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Su H, Liang H, Tian J, Zheng L, Li H, Yang X, Yin S, Bi H. Discovery of PXR agonists from Hypericum japonicum: A class of novel nonaromatic acylphloroglucinol-terpenoid adducts. Bioorg Chem 2024; 147:107354. [PMID: 38599054 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2024.107354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2024] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/06/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Pregnane X receptor (PXR) has been considered as a promising therapeutic target for cholestasis due to its crucial regulation in bile acid biosynthesis and metabolism. To search promising natural PXR agonists, the PXR agonistic activities of five traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) with hepatoprotective efficacy were assayed, and Hypericum japonicum as the most active one was selected for subsequent phytochemical investigation, which led to the isolation of eight nonaromatic acylphloroglucinol-terpenoid adducts including seven new compounds (1 - 4, 5a, 5b and 6). Their structures including absolute configurations were determined by comprehensive spectroscopic, computational and X-ray diffraction analysis. Meanwhile, the PXR agonistic activities of aplenty compounds were evaluated via dual-luciferase reporter assay, RT-qPCR and immunofluorescence. Among them, compounds 1 - 4 showed more potent activity than the positive drug rifampicin. Furthermore, the molecular docking revealed that 1 - 4 were docked well on the PXR ligand binding domain and formed hydrogen bonds with amino acid residues Gln285, Ser247 and His409. This investigation revealed that H. japonicum may serve as a rich source of natural PXR agonists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haiguo Su
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Design and Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China; State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 611137, China
| | - Hangfei Liang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Design and Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Jianing Tian
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Design and Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Lei Zheng
- NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Drug Metabolism & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Screening & Guangdong-Hongkong-Macao Joint Laboratory for New Drug Screening, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
| | - Huilin Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Design and Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Xiao Yang
- NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Drug Metabolism & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Screening & Guangdong-Hongkong-Macao Joint Laboratory for New Drug Screening, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China; The State Key Laboratory of Chemical Oncogenomics, School of Chemical Biology and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Graduate School of Peking University, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Sheng Yin
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Design and Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China.
| | - Huichang Bi
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Design and Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China; NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Drug Metabolism & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Screening & Guangdong-Hongkong-Macao Joint Laboratory for New Drug Screening, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China; The State Key Laboratory of Chemical Oncogenomics, School of Chemical Biology and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Graduate School of Peking University, Shenzhen 518055, China.
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Méndez-Sánchez N, Coronel-Castillo CE, Ordoñez-Vázquez AL. Current Therapies for Cholestatic Diseases. Biomedicines 2023; 11:1713. [PMID: 37371808 PMCID: PMC10296345 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11061713] [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: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 06/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Cholestasis is a condition characterized by decrease in bile flow due to progressive pathological states that lead to chronic cholestatic liver diseases which affect the biliary tree at the intrahepatic level and extrahepatic level. They induce complications such as cirrhosis, liver failure, malignancies, bone disease and nutritional deficiencies that merit close follow-up and specific interventions. Furthermore, as those conditions progress to liver cirrhosis, there will be an increase in mortality but also an important impact in quality of life and economic burden due to comorbidities related with liver failure. Therefore, it is important that clinicians understand the treatment options for cholestatic liver diseases. With a general view of therapeutic options and their molecular targets, this review addresses the pathophysiology of cholangiopathies. The objective is to provide clinicians with an overview of the safety and efficacy of the treatment of cholangiopathies based on the current evidence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nahum Méndez-Sánchez
- Unit Liver Research, Medica Sur Clinic & Foundation, Puente de Piedra 150, Toriello Guerra, Tlalpan, Mexico City 14050, Mexico;
- Faculty of Medicine, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Av. Universidad 3004, Copilco Universidad, Coyoacán, Mexico City 04510, Mexico
| | - Carlos E. Coronel-Castillo
- Internal Medicine Section, Central Military Hospital, Manuel Ávila Camacho s/n, Militar, Miguel Hidalgo, Ciudad de México 11200, Mexico;
| | - Ana L. Ordoñez-Vázquez
- Unit Liver Research, Medica Sur Clinic & Foundation, Puente de Piedra 150, Toriello Guerra, Tlalpan, Mexico City 14050, Mexico;
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Huang D, Zhao YY, Wang RM, Li W, Yuan FY, Yan XL, Yang X, Tang GH, Yin S, Bi HC. Natural product-based screening led to the discovery of a novel PXR agonist with anti-cholestasis activity. Acta Pharmacol Sin 2021. [PMID: 34931017 DOI: 10.1038/s41401-021-00793-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2021] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Cholestasis is a major cause of a series of bile flow malfunction-related liver diseases. Pregnane X receptor (PXR) is a key regulator in endo- and xeno-biotics metabolism, which has been considered as a promising therapeutic target for cholestasis. In this study we conducted human PXR (hPXR) agonistic screening using dual-luciferase reporter gene assays, which led to discovering a series of potent hPXR agonists from a small Euphorbiaceae diterpenoid library, containing 35 structurally diverse diterpenoids with eight different skeleton types. The most active compound 6, a lathyrane diterpenoid (5/11/3 ring system), dose-dependently activated hPXR with a high selectivity, and significantly upregulated the expression of hPXR downstream genes CYP3A4 and UGT1A1. In LCA-induced cholestasis mouse model, administration of compound 6 (50 mg· kg-1. d-1, ip) for 7 days significantly suppressed liver necrosis and decreased serum levels of AST, ALT, Tbili, ALP, and TBA, ameliorating LCA-induced cholestatic liver injury. We further revealed that compound 6 exerted its anti-cholestatic efficacy via activation of PXR pathway, accelerating the detoxification of toxic BAs and promoting liver regeneration. These results suggest that lathyrane diterpenoids may serve as a promising scaffold for future development of anti-cholestasis drugs.
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Hodnik Ž, Tomašič T, Smodiš D, D'Amore C, Mašič LP, Fiorucci S, Kikelj D. Diethylstilbestrol-scaffold-based pregnane X receptor modulators. Eur J Med Chem 2015; 103:551-62. [PMID: 26408814 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2015.09.005] [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] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2015] [Revised: 07/21/2015] [Accepted: 09/04/2015] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Due to its function as a regulator of drug-metabolizing enzymes and transporters, pregnane X receptor (PXR) represents an important factor involved in drug metabolism. In this work, we describe the discovery of diethylstilbestrol-based PXR modulators, which were designed from marine sulfated steroids with PXR agonistic activity, solomonsterols A and B, and our recently reported bazedoxifene scaffold-derived PXR antagonists. The methylated diethylstilbestrol derivative 1 displayed potent PXR agonistic activity with an EC50 value of 10.5 μM, whereas compounds 3, 4 and 6 (IC50 for 6 = 27.4 μM) and diethylstilbestrol (2) itself (IC50 = 14.6 μM) exhibited PXR antagonistic effects in HepG2 cells. The PXR modulatory effects of the synthesized diethylstilbestrol derivatives were further confirmed by the induction of PXR-regulated CYP3A4 expression with compound 1, as well as by the inhibition of the rifaximin-promoted up-regulation of CYP3A4 expression with 2 and its derivative 6.
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Affiliation(s)
- Žiga Hodnik
- University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy, Aškerčeva 7, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Tihomir Tomašič
- University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy, Aškerčeva 7, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Domen Smodiš
- University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy, Aškerčeva 7, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Claudio D'Amore
- University of Perugia, Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Nuova Facultàdi Medicina e Chirurgia, S. Andrea delle Fratte, 06132 Perugia, Italy
| | | | - Stefano Fiorucci
- University of Perugia, Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Nuova Facultàdi Medicina e Chirurgia, S. Andrea delle Fratte, 06132 Perugia, Italy
| | - Danijel Kikelj
- University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy, Aškerčeva 7, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
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