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Xu L, Jiang Y, Bi Y, Zheng S, Wu Y, Wu Y, Xu Y, Chen J. Suppression of PERK/eIF2α/CHOP pathway enhances oridonin-induced apoptosis by inhibiting autophagy in Small-Cell lung cancer cells. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 175:116684. [PMID: 38713951 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2024] [Revised: 04/28/2024] [Accepted: 04/29/2024] [Indexed: 05/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Chinese herbs have been used to treat small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) due to their low toxicity and significant efficacy. This study focused on oridonin, a natural compound extracted from Rabdosia rubescens, and aimed to investigate its potential antitumor activity on SCLC and to evaluate the synergistic effect of combining oridonin with other small molecules. In this study, oridonin exhibited a dual effect. At lower concentrations, it suppressed the cell viability of SCLC cells (H1688 and H446). At high concentrations, oridonin induced SCLC cell apoptosis, damaged HBE cells in vitro and compromised the function of the liver and heart in vivo. The lower concentration of oridonin induced autophagy by enhancing the expression of p62 and the LC3B-II/LC3B-I ratio. This phenomenon might be associated with the activation of the protein kinase RNA-like ER kinase (PERK)/eukaryotic initiation factor 2 alpha (eIF2α)/growth arrest and DNA damage-inducible gene 153 (CHOP/GAD153) pathway. Therefore, the combined effect of oridonin with GSK2606414 or 3- methyladenine increased apoptosis in SCLC cells and reduced tumor growth. A similar phenomenon was observed after oridonin was combined with p62 or CHOP RNA interference treatment. Simultaneously, the combination of oridonin and GSK2606414 exhibited therapeutic efficacy without manifesting adverse effects. Our findings suggest that oridonin at lower concentrations can induce autophagy by activating the PERK/eIF2α/CHOP signaling pathway. The inhibition of the PERK/eIF2α/CHOP pathway could enhance oridonin therapeutic responses by triggering apoptosis. The novel therapeutic approach of combining oridonin with a PERK inhibitor is promising as a strategy for the treatment of SCLC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linhao Xu
- Department of Cardiology, Hangzhou First People's Hospital, Zhejiang 310006, China; School of Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine, Hangzhou medical college, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310053, China; Translational Medicine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Clinical Cancer Pharmacology and Toxicology Research of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou First People's Hospital, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310006, China
| | - Yuxin Jiang
- School of Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine, Hangzhou medical college, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310053, China
| | - Yanli Bi
- Department of Clinical Laboratorial Examination, Air Force Hangzhou Special Service Recuperation Center Sanatorium Area 3, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310013, China
| | - Senwen Zheng
- School of Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine, Hangzhou medical college, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310053, China
| | - Yirong Wu
- Department of Cardiology, Hangzhou First People's Hospital, Zhejiang 310006, China
| | - Yihao Wu
- Department of Cardiology, Hangzhou First People's Hospital, Zhejiang 310006, China
| | - Yizhou Xu
- Department of Cardiology, Hangzhou First People's Hospital, Zhejiang 310006, China.
| | - Jian Chen
- School of Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine, Hangzhou medical college, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310053, China; Key Discipline of Zhejiang Province in Public Health and Preventive Medicine (First Class, Category A), Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310053, China.
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Thomson CG, Aicher TD, Cheng W, Du H, Dudgeon C, Li AH, Li B, Lightcap E, Luo D, Mulvihill M, Pan P, Rahemtulla BF, Rigby AC, Sherborne B, Sood S, Surguladze D, Talbot EPA, Tameire F, Taylor S, Wang Y, Wojnarowicz P, Xiao F, Ramurthy S. Discovery of HC-7366: An Orally Bioavailable and Efficacious GCN2 Kinase Activator. J Med Chem 2024; 67:5259-5271. [PMID: 38530741 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c02384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
A series of activators of GCN2 (general control nonderepressible 2) kinase have been developed, leading to HC-7366, which has entered the clinic as an antitumor therapy. Optimization resulted in improved permeability compared to that of the original indazole hinge binding scaffold, while maintaining potency at GCN2 and selectivity over PERK (protein kinase RNA-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase). The improved ADME properties of this series led to robust in vivo compound exposure in both rats and mice, allowing HC-7366 to be dosed in xenograft models, demonstrating that activation of the GCN2 pathway by this compound leads to tumor growth inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher G Thomson
- Integrated Drug Discovery Services, Pharmaron UK Ltd., West Hill Innovation Park, Hertford Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 9FH, U.K
| | - Thomas D Aicher
- Department of Chemistry, Lycera Corporation, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103, United States
| | - Weiwei Cheng
- Pharmaron Beijing, Company Ltd., No. 6, TaiHe Road, BDA, Beijing 100176, China
| | - Hongwen Du
- Pharmaron Beijing, Company Ltd., No. 6, TaiHe Road, BDA, Beijing 100176, China
| | - Crissy Dudgeon
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - An-Hu Li
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Baozhong Li
- Pharmaron Beijing, Company Ltd., No. 6, TaiHe Road, BDA, Beijing 100176, China
| | - Eric Lightcap
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Diheng Luo
- Pharmaron Xi'an, Company Ltd., No. 1, 12th Fengcheng Road, Xi'an 710018, China
| | - Mark Mulvihill
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Pengwei Pan
- Pharmaron Beijing, Company Ltd., No. 6, TaiHe Road, BDA, Beijing 100176, China
| | - Benjamin F Rahemtulla
- Integrated Drug Discovery Services, Pharmaron UK Ltd., West Hill Innovation Park, Hertford Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 9FH, U.K
| | - Alan C Rigby
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Bradley Sherborne
- Integrated Drug Discovery Services, Pharmaron UK Ltd., West Hill Innovation Park, Hertford Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 9FH, U.K
| | - Sanjeev Sood
- Preformulation and Preclinical Services, Pharmaron UK Ltd., West Hill Innovation Park, Hertford Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 9FH, U.K
| | - David Surguladze
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Eric P A Talbot
- Integrated Drug Discovery Services, Pharmaron UK Ltd., West Hill Innovation Park, Hertford Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 9FH, U.K
| | - Feven Tameire
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Simon Taylor
- Integrated Drug Discovery Services, Pharmaron UK Ltd., West Hill Innovation Park, Hertford Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 9FH, U.K
| | - Yi Wang
- Pharmaron Beijing, Company Ltd., No. 6, TaiHe Road, BDA, Beijing 100176, China
| | - Paulina Wojnarowicz
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
| | - Fenfen Xiao
- Pharmaron Xi'an, Company Ltd., No. 1, 12th Fengcheng Road, Xi'an 710018, China
| | - Savithri Ramurthy
- HiberCell Inc., 619 West 54th Street, New York, New York 10019, United States
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Calvo V, Zheng W, Adam-Artigues A, Staschke KA, Huang X, Cheung JF, Nobre AR, Fujisawa S, Liu D, Fumagalli M, Surguladze D, Stokes ME, Nowacek A, Mulvihill M, Farias EF, Aguirre-Ghiso JA. A PERK-Specific Inhibitor Blocks Metastatic Progression by Limiting Integrated Stress Response-Dependent Survival of Quiescent Cancer Cells. Clin Cancer Res 2023; 29:5155-5172. [PMID: 37982738 PMCID: PMC10842363 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-23-1427] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2023] [Revised: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE The integrated stress response (ISR) kinase PERK serves as a survival factor for both proliferative and dormant cancer cells. We aim to validate PERK inhibition as a new strategy to specifically eliminate solitary disseminated cancer cells (DCC) in secondary sites that eventually reawake and originate metastasis. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN A novel clinical-grade PERK inhibitor (HC4) was tested in mouse syngeneic and PDX models that present quiescent/dormant DCCs or growth-arrested cancer cells in micro-metastatic lesions that upregulate ISR. RESULTS HC4 significantly blocks metastasis, by killing quiescent/slow-cycling ISRhigh, but not proliferative ISRlow DCCs. HC4 blocked expansion of established micro-metastasis that contained ISRhigh slow-cycling cells. Single-cell gene expression profiling and imaging revealed that a significant proportion of solitary DCCs in lungs were indeed dormant and displayed an unresolved ER stress as revealed by high expression of a PERK-regulated signature. In human breast cancer metastasis biopsies, GADD34 expression (PERK-regulated gene) and quiescence were positively correlated. HC4 effectively eradicated dormant bone marrow DCCs, which usually persist after rounds of therapies. Importantly, treatment with CDK4/6 inhibitors (to force a quiescent state) followed by HC4 further reduced metastatic burden. In HNSCC and HER2+ cancers HC4 caused cell death in dormant DCCs. In HER2+ tumors, PERK inhibition caused killing by reducing HER2 activity because of sub-optimal HER2 trafficking and phosphorylation in response to EGF. CONCLUSIONS Our data identify PERK as a unique vulnerability in quiescent or slow-cycling ISRhigh DCCs. The use of PERK inhibitors may allow targeting of pre-existing or therapy-induced growth arrested "persister" cells that escape anti-proliferative therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica Calvo
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Current affiliation: Pathos, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Wei Zheng
- Department of Cell Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Cancer Dormancy and Tumor Microenvironment Institute, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Anna Adam-Artigues
- Department of Cell Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Cancer Dormancy and Tumor Microenvironment Institute, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Kirk A. Staschke
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Xin Huang
- Department of Cell Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Cancer Dormancy and Tumor Microenvironment Institute, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Julie F. Cheung
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ana Rita Nobre
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sho Fujisawa
- Cancer Dormancy and Tumor Microenvironment Institute, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - David Liu
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
| | - Maria Fumagalli
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
| | - David Surguladze
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
| | | | - Ari Nowacek
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
| | - Mark Mulvihill
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
| | - Eduardo F. Farias
- HiberCell, Inc, 619 West 54th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY USA
- Current affiliation: Serinus Biosciences, New York, NY, USA
| | - Julio A. Aguirre-Ghiso
- Department of Cell Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Cancer Dormancy and Tumor Microenvironment Institute, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Gruss-Lipper Biophotonics Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Ruth L. and David S. Gottesman Institute for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
- Institute for Aging Research, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
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Stokes ME, Calvo V, Fujisawa S, Dudgeon C, Huang S, Ballal N, Shen L, Gasparek J, Betzenhauser M, Taylor SJ, Staschke KA, Rigby AC, Mulvihill MJ, Bose N, Lightcap ES, Surguladze D. PERK Inhibition by HC-5404 Sensitizes Renal Cell Carcinoma Tumor Models to Antiangiogenic Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors. Clin Cancer Res 2023; 29:4870-4882. [PMID: 37733811 PMCID: PMC10690095 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-23-1182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Revised: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 09/23/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Tumors activate protein kinase R (PKR)-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK, also called EIF2AK3) in response to hypoxia and nutrient deprivation as a stress-mitigation strategy. Here, we tested the hypothesis that inhibiting PERK with HC-5404 enhances the antitumor efficacy of standard-of-care VEGF receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (VEGFR-TKI). EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN HC-5404 was characterized as a potent and selective PERK inhibitor, with favorable in vivo properties. Multiple renal cell carcinoma (RCC) tumor models were then cotreated with both HC-5404 and VEGFR-TKI in vivo, measuring tumor volume across time and evaluating tumor response by protein analysis and IHC. RESULTS VEGFR-TKI including axitinib, cabozantinib, lenvatinib, and sunitinib induce PERK activation in 786-O RCC xenografts. Cotreatment with HC-5404 inhibited PERK in tumors and significantly increased antitumor effects of VEGFR-TKI across multiple RCC models, resulting in tumor stasis or regression. Analysis of tumor sections revealed that HC-5404 enhanced the antiangiogenic effects of axitinib and lenvatinib by inhibiting both new vasculature and mature tumor blood vessels. Xenografts that progress on axitinib monotherapy remain sensitive to the combination treatment, resulting in ∼20% tumor regression in the combination group. When tested across a panel of 18 RCC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models, the combination induced greater antitumor effects relative to monotherapies. In this single animal study, nine out of 18 models responded with ≥50% tumor regression from baseline in the combination group. CONCLUSIONS By disrupting an adaptive stress response evoked by VEGFR-TKI, HC-5404 presents a clinical opportunity to improve the antitumor effects of well-established standard-of-care therapies in RCC.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Leyi Shen
- HiberCell, Inc., New York City, New York
| | | | | | - Simon J. Taylor
- Drug Discovery, Pharmaron UK Ltd., Hoddesdon, Herts, United Kingdom
| | - Kirk A. Staschke
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana
- Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, Indianapolis, Indiana
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