miR­122 and miR­199 synergistically promote autophagy in oral lichen planus by targeting the Akt/mTOR pathway.

The aim of the present study was to characterize the roles of two microRNAs (miRNAs), miR­122 and miR­199, in oral lichen planus (OLP). miRNA microarray analysis was performed to detect potential miRNAs involved in OLP, while in­silicon analysis, reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT­qPCR), western blot and immunohistochemistry (IHC) analyses were utilized to explore the molecular mechanisms underlying the roles of miR­199 and miR­122 in OLP. The results from the microarray and RT­qPCR analyses demonstrated that the expression levels of miR­122 and miR­199 were significantly decreased in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) collected from the OLP group compared with the control group. In addition, miR­122 and miR­199 directly targeted AKT serine/threonine kinase 1 (AKT1) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), respectively, by binding to their 3' UTRs. AKT1 and mTOR were highly expressed in PBMCs derived from OLP patients. In fact, a negative regulatory relationship was observed between miR­122 and AKT1, and between miR­199 and mTOR, with negative correlation coefficients of ­0.41 and ­0.51, respectively. Furthermore, the protein levels of AKT1, mTOR and microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3ß (LC3B) were upregulated in the OLP group compared with the control group. Finally, overexpression of miR­122 inhibited the expression of AKT1 and LC3B, while overexpression of miR­199 reduced the levels of mTOR and LC3B. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that miR­199 and miR­122 are implicated in the pathogenesis of OLP by regulating the expression of mTOR and AKT1.

Quantitation of fibroblast activation protein (FAP)-specific protease activity in mouse, baboon and human fluids and organs.

The protease fibroblast activation protein (FAP) is a specific marker of activated mesenchymal cells in tumour stroma and fibrotic liver. A specific, reliable FAP enzyme assay has been lacking. FAP's unique and restricted cleavage of the post proline bond was exploited to generate a new specific substrate to quantify FAP enzyme activity. This sensitive assay detected no FAP activity in any tissue or fluid of FAP gene knockout mice, thus confirming assay specificity. Circulating FAP activity was ∼20- and 1.3-fold less in baboon than in mouse and human plasma, respectively. Serum and plasma contained comparable FAP activity. In mice, the highest levels of FAP activity were in uterus, pancreas, submaxillary gland and skin, whereas the lowest levels were in brain, prostate, leukocytes and testis. Baboon organs high in FAP activity included skin, epididymis, bladder, colon, adipose tissue, nerve and tongue. FAP activity was greatly elevated in tumours and associated lymph nodes and in fungal-infected skin of unhealthy baboons. FAP activity was 14- to 18-fold greater in cirrhotic than in non-diseased human liver, and circulating FAP activity was almost doubled in alcoholic cirrhosis. Parallel DPP4 measurements concorded with the literature, except for the novel finding of high DPP4 activity in bile. The new FAP enzyme assay is the first to be thoroughly characterised and shows that FAP activity is measurable in most organs and at high levels in some. This new assay is a robust tool for specific quantitation of FAP enzyme activity in both preclinical and clinical samples, particularly liver fibrosis.

A pan-inhibitor of DASH family enzymes induces immune-mediated regression of murine sarcoma and is a potent adjuvant to dendritic cell vaccination and adoptive T-cell therapy.

Multimodality therapy consisting of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation will fail in approximately 40% of patients with pediatric sarcomas and result in substantial long-term morbidity in those who are cured. Immunotherapeutic regimens for the treatment of solid tumors typically generate antigen-specific responses too weak to overcome considerable tumor burden and tumor suppressive mechanisms and are in need of adjuvant assistance. Previous work suggests that inhibitors of DASH (dipeptidyl peptidase IV activity and/or structural homologs) enzymes can mediate tumor regression by immune-mediated mechanisms. Herein, we demonstrate that the DASH inhibitor, ARI-4175, can induce regression and eradication of well-established solid tumors, both as a single agent and as an adjuvant to a dendritic cell (DC) vaccine and adoptive cell therapy (ACT) in mice implanted with the M3-9-M rhabdomyosarcoma cell line. Treatment with effective doses of ARI-4175 correlated with recruitment of myeloid (CD11b) cells, particularly myeloid DCs, to secondary lymphoid tissues and with reduced frequency of intratumoral monocytic (CD11bLy6-CLy6-G) myeloid-derived suppressor cells. In immunocompetent mice, combining ARI-4175 with a DC vaccine or ACT with tumor-primed T cells produced significant improvements in tumor responses against well-established M3-9-M tumors. In M3-9-M-bearing immunodeficient (Rag1) mice, ACT combined with ARI-4175 produced greater tumor responses and significantly improved survival compared with either treatment alone. These studies warrant the clinical investigation of ARI-4175 for treatment of sarcomas and other malignancies, particularly as an adjuvant to tumor vaccines and ACT.

A general method for making peptide therapeutics resistant to serine protease degradation: application to dipeptidyl peptidase IV substrates.

Bioactive peptides have evolved to optimally fulfill specific biological functions, a fact which has long attracted attention for their use as therapeutic agents. While there have been some recent commercial successes fostered in part by advances in large-scale peptide synthesis, development of peptides as therapeutic agents has been significantly impeded by their inherent susceptibility to protease degradation in the bloodstream. Here we report that incorporation of specially designed amino acid analogues at the P1' position, directly C-terminal of the enzyme cleavage site, renders peptides, including glucagon-like peptide-1 (7-36) amide (GLP-1) and six other examples, highly resistant to serine protease degradation without significant alteration of their biological activity. We demonstrate the applicability of the method to a variety of proteases, including dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP IV), dipeptidyl peptidase 8 (DPP8), fibroblast activation protein α (FAPα), α-lytic protease (αLP), trypsin, and chymotrypsin. In summary, the "P1' modification" represents a simple, general, and highly adaptable method of generating enzymatically stable peptide-based therapeutics.

Identification of selective and potent inhibitors of fibroblast activation protein and prolyl oligopeptidase.

Fibroblast activation protein (FAP) is a serine protease selectively expressed on reactive stromal fibroblasts of epithelial carcinomas. It is widely believed to play a role in tumor invasion and metastasis and therefore to represent a potential new drug target for cancer. Investigation into its biological function, however, has been hampered by the current unavailability of selective inhibitors. The challenge has been in identifying inhibitors that are selective for FAP over both the dipeptidyl peptidases (DPPs), with which it shares exopeptidase specificity, and prolyl oligopeptidase (PREP), with which it shares endopeptidase specificity. Here, we report the first potent FAP inhibitor with selectivity over both the DPPs and PREP, N-(pyridine-4-carbonyl)-d-Ala-boroPro (ARI-3099, 6). We also report a similarly potent and selective PREP inhibitor, N-(pyridine-3-carbonyl)-Val-boroPro (ARI-3531, 22). Both are boronic acid based inhibitors, demonstrating that high selectivity can be achieved using this electrophile. The inhibitors are stable, easy to synthesize, and should prove to be useful in helping to elucidate the biological functions of these two unique and interesting enzymes, as well as their potential as drug targets.

Chemical and biological evaluation of dipeptidyl boronic acid proteasome inhibitors for use in prodrugs and pro-soft drugs targeting solid tumors.

Bortezomib, a dipeptidyl boronic acid and potent inhibitor of the 26S proteasome, is remarkably effective against multiple myeloma (MM) but not against solid tumors. Dose-limiting adverse effects from "on target" inhibition of the proteasome in normal cells and tissues appear to be a key obstacle. Achieving efficacy against solid tumors therefore is likely to require making the inhibitor more selective for tumor tissue over normal tissues. The simplest strategy that might provide such tissue specificity would be to employ a tumor specific protease to release an inhibitor from a larger, noninhibitory structure. However, such release would necessarily generate an inhibitor with a free N-terminal amino group, raising a key question: Can short peptide boronic acids with N-terminal amino groups have the requisite properties to serve as warheads in prodrugs? Here we show that dipeptides of boroLeu, the smallest plausible candidates for the task, can indeed be sufficiently potent, cell-penetrating, cytotoxic, and stable to degradation by cellular peptidases to serve in this capacity.

Dipeptide boronic acid inhibitors of dipeptidyl peptidase IV: determinants of potency and in vivo efficacy and safety.

Dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV; E.C. 3.4.14.5), a serine protease that degrades the incretin hormones GLP-1 and GIP, is now a validated target for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Dipeptide boronic acids, among the first, and still among the most potent DPP-IV inhibitors known, suffer from a concern over their safety. Here we evaluate the potency, in vivo efficacy, and safety of a selected set of these inhibitors. The adverse effects induced by boronic acid-based DPP-IV inhibitors are essentially limited to what has been observed previously for non-boronic acid inhibitors and attributed to cross-reactivity with DPP8/9. While consistent with the DPP8/9 hypothesis, they are also consistent with cross-reactivity with some other intracellular target. The results further show that the potency of simple dipeptide boronic acid-based inhibitors can be combined with selectivity against DPP8/9 in vivo to produce agents with a relatively wide therapeutic index (>500) in rodents.