Effective Drug Concentration and Selectivity Depends on Fraction of Primitive Cells

Poor efficiency of chemotherapeutics in the eradication of Cancer Stem Cells (CSCs) has been driving the search for more active and specific compounds. In this work, we show how cell density-dependent stage culture profiles can be used in drug development workflows to achieve more robust drug activity (IC₅₀ and EC₅₀) results. Using flow cytometry and light microscopy, we characterized the cytological stage profiles of the HL-60-, A-549-, and HEK-293-derived sublines with a focus on their primitive cell content. We then used a range of cytotoxic substances—C-123, bortezomib, idarubicin, C-1305, doxorubicin, DMSO, and ethanol—to highlight typical density-related issues accompanying drug activity determination. We also showed that drug EC₅₀ and selectivity indices normalized to primitive cell content are more accurate activity measurements. We tested our approach by calculating the corrected selectivity index of a novel chemotherapeutic candidate, C-123. Overall, our study highlights the usefulness of accounting for primitive cell fractions in the assessment of drug efficiency.

Synthesis and steroid sulfatase inhibitory activities of N-alkanoyl tyramine phosphates and thiophosphates

A series of phosphate and thiophosphate analogs based on the frameworks of N-alkanoyl tyramines have been synthesized and biologically evaluated.

PARP inhibition potentiates the cytotoxic activity of C-1305, a selective inhibitor of topoisomerase II, in human BRCA1-positive breast cancer cells

Two cellular proteins encoded by the breast and ovarian cancer type 1 susceptibility (BRCA1 and BRCA2) tumor suppressor genes are essential for DNA integrity and the maintenance of genomic stability. Approximately 5–10% of breast and ovarian cancers result from inherited alterations or mutations in these genes.

Remarkably, BRCA1/BRCA2-deficient cells are hypersensitive to selective inhibition of poly(ADP-ribose)polymerase 1 (PARP-1), whose primary functions are related to DNA base excision repair; PARP-1 inhibition significantly potentiates the cytotoxicity of various anti-cancer drugs, including inhibitors of topoisomerase I and II.

In the present study, we examined the anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of C-1305, a selective inhibitor of topoisomerase II, on human breast cancer cell lines with different BRCA1 and p53 statuses. BRCA1-competent breast cancer cell lines exhibited different responses to topoisomerase II inhibition. BT-20 cells that express high levels of BRCA1 levels were most resistant to C-1305 than other tested cells. Surprisingly, pharmacological interference with PARP-1 activity strongly inhibited their proliferation and potentiated the efficacy of C-1305 treatment. In contrast, PARP-1 inhibition only weakly affected the proliferation of BRCA1-deficient SKBr-3 cells and was not synergistic with the effects of C-1305. Further experiments revealed that the inhibition of PARP-1 in BT-20 cells caused the accumulation of DNA strand breaks and induced caspase-3 dependent apoptosis. These results seem to indicate that PARP-1 inhibition can potentiate the cytotoxicity of anti-cancer drugs in cancer cells with functional BRCA1 and suggest that mutations in other DNA repair proteins may render cancer cells more sensitive to interference with PARP-1 activity.

Triazoloacridone C-1305 abrogates the restriction checkpoint in cells lacking functional p53 and promotes their accumulation in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle

Triazoloacridone C-1305, a new topoisomerase II inhibitor, exhibits potent cytostatic activity toward various tumours under in vitro and in vivo conditions. Interestingly, mouse cells lacking poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 are much more sensitive to C-1305 than their normal counterparts. In the present study we tested the hypothesis that the functional status of p53 in tumour cells might have an impact on the efficiency of C-1305 in experiments with both p53-deficient human HL-60 promyelocytic leukemia cells and human MCF-7 breast cancer cells harboring a functional p53 pathway. Exposure of both cancer cell lines to C-1305 reduced the number of viable cells in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. Remarkably, however, HL-60 cells were much more strongly affected than MCF-7 cells. Measurements of DNA concentrations in single cells revealed that C-1305 arrested the tested cancer cells at the G/M transition. Analysis of the cell cycle and apoptosis regulators revealed that C-1305 strongly elevated phosphorylation of CDK1 at the inhibitory sites (Thr14/Tyr15) in HL-60 cells. Furthermore, C-1305 increased phosphorylation of pRb protein and CDK2 at Thr160 in HL60 cells, but not in MCF-7 cells. These observations suggest that C-1305 abrogates the restriction checkpoint and promotes G1/S transition in cells lacking functional p53.

In vitro DNA crosslinking by Ledakrin, an antitumor derivative of 1-nitro-9-aminoacridine

Using agarose gel electrophoresis we confirmed that Ledakrin is capable of incurring covalent crosslinking in pBR322 plasmid DNA and also in poly(dGdC) in the presence of a simple activating system containing DTT. The identification of adducts resulting from DNA crosslinking was carried out by 32P-post-labelling assay. We assumed that such adduct(s) should be brought about more readily with double-stranded than with single-stranded polynucleotides or nucleotides. Since our earlier experiments had shown that guanine is a major site of covalent binding of 1-nitroacridines, we compared DNA adduct formation by Ledakrin for ctDNA, dG-containing synthetic homopolymers and 3'-pdG. 32P-Post-labelling assay revealed two adduct spots that were enhanced in samples containing double-stranded substrates in which interstrand crosslinking between guanines was possible, namely ctDNA and poly(dGdC).

Modification of the catalytic and regulatory properties of beef heart AMP-deaminase by DTNB treatment

In beef heart AMP-deaminase (EC 3.5.4.6.), 7 SH-groups out of 26 half-cysteine residues in the protein molecule have been shown to be accessible to alkylation by DTNB in the absence of ATP. The addition of ATP showed that only 6 SH-groups were accessible. DTNB-modified enzyme showed about 30% of the native catalytic activity but no sensitivity to the ATP-activating effect. Almost full reactivation of the modified enzyme and the restoration of the activatory effect of ATP could be achieved by exhaustive dialysis against mercaptoethanol.

Effect of temperature on the activity of AMP deaminase from chicken heart and skeletal muscle at different stages of development

The effect of temperature on purified 1-day-old chicken and adult hen heart muscle AMP deaminase was studied and compared to previous studies on this enzyme from skeletal muscle. The temperature-induced changes in the kinetic parameters of the reaction were shown to be different at these 2 stages of development. This suggests the possibility of developmental changes in the isozymic pattern of AMP deaminase in the heart tissue as has already been shown for skeletal muscle.

Regulatory properties of rat heart AMP deaminase

The kinetic and regulatory properties of purified rat heart AMP deaminase were investigated. In the presence of 100 mM KCl, the enzyme exhibited a slightly sigmoid-shaped plot of reaction rate, vs. substrate concentration, which shifted to a more hyperbolic form when ATP, ADP or GTP were added. ATP was the most potent activator of the enzyme, whereas GTP at low (less than 0.25 mM) concentrations increased the enzyme activity. The activation effect was negligible at higher concentrations of GTP. The calculated value of K0.5 of approx. 3 mM for unactivated enzyme decrased to approx. 0.6 mM and 1.1 mM when 0.5 mM ATP or 1.5 mM ADP were present in the incubation mixture, respectively. The theoretical model (Monod, J., Wyman, J. and Changeux, J.P. (1965) J. Mol. Biol. 12, 88-118) gave a partial explanation of these results.