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Theise ND, Arment AR, Chakravarty D, Gregg JMH, Jacobson IM, Jung KH, Nair SS, Tewari AK, Thurston AW, Van Drie J, Westover JB. Clinical stage molecule PT150 is a modulator of glucocorticoid and androgen receptors with antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. Cell Cycle 2020; 19:3632-3638. [PMID: 33305659 PMCID: PMC7738205 DOI: 10.1080/15384101.2020.1859752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
PT150 is a clinical-stage molecule, taken orally, with a strong safety profile having completed Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials for its original use as an antidepressant. It has an active IND for COVID-19. Antiviral activities have been found for PT150 and other members of its class in a variety of virus families; thus, it was now tested against SARS-CoV-2 in human bronchial epithelial lining cells and showed effective 90% inhibitory antiviral concentration (EC90) of 5.55 µM. PT150 is a member of an extended platform of novel glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and androgen receptor (AR) modulating molecules. In vivo, their predominant net effect is one of systemic glucocorticoid antagonism, but they also show direct downregulation of AR and minor GR agonism at the cellular level. We hypothesize that anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity depends in part on this AR downregulation through diminished TMPRSS2 expression and modulation of ACE2 activity. Given that hypercortisolemia is now suggested to be a significant co-factor for COVID-19 progression, we also postulate an additive role for its potent immunomodulatory effects through systemic antagonism of cortisol.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neil D. Theise
- Department of Pathology, New York University-Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
- Palisades Therapeutics/Pop Test Oncology LLC, Cliffside Park, NJ, USA
| | - Anthony R. Arment
- Department of Biology, Central State University, Wilberforce, OH, USA
| | - Dimple Chakravarty
- Department of Urology and the Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - John M. H. Gregg
- Palisades Therapeutics/Pop Test Oncology LLC, Cliffside Park, NJ, USA
| | - Ira M. Jacobson
- Department of Medicine, New York University-Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kie Hoon Jung
- Department of Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | - Sujit S. Nair
- Department of Urology and the Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ashutosh K. Tewari
- Department of Urology and the Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | | | | | - Jonna B. Westover
- Department of Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
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