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Siniavin AE, Gushchin VA, Shastina NS, Darnotuk ES, Luyksaar SI, Russu LI, Inshakova AM, Shidlovskaya EV, Vasina DV, Kuznetsova NA, Savina DM, Zorkov ID, Dolzhikova IV, Sheremet AB, Logunov DY, Zigangirova NA, Gintsburg AL. New conjugates based on N4-hydroxycytidine with more potent antiviral efficacy in vitro than EIDD-2801 against SARS-CoV-2 and other human coronaviruses. Antiviral Res 2024; 225:105871. [PMID: 38555022 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2024.105871] [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: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 03/14/2024] [Accepted: 03/23/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024]
Abstract
The spread of COVID-19 continues due to genetic variation in SARS-CoV-2. Highly mutated variants of SARS-CoV-2 have an increased transmissibility and immune evasion. Due to the emergence of various new variants of the virus, there is an urgent need to develop broadly effective specific drugs for therapeutic strategies for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Molnupiravir (EIDD-2801, MK-4482), is an orally bioavailable ribonucleoside analogue of β-D-N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC), has demonstrated efficacy against SARS-CoV-2 and was recently approved for COVID-19 treatment. To improve antiviral potency of NHC, we developed a panel of NHC conjugates with lipophilic vectors and ester derivatives with amino- and carboxylic-acids. Most of the synthesized compounds had comparable or higher (2-20 times) antiviral activity than EIDD-2801, against different lineages of SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV, seasonal coronaviruses OC43 and 229E, as well as bovine coronavirus. For further studies, we assessed the most promising compound in terms of activity, simplicity and cost of synthesis - NHC conjugate with phenylpropionic acid (SN_9). SN_9 has shown high efficacy in prophylactic, therapeutic and transmission models of COVID-19 infection in hamsters. Importantly, SN_9 profoundly inhibited virus replication in the lower respiratory tract of hamsters and transgenic mice infected with the Omicron sublineages XBB.1.9.1, XBB.1.16 and EG.5.1.1. These data indicate that SN_9 represents a promising antiviral drug candidate for COVID-19 treatment, and NHC modification strategies deserve further investigation as an approach to develop prodrugs against various coronaviruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrei E Siniavin
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia; Department of Molecular Neuroimmune Signaling, Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997, Moscow, Russia.
| | - Vladimir A Gushchin
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia; Department of Medical Genetics, Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education I M Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (Sechenov University), 119991, Moscow, Russia; Department of Virology, Faculty of Biology Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119234, Moscow, Russia.
| | - Natal'ya S Shastina
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia; Institute of Fine Chemical Technologies, MIREA-Russian Technological University, 119571, Moscow, Russia
| | - Elizaveta S Darnotuk
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia; Institute of Fine Chemical Technologies, MIREA-Russian Technological University, 119571, Moscow, Russia
| | - Sergey I Luyksaar
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Leonid I Russu
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Anna M Inshakova
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia; Institute of Fine Chemical Technologies, MIREA-Russian Technological University, 119571, Moscow, Russia
| | - Elena V Shidlovskaya
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Daria V Vasina
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Nadezhda A Kuznetsova
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Daria M Savina
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Ilya D Zorkov
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Inna V Dolzhikova
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Anna B Sheremet
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Denis Y Logunov
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Nailya A Zigangirova
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexander L Gintsburg
- Department of Epidemiology, Federal State Budget Institution "National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named After Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098, Moscow, Russia; Department of Infectology and Virology, Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education I.M. Sechenov, First Moscow State Medical University of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (Sechenov University), 119435, Moscow, Russia
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Vogel OA, Nafziger E, Sharma A, Pasolli HA, Davey RA, Basler CF. The Role of Ebola Virus VP24 Nuclear Trafficking Signals in Infectious Particle Production. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.13.584761. [PMID: 38559040 PMCID: PMC10980025 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.13.584761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Ebola virus (EBOV) protein VP24 carries out at least two critical functions. It promotes condensation of viral nucleocapsids, which is crucial for infectious virus production, and it suppresses interferon (IFN) signaling, which requires interaction with the NPI-1 subfamily of importin-α (IMPA) nuclear transport proteins. Interestingly, over-expressed IMPA leads to VP24 nuclear accumulation and a carboxy-terminus nuclear export signal (NES) has been reported, suggesting that VP24 may undergo nuclear trafficking. For the first time, we demonstrate that NPI-1 IMPA overexpression leads to the nuclear accumulation of VP24 during EBOV infection. To assess the functional impact of nuclear trafficking, we generated tetracistronic minigenomes encoding VP24 nuclear import and/or export signal mutants. The minigenomes, which also encode Renilla luciferase and viral proteins VP40 and GP, were used to generate transcription and replication competent virus-like particles (trVLPs) that can be used to assess EBOV RNA synthesis, gene expression, entry and viral particle production. With this system, we confirmed that NES or IMPA binding site mutations altered VP24 nuclear localization, demonstrating functional trafficking signals. While these mutations minimally affected transcription and replication, the trVLPs exhibited impaired infectivity and formation of shortened nucleocapsids for the IMPA binding mutant. For the NES mutants, infectivity was reduced approximately 1000-fold. The NES mutant could still suppress IFN signaling but failed to promote nucleocapsid formation. To determine whether VP24 nuclear export is required for infectivity, the residues surrounding the wildtype NES were mutated to alanine or the VP24 NES was replaced with the Protein Kinase A Inhibitor NES. While nuclear export remained intact for these mutants, infectivity was severely impaired. These data demonstrate that VP24 undergoes nuclear trafficking and illuminates a separate and critical role for the NES and surrounding sequences in infectivity and nucleocapsid assembly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivia A. Vogel
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Elias Nafziger
- National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories and Department of Virology, Immunology, and Microbiology, Boston University, Boston, MA 02118
| | - Anurag Sharma
- Electron Microscopy Resource Center, The Rockefeller University, New York ,NY 10065, USA
| | - H. Amalia Pasolli
- Electron Microscopy Resource Center, The Rockefeller University, New York ,NY 10065, USA
| | - Robert A. Davey
- National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories and Department of Virology, Immunology, and Microbiology, Boston University, Boston, MA 02118
| | - Christopher F. Basler
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
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3
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Aboshouk DR, Youssef MA, Bekheit MS, Hamed AR, Girgis AS. Antineoplastic indole-containing compounds with potential VEGFR inhibitory properties. RSC Adv 2024; 14:5690-5728. [PMID: 38362086 PMCID: PMC10866129 DOI: 10.1039/d3ra08962b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Cancer is one of the most significant health challenges worldwide. Various techniques, tools and therapeutics/materials have been developed in the last few decades for the treatment of cancer, together with great interest, funding and efforts from the scientific society. However, all the reported studies and efforts seem insufficient to combat the various types of cancer, especially the advanced ones. The overexpression of tyrosine kinases is associated with cancer proliferation and/or metastasis. VEGF, an important category of tyrosine kinases, and its receptors (VEGFR) are hyper-activated in different cancers. Accordingly, they are known as important factors in the angiogenesis of different tumors and are considered in the development of effective therapeutic approaches for controlling many types of cancer. In this case, targeted therapeutic approaches are preferable to the traditional non-selective approaches to minimize the side effects and drawbacks associated with treatment. Several indole-containing compounds have been identified as effective agents against VEGFR. Herein, we present a summary of the recent indolyl analogs reported within the last decade (2012-2023) with potential antineoplastic and VEGFR inhibitory properties. The most important drugs, natural products, synthesized potent compounds and promising hits/leads are highlighted. Indoles functionalized and conjugated with various heterocycles beside spiroindoles are also considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dalia R Aboshouk
- Department of Pesticide Chemistry, National Research Centre Dokki Giza 12622 Egypt
| | - M Adel Youssef
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Helwan University Helwan Egypt
| | - Mohamed S Bekheit
- Department of Pesticide Chemistry, National Research Centre Dokki Giza 12622 Egypt
| | - Ahmed R Hamed
- Chemistry of Medicinal Plants Department, National Research Centre Dokki Giza 12622 Egypt
| | - Adel S Girgis
- Department of Pesticide Chemistry, National Research Centre Dokki Giza 12622 Egypt
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4
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Darnotuk ES, Siniavin AE, Shastina NS, Luyksaar SI, Inshakova AM, Bondareva NE, Zolotov SA, Lubenec NL, Sheremet AB, Logunov DY, Zigangirova NA, Gushchin VA, Gintsburg AL. Synthesis and Antiviral Activity of Novel β-D-N4-Hydroxycytidine Ester Prodrugs as Potential Compounds for the Treatment of SARS-CoV-2 and Other Human Coronaviruses. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2023; 17:35. [PMID: 38256869 PMCID: PMC10821229 DOI: 10.3390/ph17010035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
The spread of COVID-19 infection continues due to the emergence of multiple transmissible and immune-evasive variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Although various vaccines have been developed and several drugs have been approved for the treatment of COVID-19, the development of new drugs to combat COVID-19 is still necessary. In this work, new 5'-O-ester derivatives of N4-hydroxycytidine based on carboxylic acids were developed and synthesized by Steglich esterification. The antiviral activity of the compounds was assessed in vitro-inhibiting the cytopathic effect of HCoV-229E, and three variants of SARS-CoV-2, on huh-7 and Vero E6 cells. Data have shown that most synthesized derivatives exhibit high activity against coronaviruses. In addition, the relationship between the chemical structure of the compounds and their antiviral effect has been established. The obtained results show that the most active compound was conjugate SN_22 based on 3-methyl phenoxyacetic acid. The results of this study indicate the potential advantage of the chemical strategies used to modify NHC as a promising avenue to be explored in vivo, which could lead to the development of drugs with improved pharmacological properties that potently inhibit SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizaveta S. Darnotuk
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
- Institute of Fine Chemical Technologies, MIREA—Russian Technological University, 119571 Moscow, Russia
| | - Andrei E. Siniavin
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
- Department of Molecular Neuroimmune Signaling, Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117997 Moscow, Russia
| | - Natal’ya S. Shastina
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
- Institute of Fine Chemical Technologies, MIREA—Russian Technological University, 119571 Moscow, Russia
| | - Sergey I. Luyksaar
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Anna M. Inshakova
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
- Institute of Fine Chemical Technologies, MIREA—Russian Technological University, 119571 Moscow, Russia
| | - Natalia E. Bondareva
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Sergey A. Zolotov
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Nadezhda L. Lubenec
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Anna B. Sheremet
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Denis Y. Logunov
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Nailya A. Zigangirova
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Vladimir A. Gushchin
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
| | - Alexander L. Gintsburg
- Federal State Budget Institution “National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology Named after Honorary Academician N. F. Gamaleya” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 123098 Moscow, Russia; (E.S.D.); (N.S.S.); (S.I.L.); (A.M.I.); (N.E.B.); (S.A.Z.); (N.L.L.); (A.B.S.); (D.Y.L.); (N.A.Z.); (A.L.G.)
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5
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Sumardi R, Rifai Y, Alam G. Synthesis of Remdesivir Derivate as a Generation of Anti-COVID-19 Drugs Through Acetylation Reactions. ARCHIVES OF RAZI INSTITUTE 2023; 78:1753-1761. [PMID: 38828177 PMCID: PMC11139407 DOI: 10.32592/ari.2023.78.6.1753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 06/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
Remdesivir, a competitive inhibitor of viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, is the drug of choice for anti-COVID-19 treatment. However, the instability of these substances in plasma raises doubts about their therapeutic potency. Additionally, SARS-CoV-2-infected cells may exhibit a variety of antiviral behaviors due to intricate activation pathways. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a synthesis for the remdesivir derivative. The remdesivir derivative was synthesized using acetyl chloride as a reagent in a ratio of 1:3 in dichloromethane and tetrahydrofuran solvent at 30°C for 6 h. Thin-layer chromatography and spectrophotometers (1H NMR and 13C NMR) were used to identify the produced molecule, which was a brownish-yellow crystalline powder. The results of the synthesis yielded 0.8 gr (77.34%), and the Rf value of the remdesivir derivate was 0.54. The characterization with 1H NMR at δ2.5 ppm (3H, s) indicated the presence of a proton in the H-C-C=O structure caused by the substitution of the acetyl group in the remdesivir structure. The 13C NMR data indicated the presence of aromatic carbons, alkenes, C≡N, and carbon bonds with electronegative O. This remdesivir derivate chemical can be a potential candidate for an anti-COVID-19 drug that has more potency because it has substitutions of acetyl groups at positions 2' and 3' in the structure of remdesivir.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Sumardi
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia
| | - Y Rifai
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia
| | - G Alam
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia
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6
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Wang M, Qu K, Zhao P, Yin X, Meng Y, Herdewijn P, Liu C, Zhang L, Xia X. Synthesis and anticancer evaluation of acetylated-lysine conjugated gemcitabine prodrugs. RSC Med Chem 2023; 14:1572-1580. [PMID: 37593582 PMCID: PMC10429768 DOI: 10.1039/d3md00190c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Gemcitabine is an antimetabolite drug approved for the treatment of various cancers. However, its use is limited due to several issues such as stability, toxicity and drug resistance. Herein, we present the design and synthesis of a series of gemcitabine prodrugs with modifications on the 4-N-amino group by employing an acetylated l- or d-lysine moiety masked by different substitutions. Prodrugs 1-3 and 6-8 showed up to 2.4 times greater anticancer activity than gemcitabine in A549 lung cells, while they exhibited potent activity against BxPC-3 pancreatic cells with IC50 values in the range of 7-40 nM. Moreover, prodrugs 2-3 and 7-8 were found to be less potent against CTSL low expression Caco-2 cells and at least 69-fold less toxic towards human normal HEK-293T cells compared to gemcitabine, leading to improved selectivity and safety profiles. Further stability studies showed that representative prodrugs 2 and 7 exhibited enhanced metabolic stability in human plasma, human liver microsomes and cytidine deaminase. Prodrug 1 can be cleaved by tumor cell-enriched CTSL to release parent drug gemcitabine. Overall, these results demonstrated that acetylated lysine conjugated gemcitabine prodrugs could serve as promising leads for further evaluation as new anticancer drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengmeng Wang
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
| | - Kunyu Qu
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
| | - Peipei Zhao
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
| | - Xin Yin
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
| | - Yiwei Meng
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
| | - Piet Herdewijn
- Medicinal Chemistry, Rega Institute for Medical Research, KU Leuven 3000 Leuven Belgium
| | - Chao Liu
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Shandong University Jinan 250012 China
| | - Lixin Zhang
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
- State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, and School of Biotechnology, East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST) Shanghai 200237 China
| | - Xuekui Xia
- Biology Institute, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences) Jinan 250103 China
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7
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Synthesis and anti-SARS-CoV-2 evaluation of lipid prodrugs of β-D- N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC) and a 3′-fluoro-substituted analogue of NHC. Bioorg Chem 2023; 135:106527. [PMID: 37031504 PMCID: PMC10076076 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2023.106527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Abstract
β-D-N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC, EIDD-1931) is a nucleoside analogue that exhibits broad spectrum antiviral activity against a variety of RNA viruses. Herein, we report the synthesis of a series of lipid prodrugs of NHC and a novel 3′-fluoro modified NHC analogue, and evaluation of their antiviral activity against five variants of SARS-CoV-2. All lipid prodrugs showed potent antiviral activity against the tested SARS-CoV-2 variants with EC50 values in the range of 0.31–3.51 μM, which were comparable to those of NHC or higher than those of remdesivir and molnupiravir. An increase in the cytostatic activity of the lipid prodrugs was found, but prodrug 2d proved equally selective as molnupinavir. The 3′-F analogue of NHC (6) only displayed minor antiviral activity against the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant (EC50 = 29.91 μM), while no activity was found for other variants at the highest concentration tested. The promising antiviral data of the lipid prodrugs of NHC suggest that they deserve further investigation as new anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs.
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8
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Ramanathan P, Tigabu B, Santos RI, Ilinykh PA, Kuzmina N, Vogel OA, Thakur N, Ahmed H, Wu C, Amarasinghe GK, Basler CF, Bukreyev A. Ebolavirus Species-Specific Interferon Antagonism Mediated by VP24. Viruses 2023; 15:1075. [PMID: 37243162 PMCID: PMC10222226 DOI: 10.3390/v15051075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Members of the Ebolavirus genus demonstrate a marked differences in pathogenicity in humans with Ebola (EBOV) being the most pathogenic, Bundibugyo (BDBV) less pathogenic, and Reston (RESTV) is not known to cause a disease in humans. The VP24 protein encoded by members of the Ebolavirus genus blocks type I interferon (IFN-I) signaling through interaction with host karyopherin alpha nuclear transporters, potentially contributing to virulence. Previously, we demonstrated that BDBV VP24 (bVP24) binds with lower affinities to karyopherin alpha proteins relative to EBOV VP24 (eVP24), and this correlated with a reduced inhibition in IFN-I signaling. We hypothesized that modification of eVP24-karyopherin alpha interface to make it similar to bVP24 would attenuate the ability to antagonize IFN-I response. We generated a panel of recombinant EBOVs containing single or combinations of point mutations in the eVP24-karyopherin alpha interface. Most of the viruses appeared to be attenuated in both IFN-I-competent 769-P and IFN-I-deficient Vero-E6 cells in the presence of IFNs. However, the R140A mutant grew at reduced levels even in the absence of IFNs in both cell lines, as well as in U3A STAT1 knockout cells. Both the R140A mutation and its combination with the N135A mutation greatly reduced the amounts of viral genomic RNA and mRNA suggesting that these mutations attenuate the virus in an IFN-I-independent attenuation. Additionally, we found that unlike eVP24, bVP24 does not inhibit interferon lambda 1 (IFN-λ1), interferon beta (IFN-β), and ISG15, which potentially explains the lower pathogenicity of BDBV relative to EBOV. Thus, the VP24 residues binding karyopherin alpha attenuates the virus by IFN-I-dependent and independent mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Palaniappan Ramanathan
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Galveston National Laboratory, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
| | - Bersabeh Tigabu
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Galveston National Laboratory, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
| | - Rodrigo I. Santos
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Galveston National Laboratory, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
| | - Philipp A. Ilinykh
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Galveston National Laboratory, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
| | - Natalia Kuzmina
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Galveston National Laboratory, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
| | - Olivia A. Vogel
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Naveen Thakur
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Hamza Ahmed
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Chao Wu
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Gaya K. Amarasinghe
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Christopher F. Basler
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Alexander Bukreyev
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Galveston National Laboratory, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77555, USA
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Potential Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Prodrugs Activated by Phosphorylation and Their Role in the Aged Population. Molecules 2023; 28:molecules28052332. [PMID: 36903575 PMCID: PMC10004871 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28052332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2022] [Revised: 02/25/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has flared across every part of the globe and affected populations from different age groups differently. People aged from 40 to 80 years or older are at an increased risk of morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19. Therefore, there is an urgent requirement to develop therapeutics to decrease the risk of the disease in the aged population. Over the last few years, several prodrugs have demonstrated significant anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects in in vitro assays, animal models, and medical practice. Prodrugs are used to enhance drug delivery by improving pharmacokinetic parameters, decreasing toxicity, and attaining site specificity. This article discusses recently explored prodrugs such as remdesivir, molnupiravir, favipiravir, and 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) and their implications in the aged population, as well as investigating recent clinical trials.
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Wang Z, Yang L. Broad-spectrum prodrugs with anti-SARS-CoV-2 activities: Strategies, benefits, and challenges. J Med Virol 2021; 94:1373-1390. [PMID: 34897729 DOI: 10.1002/jmv.27517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
In this era, broad-spectrum prodrugs with anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) activities are gaining considerable attention owing to their potential clinical benefits and role in combating the fast-spreading coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The last 2 years have seen a surge of reports on various broad-spectrum prodrugs against SARS-CoV-2, and in in vitro studies, animal models, and clinical practice. Currently, only remdesivir (with many controversies and limitations) has been approved by the U.S. FDA for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection, and additional potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs are urgently required to enrich the defense arsenals. The world has ubiquitously grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic, and the availability of broad-spectrum prodrugs provides great hope for us to subdue this global threat. This article reviews promising treatment strategies, antiviral mechanisms, potential benefits, and daunting clinical challenges of anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents to provide some important guidance for future clinical treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhonglei Wang
- Key Laboratory of Green Natural Products and Pharmaceutical Intermediates in Colleges and Universities of Shandong Province, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, Shandong, P. R. China.,Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, P. R. China
| | - Liyan Yang
- Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Laser Polarization and Information Technology, School of Physics and Physical Engineering, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, Shandong, P. R. China
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