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Theys J, Patterson AV, Mowday AM. Clostridium Bacteria: Harnessing Tumour Necrosis for Targeted Gene Delivery. Mol Diagn Ther 2024; 28:141-151. [PMID: 38302842 PMCID: PMC10925577 DOI: 10.1007/s40291-024-00695-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
Necrosis is a common feature of solid tumours that offers a unique opportunity for targeted cancer therapy as it is absent from normal healthy tissues. Tumour necrosis provides an ideal environment for germination of the anaerobic bacterium Clostridium from endospores, resulting in tumour-specific colonisation. Two main species, Clostridium novyi-NT and Clostridium sporogenes, are at the forefront of this therapy, showing promise in preclinical models. However, anti-tumour activity is modest when used as a single agent, encouraging development of Clostridium as a tumour-selective gene delivery system. Various methods, such as allele-coupled exchange and CRISPR-cas9 technology, can facilitate the genetic modification of Clostridium, allowing chromosomal integration of transgenes to ensure long-term stability of expression. Strains of Clostridium can be engineered to express prodrug-activating enzymes, resulting in the generation of active drug selectively in the tumour microenvironment (a concept termed Clostridium-directed enzyme prodrug therapy). More recently, Clostridium strains have been investigated in the context of cancer immunotherapy, either in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors or with engineered strains expressing immunomodulatory molecules such as IL-2 and TNF-α. Localised expression of these molecules using tumour-targeting Clostridium strains has the potential to improve delivery and reduce systemic toxicity. In summary, Clostridium species represent a promising platform for cancer therapy, with potential for localised gene delivery and immunomodulation selectively within the tumour microenvironment. The ongoing clinical progress being made with C. novyi-NT, in addition to developments in genetic modification techniques and non-invasive imaging capabilities, are expected to further progress Clostridium as an option for cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Theys
- M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW - School of Oncology and Reproduction, Maastricht University, 6229 ER, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand
| | - Alexandra M Mowday
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand.
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand.
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2
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Yang F, Lin Q, Song X, Huang H, Chen X, Tan J, Li Y, Zhou Y, Tu Z, Du H, Zhang ZM, Ortega R, Lin X, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Chen Y, Lu X. Discovery of 6-Formylpyridyl Urea Derivatives as Potent Reversible-Covalent Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 4 Inhibitors with Improved Anti-Hepatocellular Carcinoma Activity. J Med Chem 2024; 67:2667-2689. [PMID: 38348819 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c01810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) has been considered as a potential anticancer target due to FGF19/FGFR4 mediated aberrant signaling in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Several FGFR4 inhibitors have been reported, but none have gained approval. Herein, a series of 5-formyl-pyrrolo[3,2-b]pyridine-3-carboxamides and a series of 6-formylpyridyl ureas were characterized as selective reversible-covalent FGFR4 inhibitors. The representative 6-formylpyridyl urea 8z exhibited excellent potency against FGFR4WT, FGFR4V550L, and FGFR4V550M with IC50 values of 16.3, 12.6, and 57.3 nM, respectively. It also potently suppressed proliferation of Ba/F3 cells driven by FGFR4WT, FGFR4V550L, and FGFR4V550M, and FGFR4-dependent Hep3B and Huh7 HCC cells, with IC50 values of 1.2, 13.5, 64.5, 15.0, and 20.4 nM, respectively. Furthermore, 8z displayed desirable microsomal stability and significant in vivo efficacy in the Huh7 HCC cancer xenograft model in nude mice. The study provides a promising new lead for anticancer drug discovery directed toward overcoming FGFR4 gatekeeper mutation mediated resistance in HCC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fang Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Qianmeng Lin
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Xiaojuan Song
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Huisi Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojuan Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Jianwen Tan
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yun Li
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Yang Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Zhengchao Tu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Hongli Du
- South China University of Technology, Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Centre, Panyu District, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Zhi-Min Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Raquel Ortega
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Xiaojing Lin
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Yongheng Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
- Department of Hematology, Guangdong Second Provincial General Hospital, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
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3
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Mowday AM, van de Laak JM, Fu Z, Henare KL, Dubois L, Lambin P, Theys J, Patterson AV. Tumor-targeting bacteria as immune stimulants - the future of cancer immunotherapy? Crit Rev Microbiol 2024:1-16. [PMID: 38346140 DOI: 10.1080/1040841x.2024.2311653] [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: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Cancer immunotherapies have been widely hailed as a breakthrough for cancer treatment in the last decade, epitomized by the unprecedented results observed with checkpoint blockade. Even so, only a minority of patients currently achieve durable remissions. In general, responsive patients appear to have either a high number of tumor neoantigens, a preexisting immune cell infiltrate in the tumor microenvironment, or an 'immune-active' transcriptional profile, determined in part by the presence of a type I interferon gene signature. These observations suggest that the therapeutic efficacy of immunotherapy can be enhanced through strategies that release tumor neoantigens and/or produce a pro-inflammatory tumor microenvironment. In principle, exogenous tumor-targeting bacteria offer a unique solution for improving responsiveness to immunotherapy. This review discusses how tumor-selective bacterial infection can modulate the immunological microenvironment of the tumor and the potential for combination with cancer immunotherapy strategies to further increase therapeutic efficacy. In addition, we provide a perspective on the clinical translation of replicating bacterial therapies, with a focus on the challenges that must be resolved to ensure a successful outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M Mowday
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jella M van de Laak
- The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW-Research School of Oncology and Reproduction, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Zhe Fu
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Malaghan Institute of Medical Research, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Kimiora L Henare
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Ludwig Dubois
- The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW-Research School of Oncology and Reproduction, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Philippe Lambin
- The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW-Research School of Oncology and Reproduction, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Theys
- The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW-Research School of Oncology and Reproduction, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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4
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Ashoorzadeh A, Mowday AM, Abbattista MR, Guise CP, Bull MR, Silva S, Patterson AV, Smaill JB. Design and Biological Evaluation of Piperazine-Bearing Nitrobenzamide Hypoxia/GDEPT Prodrugs: The Discovery of CP-506. ACS Med Chem Lett 2023; 14:1517-1523. [PMID: 37974941 PMCID: PMC10641903 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.3c00321] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Off-target aerobic activation of PR-104A by human aldo-keto reductase 1C3 (AKR1C3) has confounded the development of this dual hypoxia/gene therapy prodrug. Previous attempts to design prodrugs resistant to AKR1C3 activation have resulted in candidates that require further optimization. Herein we report the evaluation of a lipophilic series of PR-104A analogues in which a piperazine moiety has been introduced to improve drug-like properties. Octanol-water partition coefficients (LogD7.4) spanned >2 orders of magnitude. 2D antiproliferative and 3D multicellular clonogenic assays using isogenic HCT116 and H1299 cells confirmed that all examples were resistant to AKR1C3 metabolism while producing an E. coli NfsA nitroreductase-mediated bystander effect. Prodrugs 16, 17, and 20 demonstrated efficacy in H1299 xenografts where only a minority of tumor cells express NfsA. These prodrugs and their bromo/mesylate counterparts (25-27) were also evaluated for hypoxia-selective cell killing in vitro. These results in conjunction with stability assays recommended prodrug 26 (CP-506) for Phase I/II clinical trial.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amir Ashoorzadeh
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Alexandra M. Mowday
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Maria R. Abbattista
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Christopher P. Guise
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Matthew R. Bull
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Shevan Silva
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
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5
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Chen H, Hu S, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Ding K, Lu X. Structural Mechanism and Inhibitors Targeting EGFR Exon 20 Insertion (Ex20ins) Mutations. J Med Chem 2023; 66:11656-11671. [PMID: 37669428 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c00875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/07/2023]
Abstract
Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) targeted therapy is one of the most important and effective strategies to combat EGFR mutant nonsmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, a substantial number of patients bearing EGFR exon 20 insertion (Ex20ins) mutations respond poorly to common EGFR targeted therapies. This clinical need remained unmet until recently, when the EGFR Ex20ins mutation inhibitor mobocertinib was approved by the FDA. Despite this progress, the structural mechanisms of EGFR Ex20ins mutation resistance and characterization of inhibitor binding modes have not been systematically summarized. Herein, we analyze the structural mechanisms for ligand binding and resistance and summarize recent developments for the reported inhibitors of EGFR Ex20ins mutations. Furthermore, this Perspective aims to provide insights for the design of the next generation of EGFR Ex20ins inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Chen
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Shiliang Hu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Ke Ding
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
- State Key Laboratory of Bioorganic and Nature Product Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
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6
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Yang F, Chen X, Song X, Ortega R, Lin X, Deng W, Guo J, Tu Z, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Chen Y, Lu X. Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of 5-Formyl-pyrrolo[3,2- b]pyridine-3-carboxamides as New Selective, Potent, and Reversible-Covalent FGFR4 Inhibitors. J Med Chem 2022; 65:14809-14831. [PMID: 36278929 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c01319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The FGF19-FGFR4 signaling pathway has been extensively studied as a promising target for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Several FGFR4-selective inhibitors have been developed, but none of them receives approval. Additionally, acquired resistance caused by FGFR4 gatekeeper mutations is emerging as a serious limitation for these targeted therapies. Herein, we report a novel series of 5-formyl-pyrrolo[3,2-b]pyridine derivatives as new reversible-covalent inhibitors targeting wild-type and gatekeeper mutant variants of FGFR4 kinase. The representative compound 10z exhibited single-digit nanomolar activity against wild-type FGFR4 and the FGFR4V550L/M mutant variants in biochemical and Ba/F3 cellular assays, while sparing FGFR1/2/3. Furthermore, 10z showed significant antiproliferative activity against Hep3B, JHH-7, and HuH-7 HCC cells with IC50 values of 37, 32, and 94 nM, respectively. MALDI-TOF-MS and X-ray protein crystallography studies were consistent with 10z acting as a reversible-covalent inhibitor of FGFR4, serving as a promising lead compound for further anticancer drug development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fang Yang
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojuan Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Xiaojuan Song
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Raquel Ortega
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Xiaojing Lin
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Wuqing Deng
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Jing Guo
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Zhengchao Tu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Yongheng Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
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7
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Xu F, Zhang X, Chen Z, He S, Guo J, Yu L, Wang Y, Hou C, Ai-Furas H, Zheng Z, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Zhang ZM, Chen L, Ren X, Ding K. Discovery of Isoform-Selective Akt3 Degraders Overcoming Osimertinib-Induced Resistance in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells. J Med Chem 2022; 65:14032-14048. [PMID: 36173763 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c01246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
EGFR inhibitor therapies have brought significant benefit to NSCLC patients. However, all patients gradually progress to acquired resistance via diverse mechanisms. Akt3 overexpression but not Akt1/2 is one of the found molecular events that mediate osimertinib (1) resistance in NSCLC patients. Here, we report 12l as the first bona fide isoform-selective Akt3 degrader which potently induced proteasomal degradation of the target both in vitro and in vivo, whereas its effects on Akt1/2 were minimal. Using 12l as a tool, non-canonical function of Akt3 was validated to contribute greatly to survival of 1-resistant H1975OR NSCLC cells. Degrader 12l potently suppressed the growth of H1975OR as well as several NSCLC cell lines with low nanomolar IC50 values and demonstrated promising in vivo antitumor efficacy in nude mice bearing H1975OR or PC9 NSCLC xenograft models. Selective degradation of Akt3 may be considered as a novel strategy for human cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fang Xu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.,The First Affiliated Hospital (Huaqiao Hospital), Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.,The First Affiliated Hospital (Huaqiao Hospital), Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Zhipeng Chen
- MOE Key Laboratory of Tumor Molecular Biology and Key Laboratory of Functional Protein Research of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, Institute of Life and Health Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Sheng He
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Jing Guo
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Lei Yu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yongjin Wang
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Caiyun Hou
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Hawaa Ai-Furas
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Zongyao Zheng
- MOE Key Laboratory of Tumor Molecular Biology and Key Laboratory of Functional Protein Research of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, Institute of Life and Health Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Zhi-Min Zhang
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Liang Chen
- MOE Key Laboratory of Tumor Molecular Biology and Key Laboratory of Functional Protein Research of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, Institute of Life and Health Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaomei Ren
- State Key Laboratory of Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 210530, China
| | - Ke Ding
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development, Ministry of Education (MOE) of PR China, College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.,The First Affiliated Hospital (Huaqiao Hospital), Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.,State Key Laboratory of Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 210530, China
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8
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Singleton DC, Mowday AM, Guise CP, Syddall SP, Bai SY, Li D, Ashoorzadeh A, Smaill JB, Wilson WR, Patterson AV. Bioreductive prodrug PR-104 improves the tumour distribution and titre of the nitroreductase-armed oncolytic adenovirus ONYX-411 NTR leading to therapeutic benefit. Cancer Gene Ther 2022; 29:1021-1032. [PMID: 34837065 DOI: 10.1038/s41417-021-00409-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Advances in the field of cancer immunotherapy have stimulated renewed interest in adenoviruses as oncolytic agents. Clinical experience has shown that oncolytic adenoviruses are safe and well tolerated but possess modest single-agent activity. One approach to improve the potency of oncolytic viruses is to utilise their tumour selectivity to deliver genes encoding prodrug-activating enzymes. These enzymes can convert prodrugs into cytotoxic species within the tumour; however, these cytotoxins can interfere with viral replication and limit utility. In this work, we evaluated the activity of a nitroreductase (NTR)-armed oncolytic adenovirus ONYX-411NTR in combination with the clinically tested bioreductive prodrug PR-104. Both NTR-expressing cells in vitro and xenografts containing a minor population of NTR-expressing cells were highly sensitive to PR-104. Pharmacologically relevant prodrug exposures did not interfere with ONYX-411NTR replication in vitro. In vivo, prodrug administration increased virus titre and improved virus distribution within tumour xenografts. Colonisation of tumours with high ONYX-411NTR titre resulted in NTR expression and prodrug activation. The combination of ONYX-411NTR with PR-104 was efficacious against HCT116 xenografts, whilst neither prodrug nor virus were active as single agents. This work highlights the potential for future clinical development of NTR-armed oncolytic viruses in combination with bioreductive prodrugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dean C Singleton
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand. .,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand. .,Department of Molecular Medicine and Pathology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
| | - Alexandra M Mowday
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Chris P Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Sophie P Syddall
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Sally Y Bai
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Dan Li
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Amir Ashoorzadeh
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - William R Wilson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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9
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Shao M, Chen X, Yang F, Song X, Zhou Y, Lin Q, Fu Y, Ortega R, Lin X, Tu Z, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Chen Y, Lu X. Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Aminoindazole Derivatives as Highly Selective Covalent Inhibitors of Wild-Type and Gatekeeper Mutant FGFR4. J Med Chem 2022; 65:5113-5133. [PMID: 35271262 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c00096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Aberrant FGF19/FGFR4 signaling has been shown to be an oncogenic driver of growth and survival in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with several pan-FGFR inhibitors and FGFR4-selective inhibitors currently being evaluated in the clinic. However, FGFR4 gatekeeper mutation induced acquired resistance remains an unmet clinical challenge for HCC treatment. Thus, a series of aminoindazole derivatives were designed and synthesized as new irreversible inhibitors of wild-type and gatekeeper mutant FGFR4. One representative compound (7v) exhibited excellent potency against FGFR4, FGFR4V550L, and FGFR4V550M with nanomolar activity in both the biochemical and cellular assays while sparing FGFR1/2/3. While compound 7v demonstrated modest in vivo antitumor efficacy in nude mice bearing the Huh-7 xenograft model consistent with its unfavorable pharmacokinetic properties, it provides a promising new starting point for future drug discovery combating FGFR4 gatekeeper mediated resistance in HCC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Shao
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojuan Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Fang Yang
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojuan Song
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yang Zhou
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Qianmeng Lin
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Ying Fu
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Raquel Ortega
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland 92019, New Zealand
| | - Xiaojing Lin
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland 92019, New Zealand
| | - Zhengchao Tu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland 92019, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland 92019, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland 92019, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland 92019, New Zealand
| | - Yongheng Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics, State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Discovery of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #855 Xingye Avenue, Guangzhou 510632, China
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10
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Jackson-Patel V, Liu E, Bull MR, Ashoorzadeh A, Bogle G, Wolfram A, Hicks KO, Smaill JB, Patterson AV. Tissue Pharmacokinetic Properties and Bystander Potential of Hypoxia-Activated Prodrug CP-506 by Agent-Based Modelling. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:803602. [PMID: 35211015 PMCID: PMC8861431 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.803602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [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: 10/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Hypoxia-activated prodrugs are bioactivated in oxygen-deficient tumour regions and represent a novel strategy to exploit this pharmacological sanctuary for therapeutic gain. The approach relies on the selective metabolism of the prodrug under pathological hypoxia to generate active metabolites with the potential to diffuse throughout the tumour microenvironment and potentiate cell killing by means of a “bystander effect”. In the present study, we investigate the pharmacological properties of the nitrogen mustard prodrug CP-506 in tumour tissues using in silico spatially-resolved pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (SR-PK/PD) modelling. The approach employs a number of experimental model systems to define parameters for the cellular uptake, metabolism and diffusion of both the prodrug and its metabolites. The model predicts rapid uptake of CP-506 to high intracellular concentrations with its long plasma half-life driving tissue diffusion to a penetration depth of 190 µm, deep within hypoxic activating regions. While bioreductive metabolism is restricted to regions of severe pathological hypoxia (<1 µM O2), its active metabolites show substantial bystander potential with release from the cell of origin into the extracellular space. Model predictions of bystander efficiency were validated using spheroid co-cultures, where the clonogenic killing of metabolically defective “target” cells increased with the proportion of metabolically competent “activator” cells. Our simulations predict a striking bystander efficiency at tissue-like densities with the bis-chloro-mustard amine metabolite (CP-506M-Cl2) identified as a major diffusible metabolite. Overall, this study shows that CP-506 has favourable pharmacological properties in tumour tissue and supports its ongoing development for use in the treatment of patients with advanced solid malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Jackson-Patel
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Emily Liu
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Matthew R Bull
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Amir Ashoorzadeh
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Gib Bogle
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Auckland Bioengineering Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Anna Wolfram
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Kevin O Hicks
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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11
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Abstract
Small molecule covalent kinase inhibitors (CKIs) have entered a new era in drug discovery, which have the advantage for sustained target inhibition and high selectivity. An increased understanding of binding kinetics of CKIs and discovery of additional irreversible and reversible-covalent cysteine-targeted warheads has inspired the development of this area. Herein, we summarize the major medicinal chemistry strategies employed in the discovery of these representative CKIs, which are categorized by the location of the target cysteine within seven main regions of the kinase: the front region, the glycine rich loop (P-loop), the hinge region, the DFG region, the activation loop (A-loop), the catalytic loop (C-loop), and the remote loop. The emphasis is placed on the design and optimization strategies of CKIs that are generated by addition of a warhead to a reversible lead/inhibitor scaffold. In addition, we address the challenges facing this area of drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyun Lu
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Ke Ding
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
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12
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van der Wiel AM, Jackson-Patel V, Niemans R, Yaromina A, Liu E, Marcus D, Mowday AM, Lieuwes NG, Biemans R, Lin X, Fu Z, Kumara S, Jochems A, Ashoorzadeh A, Anderson RF, Hicks KO, Bull MR, Abbattista MR, Guise CP, Deschoemaeker S, Thiolloy S, Heyerick A, Solivio MJ, Balbo S, Smaill JB, Theys J, Dubois LJ, Patterson AV, Lambin P. Selectively Targeting Tumor Hypoxia With the Hypoxia-Activated Prodrug CP-506. Mol Cancer Ther 2021; 20:2372-2383. [PMID: 34625504 PMCID: PMC9398139 DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.mct-21-0406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2021] [Revised: 07/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAP) are a promising class of antineoplastic agents that can selectively eliminate hypoxic tumor cells. This study evaluates the hypoxia-selectivity and antitumor activity of CP-506, a DNA alkylating HAP with favorable pharmacologic properties. Stoichiometry of reduction, one-electron affinity, and back-oxidation rate of CP-506 were characterized by fast-reaction radiolytic methods with observed parameters fulfilling requirements for oxygen-sensitive bioactivation. Net reduction, metabolism, and cytotoxicity of CP-506 were maximally inhibited at oxygen concentrations above 1 μmol/L (0.1% O2). CP-506 demonstrated cytotoxicity selectively in hypoxic 2D and 3D cell cultures with normoxic/anoxic IC50 ratios up to 203. Complete resistance to aerobic (two-electron) metabolism by aldo-keto reductase 1C3 was confirmed through gain-of-function studies while retention of hypoxic (one-electron) bioactivation by various diflavin oxidoreductases was also demonstrated. In vivo, the antitumor effects of CP-506 were selective for hypoxic tumor cells and causally related to tumor oxygenation. CP-506 effectively decreased the hypoxic fraction and inhibited growth of a wide range of hypoxic xenografts. A multivariate regression analysis revealed baseline tumor hypoxia and in vitro sensitivity to CP-506 were significantly correlated with treatment response. Our results demonstrate that CP-506 selectively targets hypoxic tumor cells and has broad antitumor activity. Our data indicate that tumor hypoxia and cellular sensitivity to CP-506 are strong determinants of the antitumor effects of CP-506.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander M.A. van der Wiel
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Victoria Jackson-Patel
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Raymon Niemans
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Ala Yaromina
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Emily Liu
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Damiënne Marcus
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Alexandra M. Mowday
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands.,Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Natasja G. Lieuwes
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Rianne Biemans
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Xiaojing Lin
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Zhe Fu
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Sisira Kumara
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Arthur Jochems
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Amir Ashoorzadeh
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Robert F. Anderson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Kevin O. Hicks
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Matthew R. Bull
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Maria R. Abbattista
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Christopher P. Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | | | | | | | - Silvia Balbo
- Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jan Theys
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Ludwig J. Dubois
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Corresponding Author: Adam V. Patterson, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Auckland 1142, New Zealand. E-mail:
| | - Philippe Lambin
- The D-Lab and The M-Lab, Department of Precision Medicine, GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
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13
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Kavianinia I, Brimble MA, Kasim JK, Bull M, Harris PWR, Smaill JB, Patterson AV. Fourth-Generation Analogues of the Anticancer Peptaibol Culicinin D: Probing the Effects of Hydrophobicity and Halogenation on Cytotoxicity. SYNTHESIS-STUTTGART 2021. [DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1706264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
AbstractPreliminary results of the effect of hydrophobicity and halogenation on the cytotoxicity of the anticancer peptaibol culicinin D are reported. Building on previous work, the synthetically challenging (2S,4S,6R)-2-amino-6-hydroxy-4-methyl-8-oxodecanoic acid and (2S,4R)-2-amino-4-methyldecanoic acid building blocks were replaced with derivatives of l-phenylalanine and 2-aminodecanoic acid, respectively. Substitution of (2S,4S,6R)-2-amino-6-hydroxy-4-methyl-8-oxodecanoic acid with l-4,4′-biphenylalanine yielded an analogue that was tenfold more potent than the natural product and was also the most hydrophobic analogue, as judged by an antiproliferative IC50 assay and logD calculations; these results suggest that the potency of culicinin D may be governed by its hydrophobicity. However, the introduction of halogenated moieties into the peptide sequence generated analogues that were similarly potent, although not necessarily hydrophobic. Thus, the parameters regulating the cytotoxicity of culicinin D, and by extension other peptaibols, are multimodal and include both halogenation and hydrophobicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iman Kavianinia
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland
| | - Margaret A. Brimble
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland
| | - Johanes K. Kasim
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland
| | - Matthew Bull
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland
| | - Paul W. R. Harris
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland
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14
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Omran Z, Guise CP, Chen L, Rauch C, Abdalla AN, Abdullah O, Sindi IA, Fischer PM, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Liu Y, Wang Q. Design, Synthesis and In-Vitro Biological Evaluation of Antofine and Tylophorine Prodrugs as Hypoxia-Targeted Anticancer Agents. Molecules 2021; 26:3327. [PMID: 34206005 PMCID: PMC8199124 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26113327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenanthroindolizidines, such as antofine and tylophorine, are a family of natural alkaloids isolated from different species of Asclepiadaceas. They are characterized by interesting biological activities, such as pronounced cytotoxicity against different human cancerous cell lines, including multidrug-resistant examples. Nonetheless, these derivatives are associated with severe neurotoxicity and loss of in vivo activity due to the highly lipophilic nature of the alkaloids. Here, we describe the development of highly polar prodrugs of antofine and tylophorine as hypoxia-targeted prodrugs. The developed quaternary ammonium salts of phenanthroindolizidines showed high chemical and metabolic stability and are predicted to have no penetration through the blood-brain barrier. The designed prodrugs displayed decreased cytotoxicity when tested under normoxic conditions. However, their cytotoxic activity considerably increased when tested under hypoxic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziad Omran
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacy Department, Batterjee Medical College, Jeddah 21442, Saudi Arabia
| | - Chris P. Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (C.P.G.); (J.B.S.); (A.V.P.)
| | - Linwei Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, Research Institute of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (L.C.); (Y.L.); (Q.W.)
| | - Cyril Rauch
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, College Road, Sutton Bonington LE12 5RD, UK;
| | - Ashraf N. Abdalla
- College of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah 21955, Saudi Arabia; (A.N.A.); (O.A.)
| | - Omeima Abdullah
- College of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah 21955, Saudi Arabia; (A.N.A.); (O.A.)
| | - Ikhlas A. Sindi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia;
| | - Peter M. Fischer
- School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK;
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (C.P.G.); (J.B.S.); (A.V.P.)
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (C.P.G.); (J.B.S.); (A.V.P.)
| | - Yuxiu Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, Research Institute of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (L.C.); (Y.L.); (Q.W.)
| | - Qingmin Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, Research Institute of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (L.C.); (Y.L.); (Q.W.)
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15
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Fu Z, Mowday AM, Smaill JB, Hermans IF, Patterson AV. Tumour Hypoxia-Mediated Immunosuppression: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Approaches to Improve Cancer Immunotherapy. Cells 2021; 10:1006. [PMID: 33923305 PMCID: PMC8146304 DOI: 10.3390/cells10051006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2021] [Revised: 04/21/2021] [Accepted: 04/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The magnitude of the host immune response can be regulated by either stimulatory or inhibitory immune checkpoint molecules. Receptor-ligand binding between inhibitory molecules is often exploited by tumours to suppress anti-tumour immune responses. Immune checkpoint inhibitors that block these inhibitory interactions can relieve T-cells from negative regulation, and have yielded remarkable activity in the clinic. Despite this success, clinical data reveal that durable responses are limited to a minority of patients and malignancies, indicating the presence of underlying resistance mechanisms. Accumulating evidence suggests that tumour hypoxia, a pervasive feature of many solid cancers, is a critical phenomenon involved in suppressing the anti-tumour immune response generated by checkpoint inhibitors. In this review, we discuss the mechanisms associated with hypoxia-mediate immunosuppression and focus on modulating tumour hypoxia as an approach to improve immunotherapy responsiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Fu
- Malaghan Institute of Medical Research, Wellington 6042, New Zealand; (Z.F.); (I.F.H.)
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (A.M.M.); (J.B.S.)
| | - Alexandra M. Mowday
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (A.M.M.); (J.B.S.)
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (A.M.M.); (J.B.S.)
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Ian F. Hermans
- Malaghan Institute of Medical Research, Wellington 6042, New Zealand; (Z.F.); (I.F.H.)
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (A.M.M.); (J.B.S.)
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (A.M.M.); (J.B.S.)
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
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16
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Deng W, Chen X, Jiang K, Song X, Huang M, Tu ZC, Zhang Z, Lin X, Ortega R, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Ding K, Chen S, Chen Y, Lu X. Investigation of Covalent Warheads in the Design of 2-Aminopyrimidine-based FGFR4 Inhibitors. ACS Med Chem Lett 2021; 12:647-652. [PMID: 33859803 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.1c00052] [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] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Covalent kinase inhibitors are rapidly emerging as a class of therapeutics with clinical benefits. Herein we report a series of selective 2-aminopyrimidine-based fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) inhibitors exploring different types of cysteine-targeting warheads. The structure-activity relationship study revealed that the chemically tuned warheads α-fluoro acrylamide, vinylsulfonamide, and acetaldehyde amine were suitable as covalent warheads for the design of selective FGFR4 inhibitors. Compounds 6a, 6h, and 6i selectively suppressed FGFR4 enzymatic activity with IC50 values of 53 ± 18, 45 ± 11, and 16 ± 4 nM, respectively, while sparing FGFR1/2/3. X-ray crystal structure and MALDI-TOF studies demonstrated that compound 6h bearing the α-fluoro acrylamide binds to FGFR4 with an irreversible binding mode, whereas compound 6i with an acetaldehyde amine binds to FGFR4 with a reversible covalent mode. 6h and 6i might provide some fundamental structural information for the rational design of new selective FGFR4 inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wuqing Deng
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojuan Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics and Laboratory of Structural Biology, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Kaili Jiang
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojuan Song
- Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, #190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
| | - Minhao Huang
- Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, #190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
| | - Zheng-Chao Tu
- Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, #190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
| | - Zhang Zhang
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaojing Lin
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Raquel Ortega
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Private Bag
92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Private Bag
92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Ke Ding
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Suming Chen
- Yancheng Dafeng People’s Hospital, #139 Xingfu East Road, Dafeng District,Yancheng 224100, China
| | - Yongheng Chen
- Department of Oncology, NHC Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics and Laboratory of Structural Biology, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, #601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
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17
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Estrada-Bernal A, Le AT, Doak AE, Tirunagaru VG, Silva S, Bull MR, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Kim C, Liu SV, Doebele RC. Tarloxotinib Is a Hypoxia-Activated Pan-HER Kinase Inhibitor Active Against a Broad Range of HER-Family Oncogenes. Clin Cancer Res 2020; 27:1463-1475. [PMID: 33355298 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-20-3555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2020] [Revised: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Approved therapies for EGFR exon 20, ERBB2 mutations, and NRG1 fusions are currently lacking for non-small cell lung cancer and other cancers. Tarloxotinib is a prodrug that harnesses tumor hypoxia to generate high levels of a potent, covalent pan-HER tyrosine kinase inhibitor, tarloxotinib-effector (tarloxotinib-E), within the tumor microenvironment. This tumor-selective delivery mechanism was designed to minimize the dose-limiting toxicities that are characteristic of systemic inhibition of wild-type EGFR. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Novel and existing patient-derived cell lines and xenografts harboring EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations, ERBB2 mutations and amplification, and NRG1 fusions were tested in vitro and in vivo with tarloxotinib to determine its impact on cancer cell proliferation, apoptosis, and cell signaling. RESULTS Tarloxotinib-E inhibited cell signaling and proliferation in patient-derived cancer models in vitro by directly inhibiting phosphorylation and activation of EGFR, HER2, and HER2/HER3 heterodimers. In vivo, tarloxotinib induced tumor regression or growth inhibition in multiple murine xenograft models. Pharmacokinetic analysis confirmed markedly higher levels of tarloxotinib-E in tumor tissue than plasma or skin. Finally, a patient with lung adenocarcinoma harboring an ERBB2 exon 20 p.A775_G776insYVMA mutation demonstrated a dramatic clinical response to tarloxotinib. CONCLUSIONS Experimental data with tarloxotinib validate the novel mechanism of action of a hypoxia-activated prodrug in cancer models by concentrating active drug in the tumor versus normal tissue, and this activity can translate into clinical activity in patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriana Estrada-Bernal
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Colorado, Aurora, Colorado
| | - Anh T Le
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Colorado, Aurora, Colorado
| | - Andrea E Doak
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Colorado, Aurora, Colorado
| | | | - Shevan Silva
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Matthew R Bull
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, c/o The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, c/o The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, c/o The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Chul Kim
- Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
| | - Stephen V Liu
- Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
| | - Robert C Doebele
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Colorado, Aurora, Colorado.
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18
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Kavianinia I, Stubbing LA, Abbattista MR, Harris PWR, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Brimble MA. Alanine scan-guided synthesis and biological evaluation of analogues of culicinin D, a potent anticancer peptaibol. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2020; 30:127135. [PMID: 32229061 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2020.127135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [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: 02/24/2020] [Revised: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 03/20/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Culicinin D (1), a 10 amino acid peptaibol originally isolated from Culicinomyces clavisporus, exhibits potent activity against a range of cancer cell lines. Building on our previous work exploring the structure-activity relationship (SAR) of the unusual (2S,4S,6R)-AHMOD residue, a series of analogues of culicinin D were prepared to further investigate the SAR of these peptaibols. Alanine scanning of a potent and readily accessible analogue 23 revealed the effect of each residue on antiproliferative activity, and a small panel of analogues were prepared to explore the SAR of the non-natural amino acid residue (2S,4R)-AMD. Results from the alanine scan were used to design an expanded library of culicinin D analogues, leading to the discovery of cyclohexylalanine analogue 52, which exhibited better antiproliferative activity than the natural product 1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iman Kavianinia
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Louise A Stubbing
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Maria R Abbattista
- The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Paul W R Harris
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, 3A Symonds St, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Margaret A Brimble
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, 3A Symonds St, Auckland 1010, New Zealand.
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19
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Stubbing LA, Kavianinia I, Abbattista MR, Harris PWR, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Brimble MA. Synthesis and antiproliferative activity of culicinin D analogues containing simplified AHMOD-based residues. Eur J Med Chem 2019; 177:235-246. [PMID: 31152989 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2019.05.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [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: 01/24/2019] [Revised: 05/13/2019] [Accepted: 05/19/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Culicinin D is a 10 amino acid peptaibol containing a rare and synthetically challenging (2S,4S,6R)-AHMOD residue, that exhibits potent antiproliferative activity against MDA-MB-468 cells. An SAR study focusing on replacement of the AHMOD residue was undertaken, culminating in the revelation that a 6-hydroxy or 6-keto substituent was essential to retain potent low nanomolar antiproliferative activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise A Stubbing
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand
| | - Iman Kavianinia
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand
| | - Maria R Abbattista
- The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand
| | - Paul W R Harris
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, 3A Symonds St, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand
| | - Margaret A Brimble
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, 23 Symonds St, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand; School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, 3A Symonds St, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand.
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20
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Williams EM, Rich MH, Mowday AM, Ashoorzadeh A, Copp JN, Guise CP, Anderson RF, Flanagan JU, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Ackerley DF. Engineering Escherichia coli NfsB To Activate a Hypoxia-Resistant Analogue of the PET Probe EF5 To Enable Non-Invasive Imaging during Enzyme Prodrug Therapy. Biochemistry 2019; 58:3700-3710. [PMID: 31403283 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.9b00376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (GDEPT) uses tumor-tropic vectors to deliver prodrug-converting enzymes such as nitroreductases specifically to the tumor environment. The nitroreductase NfsB from Escherichia coli (NfsB_Ec) has been a particular focal point for GDEPT and over the past 25 years has been the subject of several engineering studies seeking to improve catalysis of prodrug substrates. To facilitate clinical development, there is also a need to enable effective non-invasive imaging capabilities. SN33623, a 5-nitroimidazole analogue of 2-nitroimidazole hypoxia probe EF5, has potential for PET imaging exogenously delivered nitroreductases without generating confounding background due to tumor hypoxia. However, we show here that SN33623 is a poor substrate for NfsB_Ec. To address this, we used assay-guided sequence and structure analysis to identify two conserved residues that block SN33623 activation in NfsB_Ec and close homologues. Introduction of the rational substitutions F70A and F108Y into NfsB_Ec conferred high levels of SN33623 activity and enabled specific labeling of E. coli expressing the engineered enzyme. Serendipitously, the F70A and F108Y substitutions also substantially improved activity with the anticancer prodrug CB1954 and the 5-nitroimidazole antibiotic prodrug metronidazole, which is a potential biosafety agent for targeted ablation of nitroreductase-expressing vectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elsie M Williams
- School of Biological Sciences , Victoria University of Wellington , Wellington 6012 , New Zealand
| | - Michelle H Rich
- School of Biological Sciences , Victoria University of Wellington , Wellington 6012 , New Zealand
| | - Alexandra M Mowday
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - Amir Ashoorzadeh
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - Janine N Copp
- School of Biological Sciences , Victoria University of Wellington , Wellington 6012 , New Zealand
| | - Christopher P Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - Robert F Anderson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - Jack U Flanagan
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences , The University of Auckland , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
| | - David F Ackerley
- School of Biological Sciences , Victoria University of Wellington , Wellington 6012 , New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery , Auckland 1023 , New Zealand
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21
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Lin X, Yosaatmadja Y, Kalyukina M, Middleditch MJ, Zhang Z, Lu X, Ding K, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Squire CJ. Rotational Freedom, Steric Hindrance, and Protein Dynamics Explain BLU554 Selectivity for the Hinge Cysteine of FGFR4. ACS Med Chem Lett 2019; 10:1180-1186. [PMID: 31413803 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.9b00196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2019] [Accepted: 07/03/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Aberration in FGFR4 signaling drives carcinogenesis and progression in a subset of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients, thereby making FGFR4 an attractive molecular target for this disease. Selective FGFR4 inhibition can be achieved through covalently targeting a poorly conserved cysteine residue in the FGFR4 kinase domain. We report mass spectrometry assays and cocrystal structures of FGFR4 in covalent complex with the clinical candidate BLU554 and with a series of four structurally related inhibitors that define the inherent reactivity and selectivity profile of these molecules. We further reveal the structure of FGFR1 with one of our inhibitors and show that off-target covalent binding can occur through an alternative conformation that supports targeting of a cysteine conserved in all members of the FGFR family. Collectively, we propose that rotational freedom, steric hindrance, and protein dynamics explain the exceptional selectivity profile of BLU554 for targeting FGFR4.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaojing Lin
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Yuliana Yosaatmadja
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Maria Kalyukina
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Martin J. Middleditch
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Zhen Zhang
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Ke Ding
- International Cooperative Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Modernization and Innovative Drug Development of Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, the University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, c/o The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, the University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, c/o The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Christopher J. Squire
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, c/o The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
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22
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Tirunagaru VG, Estrada-Bernal A, Yu H, Rivard C, Hirsch F, Bull M, Abbatista M, Smaill J, Patterson AV, Doebele RC, Vellanki A. Abstract 2202: Tarloxotinib exhibits potent activity in NRG1 fusion and rearranged cancers. Cancer Res 2019. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2019-2202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Background: NRG1 fusions and rearrangements are oncogenic drivers that have been observed in a variety of tumor types and enriched in invasive mucinous adenocarcinomas (IMA) of the lung. The oncoprotein binds HER3-HER2 heterodimers and activates downstream signaling, supporting a therapeutic paradigm of ERBB3/ERBB2 inhibition. While patient responses have been observed with Afatinib, durable responses have largely been absent. Tarloxotinib, a clinical-stage prodrug that releases a potent, irreversible EGFR/HER2 inhibitor (Tarloxotinib-E) selectively in severely hypoxic regions of tumours has been shown to overcome the intrinsic resistance of EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations and HER2 activating mutations to existing TKIs in vitro and in vivo.
Results: NRG1 altered cell lines (MDA-MB-175 with DOC4-NRG fusion, HCC95 with NRG gene amplification and H1793 with increased NRG1 mRNA) showed high sensitivity to Tarloxotinib-E whereas Tarloxotinib prodrug was >45 fold less potent under normoxic conditions, consistent with lower sensitivity of the prodrug and the requirement of hypoxia for activation. Tarloxotinib-E inhibited HER2, HER3, Akt and ERK phosphorylation between 10-100 nM whereas afatinib was 10-fold less potent. In vivo activity of Tarloxotinib was evaluated using the CLU-NRG1 patient-derived xenograft model. Nude mice bearing OV-10-0050 tumors implanted subcutaneously were treated with vehicle, the human equivalent dose (HED) of afatinib (6 mg/kg, qd, p.o.) and two doses of tarloxotinib (26 and 48 mg/kg, qw, i.p.) corresponding to Tarloxotinib HED of 75 and 150 mg/m2. Afatinib showed initial activity that reduced over time and was ineffective. In contrast, Tarloxotinib elicited a profound, durable and dose dependent anti-tumor response. Tarloxotinib dosed at 48 mg/kg showed dramatic tumor regression in all the mice while Tarloxotinib dosed at 26 mg/kg showed significant dose dependent tumor regression. Efforts are underway to define the PK/PD correlation by measuring Tarloxotinib and Tarloxotinib-E exposure in plasma and tumor along with the evaluation of hypoxia and the expression of STEAP4 reductase. Tarloxotinib mediated on-target and signaling effects in OV-10-0050 tumors will be presented at the meeting.
Conclusions: Tarloxotinib, a prodrug of a potent irreversible inhibitor of EGFR/HER2 in clinical development demonstrated significant activity in CLU-NRG1 patient-derived xenograft model. NRG1 fusions and rearrangements represent an emerging actionable driver alteration in a variety of cancers. Clinical development of Tarloxotinib in NRG1 altered cancers presents an attractive opportunity.
Citation Format: Vijaya G. Tirunagaru, Adriana Estrada-Bernal, Hui Yu, Chris Rivard, Fred Hirsch, Matthew Bull, Maria Abbatista, Jeff Smaill, Adam V. Patterson, Robert C. Doebele, Avanish Vellanki. Tarloxotinib exhibits potent activity in NRG1 fusion and rearranged cancers [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2202.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Hui Yu
- 3University of Colorado, Aurora, CO
| | | | | | - Matthew Bull
- 4The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | - Jeff Smaill
- 4The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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23
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Sansom GN, Kirk NS, Guise CP, Anderson RF, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Kelso MJ. Prototyping kinase inhibitor-cytotoxin anticancer mutual prodrugs activated by tumour hypoxia: A chemical proof of concept study. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2019; 29:1215-1219. [PMID: 30885680 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2019.03.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [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: 12/09/2018] [Revised: 03/07/2019] [Accepted: 03/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Amide- and ester-linked kinase inhibitor-cytotoxin conjugates were rationally designed and synthesised as prototype hypoxia-activated anticancer mutual prodrugs. Chemical reduction of an aryl nitro trigger moiety was shown to initiate a spontaneous cyclisation/fragmentation reaction that simultaneously released the kinase inhibitor semaxanib (SU5416) and the amine- or alcohol-linked cytotoxin from the prodrugs. Preliminary cell testing and reduction potential measurements support optimisation of the compounds towards tumour-selective mutual prodrugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geraud N Sansom
- Molecular Horizons and School of Chemistry & Molecular Bioscience, University of Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia; Illawarra Health & Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
| | - Nicholas S Kirk
- Molecular Horizons and School of Chemistry & Molecular Bioscience, University of Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia; Illawarra Health & Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
| | - Christopher P Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Robert F Anderson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; The Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Michael J Kelso
- Molecular Horizons and School of Chemistry & Molecular Bioscience, University of Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia; Illawarra Health & Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia.
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24
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Spiegelberg L, Houben R, Niemans R, de Ruysscher D, Yaromina A, Theys J, Guise CP, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Lambin P, Dubois LJ. Hypoxia-activated prodrugs and (lack of) clinical progress: The need for hypoxia-based biomarker patient selection in phase III clinical trials. Clin Transl Radiat Oncol 2019; 15:62-69. [PMID: 30734002 PMCID: PMC6357685 DOI: 10.1016/j.ctro.2019.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.6] [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: 12/07/2018] [Revised: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/13/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Hypoxia-activated prodrugs have yielded promising results up to phase II trials. Implementation of hypoxia-activated prodrugs in the clinic has not been successful. Phase III clinical trials lack patient stratification based on tumor hypoxia status. Stratification will decrease the number of patients needed and increase success. Improvements in hypoxia-activated prodrug design can also increase success rates.
Hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAPs) are designed to specifically target the hypoxic cells of tumors, which are an important cause of treatment resistance to conventional therapies. Despite promising preclinical and clinical phase I and II results, the most important of which are described in this review, the implementation of hypoxia-activated prodrugs in the clinic has, so far, not been successful. The lack of stratification of patients based on tumor hypoxia status, which can vary widely, is sufficient to account for the failure of phase III trials. To fully exploit the potential of hypoxia-activated prodrugs, hypoxia stratification of patients is needed. Here, we propose a biomarker-stratified enriched Phase III study design in which only biomarker-positive (i.e. hypoxia-positive) patients are randomized between standard treatment and the combination of standard treatment with a hypoxia-activated prodrug. This implies the necessity of a Phase II study in which the biomarker or a combination of biomarkers will be evaluated. The total number of patients needed for both clinical studies will be far lower than in currently used randomize-all designs. In addition, we elaborate on the improvements in HAP design that are feasible to increase the treatment success rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda Spiegelberg
- Department of Precision Medicine, The M-Lab, GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Ruud Houben
- Department of Radiation Oncology (MAASTRO), GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Raymon Niemans
- Department of Precision Medicine, The M-Lab, GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Dirk de Ruysscher
- Department of Radiation Oncology (MAASTRO), GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Ala Yaromina
- Department of Precision Medicine, The M-Lab, GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Theys
- Department of Precision Medicine, The M-Lab, GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Christopher P Guise
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jeffrey B Smaill
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.,Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Philippe Lambin
- Department of Precision Medicine, The M-Lab, GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Ludwig J Dubois
- Department of Precision Medicine, The M-Lab, GROW - School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
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Kalyukina M, Yosaatmadja Y, Middleditch MJ, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Squire CJ. TAS‐120 Cancer Target Binding: Defining Reactivity and Revealing the First Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 1 (FGFR1) Irreversible Structure. ChemMedChem 2019; 14:494-500. [DOI: 10.1002/cmdc.201800719] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2018] [Revised: 12/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Kalyukina
- School of Biological SciencesThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular BiodiscoveryThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
| | - Yuliana Yosaatmadja
- School of Biological SciencesThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
| | - Martin J. Middleditch
- School of Biological SciencesThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Health SciencesThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular BiodiscoveryThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Health SciencesThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular BiodiscoveryThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
| | - Christopher J. Squire
- School of Biological SciencesThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular BiodiscoveryThe University of Auckland Private Bag 92019 Auckland 1142 New Zealand
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26
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Lu X, Chen H, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Ding K. Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 4 (FGFR4) Selective Inhibitors as Hepatocellular Carcinoma Therapy: Advances and Prospects. J Med Chem 2018; 62:2905-2915. [PMID: 30403487 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.8b01531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyun Lu
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, No. 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Hao Chen
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, No. 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Ke Ding
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, No. 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
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27
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Xiang Q, Wang C, Zhang Y, Xue X, Song M, Zhang C, Li C, Wu C, Li K, Hui X, Zhou Y, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Wu D, Ding K, Xu Y. Discovery and optimization of 1-(1H-indol-1-yl)ethanone derivatives as CBP/EP300 bromodomain inhibitors for the treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer. Eur J Med Chem 2018; 147:238-252. [PMID: 29448139 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2018.01.087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [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: 09/08/2017] [Revised: 01/11/2018] [Accepted: 01/26/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The CREB (cAMP responsive element binding protein) binding protein (CBP) and its homolog EP300 have emerged as new therapeutic targets for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. Here we report the identification, optimization and evaluation of 1-(1H-indol-1-yl)ethanone derivatives as CBP/EP300 inhibitors starting from fragment-based virtual screening (FBVS). A cocrystal structure of the inhibitor (22e) in complex with CBP provides a solid structural basis for further optimization. The most potent compound 32h binds to the CBP bromodomain and has an IC50 value of 0.037 μM in the AlphaScreen assay which was 2 times more potent than the reported CBP bromodomain inhibitor SGC-CBP30 in our hands. 32h also exhibit high selectivity for CBP/EP300 over other bromodomain-containing proteins. Notably, the ester derivative (29h) of compound 32h markedly inhibits cell growth in several prostate cancer cell lines including LNCaP, 22Rv1 and LNCaP derived C4-2B. Compound 29h suppresses the mRNA expression of full length AR (AR-FL), AR target genes and other oncogene in LNCaP cells. 29h also reduces the expression of PSA, the biomarker of prostate cancer. CBP/EP300 inhibitor 29h represents a promising lead compound for the development of new therapeutics for the treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuping Xiang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Chao Wang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China, No. 1266 Fujin Road, Chaoyang District, Changchun, Jilin 130021, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiaoqian Xue
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Ming Song
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Cheng Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China, No. 1266 Fujin Road, Chaoyang District, Changchun, Jilin 130021, China
| | - Chenchang Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China, No. 1266 Fujin Road, Chaoyang District, Changchun, Jilin 130021, China
| | - Chun Wu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Kuai Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiaoyan Hui
- State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Department of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
| | - Yulai Zhou
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China, No. 1266 Fujin Road, Chaoyang District, Changchun, Jilin 130021, China
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- University of Auckland, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- University of Auckland, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Donghai Wu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ke Ding
- School of Pharmacy, Jinan University, 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yong Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biocomputing, Joint School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
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Estrada-Bernal A, Doak AE, Le AT, Zhu H, Chen N, Silva S, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Doebele RC. Abstract A157: Antitumor activity of tarloxotinib, a hypoxia-activated EGFR TKI, in patient-derived lung cancer cell lines harboring EGFR exon 20 insertions. Mol Cancer Ther 2018. [DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.targ-17-a157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Tarloxotinib (TRLX) is a prodrug that releases an irreversible EGFR/HER2 tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TRLX-TKI) under pathophysiologically hypoxic conditions. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been characterized as a hypoxic disease and approximately 15% of lung adenocarcinomas harbor EGFR mutations. While most EGFR mutations predict for response to several FDA-approved tyrosine kinase inhibitors, in-frame insertions in exon 20 of EGFR are activating mutations in the tyrosine kinase domain that have significantly decreased sensitivity to EGFR inhibitors and currently have no approved targeted therapies. We derived and characterized three human lung adenocarcinoma cell lines with different EGFR exon 20 insertions in order to accelerate development of targeted therapies for this mutation class. Using these novel cell lines, we evaluated tarloxotinib as a therapeutic agent for tumors harboring this type of mutations. We demonstrate that our three patient-derived cell lines: CUTO14 (p.A767_V769dupASV), CUTO17 (p.N771_H773dupNPH), and CUTO18 (p.S768_770dupSVD) are dependent on EGFR for cell proliferation using shRNA-mediated knockdown. Our results show that EGFR exon 20 insertion cell lines are resistant to gefitinib; however, treatment with afatinib or TRLX-TKI reduces cell proliferation and signaling in a similar manner. The IC50 values for the three cell lines were 203nM, 89nM, and 709 nM for afatinib and 208nM, 33nM, and 345nM for TRLX-TKI, respectively. The prodrug form of tarloxitinib has minimal effect on cell proliferation in these models, consistent with the necessity for hypoxia-induced activation (to TRLX-TKI). Importantly, we evaluated the effect of tarloxotinib in vivo using murine xenograft models of CUTO14 and CUTO17. After four weeks of treatment, afatinib did not alter tumor growth compared to untreated tumors, whereas treatment with tarloxotinib induced significant tumor regression. The in vivo data suggest that the activated TKI of tarloxitinib is accumulating to biologically active concentrations in tumors following cleavage of tarlxoxotinib under hypoxic conditions. We conclude that our EGFR exon 20 insertions cell lines represent novel models for the investigation of therapeutic strategies for this mutation class. These cell lines have the ability to develop tumors in vivo and show reduced sensitivity to current EGFR TKIs, mimicking the lack of response in patients with these mutations. Finally, we demonstrate that tarloxotinib can overcome intrinsic EGFR exon 20 mutation resistance to standard EGFR TKIs.
Citation Format: Adriana Estrada-Bernal, Andrea E. Doak, Anh T. Le, Hengbo Zhu, Nan Chen, Shevan Silva, Jeff B. Smaill, Adam V. Patterson, Robert C. Doebele. Antitumor activity of tarloxotinib, a hypoxia-activated EGFR TKI, in patient-derived lung cancer cell lines harboring EGFR exon 20 insertions [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2017 Oct 26-30; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2018;17(1 Suppl):Abstract nr A157.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrea E. Doak
- 1University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Anh T. Le
- 1University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Hengbo Zhu
- 1University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Nan Chen
- 1University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Shevan Silva
- 2Maurice Wilkings Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery. University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- 2Maurice Wilkings Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery. University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- 2Maurice Wilkings Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery. University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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29
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Li X, Guise CP, Taghipouran R, Yosaatmadja Y, Ashoorzadeh A, Paik WK, Squire CJ, Jiang S, Luo J, Xu Y, Tu ZC, Lu X, Ren X, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Ding K. 2-Oxo-3, 4-dihydropyrimido[4, 5- d ]pyrimidinyl derivatives as new irreversible pan fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) inhibitors. Eur J Med Chem 2017; 135:531-543. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2017.04.049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2017] [Revised: 04/18/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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30
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Mo C, Zhang Z, Guise CP, Li X, Luo J, Tu Z, Xu Y, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Ren X, Lu X, Ding K. 2-Aminopyrimidine Derivatives as New Selective Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 4 (FGFR4) Inhibitors. ACS Med Chem Lett 2017; 8:543-548. [PMID: 28523108 DOI: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.7b00091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [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: 03/01/2017] [Accepted: 03/31/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A series of 2-aminopyrimidine derivatives were designed and synthesized as highly selective FGFR4 inhibitors. One of the most promising compounds 2n tightly bound FGFR4 with a Kd value of 3.3 nM and potently inhibited its enzymatic activity with an IC50 value of 2.6 nM, but completely spared FGFR1/2/3. The compound selectively suppressed proliferation of breast cancer cells harboring dysregulated FGFR4 signaling with an IC50 value of 0.38 μM. Furthermore, 2n exhibited extraordinary target specificity in a Kinome-wide screen against 468 kinases, with S(35) and S(10) selectivity scores of 0.01 and 0.007 at 1.0 μM, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheng Mo
- State
Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zhang Zhang
- School
of Pharmacy, Jinan University, # 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Christopher P. Guise
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, #92019 Private Bag, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, #92019 Private Bag, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Xueqiang Li
- State
Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jinfeng Luo
- State
Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
| | - Zhengchao Tu
- State
Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
| | - Yong Xu
- State
Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, # 190 Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
| | - Adam V. Patterson
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, #92019 Private Bag, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, #92019 Private Bag, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B. Smaill
- Auckland
Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, #92019 Private Bag, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
- Maurice
Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, University of Auckland, #92019 Private Bag, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Xiaomei Ren
- School
of Pharmacy, Jinan University, # 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xiaoyun Lu
- School
of Pharmacy, Jinan University, # 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Ke Ding
- School
of Pharmacy, Jinan University, # 601 Huangpu Avenue West, Guangzhou 510632, China
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31
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Copp JN, Mowday AM, Williams EM, Guise CP, Ashoorzadeh A, Sharrock AV, Flanagan JU, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Ackerley DF. Engineering a Multifunctional Nitroreductase for Improved Activation of Prodrugs and PET Probes for Cancer Gene Therapy. Cell Chem Biol 2017; 24:391-403. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2017.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2016] [Revised: 12/31/2016] [Accepted: 02/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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32
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Mowday AM, Ashoorzadeh A, Williams EM, Copp JN, Silva S, Bull MR, Abbattista MR, Anderson RF, Flanagan JU, Guise CP, Ackerley DF, Smaill JB, Patterson AV. Rational design of an AKR1C3-resistant analog of PR-104 for enzyme-prodrug therapy. Biochem Pharmacol 2016; 116:176-87. [PMID: 27453434 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2016.07.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [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: 05/25/2016] [Accepted: 07/20/2016] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The clinical stage anti-cancer agent PR-104 has potential utility as a cytotoxic prodrug for exogenous bacterial nitroreductases expressed from replicating vector platforms. However substrate selectivity is compromised due to metabolism by the human one- and two-electron oxidoreductases cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (POR) and aldo-keto reductase 1C3 (AKR1C3). Using rational drug design we developed a novel mono-nitro analog of PR-104A that is essentially free of this off-target activity in vitro and in vivo. Unlike PR-104A, there was no biologically relevant cytotoxicity in cells engineered to express AKR1C3 or POR, under aerobic or anoxic conditions, respectively. We screened this inert prodrug analog, SN34507, against a type I bacterial nitroreductase library and identified E. coli NfsA as an efficient bioactivator using a DNA damage response assay and recombinant enzyme kinetics. Expression of E. coli NfsA in human colorectal cancer cells led to selective cytotoxicity to SN34507 that was associated with cell cycle arrest and generated a robust 'bystander effect' at tissue-like cell densities when only 3% of cells were NfsA positive. Anti-tumor activity of SN35539, the phosphate pre-prodrug of SN34507, was established in 'mixed' tumors harboring a minority of NfsA-positive cells and demonstrated marked tumor control following heterogeneous suicide gene expression. These experiments demonstrate that off-target metabolism of PR-104 can be avoided and identify the suicide gene/prodrug partnership of E. coli NfsA/SN35539 as a promising combination for development in armed vectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M Mowday
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Amir Ashoorzadeh
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Elsie M Williams
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
| | - Janine N Copp
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
| | - Shevan Silva
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Matthew R Bull
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Maria R Abbattista
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Robert F Anderson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Jack U Flanagan
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Christopher P Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - David F Ackerley
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6140, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
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33
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Mowday AM, Guise CP, Ackerley DF, Minton NP, Lambin P, Dubois LJ, Theys J, Smaill JB, Patterson AV. Advancing Clostridia to Clinical Trial: Past Lessons and Recent Progress. Cancers (Basel) 2016; 8:cancers8070063. [PMID: 27367731 PMCID: PMC4963805 DOI: 10.3390/cancers8070063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [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: 05/16/2016] [Revised: 06/15/2016] [Accepted: 06/22/2016] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Most solid cancers contain regions of necrotic tissue. The extent of necrosis is associated with poor survival, most likely because it reflects aggressive tumour outgrowth and inflammation. Intravenously injected spores of anaerobic bacteria from the genus Clostridium infiltrate and selectively germinate in these necrotic regions, providing cancer-specific colonisation. The specificity of this system was first demonstrated over 60 years ago and evidence of colonisation has been confirmed in multiple tumour models. The use of "armed" clostridia, such as in Clostridium Directed Enzyme Prodrug Therapy (CDEPT), may help to overcome some of the described deficiencies of using wild-type clostridia for treatment of cancer, such as tumour regrowth from a well-vascularised outer rim of viable cells. Successful preclinical evaluation of a transferable gene that metabolises both clinical stage positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agents (for whole body vector visualisation) as well as chemotherapy prodrugs (for conditional enhancement of efficacy) would be a valuable early step towards the prospect of "armed" clostridia entering clinical evaluation. The ability to target the immunosuppressive hypoxic tumour microenvironment using CDEPT may offer potential for synergy with recently developed immunotherapy strategies. Ultimately, clostridia may be most efficacious when combined with conventional therapies, such as radiotherapy, that sterilise viable aerobic tumour cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M Mowday
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
| | - Christopher P Guise
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
| | - David F Ackerley
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6140, New Zealand.
| | - Nigel P Minton
- The Clostridia Research Group, BBSRC/EPSRC Synthetic Biology Research Centre (SBRC) School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG72RD, UK.
| | - Philippe Lambin
- Maastro (Maastricht Radiation Oncology), GROW School for Oncology and Development Biology, Maastricht University Medical Centre, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands.
| | - Ludwig J Dubois
- Maastro (Maastricht Radiation Oncology), GROW School for Oncology and Development Biology, Maastricht University Medical Centre, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands.
| | - Jan Theys
- Maastro (Maastricht Radiation Oncology), GROW School for Oncology and Development Biology, Maastricht University Medical Centre, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands.
| | - Jeff B Smaill
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Translational Therapeutics Team, Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
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34
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Patterson AV, Kimple RJ, Jackson VJ, Swick AD, Guise CP, Abbattista MR, Bull MR, Prabakaran PJ, Silva S, Sun JD, Hart CP, Pearce TE, Smaill JB. Development of biomarkers to guide the clinical development of tarloxotinib bromide, a hypoxia-activated irreversible EGFR/HER2 inhibitor. J Clin Oncol 2016. [DOI: 10.1200/jco.2016.34.15_suppl.e17521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Jessica D Sun
- Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc., South San Francisco, CA
| | - Charles P Hart
- Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc., South San Francisco, CA
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35
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Silva S, Jackson V, Guise C, Abbattista M, Bull M, Grey A, Anderson R, Ashoorzadeh A, Hart C, Pearce T, Patterson AV, Smaill JB. Abstract A67: Preclinical efficacy of tarloxotinib bromide (TH-4000), a hypoxia-activated EGFR/HER2 inhibitor: rationale for clinical evaluation in EGFR mutant, T790M-negative NSCLC following progression on EGFR-TKI therapy. Mol Cancer Ther 2015. [DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.targ-15-a67] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Tarloxotinib bromide (T) is a prodrug that releases an irreversible EGFR/HER2 inhibitor (T-TKI) under hypoxic conditions. NSCLC is known to be a hypoxic disease and wild type (WT) EGFR is upregulated by multiple hypoxia-driven mechanisms (Curr Pharm Des, 19:907). Mutant EGFR NSCLC is commonly heterozygous and may result in maintenance of WT EGFR signalling (Can Sci, 103:1946; PloS One 8:e54170). Clinical studies indicate NSCLC patients harbouring WT/mut heterozygous EGFR have significantly poorer ORR, PFS and OS on treatment with EGFR-TKI (Can Sci, 99:929). Other mechanisms of resistance to EGFR-TKI include 50-60% with T790M EGFR mutation, 8-13% with HER2 amplification, while 15-20% lack identifiable mutation/amplification events (Nat Rev Clin Onc, 11:473). The combination of cetuximab/afatinib provides an ORR of 25% and PFS of 4.6 months in T790M-negative NSCLC suggesting the persistence of HER signalling plays a role in resistance. However the high proportion of Grade 3/4 toxicity seen with cetuximab/afatinib indicates an opportunity for dose-intensification with an improved therapeutic index (Can Discov, 4:1). In addition, early clinical data on resistance to the 3rd Gen (WT EGFR-sparing) TKI rociletinib, fails to identify further mutations by NGS in some patients and describes reversion to EGFR-WT (T790) status (Can Discov, 5:713). Collectively these data support the hypothesis that WT EGFR heterozygosity may be a mechanism of resistance to current EGFR-TKI.
Current EGFR-TKI lack the therapeutic index to silence WT EGFR signalling in tumors due to on-target skin/GI toxicities (Ann Oncol 18:761). Therefore we sought to examine the potency of T-TKI relative to erlotinib, afatinib and AZD9291 in five human cancer cell lines expressing WT EGFR (H1838, H2073, H1648, H125 and A431). In antiproliferative assays T-TKI was more dose-potent than erlotinib (25- to 110-fold) afatinib (4- to 32-fold) and AZD9291 (120- to 71-fold). This activity correlated with inhibition of WT EGFR phosphorylation and downstream MAPK signalling. We used a prototypic WT EGFR driven xenograft model (A431) to benchmark T activity against each EGFR-TKI by ‘retrotranslation’ of reported plasma exposure for each agent in human subjects back to the xenograft model. Only treatment with clinically relevant doses and schedules of T was associated with tumor regression and durable inhibition of WT EGFR tumor phosphorylation. Consistent with these findings, T treatment can also regress the WT EGFR NSCLC tumor models H125 and H1648, demonstrating T provides the necessary therapeutic index to inhibit WT EGFR in vivo. The transfection of WT EGFR into mutant EGFR NSCLC line PC9 (vs GFP control) conferred TGFα dependent induction of p-EGFR that was supressed by T-TKI but resistant to inhibition by erlotinib, afatinib or AZD9291. This was associated with reduced antiproliferative activity for EGFR-TKIs. Collectively these data indicate T-TKI is a dose-potent inhibitor of WT EGFR signalling and the prodrug T may possess the therapeutic index to silence WT EGFR signalling in xenograft models at plasma exposure levels achieved in a human Ph1 trial. T is under investigation in a Phase 2 clinical trial for EGFR mutant, T790M-negative, NSCLC patients who have progressed on EGFR-TKI (NCT02454842).
Citation Format: Shevan Silva, Victoria Jackson, Christopher Guise, Maria Abbattista, Matthew Bull, Angus Grey, Robert Anderson, Amir Ashoorzadeh, Charles Hart, Tillman Pearce, Adam V. Patterson, Jeff B. Smaill. Preclinical efficacy of tarloxotinib bromide (TH-4000), a hypoxia-activated EGFR/HER2 inhibitor: rationale for clinical evaluation in EGFR mutant, T790M-negative NSCLC following progression on EGFR-TKI therapy. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2015 Nov 5-9; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2015;14(12 Suppl 2):Abstract nr A67.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shevan Silva
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Victoria Jackson
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | - Maria Abbattista
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Matthew Bull
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Angus Grey
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Robert Anderson
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Amir Ashoorzadeh
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | | | | | - Jeff B. Smaill
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
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Stach M, Weidkamp AJ, Yang SH, Hung KY, Furkert DP, Harris PWR, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Brimble MA. Improved Strategy for the Synthesis of the Anticancer Agent Culicinin D. European J Org Chem 2015. [DOI: 10.1002/ejoc.201500872] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Abbattista MR, Jamieson SMF, Gu Y, Nickel JE, Pullen SM, Patterson AV, Wilson WR, Guise CP. Pre-clinical activity of PR-104 as monotherapy and in combination with sorafenib in hepatocellular carcinoma. Cancer Biol Ther 2015; 16:610-22. [PMID: 25869917 DOI: 10.1080/15384047.2015.1017171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
PR-104 is a clinical stage bioreductive prodrug that is converted in vivo to its cognate alcohol, PR-104A. This dinitrobenzamide mustard is reduced to activated DNA cross-linking metabolites (hydroxylamine PR-104H and amine PR-104M) under hypoxia by one-electron reductases and independently of hypoxia by the 2-electron reductase aldo-keto reductase 1C3 (AKR1C3). High expression of AKR1C3, along with extensive hypoxia, suggested the potential of PR-104 for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, a phase IB trial with sorafenib demonstrated significant toxicity that was ascribed in part to reduced PR-104A clearance, likely reflecting compromised glucuronidation in patients with advanced HCC. Here, we evaluate the activity of PR-104 in HCC xenografts (HepG2, PLC/PRF/5, SNU-398, Hep3B) in mice, which do not significantly glucuronidate PR-104A. Cell line differences in sensitivity to PR-104A in vitro under aerobic conditions could be accounted for by differences in both expression of AKR1C3 (high in HepG2 and PLC/PRF/5) and sensitivity to the major active metabolite PR-104H, to which PLC/PRF/5 was relatively resistant, while hypoxic selectivity of PR-104A cytotoxicity and reductive metabolism was greatest in the low-AKR1C3 SNU-398 and Hep3B lines. Expression of AKR1C3 in HepG2 and PLC/PRF/5 xenografts was in the range seen in 21 human HCC specimens. PR-104 monotherapy elicited significant reductions in growth of Hep3B and HepG2 xenografts, and the combination with sorafenib was significantly active in all 4 xenograft models. The results suggest that better-tolerated analogs of PR-104, without a glucuronidation liability, may have the potential to exploit AKR1C3 and/or hypoxia in HCC in humans.
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Heapy AM, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Jamieson SMF, Guise CP, Sperry J, Hume PA, Rathwell K, Brimble MA. Synthesis and cytotoxicity of pyranonaphthoquinone natural product analogues under bioreductive conditions. Bioorg Med Chem 2014; 21:7971-80. [PMID: 24436995 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2013.09.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
UNLABELLED We have synthesised a focused library of derivatives of natural products containing the pyranonaphthoquinone moiety including the first report of such a scaffold with an appended tetrazole functionality. Examples include kalafungin derivatives as well as analogues of nanaomycin and eleutherin. These compounds were assessed for cytotoxic activation by breast cancer cell lines engineered to express the prototypic human one- and two-electron quinone bioreductive enzymes, NADPH: cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (POR) and NAD(P)H quinoneoxidoreductase 1 (NQO1; DT-diaphorase), respectively. Several compounds were observed to be cytotoxic at sub-micromolar level and a pattern of increased aerobic potency was observed in cells over expressing POR. A subset of analogues was assessed under anoxic conditions, where cytotoxicity was reduced, implicating redox cycling as a major mechanism of toxicity. The substrate specificity for reductive enzymes is relevant to the future design of bioreductive prodrugs to treat cancer.
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Wang J, Guise CP, Dachs GU, Phung Y, Hsu AHL, Lambie NK, Patterson AV, Wilson WR. Identification of one-electron reductases that activate both the hypoxia prodrug SN30000 and diagnostic probe EF5. Biochem Pharmacol 2014; 91:436-46. [PMID: 25130546 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2014.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [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: 06/03/2014] [Revised: 08/08/2014] [Accepted: 08/08/2014] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
SN30000 is a second-generation benzotriazine-N-oxide hypoxia-activated prodrug scheduled for clinical trial. Previously we showed that covalent binding of the hypoxia probe EF5 predicts metabolic activation of SN30000 in a panel of cancer cell lines under anoxia, suggesting that they are activated by the same reductases. However the identity of these reductases is unknown. Here, we test whether forced expression of nine oxidoreductases with known or suspected roles in bioreductive prodrug metabolism (AKR1C3, CYB5R3, FDXR, MTRR, NDOR1, NOS2A, NQO1, NQO2 and POR) enhances oxic or anoxic reduction of SN30000 and EF5 by HCT116 cells. Covalent binding of (14)C-EF5 and reduction of SN30000 to its 1-oxide and nor-oxide metabolites was highly selective for anoxia in all lines, with significantly elevated anoxic metabolism of both compounds in lines over-expressing POR, MTRR, NOS2A or NDOR1. There was a strong correlation between EF5 binding and SN30000 metabolism under anoxia across the cell lines (R(2)=0.84, p=0.0001). Antiproliferative potency of SN30000 under anoxia was increased most strongly by overexpression of MTRR and POR. Transcript abundance in human tumours, evaluated using public domain mRNA expression data, was highest for MTRR, followed by POR, NOS2A and NDOR1, with little variation between tumour types. Immunostaining of tissue microarrays demonstrated variable MTRR protein expression across 517 human cancers with most displaying low expression. In conclusion, we have identified four diflavin reductases (POR, MTRR, NOS2A and NDOR1) capable of reducing both SN30000 and EF5, further supporting use of 2-nitroimidazole probes to predict the ability of hypoxic cells to activate SN30000.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingli Wang
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Chris P Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Gabi U Dachs
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Department of Pathology, University of Otago Christchurch, PO Box 4345, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand
| | - Yen Phung
- Department of Pathology, University of Otago Christchurch, PO Box 4345, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand
| | - Annie Huai-Ling Hsu
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Neil K Lambie
- Department of Anatomical Pathology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Barker Street, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Adam V Patterson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - William R Wilson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand; Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
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Copp JN, Williams EM, Rich MH, Patterson AV, Smaill JB, Ackerley DF. Toward a high-throughput screening platform for directed evolution of enzymes that activate genotoxic prodrugs. Protein Eng Des Sel 2014; 27:399-403. [PMID: 24996412 DOI: 10.1093/protein/gzu025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Engineering of enzymes to more efficiently activate genotoxic prodrugs holds great potential for improving anticancer gene or antibody therapies. We report the development of a new, GFP-based, high-throughput screening platform to enable engineering of prodrug-activating enzymes by directed evolution. By fusing an inducible SOS promoter to an engineered GFP reporter gene, we were able to measure levels of DNA damage in intact Escherichia coli and separate cell populations by fluorescence activating cell sorting (FACS). In two FACS iterations, we were able to achieve a 90,000-fold enrichment of a functional prodrug-activating nitroreductase from a null library background.
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Affiliation(s)
- J N Copp
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Present address: Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - E M Williams
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
| | - M H Rich
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
| | - A V Patterson
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Grafton, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - J B Smaill
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, University of Auckland, Grafton, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - D F Ackerley
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
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Anderson RF, Yadav P, Patel D, Reynisson J, Tipparaju SR, Guise CP, Patterson AV, Denny WA, Maroz A, Shinde SS, Hay MP. Characterisation of radicals formed by the triazine 1,4-dioxide hypoxia-activated prodrug, SN30000. Org Biomol Chem 2014; 12:3386-92. [PMID: 24737463 DOI: 10.1039/c4ob00236a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The radical species underlying the activity of the bioreductive anticancer prodrug, SN30000, have been identified by electron paramagnetic resonance and pulse radiolysis techniques. Spin-trapping experiments indicate both an aryl-type radical and an oxidising radical, trapped as a carbon-centred radical, are formed from the protonated radical anion of SN30000. The carbon-centred radical, produced upon the one-electron oxidation of the 2-electron reduced metabolite of SN30000, oxidises 2-deoxyribose, a model for the site of damage on DNA which leads to double strand breaks. Calculations using density functional theory support the assignments made.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert F Anderson
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand.
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Guise CP, Mowday AM, Ashoorzadeh A, Yuan R, Lin WH, Wu DH, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Ding K. Bioreductive prodrugs as cancer therapeutics: targeting tumor hypoxia. Chin J Cancer 2014; 33:80-6. [PMID: 23845143 PMCID: PMC3935009 DOI: 10.5732/cjc.012.10285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2012] [Revised: 02/28/2013] [Accepted: 04/26/2013] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Hypoxia, a state of low oxygen, is a common feature of solid tumors and is associated with disease progression as well as resistance to radiotherapy and certain chemotherapeutic drugs. Hypoxic regions in tumors, therefore, represent attractive targets for cancer therapy. To date, five distinct classes of bioreactive prodrugs have been developed to target hypoxic cells in solid tumors. These hypoxia-activated prodrugs, including nitro compounds, N-oxides, quinones, and metal complexes, generally share a common mechanism of activation whereby they are reduced by intracellular oxidoreductases in an oxygen-sensitive manner to form cytotoxins. Several examples including PR-104, TH-302, and EO9 are currently undergoing phase II and phase III clinical evaluation. In this review, we discuss the nature of tumor hypoxia as a therapeutic target, focusing on the development of bioreductive prodrugs. We also describe the current knowledge of how each prodrug class is activated and detail the clinical progress of leading examples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher P Guise
- Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand.
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Su J, Gu Y, Pruijn FB, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Guise CP, Wilson WR. Zinc finger nuclease knock-out of NADPH:cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (POR) in human tumor cell lines demonstrates that hypoxia-activated prodrugs differ in POR dependence. J Biol Chem 2013; 288:37138-53. [PMID: 24196959 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m113.505222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Hypoxia, a ubiquitous feature of tumors, can be exploited by hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAP) that are substrates for one-electron reduction in the absence of oxygen. NADPH:cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (POR) is considered one of the major enzymes responsible, based on studies using purified enzyme or forced overexpression in cell lines. To examine the role of POR in HAP activation at endogenous levels of expression, POR knock-outs were generated in HCT116 and SiHa cells by targeted mutation of exon 8 using zinc finger nucleases. Absolute quantitation by proteotypic peptide mass spectrometry of DNA sequence-confirmed multiallelic mutants demonstrated expression of proteins with residual one-electron reductase activity in some clones and identified two (Hko2 from HCT116 and S2ko1 from SiHa) that were functionally null by multiple criteria. Sensitivities of the clones to 11 HAP (six nitroaromatics, three benzotriazine N-oxides, and two quinones) were compared with wild-type and POR-overexpressing cells. All except the quinones were potentiated by POR overexpression. Knocking out POR had a marked effect on antiproliferative activity of the 5-nitroquinoline SN24349 in both genetic backgrounds after anoxic exposure but little or no effect on activity of most other HAP, including the clinical stage 2-nitroimidazole mustard TH-302, dinitrobenzamide mustard PR-104A, and benzotriazine N-oxide SN30000. Clonogenic cell killing and reductive metabolism of PR-104A and SN30000 under anoxia also showed little change in the POR knock-outs. Thus, although POR expression is a potential biomarker of sensitivity to some HAP, identification of other one-electron reductases responsible for HAP activation is needed for their rational clinical development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiechuang Su
- From the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
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Patterson AV, Jaiswal J, Carlin K, Abbattista MR, Guise CP, Silva S, Lee H, Lu GL, Anderson RF, Melink TJ, Gutheil JC, Smaill JB. Abstract B278: PR610: A novel hypoxia-selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor in phase I clinical trial. Mol Cancer Ther 2013. [DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.targ-13-b278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
PR610 is a hypoxia-selective irreversible Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (HER) family inhibitor currently in phase I clinical trials in New Zealand and the USA (clinical trial ID NCT01631279). The prodrug PR610 releases the TKI (Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor) PR610E, a picomolar irreversible inhibitor of EGFR (HER1), under oxygen-limiting conditions typically found in solid tumors. Human neoplastic cell lines exposed to PR610 show an anoxia-selective anti-proliferative response that is associated with G1 arrest and induction of apoptosis arising from inhibition of EGFR auto-phosphorylation and downstream silencing of associated signal transduction pathways. PR610 is optimized for long tumor residency (T½ >2 days); in a preclinical model of erlotinib-resistant NSCLC, a single injection of PR610 produces profound, global shutdown of signal transduction via EGFRT790M/L858R. Tumor PR610E concentrations were above cellular anti-proliferative IC50 concentrations for over 5 days, being more than sufficient to induce apoptosis via “oncogenic shock”.
Pharmacokinetic (PK) studies of PR610 show significant differences in species toxicokinetics. Both the rat and dog preclinical toxicology models display considerable systemic conversion of PR610 to PR610E (6% - 30% and 24% - 29% of prodrug AUC, respectively) with attendant symptoms of EGFR inhibition including acneiform skin rash and diarrhea. In contrast NIH-III nude mice display minimal circulating TKI (PR610E) relative to PR610 (1.5% - 1.7% of AUC) consistent with a substantially improved tolerance as judged by PR610 plasma AUCinf at the maximum tolerated dose (MTD). Human subjects from the phase I clinical trial consistently experience the lowest systemic levels of PR610E (Mean 1.06% ± 0.69%; range 0.34% - 2.7%; n=20) across dose levels ranging from 10 - 150 mg/m2. Notably, a dose of 150 mg/m2 in human subjects produces a PR610 plasma AUCinf equivalent to that measured for 30 mg/kg PR610 in NIH-III mice, a dose that is active in several HER-dependent subcutaneous tumor xenograft models. Collectively, these data indicate that PR610 has the desirable characteristics of a deactivated prodrug in human subjects and preclinical models predict that an active dose range has been reached in the phase I trial. PR610 is a first-in-class hypoxia-selective EGFR/HER2 inhibitor with exciting clinical potential.
Citation Information: Mol Cancer Ther 2013;12(11 Suppl):B278.
Citation Format: Adam V. Patterson, Jagdish Jaiswal, Kendall Carlin, Maria R. Abbattista, Christopher P. Guise, Shevan Silva, Ho Lee, Guo-Liang Lu, Robert F. Anderson, Teresa J. Melink, John C. Gutheil, Jeff B. Smaill. PR610: A novel hypoxia-selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor in phase I clinical trial. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2013 Oct 19-23; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2013;12(11 Suppl):Abstract nr B278.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jagdish Jaiswal
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Kendall Carlin
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | | | - Shevan Silva
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Ho Lee
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Guo-Liang Lu
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | | | | | - Jeff B. Smaill
- 1Univ. of Auckland Cancer Society Res. Ctr., Auckland, New Zealand
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Lu GL, Ashoorzadeh A, Anderson RF, Patterson AV, Smaill JB. Synthesis of substituted 5-bromomethyl-4-nitroimidazoles and use for the preparation of the hypoxia-selective multikinase inhibitor SN29966. Tetrahedron 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tet.2013.08.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Green LK, Syddall SP, Carlin KM, Bell GD, Guise CP, Mowday AM, Hay MP, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Ackerley DF. Pseudomonas aeruginosa NfsB and nitro-CBI-DEI--a promising enzyme/prodrug combination for gene directed enzyme prodrug therapy. Mol Cancer 2013; 12:58. [PMID: 23758947 PMCID: PMC3695803 DOI: 10.1186/1476-4598-12-58] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2013] [Accepted: 06/05/2013] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The nitro-chloromethylbenzindoline prodrug nitro-CBI-DEI appears a promising candidate for the anti-cancer strategy gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy, based on its ability to be converted to a highly cytotoxic cell-permeable derivative by the nitroreductase NfsB from Escherichia coli. However, relative to some other nitroaromatic prodrugs, nitro-CBI-DEI is a poor substrate for E. coli NfsB. To address this limitation we evaluated other nitroreductase candidates from E. coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. FINDINGS Initial screens of candidate genes in the E. coli reporter strain SOS-R2 identified two additional nitroreductases, E. coli NfsA and P. aeruginosa NfsB, as being more effective activators of nitro-CBI-DEI than E. coli NfsB. In monolayer cytotoxicity assays, human colon carcinoma (HCT-116) cells transfected with P. aeruginosa NfsB were >4.5-fold more sensitive to nitro-CBI-DEI than cells expressing either E. coli enzyme, and 23.5-fold more sensitive than untransfected HCT-116. In three dimensional mixed cell cultures, not only were the P. aeruginosa NfsB expressing cells 540-fold more sensitive to nitro-CBI-DEI than pure cultures of untransfected HCT-116, the activated drug that they generated also displayed an unprecedented local bystander effect. CONCLUSION We posit that the discrepancy in the fold-sensitivity to nitro-CBI-DEI between the two and three dimensional cytotoxicity assays stems from loss of activated drug into the media in the monolayer cultures. This emphasises the importance of evaluating high-bystander GDEPT prodrugs in three dimensional models. The high cytotoxicity and bystander effect exhibited by the NfsB_Pa/nitro-CBI-DEI combination suggest that further preclinical development of this GDEPT pairing is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura K Green
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn Parade, Wellington, New Zealand
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Wang J, Guise CP, Hsu HL, Hurley D, Wilson WR, Patterson AV. Abstract 2111: Identification of reductases capable of metabolic activation of hypoxia targeting prodrug SN30000 and hypoxia marker EF5. Cancer Res 2013. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2013-2111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Background: SN30000 is a 2nd generation benzotriazine-N-oxide hypoxia-activated prodrug (tirapazamine analogue) and is currently in preclinical development. We have previously shown that reductive activation of the hypoxia marker EF5 and SN30000 are correlated across a panel of cancer cells under hypoxia (Wang et al, Clin Can Res 18:1684, 2012), suggesting that they are activated by the same reductases. The identities of these reductases are not known, except NADPH:cytochrome p450 oxidoreductase (POR). Further, knockout of POR in HCT116 and SiHa cell lines had little or no effect on reduction of either compound. Here, we utilise a previously reported panel of HCT116 isogenic cell lines (Guise et al, Can Res 70:1573, 2010; Mol Pharmacol 81:31, 2012) over-expressing nine oxidoreductases with known or suspected roles in bioreductive prodrug metabolism (AKR1C3, CYB5R, FDXR, MTRR, NDOR1, NOS2A, NQO1, NQO2 and POR) to identify reductases capable of reducing SN30000 and EF5. Methods: Drug metabolism rates under oxic and anoxic conditions were determined in each cell line. The metabolism of SN 30000 to its corresponding 1-oxide and nor-oxide metabolites were measured by LC/MS/MS and the reduction of EF5 by quantifying covalent protein binding of 14C-EF5. SN30000 anoxic cytotoxicity was determined by clonogenic assay. Oxidoreductase expression profiling in cancer patient samples was conducted using Oncomine Premium edition. Results: There was minimal reductive metabolism under oxic conditions (0.1 to 4.8% of anoxic values) for both compounds in all cell lines. Under anoxic conditions, 4 to 5 fold differences were obtained for EF5 and SN30000 across the 10 isogenic cell lines. Our results confirmed our previous observations that POR is one of the reductases capable for SN30000 and EF5 metabolism. In addition to POR, three other members of the diflavin oxidoreductase family (MTRR, NOS2A and NDOR1) had increased anoxic metabolism rates compared to the parental line for both SN30000 and EF5. There was a good correlation between EF5 binding and SN30000 anoxic metabolism across the cell lines (R2=0.78, p=0.0015). SN30000 cytotoxicity under anoxic conditions was also increased in the cells over-expressing POR, NDOR1, MTRR and NOS2A. Expression of these four reductases showed considerable variation between individual human tumour biopsies. In general, the ranking of transcript abundance between the four reductases was POR > MTRR > NOS2A ≈ NDOR1 in most cancer types. In breast cancer, expression of these reductases was similar in tumours with high and low expression of the hypoxia marker gene CA9. Conclusion: we have identified 4 flavoreductases (POR, MTRR, NOS2A and NDOR1) that are capable of activating both SN30000 and EF5 under anoxia when overexpressed in HCT116 cells. However it is not yet clear whether they play a significant role at basal levels of expression in cell lines or tumours.
Citation Format: Jingli Wang, Chris P. Guise, Huai-Ling Hsu, Daniel Hurley, William R. Wilson, Adam V. Patterson. Identification of reductases capable of metabolic activation of hypoxia targeting prodrug SN30000 and hypoxia marker EF5. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2111. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-2111
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Prosser GA, Copp JN, Mowday AM, Guise CP, Syddall SP, Williams EM, Horvat CN, Swe PM, Ashoorzadeh A, Denny WA, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Ackerley DF. Creation and screening of a multi-family bacterial oxidoreductase library to discover novel nitroreductases that efficiently activate the bioreductive prodrugs CB1954 and PR-104A. Biochem Pharmacol 2013; 85:1091-103. [PMID: 23399641 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2013.01.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2012] [Revised: 01/28/2013] [Accepted: 01/30/2013] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Two potentially complementary approaches to improve the anti-cancer strategy gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (GDEPT) are discovery of more efficient prodrug-activating enzymes, and development of more effective prodrugs. Here we demonstrate the utility of a flexible screening system based on the Escherichia coli SOS response to evaluate novel nitroreductase enzymes and prodrugs in concert. To achieve this, a library of 47 candidate genes representing 11 different oxidoreductase families was created and screened to identify the most efficient activators of two different nitroaromatic prodrugs, CB1954 and PR-104A. The most catalytically efficient nitroreductases were found in the NfsA and NfsB enzyme families, with NfsA homologues generally more active than NfsB. Some members of the AzoR, NemA and MdaB families also exhibited low-level activity with one or both prodrugs. The results of SOS screening in our optimised E. coli reporter strain SOS-R2 were generally predictive of the ability of nitroreductase candidates to sensitise E. coli to CB1954, and of the kcat/Km for each prodrug substrate at a purified protein level. However, we also found that not all nitroreductases express stably in human (HCT-116 colon carcinoma) cells, and that activity at a purified protein level did not necessarily predict activity in stably transfected HCT-116. These results highlight a need for all enzyme-prodrug partners for GDEPT to be assessed in the specific context of the vector and cell line that they are intended to target. Nonetheless, our oxidoreductase library and optimised screens provide valuable tools to identify preferred nitroreductase-prodrug combinations to advance to preclinical evaluation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gareth A Prosser
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn Parade, Wellington, New Zealand
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Michaelsen SR, Christensen CL, Sehested M, Cramer F, Poulsen TT, Patterson AV, Poulsen HS. Single agent- and combination treatment with two targeted suicide gene therapy systems is effective in chemoresistant small cell lung cancer cells. J Gene Med 2012; 14:445-58. [PMID: 22576955 DOI: 10.1002/jgm.2630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Transcriptional targeted suicide gene (SG) therapy driven by the insulinoma-associated 1 (INSM1) promoter makes it possible to target suicide toxin production and cytotoxicity exclusively to small cell lung cancer (SCLC) cells and tumors. It remains to be determined whether acquired chemoresistance, as observed in the majority of SCLC patients, desensitizes SCLC cells to INSM1 promoter-driven SG therapy. METHODS A panel of SCLC cell lines resistant to clinically relevant chemotherapeutics was characterized regarding the expression of proteins involved in response to chemotherapy and regarding INSM1 promoter activity. Sensitivity towards INSM1 promoter-driven SG therapy was tested using different systems: Yeast cytosine deaminase-uracil phosphoribosyl transferase (YCD-YUPRT) in combination with the prodrug 5-fluorocytosine (5-FC) or Escherichia coli nitroreductase (NTR) together with the bromomustard prodrug SN27686. RESULTS The chemoresistant cell lines displayed heterogeneous expression profiles of molecules involved in multidrug resistance, apoptosis and survival pathways. Despite this, the INSM1 promoter activity was found to be unchanged or increased in SCLC chemoresistant cells and xenografts compared to chemosensitive variants. INSM1 promoter-driven SG therapy with YCD-YUPRT/5-FC or NTR/SN27686, was found to induce high levels of cytotoxicity in both chemosensitive and chemoresistant SCLC cells. Moreover, the combination of INSM1 promoter-driven YCD-YUPRT/5-FC therapy and chemotherapy, as well as the combination of INSM1 promoter-driven YCD-YUPRT/5-FC and NTR/SN27686 therapy, was observed to be superior to single agent therapy in chemoresistant SCLC cells. CONCLUSIONS Collectively, the present study demonstrates that targeted SG therapy is a potent therapeutic approach for chemoresistant SCLC patients, with the highest efficacy achieved when applied as combination SG therapy or in combination with standard chemotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Signe R Michaelsen
- Department of Radiation Biology, The Finsen Center, National University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
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Swe PM, Copp JN, Green LK, Guise CP, Mowday AM, Smaill JB, Patterson AV, Ackerley DF. Targeted mutagenesis of the Vibrio fischeri flavin reductase FRase I to improve activation of the anticancer prodrug CB1954. Biochem Pharmacol 2012; 84:775-83. [PMID: 22796568 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2012.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2012] [Revised: 07/03/2012] [Accepted: 07/05/2012] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Phase I/II cancer gene therapy trials of the Escherichia coli nitroreductase NfsB in partnership with the prodrug CB1954 [5-(aziridin-1-yl)-2,4-dinitrobenzamide] have indicated that CB1954 toxicity is dose-limiting at concentrations far below the enzyme K(M). Here we report that the flavin reductase FRase I from Vibrio fischeri is also a CB1954 nitroreductase, which has a substantially lower apparent K(M) than E. coli NfsB. To enhance the activity of FRase I with CB1954 we used targeted mutagenesis and an E. coli SOS reporter strain to engineer single- and multi-residue variants that possess a substantially reduced apparent K(M) and an increased k(cat)/K(M) relative to the wild type enzyme. In a bacteria-delivered model for enzyme prodrug therapy, the engineered FRase I variants were able to kill human colon carcinoma (HCT-116) cells at significantly lower CB1954 concentrations than wild type FRase I or E. coli NfsB.
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Affiliation(s)
- P M Swe
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn Parade, Wellington, New Zealand.
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