Increased dosage and treatment time of Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) negatively affects skeletal parameters in normal mice and Down syndrome mouse models.

Bone abnormalities affect all individuals with Down syndrome (DS) and are linked to abnormal expression of DYRK1A, a gene found in three copies in people with DS and Ts65Dn DS model mice. Previous work in Ts65Dn male mice demonstrated that both genetic normalization of Dyrk1a and treatment with ~9 mg/kg/day Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the main polyphenol found in green tea and putative DYRK1A inhibitor, improved some skeletal deficits. Because EGCG treatment improved mostly trabecular skeletal deficits, we hypothesized that increasing EGCG treatment dosage and length of administration would positively affect both trabecular and cortical bone in Ts65Dn mice. Treatment of individuals with DS with green tea extract (GTE) containing EGCG also showed some weight loss in individuals with DS, and we hypothesized that weights would be affected in Ts65Dn mice after EGCG treatment. Treatment with ~20 mg/kg/day EGCG for seven weeks showed no improvements in male Ts65Dn trabecular bone and only limited improvements in cortical measures. Comparing skeletal analyses after ~20mg/kg/day EGCG treatment with previously published treatments with ~9, 50, and 200 mg/kg/day EGCG showed that increased dosage and treatment time increased cortical structural deficits leading to weaker appendicular bones in male mice. Weight was not affected by treatment in mice, except for those given a high dose of EGCG by oral gavage. These data indicate that high doses of EGCG, similar to those reported in some treatment studies of DS and other disorders, may impair long bone structure and strength. Skeletal phenotypes should be monitored when high doses of EGCG are administered therapeutically.

ARN25068, a versatile starting point towards triple GSK-3ß/FYN/DYRK1A inhibitors to tackle tau-related neurological disorders.

The human kinome plays a crucial role in several pathways. Its dysregulation has been linked to diverse central nervous system (CNS)-related disorders with a drastic impact on the aging population. Among them, tauopathies, such as Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and Frontotemporal Lobar degeneration (FTLD-tau), are neurodegenerative disorders pathologically defined by the presence of hyperphosphorylated tau-positive intracellular inclusions known as neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). Compelling evidence has reported the great potential of the simultaneous modulation of multiple protein kinases (PKs) involved in abnormal tau phosphorylation through a concerted pharmacological approach to achieve a superior therapeutic effect relative to classic "one target, one drug" approaches. Here, we report on the identification and characterization of ARN25068 (4), a low nanomolar and well-balanced dual GSK-3ß and FYN inhibitor, which also shows inhibitory activity against DYRK1A, an emerging target in AD and tauopathies. Computational and X-Ray studies highlight compound 4's typical H-bonding pattern of ATP-competitive inhibitors at the binding sites of all three PKs. In a tau phosphorylation assay on Tau0N4R-TM-tGFP U2OS cell line, 4 reduces the extent of tau phosphorylation, promoting tau-stabilized microtubule bundles. In conclusion, this compound emerges as a promising prototype for further SAR explorations to develop potent and well-balanced triple GSK-3ß/FYN/DYRK1A inhibitors to tackle tau hyperphosphorylation.

Antimetabolic cooperativity with the clinically approved l-asparaginase and tyrosine kinase inhibitors to eradicate CML stem cells.

OBJECTIVE: Long-term treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) represents an effective cure for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients and discontinuation of TKI therapy is now proposed to patient with deep molecular responses. However, evidence demonstrating that TKI are unable to fully eradicate dormant leukemic stem cells (LSC) indicate that new therapeutic strategies are needed to control LSC and to prevent relapse. In this study we investigated the metabolic pathways responsible for CML surviving to imatinib exposure and its potential therapeutic utility to improve the efficacy of TKI against stem-like CML cells. METHODS: Using complementary cell-based techniques, metabolism was characterized in a large panel of BCR-ABL+ cell lines as well as primary CD34+ stem-like cells from CML patients exposed to TKI and L-Asparaginases. Colony forming cell (CFC) assay and flow cytometry were used to identify CML progenitor and stem like-cells. Preclinical models of leukemia dormancy were used to test the effect of treatments. RESULTS: Although TKI suppressed glycolysis, compensatory glutamine-dependent mitochondrial oxidation supported ATP synthesis and CML cell survival. Glutamine metabolism was inhibited by L-asparaginases such as Kidrolase or Erwinase without inducing predominant CML cell death. However, clinically relevant concentrations of TKI render CML cells susceptible to Kidrolase. The combination of TKI with Lasparaginase reactivates the intinsic apoptotic pathway leading to efficient CML cell death. CONCLUSION: Targeting glutamine metabolism with the FDA-approved drug, Kidrolase in combination with TKI that suppress glycolysis represents an effective and widely applicable therapeutic strategy for eradicating stem-like CML cells.

LncRNA PKMYT1AR promotes cancer stem cell maintenance in non-small cell lung cancer via activating Wnt signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common type of human lung cancers, which has diverse pathological features. Although many signaling pathways and therapeutic targets have been defined to play important roles in NSCLC, limiting efficacies have been achieved. METHODS: Bioinformatics methods were used to identify differential long non-coding RNA expression in NSCLC. Real-time RT-PCR experiments were used to examine the expression pattern of lncRNA PKMYT1AR, miR-485-5p. Both in vitro and in vivo functional assays were performed to investigate the functional role of PKMYT1AR/miR-485-5p/PKMYT1 axis on regulating cell proliferation, migration and tumor growth. Dual luciferase reporter assay, fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), immunoblot, co-immunoprecipitation experiments were used to verify the molecular mechanism. RESULT: Here, we identify a human-specific long non-coding RNA (lncRNA, ENST00000595422), termed PKMYT1AR (PKMYT1 associated lncRNA), that is induced in NSCLC by Yin Yang 1 (YY1) factor, especially in cancerous cell lines (H358, H1975, H1299, H1650, A549 and SPC-A1) compared to that in normal human bronchial epithelium cell line (BEAS-2B). We show that PKMYT1AR high expression correlates with worse clinical outcome, and knockdown of PKMYT1AR inhibits tumor cell proliferation, migration and xenograft tumor formation abilities. Bioinformatic analysis and a luciferase assay demonstrate that PKMYT1AR directly interacts with miR-485-5p to attenuate the inhibitory role on its downstream oncogenic factor PKMYT1 (the protein kinase, membrane-associated tyrosine/threonine 1) in NSCLC. Furthermore, we uncover that miR-485-5p is downregulated in both cancerous cell lines and peripheral blood serum isolated from NSCLC patients compared to reciprocal control groups. Consistently, forced expression of miR-485-5p inhibits the proliferation and migration abilities of tumor cells. Moreover, we provide evidence showing that PKMYT1AR targeting antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) dramatically inhibit tumor growth in vivo. Mechanistic study shows that PKMYT1AR/ miR-485-5p /PKMYT1 axis promotes cancer stem cells (CSCs) maintenance in NSCLC via inhibiting ß-TrCP1 mediated ubiquitin degradation of ß-catenin proteins, which in turn causes enhanced tumorigenesis. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings reveal the critical role of PKMYT1AR/miR-485-5p /PKMYT1 axis during NSCLC progression, which could be used as novel therapeutic targets in the future.

Emerging Importance of Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors against Cancer: Quo Vadis to Cure?

GLOBOCAN 2020 estimated more than 19.3 million new cases, and about 10 million patients were deceased from cancer in 2020. Clinical manifestations showed that several growth factor receptors consisting of transmembrane and cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase (TK) domains play a vital role in cancer progression. Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are crucial intermediaries of the several cellular pathways and carcinogenesis that directly affect the prognosis and survival of higher tumor grade patients. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are efficacious drugs for targeted therapy of various cancers. Therefore, RTKs have become a promising therapeutic target to cure cancer. A recent report shows that TKIs are vital mediators of signal transduction and cancer cell proliferation, angiogenesis, and apoptosis. In this review, we discuss the structure and function of RTKs to explore their prime role in cancer therapy. Various TKIs have been developed to date that contribute a lot to treating several types of cancer. These TKI based anticancer drug molecules are also discussed in detail, incorporating their therapeutic efficacy, mechanism of action, and side effects. Additionally, this article focuses on TKIs which are running in the clinical trial and pre-clinical studies. Further, to gain insight into the pathophysiological mechanism of TKIs, we also reviewed the impact of RTK resistance on TKI clinical drugs along with their mechanistic acquired resistance in different cancer types.

Eficacia y seguridad de nivolumab en pacientes adultos con carcinoma de células renales metastásico de células claras que han progresado al tratamiento de primera línea con inhibidor de la tirosina quinasa (Actualización) / Efficacy and safety of nivolumab in adult patients with metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma who have progressed on first-line tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy (Update)

INTRODUCCIÓN: El cáncer de riñón es la decimosexta neoplasia maligna más común en el Perú, con aproximadamente 1,195 casos nuevos diagnosticados en 2019. El carcinoma de células renales (CCR) es el tipo más común de cáncer de riñón y comprende el 90 % de los casos. A su vez, este se clasifica en subtipos histológicos, siendo el más común el CCR de células claras (70 % a 85 % de los casos).  En EsSalud, el tratamiento sistémico de primera línea del CCR metastásico (CCRm) de células claras incluye la terapia dirigida con inhibidores de la tirosina quinasa (TKI), como el sunitinib (IETSI - EsSalud 2015). Cuando los pacientes progresan a la terapia con TKI, el tratamiento es básicamente de soporte y manejo de complicaciones específicas. Alternativamente, los especialistas de EsSalud consideran que el uso de nivolumab podría ser una alternativa de tratamiento en este contexto, argumentando que este podría tener un beneficio, en comparación a la mejor terapia de soporte, en la reducción de riesgo de progresión de enfermedad y muerte. El nivolumab fue evaluado en el Dictamen Preliminar de Evaluación de Tecnología Sanitaria N° 017-SDEPFyOTS-DETS-IETSI-2017 "Eficacia y seguridad de nivolumab para el tratamiento de pacientes adultos con cáncer renal metastásico de células claras que han progresado al tratamiento de primea línea con inhibidor de a tirosina quinasa", publicado en mayo de 2017. En este dictamen se decide no aprobar el uso de nivolumab en la población objetivo. Esto debido a que, en aquel momento, no se encontró evidencia científica que permitiera sustentar de manera sólida un beneficio neto de nivolumab, en relación al placebo o la mejor terapia de soporte, para esta población. No obstante, debido a las escasas opciones terapéuticas para esta condición clínica y a que la evidencia evaluada provenía de datos interinos de sobrevida global (SG) del estudio CheckMate 025 (evidencia indirecta), se consideró necesario realizar una nueva evaluación cuando se tuvieran los resultados finales de SG o se contara con ensayos adicionales que ayudaran a esclarecer la incertidumbre del efecto de nivolumab. El objetivo del presente documento fue actualizar el Dictamen Preliminar de Evaluación de Tecnología Sanitaria N° 017-SDEPFyOTS-DETS-IETSI-2017, donde la población objetivo fueron los pacientes adultos con CCRm de células claras que han progresado a terapia de primera línea con un TKI. El comparador de interés fue la mejor terapia de soporte y los desenlaces de interés fueron la SG, la sobrevida libre de progresión (SLP), la calidad de vida y los eventos adversos (EA). En dicha evaluación, la mejor terapia de soporte correspondió a los cuidados paliativos en los pacientes oncológicos, por lo que, en un contexto de ensayo clínico, el uso del placebo como comparador se consideró apropiado. METODOLOGÍA: Se realizó una búsqueda sistemática de literatura con el objetivo de actualizar el Dictamen Preliminar de Evaluación de Tecnología Sanitaria N° 017-SDEPFyOTS-DETS-IETSI-2017 "Eficacia y seguridad de nivolumab para el tratamiento de pacientes adultos con cáncer renal metastásico de células claras que han progresado al tratamiento de primea línea con inhibidor de a tirosina quinasa". Se utilizaron las bases de datos PubMed, Cochrane Library y LILACS. Las búsquedas se limitaron a estudios publicados a partir de enero de 2017, considerando que la evidencia previa se incluyó y evaluó en el dictamen en mención. Asimismo, se realizó una búsqueda dentro de bases de datos pertenecientes a grupos que realizan ETS y GPC, incluyendo el Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC), el National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), la Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH), la Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS), el Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG), el Instituto de Evaluación Tecnológica en Salud de Colombia (IETS), la Comissão Nacional de Incorporação de Tecnologias no Sistema Único de Saúde (CONITEC), entre otros; además de la Base Regional de Informes de Evaluación de Tecnologías en Salud de las Américas (BRISA) y páginas web de sociedades especializadas en el manejo del cáncer de riñón como National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) y European Association of Urology (EAU). Se hizo una búsqueda adicional en la página web del registro de ensayos clínicos administrado por la Biblioteca Nacional de Medicina de los Estados Unidos (https://clinicaltrials.gov/) e International Clinical Trial Registry Platform (ICTRP) (https://apps.who.int/trialsearch/), para poder identificar ensayos clínicos en curso o cuyos resultados no hayan sido publicados para, de este modo, disminuir el riesgo de sesgo de publicación. RESULTADOS: Se describe la evidencia disponible según el orden jerárquico del nivel de evidencia o pirámide de Haynes 6S4, siguiendo lo indicado en los criterios de elegibilidad. CONCLUSIONES: El objetivo del presente documento fue actualizar el Dictamen Preliminar de Evaluación de Tecnología Sanitaria N° 017-SDEPFyOTS-DETS-IETSI-2017 "Eficacia y seguridad de nivolumab para el tratamiento de pacientes adultos con cáncer renal metastásico de células claras que han progresado al tratamiento de primea línea con inhibidor de a tirosina quinasa", publicado en mayo de 2017. Todas las GPC internacionales identificadas en la presente evaluación recomendaron el uso de nivolumab en pacientes con CCRm de células claras previamente tratados con terapia antiangiogénica. Estas recomendaciones estuvieron basadas principalmente en los resultados del análisis interino del ECA CheckMate 025; que mostraron una ganancia en la SG y un mejor perfil de seguridad en comparación con otras alternativas terapéuticas autorizadas comercialmente para la condición clínica de interés. Las ETS revisadas en esta evaluación concluyeron que nivolumab, en comparación con la mejor terapia de soporte o placebo, es un tratamiento eficaz y proporciona un beneficio clínico en pacientes con CCRm previamente tratados con terapia antiangiogénica, en términos de desenlaces finales de relevancia para el paciente, como la SG, la calidad de vida y los EA. Las ETS también se basaron en los resultados del análisis interino del ECA CheckMate 025. Los resultados finales de SG de CheckMate 025 fueron consistentes con los del análisis interino publicado previamente; observándose una ganancia de 6 meses en la SG de los pacientes tratados con nivolumab con respecto a aquellos tratados con everolimus. El equipo técnico del IETSI consideró que una prolongación de 6 meses en la SG es de valor para los pacientes con CCRm de células claras que progresan a un TKI, cuya esperanza de vida es de aproximadamente 14 meses (con mejor terapia de soporte). El estudio CheckMate 025 reportó una menor tasa de EA de grado 3 o 4, discontinuación debido a EA y muertes relacionadas con el tratamiento, y una mejor calidad de vida con nivolumab en comparación con everolimus. Así, considerando el beneficio clínico con nivolumab observado en los resultados finales de CheckMate 025, en términos de desenlaces clínicamente relevantes para el paciente como la SG, el perfil de seguridad manejable del medicamento, la experiencia de uso de nivolumab en la institución, y el contexto de vacío terapéutico para una condición clínica que amenaza la vida de los pacientes, el IETSI encuentra suficientes argumentos técnicos para aprobar el uso de nivolumab en pacientes adultos con CCRm de células claras que han progresado a primera línea de tratamiento con TKI. Por lo antes expuesto, el IETSI aprueba el uso de nivolumab para el tratamiento de pacientes adultos con CCRm de células claras que han progresado al tratamiento de primea línea con TKI, según lo establecido en el Anexo N°1. La vigencia del presente dictamen preliminar es de un año a partir de la fecha de publicación. Así, la continuación de dicha aprobación estará sujeta a la evaluación de los resultados obtenidos y de mayor evidencia que pueda surgir en el tiempo.

Eficacia y seguridad de bosutinib en pacientes con leucemia mieloide crónica con el gen de fusion bcr-abl, con mutación T315I negativo y con falla y/o intolerancia a imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib / Efficacy and safety of bosutinib in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia with the bcr-abl fusion gene, negative T315I mutation and with failure and/or intolerance to imatinib, dasatinib and nilotinib

INTRODUCCIÓN: El presente dictamen preliminar expone la evaluación de la eficacia y seguridad de bosutinib, comparado con la mejor terapia de soporte, para el tratamiento de pacientes con leucemia mieloide crónica con el gen de fusión BCR-ABL, con mutación T315I negativo y con falla y/o intolerancia a imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib. La leucemia mieloide crónica (LMC) es una neoplasia mieloproliferativa y de baja frecuencia; no obstante, es la sexta causa de muerte por cáncer en Perú. El gen de fusión BCR-ABL, presente en más del 90 % de los casos, produce una proteína con alta actividad catalítica de tirosina quinasa, implicada en la patogénesis de la LMC. Esta enfermedad consta de tres fases: crónica, acelerada y de crisis blástica. Si bien el trasplante alogénico de células hematopoyéticas (TACMH) es potencialmente curativo, algunos pacientes no son candidatos a recibir un TACMH o no es posible encontrar un donante compatible. En estos casos, los pacientes pueden recibir inhibidores de la tirosina quinasa (ITQ), los cuales actúan de manera específica sobre la proliferación celular inducida por el gen de fusión BCR-ABL. En EsSalud se cuenta con tres ITQ (imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib) que pueden ser utilizados hasta una tercera línea de tratamiento. Sin embargo, existen pacientes, con la mutación T315I negativo, no respondedores a los tres ITQ por falla o intolerancia, para quienes los médicos especialistas de la institución sugieren el uso de bosutinib, un ITQ de segunda generación, como cuarta línea de tratamiento. METODOLOGÍA: Se llevó a cabo una búsqueda sistemática de la literatura con el objetivo de identificar la mejor evidencia sobre la eficacia y seguridad de bosutinib, en comparación con la mejor terapia de soporte, para el tratamiento de pacientes con LMC con el gen de fusión BCR-ABL, con mutación T315I negativo y con falla y/o intolerancia a imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib. La búsqueda se realizó en las bases de datos: PubMed, The Cochrane Library y LILACS. Adicionalmente, se realizó una búsqueda manual dentro de las páginas web pertenecientes a grupos que realizan evaluación de tecnologías sanitarias (ETS) y guías de práctica clínica (GPC) incluyendo: el National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), la Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH), el Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC), el Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), el Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER), el Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Healthcare (IQWiG por sus siglas en alemán), la Base Regional de Informes de Evaluación de Tecnologías en Salud de las Américas (BRISA), la OMS, el Ministerio de Salud del Perú (MINSA), el Instituto de Evaluación de Tecnologías en Salud e Investigación (IETSI), la National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), la British Society for Haematology (BSH) y la European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO). Finalmente, se realizó una búsqueda manual en la página web de registro de ensayos clínicos (EC) de ClinicalTrials.gov para identificar EC en curso o con resultados que no hayan sido publicados. RESULTADOS: La presente sinopsis describe la evidencia científica sobre el uso de bosutinib como tratamiento de pacientes con LMC con el gen de fusión BCR-ABL, con mutación T315I negativo y con falla y/o intolerancia a imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib, según el tipo de publicación. CONCLUSIONES: El objetivo del presente dictamen fue evaluar la mejor evidencia disponible sobre la eficacia y seguridad de bosutinib comparado con la mejor terapia de soporte (hidroxiurea) para el tratamiento de pacientes con LMC con el gen de fusión BCR-ABL (cromosoma Ph positivo), con mutación T315I negativo y con falla y/o intolerancia a imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib. La población de interés (pacientes con LMC con cromosoma Ph positivo, con mutación T315I negativo y con falla y/o intolerancia imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib) no cuenta con una alternativa de tratamiento contra la LMC (vacío terapéutico), ante el vacío terapéutico estos pacientes progresarían a etapas más avanzadas con mayor riesgo de muerte. Luego de la búsqueda de la literatura se identificó una GPC desarrollada por BSH; cuatro ETS desarrolladas por el SMC, la CADTH, el NICE y el IQWiG; un EC de fase I/II (estudio pivotal) publicado por Khoury et al.; un EC de fase IV (fase de post comercialización) publicado por Hochhaus et al. y un estudio observacional retrospectivo publicado por García-Gutiérrez et al. Debido a las limitaciones del los ECA de fase II y IV y el estudio observacional (todos sin grupo de comparación), la eficacia y seguridad de bosutinib y su beneficio neto en la calidad de vida son inciertos puesto que no se puede establecer una relación causal entre los resultados reportados y el tratamiento con bosutinib. No obstante, cabe precisar que datos descriptivos muestran que la mortalidad a los dos años con el uso bosutinib es menor al 5 %, mientras que con el uso de hidroxiurea sería entre 20 % y 47.5 %. La guía recomienda usar ITQ en el contexto de cuarta línea en pacientes con intolerancia a ITQ recibidos previamente. No obstante, no se especifica la evidencia de soporte. Las ETS de NICE, SMC y CADTH optaron por recomendar el uso de bosutinib en pacientes adultos con LMC con cromosoma Ph positivo, que previamente han recibido ITQ y para quienes imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib no son apropiados, dicha recomendación fue condicionada a un descuento confidencial sobre el precio de lista de bosutinib. Las tres ETS emplearon como evidencia de soporte el estudio clínico fase I/II, el cual incluyó solo tres pacientes que recibieron bosutinib en cuarta línea. La ETS de IQWiG concluye que no es posible determinar el beneficio del tratamiento con bosutinib frente a otro ITQ. La principal limitación para ello fue que el EC de fase I/II no evalúa bosutinib frente a los comparadores de interés para IQWiG, los cuales fueron diferentes a los establecidos en la PICO del presente dictamen. El uso prolongado de la terapia de soporte con hidroxiurea podría generar similares incidencias de EA que con bosutinib (toxicidad gastrointestinal, neutropenia, anemia, trombocitopenia); pero, adicionalmente podría generar otros problemas como ulceras graves, neoplasias malignas, toxicidad pulmonar, mielosupresión grave, entre otros. Existe plausibilidad biológica; ya que no todas las mutaciones que confieren resistencia a imatinib, dasatinib o nilotinib, confieren resistencia a bosutinib; y aún existe la posibilidad de que bosutinib sí sea eficaz. Por lo expuesto, el Instituto de Evaluación de Tecnologías en Salud e Investigación aprueba el uso de bosutinib para el tratamiento de pacientes con LMC con el gen de fusión BCR-ABL (cromosoma Ph positivo), con mutación T315I negativo, con falla y/o intolerancia a tres inhibidores de la tirosina quinasa (imatinib, dasatinib y nilotinib), según lo establecido en el Anexo N°1. La vigencia del presente dictamen preliminar es de un año a partir de la fecha de publicación. Así, la continuación de dicha aprobación estará sujeta a la evaluación de los resultados obtenidos y de mayor evidencia que pueda surgir en el tiempo.

Real-World Efficacy and Safety of Multi-Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors in Radioiodine Refractory Thyroid Cancer.

Background: The management of patients with locally advanced or metastatic differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) that is refractory to radioiodine (RAI) remains a therapeutic challenge. The multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) sorafenib and lenvatinib have been approved based on phase 3 clinical trials. Patients and Methods: We aimed at describing the efficacy and safety of TKI treatment of RAI-refractory DTC in a real-world setting at six German referral centers. One hundred and one patients with locally advanced or metastatic RAI-refractory DTC treated with sorafenib, lenvatinib, and/or pazopanib were included. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) probabilities were estimated by using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: Ninety-seven of 101 patients had progressive disease before TKI initiation. The median PFS for first-line treatment with sorafenib (n = 33), lenvatinib (n = 53), and pazopanib (n = 15) was 9 (95% confidence interval 5.2-12.8), 12 (4.4-19.6), and 12 months (4.4-19.6), respectively. The median OS for first-line treatment was 37 (10-64) for sorafenib, 47 (15.5-78.5) for lenvatinib, and 34 months (20.2-47.8) for pazopanib. Serious complications (e.g., hemorrhage, acute coronary syndrome, and thrombosis/venous thromboembolism) occurred in 16 out of 75 (21%) patients taking lenvatinib, in 3 out of 42 (7%) patients taking sorafenib, and in 3 out of 24 (13%) patients taking pazopanib. Conclusions: Sorafenib, lenvatinib, and pazopanib are effective treatment options in the majority of patients with RAI-refractory DTC. The PFS and six-month survival rate in patients treated with lenvatinib und pazopanib appear to compare favorably with sorafenib in the first-line treatment setting. However, a more advanced disease stage at treatment initiation in sorafenib- and pazopanib-treated patients in the era before TKI-approval and the retrospective nature of this study precludes a direct comparison of TKIs.

Pretransplant Short-Term Exposure of Donor Graft Cells to ITK Selective Inhibitor Ameliorates Acute Graft-versus-Host Disease by Inhibiting Effector T Cell Differentiation while Sparing Regulatory T Cells.

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) remains to be a significant cause of morbidity and mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). IL-2-inducible T cell kinase (ITK), a TEC cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase, has an essential role in T cell development and receptor signaling. The ITK/Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib has been shown to improve chronic GVHD symptoms; however, the effect of ITK selective inhibition on acute GVHD remains unclear. In this study, we evaluated the pharmacological effects of an ITK selective inhibitor (ITKsi) on acute GVHD using murine bone marrow transplantation models. First, we found that CD4+ T cell differentiation toward Th1, Th2, or Th17 was inhibited following ITKsi treatment in a dose-dependent manner while maintaining regulatory T cells in the presence of alloantigens both in vitro and in vivo. ITKsi preferentially inhibited inflammatory cytokine production and in vivo proliferation of alloreactive T cells. We then demonstrated that short-term exposure of donor graft cells to ITKsi significantly delayed the onset of GVHD-associated mortality without compromising the donor cell engraftment and the graft-versus-tumor effect, indicating the potential of ITK selective inhibition in the setting of clinical allogeneic HSCT. These findings suggest that ITK is a potential therapeutic target against GVHD, and the pharmacological ITK inhibitor may serve as a novel strategy for immune regulation after HSCT.

Structure-Guided Discovery of Potent and Selective DYRK1A Inhibitors.

The kinase DYRK1A is an attractive target for drug discovery programs due to its implication in multiple diseases. Through a fragment screen, we identified a simple biaryl compound that is bound to the DYRK1A ATP site with very high efficiency, although with limited selectivity. Structure-guided optimization cycles enabled us to convert this fragment hit into potent and selective DYRK1A inhibitors. Exploiting the structural differences in DYRK1A and its close homologue DYRK2, we were able to fine-tune the selectivity of our inhibitors. Our best compounds potently inhibited DYRK1A in the cell culture and in vivo and demonstrated drug-like properties. The inhibition of DYRK1A in vivo translated into dose-dependent tumor growth inhibition in a model of ovarian carcinoma.

Copper: An Intracellular Achilles' Heel Allowing the Targeting of Epigenetics, Kinase Pathways, and Cell Metabolism in Cancer Therapeutics.

Copper is an essential transition metal frequently increased in cancer known to strongly influence essential cellular processes. Targeted therapy protocols utilizing both novel and repurposed drug agents initially demonstrate strong efficacy, before failing in advanced cancers as drug resistance develops and relapse occurs. Overcoming this limitation involves the development of strategies and protocols aimed at a wider targeting of the underlying molecular changes. Receptor Tyrosine Kinase signaling pathways, epigenetic mechanisms and cell metabolism are among the most common therapeutic targets, with molecular investigations increasingly demonstrating the strong influence each mechanism exerts on the others. Interestingly, all these mechanisms can be influenced by intracellular copper. We propose that copper chelating agents, already in clinical trial for multiple cancers, may simultaneously target these mechanisms across a wide variety of cancers, serving as an excellent candidate for targeted combination therapy. This review summarizes the known links between these mechanisms, copper, and copper chelation therapy.

Comparison of Prognostic Scores in Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma Treated With Sorafenib.

INTRODUCTION: Prognostic classifications for patients treated with sorafenib for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) facilitate stratification in trials and inform clinical decision making. Recently, 3 different prognostic models (hepatoma arterial-embolization prognosis [HAP] score, sorafenib advanced HCC prognosis [SAP] score, and Prediction Of Survival in Advanced Sorafenib-treated HCC [PROSASH]-II) have been proposed specifically for patients treated with sorafenib. This study aimed to compare the prognostic performance of different scores. METHODS: We analyzed a large prospective database gathering data of 552 patients treated with sorafenib from 7 Italian centers. The performance of the HAP, SAP, and PROSASH-II models were compared with those of generic HCC prognostic models (including the Barcelona Clinic for Liver Cancer and Italian Liver Cancer staging systems, albumin-bilirubin grade, and Child-Pugh score) to verify whether they could provide additional information. RESULTS: The PROSASH-II model improved discrimination (C-index 0.62) compared with existing prognostic scores (C-index ≤0.59). Its stratification significantly discriminated patients, with a median overall survival of 21.5, 15.3, 9.3, and 6.0 months for risk group 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. The HAP and SAP score were also validated but with a poorer performance compared with the PROSASH-II. DISCUSSION: Although suboptimal, PROSASH-II is the most effective prognostic classification model among other available scores in a large Italian population of patients treated with sorafenib.

Effects of Compound 511 on BDNF-TrkB Signaling in the Mice Ventral Tegmental Area in Morphine-Induced Conditioned Place Preference.

Compound 511 (511) is specially developed for opioid addiction treatment based on the Ancient Chinese drug rehabilitation literature, and its composition has profound effects in the treatment of drug addiction in various clinical trials and animal experiments. The effect of 511 on the rewarding properties of morphine and craving responses and its potential mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we have applied a conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm in mice to measure morphine-induced rewarding effects under the treatment of 511. Then we used the RNA sequencing strategy to screen its potential mechanisms. In our research, firstly, we found 511 could decrease CPP score, locomotor activity, self-administration, jumping behavior, weight loss, wet-dog shakes, and stereotyped behavior. Then the brain VTA region tissues were performed mRNA sequencing to detect potential mechanisms. We found the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and tropomyosin-related kinase B (TrkB) were downregulated in morphine-induced CPP, whereas the decreased BDNF and TrkB were reversed after 511 treatment. We retested the levels of BDNF and TrkB using qRT-PCR and Western blot and found the similar results to mRNA sequencing. It has been widely reported that BDNF-TrkB signaling in the VTA is involved in multiple facets of addiction, including reward and motivation, so we focused on the BDNF-TrkB signaling to investigate the anti-addiction mechanisms of 511 in morphine addiction mice. We studied the downstream pathway of BDNF-TrkB and the soma size of dopaminergic neurons. The results showed 511 could increase the phosphorylation levels of PI3K and AKT, which were decreased in morphine-induced CPP. Simultaneously, 511 could decrease the level of PLCγ1 and the phosphorylation levels of ERK and S6K, which were increased in morphine-induced CPP. In addition, 511 also enlarged the soma size of VTA dopaminergic neurons, which was reduced in morphine-induced CPP. Hence, our research indicated 511 maybe mediate the BDNF-TrkB signaling in VTA to improve morphine addiction behavior.

Arterial Spin Labeled Perfusion MRI for the Evaluation of Response to Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition Therapy in Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Background Tumor perfusion may inform therapeutic response and resistance in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) treated with antiangiogenic therapy. Purpose To determine if arterial spin labeled (ASL) MRI perfusion changes are associated with tumor response and disease progression in metastatic RCC treated with vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Materials and Methods In this prospective study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00749320), metastatic RCC perfusion was measured with ASL MRI before and during sunitinib or pazopanib therapy between October 2008 and March 2014. Objective response rate (ORR) and progression-free survival (PFS) were calculated. Perfusion was compared between responders and nonresponders at baseline, at week 2, after cycle 2 (12 weeks), after cycle 4 (24 weeks), and at disease progression and compared with the ORR by using the Wilcoxon rank sum test and with PFS by using the log-rank test. Results Seventeen participants received sunitinib (mean age, 59 years ± 7.0 [standard deviation]; 11 men); 11 participants received pazopanib (mean age, 63 years ± 6.6; eight men). Responders had higher baseline tumor perfusion than nonresponders (mean, 404 mL/100 g/min ± 213 vs 199 mL/100 g/min ± 136; P = .02). Perfusion decreased from baseline to week 2 (-53 mL/100 g/min ± 31; P < .001), after cycle 2 (-65 mL/100 g/min ± 25; P < .001), and after cycle 4 (-79 mL/100 g/min ± 15; P = .008). Interval reduction in perfusion at those three time points was not associated with ORR (P = .63, .29, and .27, respectively) or PFS (P = .28, .27, and .32). Perfusion increased from cycle 4 to disease progression (51% ± 11; P < .001). Conclusion Arterial spin labeled perfusion MRI may assist in identifying responders to vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors and may help detect early evidence of disease progression in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma. © RSNA, 2020 Online supplemental material is available for this article. See also the editorial by Goh and De Vita in this issue.

Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors and Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Sorafenib was the first tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) that showed success in extending survival in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In recent years, additional TKIs have been shown to improve survival and expanded the armamentarium for treating this malignancy. The current landscape includes other classes of drugs, such as immune checkpoint inhibitors and monoclonal antibodies. The challenge is now placed on how to best select, combine, and sequence drugs with the goal of improving efficacy and minimizing toxicities to deliver better outcomes for HCC patients.

ReN VM spheroids in matrix: A neural progenitor three-dimensional in vitro model reveals DYRK1A inhibitors as potential regulators of radio-sensitivity.

INTRODUCTION: Pre-clinical testing of small molecules for therapeutic development across many pathologies relies on the use of in-vitro and in-vivo models. When designed and implemented well, these models serve to predict the clinical outcome as well as the toxicity of the evaluated therapies. The two-dimensional (2D) reductionist approach where cells are incubated in a mono-layer on hard plastic microtiter plates is relatively inexpensive but not physiologically relevant. In contrast, well developed and applied three dimensional (3D) in vitro models could be employed to bridge the gap between 2D in vitro primary screening and expensive in vivo rodent models by incorporating key features of the tissue microenvironment to explore differentiation, cortical development, cancers and various neuronal dysfunctions. These features include an extracellular matrix, co-culture, tension and perfusion and could replace several hundred rodents in the drug screening validation cascade. METHODS: Human neural progenitor cells from middle brain (ReN VM, Merck Millipore, UK) were expanded as instructed by the supplier (Merck Millipore, UK), and then seeded in 96-well low-attachment plates (Corning, UK) to form multicellular spheroids followed by adding a Matrigel layer to mimic extracellular matrix around neural stem cell niche. ReN VM cells were then differentiated via EGF and bFGF deprivation for 7 days and were imaged at day 7. Radiotherapy was mimicked via gamma-radiation at 2Gy in the absence and presence of selected DYRK1A inhibitors Harmine, INDY and Leucettine 41 (L41). Cell viability was measured by AlamarBlue assay. Immunofluorescence staining was used to assess cell pluripotency marker SOX2 and differentiation marker GFAP. RESULTS: After 7 days of differentiation, neuron early differentiation marker (GFAP, red) started to be expressed among the cells expressing neural stem cell marker SOX2 (green). Radiation treatment caused significant morphology change including the reduced viability of the spheroids. These spheroids also revealed sensitizing potential of DYRK1A inhibitors tested in this study, including Harmine, INDY and L41. DISCUSSION & CONCLUSIONS: Combined with the benefit of greatly reducing the issues associated with in vivo rodent models, including reducing numbers of animals used in a drug screening cascade, cost, ethics, and potential animal welfare burden, we feel the well-developed and applied 3D neural spheroid model presented in this study will provide a crucial tool to evaluate combinatorial therapies, optimal drug concentrations and treatment dosages.

The impact of cytoreductive nephrectomy on survival outcomes in patients treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors for metastatic renal cell carcinoma in a real-world cohort.

BACKGROUND: Tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy (TKI) has changed the treatment paradigm of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). The recent CARMENA and SURTIME trials challenged the role of the cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN). OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of CN prior to TKI therapy in patients with mRCC in a real-world setting. METHODS: Overall, 262 consecutive patients with mRCC were treated with CN plus TKI or TKI only at our institution between 2000 and 2016. Patients with prior immunotherapy or metastasectomy were excluded. Multiple imputation and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) were performed to account for missing values and imbalances between the treatment groups, respectively. Unadjusted and adjusted Kaplan-Meier estimates were used to determine differences in progression-free (PFS), overall (OS), and cancer-specific survival (CSS). RESULTS: Overall, 104 (40%) patients received CN before TKI treatment. Most frequent first line therapy was Sunitinib (66%), followed by Sorafenib (20%) and Pazopanib (10%). After adjustment with IPTW, there was no difference in PFS, CSS, and OS (all P > 0.05) between the treatment groups. In subgroup analyses, CSS was improved when CN was performed in patients with sarcomatoid features and clear cell histology (P = 0.04 and P = 0.03) and PFS was improved in patients with clear cell histology when CN was performed [0.04]). CN did not improve OS in any subgroup analysis. CONCLUSION: The role of CN remains controversial. We found no difference in survival outcomes between patients treated with and without CN before TKI therapy. However, CN was associated with improved survival in specific patient subgroups. Tailored, individualized treatment is key to further improve oncological outcomes for mRCC.

Potential of Flavonoid-Inspired Phytomedicines against COVID-19.

Flavonoids are widely used as phytomedicines. Here, we report on flavonoid phytomedicines with potential for development into prophylactics or therapeutics against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). These flavonoid-based phytomedicines include: caflanone, Equivir, hesperetin, myricetin, and Linebacker. Our in silico studies show that these flavonoid-based molecules can bind with high affinity to the spike protein, helicase, and protease sites on the ACE2 receptor used by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 to infect cells and cause COVID-19. Meanwhile, in vitro studies show potential of caflanone to inhibit virus entry factors including, ABL-2, cathepsin L, cytokines (IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-8, Mip-1α, TNF-α), and PI4Kiiiß as well as AXL-2, which facilitates mother-to-fetus transmission of coronavirus. The potential for the use of smart drug delivery technologies like nanoparticle drones loaded with these phytomedicines to overcome bioavailability limitations and improve therapeutic efficacy are discussed.

Acute vitamin B12 supplementation evokes antidepressant response and alters Ntrk-2.

Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide. Although most research into risk factors focuses on stress, dietary factors also have a strong link with depression. For instance, chronic vitamin B12-supplementation may reduce depression risk and helps to reverse the prodepressive effects of early life stress in animal models. However, it is still unclear whether a single acute dose of vitamin B12 is sufficient to induce antidepressant effects on molecular or behavioral levels. Based on pharmacological work and CRISPR-dCas9 epigenome editing in Neuro2A-cells we provide in vitro evidence for a link between vitamin B12, gene expression and DNA methylation of the antidepressant-associated gene Ntrk-2, which codes for the BDNF-receptor TRKB. Using stress-induction protocols in C57Bl/6 J mice combined with behavioral testing and subsequent molecular tissue analysis, we establish in vivo evidence for antidepressant effects of vitamin B12. Acute supplementation with vitamin B12, but not folic acid, selectively altered DNA methylation and gene expression of Ntrk-2 in vitro, albeit DNA methylation and Ntrk-2 gene expression do not correlate in vivo. Importantly, one acute vitamin B12 injection improved multiple behavioral measures in tests for antidepressant action and at the same time reversed the effects of chronic and acute stress on Ntrk-2 levels in vivo, however causality has not been proven at this stage. Taken together, acute vitamin B12 supplementation can reverse stress effects on Ntrk-2 gene expression and improve behaviors that are associated with depression-like behavior in mice. Our findings encourage further investigation of vitamin B12-supplementation as a novel model for antidepressant action.