High PRMT5 expression is associated with poor overall survival and tumor progression in bladder cancer

From DNA-Encoded Library Screening to : An MTA-Cooperative PRMT5 Inhibitor with Potent Oral In Vivo Efficacy

Inhibition of the methyltransferase enzyme PRMT5 by MTA accumulation is a vulnerability of MTAP-deleted cancers. Herein, we report the discovery and optimization of a quinolin-2-amine DEL hit that cooperatively binds PRMT5:MEP50 and MTA to generate a catalytically inhibited ternary complex. X-ray crystallography confirms quinolin-2-amine binding of PRMT5 glutamate-444, while simultaneously exhibiting a hydrophobic interaction with MTA. Lead optimization produced AM-9747, which selectively inhibits PRMT5-directed symmetric dimethylation of arginine residues of proteins, leading to a potent reduction of cell viability in MTAP-del cells compared to MTAP-WT cells. Once-daily oral dosing of AM-9747 in mouse xenografts is well tolerated, displaying a robust and dose-dependent inhibition of symmetric dimethylation of arginine in MTAP-del tumor-xenografts and significant concomitant tumor growth inhibition without any significant effect on MTAP-WT tumor xenografts.

Medicinal chemistry insights into PRMT5 inhibitors

Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) is a type II PRMT enzyme that plays an important role in protein formation. PRMT5 is widely distributed in the nucleus and is involved in regulating a variety of biological processes, including gene transcription, signaling, and cell proliferation. PRMT5 regulates the function and stability of histones through methylation, affecting important cellular activities such as cell cycle regulation, DNA repair, and RNA processing. Studies have shown that PRMT5 is overexpressed in a variety of tumors and is closely related to the occurrence and development of tumors. In recent years, several PRMT5 inhibitors have entered clinical trials for the treatment of various cancers. In view of their importance, this paper reviews the first generation of PRMT5 inhibitors obtained by high-throughput screening, virtual screening, lead compound optimization and substitution modification, as well as novel PRMT5 inhibitors obtained by PROTAC technology and by synthetic lethal principle. Finally, by comparing the differences between the first generation and the second generation, the challenges and future development directions of PRMT5 inhibitors are discussed.

Targeting PRMT5 through PROTAC for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer

BACKGROUND

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is currently the most aggressive subtype of breast cancer, characterized by high heterogeneity and strong invasiveness, and currently lacks effective therapies. PRMT5, a type II protein arginine methyltransferase, is upregulated in numerous cancers, including TNBC, and plays a critical role, marked it as an attractive therapeutic target. PROTAC (Proteolysis Targeting Chimeras) is an innovative drug development technology that utilizes the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) to degrade target proteins, which is characterized by higher activity, enhanced safety, lower resistance, and reduced toxicity, offering significant value for clinical translation.

METHODS

This study utilizes the PROTAC technology to develop potential degraders targeting PRMT5 in vitro and in vivo.

RESULTS

Through the design, synthesis and screening of a series of targeted compounds, we identified YZ-836P as an effective compound that exerted cytotoxic effects and reduced the protein levels of PRMT5 and its key downstream target protein KLF5 in TNBC after 48 h. Its efficacy was significantly superior to the PRMT5 PROTAC degraders that had been reported. YZ-836P induced G1 phase cell cycle arrest and significantly induced apoptosis in TNBC cells. Additionally, we demonstrated that YZ-836P promoted the ubiquitination and degradation of PRMT5 in a cereblon (CRBN)-dependent manner. Notably, YZ-836P exhibited pronounced efficacy in inhibiting the growth of TNBC patient-derived organoids and xenografts in nude mice.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings position YZ-836P as a promising candidate for advancing treatment modalities for TNBC.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Ethics Committee of Yunnan Cancer Hospital, KYCS2023-078. Registered 7 June 2023.

Targeting Arginine Methyltransferase PRMT5 for Cancer Therapy: Updated Progress and Novel Strategies

As a predominant type II protein arginine methyltransferase, PRMT5 plays critical roles in various normal cellular processes by catalyzing the mono- and symmetrical dimethylation of a wide range of histone and nonhistone substrates. Clinical studies have revealed that high expression of PRMT5 is observed in different solid tumors and hematological malignancies and is closely associated with cancer initiation and progression. Accordingly, PRMT5 is becoming a promising anticancer target and has received great attention in both the pharmaceutical industry and the academic community. In this Perspective, we comprehensively summarize recent advances in the development of first-generation PRMT5 enzymatic inhibitors and highlight novel strategies targeting PRMT5 in the past 5 years. We also discuss the challenges and opportunities of PRMT5 inhibition, with the aim of shedding light on future PRMT5 drug discovery.

Targeting pre-mRNA splicing in cancers: roles, inhibitors, and therapeutic opportunities

Accumulating evidence has indicated that pre-mRNA splicing plays critical roles in a variety of physiological processes, including development of multiple diseases. In particular, alternative splicing is profoundly involved in cancer progression through abnormal expression or mutation of splicing factors. Small-molecule splicing modulators have recently attracted considerable attention as a novel class of cancer therapeutics, and several splicing modulators are currently being developed for the treatment of patients with various cancers and are in the clinical trial stage. Novel molecular mechanisms modulating alternative splicing have proven to be effective for treating cancer cells resistant to conventional anticancer drugs. Furthermore, molecular mechanism-based combination strategies and patient stratification strategies for cancer treatment targeting pre-mRNA splicing must be considered for cancer therapy in the future. This review summarizes recent progress in the relationship between druggable splicing-related molecules and cancer, highlights small-molecule splicing modulators, and discusses future perspectives of splicing modulation for personalized and combination therapies in cancer treatment.

SRSF3 and HNRNPH1 Regulate Radiation-Induced Alternative Splicing of Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 5 in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) is an epigenetic regulator which has been proven to be a potential target for cancer therapy. We observed that PRMT5 underwent alternative splicing (AS) and generated a spliced isoform PRMT5-ISO5 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients after radiotherapy. However, the regulatory mechanism and the clinical implications of IR-induced PRMT5 AS are unclear. This work revealed that serine and arginine rich splicing factor 3 (SRSF3) silencing increased PRMT5-ISO5 level, whereas heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein H 1 (HNRNPH1) silencing reduced it. Then, we found that SRSF3 and HNRNPH1 competitively combined with PRMT5 pre-mRNA located at the region around the 3'- splicing site on intron 2 and the alternative 3'- splicing site on exon 4. IR-induced SRSF3 downregulation led to an elevated level of PRMT5-ISO5, and exogenous expression of PRMT5-ISO5 enhanced cell radiosensitivity. Finally, we confirmed in vivo that IR induced the increased level of PRMT5-ISO5 which in turn enhanced tumor killing and regression, and liver-specific Prmt5 depletion reduced hepatic steatosis and delayed tumor progression of spontaneous HCC. In conclusion, our data uncover the competitive antagonistic interaction of SRSF3 and HNRNPH1 in regulating PRMT5 splicing induced by IR, providing potentially effective radiotherapy by modulating PRMT5 splicing against HCC.

Inhibition of the Protein Arginine Methyltransferase PRMT5 in High-Risk Multiple Myeloma as a Novel Treatment Approach

Multiple myeloma (MM) is an incurable clonal plasma cell malignancy. Subsets of patients have high-risk features linked with dismal outcome. Therefore, the need for effective therapeutic options remains high. Here, we used bio-informatic tools to identify novel targets involved in DNA repair and epigenetics and which are associated with high-risk myeloma. The prognostic significance of the target genes was analyzed using publicly available gene expression data of MM patients (TT2/3 and HM cohorts). Hence, protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) was identified as a promising target. Druggability was assessed in OPM2, JJN3, AMO1 and XG7 human myeloma cell lines using the PRMT5-inhibitor EPZ015938. EPZ015938 strongly reduced the total symmetric-dimethyl arginine levels in all cell lines and lead to decreased cellular growth, supported by cell line dependent changes in cell cycle distribution. At later time points, apoptosis occurred, as evidenced by increased AnnexinV-positivity and cleavage of PARP and caspases. Transcriptome analysis revealed a role for PRMT5 in regulating alternative splicing, nonsense-mediated decay, DNA repair and PI3K/mTOR-signaling, irrespective of the cell line type. PRMT5 inhibition reduced the expression of upstream DNA repair kinases ATM and ATR, which may in part explain our observation that EPZ015938 and the DNA-alkylating agent, melphalan, have combinatory effects. Of interest, using a low-dose of mTOR-inhibitor, we observed that cell viability was partially rescued from the effects of EPZ015938, indicating a role for mTOR-related pathways in the anti-myeloma activity of EPZ015938. Moreover, PRMT5 was shown to be involved in splicing regulation of MMSET and SLAMF7, known genes of importance in MM disease. As such, we broaden the understanding of the exact role of PRMT5 in MM disease and further underline its use as a possible therapeutic target.

PRMT5-activated c-Myc promote bladder cancer proliferation and invasion through up-regulating NF-κB pathway

AIM

PRMT5 and c-Myc were considered as oncogene of bladder cancer. Nevertheless, whether the interaction between of PRMT5 and c-Myc affect bladder cancer progress is unknown. Herein, we explore the above points and discuss deeply its' potential mechanism.

METHOD

5637 and T24 cells were study subjects in vitro. Western blot was used to examined the protein expression. CCK8 and transwell assay were used to analyze proliferation and invasion ability. Additionally, xenograft tumor model was established. Mice imaging experiment, Immunochemistry assay and western blot were carried out.

RESULT

Western blot result showed successful transfection of PRMT5-siRNA and c-Myc-siRNA. PRMT5-siRNA could inhibit c-Myc expression, and decrease the proliferation and invasion of bladder cells. And c-Myc overexpression could reverse inhibitory action caused by PRMT5 silence. And in vitro studies found low-expression of c-Myc reduced proliferation and invasion of tumor cells and make the NF-κB pathway inactivation. In vivo studies also demonstrated that inhibiting PRMT5 could downregulate c-Myc expression and inhibit the bladder cancer progress, and the potential mechanism was likely to be related to NF-κB signaling pathway.

CONCLUSION

In a word, low-expression of PRMT5 suppressed c-Myc, and thus inhibited proliferation and invasion ability of 5637 and T24 cells through NF-κB pathway.

Structure-Aided Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Potent and Selective Non-Nucleoside Inhibitors Targeting Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 5

PRMT5 is a major type II protein arginine methyltransferase and plays important roles in diverse cellular processes. Overexpression of PRMT5 is implicated in various types of cancer. Many efforts have been made to develop potent and selective PRMT5 inhibitors, the most potent of which is usually derived from nucleoside structures. Here, we designed a novel series of non-nucleoside PRMT5 inhibitors through the structure-aided drug design approach. SAR exploration and metabolic stability optimization led to the discovery of compound 41 as a potent PRMT5 inhibitor with good selectivity. Additionally, compound 41 exerted antiproliferative effects against A375 cells by inducing apoptosis and potently inhibited the methyltransferase activity of PRMT5 in cells. Moreover, it showed attractive pharmacokinetic properties and markedly suppressed the tumor growth in an A375 tumor xenograft model. These results clearly indicate that 41 is a highly potent and selective non-nucleoside PRMT5 inhibitor.

Protein Arginine Methylation: An Emerging Modification in Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy

In recent years, protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) have emerged as new members of a gene expression regulator family in eukaryotes, and are associated with cancer pathogenesis and progression. Cancer immunotherapy has significantly improved cancer treatment in terms of overall survival and quality of life. Protein arginine methylation is an epigenetic modification function not only in transcription, RNA processing, and signal transduction cascades, but also in many cancer-immunity cycle processes. Arginine methylation is involved in the activation of anti-cancer immunity and the regulation of immunotherapy efficacy. In this review, we summarize the most up-to-date information on regulatory molecular mechanisms and different underlying arginine methylation signaling pathways in innate and adaptive immune responses during cancer. We also outline the potential of PRMT-inhibitors as effective combinatorial treatments with immunotherapy.

PRMT5: An Emerging Target for Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma

Simple Summary

The burden of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) increases with rising incidence, yet 5-year overall survival remains poor at 17%. Routine comprehensive genomic profiling of PDAC only finds 2.5% of patients who may benefit and receive matched targeted therapy. Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) as an anti-cancer target has gained significant interest in recent years and high levels of PRMT5 protein are associated with worse survival outcomes across multiple cancer types. Inhibition of PRMT5 in pre-clinical models can lead to cancer growth inhibition. However, PRMT5 is involved in multiple cellular processes, thus determining its mechanism of action is challenging. While past reviews on PRMT5 have focused on its role in diverse cellular processes and past research studies have focused mainly on haematological malignancies and glioblastoma, this review provides an overview of the possible biological mechanisms of action of PRMT5 inhibition and its potential as a treatment in pancreatic cancer.

Abstract

The overall survival of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains poor and its incidence is rising. Targetable mutations in PDAC are rare, thus novel therapeutic approaches are needed. Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) overexpression is associated with worse survival and inhibition of PRMT5 results in decreased cancer growth across multiple cancers, including PDAC. Emerging evidence also suggests that altered RNA processing is a driver in PDAC tumorigenesis and creates a partial dependency on this process. PRMT5 inhibition induces altered splicing and this vulnerability can be exploited as a novel therapeutic approach. Three possible biological pathways underpinning the action of PRMT5 inhibitors are discussed; c-Myc regulation appears central to its action in the PDAC setting. Whilst homozygous MTAP deletion and symmetrical dimethylation levels are associated with increased sensitivity to PRMT5 inhibition, neither measure robustly predicts its growth inhibitory response. The immunomodulatory effect of PRMT5 inhibitors on the tumour microenvironment will also be discussed, based on emerging evidence that PDAC stroma has a significant bearing on disease behaviour and response to therapy. Lastly, with the above caveats in mind, current knowledge gaps and the implications and rationales for PRMT5 inhibitor development in PDAC will be explored.

PRMT5 regulates cell pyroptosis by silencing CASP1 in multiple myeloma

Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5), a histone methyltransferase responsible for the symmetric dimethylation of histone H4 on Arg 3 (H4R3me2s), is an enzyme that participates in tumor cell progression in a variety of hematological malignancies. However, the biological functions of PRMT5 in multiple myeloma (MM) and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we conducted a bioinformatics analysis and found that PRMT5 expression was significantly upregulated in MM. In vitro and in vivo phenotypic experiments revealed that knockdown of PRMT5 expression enhanced cell pyroptosis in MM. Moreover, we found that CASP1 expression was negatively correlated with PRMT5 expression, and repressing PRMT5 expression rescued both the phenotype and expression markers (N-GSDMD, IL-1b, and IL-18). Inhibition of PRMT5 activity increased CASP1 expression and promoted MM cell pyroptosis. Finally, high expression of PRMT5 or low expression of CASP1 was correlated with poor overall survival in MM. Collectively, our results provide a mechanism by which PRMT5 regulates cell pyroptosis by silencing CASP1 in MM.

Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 5 Functions via Interacting Proteins

The protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) are involved in such biological processes as transcription regulation, DNA repair, RNA splicing, and signal transduction, etc. In this study, we mainly focused on PRMT5, a member of the type II PRMTs, which functions mainly alongside other interacting proteins. PRMT5 has been shown to be overexpressed in a wide variety of cancers and other diseases, and is involved in the regulation of Epstein-Barr virus infection, viral carcinogenesis, spliceosome, hepatitis B, cell cycles, and various signaling pathways. We analyzed the regulatory roles of PRMT5 and interacting proteins in various biological processes above-mentioned, to elucidate for the first time the interaction between PRMT5 and its interacting proteins. This systemic analysis will enrich the biological theory and contribute to the development of novel therapies.

Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 5 Promotes Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Proliferation and Metastasis via LKB1/AMPK/mTOR Signaling Pathway

Background: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the eighth most common cancer in the world. Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5), an enzyme that catalyzes symmetric and asymmetric methylation on arginine residues of histone and non-histone proteins, is overexpressed in many cancers. However, whether or not PRMT5 participates in the regulation of ESCC remains largely unclear.

Methods: PRMT5 mRNA and protein expression in ESCC tissues and cell lines were examined by RT-PCR, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry assays. Cell proliferation was examined by RT-PCR, western blotting, immunohistochemistry assays, MTT, and EdU assays. Cell apoptosis and cell cycle were examined by RT-PCR, western blotting, immunohistochemistry assays, and flow cytometry. Cell migration and invasion were examined by RT-PCR, western blotting, immunohistochemistry assays, and wound-healing and transwell assays. Tumor volume, tumors, and mouse weight were measured in different groups. Lung tissues with metastatic foci, the number of nodules, and lung/total weight were measured in different groups.

Results: In the present study, the PRMT5 expression level was dramatically upregulated in ESCC clinical tissues as well as ESCC cell lines (ECA109 and KYSE150). Furthermore, knocking down PRMT5 obviously suppressed cell migration, invasion, proliferation, and cell arrest in G1 phase and promoted cell apoptosis in ESCC cells. Meanwhile, downregulating PRMT5 also increased the expression levels of Bax, caspase-3, and caspase-9, while expression levels of Bax-2, MMP-2, MMP-9, and p21 were decreased, which are members of the cyclin-dependent kinase family. Furthermore, knocking down PRMT5 could increase the expression of LKB1 and the phosphorylation (p)-AMPK expression and decrease the p-mTOR level. Additionally, overexpression of LKB1 could reveal anti-tumor effects in ESCC cell lines by inhibiting ESCC cell, migration, invasion, and proliferation and accelerating cell apoptosis. Besides, upregulating LKB1 expression could increase the levels of Bax, caspase-3, and caspase-9 and weaken the levels of Bax-2, MMP-2, and MMP-9. Moreover, knocking down PRMT5 could weaken the tumor growth and lung metastasis in vivo with upregulating the LKB1 expression and the p-AMPK level and downregulating the p-mTOR expression.

Conclusion: PRMT5 may act as a tumor-inducing agent in ESCC by modulating LKB1/AMPK/mTOR pathway signaling.

PRMT5 Promotes EMT Through Regulating Akt Activity in Human Lung Cancer

The type II protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) has been engaged in various human cancer development and progression types. Nevertheless, few studies uncover the biological functions of PRMT5 in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of human lung cancer cells, and the associated molecular mechanisms and signaling cascades are entirely unknown. Here, we show that PRMT5 is the ectopic expression in human lung cancer tissues and cell lines. Further study reveals that silencing PRMT5 by lentivirus-mediated shRNA or blocking of PRMT5 by specific inhibitor GSK591 attenuates the expression levels of EMT-related markers in vivo, using the xenograft mouse model. Moreover, our results show that down-regulation of PRMT5 impairs EGFR/Akt signaling cascades in human lung cancer cells, whereas re-expression of PRMT5 recovers those changes, suggesting that PRMT5 regulates EMT probably through EGFR/Akt signaling axis. Altogether, our results demonstrate that PRMT5 serves as a critical oncogenic regulator and promotes EMT in human lung cancer cells. More importantly, our findings also suggest that PRMT5 may be a potential therapeutic candidate for the treatment of human lung cancer.

Clinicopathological and Prognostic Significance of PRMT5 in Cancers: A System Review and Meta-Analysis

PURPOSE

Since protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) is abnormally expressed in various tumors, in this study we aim to assess the association between PRMT5 and clinicopathological and prognostic features.

METHODS

Electronic databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and the Cochrane Library were searched until July 25, 2021. The critical appraisal of the eligible studies was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale. Pooled hazard ratios (HR) and pooled odds ratios (OR) were calculated to assess the effect. Engauge Digitizer version 12.1, STATA version 15.1, and R version 4.0.5 were used to obtain and analysis the data.

RESULTS

A total of 32 original studies covering 15,583 patients were included. In our data, it indicated that high level of PRMT5 was significantly correlated with advanced tumor stage (OR = 2.12, 95% CI: 1.22-3.70, P =.008; I2 = 80.7%) and positively correlated with poor overall survival (HR = 1.59, 95% CI: 1.46-1.73, P < .001; I2 = 50%) and progression-free survival (HR = 1.53, 95% CI: 1.24-1.88, P < .001; I2 = 0%). In addition, sub-group analysis showed that high level of PRMT5 was associated with poor overall survival for such 5 kinds of cancers as hepatocellular carcinoma, pancreatic cancer, breast cancer, gastric cancer, and lung cancer.

CONCLUSION

For the first time we found PRMT5 was pan-cancerous as a prognostic biomarker and high level of PRMT5 was associated with poor prognosis for certain cancers.

Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) and the ERK1/2 & PI3K Pathways: A Case for PRMT5 Inhibition and Combination Therapies in Cancer

The ERK1/2 (RAS, RAF, MEK, ERK) and PI3K (PI3K, AKT, mTOR, PTEN) pathways are the chief signaling pathways for cellular proliferation, survival, and differentiation. Overactivation and hyperphosphorylation of the ERK1/2 & PI3K pathways is frequently observed in cancer and is associated with poor patient prognosis. While it is well known that genetic alterations lead to the dysregulation of the ERK1/2 & PI3K pathways, increasing evidence showcase that epigenetic alterations also play a major role in the regulation of the ERK1/2 & PI3K pathways. Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) is a posttranslational modifier for multiple cellular processes, which is currently being tested as a therapeutic target for cancer. PRMT5 has been shown to be overexpressed in many types of cancers, as well as negatively correlated with patient survival. Numerous studies are indicating that as a posttranslational modifier, PRMT5 is extensively involved in regulating the ERK1/2 & PI3K pathways. In addition, a large number of in vitro and in vivo studies are demonstrating that PRMT5 inhibition, as well as PRMT5 and ERK1/2 & PI3K combination therapies, show significant therapeutic effects in many cancer types. In this review, we explore the vast interactions that PRMT5 has with the ERK1/2 & PI3K pathways, and we make the case for further testing of PRMT5 inhibition, as well as PRMT5 and ERK1/2 & PI3K combination therapies, for the treatment of cancer.