Research advances in kinase enzymes and inhibitors for cardiovascular disease treatment

Protein kinase inhibitors in the management of cancer: therapeutic opportunities from natural compounds

Kinase is an enzyme that helps in the phosphorylation of the targeted molecules and can affect their ability to react with other molecules. So, kinase influences metabolic reactions like cell signaling, secretory processes, transport of molecules, etc. The increased activity of certain kinases may cause various types of cancer, i.e. leukemia, glioblastoma, and neuroblastomas. So, the growth of particular cancer cells can be prevented by the inhibition of the kinase responsible for those cancers. Natural products are the key resources for the development of new drugs where approximately 60% of anti-tumor drugs are being developed with the same including specific kinase dwellers. This study comprised molecular interactions of various molecules (obtained from natural sources) as kinase inhibitors for the treatment of cancer. It is expected that by analyzing the skeleton behavior, the process of action, and the body-related activity of these organic products, new cancer-avoiding molecules can be developed.

DL-SPhos: Prediction of serine phosphorylation sites using transformer language model

Serine phosphorylation plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of various cellular processes and diseases. Roughly 81% of human diseases have links to phosphorylation, and an overwhelming 86.4% of protein phosphorylation takes place at serine residues. In eukaryotes, over a quarter of proteins undergo phosphorylation, with more than half implicated in numerous disorders, notably cancer and reproductive system diseases. This study primarily focuses on serine-phosphorylation-driven pathogenesis and the critical role of conserved motif identification. While numerous techniques exist for predicting serine phosphorylation sites, traditional wet lab experiments are resource-intensive. Our paper introduces a cutting-edge deep learning tool for predicting S phosphorylation sites, integrating explainable AI for motif identification, a transformer language model, and deep neural network components. We trained our model on protein sequences from UniProt, validated it against the dbPTM benchmark dataset, and employed the PTMD dataset to explore motifs related to mammalian disorders. Our results highlight that our model surpasses other deep learning predictors by a significant 3%. Furthermore, we utilized the local interpretable model-agnostic explanations (LIME) approach to shed light on the predictions, emphasizing the amino acid residues crucial for S phosphorylation. Notably, our model also outperformed competitors in kinase-specific serine phosphorylation prediction on benchmark datasets.

Pim Kinases: Important Regulators of Cardiovascular Disease

Pim Kinases; Pim-1, Pim-2, and Pim-3, are a family of constitutively active serine/threonine kinases, widely associated with cell survival, proliferation, and migration. Historically considered to be functionally redundant, independent roles for the individual isoforms have been described. Whilst most established for their role in cancer progression, there is increasing evidence for wider pathological roles of Pim kinases within the context of cardiovascular disease, including inflammation, thrombosis, and cardiac injury. The Pim kinase isoforms have widespread expression in cardiovascular tissues, including the heart, coronary artery, aorta, and blood, and have been demonstrated to be upregulated in several co-morbidities/risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Pim kinase inhibition may thus be a desirable therapeutic for a multi-targeted approach to treat cardiovascular disease and some of the associated risk factors. In this review, we discuss what is known about Pim kinase expression and activity in cells of the cardiovascular system, identify areas where the role of Pim kinase has yet to be fully explored and characterised and review the suitability of targeting Pim kinase for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular events in high-risk individuals.

Ca2+/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase II Regulation by Inhibitor of RIPK3 Protects against Cardiac Hypertrophy

The activity of Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II δ (CaMKII δ) is central to the mechanisms of cardiovascular diseases. Receptor-interacting protein kinase 3- (RIPK3-) mediated necroptosis has been reported to contribute to cardiac dysfunction. However, the potential protective role of inhibition of RIPK3, a regulator of CaMKII, on cardiac hypertrophy remains unclear. The present study is aimed at investigating how the RIPK3 inhibitor GSK'872 regulates CaMKII activity and exploring its effect on hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Wild-type (WT) and RIPK3 gene knockout (RIPK3^−/−) mice were implanted subcutaneously with Alzet miniosmotic pumps (200 μL) and perfused with angiotensin II (AMP-AngII) to induce cardiac hypertrophy. After WT mice were induced by AngII for 72 hours, they were injected with GSK'872 with an intraperitoneal (IP) dose of 6 mg/kg once a day for two weeks. After this, they were physiologically examined for Echocardiography, myocardial injury, CaMKII activity, necroptosis, RIPK3 expression, mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein (MLKL) phosphorylation, and mitochondrial ultrastructure. The results indicated that deletion of the RIPK3 gene or administration of GSK'872 could reduce CaMKII activity, alleviate oxidative stress, reduce necroptosis, and reverse myocardial injury and cardiac dysfunction caused by AngII-induced cardiac hypertrophy in mice. The present study demonstrated that CaMKII activation and necroptosis augment cardiac hypertrophy in a RIPK3-dependent manner, which may provide therapeutic strategies for HCM. RIPK3 inhibitor GSK'872 has a protective effect on cardiac hypertrophy and could be an efficacious targeted medicine for HCM in clinical treatment.

Kinesin spindle protein inhibitors in cancer: from high throughput screening to novel therapeutic strategies

Bringing to a halt the cell cycle in mitosis and interfering with its normal progression is one of the most successful anti-cancer strategies used nowadays. Classically, several kinds of anti-cancer drugs like taxanes and vinca alkaloids directly inhibit microtubules during cell division. These drugs exhibit serious side effects, most importantly, severe peripheral neuropathies. Alternatively, KSP inhibitors are grasping a lot of research attention as less toxic mitotic inhibitors. In this review, we track the medicinal chemistry developmental stages of KSP inhibitors. Moreover, we address the challenges that are faced during the development of KSP inhibitor therapy for cancer and future insights for the latest advances in research that are directed to find active KSP inhibitor drugs.

Scientists have recognized the importance of selective KSP inhibitors in the early 2000s and so various KSP protein inhibitors have been investigated. Only ten of these have been clinically evaluated for cancer treatment. Ispinesib (SB-715992) and filanesib (Arry-520) were the most promising small molecules in clinical trials against the KSP protein. Many challenges are faced during the development of an active anti-KSP drug; most importantly are the unsatisfactory clinical trial results. Designing dual inhibitors, antibody–drug conjugates, combination therapy and gene therapy approach are among the main strategies that are being investigated nowadays to find new effective KSP inhibitors. The scientific research efforts are still devoted to find an effective and tolerable KSP inhibitor drug that can gain US FDA approval.

Uraemic solutes as therapeutic targets in CKD-associated cardiovascular disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by the retention of a myriad of solutes termed uraemic (or uremic) toxins, which inflict damage to several organs, including the cardiovascular system. Uraemic toxins can induce hallmarks of cardiovascular disease (CVD), such as atherothrombosis, heart failure, dysrhythmias, vessel calcification and dysregulated angiogenesis. CVD is an important driver of mortality in patients with CKD; however, reliance on conventional approaches to managing CVD risk is insufficient in these patients, underscoring a need to target risk factors that are specific to CKD. Mounting evidence suggests that targeting uraemic toxins and/or pathways induced by uraemic toxins, including tryptophan metabolites and trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), can lower the risk of CVD in patients with CKD. Although tangible therapies resulting from our growing knowledge of uraemic toxicity are yet to materialize, a number of pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches have the potential to abrogate the effects of uraemic toxins, for example, by decreasing the production of uraemic toxins, by modifying metabolic pathways induced by uraemic toxins such as those controlled by aryl hydrocarbon receptor signalling and by augmenting the clearance of uraemic toxins.

Decreased abundance of GDNF mRNA transcript in the immature Sertoli cells of cattle in response to protein kinase inhibitor staurosporine

Sertoli cells (SC) have important functions in spermatogenesis by regulating development of spermatogenic cells. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) are produced by SC. Although the effects of GDNF on spermatogenesis have been well studied, the understanding of how GDNF is synthesized is still limited, especially in food animal producing species. Because protein kinase (PK) has varied functions in multiple cellular processes and the PK pathway modulates SC functions, the objective of the present study was to determine whether PK modulates the abundance of GDNF protein in SC of cattle. To conduct this study, immature SC were enriched from cryopreserved testicular tissues of 1-day-old bulls. These cells had a marked proliferation capacity. Results from immunostaining analysis indicated that there was a sustained abundance of SC mRNA marker protein transcripts and marker proteins: androgen bind protein (ABP), GATA4 and VIMENTIN. There was subsequent characterization of SC treated with the PK inhibitor staurosporine for 0, 1 or 2 h. Results from real-time-PCR and Western blot analyses indicated the treatment (2 h) resulted in a decrease in Gdnf mRNA transcript and GDNF protein. Additionally, the staurosporine treatment resulted in an increase in the abundance of anti-apoptosis Bcl2 and decrease in pro-apoptosis Bax mRNA transcripts. Furthermore, results of the TUNEL assay indicated there was a decrease in apoptosis in the staurosprine-treated SC. Collectively, results indicate the PK signaling is involved in regulation of GDNF protein abundance in the immature SC and the survival of these cells in cattle.

Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II regulation by inhibitor 1 of protein phosphatase 1 alleviates necroptosis in high glucose-induced cardiomyocytes injury

Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) plays an important role in the cardiovascular system. However, the potential protective role of inhibitor 1 of protein phosphatase 1 (I1PP1), which is able to regulate CaMKII, in high glucose-induced cardiomyocytes injury remains unknown. In the present study, cardiomyocytes were transfected with I1PP1 adenovirus to inhibit protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) expression. After the cardiomyocytes were subjected to high glucose stimulation for 48 h, quantitative real-time PCR was used to detect CaMKIIδ alternative splicing. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) level were measured to assess cell damage and energy metabolism respectively. CaMKII activity was represented as phospholamban (PLB) phosphorylation, CaMKII phosphorylation (p-CaMKII) and oxidation (ox-CaMKII). Dihydroethidium (DHE), MitoSOX and JC-1 staining were used to assess oxidative stress and mitochondrial membrane potential. Necroptosis was evaluated by receptor interacting protein kinase 3 (RIPK3) expression, TUNEL and cleaved-caspase 3 levels. RIPK3, mixed lineage kinase domain like protein (MLKL) and dynamin-related protein 1 (DRP1) expressions were also detected. We found that high glucose disordered CaMKIIδ alternative splicing. I1PP1 over-expression suppressed PLB phosphorylation, ox-CaMKII, DRP1, RIPK3 and cleaved-caspase 3 proteins expression, decreased LDH release, attenuated necroptosis, increased ATP level, inhibited oxidative stress, and elevated mitochondrial membrane potential in high glucose-stimulated cardiomyocytes. However, there was no effect on phosphorylation of MLKL (p-MLKL), p-CaMKII, and receptor interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1) expression. Altogether, I1PP1 over-expression alleviated CaMKIIδ alternative splicing disorder, suppressed CaMKII oxidation, reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and inhibited necroptosis to attenuate high glucose-induced cardiomyocytes injury.

Phorbol ester-induced angiogenesis of endothelial progenitor cells: The role of NADPH oxidase-mediated, redox-related matrix metalloproteinase pathways

Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) may contribute to ischemia-induced angiogenesis in atherosclerotic diseases. The protein kinase C (PKC) family is involved in the regulation of angiogenesis, however the role of PKCα in EPCs during angiogenesis is unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of PKCα in EPCs during angiogenesis. Phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA), a PKCα activator, significantly increased the activity and expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) -2 and -9 in human (late outgrowth) EPCs in vitro. The MMPs promoted the migratory function and vascular formation of EPCs, which then contributed to neovascularization in a mouse hindlimb-ischemia model. Reactive oxygen species derived from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase enhanced the expression of MMPs to increase the bioactivity of EPCs during angiogenesis. The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal pathway was associated with the activation of NADPH oxidase. PMA extensively activated the extracellular signal–regulated kinase (Erk) signal pathway to increase the expression of MMP-9. PMA also activated the p38, Erk, and c-Jun N-terminal kinase signal pathways to increase the expression of MMP-2. PMA-stimulated EPCs enhanced neovascularization in a mouse model of hindlimb ischemia via nuclear factor-κB translocation to up-regulation of the expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9. PMA could activate PKCα and promote the angiogenesis capacity of human EPCs via NADPH oxidase-mediated, redox-related, MMP-2 and MMP-9 pathways. The PKCα-activated, NADPH oxidase-mediated, redox-related MMP pathways could contribute to the function of human EPCs for ischemia-induced neovascularization, which may provide novel insights into the potential modification of EPCs for therapeutic angiogenesis.

Blossoming 20: The Energetic Regulator's Birthday Unveils its Versatility in Cardiac Diseases

The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) coactivator-1α (PGC-1α) was first identified in 1998 as a PGC-1 family member that regulates adaptive thermogenesis and mitochondrial function following cold exposure in brown adipose tissue. The PGC-1 family has drawn widespread attention over the past two decades as the energetic regulator. We recently summarized a review regarding PGC-1 signaling pathway and its mechanisms in cardiac metabolism. In this review, we elaborate upon the PGC-1 signaling network and highlight the recent progress of its versatile roles in cardiac diseases, including myocardial hypertrophy, peripartum and diabetic cardiomyopathy, and heart failure. The information reviewed here may be useful in future studies, which may increase the potential of this energetic regulator as a therapeutic target.