Expanding the Chemical Space of Transforming Growth Factor-ß (TGFß) Receptor Type II Degraders with 3,4-Disubstituted Indole Derivatives.

The TGFß type II receptor (TßRII) is a central player in all TGFß signaling downstream events, has been linked to cancer progression, and thus, has emerged as an auspicious anti-TGFß strategy. Especially its targeted degradation presents an excellent goal for effective TGFß pathway inhibition. Here, cellular structure-activity relationship (SAR) data from the TßRII degrader chemotype 1 was successfully transformed into predictive ligand-based pharmacophore models that allowed scaffold hopping. Two distinct 3,4-disubstituted indoles were identified from virtual screening: tetrahydro-4-oxo-indole 2 and indole-3-acetate 3. Design, synthesis, and screening of focused amide libraries confirmed 2r and 3n as potent TGFß inhibitors. They were validated to fully recapitulate the ability of 1 to selectively degrade TßRII, without affecting TßRI. Consequently, 2r and 3n efficiently blocked endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition and cell migration in different cancer cell lines while not perturbing the microtubule network. Hence, 2 and 3 present novel TßRII degrader chemotypes that will (1) aid target deconvolution efforts and (2) accelerate proof-of-concept studies for small-molecule-driven TßRII degradation in vivo.

Combined physicochemical and functional assessment of pertuzumab integrity supports extended in-use stability.

Pertuzumab (Perjeta®) is a monoclonal antibody approved for the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer. Before treatment, the concentrate must be diluted to obtain the ready-to-use infusion solution. Data on the storage stabilities of these preparations are lacking but important for all healthcare professionals in the area of outpatient chemotherapy. The aim of this study was to investigate the storage stability of the ready-to-use infusion bags and the concentrates from once-opened vials over a period of up to 42 days. For a comprehensive and unambiguous assessment of pertuzumab's integrity, a panel of orthogonal analytical methods was employed, including a newly established mass spectrometry-based peptide mapping procedure along with a reporter gene assay for monitoring cellular bioactivity. The herein presented data showed that the ready-to-use infusion solutions stored at 4 ± 2°C and at 20 ± 3°C without light protection, as well as the undiluted Perjeta® concentrates stored at 4 ± 2°C, were physicochemically stable and biologically active for 28 days. These results might eventually allow for infusion preparations in advance, thus improving the quality of patient care as well as the economic usage of pertuzumab.

Toward Second-Generation Cardiomyogenic and Anti-cardiofibrotic 1,4-Dihydropyridine-Class TGFß Inhibitors.

Innovative therapeutic modalities for pharmacological intervention of transforming growth factorâ€…ß (TGFß)-dependent diseases are of great value. b-Annelated 1,4-dihydropyridines (DHPs) might be such a class, as they induce TGFß receptor type II degradation. However, intrinsic drawbacks are associated with this compound class and were systematically addressed in the presented study. It was possible to install polar functionalities and bioisosteric moieties at distinct sites of the molecules while maintaining TGFß-inhibitory activities. The introduction of a 2-amino group or 7-N-alkyl modification proved to be successful strategies. Aqueous solubility was improved by up to seven-fold at pH 7.4 and 200-fold at pH 3 relative to the parent ethyl 4-(biphenyl-4-yl)-2,7,7-trimethyl-5-oxo-1,4,5,6,7,8-hexahydroquinoline-3-carboxylate. The therapeutic potential of the presented DHPs was further underscored in view of a potential dual mode of action: The differentiation of committed human iPSC-derived cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs) was potently stimulated, and the rescue of cardiac fibrosis phenotypes was observed in engineered heart tissue (EHT) constructs.

Triggering the directional selectivity of a ring-closure reaction leads to pyridoazacarbazoles with anticancer properties.

We herein describe a facile and versatile synthetic route to the tetracyclic system of 6-substituted 5,6-dihydro-11H-pyrido[3,2-i]-1-azacarbazoles with promising anticancer properties. These derivatives are built up by an elegant one-step base-catalyzed synthetic procedure from commercially available building blocks. One additional step provides the corresponding skeleton hitherto unknown in the literature. The possibility to synthesize a large library of compounds with various substitution patterns utilizing this method underlines the importance of this synthetic procedure.

Design, synthesis and 3D-QSAR studies of novel 1,4-dihydropyridines as TGFß/Smad inhibitors.

Targeting TGFß/Smad signaling is an attractive strategy for several therapeutic applications given its role as a key player in many pathologies, including cancer, autoimmune diseases and fibrosis. The class of b-annelated 1,4-dihydropyridines (DHPs) represents promising novel pharmacological tools as they interfere with this pathway in a novel fashion, i.e. through induction of TGFß receptor type II degradation. In the present work, >40 rationally designed, novel DHPs were synthesized and evaluated for TGFß inhibition, substantially expanding the current understanding of the SAR profile. Key findings include that the 2-position tolerates a wide variety of polar functionalities, suggesting that this region could possibly be solvent-exposed within the (thus far) unknown cellular target. A structural explanation for pathway selectivity is provided based on a diverse series of 4″-substituted DHPs, including molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) calculations. Moreover, the absolute configuration for the chiral 4-position was determined by X-ray crystal analysis and revealed that the bioactive (+)-enantiomers are (R)-configured. Another key objective was to establish a 3D-QSAR model which turned out to be robust (r(2) = 0.93) with a good predictive power (r(2)pred = 0.69). This data further reinforces the hypothesis that this type of DHPs exerts its novel TGFß inhibitory mode of action through binding a distinct target and that unspecific activities that would derive from intrinsic properties of the ligands (e.g., lipophilicity) play a negligible role. Therefore, the present study provides a solid basis for further ligand-based design of additional analogs or DHP scaffold-derived compounds for hit-to-lead optimization, required for more comprehensive pharmacological studies in vivo.

Small molecules targeting in vivo tissue regeneration.

The field of regenerative medicine has boomed in recent years thanks to milestone discoveries in stem cell biology and tissue engineering, which has been driving paradigm shifts in the pharmacotherapy of degenerative and ischemic diseases. Small molecule-mediated replenishment of lost and/or dysfunctional tissue in vivo, however, is still in its infancy due to a limited understanding of mechanisms that control such endogenous processes of tissue homeostasis or regeneration. Here, we discuss current progress using small molecules targeting in vivo aspects of regeneration, including adult stem cells, stem cell niches, and mechanisms of homing, mobilization, and engraftment as well as somatic cell proliferation. Many of these compounds derived from both knowledge-based design and screening campaigns, illustrating the feasibility of translating in vitro discovery to in vivo regeneration. These early examples of drug-mediated in vivo regeneration provide a glimpse of the future directions of in vivo regenerative medicine approaches.