EMD 1214063 and EMD 1204831 constitute a new class of potent and highly selective c-Met inhibitors.

PURPOSE: The mesenchymal-epithelial transition factor (c-Met) receptor, also known as hepatocyte growth factor receptor (HGFR), controls morphogenesis, a process that is physiologically required for embryonic development and tissue repair. Aberrant c-Met activation is associated with a variety of human malignancies including cancers of the lung, kidney, stomach, liver, and brain. In this study, we investigated the properties of two novel compounds developed to selectively inhibit the c-Met receptor in antitumor therapeutic interventions. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: The pharmacologic properties, c-Met inhibitory activity, and antitumor effects of EMD 1214063 and EMD 1204831 were investigated in vitro and in vivo, using human cancer cell lines and mouse xenograft models. RESULTS: EMD 1214063 and EMD 1204831 selectively suppressed the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase activity. Their inhibitory activity was potent [inhibitory 50% concentration (IC50), 3 nmol/L and 9 nmol/L, respectively] and highly selective, when compared with their effect on a panel of 242 human kinases. Both EMD 1214063 and EMD 1204831 inhibited c-Met phosphorylation and downstream signaling in a dose-dependent fashion, but differed in the duration of their inhibitory activity. In murine xenograft models, both compounds induced regression of human tumors, regardless of whether c-Met activation was HGF dependent or independent. Both drugs were well tolerated and induced no substantial weight loss after more than 3 weeks of treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate selective c-Met inhibition by EMD 1214063 and EMD 1204831 and strongly support clinical testing of these compounds in the context of molecularly targeted anticancer strategies.

EMD273316 & EMD95833, type 4 phosphodiesterase inhibitors, stimulate fibroblastic-colony formation by bone marrow cells via direct inhibition of PDE4 and the induction of endogenous prostaglandin synthesis.

BACKGROUND: Type 4 phosphodiesterase (PDE4) inhibitors have been shown to stimulate bone formation in vivo and to stimulate osteoblastic differentiation in vitro. As one possible mechanism for the stimulation of bone formation is the recruitment of osteoprogenitor cells from the bone marrow, we have investigated the effect of the PDE4 inhibitors EMD273316, EMD95833, EMD249615 and EMD 219906 on fibroblastic colony formation by whole bone marrow cells and on the ability of these colonies to adopt an osteoblastic phenotype. RESULTS: All four agents stimulated colony formation in a concentration dependent manner, however, in the case of EMD273316 & EMD95833, the effect was evident at lower concentrations and the addition of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) was not necessary for maximal stimulation. It was subsequently found that co-incubation with indomethacin reduced the stimulatory effects of EMD273316 & EMD95833 but had no effect on the actions of EMD249615 and EMD 219906 and that EMD273316 & EMD95833 stimulated the synthesis of endogenous PGE2 by whole bone marrow cells whereas EMD249615 and EMD 219906 had no significant effect. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that EMD249615, EMD 219906, EMD273316 & EMD95833 can promote the recruitment of bone marrow osteoprogenitor cells leading to a stimulation of bone formation via their direct inhibitory effects on PDE4. The actions of EMD273316 & EMD95833 however, are augmented by their ability to stimulate endogenous prostanoids synthesis which acts synergistically with their direct effects on PDE4.