Preclinical Pharmacokinetics Study of R- and S-Enantiomers of the Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor, AR-42 (NSC 731438), in Rodents.

AR-42, a new orally bioavailable, potent, hydroxamate-tethered phenylbutyrate class I/IIB histone deacetylase inhibitor currently is under evaluation in phase 1 and 2 clinical trials and has demonstrated activity in both hematologic and solid tumor malignancies. This report focuses on the preclinical characterization of the pharmacokinetics of AR-42 in mice and rats. A high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry assay has been developed and applied to the pharmacokinetic study of the more active stereoisomer, S-AR-42, when administered via intravenous and oral routes in rodents, including plasma, bone marrow, and spleen pharmacokinetics (PK) in CD2F1 mice and plasma PK in F344 rats. Oral bioavailability was estimated to be 26 and 100% in mice and rats, respectively. R-AR-42 was also evaluated intravenously in rats and was shown to display different pharmacokinetics with a much shorter terminal half-life compared to that of S-AR-42. Renal clearance was a minor elimination pathway for parental S-AR-42. Oral administration of S-AR-42 to tumor-bearing mice demonstrated high uptake and exposure of the parent drug in the lymphoid tissues, spleen, and bone marrow. This is the first report of the pharmacokinetics of this novel agent, which is now in early phase clinical trials.

Curcumin down-regulates DNA methyltransferase 1 and plays an anti-leukemic role in acute myeloid leukemia.

Bioactive components from dietary supplements such as curcumin may represent attractive agents for cancer prevention or treatment. DNA methylation plays a critical role in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) development, and presents an excellent target for treatment of this disease. However, it remains largely unknown how curcumin, a component of the popular Indian spice turmeric, plays a role in DNA hypomethylation to reactivate silenced tumor suppressor genes and to present a potential treatment option for AML. Here we show that curcumin down-regulates DNMT1 expression in AML cell lines, both in vitro and in vivo, and in primary AML cells ex vivo. Mechanistically, curcumin reduced the expression of positive regulators of DNMT1, p65 and Sp1, which correlated with a reduction in binding of these transcription factors to the DNMT1 promoter in AML cell lines. This curcumin-mediated down-regulation of DNMT1 expression was concomitant with p15(INK4B) tumor suppressor gene reactivation, hypomethylation of the p15(INK4B) promoter, G1 cell cycle arrest, and induction of tumor cell apoptosis in vitro. In mice implanted with the human AML MV4-11 cell line, administration of curcumin resulted in remarkable suppression of AML tumor growth. Collectively, our data indicate that curcumin shows promise as a potential treatment for AML, and our findings provide a basis for future studies to test the clinical efficacy of curcumin - whether used as a single agent or as an adjuvant - for AML treatment.

A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric method for quantification of curcumin-O-glucuronide and curcumin in human plasma.

Curcumin is a widely used herbal medicine for various human diseases including inflammation and cancer. The demonstration and optimization of curcumin's activities in the clinical setting, however, have been compromised by its poor bioavailability and the lack of analytic methods to monitor its absorption. In this paper, we report the first validated liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric method for simultaneous quantification of curcumin and its major metabolite: curcumin-O-glucuronide (COG), in the linear range of 2.0-2000 ng/mL in human plasma. The intra-day and inter-day accuracies of curcumin and COG in human plasma were in the range of 91.3-111.5% and 82.7-109.2% and their co-efficiency of variations were in the range of 3.5-12.7% and 3.1-11.3%, respectively. This method was capable of detecting only COG in human plasma samples from two healthy volunteers after an oral ingestion of curcumin.

Clinical and pharmacodynamic activity of bortezomib and decitabine in acute myeloid leukemia.

We recently reported promising clinical activity for a 10-day regimen of decitabine in older AML patients; high miR-29b expression associated with clinical response. Subsequent preclinical studies with bortezomib in AML cells have shown drug-induced miR-29b up-regulation, resulting in loss of transcriptional activation for several genes relevant to myeloid leukemogenesis, including DNA methyltransferases and receptor tyrosine kinases. Thus, a phase 1 trial of bortezomib and decitabine was developed. Nineteen poor-risk AML patients (median age 70 years; range, 32-84 years) enrolled. Induction with decitabine (20 mg/m(2) intravenously on days 1-10) plus bortezomib (escalated up to the target 1.3 mg/m(2) on days 5, 8, 12, and 15) was tolerable, but bortezomib-related neuropathy developed after repetitive cycles. Of previously untreated patients (age ≥ 65 years), 5 of 10 had CR (complete remission, n = 4) or incomplete CR (CRi, n = 1); 7 of 19 overall had CR/CRi. Pharmacodynamic analysis showed FLT3 down-regulation on day 26 of cycle 1 (P = .02). Additional mechanistic studies showed that FLT3 down-regulation was due to bortezomib-induced miR-29b up-regulation; this led to SP1 down-regulation and destruction of the SP1/NF-κB complex that transactivated FLT3. This study demonstrates the feasibility and preliminary clinical activity of decitabine plus bortezomib in AML and identifies FLT3 as a novel pharmacodynamic end point for future trials.

Characterization of silvestrol pharmacokinetics in mice using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

A sensitive and specific liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the quantification of the plant natural product silvestrol in mice, using ansamitocin P-3 as the internal standard. The method was validated in plasma with a lower limit of quantification of 1 ng/mL, accuracy ranging from 87 to 114%, and precision (coefficient of variation) below 15%. The validated method was used to characterize pharmacokinetics in C57BL/6 mice and metabolism in mouse, human and rat plasma, and liver microsomes. Mice were dosed with silvestrol formulated in hydroxypropyl-ß-cyclodextrin via intravenous, intraperitoneal, and oral routes followed by blood sampling up to 24 h. Intraperitoneal systemic availability was 100%, but oral administration resulted in only 1.7% bioavailability. Gradual degradation of silvestrol was observed in mouse and human plasma, with approximately 60% of the parent drug remaining after 6 h. In rat plasma, however, silvestrol was completely converted to silvestric acid (SA) within 10 min. Evaluation in microsomes provided further evidence that the main metabolite formed was SA, which subsequently showed no cytotoxic or cytostatic activity in a silvestrol-sensitive lymphoblastic cell line. The ability of the analytical assay to measure tissue levels of silvestrol was evaluated in liver, brain, kidney, and spleen. Results indicated the method was capable of accurately measuring tissue levels of silvestrol and suggested it has a relatively low distribution to brain. Together, these data suggest an overall favorable pharmacokinetic profile of silvestrol in mice and provide crucial information for its continued development toward potential clinical testing.

Kisspeptin resets the hypothalamic GnRH clock in men.

CONTEXT: Reproduction in all mammals is controlled by a hypothalamic clock that produces periodic secretory pulses of GnRH, but how the timing of these pulses is determined is poorly understood. The neuropeptide kisspeptin potently and selectively stimulates the secretion of GnRH. Although this property of kisspeptin is well described, the effects of kisspeptin on endogenous GnRH pulse generation remain largely unexplored. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to detail the effects of kisspeptin on GnRH secretion, as reflected by LH secretion, in men. PARTICIPANTS: Thirteen healthy adult men participated in the study. INTERVENTION: The intervention was the administration of a single iv bolus of the C-terminal decapeptide of kisspeptin (amino acids 112-121 of the parent protein). RESULTS: Kisspeptin induced an immediate LH pulse, regardless of the timing of the previous endogenous pulse. The kisspeptin-induced pulses were on average larger than endogenous pulses (amplitude 5.0 ± 1.0 vs. 2.1 ± 0.3 mIU/ml, P = 0.02). Comparison of the morphology of kisspeptin-induced LH pulses in healthy men with that of GnRH-induced LH pulses in men with isolated GnRH deficiency suggests that a single i.v. bolus of kisspeptin triggered sustained GnRH release lasting approximately 17 min. Furthermore, kisspeptin reset the GnRH pulse generator, as it not only induced an immediate LH pulse but also delayed the next endogenous pulse by an interval approximating the normal interpulse interval. CONCLUSIONS: As the first known agent capable of resetting the hypothalamic GnRH pulse generator, kisspeptin can be used as a physiological tool for studying GnRH pulse generation and opens a door to understanding the mechanisms of biological clocks in general.

A rapid and sensitive LC-MS/MS method for quantification of four anthocyanins and its application in a clinical pharmacology study of a bioadhesive black raspberry gel.

Cyanidin 3-glucoside (C3GLU), cyanidin 3-rutinoside (C3RUT), cyanidin 3-sambubioside (C3SAM) and cyanidin 3-(2(G)-xylosyl) rutinoside (C3XRUT) are the four constituent black raspberry anthocyanins that contribute significantly to the chemopreventive effects of freeze-dried black raspberries (FBR). A highly sensitive and specific LC-MS/MS assay was developed and validated to simultaneously quantify these four FBR anthocyanins in human saliva, plasma and oral tissue homogenates. In saliva, the lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) for these anthocyanins was 1.0 ng/mL. The within-run and between-run coefficients of variations (CVs) at the quality control concentrations (1.0, 5.0, 50 and 500 ng/mL) were all <12%, except for C3SAM and C3RUT at the LLOQ, which showed a within-run CV of 18.3% and between-run CV of 16.0%, respectively. The accuracy values ranged from 87.5 to 110%. In plasma, the LLOQ for C3GLU and C3RUT was 1.0 ng/mL and for C3SAM 5.0 ng/mL. The CVs at the above concentrations were <15%, except for C3GLU at the LLOQ, which showed the between-run CV of 16.9%. The accuracy values ranged from 90.7% to 112.7% except for C3GLU at the LLOQ, which showed 119.3%. In tissue homogenates, the LLOQ for C3GLU and C3RUT was 2.0 ng/mL, and C3SAM 5.0 ng/mL. The CVs and accuracy values at concentrations (2.0, 5.0, 50 and 500 ng/mL) were similar to those in human plasma. This assay was subsequently used in a pilot pharmacology study to evaluate the effects of topical application of a 10% (w/w) FBR bioadhesive gel to selected mucosal sites in the posterior mandibular gingiva. Measurable saliva and tissue levels of the FBR anthocyanins confirmed that gel-delivered anthocyanins are readily distributed to saliva and easily penetrate human oral mucosa.

Distribution of anthocyanins delivered from a bioadhesive black raspberry gel following topical intraoral application in normal healthy volunteers.

PURPOSE: Results from our oral cavity chemoprevention trial demonstrated appreciable interpatient variations regarding chemopreventive efficacy of a freeze dried black raspberry (FBR) gel. We speculated these data reflected individual patient-related differences in absorption, target tissue uptake and local compound metabolism of key FBR compounds (anthocyanins). Accordingly, this study assessed the distribution of anthocyanins from the 10% (w/w) FBR gel in saliva, oral tissues and plasma. METHODS: Human subject participation entailed collection of: (1) saliva, tissue and plasma (5 min following gel application, keratinized tissues), (2) saliva and plasma (5 min after sublingual gel application), (3) saliva and plasma at 1, 2, and 4 h post gel application (keratinized tissues), and (4) saliva (cyanidin 3-rutinoside incubations). Levels of FBR anthocyanins in the respective samples were analyzed by LC/MS/MS. RESULTS: Our data show: significantly higher anthocyanin levels in saliva and oral tissues relative to matched plasma samples, marked donor-specific variations in anthocyanin uptake, sustainability of anthocyanins at the target site, pH affects anthocyanin penetration and intraoral anthocyanin decomposition and/or metabolism. CONCLUSIONS: No previous oral cavity chemoprevention trials evaluated compound distribution at the treatment site. Our data, which demonstrate a local delivery-derived pharmacologic advantage, provide insights which could advance oral cavity chemoprevention strategies.

Characterization of decomposition products and preclinical and low dose clinical pharmacokinetics of decitabine (5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine) by a new liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry quantification method.

Aberrant DNA methylation patterns resulting in gene transcriptional repression are observed in numerous cancers. Decitabine, a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, is being clinically evaluated in patients with hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. Decitabine is rather unstable and decomposes to 1-beta-D-2'-deoxyribofuranosyl-3-guanylurea under basic conditions and several additional unknown products under neutral conditions. This has greatly limited application of pharmacokinetic assays to clinical development of decitabine. In this paper, a high-performance liquid chromatography/ultraviolet multi-stage mass spectrometry (HPLC-UV-MSn) study of the decomposition of decitabine in water and human plasma revealed that these previously unknown products are isomers of the intermediates formyl-1-beta-D-2'-deoxyribofuranosyl-3-guanylurea and 1-beta-D-2'-deoxyribofuranosyl-3-guanylurea. A HPLC tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) method for the determination of decitabine concentrations in human and rat plasma has been developed. This method was based on a specific fragmentation pathway of the molecular ion of decitabine at m/z 229 to generate a unique fragment ion at m/z 113 under collision-induced dissociation. Separation of decitabine and the stable internal standard dihydro-5-aza-cytidine from the endogenous interfering substance in plasma extract was carried out on a C18 Aquasil column under an isocratic elution with a mobile phase consisting of 5% water/acetonitrile and 10 mM ammonium formate. The detection of decitabine was via selected reaction monitoring (SRM, 229 > 113), and its ionization was enhanced by post-column addition of acetonitrile. Effects of sample preparation and handling parameters on the stability of decitabine were also evaluated in human plasma at various temperatures. The accuracy and precision of this assay showed a coefficient of variation of <15% over the range of 0.5-25 ng for rat plasma and 0.1-25 ng for human plasma injected on-column. Pharmacokinetics of decitabine in rats following intravenous doses of 1.0 and 5.0 mg/kg were characterized. In the rat, plasma concentration-time profiles were found to follow a biexponential decline and the pharmacokinetics was dose-independent. Application of this decitabine pharmacokinetic assay to human studies is therefore justified and ongoing.

Metabolism of GTI-2040, a phosphorothioate oligonucleotide antisense, using ion-pair reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled with electrospray ion-trap mass spectrometry.

GTI-2040 is a 20-mer phosphorothioate oligonucleotide, which is complementary to the messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) of the R2 subunit of ribonucleotide reductase. This study characterized both the in vivo and in vitro metabolism of GTI-2040. A highly specific ion-pair reversed-phase electrospray ionization (IP-RP-ESI) liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method was used for the identification of GTI-2040 and metabolites from a variety of biological samples including exonuclease enzyme solutions, plasma, urine, mouse liver/kidney homogenates, and human liver microsomes. Progressively chain-shortened metabolites truncated from the 3' terminal of GTI-2040 were detected in all of the evaluated biological samples. GTI-2040 was found to be a good substrate for 3' but not 5' exonuclease. While the pattern of n-1 chain-shortened 3'-exonucleolytic degradation was similar in the mouse liver and kidney homogenates, the latter was found to contain a larger number of shortenmers, the kidneys appeared to possess higher enzymatic reactivity toward GTI-2040. Thus, metabolism of GTI-2040 was found to occur in a variety of biological samples, mainly mediated by the 3' exonuclease.

An API LC/MS/MS quantitation method for ansamitocin P-3 (AP3) and its preclinical pharmacokinetics.

Ansamitocin P-3 (AP3) is a potent maytansinoid antitumor agent isolated from microorganisms and mosses. In this study, a highly sensitive and specific electrospray ionization (ESI) liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method for quantitation of AP3 was developed and validated. AP3 was extracted from rat plasma along with the internal standard, depsipeptide FK228 (NSC-630176, FR) with ethyl acetate. Components in the extract were separated on a 50mm x 2.1mm Betabasic C 85 microm stainless steel column by isocratic elution with 70% acetonitrile/0.9% formic acid. The liquid flow was passed through a pre-source splitter and 5% of the eluent was introduced into the API source. The components were analyzed in the multiple-reaction-monitoring (MRM) mode as the precursor/product ion pair of m/z 635.2/547.2 for AP3 and of m/z 541.5/424.0 for the internal standard FR. Linear calibration curves were obtained in the range 1-500 ng/mL using 0.2 mL rat plasma. The within-day coefficients of variation (CVs) were 12.9, 6.7, and 5.5% and the between-day CVs were 10.4, 6.5, and 6.4% (all n = 5) at 1, 10, and 200 ng/mL, respectively. A formulation based on normal saline and PEG300 was then developed and Sprague-Dawley male rats were given this formulated drug by i.v. bolus. Plasma drug concentrations were measured by this method and the pharmacokinetics were analyzed by standard techniques. Plasma concentration-time profiles were found to follow a triexponential decline and the terminal phase was nearly flat, suggesting that the drug distributed in deep tissue compartments or organs and then equilibrates slowly with the blood stream.

Recent developments in the maytansinoid antitumor agents.

Maytansine and its congeners have been isolated from higher plants, mosses and from an Actinomycete, Actinosynnema pretiosum. Many of these compounds are antitumor agents of extraordinary potency, yet phase II clinical trials with maytansine proved disappointing. The chemistry and biology of maytansinoids has been reviewed repeatedly in the late 1970s and early 1980s; the present review covers new developments in this field during the last two decades. These include the use of maytansinoids as "warheads" in tumor-specific antibodies, preliminary metabolism studies, investigations of their biosynthesis at the biochemical and genetic level, and ecological issues related to the occurrence of such typical microbial metabolites in higher plants.