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Anjali PB, Jawahar N, Praharsh Kumar MR, Jubie S, Selvamuthukumar S. Exploring the Anticonvulsant Properties of a Celecoxib-Phospholipid Conjugate: Synthesis, Activation, and Evaluation of Cytotoxicity. Drug Res (Stuttg) 2024; 74:296-301. [PMID: 38968953 DOI: 10.1055/a-2331-7114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/07/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Epilepsy poses a significant global health challenge, particularly in regions with limited financial resources hindering access to treatment. Recent research highlights neuroinflammation, particularly involving cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) pathways, as a promising avenue for epilepsy management. METHODS This study aimed to develop a Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor with potential anticonvulsant properties. A promising drug candidate was identified and chemically linked with phospholipids through docking analyses. The activation of this prodrug was assessed using phospholipase A2 (PLA2)-mediated hydrolysis studies. The conjugate's confirmation and cytotoxicity were evaluated using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), and Sulphoramide B (SRB) assays. RESULTS Docking studies revealed that the Celecoxib-Phospholipid conjugate exhibited a superior affinity for PLA2 compared to other drug-phospholipid conjugates. FT-IR spectroscopy confirmed the successful synthesis of the conjugate, while DSC analysis confirmed its purity and formation. PLA2-mediated hydrolysis experiments demonstrated selective activation of the prodrug depending on PLA2 concentration. SRB experiments indicated dose-dependent cytotoxic effects of Celecoxib, phospholipid non-toxicity, and efficient celecoxib-phospholipid conjugation. CONCLUSION This study successfully developed a Celecoxib-phospholipid conjugate with potential anticonvulsant properties. The prodrug's specific activation and cytotoxicity profile makes it a promising therapeutic candidate. Further investigation into underlying mechanisms and in vivo studies is necessary to assess its translational potential fully.
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Affiliation(s)
- Puthusserikkunnu B Anjali
- Department of Pharmaceutics, JSS College of Pharmacy, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Ooty, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Natarajan Jawahar
- Department of Pharmaceutics, JSS College of Pharmacy, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Ooty, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Mandadhi R Praharsh Kumar
- Department of Pharmaceutics, JSS College of Pharmacy, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Ooty, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Selvaraj Jubie
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, JSS College of Pharmacy, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Ooty, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India
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Wegner T, Laskar R, Glorius F. Lipid mimetics: A versatile toolbox for lipid biology and beyond. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2022; 71:102209. [PMID: 36122522 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2022.102209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Revised: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/10/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Being the principal component of biological membranes lipids are essential building blocks of life. Given their huge biological importance, the investigation of lipids, their properties, interactions and metabolic pathways is of prime importance for the fundamental understanding of living cells and organisms as well as the emergence of diseases. Different strategies have been applied to investigate lipid-mediated biological processes, one of them being the use of lipid mimetics. They structurally resemble their natural counterparts but are equipped with functionality that can be used to probe or manipulate lipid-mediated biological processes and biomembranes. Lipid mimetics therefore constitute an indispensable toolbox for lipid biology and membrane research but also beyond for potential applications in medicine or synthetic biology. Herein, we highlight recent advances in the development and application of lipid-mimicking compounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tristan Wegner
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Ranjini Laskar
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Frank Glorius
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
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Markovic M, Ben-Shabat S, Nagendra Manda J, Abramov-Harpaz K, Regev C, Miller Y, Aponick A, Zimmermann EM, Dahan A. PLA 2-Triggered Activation of Cyclosporine-Phospholipid Prodrug as a Drug Targeting Approach in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Therapy. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14030675. [PMID: 35336048 PMCID: PMC8950246 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14030675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2022] [Revised: 03/13/2022] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Oral medication with activity specifically at the inflamed sites throughout the gastrointestinal tract and limited systemic exposure would be a major advance in our therapeutic approach to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). For this purpose, we have designed a prodrug by linking active drug moiety to phospholipid (PL), the substrate of phospholipase A2 (PLA2). PLA2 expression and activity is significantly elevated in the inflamed intestinal tissues of IBD patients. Since PLA2 enzyme specifically hydrolyses the sn-2 bond within PLs, in our PL-based prodrug approach, the sn-2 positioned FA is replaced with cyclosporine, so that PLA2 may be exploited as the prodrug-activating enzyme, releasing the free drug from the PL-complex. Owing to the enzyme overexpression, this may effectively target free cyclosporine to the sites of inflammation. Four PL-cyclosporine prodrugs were synthesized, differing by their linker length between the PL and the drug moiety. To study the prodrug activation, a novel enzymatically enriched model was developed, the colonic brush border membrane vesicles (cBBMVs); in this model, tissue vesicles were produced from colitis-induced (vs. healthy) rat colons. PLA2 overexpression (3.4-fold) was demonstrated in diseased vs. healthy cBBMVs. Indeed, while healthy cBBMVs induced only marginal activation, substantial prodrug activation was evident by colitis-derived cBBMVs. Together with the PLA2 overexpression, these data validate our drug targeting strategy. In the diseased cBBMVs, quick and complete activation of the entire dose was obtained for the 12-carbon linker prodrug, while slow and marginal activation was obtained for the 6/8-carbon linkers. The potential to target the actual sites of inflammation and treat any localizations throughout the GIT, together with the extended therapeutic index, makes this orally delivered prodrug approach an exciting new therapeutic strategy for IBD treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milica Markovic
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
| | - Shimon Ben-Shabat
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
| | | | - Karina Abramov-Harpaz
- Department of Chemistry, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (K.A.-H.); (C.R.); (Y.M.)
- Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel
| | - Clil Regev
- Department of Chemistry, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (K.A.-H.); (C.R.); (Y.M.)
- Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel
| | - Yifat Miller
- Department of Chemistry, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (K.A.-H.); (C.R.); (Y.M.)
- Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel
| | - Aaron Aponick
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32603, USA; (J.N.M.); (A.A.)
| | - Ellen M. Zimmermann
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA;
| | - Arik Dahan
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
- Correspondence:
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4
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Markovic M, Abramov-Harpaz K, Regev C, Ben-Shabat S, Aponick A, Zimmermann EM, Miller Y, Dahan A. Prodrug-Based Targeting Approach for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases Therapy: Mechanistic Study of Phospholipid-Linker-Cyclosporine PLA 2-Mediated Activation. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23052673. [PMID: 35269813 PMCID: PMC8910962 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23052673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Revised: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Therapeutics with activity specifically at the inflamed sites throughout the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) would be a major advance in our therapeutic approach to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We aimed to develop the prodrug approach that can allow such site-specific drug delivery. Currently, using cyclosporine as a drug of choice in IBD is limited to the most severe cases due to substantial systemic toxicities and narrow therapeutic index of this drug. Previously, we synthesized a series of a phospholipid-linker-cyclosporine (PLC) prodrugs designed to exploit the overexpression of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) in the inflamed intestinal tissues, as the prodrug-activating enzyme. Nevertheless, the extent and rate of prodrug activation differed significantly. In this study we applied in-vitro and modern in-silico tools based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, to gain insight into the dynamics and mechanisms of the PLC prodrug activation. We aimed to elucidate the reason for the significant activation change between different linker lengths in our prodrug design. Our work reveals that the PLC conjugate with the 12-carbon linker length yields the optimal prodrug activation by PLA2 in comparison to shorter linker length (6-carbons). This optimized length efficiently allows cyclosporine to be released from the prodrug to the active pocket of PLA2. This newly developed mechanistic approach, presented in this study, can be applied for future prodrug optimization to accomplish optimal prodrug activation and drug targeting in various conditions that include overexpression of PLA2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milica Markovic
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
| | - Karina Abramov-Harpaz
- Department of Chemistry, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (K.A.-H.); (C.R.)
- Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel
| | - Clil Regev
- Department of Chemistry, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (K.A.-H.); (C.R.)
- Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel
| | - Shimon Ben-Shabat
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
| | - Aaron Aponick
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32603, USA;
| | - Ellen M. Zimmermann
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA;
| | - Yifat Miller
- Department of Chemistry, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (K.A.-H.); (C.R.)
- Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel
- Correspondence: (Y.M.); (A.D.)
| | - Arik Dahan
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
- Correspondence: (Y.M.); (A.D.)
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5
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Huang L, Yang J, Wang T, Gao J, Xu D. Engineering of small-molecule lipidic prodrugs as novel nanomedicines for enhanced drug delivery. J Nanobiotechnology 2022; 20:49. [PMID: 35073914 PMCID: PMC8785568 DOI: 10.1186/s12951-022-01257-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractA widely established prodrug strategy can effectively optimize the unappealing properties of therapeutic agents in cancer treatment. Among them, lipidic prodrugs extremely uplift the physicochemical properties, site-specificity, and antitumor activities of therapeutic agents while reducing systemic toxicity. Although great perspectives have been summarized in the progress of prodrug-based nanoplatforms, no attention has been paid to emphasizing the rational design of small-molecule lipidic prodrugs (SLPs). With the aim of outlining the prospect of the SLPs approach, the review will first provide an overview of conjugation strategies that are amenable to SLPs fabrication. Then, the rational design of SLPs in response to the physiological barriers of chemotherapeutic agents is highlighted. Finally, their biomedical applications are also emphasized with special functions, followed by a brief introduction of the promising opportunities and potential challenges of SLPs-based drug delivery systems (DDSs) in clinical application.
Graphical Abstract
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Han S, Mei L, Quach T, Porter C, Trevaskis N. Lipophilic Conjugates of Drugs: A Tool to Improve Drug Pharmacokinetic and Therapeutic Profiles. Pharm Res 2021; 38:1497-1518. [PMID: 34463935 DOI: 10.1007/s11095-021-03093-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Lipophilic conjugates (LCs) of small molecule drugs have been used widely in clinical and pre-clinical studies to achieve a number of pharmacokinetic and therapeutic benefits. For example, lipophilic derivatives of drugs are employed in several long acting injectable products to provide sustained drug exposure for hormone replacement therapy and to treat conditions such as neuropsychiatric diseases. LCs can also be used to modulate drug metabolism, and to enhance drug permeation across membranes, either by increasing lipophilicity to enhance passive diffusion or by increasing protein-mediated active transport. Furthermore, such conjugation strategies have been employed to promote drug association with endogenous macromolecular carriers (e.g. albumin and lipoproteins), and this in turn results in altered drug distribution and pharmacokinetic profiles, where the changes can be 'general' (e.g. prolonged plasma half-life) or 'specific' (e.g. enhanced delivery to specific tissues in parallel with the macromolecular carriers). Another utility of LCs is to enhance the encapsulation of drugs within engineered nanoscale drug delivery systems, in order to best take advantage of the targeting and pharmacokinetic benefits of nanomedicines. The current review provides a summary of the mechanisms by which lipophilic conjugates, including in combination with delivery vehicles, can be used to control drug delivery, distribution and therapeutic profiles. The article is structured into sections which highlight a specific benefit of LCs and then demonstrate this benefit with case studies. The review attempts to provide a toolbox to assist researchers to design and optimise drug candidates, including consideration of drug-formulation compatibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sifei Han
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia.
- Suzhou Institute of Drug Innovation, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215123, China.
| | - Lianghe Mei
- Suzhou Institute of Drug Innovation, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215123, China
| | - Tim Quach
- Medicinal Chemistry, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
- PureTech Health, 6 Tide Street, Boston, MA, 02210, USA
| | - Chris Porter
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - Natalie Trevaskis
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia.
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Coppens E, Desmaële D, Mougin J, Tusseau-Nenez S, Couvreur P, Mura S. Gemcitabine Lipid Prodrugs: The Key Role of the Lipid Moiety on the Self-Assembly into Nanoparticles. Bioconjug Chem 2021; 32:782-793. [PMID: 33797231 DOI: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.1c00051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
A small library of amphiphilic prodrugs has been synthesized by conjugation of gemcitabine (Gem) (a hydrophilic nucleoside analogue) to a series of lipid moieties and investigated for their capacity to spontaneously self-assemble into nanosized objects by simple nanoprecipitation. Four of these conjugates formed stable nanoparticles (NPs), while with the others, immediate aggregation occurred, whatever the tested experimental conditions. Whether such capacity could have been predicted based on the prodrug physicochemical features was a matter of question. Among various parameters, the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) value seemed to hold a predictive character. Indeed, we identified a threshold value which well correlated with the tendency (or not) of the synthesized prodrugs to form stable nanoparticles. Such a hypothesis was further confirmed by broadening the analysis to Gem and other nucleoside prodrugs already described in the literature. We also observed that, in the case of Gem prodrugs, the lipid moiety affected not only the colloidal properties but also the in vitro anticancer efficacy of the resulting nanoparticles. Overall, this study provides a useful demonstration of the predictive potential of the HLB value for lipid prodrug NP formulation and highlights the need of their opportune in vitro screening, as optimal drug loading does not always translate in an efficient biological activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleonore Coppens
- Institut Galien Paris-Saclay, UMR 8612, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, F-92296 cedex Châtenay-Malabry, France
| | - Didier Desmaële
- Institut Galien Paris-Saclay, UMR 8612, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, F-92296 cedex Châtenay-Malabry, France
| | - Julie Mougin
- Institut Galien Paris-Saclay, UMR 8612, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, F-92296 cedex Châtenay-Malabry, France
| | - Sandrine Tusseau-Nenez
- Laboratoire de Physique de la Matière Condensée (PMC), CNRS, Ecole Polytechnique, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, 91120 Palaiseau, France
| | - Patrick Couvreur
- Institut Galien Paris-Saclay, UMR 8612, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, F-92296 cedex Châtenay-Malabry, France
| | - Simona Mura
- Institut Galien Paris-Saclay, UMR 8612, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, F-92296 cedex Châtenay-Malabry, France
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Markovic M, Ben-Shabat S, Dahan A. Prodrugs for Improved Drug Delivery: Lessons Learned from Recently Developed and Marketed Products. Pharmaceutics 2020; 12:pharmaceutics12111031. [PMID: 33137942 PMCID: PMC7692606 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics12111031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2020] [Revised: 10/18/2020] [Accepted: 10/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Prodrugs are bioreversible, inactive drug derivatives, which have the ability to convert into a parent drug in the body. In the past, prodrugs were used as a last option; however, nowadays, prodrugs are considered already in the early stages of drug development. Optimal prodrug needs to have effective absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination (ADME) features to be chemically stable, to be selective towards the particular site in the body, and to have appropriate safety. Traditional prodrug approach aims to improve physicochemical/biopharmaceutical drug properties; modern prodrugs also include cellular and molecular parameters to accomplish desired drug effect and site-specificity. Here, we present recently investigated prodrugs, their pharmaceutical and clinical advantages, and challenges facing the overall prodrug development. Given examples illustrate that prodrugs can accomplish appropriate solubility, increase permeability, provide site-specific targeting (i.e., to organs, tissues, enzymes, or transporters), overcome rapid drug metabolism, decrease toxicity, or provide better patient compliance, all with the aim to provide optimal drug therapy and outcome. Overall, the prodrug approach is a powerful tool to decrease the time/costs of developing new drug entities and improve overall drug therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Arik Dahan
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +972-8-6479483; Fax: +972-8-6479303
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Markovic M, Ben-Shabat S, Dahan A. Computational Simulations to Guide Enzyme-Mediated Prodrug Activation. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21103621. [PMID: 32443905 PMCID: PMC7279318 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21103621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2020] [Revised: 05/18/2020] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Prodrugs are designed to improve pharmaceutical/biopharmaceutical characteristics, pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic properties, site-specificity, and more. A crucial step in successful prodrug is its activation, which releases the active parent drug, exerting a therapeutic effect. Prodrug activation can be based on oxidation/reduction processes, or through enzyme-mediated hydrolysis, from oxidoreductases (i.e., Cytochrome P450) to hydrolytic enzymes (i.e., carboxylesterase). This study provides an overview of the novel in silico methods for the optimization of enzyme-mediated prodrug activation. Computational methods simulating enzyme-substrate binding can be simpler like molecular docking, or more complex, such as quantum mechanics (QM), molecular mechanics (MM), and free energy perturbation (FEP) methods such as molecular dynamics (MD). Examples for MD simulations used for elucidating the mechanism of prodrug (losartan, paclitaxel derivatives) metabolism via CYP450 enzyme are presented, as well as an MD simulation for optimizing linker length in phospholipid-based prodrugs. Molecular docking investigating quinazolinone prodrugs as substrates for alkaline phosphatase is also presented, as well as QM and MD simulations used for optimal fit of different prodrugs within the human carboxylesterase 1 catalytical site. Overall, high quality computational simulations may show good agreement with experimental results, and should be used early in the prodrug development process.
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Markovic M, Ben-Shabat S, Aponick A, Zimmermann EM, Dahan A. Lipids and Lipid-Processing Pathways in Drug Delivery and Therapeutics. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21093248. [PMID: 32375338 PMCID: PMC7247327 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21093248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2020] [Revised: 04/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this work is to analyze relevant endogenous lipid processing pathways, in the context of the impact that lipids have on drug absorption, their therapeutic use, and utilization in drug delivery. Lipids may serve as biomarkers of some diseases, but they can also provide endogenous therapeutic effects for certain pathological conditions. Current uses and possible clinical benefits of various lipids (fatty acids, steroids, triglycerides, and phospholipids) in cancer, infectious, inflammatory, and neurodegenerative diseases are presented. Lipids can also be conjugated to a drug molecule, accomplishing numerous potential benefits, one being the improved treatment effect, due to joined influence of the lipid carrier and the drug moiety. In addition, such conjugates have increased lipophilicity relative to the parent drug. This leads to improved drug pharmacokinetics and bioavailability, the ability to join endogenous lipid pathways and achieve drug targeting to the lymphatics, inflamed tissues in certain autoimmune diseases, or enable overcoming different barriers in the body. Altogether, novel mechanisms of the lipid role in diseases are constantly discovered, and new ways to exploit these mechanisms for the optimal drug design that would advance different drug delivery/therapy aspects are continuously emerging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milica Markovic
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
| | - Shimon Ben-Shabat
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
| | - Aaron Aponick
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32603, USA;
| | - Ellen M. Zimmermann
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA;
| | - Arik Dahan
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, Israel; (M.M.); (S.B.-S.)
- Correspondence:
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