Browsing by Subject "Enzyme inhibitors"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Epigenetic Attire in Ovarian Cancer: The Emperor’s New Clothes
    (American Association for Cancer Research, 2020-09-15) Matei, Daniela; Nephew, Kenneth P.; Anatomy and Cell Biology, School of Medicine
    Ovarian cancer is an aggressive epithelial tumor that remains a major cause of cancer morbidity and mortality in women. Epigenetic alterations including DNA methylation and histone modifications are being characterized in ovarian cancer and have been functionally linked to processes involved in tumor initiation, chemotherapy resistance, cancer stem cell survival, and tumor metastasis. The epigenetic traits of cancer cells and of associated tumor microenvironment components have been shown to promote an immunosuppressive tumor milieu. However, DNA methylation and histone modifications are reversible, and therapies targeting the epigenome have been implicated in potential reinvigoration of the antitumor immunity. In this review, we provide an overview specifically of DNA methylation and histone modifications as "clothes of the ovarian cancer genome" in relationship to their functional effects and highlight recent developments in the field. We also address the clinical implications of therapeutic strategies to remove or alter specific articles of genomic "clothing" and restore normal cellular function. As the clothes of the genome continue to be deciphered, we envision that the epigenome will become an important therapeutic target for cancer.
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    Identification and characterization of small-molecule inhibitors of aldehyde dehydrogenase 1A1
    (2015-01) Morgan, Cynthia A.; Hurley, Thomas D., 1961-; Georgiadis, Millie M.; Harrington, Maureen A.; Sullivan, William J., Jr.
    The human genome encodes 19 members of the aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) superfamily, critical enzymes involved in the metabolism of aldehyde substrates. A major function of the ALDH1A subfamily is the oxidation of retinaldehyde to retinoic acid, a key regulator of numerous cell growth and differentiation pathways. ALDH1A1 has been identified as a biomarker for both normal stem cells and cancer stem cells. Small molecule probes are needed to better understand the role of this enzyme in both normal and disease states. However, there are no commercially available, small molecules that selectively inhibit ALDH1A1. Our goal is to identify and characterize small molecule inhibitors of ALDH1A1 as chemical tools and as potential therapeutics. To better understand the basis for selective inhibition of ALDH1A1, we characterized N,N-diethylaminobenzaldehyde (DEAB), which is a commonly used inhibitor of ALDH1A1 and purported to be selective. DEAB serves as the negative control for the Aldefluor assay widely utilized to identify stem cells. Rather than being a selective inhibitor for ALDH1A1, we found that DEAB is a slow substrate for multiple ALDH isoenzymes, and depending on the rate of turnover, DEAB behaves as either a traditional substrate or as an inhibitor. Due to its very slow turnover, DEAB is a potent inhibitor of ALDH1A1 with respect to propionaldehyde oxidation, but it is not a good candidate for the development of selective ALDH1A1 inhibitors because of its promiscuity. Next, to discover novel selective inhibitors, we used an in vitro, high-throughput screen of 64,000 compounds to identify 256 hits that either activate or inhibit ALDH1A1 activity. We have characterized two structural classes of compounds, CM026 and CM037, using enzyme kinetics and X-ray crystallographic structural data. Both classes contained potent and selective inhibitors for ALDH1A1. Structural studies of ALDH1A1 with CM026 showed that CM026 binds at the active site, and its selectivity is achieved by a single residue substitution. Importantly, CM037 selectively inhibits proliferation of ALDH+ ovarian cancer cells. The discovery of these two selective classes of ALDH1A1 inhibitors may be useful in delineating the role of ALDH1A1 in biological processes and may seed the development of new chemotherapeutic agents.
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    An inhibitor of the mitotic kinase, MPS1, is selective towards pancreatic cancer cells
    (2014) Bansal, Ruchi; Grimes, Brenda R.; Herbert, Brittney-Shea; Dlouhy, Stephen Robert
    The abysmal five year pancreatic cancer survival rate of less than 6% highlights the need for new treatments for this deadly malignancy. Cytotoxic drugs normally target rapidly dividing cancer cells but unfortunately often target stem cells resulting in toxicity. This warrants the development of compounds that selectively target tumor cells. An inhibitor of the mitotic kinase, MPS1, which has been shown to be more selective towards cancer cells than non-tumorigenic cells, shows promise but its effects on stem cells has not been investigated. MPS1 is an essential component of the Spindle Assembly Checkpoint and is proposed to be up-regulated in cancer cells to maintain chromosomal segregation errors within survivable limits. Inhibition of MPS1 kinase causes cancer cell death accompanied by massive aneuploidy. Our studies demonstrate that human adipose stem cells (ASCs) and can tolerate higher levels of a small molecule MPS1 inhibitor than pancreatic cancer cells. In contrast to PANC-1 cancer cells, ASCs and telomerase-immortalized pancreatic ductal epithelial cells did not exhibit elevated chromosome mis-segregation after treatment with the MPS1 inhibitor for 72hrs. In contrast, PANC-1 pancreatic cancer cells exhibited a large increase in chromosomal mis-segregation under similar conditions. Furthermore, growth of ASCs was minimally affected post treatment whereas PANC-1 cells were severely growth impaired suggesting a favorable therapeutic index. Our studies, demonstrate that MPS1 inhibition is selective towards pancreatic cancer cells and that stem cells are less affected in vitro. These data suggest MPS1 inhibition should be further investigated as a new treatment approach in pancreatic cancer.
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    Quinoline Derivative MC1626, a Putative GCN5 Histone Acetyltransferase (HAT) Inhibitor, Exhibits HAT-Independent Activity against Toxoplasma gondii
    (American Society for Microbiology, 2007) Smith, Aaron T.; Livingston, Meredith R.; Mai, Antonello; Filetici, Patrizia; Queener, Sherry F.; Sullivan, William J., Jr.; Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Medicine
    We report that quinoline derivative MC1626, first described as an inhibitor of the histone acetyltransferase (HAT) GCN5, is active against the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii in vitro. However, MC1626 does not inhibit Toxoplasma GCN5 HATs or reduce HAT-mediated activity; rather, this quinoline may target the plastid organelle called the apicoplast.
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    Structure-Based Design of Active-Site-Directed, Highly Potent, Selective, and Orally Bioavailable Low-Molecular-Weight Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase Inhibitors
    (American Chemical Society, 2022) He, Rongjun; Wang, Jifeng; Yu, Zhi-Hong; Moyers, Julie S.; Michael, M. Dodson; Durham, Timothy B.; Cramer, Jeff W.; Qian, Yuewei; Lin, Amy; Wu, Li; Noinaj, Nicholas; Barrett, David G.; Zhang, Zhong-Yin; Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine
    Protein tyrosine phosphatases constitute an important class of drug targets whose potential has been limited by the paucity of drug-like small-molecule inhibitors. We recently described a class of active-site-directed, moderately selective, and potent inhibitors of the low-molecular-weight protein tyrosine phosphatase (LMW-PTP). Here, we report our extensive structure-based design and optimization effort that afforded inhibitors with vastly improved potency and specificity. The leading compound inhibits LMW-PTP potently and selectively (Ki = 1.2 nM, >8000-fold selectivity). Many compounds exhibit favorable drug-like properties, such as low molecular weight, weak cytochrome P450 inhibition, high metabolic stability, moderate to high cell permeability (Papp > 0.2 nm/s), and moderate to good oral bioavailability (% F from 23 to 50% in mice), and therefore can be used as in vivo chemical probes to further dissect the complex biological as well as pathophysiological roles of LMW-PTP and for the development of therapeutics targeting LMW-PTP.
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    Structure-Based Drug Design of Bisubstrate Inhibitors of Phenylethanolamine N-Methyltransferase (PNMT) Possessing Low Nanomolar Affinity at Both Substrate Binding Domains
    (American Chemical Society, 2020) Lu, Jian; Bart, Aaron G.; Wu, Qian; Criscione, Kevin R.; McLeish, Michael J.; Scott, Emily E.; Grunewald, Gary L.; Chemistry and Chemical Biology, School of Science
    The enzyme phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT, EC 2.1.1.28) catalyzes the final step in the biosynthesis of epinephrine and is a potential drug target, primarily for the control of hypertension. Unfortunately, many potent PNMT inhibitors also possess significant affinity for the a2-adrenoceptor, which complicates the interpretation of their pharmacology. A bisubstrate analogue approach offers the potential for development of highly selective inhibitors of PNMT. This paper documents the design, synthesis, and evaluation of such analogues, several of which were found to possess human PNMT (hPNMT) inhibitory potency <5 nM versus AdoMet. Site-directed mutagenesis studies were consistent with bisubstrate binding. Two of these compounds (19 and 29) were co-crystallized with hPNMT and the resulting structures revealed both compounds bound as predicted, simultaneously occupying both substrate binding domains. This bisubstrate inhibitor approach has resulted in one of the most potent (20) and selective (vs the a2-adrenoceptor) inhibitors of hPNMT yet reported.
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    A Telehealth-Based Randomized Controlled Trial: A Model for Outpatients Trials of Off-Label Medications During the COVID-19 Pandemic
    (Sage, 2021-08) Keyhani, Salomeh; Kelly, J. Daniel; Bent, Stephen; Boscardin, W. John; Shlipak, Michael G.; Leonard, Sam; Abraham, Ann; Lum, Emily; Lau, Nicholas; Austin, Charles; Oldenburg, Catherine E.; Zillich, Allan; Lopez, Lenny; Zhang, Ying; Lietman, Tom; Bravata, Dawn M.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    The study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov: NCT04363203