Characterization of a patient-derived variant of GPX4 for precision therapy.

Glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), as the only enzyme in mammals capable of reducing esterified phospholipid hydroperoxides within a cellular context, protects cells from ferroptosis. We identified a homozygous point mutation in the GPX4 gene, resulting in an R152H coding mutation, in three patients with Sedaghatian-type spondylometaphyseal dysplasia. Using structure-based analyses and cell models, including patient fibroblasts, of this variant, we found that the missense variant destabilized a critical loop, which disrupted the active site and caused a substantial loss of enzymatic function. We also found that the R152H variant of GPX4 is less susceptible to degradation, revealing the degradation mechanism of the GPX4 protein. Proof-of-concept therapeutic treatments, which overcome the impaired R152H GPX4 activity, including selenium supplementation, selective antioxidants and a deuterated polyunsaturated fatty acid were identified. In addition to revealing a general approach to investigating rare genetic diseases, we demonstrate the biochemical foundations of therapeutic strategies targeting GPX4.

Lead compounds for the development of SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease inhibitors.

We report the identification of three structurally diverse compounds - compound 4, GC376, and MAC-5576 - as inhibitors of the SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease. Structures of each of these compounds in complex with the protease revealed strategies for further development, as well as general principles for designing SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease inhibitors. These compounds may therefore serve as leads for the basis of building effective SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease inhibitors.

Radiation-Induced Lipid Peroxidation Triggers Ferroptosis and Synergizes with Ferroptosis Inducers.

Although radiation is widely used to treat cancers, resistance mechanisms often develop and involve activation of DNA repair and inhibition of apoptosis. Therefore, compounds that sensitize cancer cells to radiation via alternative cell death pathways are valuable. We report here that ferroptosis, a form of nonapoptotic cell death driven by lipid peroxidation, is partly responsible for radiation-induced cancer cell death. Moreover, we found that small molecules activating ferroptosis through system xc- inhibition or GPX4 inhibition synergize with radiation to induce ferroptosis in several cancer types by enhancing cytoplasmic lipid peroxidation but not increasing DNA damage or caspase activation. Ferroptosis inducers synergized with cytoplasmic irradiation, but not nuclear irradiation. Finally, administration of ferroptosis inducers enhanced the antitumor effect of radiation in a murine xenograft model and in human patient-derived models of lung adenocarcinoma and glioma. These results suggest that ferroptosis inducers may be effective radiosensitizers that can expand the efficacy and range of indications for radiation therapy.

Toward a Microparticle-Based System for Pooled Assays of Small Molecules in Cellular Contexts.

Experimental approaches to the discovery of small molecule probes and drug candidates often use biochemical or cell-based screening of large libraries (>105) of small molecules. Small molecules of interest are tested one at a time in individual wells of a microtiter plate, at a significant cost in time and resources. Furthermore, evaluation of large numbers of compounds in such assays requires robust cellular or biochemical screening formats that may not be relevant to the contexts found in human patients. We envision a solution to these issues that involves a pooled system of small molecule screening, which would require development of numerous new technologies, and solutions to several key challenges. We report here that a microparticle-based screening system can allow for screening of small molecules in such a pooled fashion, analogous to the pooled screens of genetic reagents that have been powerfully deployed in recent years. We developed a cleavable linker that can link small molecules of interest to silica microparticle beads, a DNA tag encoding the identity of the small molecule on each bead that was attached to the silica beads through a photocleavable linker to enable its amplification, and a bead-based fluorescent sensor that can report on the activity of small molecules in cells. We suggest that this pooled small molecule screening system could ultimately be useful for drug and probe discovery, allowing rapid and inexpensive screening of small molecules in assays of relevance to human diseases.

Gene expression-based screening for inhibitors of PDGFR signaling.

Here we describe a proof-of-concept experiment designed to explore the possibility of using gene expression-based high-throughput screening (GE-HTS) to find inhibitors of a signaling cascade, using platelet derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR) signaling as the example. The previously unrecognized ability of aurintricarboxylic acid to inhibit PDGFR signaling, discovered through a screen of 1,739 compounds, demonstrates the feasibility and generalizability of GE-HTS for the discovery of small molecule modulators of any signaling pathway of interest.

Synthetic lethal screening identifies compounds activating iron-dependent, nonapoptotic cell death in oncogenic-RAS-harboring cancer cells.

We screened small molecules to identify two compounds, which we named RSL3 and RSL5, that have increased lethality in the presence of oncogenic RAS. Counter screening with biologically active compounds defined aspects of the mechanism of action for RSL3 and RSL5, such as a nonapoptotic, MEK-dependent, and iron-dependent oxidative cell death. Erastin, a previously reported compound with RAS-selective lethality, showed similar properties. RNA interference experiments targeting voltage-dependent anion channel 3 (VDAC3), a target of erastin, demonstrated that RSL5 is a scaffold that acts through VDACs to activate the observed pathway. RSL3 activated a similar death mechanism but in a VDAC-independent manner. We found that cells transformed with oncogenic RAS have increased iron content relative to their normal cell counterparts through upregulation of transferrin receptor 1 and downregulation of ferritin heavy chain 1 and ferritin light chain.

High throughput screening for neurodegeneration and complex disease phenotypes.

High throughput screening (HTS) for complex diseases is challenging. This stems from the fact that complex phenotypes are difficult to adapt to rapid, high throughput assays. We describe the recent development of high throughput and high-content screens (HCS) for neurodegenerative diseases, with a focus on inherited neurodegenerative disorders, such as Huntington's disease. We describe, among others, HTS assays based on protein aggregation, neuronal death, caspase activation and mutant protein clearance. Furthermore, we describe high-content screens that are being used to prioritize hits identified in such HTS assays. These assays and screening approaches should accelerate drug discovery for neurodegenerative disorders and guide the development of screening approaches for other complex disease phenotypes.

Selective inhibitors of death in mutant huntingtin cells.

Huntington disease (HD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disorder with unclear pathophysiology. We developed a high-throughput assay in a neuronal cell culture model of HD, screened 43,685 compounds and identified 29 novel selective inhibitors of cell death in mutant huntingtin-expressing cells. Four compounds were active in diverse HD models, which suggests a role for cell death in HD; these compounds are mechanistic probes and potential drug leads for HD.

Biologically active molecules that reduce polyglutamine aggregation and toxicity.

Polyglutamine expansion in certain proteins causes neurodegeneration in inherited disorders such as Huntington disease and X-linked spinobulbar muscular atrophy. Polyglutamine tracts promote protein aggregation in vitro and in vivo with a strict length-dependence that strongly implicates alternative protein folding and/or aggregation as a proximal cause of cellular toxicity and neurodegeneration. We used an intracellular polyglutamine protein aggregation assay based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) to identify inhibitors of androgen receptor (AR) aggregation in three libraries of biologically active small molecules: the Annotated Compound Library, the NINDS Custom Collection and a kinase inhibitor collection. In the primary screen 10 compounds reduced AR aggregation. While 10/10 also reduced huntingtin (Htt) exon 1 aggregation, only 2/10 reduced aggregation of pure polyglutamine peptides. In a PC-12 model 9/10 compounds reduced aggregation. Five out of nine compounds tested in an Htt exon 1 assay of neurodegeneration in Drosophila partially rescued the phenotype. Three of the five compounds effective in flies are FDA-approved drugs. These compounds provide new leads for therapeutic development for the polyglutamine diseases based on their efficacy in mammalian cells and a Drosophila model. The high predictive value of the primary screen suggests that the FRET-based screening assay may be useful for further primary and secondary screens for genes or small molecules that inhibit polyglutamine protein aggregation.

Identification of inhibitors of ribozyme self-cleavage in mammalian cells via high-throughput screening of chemical libraries.

We have recently described an RNA-only gene regulation system for mammalian cells in which inhibition of self-cleavage of an mRNA carrying ribozyme sequences provides the basis for control of gene expression. An important proof of principle for that system was provided by demonstrating the ability of one specific small molecule inhibitor of RNA self-cleavage, toyocamycin, to control gene expression in vitro and vivo. Here, we describe the development of the high-throughput screening (HTS) assay that led to the identification of toyocamycin and other molecules capable of inhibiting RNA self-cleavage in mammalian cells. To identify small molecules that can serve as inhibitors of ribozyme self-cleavage, we established a cell-based assay in which expression of a luciferase (luc) reporter is controlled by ribozyme sequences, and screened 58,076 compounds for their ability to induce luciferase expression. Fifteen compounds able to inhibit ribozyme self-cleavage in cells were identified through this screen. The most potent of the inhibitors identified were toyocamycin and 5-fluorouridine (FUR), nucleoside analogs carrying modifications of the 7-position and 5-position of the purine or pyrimidine bases. Individually, these two compounds were able to induce gene expression of the ribozyme-controlled reporter approximately 365-fold and 110-fold, respectively. Studies of the mechanism of action of the ribozyme inhibitors indicate that the compounds must be incorporated into RNA in order to inhibit RNA self-cleavage.

Using small molecules to overcome drug resistance induced by a viral oncogene.

We used small molecule screening to discover compounds and mechanisms for overcoming E6 oncogene-mediated drug resistance. Using high-throughput screening in isogenic cell lines, we identified compounds that potentiate doxorubicin's lethality in E6-expressing colon cancer cells. Such compounds included quaternary ammonium salts, protein synthesis inhibitors, 11-deoxyprostaglandins, and two additional classes of compounds-analogs of 1,3-bis(4-morpholinylmethyl)-2-imidazolidinethione (a thiourea) and acylated secondary amines that we named indoxins. Indoxins upregulated topoisomerase IIalpha, the target of doxorubicin, thereby increasing doxorubicin lethality. We developed a photolabeling strategy to identify targets of indoxin and discovered a nuclear actin-related protein complex as a candidate indoxin target.

Exploring biology with small organic molecules.

Small organic molecules have proven to be invaluable tools for investigating biological systems, but there is still much to learn from their use. To discover and to use more effectively new chemical tools to understand biology, strategies are needed that allow us to systematically explore 'biological-activity space'. Such strategies involve analysing both protein binding of, and phenotypic responses to, small organic molecules. The mapping of biological-activity space using small molecules is akin to mapping the stars--uncharted territory is explored using a system of coordinates that describes where each new feature lies.

Microarrays of small molecules embedded in biodegradable polymers for use in mammalian cell-based screens.

We developed a microarray-based system for screening small molecules in mammalian cells. This system is compatible with image-based screens and requires fewer than 100 cells per compound. Each compound is impregnated in a 200-microm-diameter disc composed of biodegradable poly-(D),(L)-lactide/glycolide copolymer. Cells are seeded on top of these discs, and compounds slowly diffuse out, affecting proximal cells. In contrast with microtiter-based screening, this system does not involve the use of wells or walls between each compound-treated group of cells. We demonstrate detection of the effects of a single compound in a large microarray, that diverse compounds can be released in this format, and that extended release over several days is feasible. We performed a small synthetic lethal screen and identified a compound (macbecin II) that has reduced activity in cells with RNA interference-mediated decrease in the expression of tuberous sclerosis 2. Thus, we have developed a microarray-based screening system for testing the effects of small molecules on mammalian cells by using an imaging-based readout. This method will be useful to those performing small-molecule screens to discover new chemical tools and potential therapeutic agents.

A flexible data analysis tool for chemical genetic screens.

High-throughput assays generate immense quantities of data that require sophisticated data analysis tools. We have created a freely available software tool, SLIMS (Small Laboratory Information Management System), for chemical genetics which facilitates the collection and analysis of large-scale chemical screening data. Compound structures, physical locations, and raw data can be loaded into SLIMS. Raw data from high-throughput assays are normalized using flexible analysis protocols, and systematic spatial errors are automatically identified and corrected. Various computational analyses are performed on tested compounds, and dilution-series data are processed using standard or user-defined algorithms. Finally, published literature associated with active compounds is automatically retrieved from Medline and processed to yield potential mechanisms of actions. SLIMS provides a framework for analyzing high-throughput assay data both as a laboratory information management system and as a platform for experimental analysis.

Indoprofen upregulates the survival motor neuron protein through a cyclooxygenase-independent mechanism.

Most patients with the pediatric neurodegenerative disease spinal muscular atrophy have a homozygous deletion of the survival motor neuron 1 (SMN1) gene, but retain one or more copies of the closely related SMN2 gene. The SMN2 gene encodes the same protein (SMN) but produces it at a low efficiency compared with the SMN1 gene. We performed a high-throughput screen of approximately 47,000 compounds to identify those that increase production of an SMN2-luciferase reporter protein, but not an SMN1-luciferase reporter protein. Indoprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitor, selectively increased SMN2-luciferase reporter protein and endogenous SMN protein and caused a 5-fold increase in the number of nuclear gems in fibroblasts from SMA patients. No other NSAIDs or COX inhibitors tested exhibited this activity.

Systematic discovery of multicomponent therapeutics.

Multicomponent therapies, originating through deliberate mixing of drugs in a clinical setting, through happenstance, and through rational design, have a successful history in a number of areas of medicine, including cancer, infectious diseases, and CNS disorders. We have developed a high-throughput screening method for identifying effective combinations of therapeutic compounds. We report here that systematic screening of combinations of small molecules reveals unexpected interactions between compounds, presumably due to interactions between the pathways on which they act. Through systematic screening of approximately 120,000 different two-component combinations of reference-listed drugs, we identified potential multicomponent therapeutics, including (i) fungistatic and analgesic agents that together generate fungicidal activity in drug-resistant Candida albicans, yet do not significantly affect human cells, (ii) glucocorticoid and antiplatelet agents that together suppress the production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha in human primary peripheral blood mononu-clear cells, and (iii) antipsychotic and antiprotozoal agents that do not exhibit significant antitumor activity alone, yet together prevent the growth of tumors in mice. Systematic combination screening may ultimately be useful for exploring the connectivity of biological pathways and, when performed with reference-listed drugs, may result in the discovery of new combination drug regimens.