Tumour-selective antivascular effects of the novel anti-mitotic compound A-318315: An in vivo rat regional haemodynamic study.

1. It has been shown that tubulin-binding agents can destabilize cellular microtubules and suppress tumour growth; but it has also become apparent that some compounds can exert anti-vascular effects within the neovasculature of a solid tumour. To date, the difficulty with these targets has been the ability to selectivity induce vascular damage to the tumour while leaving normal vasculature unaffected. The data presented here characterizes the in vivo, tumour selective, anti-vascular effects of the novel tubulin-binding agent A-318315. 2. To that purpose, we have used an anaesthetized in vivo rat model designed to quantify acute changes in regional vascular resistance (VR) in both tumour and non-tumour vascular beds, simultaneously. Tissue-isolated tumours (approximately 1.25 gm) with blood flow supplied by a single epigastric artery were grown in the hindlimb of adult male rats. Blood flow to the tumour, mesenteric, renal and normal (non-tumour epigastric) arteries was measured pre-dose and post-dose under anaesthesia. 3. A-318315 was tested at 3, 10 and 30 mg/kg, i.v. These doses produced modest, transient increases in mean arterial pressure with little to no effect on heart rate. At peak effect, tumour VR increased to 175 +/- 47, 337 +/- 77 and 751 +/- 151% above the baseline, for the 3, 10 and 30 mg/kg doses, respectively, whereas VR was only modestly and transiently increased in normal epigastric (88 +/- 19%), mesenteric (33 +/- 3.3%) and renal arteries (17 +/- 8.6%). 4. These data demonstrate that A-318315 produces marked reductions in tumour blood flow in the rat at doses that exert minor effects on normal vascular function.

Vitamin d receptor activation mitigates the impact of uremia on endothelial function in the 5/6 nephrectomized rats.

Endothelial dysfunction increases cardiovascular disease risk in chronic kidney disease (CKD). This study investigates whether VDR activation affects endothelial function in CKD. The 5/6 nephrectomized (NX) rats with experimental chronic renal insufficiency were treated with or without paricalcitol, a VDR activator. Thoracic aortic rings were precontracted with phenylephrine and then treated with acetylcholine or sodium nitroprusside. Uremia significantly affected aortic relaxation (-50.0 +/- 7.4% in NX rats versus -96.2 +/- 5.3% in SHAM at 30 muM acetylcholine). The endothelial-dependent relaxation was improved to -58.2 +/- 6.0%, -77.5 +/- 7.3%, and -90.5 +/- 4.0% in NX rats treated with paricalcitol at 0.021, 0.042, and 0.083 mug/kg for two weeks, respectively, while paricalcitol at 0.042 mug/kg did not affect blood pressure and heart rate. Parathyroid hormone (PTH) suppression alone did not improve endothelial function since cinacalcet suppressed PTH without affecting endothelial-dependent vasorelaxation. N-omega-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester completely abolished the effect of paricalcitol on improving endothelial function. These results demonstrate that VDR activation improves endothelial function in CKD.

Comparison of the pharmacological effects of paricalcitol and doxercalciferol on the factors involved in mineral homeostasis.

Vitamin D receptor agonists (VDRAs) directly suppress parathyroid hormone (PTH) mRNA expression. Different VDRAs are known to have differential effects on serum calcium (Ca), which may also affect serum PTH levels since serum Ca regulates PTH secretion mediated by the Ca-sensing receptor (CaSR). In this study, we compared the effects of paricalcitol and doxercalciferol on regulating serum Ca and PTH, and also the expression of PTH, VDR, and CaSR mRNA. The 5/6 nephrectomized (NX) Sprague-Dawley rats on a normal or hyperphosphatemia-inducing diet were treated with vehicle, paricalcitol, or doxercalciferol for two weeks. Both drugs at the tested doses (0.042-0.33 mug/kg) suppressed PTH mRNA expression and serum PTH effectively in the 5/6 NX rats, but paricalcitol was less potent in raising serum Ca than doxercalciferol. In pig parathyroid cells, paricalcitol and the active form of doxercalciferol induced VDR translocation from the cytoplasm into the nucleus, suppressed PTH mRNA expression and inhibited cell proliferation in a similar manner, although paricalcitol induced the expression of CaSR mRNA more effectively. The multiple effects of VDRAs on modulating serum Ca, parathyroid cell proliferation, and the expression of CaSR and PTH mRNA reflect the complex involvement of the vitamin D axis in regulating the mineral homeostasis system.