RESUMO
Overexpression of myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl-1) in cancers correlates with high tumor grade and poor survival. Additionally, Mcl-1 drives intrinsic and acquired resistance to many cancer therapeutics, including B cell lymphoma 2 family inhibitors, proteasome inhibitors, and antitubulins. Therefore, Mcl-1 inhibition could serve as a strategy to target cancers that require Mcl-1 to evade apoptosis. Herein, we describe the use of structure-based design to discover a novel compound (42) that robustly and specifically inhibits Mcl-1 in cell culture and animal xenograft models. Compound 42 binds to Mcl-1 with picomolar affinity and inhibited growth of Mcl-1-dependent tumor cell lines in the nanomolar range. Compound 42 also inhibited the growth of hematological and triple negative breast cancer xenografts at well-tolerated doses. These findings highlight the use of structure-based design to identify small molecule Mcl-1 inhibitors and support the use of 42 as a potential treatment strategy to block Mcl-1 activity and induce apoptosis in Mcl-1-dependent cancers.
Assuntos
Antineoplásicos/química , Proteína de Sequência 1 de Leucemia de Células Mieloides/antagonistas & inibidores , Bibliotecas de Moléculas Pequenas/química , Animais , Antineoplásicos/metabolismo , Antineoplásicos/farmacologia , Antineoplásicos/uso terapêutico , Azepinas/química , Sítios de Ligação , Linhagem Celular Tumoral , Sobrevivência Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Cristalografia por Raios X , Avaliação Pré-Clínica de Medicamentos , Feminino , Humanos , Camundongos , Camundongos Endogâmicos NOD , Camundongos SCID , Simulação de Dinâmica Molecular , Proteína de Sequência 1 de Leucemia de Células Mieloides/metabolismo , Neoplasias/tratamento farmacológico , Neoplasias/patologia , Estrutura Terciária de Proteína , Bibliotecas de Moléculas Pequenas/metabolismo , Bibliotecas de Moléculas Pequenas/farmacologia , Bibliotecas de Moléculas Pequenas/uso terapêutico , Relação Estrutura-Atividade , Ensaios Antitumorais Modelo de XenoenxertoRESUMO
The PD-1 immune checkpoint pathway is a highly validated target for cancer immunotherapy. Despite the potential advantages of small molecule inhibitors over antibodies, the discovery of small molecule checkpoint inhibitors has lagged behind. To discover small molecule inhibitors of the PD-1 pathway, we have utilized a fragment-based approach. Small molecules were identified that bind to PD-L1 and crystal structures of these compounds bound to PD-L1 were obtained.
Assuntos
Antígeno B7-H1/metabolismo , Bibliotecas de Moléculas Pequenas/metabolismo , Antígeno B7-H1/antagonistas & inibidores , Antígeno B7-H1/química , Cristalografia por Raios X , Humanos , Ligação de Hidrogênio , Interações Hidrofóbicas e Hidrofílicas , Ligação Proteica , Bibliotecas de Moléculas Pequenas/químicaRESUMO
Myeloid cell leukemia 1 (Mcl-1), an antiapoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family of proteins, has emerged as an attractive target for cancer therapy. Mcl-1 upregulation is often found in many human cancers and is associated with high tumor grade, poor survival, and resistance to chemotherapy. Here, we describe a series of potent and selective tricyclic indole diazepinone Mcl-1 inhibitors that were discovered and further optimized using structure-based design. These compounds exhibit picomolar binding affinity and mechanism-based cellular efficacy, including growth inhibition and caspase induction in Mcl-1-sensitive cells. Thus, they represent useful compounds to study the implication of Mcl-1 inhibition in cancer and serve as potentially useful starting points toward the discovery of anti-Mcl-1 therapeutics.