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Murari K, Abushaibah A, Rho JM, Turner RW, Cheng N. A clinically relevant selective ERK-pathway inhibitor reverses core deficits in a mouse model of autism. EBioMedicine 2023; 91:104565. [PMID: 37088035 PMCID: PMC10149189 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 04/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK/MAPK) pathway in the brain is hypothesized to be a critical convergent node in the development of autism spectrum disorder. We reasoned that selectively targeting this pathway could reverse core autism-like phenotype in animal models. METHODS Here we tested a clinically relevant, selective inhibitor of ERK pathway, PD325901 (Mirdametinib), in a mouse model of idiopathic autism, the BTBR mice. FINDINGS We report that treating juvenile mice with PD325901 reduced ERK pathway activation, dose and duration-dependently reduced core disease-modeling deficits in sociability, vocalization and repetitive behavior, and reversed abnormal EEG signals. Further analysis revealed that subchronic treatment did not affect weight gain, locomotion, or neuronal density in the brain. Parallel treatment in the C57BL/6J mice did not alter their phenotype. INTERPRETATION Our data indicate that selectively inhibiting ERK pathway using PD325901 is beneficial in the BTBR model, thus further support the notion that ERK pathway is critically involved in the pathophysiology of autism. These results suggest that a similar approach could be applied to animal models of syndromic autism with dysregulated ERK signaling, to further test selectively targeting ERK pathway as a new approach for treating autism. FUNDING This has beenwork was supported by Alberta Children's Hospital Research Foundation (JMR & NC), University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (NC), Kids Brain Health Network (NC), and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NC).
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartikeya Murari
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, Canada; Department of Electrical and Software Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, Canada
| | - Abdulrahman Abushaibah
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Bachelor of Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada
| | - Jong M Rho
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada
| | - Ray W Turner
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada
| | - Ning Cheng
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada; Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada.
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Nayak R, Chattopadhyay T, Mallick B. Identification of potential repurposed drugs for treating endometriosis-associated infertility among women. Chem Biol Interact 2022; 365:110110. [PMID: 35985520 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbi.2022.110110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Endometriosis is the most common gynecological abnormality seen in 10-15% of women of reproductive age, causing infertility in ∼25% of cases, which calls for treatment. Thus, in this study, we have identified miRNAs and genes involved in endometriosis progression, leading to infertility, by performing gene expression analysis followed by pathway analysis and protein-protein networks study. Further, we have predicted repurposed small molecule drugs that will neutralize the regulatory effect of targeting miRNAs that induce sterility in endometriosis. This study predicted two transcription factors, FOXO1, and CREB1, targeted by miRNAs that can be modulated by the repurposed drugs, BRD-K55473186, and methylstat, respectively, for the treatment of infertility due to endometriosis. The former drug seems better and more effective than the other as it showed stronger binding at the active site of FOXO1. These findings provide the rationale for targeting miRNA-regulated transcriptional regulators controlling several biological processes to treat endometriosis and prevent the recurrence of implantation failure or infertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rojalin Nayak
- RNAi and Functional Genomics Lab., Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, 769008, Odisha, India
| | - Trisha Chattopadhyay
- RNAi and Functional Genomics Lab., Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, 769008, Odisha, India
| | - Bibekanand Mallick
- RNAi and Functional Genomics Lab., Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, 769008, Odisha, India.
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Jitobaom K, Boonarkart C, Manopwisedjaroen S, Punyadee N, Borwornpinyo S, Thitithanyanont A, Avirutnan P, Auewarakul P. Synergistic anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of repurposed anti-parasitic drug combinations. BMC Pharmacol Toxicol 2022; 23:41. [PMID: 35717393 PMCID: PMC9206137 DOI: 10.1186/s40360-022-00580-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND COVID-19 pandemic has claimed millions of lives and devastated the health service system, livelihood, and economy in many countries worldwide. Despite the vaccination programs in many countries, the spread of the pandemic continues, and effective treatment is still urgently needed. Although some antiviral drugs have been shown to be effective, they are not widely available. Repurposing of anti-parasitic drugs with in vitro anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity is a promising approach being tested in many clinical trials. Combination of these drugs is a plausible way to enhance their effectiveness. METHODS The in vitro anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of combinations of niclosamide, ivermectin and chloroquine were evaluated in Vero E6 and lung epithelial cells, Calu-3. RESULTS All the two-drug combinations showed higher potency resulting in up to 4-fold reduction in the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values compared to individual drugs. Among these combinations, niclosamide-ivermectin achieved the highest inhibitory level of over 99%. Combination synergy analysis showed niclosamide-ivermectin combination to have the best synergy score with a mean Loewe synergy score of 4.28 and a peak synergy score of 24.6 in Vero E6 cells and a mean Loewe synergy score of 3.82 and a peak synergy score of 10.86 in Calu-3 cells. CONCLUSIONS The present study demonstrated the benefit of drug combinations on anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity. Niclosamide and ivermectin showed the best synergistic profile and should be further tested in clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kunlakanya Jitobaom
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand
| | - Chompunuch Boonarkart
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand
| | | | - Nuntaya Punyadee
- Division of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever Research, Department of Research and Development, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand.,Siriraj Center of Research Excellence in Dengue and Emerging Pathogens, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand
| | - Suparerk Borwornpinyo
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Arunee Thitithanyanont
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Panisadee Avirutnan
- Division of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever Research, Department of Research and Development, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand.,Siriraj Center of Research Excellence in Dengue and Emerging Pathogens, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand
| | - Prasert Auewarakul
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand.
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Ramakrishnan J, Kandasamy S, Iruthayaraj A, Magudeeswaran S, Chinnasamy K, Poomani K. Strong Binding of Leupeptin with TMPRSS2 Protease May Be an Alternative to Camostat and Nafamostat for SARS-CoV-2 Repurposed Drug: Evaluation from Molecular Docking and Molecular Dynamics Simulations. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 2021; 193:1909-1923. [PMID: 33512650 PMCID: PMC7844105 DOI: 10.1007/s12010-020-03475-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2020] [Accepted: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The unprecedented coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 outbreak at Wuhan, China, caused acute respiratory infection to humans. There is no precise vaccine/therapeutic agents available to combat the COVID-19 disease. Some repurposed drugs are saving the life of diseased, but the complete cure is relatively less. Several drug targets have been reported to inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 virus infection, in that TMPRSS2 (transmembrane protease serine 2) is one of the potential targets; inhibiting this protease stops the virus entry into the host human cell. Camostat mesylate, nafamostat, and leupeptin are the drugs, in which the first two drugs are being used for COVID-19 and leupeptin also tested. To consider these drugs as the repurposed drug for COVID-19, it is essential to understand their binding affinity and stability with TMPRSS2. In the present study, we performed the molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation of these molecules with the TMPRSS2. The docking study reveals that leupeptin molecule strongly binds with TMPRSS2 protein than the other two drug molecules. The RMSD and RMSF values of MD simulation confirm that leupeptin and the amino acids of TMPRSS2 are very stable than the other two molecules. Furthermore, leupeptin forms interactions with the key amino acids of TMPRSS2 and the same have been maintained during the MD simulations. This structural and dynamical information is useful to evaluate these drugs to be used as repurposed drugs, however, the strong binding profile of leupeptin with TMPRSS2, suggests, it may be considered as a repurposed drug for COVID-19 disease after clinical trial.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaganathan Ramakrishnan
- Laboratory of Biocystallography and Computational Molecular Biology, Department of Physics, Periyar University, Salem, 636 011, India
| | - Saravanan Kandasamy
- Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, 560 012, India
| | - Ancy Iruthayaraj
- Laboratory of Biocystallography and Computational Molecular Biology, Department of Physics, Periyar University, Salem, 636 011, India
| | - Sivanandam Magudeeswaran
- Laboratory of Biocystallography and Computational Molecular Biology, Department of Physics, Periyar University, Salem, 636 011, India
| | - Kalaiarasi Chinnasamy
- Laboratory of Biocystallography and Computational Molecular Biology, Department of Physics, Periyar University, Salem, 636 011, India
| | - Kumaradhas Poomani
- Laboratory of Biocystallography and Computational Molecular Biology, Department of Physics, Periyar University, Salem, 636 011, India.
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Zhang M, Chen X, Radacsi N. New tricks of old drugs: Repurposing non-chemo drugs and dietary phytochemicals as adjuvants in anti-tumor therapies. J Control Release 2020; 329:96-120. [PMID: 33259852 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2020.11.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 11/22/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Combination therapy has long been applied to enhance therapeutic effect and deal with the occurrence of multi-drug resistance in cancer treatment. However, the overlapping toxicity of multiple anticancer drugs to healthy tissues and increasing financial burden on patients emerged as major concerns. As promising alternatives to chemo agents, repurposed non-chemo drugs and dietary phytochemicals have been investigated as adjuvants to conventional anti-tumor therapeutics, offering a safe and economic strategy for combination therapy. In this review, we aim to highlight the advances in research about combination therapy using conventional therapeutics and repurposed drugs or phytochemicals for an enhanced anti-tumor efficacy, along with the mechanisms involved in the synergism. Beyond these, we outlined the potential challenges and solutions for clinical translation of the proposed combination therapy, providing a safe and affordable strategy to improve the reach of cancer therapy to low income regions with such new tricks of old drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mei Zhang
- School of Engineering, Institute for Materials and Processes, University of Edinburgh, Robert Stevenson Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FB, United Kingdom; School of Engineering, Institute for Bioengineering, University of Edinburgh, The King's Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3JL, United Kingdom.
| | - Xianfeng Chen
- School of Engineering, Institute for Bioengineering, University of Edinburgh, The King's Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3JL, United Kingdom.
| | - Norbert Radacsi
- School of Engineering, Institute for Materials and Processes, University of Edinburgh, Robert Stevenson Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FB, United Kingdom.
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Affiliation(s)
- C V Haritha
- Division of Pharmacology and Toxicology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243 122, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Khan Sharun
- Division of Surgery, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243 122, Uttar Pradesh, India.
| | - Bosco Jose
- Division of Physiology & Climatology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243 122, Uttar Pradesh, India
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Abstract
PURPOSE Gastric cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers worldwide and the second most common cause for cancer associated mortality. Anti-tumor effects of tamoxifen in breast cancer are well-established. However, no study has so far investigated the effects of tamoxifen on gene expression of Notch1 and DLL1 in gastric cancer cell line. The present study was conducted to explore the effects of tamoxifen, as a repurposed drug, on gene expression of Notch1 and DLL1 in MKN-45, a gastric cancer cell line. METHODS MKN-45 cells were cultured in DMEM/F12 medium containing 10% FBS. Cytotoxic effects of tamoxifen on these cells at various concentrations were evaluated by trypan blue exclusion assay. For gene expression analysis, the cells were first incubated with 100 μM tamoxifen followed by total RNA extraction from treated and control cells. Then, cDNA was synthesized. Quantitative real-time PCR using specific primers for Notch1 and DLL1 was performed to assess the effect of tamoxifen on the transcript of them. RESULTS Treatment with tamoxifen decreased viability of MKN-45 cells in a dose-dependent manner. CC50 was estimated to be around 200 μM. Also, tamoxifen at the dose of 100 μM could significantly downregulate mRNA levels of both Notch1 and DLL1 genes as compared with untreated cells by 24% and 92%, respectively. CONCLUSION Based on these results, tamoxifen interferes with Notch signaling pathway through downregulating the expression of Notch1 and DLL1 genes and this could be regarded as a mechanism for its anti-cancer effects in this malignant disease.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Hassan Akrami
- Gastroenterohepatology Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, 71935-1311, Iran.
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Kiehl IGA, Riccetto E, Salustiano ACC, Ossick MV, Ferrari KL, Assalin HB, Ikari O, Reis LO. Boosting bladder cancer treatment by intravesical nitazoxanide and bacillus calmette-guérin association. World J Urol 2020; 39:1187-1194. [PMID: 32488358 DOI: 10.1007/s00345-020-03294-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Accepted: 05/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE Nitazoxanide (NTZ) has shown a promising antitumoral effect, the current study compared the anti-neoplastic effects of intravesical NTZ and BCG plus NTZ in NMIBC animal model. METHODS 30 rats, Fisher 344 were instilled with 4 intravesical doses of 1.5 mg/kg of N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) every 15 days for BC induction. The animals were divided into 3 groups (Group BCG 106 UFC - 1 mg of BCG; Group NTZ - 300 mg/kg of NTZ; Group NTZ + BCG - simultaneous treatment of BCG and NTZ) and received weekly intravesical treatment for 6 consecutive weeks. Animals were submitted to ultrasound imaging and euthanasia, their bladders were collected and histopathological, immunohistochemical tests (ki67 e c-Myc) and Western Blotting (PI3K, mTOR, and p-4E-BP) were performed. RESULTS Histopathological tests showed 66.67%, 62.5% and 37.5% incidence of BC in animals treated with BCG, NTZ, and NTZ + BCG, respectively. Nuclear positivity for ki-67 in BC animals were 12.4% (IC 10.1-14.6%), 13.2% (IC 10.5-15.9%) and 8.8% (IC 6.0-11.6%) in BCG, NTZ and NTZ + BCG group, respectively (p = 0.063). Between animals with carcinoma, c-Myc strong positive was 40.10% in NTZ, 32.2% in BCG and 19.90% in the NTZ + BCG group (p < 0.001). Blotting has shown mTOR (p = 0.0473) and PI3K inhibition (p = 0.0349) in the presence of BCG, added to 4-EBP inhibition in the presence of NTZ (p = 0.0004). CONCLUSIONS Results show the possible synergy between the gold standard BC treatment BCG and NTZ, in which multiple targets inhibition such as c-Myc and downstream mTOR, p-4E-BP and PI3K might play a role.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isis G A Kiehl
- UroScience, University of Campinas, Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Riccetto
- UroScience, University of Campinas, Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Ana C C Salustiano
- UroScience, University of Campinas, Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Marina V Ossick
- UroScience, University of Campinas, Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Heloisa B Assalin
- UroScience, University of Campinas, Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Osamu Ikari
- UroScience, University of Campinas, Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Leonardo O Reis
- School of Medical Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas (PUC-Campinas) and UroScience, University of Campinas (Unicamp), R. John Boyd Dunlop, s/n, Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil, CEP, 13060-904.
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