1
|
Weth FR, Hoggarth GB, Weth AF, Paterson E, White MPJ, Tan ST, Peng L, Gray C. Unlocking hidden potential: advancements, approaches, and obstacles in repurposing drugs for cancer therapy. Br J Cancer 2024; 130:703-715. [PMID: 38012383 PMCID: PMC10912636 DOI: 10.1038/s41416-023-02502-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2023] [Revised: 10/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023] Open
Abstract
High rates of failure, exorbitant costs, and the sluggish pace of new drug discovery and development have led to a growing interest in repurposing "old" drugs to treat both common and rare diseases, particularly cancer. Cancer, a complex and heterogeneous disease, often necessitates a combination of different treatment modalities to achieve optimal outcomes. The intrinsic polygenicity of cancer, intricate biological signalling networks, and feedback loops make the inhibition of a single target frequently insufficient for achieving the desired therapeutic impact. As a result, addressing these complex or "smart" malignancies demands equally sophisticated treatment strategies. Combinatory treatments that target the multifaceted oncogenic signalling network hold immense promise. Repurposed drugs offer a potential solution to this challenge, harnessing known compounds for new indications. By avoiding the prohibitive costs and long development timelines associated with novel cancer drugs, this approach holds the potential to usher in more effective, efficient, and cost-effective cancer treatments. The pursuit of combinatory therapies through drug repurposing may hold the key to achieving superior outcomes for cancer patients. However, drug repurposing faces significant commercial, technological and regulatory challenges that need to be addressed. This review explores the diverse approaches employed in drug repurposing, delves into the challenges faced by the drug repurposing community, and presents innovative solutions to overcome these obstacles. By emphasising the significance of combinatory treatments within the context of drug repurposing, we aim to unlock the full potential of this approach for enhancing cancer therapy. The positive aspects of drug repurposing in oncology are underscored here; encompassing personalized treatment, accelerated development, market opportunities for shelved drugs, cancer prevention, expanded patient reach, improved patient access, multi-partner collaborations, increased likelihood of approval, reduced costs, and enhanced combination therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Freya R Weth
- Gillies McIndoe Research Institute, Newtown, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
- Centre for Biodiscovery and School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | - Georgia B Hoggarth
- Gillies McIndoe Research Institute, Newtown, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | - Anya F Weth
- Gillies McIndoe Research Institute, Newtown, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | - Erin Paterson
- Gillies McIndoe Research Institute, Newtown, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | | | - Swee T Tan
- Gillies McIndoe Research Institute, Newtown, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
- Wellington Regional Plastic, Maxillofacial & Burns Unit, Hutt Hospital, Lower Hutt, 5040, New Zealand
- Department of Surgery, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Lifeng Peng
- Centre for Biodiscovery and School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand
| | - Clint Gray
- Gillies McIndoe Research Institute, Newtown, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand.
- Centre for Biodiscovery and School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn, Wellington, 6021, New Zealand.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Alam W, Tayara H, Chong KT. Unlocking the therapeutic potential of drug combinations through synergy prediction using graph transformer networks. Comput Biol Med 2024; 170:108007. [PMID: 38242015 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2024.108007] [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: 08/25/2023] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 01/13/2024] [Indexed: 01/21/2024]
Abstract
Drug combinations are frequently used to treat cancer to reduce side effects and increase efficacy. The experimental discovery of drug combination synergy is time-consuming and expensive for large datasets. Therefore, an efficient and reliable computational approach is required to investigate these drug combinations. Advancements in deep learning can handle large datasets with various biological problems. In this study, we developed a SynergyGTN model based on the Graph Transformer Network to predict the synergistic drug combinations against an untreated cancer cell line expression profile. We represent the drug via a graph, with each node and edge of the graph containing nine types of atomic feature vectors and four bonds features, respectively. The cell lines represent based on their gene expression profiles. The drug graph was passed through the GTN layers to extract a generalized feature map for each drug pairs. The drug pair extracted features and cell-line gene expression profiles were concatenated and subsequently subjected to processing through multiple densely connected layers. SynergyGTN outperformed the state-of-the-art methods, with a receiver operating characteristic area under the curve improvement of 5% on the 5-fold cross-validation. The accuracy of SynergyGTN was further verified through three types of cross-validation tests strategies namely leave-drug-out, leave-combination-out, and leave-tissue-out, resulting in improvement in accuracy of 8%, 1%, and 2%, respectively. The Astrazeneca Dream dataset was utilized as an independent dataset to validate and assess the generalizability of the proposed method, resulting in an improvement in balanced accuracy of 13%. In conclusion, SynergyGTN is a reliable and efficient computational approach for predicting drug combination synergy in cancer treatment. Finally, we developed a web server tool to facilitate the pharmaceutical industry and researchers, as available at: http://nsclbio.jbnu.ac.kr/tools/SynergyGTN/.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Waleed Alam
- Department of Electronics and Information Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, South Korea
| | - Hilal Tayara
- School of International Engineering and Science, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, South Korea.
| | - Kil To Chong
- Department of Electronics and Information Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, South Korea; Advanced Electronics and Information Research Center, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, South Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Chen D, Wang X, Zhu H, Jiang Y, Li Y, Liu Q, Liu Q. Predicting anticancer synergistic drug combinations based on multi-task learning. BMC Bioinformatics 2023; 24:448. [PMID: 38012551 PMCID: PMC10680313 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-023-05524-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The discovery of anticancer drug combinations is a crucial work of anticancer treatment. In recent years, pre-screening drug combinations with synergistic effects in a large-scale search space adopting computational methods, especially deep learning methods, is increasingly popular with researchers. Although achievements have been made to predict anticancer synergistic drug combinations based on deep learning, the application of multi-task learning in this field is relatively rare. The successful practice of multi-task learning in various fields shows that it can effectively learn multiple tasks jointly and improve the performance of all the tasks. METHODS In this paper, we propose MTLSynergy which is based on multi-task learning and deep neural networks to predict synergistic anticancer drug combinations. It simultaneously learns two crucial prediction tasks in anticancer treatment, which are synergy prediction of drug combinations and sensitivity prediction of monotherapy. And MTLSynergy integrates the classification and regression of prediction tasks into the same model. Moreover, autoencoders are employed to reduce the dimensions of input features. RESULTS Compared with the previous methods listed in this paper, MTLSynergy achieves the lowest mean square error of 216.47 and the highest Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.76 on the drug synergy prediction task. On the corresponding classification task, the area under the receiver operator characteristics curve and the area under the precision-recall curve are 0.90 and 0.62, respectively, which are equivalent to the comparison methods. Through the ablation study, we verify that multi-task learning and autoencoder both have a positive effect on prediction performance. In addition, the prediction results of MTLSynergy in many cases are also consistent with previous studies. CONCLUSION Our study suggests that multi-task learning is significantly beneficial for both drug synergy prediction and monotherapy sensitivity prediction when combining these two tasks into one model. The ability of MTLSynergy to discover new anticancer synergistic drug combinations noteworthily outperforms other state-of-the-art methods. MTLSynergy promises to be a powerful tool to pre-screen anticancer synergistic drug combinations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Danyi Chen
- School of Software Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China
| | - Xiaowen Wang
- School of Software Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China
| | - Hongming Zhu
- School of Software Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China
| | - Yizhi Jiang
- School of Software Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China
| | - Yulong Li
- School of Software Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China
| | - Qi Liu
- Translational Medical Center for Stem Cell Therapy and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Shanghai East Hospital, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China.
| | - Qin Liu
- School of Software Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Azagury DM, Gluck BF, Harris Y, Avrutin Y, Niezni D, Sason H, Shamay Y. Prediction of cancer nanomedicines self-assembled from meta-synergistic drug pairs. J Control Release 2023; 360:418-432. [PMID: 37406821 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.06.040] [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: 10/27/2022] [Revised: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
Combination therapy is widely used in cancer medicine due to the benefits of drug synergy and the reduction of acquired resistance. To minimize emergent toxicities, nanomedicines containing drug combinations are being developed, and they have shown encouraging results. However, developing multi-drug loaded nanoparticles is highly complex and lacks predictability. Previously, it was shown that single drugs can self-assemble with near-infrared dye, IR783, to form cancer-targeted nanoparticles. A structure-based predictive model showed that only 4% of the drug space self-assembles with IR783. Here, we mapped the self-assembly outcomes of 77 small molecule drugs and drug pairs with IR783. We found that the small molecule drug space can be divided into five types, and type-1 drugs self-assemble with three out of four possible drug types that do not form stable nanoparticles. To predict the self-assembly outcome of any drug pair, we developed a machine learning model based on decision trees, which was trained and tested with F1-scores of 89.3% and 87.2%, respectively. We used literature text mining to capture drug pairs with biological synergy together with synergistic chemical self-assembly and generated a database with 1985 drug pairs for 70 cancers. We developed an online search tool to identify cancer-specific, meta-synergistic drug pairs (both chemical and biological synergism) and validated three different pairs in vitro. Lastly, we discovered a novel meta-synergistic pair, bortezomib-cabozantinib, which formed stable nanoparticles with improved biodistribution, efficacy, and reduced toxicity, even over single drugs, in an in vivo model of head and neck cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dana Meron Azagury
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Ben Friedmann Gluck
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Yuval Harris
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Yulia Avrutin
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Danna Niezni
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Hagit Sason
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Yosi Shamay
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Bao X, Sun J, Yi M, Qiu J, Chen X, Shuai SC, Zhao Q. MPFFPSDC: A multi-pooling feature fusion model for predicting synergistic drug combinations. Methods 2023:S1046-2023(23)00098-1. [PMID: 37321525 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2023.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Revised: 06/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Drug combination therapies are common practice in the treatment of cancer, but not all combinations result in synergy. As traditional screening approaches are restricted in their ability to uncover synergistic drug combinations, computer-aided medicine is becoming a increasingly prevalent in this field. In this work, a predictive model of potential interactions between drugs named MPFFPSDC is presented, which can maintain the symmetry of drug inputs and eliminate inconsistencies in predictive results caused by different drug inputting sequences or positions. The experimental results show that MPFFPSDC outperforms comparative models in major performance indicators and exhibits better generalization for independent data. Furthermore, the case study demonstrates that our model can capture molecular substructures that contribute to the synergistic effect of two drugs. These results indicate that MPFFPSDC not only offers strong predictive performance, but also has good model interpretability that may provide new insights for the study of drug interaction mechanisms and the development of new drugs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xin Bao
- School of Automation and Electrical Engineering, Linyi University, Linyi 276000, China
| | - Jianqiang Sun
- School of Automation and Electrical Engineering, Linyi University, Linyi 276000, China.
| | - Ming Yi
- School of Mathematics and Physics, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430000, China
| | - Jianlong Qiu
- School of Automation and Electrical Engineering, Linyi University, Linyi 276000, China
| | - Xiangyong Chen
- School of Automation and Electrical Engineering, Linyi University, Linyi 276000, China
| | - Stella C Shuai
- Biological Science, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Qi Zhao
- School of Computer Science and Software Engineering, University of Science and Technology Liaoning, Anshan 114051, China.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Wang B, Wang W, Li Q, Guo T, Yang S, Shi J, Yuan W, Chu Y. High Expression of Microtubule-associated Protein TBCB Predicts Adverse Outcome and Immunosuppression in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. J Cancer 2023; 14:1707-1724. [PMID: 37476188 PMCID: PMC10355208 DOI: 10.7150/jca.84215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a devastating blood cancer with high heterogeneity and ill-fated outcome. Despite numerous advances in AML treatment, the prognosis remains poor for a significant proportion of patients. Consequently, it is necessary to accurately and comprehensively identify biomarkers as soon as possible to enhance the efficacy of diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of AML. In this study, we aimed to identify prognostic markers of AML by analyzing the cohorts from TCGA-LAML database and GEO microarray datasets. Interestingly, the transcriptional level of microtubule-associated protein TBCB in AML patients was noticeably increased when compared with normal individuals, and this was verified in two independent cohorts (GSE9476 and GSE13159) and with our AML patients. Furthermore, univariate and multivariate regression analysis revealed that high TBCB expression was an independent poor prognostic factor for AML. GO and GSEA enrichment analysis hinted that immune-related signaling pathways were enriched in up-regulated DEGs between two populations separated by the median expression level of TBCB. By constructing a protein-protein interaction network, we obtained six hub genes, all of which are immune-related molecules, and their expression levels were positively linked to that of TBCB. In addition, the high expression of three hub genes was significantly associated with a poor prognosis in AML. Moreover, we found that the tumor microenvironment in AML with high TBCB expression tended to be infiltrated by NK cells, especially CD56bright NK cells. The transcriptional levels of NK cell inhibitory receptors and their ligands were positively related to that of TBCB, and their high expression levels also predicted poor prognosis in AML. Notably, we found that the down-regulation of TBCB suppressed cell proliferation in AML cell lines by enhancing the apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Finally, drug sensitivity prediction illustrated that cells with high TBCB expression were more responsive to ATRA and midostaurin but resistant to cytarabine, dasatinib, and imatinib. In conclusion, our findings shed light on the feasibility of TBCB as a potential predictor of poor outcome and to be an alternative target of treatment in AML.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bichen Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
| | - Wenjun Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
- Regenerative Medicine Clinic, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
| | - Qiaoli Li
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
- Regenerative Medicine Clinic, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
| | - Tengxiao Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
| | - Shuang Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
| | - Jun Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
- Regenerative Medicine Clinic, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
| | - Weiping Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
| | - Yajing Chu
- State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, 300020, China
- Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Janizek JD, Dincer AB, Celik S, Chen H, Chen W, Naxerova K, Lee SI. Uncovering expression signatures of synergistic drug responses via ensembles of explainable machine-learning models. Nat Biomed Eng 2023; 7:811-829. [PMID: 37127711 PMCID: PMC11149694 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-023-01034-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Machine learning may aid the choice of optimal combinations of anticancer drugs by explaining the molecular basis of their synergy. By combining accurate models with interpretable insights, explainable machine learning promises to accelerate data-driven cancer pharmacology. However, owing to the highly correlated and high-dimensional nature of transcriptomic data, naively applying current explainable machine-learning strategies to large transcriptomic datasets leads to suboptimal outcomes. Here by using feature attribution methods, we show that the quality of the explanations can be increased by leveraging ensembles of explainable machine-learning models. We applied the approach to a dataset of 133 combinations of 46 anticancer drugs tested in ex vivo tumour samples from 285 patients with acute myeloid leukaemia and uncovered a haematopoietic-differentiation signature underlying drug combinations with therapeutic synergy. Ensembles of machine-learning models trained to predict drug combination synergies on the basis of gene-expression data may improve the feature attribution quality of complex machine-learning models.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joseph D Janizek
- Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ayse B Dincer
- Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Safiye Celik
- Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Hugh Chen
- Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - William Chen
- Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Kamila Naxerova
- Center for Systems Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Su-In Lee
- Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Zhang G, Gao Z, Yan C, Wang J, Liang W, Luo J, Luo H. KGANSynergy: knowledge graph attention network for drug synergy prediction. Brief Bioinform 2023; 24:7147878. [PMID: 37130580 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbad167] [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: 09/11/2022] [Revised: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Combination therapy is widely used to treat complex diseases, particularly in patients who respond poorly to monotherapy. For example, compared with the use of a single drug, drug combinations can reduce drug resistance and improve the efficacy of cancer treatment. Thus, it is vital for researchers and society to help develop effective combination therapies through clinical trials. However, high-throughput synergistic drug combination screening remains challenging and expensive in the large combinational space, where an array of compounds are used. To solve this problem, various computational approaches have been proposed to effectively identify drug combinations by utilizing drug-related biomedical information. In this study, considering the implications of various types of neighbor information of drug entities, we propose a novel end-to-end Knowledge Graph Attention Network to predict drug synergy (KGANSynergy), which utilizes neighbor information of known drugs/cell lines effectively. KGANSynergy uses knowledge graph (KG) hierarchical propagation to find multi-source neighbor nodes for drugs and cell lines. The knowledge graph attention network is designed to distinguish the importance of neighbors in a KG through a multi-attention mechanism and then aggregate the entity's neighbor node information to enrich the entity. Finally, the learned drug and cell line embeddings can be utilized to predict the synergy of drug combinations. Experiments demonstrated that our method outperformed several other competing methods, indicating that our method is effective in identifying drug combinations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ge Zhang
- School of Computer and Information Engineering, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
- Henan Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
| | - Zhijie Gao
- School of Computer and Information Engineering, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
- Henan Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
| | - Chaokun Yan
- School of Computer and Information Engineering, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
- Henan Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
| | - Jianlin Wang
- School of Computer and Information Engineering, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
- Henan Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
| | - Wenjuan Liang
- School of Computer and Information Engineering, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
- Henan Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
| | - Junwei Luo
- College of Computer Science and Technology, Henan Polytechnic University, Shiji Street, 454003 Jiaozuo, China
| | - Huimin Luo
- School of Computer and Information Engineering, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
- Henan Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Henan University, Jinming Street, 475004 Kaifeng, China
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Kumar G, Virmani T, Sharma A, Pathak K. Codelivery of Phytochemicals with Conventional Anticancer Drugs in Form of Nanocarriers. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:pharmaceutics15030889. [PMID: 36986748 PMCID: PMC10055866 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15030889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Anticancer drugs in monotherapy are ineffective to treat various kinds of cancer due to the heterogeneous nature of cancer. Moreover, available anticancer drugs possessed various hurdles, such as drug resistance, insensitivity of cancer cells to drugs, adverse effects and patient inconveniences. Hence, plant-based phytochemicals could be a better substitute for conventional chemotherapy for treatment of cancer due to various properties: lesser adverse effects, action via multiple pathways, economical, etc. Various preclinical studies have demonstrated that a combination of phytochemicals with conventional anticancer drugs is more efficacious than phytochemicals individually to treat cancer because plant-derived compounds have lower anticancer efficacy than conventional anticancer drugs. Moreover, phytochemicals suffer from poor aqueous solubility and reduced bioavailability, which must be resolved for efficacious treatment of cancer. Therefore, nanotechnology-based novel carriers are employed for codelivery of phytochemicals and conventional anticancer drugs for better treatment of cancer. These novel carriers include nanoemulsion, nanosuspension, nanostructured lipid carriers, solid lipid nanoparticles, polymeric nanoparticles, polymeric micelles, dendrimers, metallic nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes that provide various benefits of improved solubility, reduced adverse effects, higher efficacy, reduced dose, improved dosing frequency, reduced drug resistance, improved bioavailability and higher patient compliance. This review summarizes various phytochemicals employed in treatment of cancer, combination therapy of phytochemicals with anticancer drugs and various nanotechnology-based carriers to deliver the combination therapy in treatment of cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Girish Kumar
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, MVN University, Aurangabad 121105, India
| | - Tarun Virmani
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, MVN University, Aurangabad 121105, India
| | - Ashwani Sharma
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, MVN University, Aurangabad 121105, India
| | - Kamla Pathak
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Uttar Pradesh University of Medical Sciences, Saifai 206001, India
- Correspondence:
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Nabi-Afjadi M, Mohebi F, Zalpoor H, Aziziyan F, Akbari A, Moradi-Sardareh H, Bahreini E, Moeini AM, Effatpanah H. A cellular and molecular biology-based update for ivermectin against COVID-19: is it effective or non-effective? Inflammopharmacology 2023; 31:21-35. [PMID: 36609716 PMCID: PMC9823263 DOI: 10.1007/s10787-022-01129-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Despite community vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and reduced mortality, there are still challenges in treatment options for the disease. Due to the continuous mutation of SARS-CoV-2 virus and the emergence of new strains, diversity in the use of existing antiviral drugs to combat the epidemic has become a crucial therapeutic chance. As a broad-spectrum antiparasitic and antiviral drug, ivermectin has traditionally been used to treat many types of disease, including DNA and RNA viral infections. Even so, based on currently available data, it is still controversial that ivermectin can be used as one of the effective antiviral agents to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) or not. The aim of this study was to provide comprehensive information on ivermectin, including its safety and efficacy, as well as its adverse effects in the treatment of COVID-19.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mohsen Nabi-Afjadi
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Tarbiat Modares, Tehran, Iran
| | - Fatemeh Mohebi
- Molecular Medicine Research Center, Hormozghan Health Institute, Hormozghan University of Medical Sciences, Bandar Abbas, Iran
| | - Hamidreza Zalpoor
- Shiraz Neuroscience Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
- Network of Immunity in Infection, Malignancy and Autoimmunity (NIIMA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Tehran, Iran
| | - Fatemeh Aziziyan
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Tarbiat Modares, Tehran, Iran
- Network of Immunity in Infection, Malignancy and Autoimmunity (NIIMA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Tehran, Iran
| | - Abdullatif Akbari
- Network of Immunity in Infection, Malignancy and Autoimmunity (NIIMA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Tehran, Iran
| | | | - Elham Bahreini
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Amir Mansour Moeini
- Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran
| | | |
Collapse
|
11
|
Witkowski J, Polak S, Rogulski Z, Pawelec D. In Vitro/In Vivo Translation of Synergistic Combination of MDM2 and MEK Inhibitors in Melanoma Using PBPK/PD Modelling: Part I. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:12984. [PMID: 36361773 PMCID: PMC9656205 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232112984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Revised: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 09/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Translation of the synergy between the Siremadlin (MDM2 inhibitor) and Trametinib (MEK inhibitor) combination observed in vitro into in vivo synergistic efficacy in melanoma requires estimation of the interaction between these molecules at the pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) levels. The cytotoxicity of the Siremadlin and Trametinib combination was evaluated in vitro in melanoma A375 cells with MTS and RealTime-Glo assays. Analysis of the drug combination matrix was performed using Synergy and Synergyfinder packages. Calculated drug interaction metrics showed high synergy between Siremadlin and Trametinib: 23.12%, or a 7.48% increase of combined drug efficacy (concentration-independent parameter β from Synergy package analysis and concentration-dependent δ parameter from Synergyfinder analysis, respectively). In order to select the optimal PD interaction parameter which may translate observed in vitro synergy metrics into the in vivo setting, further PK/PD studies on cancer xenograft animal models coupled with PBPK/PD modelling are needed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jakub Witkowski
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
- Adamed Pharma S.A., Adamkiewicza 6a, 05-152 Czosnów, Poland
| | - Sebastian Polak
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Jagiellonian University, Medyczna 9, 30-688 Kraków, Poland
- Simcyp Division, Certara UK Limited, Level 2-Acero, 1 Concourse Way, Sheffield S1 2BJ, UK
| | - Zbigniew Rogulski
- Faculty of Chemistry, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
| | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
Brogi S, Tabanelli R, Calderone V. Combinatorial approaches for novel cardiovascular drug discovery: a review of the literature. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2022; 17:1111-1129. [PMID: 35853260 DOI: 10.1080/17460441.2022.2104247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION In this article, authors report an inclusive discussion about the combinatorial approach for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and for counteracting the cardiovascular risk factors. The mentioned strategy was demonstrated to be useful for improving the efficacy of pharmacological treatments and in CVDs showed superior efficacy with respect to the classical monotherapeutic approach. AREAS COVERED According to this topic, authors analyzed the combinatorial treatments that are available on the market, highlighting clinical studies that demonstrated the efficacy of combinatorial drug strategies to cure CVDs and related risk factors. Furthermore, the review gives an outlook on the future perspective of this therapeutic option, highlighting novel drug targets and disease models that could help the future cardiovascular drug discovery. EXPERT OPINION The use of specifically designed and increasingly rational and effective drug combination therapies can therefore be considered the evolution of polypharmacy in cardiometabolic and CVDs. This approach can allow to intervene on multiple etiopathogenetic mechanisms of the disease or to act simultaneously on different pathologies/risk factors, using the combinations most suitable from a pharmacodynamic, pharmacokinetic, and toxicological perspective, thus finding the most appropriate therapeutic option.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simone Brogi
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
NEXGB: A Network Embedding Framework for Anticancer Drug Combination Prediction. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23179838. [PMID: 36077236 PMCID: PMC9456392 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23179838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Revised: 08/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Compared to single-drug therapy, drug combinations have shown great potential in cancer treatment. Most of the current methods employ genomic data and chemical information to construct drug–cancer cell line features, but there is still a need to explore methods to combine topological information in the protein interaction network (PPI). Therefore, we propose a network-embedding-based prediction model, NEXGB, which integrates the corresponding protein modules of drug–cancer cell lines with PPI network information. NEXGB extracts the topological features of each protein node in a PPI network by struc2vec. Then, we combine the topological features with the target protein information of drug–cancer cell lines, to generate drug features and cancer cell line features, and utilize extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) to predict the synergistic relationship between drug combinations and cancer cell lines. We apply our model on two recently developed datasets, the Oncology-Screen dataset (Oncology-Screen) and the large drug combination dataset (DrugCombDB). The experimental results show that NEXGB outperforms five current methods, and it effectively improves the predictive power in discovering relationships between drug combinations and cancer cell lines. This further demonstrates that the network information is valid for detecting combination therapies for cancer and other complex diseases.
Collapse
|
14
|
Alharbi WS, Rashid M. A review of deep learning applications in human genomics using next-generation sequencing data. Hum Genomics 2022; 16:26. [PMID: 35879805 PMCID: PMC9317091 DOI: 10.1186/s40246-022-00396-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Genomics is advancing towards data-driven science. Through the advent of high-throughput data generating technologies in human genomics, we are overwhelmed with the heap of genomic data. To extract knowledge and pattern out of this genomic data, artificial intelligence especially deep learning methods has been instrumental. In the current review, we address development and application of deep learning methods/models in different subarea of human genomics. We assessed over- and under-charted area of genomics by deep learning techniques. Deep learning algorithms underlying the genomic tools have been discussed briefly in later part of this review. Finally, we discussed briefly about the late application of deep learning tools in genomic. Conclusively, this review is timely for biotechnology or genomic scientists in order to guide them why, when and how to use deep learning methods to analyse human genomic data.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Wardah S Alharbi
- Department of AI and Bioinformatics, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC), King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), King Abdulaziz Medical City, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, P.O. Box 22490, Riyadh, 11426, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mamoon Rashid
- Department of AI and Bioinformatics, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC), King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), King Abdulaziz Medical City, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, P.O. Box 22490, Riyadh, 11426, Saudi Arabia.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Lu X, Hackman GL, Saha A, Rathore AS, Collins M, Friedman C, Yi SS, Matsuda F, DiGiovanni J, Lodi A, Tiziani S. Metabolomics-based phenotypic screens for evaluation of drug synergy via direct-infusion mass spectrometry. iScience 2022; 25:104221. [PMID: 35494234 PMCID: PMC9046262 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.104221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2022] [Revised: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Drugs used in combination can synergize to increase efficacy, decrease toxicity, and prevent drug resistance. While conventional high-throughput screens that rely on univariate data are incredibly valuable to identify promising drug candidates, phenotypic screening methodologies could be beneficial to provide deep insight into the molecular response of drug combination with a likelihood of improved clinical outcomes. We developed a high-content metabolomics drug screening platform using stable isotope-tracer direct-infusion mass spectrometry that informs an algorithm to determine synergy from multivariate phenomics data. Using a cancer drug library, we validated the drug screening, integrating isotope-enriched metabolomics data and computational data mining, on a panel of prostate cell lines and verified the synergy between CB-839 and docetaxel both in vitro (three-dimensional model) and in vivo. The proposed unbiased metabolomics screening platform can be used to rapidly generate phenotype-informed datasets and quantify synergy for combinatorial drug discovery.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xiyuan Lu
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA
| | - G. Lavender Hackman
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA
| | - Achinto Saha
- Division of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin,TX 78712, USA
| | - Atul Singh Rathore
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA
| | - Meghan Collins
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA
| | - Chelsea Friedman
- Division of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin,TX 78712, USA
| | - S. Stephen Yi
- Department of Oncology, Dell Medical School, Livestrong Cancer Institutes, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA,Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology (ICMB), College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Cockrell School of Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences (ICES), The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Fumio Matsuda
- Department of Bioinformatic Engineering, Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, Osaka University, 1-5 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - John DiGiovanni
- Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA,Division of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin,TX 78712, USA,Department of Oncology, Dell Medical School, Livestrong Cancer Institutes, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA
| | - Alessia Lodi
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA,Corresponding author
| | - Stefano Tiziani
- Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA,Department of Oncology, Dell Medical School, Livestrong Cancer Institutes, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78723, USA,Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology (ICMB), College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Corresponding author
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Ferro Desideri L, Traverso CE, Nicolò M. The emerging role of the angiopoietin-Tie pathway as therapeutic target for treating retinal diseases. Expert Opin Ther Targets 2022; 26:145-154. [DOI: 10.1080/14728222.2022.2036121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Carlo Enrico Traverso
- University Eye Clinic of Genoa, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- Department of Neurosciences, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, Maternal and Child Health (DiNOGMI), University of Genoa, Italy
| | - Massimo Nicolò
- University Eye Clinic of Genoa, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- Department of Neurosciences, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, Maternal and Child Health (DiNOGMI), University of Genoa, Italy
- Macula Onlus Foundation, Genoa, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Kuru HI, Cicek AE, Tastan O. From cell lines to cancer patients: personalized drug synergy prediction. BIOINFORMATICS (OXFORD, ENGLAND) 2022; 40:btae134. [PMID: 38718189 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btae134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
MOTIVATION Combination drug therapies are effective treatments for cancer. However, the genetic heterogeneity of the patients and exponentially large space of drug pairings pose significant challenges for finding the right combination for a specific patient. Current in silico prediction methods can be instrumental in reducing the vast number of candidate drug combinations. However, existing powerful methods are trained with cancer cell line gene expression data, which limits their applicability in clinical settings. While synergy measurements on cell line models are available at large scale, patient-derived samples are too few to train a complex model. On the other hand, patient-specific single-drug response data are relatively more available. RESULTS In this work, we propose a deep learning framework, Personalized Deep Synergy Predictor (PDSP), that enables us to use the patient-specific single drug response data for customizing patient drug synergy predictions. PDSP is first trained to learn synergy scores of drug pairs and their single drug responses for a given cell line using drug structures and large scale cell line gene expression data. Then, the model is fine-tuned for patients with their patient gene expression data and associated single drug response measured on the patient ex vivo samples. In this study, we evaluate PDSP on data from three leukemia patients and observe that it improves the prediction accuracy by 27% compared to models trained on cancer cell line data. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION PDSP is available at https://github.com/hikuru/PDSP.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Halil Ibrahim Kuru
- Department of Computer Engineering, Bilkent University, Ankara 06800, Turkey
| | - A Ercument Cicek
- Department of Computer Engineering, Bilkent University, Ankara 06800, Turkey
- Computational Biology Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh 15213, United States
| | - Oznur Tastan
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Zhang Z, Pan Y, Zhao Y, Ren M, Li Y, Lu G, Wu K, He S. Delphinidin modulates JAK/STAT3 and MAPKinase signaling to induce apoptosis in HCT116 cells. ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY 2021; 36:1557-1566. [PMID: 33955636 DOI: 10.1002/tox.23152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2021] [Accepted: 04/11/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Delphinidin is an anthocyanin that belongs to the group of flavonoids that exert numerous biological activities. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the anticancer effects of delphinidin remain poorly understood. In our study we analyzed delphinidin modulate STAT-3 and MAPKinase signaling thereby inhbits cell proliferation and promote apoptosis. Our study demonstrated that delphinidin treatment significantly reduced the viability of human colon cancer HCT116 in a concentration-dependent manner. We noticed that delphinidin effectively induced oxidative stress-mediated apoptosis by generating intracellular ROS, decreasing antioxidant levels, inducing lipid peroxidation, and single-strand break on colon cancer cells. In this study, we observed that delphinidin treatment alters the mitochondrial membrane potential, thereby induces apoptosis was closely associated with the induction of pro-apoptotic Bax, Caspase- 3,8 & 9, cytochrome C, and inhibition of anti-apoptotic protein expression. Studies on STAT-3 and MAPKinase signaling showed delphinidin inhibited the phosphorylation of these transcription factors' activity. Inhibition of STAT-3, p38, and ERK1/2 phosphorylation and modulation pro-apoptotic protein expression might be responsible for the anticancer activity of delphinidin in colon cancer cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyong Zhang
- Department of Gastroenterology, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yan Pan
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, and Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yan Zhao
- Department of Gastroenterology, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Mudan Ren
- Department of Gastroenterology, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yarui Li
- Department of Gastroenterology, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Guifang Lu
- Department of Gastroenterology, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Kaichun Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, and Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Shuixiang He
- Department of Gastroenterology, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Tong KI, Yoon S, Isaev K, Bakhtiari M, Lackraj T, He MY, Joynt J, Silva A, Xu MC, Privé GG, He HH, Tiedemann RE, Chavez EA, Chong LC, Boyle M, Scott DW, Steidl C, Kridel R. Combined EZH2 Inhibition and IKAROS Degradation Leads to Enhanced Antitumor Activity in Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma. Clin Cancer Res 2021; 27:5401-5414. [PMID: 34168051 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-20-4027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2020] [Revised: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE The efficacy of EZH2 inhibition has been modest in the initial clinical exploration of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), yet EZH2 inhibitors are well tolerated. Herein, we aimed to uncover genetic and pharmacologic opportunities to enhance the clinical efficacy of EZH2 inhibitors in DLBCL. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN We conducted a genome-wide sensitizing CRISPR/Cas9 screen with tazemetostat, a catalytic inhibitor of EZH2. The sensitizing effect of IKZF1 loss of function was then validated and leveraged for combination treatment with lenalidomide. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing analyses were performed to elucidate transcriptomic and epigenetic changes underlying synergy. RESULTS We identified IKZF1 knockout as the top candidate for sensitizing DLBCL cells to tazemetostat. Treating cells with tazemetostat and lenalidomide, an immunomodulatory drug that selectively degrades IKAROS and AIOLOS, phenocopied the effects of the CRISPR/Cas9 screen. The combined drug treatment triggered either cell-cycle arrest or apoptosis in a broad range of DLBCL cell lines, regardless of EZH2 mutational status. Cell-line-based xenografts also showed slower tumor growth and prolonged survival in the combination treatment group. RNA-seq analysis revealed strong upregulation of interferon signaling and antiviral immune response signatures. Gene expression of key immune response factors such as IRF7 and DDX58 were induced in cells treated with lenalidomide and tazemetostat, with a concomitant increase of H3K27 acetylation at their promoters. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis demonstrated derepression of endogenous retroviruses after combination treatment. CONCLUSIONS Our data underscore the synergistic interplay between IKAROS degradation and EZH2 inhibition on modulating epigenetic changes and ultimately enhancing antitumor effects in DLBCL.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kit I Tong
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sharon Yoon
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Keren Isaev
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Mehran Bakhtiari
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tracy Lackraj
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Michael Y He
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jesse Joynt
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anjali Silva
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Vector Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Maria C Xu
- University of Toronto Schools, Ontario, Canada
| | - Gilbert G Privé
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Housheng Hansen He
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Rodger E Tiedemann
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Elizabeth A Chavez
- Centre for Lymphoid Cancer, BC Cancer, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Lauren C Chong
- Centre for Lymphoid Cancer, BC Cancer, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Merrill Boyle
- Centre for Lymphoid Cancer, BC Cancer, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - David W Scott
- Centre for Lymphoid Cancer, BC Cancer, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Christian Steidl
- Centre for Lymphoid Cancer, BC Cancer, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Robert Kridel
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. .,Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Chandra V, Rai R, Benbrook DM. Utility and Mechanism of SHetA2 and Paclitaxel for Treatment of Endometrial Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:cancers13102322. [PMID: 34066052 PMCID: PMC8150795 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13102322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Revised: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Incidence and death rates for endometrial cancer are steadily rising world-wide. Endometrial cancer patients at high risk for recurrence are treated with chemotherapy, which causes significant toxicity. Molecularly targeted drugs have been found to cause less toxicity than chemotherapy. We studied a low-toxicity drug, called SHetA2, which targets three heat shock A proteins that are highly mutated in endometrial cancers. Our results demonstrated that SHetA2 inhibits endometrial cancer cells and tumors, and enhances therapeutic effects of paclitaxel without increasing toxicity. This information supports development of clinical trials to test if combining SHetA2 with paclitaxel can increase the paclitaxel therapeutic effect without increasing toxicity, or allows a lowered paclitaxel dose to achieve the same level of therapeutic effect, but with reduced toxicity. Our new knowledge about how SHetA2 works can be translated into development of biomarkers to predict with patients would most likely benefit from SHetA2-based therapy. Abstract Endometrial cancer patients with advanced disease or high recurrence risk are treated with chemotherapy. Our objective was to evaluate the utility and mechanism of a novel drug, SHetA2, alone and in combination with paclitaxel, in endometrial cancer. SHetA2 targets the HSPA chaperone proteins, Grp78, hsc70, and mortalin, which have high mutation rates in endometrial cancer. SHetA2 effects on cancerous phenotypes, mitochondria, metabolism, protein expression, mortalin/client protein complexes, and cell death were evaluated in AN3CA, Hec13b, and Ishikawa endometrial cancer cell lines, and on growth of Ishikawa xenografts. In all three cell lines, SHetA2 inhibited anchorage-independent growth, migration, invasion, and ATP production, and induced G1 cell cycle arrest, mitochondrial damage, and caspase- and apoptosis inducing factor (AIF)-mediated apoptosis. These effects were associated with altered levels of proteins involved in cell cycle regulation, mitochondrial function, protein synthesis, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and metabolism; disruption of mortalin complexes with mitochondrial and metabolism proteins; and inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation and glycolysis. SHetA2 and paclitaxel exhibited synergistic combination indices in all cell lines and exerted greater xenograft tumor growth inhibition than either drug alone. SHetA2 is active against endometrial cancer cell lines in culture and in vivo and acts synergistically with paclitaxel.
Collapse
|
21
|
Poon DJJ, Tay LM, Ho D, Chua MLK, Chow EKH, Yeo ELL. Improving the therapeutic ratio of radiotherapy against radioresistant cancers: Leveraging on novel artificial intelligence-based approaches for drug combination discovery. Cancer Lett 2021; 511:56-67. [PMID: 33933554 DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2021.04.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2021] [Revised: 04/14/2021] [Accepted: 04/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Despite numerous advances in cancer radiotherapy, tumor radioresistance remain one of the major challenges limiting treatment efficacy of radiotherapy. Conventional strategies to overcome radioresistance involve understanding the underpinning molecular mechanisms, and subsequently using combinatorial treatment strategies involving radiation and targeted drug combinations against these radioresistant tumors. These strategies exploit and target the molecular fingerprint and vulnerability of the radioresistant clones to achieve improved efficacy in tumor eradication. However, conventional drug-screening approaches for the discovery of new drug combinations have been proven to be inefficient, limited and laborious. With the increasing availability of computational resources in recent years, novel approaches such as Quadratic Phenotypic Optimization Platform (QPOP), CURATE.AI and Drug Combination and Prediction and Testing (DCPT) platform have emerged to aid in drug combination discovery and the longitudinally optimized modulation of combination therapy dosing. These platforms could overcome the limitations of conventional screening approaches, thereby facilitating the discovery of more optimal drug combinations to improve the therapeutic ratio of combinatorial treatment. The use of better and more accurate models and methods with rapid turnover can thus facilitate a rapid translation in the clinic, hence, resulting in a better patient outcome. Here, we reviewed the clinical observations, molecular mechanisms and proposed treatment strategies for tumor radioresistance and discussed how novel approaches may be applied to enhance drug combination discovery, with the aim to further improve the therapeutic ratio and treatment efficacy of radiotherapy against radioresistant cancers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dennis Jun Jie Poon
- Division of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Crescent, 169610, Singapore.
| | - Li Min Tay
- Cancer Science Institute, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117599, Singapore.
| | - Dean Ho
- The N.1 Institute of Health (N.1), National University of Singapore, 117456, Singapore; Department of Bioengineering, National University of Singapore, 117583, Singapore; Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117597, Singapore; The Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117456, Singapore.
| | - Melvin Lee Kiang Chua
- Division of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Crescent, 169610, Singapore; Division of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Crescent, 169610, Singapore; Oncology Academic Clinical Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, 169857, Singapore.
| | - Edward Kai-Hua Chow
- Cancer Science Institute, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117599, Singapore; The N.1 Institute of Health (N.1), National University of Singapore, 117456, Singapore; Department of Bioengineering, National University of Singapore, 117583, Singapore; Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117597, Singapore; The Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117456, Singapore.
| | - Eugenia Li Ling Yeo
- Division of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Crescent, 169610, Singapore.
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Tafesse TB, Bule MH, Khan F, Abdollahi M, Amini M. Developing Novel Anticancer Drugs for Targeted Populations: An Update. Curr Pharm Des 2021; 27:250-262. [PMID: 33234093 DOI: 10.2174/1381612826666201124111748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2020] [Accepted: 08/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Due to higher failure rates, lengthy time and high cost of the traditional de novo drug discovery and development process, the rate of opportunity to get new, safe and efficacious drugs for the targeted population, including pediatric patients with cancer, becomes sluggish. OBJECTIVES This paper discusses the development of novel anticancer drugs focusing on the identification and selection of targeted anticancer drug development for the targeted population. METHODS Information presented in this review was obtained from different databases, including PUBMED, SCOPUS, Web of Science, and EMBASE. Various keywords were used as search terms. RESULTS The pharmaceutical companies currently are executing drug repurposing as an alternative means to accelerate the drug development process that reduces the risk of failure, time and cost, which take 3-12 years with almost 25% overall probability of success as compared to de novo drug discovery and development process (10- 17 years) which has less than 10% probability of success. An alternative strategy to the traditional de novo drug discovery and development process, called drug repurposing, is also presented. CONCLUSION Therefore, to continue with the progress of developing novel anticancer drugs for the targeted population, identification and selection of target to specific disease type is important. Considering the aspects of the age of the patient and the disease stages such as each cancer types are different when we study the disease at a molecular level. Drug repurposing technique becomes an influential alternative strategy to discover and develop novel anticancer drug candidates.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tadesse B Tafesse
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Drug Design and Development Research Center and The Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohammed H Bule
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Drug Design and Development Research Center and The Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Fazlullah Khan
- Department of Allied Health Sciences, Bashir Institute of Health Sciences, Bhara Kahu Islamabad, Iran
| | - Mohammad Abdollahi
- Toxicology and Diseases Group (TDG), Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center (PSRC), The Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (TIPS), and Department of Toxicology and Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohsen Amini
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Drug Design and Development Research Center and The Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Karimi M, Hasanzadeh A, Shen Y. Network-principled deep generative models for designing drug combinations as graph sets. Bioinformatics 2021; 36:i445-i454. [PMID: 32657357 PMCID: PMC7355302 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btaa317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Motivation Combination therapy has shown to improve therapeutic efficacy while reducing side effects. Importantly, it has become an indispensable strategy to overcome resistance in antibiotics, antimicrobials and anticancer drugs. Facing enormous chemical space and unclear design principles for small-molecule combinations, computational drug-combination design has not seen generative models to meet its potential to accelerate resistance-overcoming drug combination discovery. Results We have developed the first deep generative model for drug combination design, by jointly embedding graph-structured domain knowledge and iteratively training a reinforcement learning-based chemical graph-set designer. First, we have developed hierarchical variational graph auto-encoders trained end-to-end to jointly embed gene–gene, gene–disease and disease–disease networks. Novel attentional pooling is introduced here for learning disease representations from associated genes’ representations. Second, targeting diseases in learned representations, we have recast the drug-combination design problem as graph-set generation and developed a deep learning-based model with novel rewards. Specifically, besides chemical validity rewards, we have introduced novel generative adversarial award, being generalized sliced Wasserstein, for chemically diverse molecules with distributions similar to known drugs. We have also designed a network principle-based reward for disease-specific drug combinations. Numerical results indicate that, compared to state-of-the-art graph embedding methods, hierarchical variational graph auto-encoder learns more informative and generalizable disease representations. Results also show that the deep generative models generate drug combinations following the principle across diseases. Case studies on four diseases show that network-principled drug combinations tend to have low toxicity. The generated drug combinations collectively cover the disease module similar to FDA-approved drug combinations and could potentially suggest novel systems pharmacology strategies. Our method allows for examining and following network-based principle or hypothesis to efficiently generate disease-specific drug combinations in a vast chemical combinatorial space. Availability and implementation https://github.com/Shen-Lab/Drug-Combo-Generator. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mostafa Karimi
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.,TEES-AgriLife Center for Bioinformatics and Genomic Systems Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | | | - Yang Shen
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.,TEES-AgriLife Center for Bioinformatics and Genomic Systems Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
|
25
|
Heier JS, Singh RP, Wykoff CC, Csaky KG, Lai TYY, Loewenstein A, Schlottmann PG, Paris LP, Westenskow PD, Quezada-Ruiz C. THE ANGIOPOIETIN/TIE PATHWAY IN RETINAL VASCULAR DISEASES: A Review. Retina 2021; 41:1-19. [PMID: 33136975 DOI: 10.1097/iae.0000000000003003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE To provide a concise overview for ophthalmologists and practicing retina specialists of available clinical evidence of manipulating the angiopoietin/tyrosine kinase with immunoglobulin-like and endothelial growth factor-like domains (Tie) pathway and its potential as a therapeutic target in retinal vascular diseases. METHODS A literature search for articles on the angiopoietin/Tie pathway and molecules targeting this pathway that have reached Phase 2 or 3 trials was undertaken on PubMed, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting abstracts (2014-2019), and ClinicalTrials.gov databases. Additional information on identified pipeline drugs was obtained from publicly available information on company websites. RESULTS The PubMed and Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting abstract search yielded 462 results, of which 251 publications not relevant to the scope of the review were excluded. Of the 141 trials related to the angiopoietin/Tie pathway on ClinicalTrials.gov, seven trials focusing on diseases covered in this review were selected. Vision/anatomic outcomes from key clinical trials on molecules targeting the angiopoietin/Tie pathway in patients with retinal vascular diseases are discussed. CONCLUSION Initial clinical evidence suggests a potential benefit of targeting the angiopoietin/Tie pathway and vascular endothelial growth factor-A over anti-vascular endothelial growth factor-A monotherapy alone, in part due to of the synergistic nature of the pathways.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Rishi P Singh
- Department of Ophthalmology, Center for Ophthalmic Bioinformatics, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Charles C Wykoff
- Retina Consultants of Houston, Retina Consultants of America, Blanton Eye Institute, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas
| | - Karl G Csaky
- Retina Foundation of the Southwest, Dallas, Texas
| | - Timothy Y Y Lai
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Anat Loewenstein
- Department of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | | | | | | | - Carlos Quezada-Ruiz
- Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, California; and
- Retina y Vitreo, Clínica de Ojos Garza Viejo, San Pedro Garza Garcia, Mexico
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Leveraging multi-way interactions for systematic prediction of pre-clinical drug combination effects. Nat Commun 2020; 11:6136. [PMID: 33262326 PMCID: PMC7708835 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19950-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
We present comboFM, a machine learning framework for predicting the responses of drug combinations in pre-clinical studies, such as those based on cell lines or patient-derived cells. comboFM models the cell context-specific drug interactions through higher-order tensors, and efficiently learns latent factors of the tensor using powerful factorization machines. The approach enables comboFM to leverage information from previous experiments performed on similar drugs and cells when predicting responses of new combinations in so far untested cells; thereby, it achieves highly accurate predictions despite sparsely populated data tensors. We demonstrate high predictive performance of comboFM in various prediction scenarios using data from cancer cell line pharmacogenomic screens. Subsequent experimental validation of a set of previously untested drug combinations further supports the practical and robust applicability of comboFM. For instance, we confirm a novel synergy between anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor crizotinib and proteasome inhibitor bortezomib in lymphoma cells. Overall, our results demonstrate that comboFM provides an effective means for systematic pre-screening of drug combinations to support precision oncology applications. Combinatorial treatments have become a standard of care for various complex diseases including cancers. Here, the authors show that combinatorial responses of two anticancer drugs can be accurately predicted using factorization machines trained on large-scale pharmacogenomic data for guiding precision oncology studies.
Collapse
|
27
|
Parasrampuria DA, Bandekar R, Puchalski TA. Scientific diligence for oncology drugs: a pharmacology, translational medicine and clinical perspective. Drug Discov Today 2020; 25:1855-1864. [DOI: 10.1016/j.drudis.2020.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Revised: 06/02/2020] [Accepted: 07/14/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
|
28
|
Ter-Levonian AS, Koshechkin KA. Review of Machine Learning Technologies and Neural Networks in Drug Synergy Combination pharmacological research. RESEARCH RESULTS IN PHARMACOLOGY 2020. [DOI: 10.3897/rrpharmacology.6.49591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction: Nowadays an increase in the amount of information creates the need to replace and update data processing technologies. One of the tasks of clinical pharmacology is to create the right combination of drugs for the treatment of a particular disease. It takes months and even years to create a treatment regimen. Using machine learning (in silico) allows predicting how to get the right combination of drugs and skip the experimental steps in a study that take a lot of time and financial expenses. Gradual preparation is needed for the Deep Learning of Drug Synergy, starting from creating a base of drugs, their characteristics and ways of interacting.
Aim: Our review aims to draw attention to the prospect of the introduction of Deep Learning technology to predict possible combinations of drugs for the treatment of various diseases.
Materials and methods: Literary review of articles based on the PUBMED project and related bibliographic resources over the past 5 years (2015–2019).
Results and discussion: In the analyzed articles, Machine or Deep Learning completed the assigned tasks. It was able to determine the most appropriate combinations for the treatment of certain diseases, select the necessary regimen and doses. In addition, using this technology, new combinations have been identified that may be further involved in preclinical studies.
Conclusions: From the analysis of the articles, we obtained evidence of the positive effects of Deep Learning to select “key” combinations for further stages of preclinical research.
Collapse
|
29
|
Wu C, Ono S. Exploratory Analysis of the Factors Associated With Success Rates of Confirmatory Randomized Controlled Trials in Cancer Drug Development. Clin Transl Sci 2020; 14:260-267. [PMID: 32702190 PMCID: PMC7877835 DOI: 10.1111/cts.12852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This study examined the outcomes of recent confirmatory randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in phase III that were initiated between 2005 and 2017 for oncologic drugs in the United States and identified several factors that were associated with the success of RCTs. Our regression analysis showed that studies with progression‐free survival or response rate as primary end point were more likely to succeed than studies with overall survival (odds ratio (OR) = 2.94 and 6.23, respectively). The status of development was also linked with success rates. Studies for non‐lead indication tended to have lower success rates than studies for lead indication (OR = 0.68). Studies for first‐line therapy were observed to have low success rates compared with studies for post second‐line therapies (OR = 0.37). Studies for which strong prior evidence was not listed in their publication tended to be more successful than studies that followed rigorous RCTs or single arm studies for the indication. These results suggest that historical success rates may reflect not only the important features of trials, which can be observed directly from study design and results, but also the background status of trials in clinical development pathways.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Can Wu
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Regulatory Science, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Ono
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Regulatory Science, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Ward RA, Fawell S, Floc'h N, Flemington V, McKerrecher D, Smith PD. Challenges and Opportunities in Cancer Drug Resistance. Chem Rev 2020; 121:3297-3351. [PMID: 32692162 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.0c00383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 175] [Impact Index Per Article: 43.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
There has been huge progress in the discovery of targeted cancer therapies in recent years. However, even for the most successful and impactful cancer drugs which have been approved, both innate and acquired mechanisms of resistance are commonplace. These emerging mechanisms of resistance have been studied intensively, which has enabled drug discovery scientists to learn how it may be possible to overcome such resistance in subsequent generations of treatments. In some cases, novel drug candidates have been able to supersede previously approved agents; in other cases they have been used sequentially or in combinations with existing treatments. This review summarizes the current field in terms of the challenges and opportunities that cancer resistance presents to drug discovery scientists, with a focus on small molecule therapeutics. As part of this review, common themes and approaches have been identified which have been utilized to successfully target emerging mechanisms of resistance. This includes the increase in target potency and selectivity, alternative chemical scaffolds, change of mechanism of action (covalents, PROTACs), increases in blood-brain barrier permeability (BBBP), and the targeting of allosteric pockets. Finally, wider approaches are covered such as monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), bispecific antibodies, antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), and combination therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Richard A Ward
- Medicinal Chemistry, Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB4 0WG, U.K
| | - Stephen Fawell
- Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca, Waltham, Massachusetts 02451, United States
| | - Nicolas Floc'h
- Bioscience, Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB4 0WG, U.K
| | | | | | - Paul D Smith
- Bioscience, Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB4 0WG, U.K
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
ImmunoPET in Multiple Myeloma-What? So What? Now What? Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:cancers12061467. [PMID: 32512883 PMCID: PMC7352991 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12061467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2020] [Revised: 05/30/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite constant progress over the past three decades, multiple myeloma (MM) is still an incurable disease, and the identification of new biomarkers to better select patients and adapt therapy is more relevant than ever. Recently, the introduction of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) (including direct-targeting mAbs and immune checkpoint inhibitors) appears to have changed the paradigm of MM management, emphasizing the opportunity to cure MM patients through an immunotherapeutic approach. In this context, immuno-positron emission tomography (immunoPET), combining the high sensitivity and resolution of a PET camera with the specificity of a radiolabelled mAb, holds the capability to cement this new treatment paradigm for MM patients. It has the potential to non-invasively monitor the distribution of therapeutic antibodies or directly monitor biomarkers on MM cells, and to allow direct observation of potential changes over time and in response to various therapeutic interventions. Tumor response could, in the future, be anticipated more effectively to provide individualized treatment plans tailored to patients according to their unique imaging signatures. This work explores the important role played by immunotherapeutics in the management of MM, and focuses on some of the challenges for this drug class and the significant interest of companion imaging agents such as immunoPET.
Collapse
|
32
|
Jiang P, Huang S, Fu Z, Sun Z, Lakowski TM, Hu P. Deep graph embedding for prioritizing synergistic anticancer drug combinations. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2020; 18:427-438. [PMID: 32153729 PMCID: PMC7052513 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2020.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2019] [Revised: 02/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Drug combinations are frequently used for the treatment of cancer patients in order to increase efficacy, decrease adverse side effects, or overcome drug resistance. Given the enormous number of drug combinations, it is cost- and time-consuming to screen all possible drug pairs experimentally. Currently, it has not been fully explored to integrate multiple networks to predict synergistic drug combinations using recently developed deep learning technologies. In this study, we proposed a Graph Convolutional Network (GCN) model to predict synergistic drug combinations in particular cancer cell lines. Specifically, the GCN method used a convolutional neural network model to do heterogeneous graph embedding, and thus solved a link prediction task. The graph in this study was a multimodal graph, which was constructed by integrating the drug-drug combination, drug-protein interaction, and protein-protein interaction networks. We found that the GCN model was able to correctly predict cell line-specific synergistic drug combinations from a large heterogonous network. The majority (30) of the 39 cell line-specific models show an area under the receiver operational characteristic curve (AUC) larger than 0.80, resulting in a mean AUC of 0.84. Moreover, we conducted an in-depth literature survey to investigate the top predicted drug combinations in specific cancer cell lines and found that many of them have been found to show synergistic antitumor activity against the same or other cancers in vitro or in vivo. Taken together, the results indicate that our study provides a promising way to better predict and optimize synergistic drug pairs in silico.
Collapse
Key Words
- ACC, accuracy
- AUC, area under the curve
- CNN, convolutional neural network
- Cancer
- Cell line
- DDS, drug-drug synergy
- DNN, deep neural network
- DTI, drug-target interaction
- ER, estrogen receptor
- FPR, false positive rate
- GBM, glioblastoma multiforme
- GCN, graph convolutional network
- Graph convolutional network
- HTS, high throughput screening
- Heterogenous network
- PPI, protein–protein interaction
- RF, random forest
- ROC, receiver operating characteristic
- SD, standard deviation
- SVM, support vector machine
- Synergistic drug combination
- TNBC, triple negative breast cancer
- TPR, true positive rate
- XGBoost, extreme gradient boosting
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peiran Jiang
- Department of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 0J9, Canada
- Department of Bioinformatics & Systems Biology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Shujun Huang
- College of Pharmacy, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 0T5, Canada
| | - Zhenyuan Fu
- Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China
| | - Zexuan Sun
- Department of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 0J9, Canada
- School of Mathematics and Statistic, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
| | - Ted M. Lakowski
- College of Pharmacy, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 0T5, Canada
| | - Pingzhao Hu
- Department of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 0J9, Canada
- Research Institute in Oncology and Hematology, CancerCare Manitoba, Winnipeg R3E 0V9, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Lountos GT, Zhao XZ, Kiselev E, Tropea JE, Needle D, Pommier Y, Burke TR, Waugh DS. Identification of a ligand binding hot spot and structural motifs replicating aspects of tyrosyl-DNA phosphodiesterase I (TDP1) phosphoryl recognition by crystallographic fragment cocktail screening. Nucleic Acids Res 2019; 47:10134-10150. [PMID: 31199869 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkz515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2018] [Revised: 05/20/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2019] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Tyrosyl DNA-phosphodiesterase I (TDP1) repairs type IB topoisomerase (TOP1) cleavage complexes generated by TOP1 inhibitors commonly used as anticancer agents. TDP1 also removes DNA 3' end blocking lesions generated by chain-terminating nucleosides and alkylating agents, and base oxidation both in the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. Combination therapy with TDP1 inhibitors is proposed to synergize with topoisomerase targeting drugs to enhance selectivity against cancer cells exhibiting deficiencies in parallel DNA repair pathways. A crystallographic fragment screening campaign against the catalytic domain of TDP1 was conducted to identify new lead compounds. Crystal structures revealed two fragments that bind to the TDP1 active site and exhibit inhibitory activity against TDP1. These fragments occupy a similar position in the TDP1 active site as seen in prior crystal structures of TDP1 with bound vanadate, a transition state mimic. Using structural insights into fragment binding, several fragment derivatives have been prepared and evaluated in biochemical assays. These results demonstrate that fragment-based methods can be a highly feasible approach toward the discovery of small-molecule chemical scaffolds to target TDP1, and for the first time, we provide co-crystal structures of small molecule inhibitors bound to TDP1, which could serve for the rational development of medicinal TDP1 inhibitors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- George T Lountos
- Basic Science Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Xue Zhi Zhao
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Evgeny Kiselev
- Developmental Therapeutics Branch & Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Joseph E Tropea
- Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Danielle Needle
- Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Yves Pommier
- Developmental Therapeutics Branch & Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Terrence R Burke
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - David S Waugh
- Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Delou JMA, Souza ASO, Souza LCM, Borges HL. Highlights in Resistance Mechanism Pathways for Combination Therapy. Cells 2019; 8:E1013. [PMID: 31480389 PMCID: PMC6770082 DOI: 10.3390/cells8091013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2019] [Revised: 08/15/2019] [Accepted: 08/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Combination chemotherapy has been a mainstay in cancer treatment for the last 60 years. Although the mechanisms of action and signaling pathways affected by most treatments with single antineoplastic agents might be relatively well understood, most combinations remain poorly understood. This review presents the most common alterations of signaling pathways in response to cytotoxic and targeted anticancer drug treatments, with a discussion of how the knowledge of signaling pathways might support and orient the development of innovative strategies for anticancer combination therapy. The ultimate goal is to highlight possible strategies of chemotherapy combinations based on the signaling pathways associated with the resistance mechanisms against anticancer drugs to maximize the selective induction of cancer cell death. We consider this review an extensive compilation of updated known information on chemotherapy resistance mechanisms to promote new combination therapies to be to discussed and tested.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- João M A Delou
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, Brazil
| | - Alana S O Souza
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, Brazil
| | - Leonel C M Souza
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, Brazil
| | - Helena L Borges
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-902, Brazil.
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Dankó D, Blay JY, Garrison LP. Challenges in the value assessment, pricing and funding of targeted combination therapies in oncology. Health Policy 2019; 123:1230-1236. [PMID: 31337514 DOI: 10.1016/j.healthpol.2019.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2018] [Revised: 04/24/2019] [Accepted: 07/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The use of targeted combination therapy (TCT) is becoming the standard of care in oncology as cancers are attacked through multiple inhibition mechanisms. TCTs pose a budget challenge to health systems and an economic return challenge for companies developing them. METHODS We conducted a systematic literature review to identify challenges specific to TCTs and reviewed publicly available reports by health technology assessment and pricing and reimbursement bodies. We synthesized our findings into a problem map. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Challenges and policy solutions linked to TCTs remain almost fully unexplored; we identified few resources that explicitly addressed TCTs. Contributors to the budget challenge are found at different layers; they and include static willingness-to-pay (WTP) for TCTs and inefficiencies in managing prices of backbone therapies. Economic return challenges are related to payer-imposed restrictions, peculiarities of TCT development, and conflicting incentives of pharmaceutical companies that own constituent therapies. Consequences are delayed or restricted patient access to TCTs, disincentives for research and development, and fewer life years gained. CONCLUSIONS Multiple issues will lead to the unsustainability of funding systems and possible conflict between stakeholders around access to TCTs. To manage these, new value assessment and attribution methodologies, modified trial designs and differentiated WTP thresholds can be considered in ways that are customized to the characteristics of different health systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D Dankó
- Ideas & Solutions, Kelenhegyi út 16B, 1118 Budapest, Hungary.
| | - J-Y Blay
- Centre Léon Bérard, Lyon, France
| | - L P Garrison
- University of Washington, Department of Pharmacy, Seattle (WA), United States
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Paller CJ, Huang EP, Luechtefeld T, Massett HA, Williams CC, Zhao J, Gravell AE, Tamashiro T, Reeves SA, Rosner GL, Carducci MA, Rubinstein L, Ivy SP. Factors Affecting Combination Trial Success (FACTS): Investigator Survey Results on Early-Phase Combination Trials. Front Med (Lausanne) 2019; 6:122. [PMID: 31214592 PMCID: PMC6558040 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2019.00122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2019] [Accepted: 05/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Experimental therapeutic oncology agents are often combined to circumvent tumor resistance to individual agents. However, most combination trials fail to demonstrate sufficient safety and efficacy to advance to a later phase. This study collected survey data on phase 1 combination therapy trials identified from ClinicalTrials.gov between January 1, 2003 and November 30, 2017 to assess trial design and the progress of combinations toward regulatory approval. Online surveys (N = 289, 23 questions total) were emailed to Principal Investigators (PIs) of early-phase National Cancer Institute and/or industry trials; 263 emails (91%) were received and 113 surveys completed (43%). Among phase 1 combination trials, 24.9% (95%CI: 15.3%, 34.4%) progressed to phase 2 or further; 18.7% (95%CI: 5.90%, 31.4%) progressed to phase 3 or regulatory approval; and 12.4% (95%CI: 0.00%, 25.5%) achieved regulatory approval. Observations of “clinical promise” in phase 1 combination studies were associated with higher rates of advancement past each milestone toward regulatory approval (cumulative OR = 11.9; p = 0.0002). Phase 1 combination study designs were concordant with Clinical Trial Design Task Force (CTD-TF) Recommendations 79.6% of the time (95%CI: 72.2%, 87.1%). Most discordances occurred where no plausible pharmacokinetic or pharmacodynamic interactions were expected. Investigator-defined “clinical promise” of a combination is associated with progress toward regulatory approval. Although concordance between study designs of phase 1 combination trials and CTD-TF Recommendations was relatively high, it may be beneficial to raise awareness about the best study design to use when no plausible pharmacokinetic or pharmacodynamic interactions are expected.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Channing J Paller
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Erich P Huang
- Biometrics Research Program, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Thomas Luechtefeld
- Environmental Health Sciences, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Holly A Massett
- Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Christopher C Williams
- Clinical Trials Information Management Services, Emmes Corporation, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Jinxiu Zhao
- Clinical Trials Information Management Services, Emmes Corporation, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Amy E Gravell
- Clinical Trials Information Management Services, Emmes Corporation, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Tami Tamashiro
- Clinical Trials Information Management Services, Emmes Corporation, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Steven A Reeves
- Coordinating Center for Clinical Trials, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Gary L Rosner
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Michael A Carducci
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Lawrence Rubinstein
- Biometrics Research Program, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - S Percy Ivy
- Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD, United States
| |
Collapse
|
37
|
Tamoxifen citrate/Coenzyme Q10 as smart nanocarriers Bitherapy for Breast Cancer: Cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, and antioxidant activity. J Drug Deliv Sci Technol 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2019.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
|
38
|
Peskov K, Azarov I, Chu L, Voronova V, Kosinsky Y, Helmlinger G. Quantitative Mechanistic Modeling in Support of Pharmacological Therapeutics Development in Immuno-Oncology. Front Immunol 2019; 10:924. [PMID: 31134058 PMCID: PMC6524731 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.00924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2019] [Accepted: 04/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Following the approval, in recent years, of the first immune checkpoint inhibitor, there has been an explosion in the development of immuno-modulating pharmacological modalities for the treatment of various cancers. From the discovery phase to late-stage clinical testing and regulatory approval, challenges in the development of immuno-oncology (IO) drugs are multi-fold and complex. In the preclinical setting, the multiplicity of potential drug targets around immune checkpoints, the growing list of immuno-modulatory molecular and cellular forces in the tumor microenvironment-with additional opportunities for IO drug targets, the emergence of exploratory biomarkers, and the unleashed potential of modality combinations all have necessitated the development of quantitative, mechanistically-oriented systems models which incorporate key biology and patho-physiology aspects of immuno-oncology and the pharmacokinetics of IO-modulating agents. In the clinical setting, the qualification of surrogate biomarkers predictive of IO treatment efficacy or outcome, and the corresponding optimization of IO trial design have become major challenges. This mini-review focuses on the evolution and state-of-the-art of quantitative systems models describing the tumor vs. immune system interplay, and their merging with quantitative pharmacology models of IO-modulating agents, as companion tools to support the addressing of these challenges.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kirill Peskov
- M&S Decisions, Moscow, Russia.,Computational Oncology Group, I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University of the Russian Ministry of Health, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Lulu Chu
- Quantitative Clinical Pharmacology, Early Clinical Development, IMED Biotech Unit, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Boston, MA, United States
| | | | | | - Gabriel Helmlinger
- Quantitative Clinical Pharmacology, Early Clinical Development, IMED Biotech Unit, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Boston, MA, United States
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
The Adaptive Complexity of Cancer. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2019; 2018:5837235. [PMID: 30627563 PMCID: PMC6304530 DOI: 10.1155/2018/5837235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2018] [Accepted: 11/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Cancer treatment options are expanding to the benefit of significant segments of patients. However, their therapeutic power is not equally realized for all cancer patients due to drug toxicity and disease resistance. Overcoming these therapeutic challenges would require a better understanding of the adaptive survival mechanisms of cancer. In this respect, an integrated view of the disease as a complex adaptive system is proposed as a framework to explain the dynamic coupling between the various drivers underlying tumor growth and cancer resistance to therapy. In light of this system view of cancer, the immune system is in principal the most appropriate and naturally available therapeutic instrument that can thwart the adaptive survival mechanisms of cancer. In this respect, new cancer therapies should aim at restoring immunosurveillance by priming the induction of an effective immune response through a judicious targeting of immunosuppression, inflammation, and the tumor nutritional lifeline extended by the tumor microenvironment.
Collapse
|
40
|
Abdul KU, Houweling M, Svensson F, Narayan RS, Cornelissen FMG, Küçükosmanoglu A, Metzakopian E, Watts C, Bailey D, Wurdinger T, Westerman BA. WINDOW consortium: A path towards increased therapy efficacy against glioblastoma. Drug Resist Updat 2018; 40:17-24. [PMID: 30439622 DOI: 10.1016/j.drup.2018.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2018] [Revised: 10/19/2018] [Accepted: 10/27/2018] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Glioblastoma is the most common and malignant form of brain cancer, for which the standard treatment is maximal surgical resection, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Despite these interventions, mean overall survival remains less than 15 months, during which extensive tumor infiltration throughout the brain occurs. The resulting metastasized cells in the brain are characterized by chemotherapy resistance and extensive intratumoral heterogeneity. An orthogonal approach attacking both intracellular resistance mechanisms as well as intercellular heterogeneity is necessary to halt tumor progression. For this reason, we established the WINDOW Consortium (Window for Improvement for Newly Diagnosed patients by Overcoming disease Worsening), in which we are establishing a strategy for rational selection and development of effective therapies against glioblastoma. Here, we overview the many challenges posed in treating glioblastoma, including selection of drug combinations that prevent therapy resistance, the need for drugs that have improved blood brain barrier penetration and strategies to counter heterogeneous cell populations within patients. Together, this forms the backbone of our strategy to attack glioblastoma.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kulsoom U Abdul
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Megan Houweling
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Fredrik Svensson
- IOTA Pharmaceuticals Ltd, St Johns Innovation Centre, Cowley Road, Cambridge, CB4 0WS, United Kingdom
| | - Ravi S Narayan
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Fleur M G Cornelissen
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Asli Küçükosmanoglu
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | | | - Colin Watts
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, United Kingdom
| | - David Bailey
- IOTA Pharmaceuticals Ltd, St Johns Innovation Centre, Cowley Road, Cambridge, CB4 0WS, United Kingdom
| | - Tom Wurdinger
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Bart A Westerman
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
New omic and network paradigms for deep understanding of therapeutic mechanisms for Fangji of traditional Chinese medicine. Acta Pharmacol Sin 2018; 39:903-905. [PMID: 29863110 DOI: 10.1038/aps.2018.42] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
|
42
|
Preuer K, Lewis RPI, Hochreiter S, Bender A, Bulusu KC, Klambauer G. DeepSynergy: predicting anti-cancer drug synergy with Deep Learning. Bioinformatics 2018; 34:1538-1546. [PMID: 29253077 PMCID: PMC5925774 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btx806] [Citation(s) in RCA: 232] [Impact Index Per Article: 38.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2017] [Revised: 12/06/2017] [Accepted: 12/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Motivation While drug combination therapies are a well-established concept in cancer treatment, identifying novel synergistic combinations is challenging due to the size of combinatorial space. However, computational approaches have emerged as a time- and cost-efficient way to prioritize combinations to test, based on recently available large-scale combination screening data. Recently, Deep Learning has had an impact in many research areas by achieving new state-of-the-art model performance. However, Deep Learning has not yet been applied to drug synergy prediction, which is the approach we present here, termed DeepSynergy. DeepSynergy uses chemical and genomic information as input information, a normalization strategy to account for input data heterogeneity, and conical layers to model drug synergies. Results DeepSynergy was compared to other machine learning methods such as Gradient Boosting Machines, Random Forests, Support Vector Machines and Elastic Nets on the largest publicly available synergy dataset with respect to mean squared error. DeepSynergy significantly outperformed the other methods with an improvement of 7.2% over the second best method at the prediction of novel drug combinations within the space of explored drugs and cell lines. At this task, the mean Pearson correlation coefficient between the measured and the predicted values of DeepSynergy was 0.73. Applying DeepSynergy for classification of these novel drug combinations resulted in a high predictive performance of an AUC of 0.90. Furthermore, we found that all compared methods exhibit low predictive performance when extrapolating to unexplored drugs or cell lines, which we suggest is due to limitations in the size and diversity of the dataset. We envision that DeepSynergy could be a valuable tool for selecting novel synergistic drug combinations. Availability and implementation DeepSynergy is available via www.bioinf.jku.at/software/DeepSynergy. Contact klambauer@bioinf.jku.at. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kristina Preuer
- Institute of Bioinformatics, Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria
| | - Richard P I Lewis
- Department of Chemistry, Centre for Molecular Science Informatics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Sepp Hochreiter
- Institute of Bioinformatics, Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria
| | - Andreas Bender
- Department of Chemistry, Centre for Molecular Science Informatics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Krishna C Bulusu
- Department of Chemistry, Centre for Molecular Science Informatics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Oncology Innovative Medicines and Early Development, AstraZeneca, Hodgkin Building, Chesterford Research Campus, Saffron Walden, Cambs, UK
| | - Günter Klambauer
- Institute of Bioinformatics, Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
He L, Tang J, Andersson EI, Timonen S, Koschmieder S, Wennerberg K, Mustjoki S, Aittokallio T. Patient-Customized Drug Combination Prediction and Testing for T-cell Prolymphocytic Leukemia Patients. Cancer Res 2018; 78:2407-2418. [DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-17-3644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2017] [Revised: 01/17/2018] [Accepted: 02/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
|
44
|
Korcsmaros T, Schneider MV, Superti-Furga G. Next generation of network medicine: interdisciplinary signaling approaches. Integr Biol (Camb) 2017; 9:97-108. [PMID: 28106223 DOI: 10.1039/c6ib00215c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
In the last decade, network approaches have transformed our understanding of biological systems. Network analyses and visualizations have allowed us to identify essential molecules and modules in biological systems, and improved our understanding of how changes in cellular processes can lead to complex diseases, such as cancer, infectious and neurodegenerative diseases. "Network medicine" involves unbiased large-scale network-based analyses of diverse data describing interactions between genes, diseases, phenotypes, drug targets, drug transport, drug side-effects, disease trajectories and more. In terms of drug discovery, network medicine exploits our understanding of the network connectivity and signaling system dynamics to help identify optimal, often novel, drug targets. Contrary to initial expectations, however, network approaches have not yet delivered a revolution in molecular medicine. In this review, we propose that a key reason for the limited impact, so far, of network medicine is a lack of quantitative multi-disciplinary studies involving scientists from different backgrounds. To support this argument, we present existing approaches from structural biology, 'omics' technologies (e.g., genomics, proteomics, lipidomics) and computational modeling that point towards how multi-disciplinary efforts allow for important new insights. We also highlight some breakthrough studies as examples of the potential of these approaches, and suggest ways to make greater use of the power of interdisciplinarity. This review reflects discussions held at an interdisciplinary signaling workshop which facilitated knowledge exchange from experts from several different fields, including in silico modelers, computational biologists, biochemists, geneticists, molecular and cell biologists as well as cancer biologists and pharmacologists.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tamas Korcsmaros
- Earlham Institute, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK. and Gut Health and Food Safety Programme, Institute of Food Research, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK
| | | | - Giulio Superti-Furga
- CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, 1090 Vienna, Austria and Center for Physiology and Pharmacology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
El-Leithy ES, Abdel-Rashid RS. Lipid nanocarriers for tamoxifen citrate/coenzyme Q10 dual delivery. J Drug Deliv Sci Technol 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2017.07.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
|
46
|
Novel Early Phase Clinical Trial Design in Oncology. Pharmaceut Med 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s40290-017-0205-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
|
47
|
Cheng T, Hao M, Takeda T, Bryant SH, Wang Y. Large-Scale Prediction of Drug-Target Interaction: a Data-Centric Review. AAPS J 2017; 19:1264-1275. [PMID: 28577120 PMCID: PMC11097213 DOI: 10.1208/s12248-017-0092-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2017] [Accepted: 04/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The prediction of drug-target interactions (DTIs) is of extraordinary significance to modern drug discovery in terms of suggesting new drug candidates and repositioning old drugs. Despite technological advances, large-scale experimental determination of DTIs is still expensive and laborious. Effective and low-cost computational alternatives remain in strong need. Meanwhile, open-access resources have been rapidly growing with massive amount of bioactivity data becoming available, creating unprecedented opportunities for the development of novel in silico models for large-scale DTI prediction. In this work, we review the state-of-the-art computational approaches for identifying DTIs from a data-centric perspective: what the underlying data are and how they are utilized in each study. We also summarize popular public data resources and online tools for DTI prediction. It is found that various types of data were employed including properties of chemical structures, drug therapeutic effects and side effects, drug-target binding, drug-drug interactions, bioactivity data of drug molecules across multiple biological targets, and drug-induced gene expressions. More often, the heterogeneous data were integrated to offer better performance. However, challenges remain such as handling data imbalance, incorporating negative samples and quantitative bioactivity data, as well as maintaining cross-links among different data sources, which are essential for large-scale and automated information integration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tiejun Cheng
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20894, USA
| | - Ming Hao
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20894, USA
| | - Takako Takeda
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20894, USA
| | - Stephen H Bryant
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20894, USA
| | - Yanli Wang
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20894, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Sharma A, Capobianco E. Immuno-Oncology Integrative Networks: Elucidating the Influences of Osteosarcoma Phenotypes. Cancer Inform 2017; 16:1176935117721691. [PMID: 28804242 PMCID: PMC5533255 DOI: 10.1177/1176935117721691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2017] [Accepted: 06/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In vivo and in vitro functional phenotyping characterization was recently obtained with reference to an experimental pan-cancer study of 22 osteosarcoma (OS) cell lines. Here, differentially expressed gene (DEG) profiles were recomputed from the publicly available data to conduct network inference on the immune system regulatory activity across the characterized OS phenotypes. Based on such DEG profiles, and for each phenotype that was analyzed, we obtained coexpression networks and bio-annotations for them. Then, we described the immune-modulated influences in phenotype-specific networks' integrating pathway, transcription factor, and microRNA regulations. Overall, this approach seems suitable for representing heterogeneity in OS tumorigenesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ankush Sharma
- Center for Computational Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Enrico Capobianco
- Center for Computational Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
USP7 inhibition alters homologous recombination repair and targets CLL cells independently of ATM/p53 functional status. Blood 2017; 130:156-166. [PMID: 28495793 DOI: 10.1182/blood-2016-12-758219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2016] [Accepted: 04/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of deubiquitylase ubiquitin-specific protease 7 (USP7) in the regulation of the p53-dependent DNA damage response (DDR) pathway is well established. Whereas previous studies have mostly focused on the mechanisms underlying how USP7 directly controls p53 stability, we recently showed that USP7 modulates the stability of the DNA damage responsive E3 ubiquitin ligase RAD18. This suggests that targeting USP7 may have therapeutic potential even in tumors with defective p53 or ibrutinib resistance. To test this hypothesis, we studied the effect of USP7 inhibition in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) where the ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM)-p53 pathway is inactivated with relatively high frequency, leading to treatment resistance and poor clinical outcome. We demonstrate that USP7 is upregulated in CLL cells, and its loss or inhibition disrupts homologous recombination repair (HRR). Consequently, USP7 inhibition induces significant tumor-cell killing independently of ATM and p53 through the accumulation of genotoxic levels of DNA damage. Moreover, USP7 inhibition sensitized p53-defective, chemotherapy-resistant CLL cells to clinically achievable doses of HRR-inducing chemotherapeutic agents in vitro and in vivo in a murine xenograft model. Together, these results identify USP7 as a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of hematological malignancies with DDR defects, where ATM/p53-dependent apoptosis is compromised.
Collapse
|