CRMP2 as a Candidate Target to Interfere with Lung Cancer Cell Migration

Drug Repurposing for Cancer Treatment: A Comprehensive Review

Cancer ranks among the primary contributors to global mortality. In 2022, the global incidence of new cancer cases reached about 20 million, while the number of cancer-related fatalities reached 9.7 million. In Saudi Arabia, there were 13,399 deaths caused by cancer and 28,113 newly diagnosed cases of cancer. Drug repurposing is a drug discovery strategy that has gained special attention and implementation to enhance the process of drug development due to its time- and money-saving effect. It involves repositioning existing medications to new clinical applications. Cancer treatment is a therapeutic area where drug repurposing has shown the most prominent impact. This review presents a compilation of medications that have been repurposed for the treatment of various types of cancers. It describes the initial therapeutic and pharmacological classes of the repurposed drugs and their new applications and mechanisms of action in cancer treatment. The review reports on drugs from various pharmacological classes that have been successfully repurposed for cancer treatment, including approved ones and those in clinical trials and preclinical development. It stratifies drugs based on their anticancer repurpose as multi-type, type-specific, and mechanism-directed, and according to their pharmacological classes. The review also reflects on the future potential that drug repurposing has in the clinical development of novel anticancer therapies.

Sinomenine ameliorates fibroblast-like synoviocytes dysfunction by promoting phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of CRMP2

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by synovial inflammation and arthritic pain. Sinomenine (SIN), derived from the rhizome of Chinese medical herb Qing Teng (scientific name: Sinomenium acutum (Thunb.) Rehd. Et Wils), has a longstanding use in Chinese traditional medicine for treating rheumatoid arthritis. It has been shown to possess anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and immunosuppressive effects with minimal side-effects clinically. However, the mechanisms governing its effects in treatment of joint pathology, especially on fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLSs) dysfunction, and arthritic pain remains unclear.

AIM

This study aimed to investigate the effect and underlying mechanism of SIN on arthritic joint inflammation and joint FLSs dysfunctions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) was induced in rats and the therapeutic effects of SIN on joint pathology were evaluated histopathologically. Next, we conducted a series of experiments using LPS-induced FLSs, which were divided into five groups (Naïve, LPS, SIN 10, 20, 50 μg/ml). The expression of inflammatory factors was measured by qPCR and ELISA. The invasive ability of cells was detected by modified Transwell assay and qPCR. Transwell migration and cell scratch assays were used to assess the migration ability of cells. The distribution and content of relevant proteins were observed by immunofluorescence and laser confocal microscopy, as well as Western Blot and qPCR. FLSs were transfected with plasmids (CRMP2 T514A/D) to directly modulate the post-translational modification of CRMP2 protein and downstream effects on FLSs function was monitored.

RESULTS

SIN alleviated joint inflammation in rats with CIA, as evidenced by improvement of synovial hyperplasia, inflammatory cell infiltration and cartilage damage, as well as inhibition of pro-inflammatory cytokines release from FLSs induced by LPS. In vitro studies revealed a concentration-dependent suppression of SIN on the invasion and migration of FLSs induced by LPS. In addition, SIN downregulated the expression of cellular CRMP2 that was induced by LPS in FLSs, but increased its phosphorylation at residue T514. Moreover, regulation of pCRMP2 T514 by plasmids transfection (CRMP2 T514A/D) significantly influenced the migration and invasion of FLSs. Finally, SIN promoted nuclear translocation of pCRMP2 T514 in FLSs.

CONCLUSIONS

SIN may exert its anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects by modulating CRMP2 T514 phosphorylation and its nuclear translocation of FLSs, inhibiting pro-inflammatory cytokine release, and suppressing abnormal invasion and migration. Phosphorylation of CRMP2 at the T514 site in FLSs may present a new therapeutic target for treating inflammatory joint's destruction and arthritic pain in RA.

Mapping the Proteoform Landscape of Five Human Tissues

A functional understanding of the human body requires structure-function studies of proteins at scale. The chemical structure of proteins is controlled at the transcriptional, translational, and post-translational levels, creating a variety of products with modulated functions within the cell. The term "proteoform" encapsulates this complexity at the level of chemical composition. Comprehensive mapping of the proteoform landscape in human tissues necessitates analytical techniques with increased sensitivity and depth of coverage. Here, we took a top-down proteomics approach, combining data generated using capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) and nanoflow reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) hyphenated to mass spectrometry to identify and characterize proteoforms from the human lungs, heart, spleen, small intestine, and kidneys. CZE and RPLC provided complementary post-translational modification and proteoform selectivity, thereby enhancing the overall proteome coverage when used in combination. Of the 11,466 proteoforms identified in this study, 7373 (64%) were not reported previously. Large differences in the protein and proteoform level were readily quantified, with initial inferences about proteoform biology operative in the analyzed organs. Differential proteoform regulation of defensins, glutathione transferases, and sarcomeric proteins across tissues generate hypotheses about how they function and are regulated in human health and disease.