaziabad, 201206, India
| | - Lovekesh Mehta
- Amity Institute of Pharmacy, Amity University, Noida, 201301, India
| | - Roma Ghai
- KIET School of Pharmacy, KIET Group of Institutions, Delhi-NCR, Ghaziabad, 201206, India
| | - K. Nagarajan
- KIET School of Pharmacy, KIET Group of Institutions, Delhi-NCR, Ghaziabad, 201206, India
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Golabi N, Larroque AL, Peyrard L, Williams C, Jean-Claude BJ. Subcellular distribution and mechanism of action of AL906, a novel and potent EGFR inhibitor rationally designed to be green fluorescent. Invest New Drugs 2020; 39:240-250. [PMID: 32648119 DOI: 10.1007/s10637-020-00958-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2019] [Accepted: 05/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
To enhance the potency of EGFR inhibitors, we developed a novel strategy that seeks to conjugate EGFR to a bioactive moiety leading to a molecule termed "combi-molecule". In order to mimic the penetration of this type of molecules, based upon previously reported structure activity relationship studies, we designed a new molecule containing a quinazoline moiety tethered to a p-nitrobenzoxadiazole (NBD) moiety [molecular weight (MW) 700]. Despite its size, AL906 growth inhibitory activity was superior to that of the clinical drug gefitinib. Furthermore, AL906 retained significant EGFR inhibitory activity and good cellular penetration with abundant distribution in the perinuclear region of the cells. In an isogenic NIH3T3 transfected cell panel, it selectively inhibited the growth of the NIH3T3-EGFR and HER2 transfectants. Confocal microscopy analysis revealed that it was capable of penetrating multilayer aggregates although to a lesser extent than FD105, a small inhibitor of EGFR inhibitor of the same class (MW 300). Its ability to inhibit EGFR auto-phosphorylation in monolayer culture was stronger than in the aggregates. The results suggest that our strategy did not negatively affect EGFR inhibitory potency, EGFR selectivity and growth inhibition. However, its molecular size may account for its decreased aggregate penetration when compared with a smaller EGFR inhibitor of the quinazoline class.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nahid Golabi
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, 1001 Decarie, Montreal, Quebec, H4A 3J1, Canada
| | - Anne-Laure Larroque
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, 1001 Decarie, Montreal, Quebec, H4A 3J1, Canada
| | - Lisa Peyrard
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, 1001 Decarie, Montreal, Quebec, H4A 3J1, Canada
| | - Christopher Williams
- Scientific Support Chemical Computing Group Inc., Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2R7, Canada
| | - Bertrand J Jean-Claude
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, 1001 Decarie, Montreal, Quebec, H4A 3J1, Canada.
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Schmitt J, Huang S, Goodfellow E, Williams C, Jean-Claude BJ. Design and Synthesis of a Trifunctional Molecular System "Programmed" to Block Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Tyrosine Kinase, Induce High Levels of DNA Damage, and Inhibit the DNA Repair Enzyme (Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerase) in Prostate Cancer Cells. J Med Chem 2020; 63:5752-5762. [PMID: 32484346 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.9b02008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Resistance to chemotherapy in advanced cancers can be mediated by different factors such as epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) overexpression and DNA repair enzymes. Therefore, current standards of care usually involve combinations of multiple treatments. Here, to reduce the adverse effects of multiple drug combinations and improve outcome, we proposed a single drug approach to block multiple overlapping effects that characterize chemoresistance. Thus, we designed a new linker that allows assembly of multiple functions (e.g., inhibition of EGFR phosphorylation, induction of DNA lesions, and blockade of their repair) into a single molecule. This led to the successful synthesis of a novel and potent combi-molecule JS230. Here, we demonstrated that in resistant prostate cancer cells overexpressing EGFR, it was capable of (a) inhibiting EGFR in a dose-dependent manner, (b) damaging DNA, and (c) sustaining the damage by inhibiting the DNA repair protein poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). The triple mechanism of action of JS230 cumulated into growth inhibitory potency superior to that of classical two- or three-drug combinations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Schmitt
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center/Glen Hospital, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada
| | - Shanlong Huang
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center/Glen Hospital, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada
| | - Elliot Goodfellow
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center/Glen Hospital, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada
| | | | - Bertrand J Jean-Claude
- Cancer Drug Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center/Glen Hospital, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada
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