Preparation and cytotoxicity of cisplatin-containing liposomes.

We encapsulated cisplatin into stealth pH-sensitive liposomes and studied their stability, cytotoxicity and accumulation in a human small-cell lung carcinoma cell line (GLC4) and its resistant subline (GLC4/CDDP). Since reduced cellular drug accumulation has been shown to be the main mechanism responsible for resistance in the GLC4/CDDP subline, we evaluated the ability of this new delivery system to improve cellular uptake. The liposomes were composed of dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE), cholesteryl hemisuccinate (CHEMS), and distearoylphosphatidylethanolamine-polyethyleneglycol 2000 (DSPE-PEG2000) and were characterized by determining the encapsulation percentage as a function of lipid concentration. Among the different formulations, DOPE/CHEMS/DSPE-PEG liposomes (lipid concentration equal to 40 mM) encapsulated cisplatin more efficiently than other concentrations of liposomes (about 20.0%, mean diameter of 174 nm). These liposomes presented good stability in mouse plasma which was obtained using a 0.24-M EDTA solution (70% cisplatin was retained inside the liposomes after 30 min of incubation). Concerning cytotoxic effects, they are more effective (1.34-fold) than free cisplatin for growth inhibition of the human lung cancer cell line A549. The study of cytotoxicity to GLC4 and GLC4/CDDP cell lines showed similar IC50 values (approximately 1.4 microM), i.e., cisplatin-resistant cells were sensitive to this cisplatin formulation. Platinum accumulation in both sensitive and resistant cell lines followed the same pattern, i.e., approximately the same intracellular platinum concentration (4.0 x 10-17 mol/cell) yielded the same cytotoxic effect. These results indicate that long-circulating pH-sensitive liposomes, also termed as stealth pH-sensitive liposomes, may present a promising delivery system for cisplatin-based cancer treatment. This liposome system proved to be able to circumvent the cisplatin resistance, whereas it was not observed when using non-long-circulating liposomes composed of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylserine, and cholesterol.

Preparation and cytotoxicity of cisplatin-containing liposomes

We encapsulated cisplatin into stealth pH-sensitive liposomes and studied their stability, cytotoxicity and accumulation in a human small-cell lung carcinoma cell line (GLC4) and its resistant subline (GLC4/CDDP). Since reduced cellular drug accumulation has been shown to be the main mechanism responsible for resistance in the GLC4/CDDP subline, we evaluated the ability of this new delivery system to improve cellular uptake. The liposomes were composed of dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE), cholesteryl hemisuccinate (CHEMS), and distearoylphosphatidylethanolamine-polyethyleneglycol 2000 (DSPE-PEG2000) and were characterized by determining the encapsulation percentage as a function of lipid concentration. Among the different formulations, DOPE/CHEMS/DSPE-PEG liposomes (lipid concentration equal to 40 mM) encapsulated cisplatin more efficiently than other concentrations of liposomes (about 20.0 percent, mean diameter of 174 nm). These liposomes presented good stability in mouse plasma which was obtained using a 0.24-M EDTA solution (70 percent cisplatin was retained inside the liposomes after 30 min of incubation). Concerning cytotoxic effects, they are more effective (1.34-fold) than free cisplatin for growth inhibition of the human lung cancer cell line A549. The study of cytotoxicity to GLC4 and GLC4/CDDP cell lines showed similar IC50 values (approximately 1.4 æM), i.e., cisplatin-resistant cells were sensitive to this cisplatin formulation. Platinum accumulation in both sensitive and resistant cell lines followed the same pattern, i.e., approximately the same intracellular platinum concentration (4.0 x 10-17 mol/cell) yielded the same cytotoxic effect. These results indicate that long-circulating pH-sensitive liposomes, also termed as stealth pH-sensitive liposomes, may present a promising delivery system for cisplatin-based cancer treatment. This liposome system proved to be able to circumvent the cisplatin resistance, whereas...

Relation between the ability of some compounds to modulate the MRP1-mediated efflux of glutathione and to inhibit the MRPl-mediated efflux of daunorubicin.

Much effort has been recently directed to identify the transport-modulating agents in order to overcome the P-gp- and MRP1-mediated drug resistance. Contrary to what is observed for P-gp, very few compounds have been shown to reverse multi-drug resistance (MDR) mediated by MRP1. On the other hand, despite of critical role of GSH in transporting the MRP1 substrates, not much is known about GSH interactions with MRP1. In this work, three compounds that were shown to inhibit the MRP1-mediated efflux of daunorubicin (DNR) have been studied. Depending on their nature the selected compounds have different effects, e.g. at 40 microM, verapamil inhibits 50% of DNR efflux whereas GSH efflux is increased about two-fold. PAK-104P has shown the same effect, i.e. the inhibition of the MRP1-mediated efflux of DNR is accompanied by a stimulation of GSH efflux. However, the PAK-104P concentration required to obtain the same effect is about 40 times smaller that in the case of verapamil. MK571 has been shown to inhibit the efflux of both DNR and GSH. Based on these observations and those reported earlier, a working model is proposed.

Anthrapyridones, a novel group of antitumour non-cross resistant anthraquinone analogues. Synthesis and molecular basis of the cytotoxic activity towards K562/DOX cells.

1. Multidrug resistance (MDR) to antitumour agents, structurally dissimilar and having different intracellular targets, is the major problem in cancer therapy. MDR phenomenon is associated with the presence of membrane proteins which belong to the ATP-binding cassette family transporters responsible for the active drug efflux leading to the decreased intracellular accumulation. 2. The search of new compounds able to overcome MDR is of prime importance. 3. Recently we have synthesized a new family of anthrapyridone compounds. The series contained derivatives modified with appropriate hydrophobic or hydrophylic substituents at the side chain. 4. The interaction of these derivatives with erythroleukemia K562 sensitive and K562/DOX resistant (overexpressing P-glycoprotein) cell lines has been examined. The study was performed using a spectrofluorometric method which allows to continuously follow the uptake and efflux of fluorescent molecules by living cells. 5. It was demonstrated that the increase in the lipophilicity of anthrapyridones favoured the very fast cellular uptake exceeding the rate of P-gp dependent efflux out of the cell. For these derivatives, very high accumulation (the same for sensitive and resistant cells) was observed and the in vitro biological data confirmed that these compounds exhibited comparable cytotoxic activity towards sensitive and P-gp resistant cell line. In contrast, anthrapyridones modified with hydrophylic substituents exhibited relatively low kinetics of cellular uptake. 6. For these derivatives decreased accumulation in resistant cells was observed and the in vitro biological data demonstrated that they were much less active against P-gp resistant cells in comparison to sensitive cells. 7. We also studied, using confocal microscopy, the intracellular distribution of anthrapyridones in NIH-3T3 cells. Our data showed that these compounds were strongly accumulated in the nucleus and lysosomes.

Spectroscopic studies on iron complexes of different anthracyclines in aprotic solvent systems.

Iron complexes of daunorubicin, idarubicin, pirarubicin, and doxorubicin in anhydrous DMF were studied by UV/vis, CD, fluorescence, Mössbauer, and EPR spectroscopy. Titration studies of the metal-free anthracyclines showed one (UV-detectable) deprotonation step requiring 2 equiv of base, compared to 1 equiv for quinizarine. Metal complexation was studied at three different metal/ligand ratios, and with increasing amounts of base. The results obtained from optical spectroscopy show the existence of two different complex species and give clear indications for the requirements of metal complexation. Complex species I, formed at a low iron-to-ligand ratio, is less dependent on base addition than complex species II formed with equimolar ferric ion. EPR and Mössbauer experiments provide further insight into the structures of both complex species. Lack of spin density of the Mössbauer samples in EPR indicates spin coupling between the metal centers. Mössbauer spectra consist of single quadrupole doublets with values typical for high-spin ferric ion in an octahedral arrangement. The Mössbauer spectroscopic features at 7 T exclude the presence of S = 0 dimers. Complex I represents a monomeric ferric iron complex whereas complex II is consistent with a more or less aggregrated oligomeric Fe-anthracycline system.

The absence of stereoselective P-glycoprotein- and multidrug resistance-associated protein-mediated transport of daunorubicin.

Multidrug resistance phenotype in mammalian cells is often correlated with overexpression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) or multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP1). Both proteins are energy-dependent drug efflux pumps that efficiently reduce the intracellular accumulation and hence the cytotoxicity of many natural cytotoxins. Thus, both P-gp and MRP1 proteins are able to transport anthracycline but the role of chirality has not, up to now, been addressed. In this study, we compared the P-gp- and MRP1-mediated efflux of daunorubicin and its enantiomer WP900 in multidrug-resistant cells overexpressing either P-gp (K562/ADR cells) or MRP1 (GLC4/ADR cells). Using fluorescence techniques, we showed that in both cell lines the presence of the pump yielded a gradient of drug concentration: the intracellular free drug concentration in the cytosol was lower than the extracellular free drug concentration. Our data showed that the gradient of concentration generated by the pump was the same whether DNR or WP900 was used. This means that P-gp on the one hand and MRP1 on the other recognise WP900 as well as DNR and that the chirality of the molecule plays no role.

Structure-activity relationships and optimisation of the selective MDR modulator 2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-5-(9-fluorenylamino)-2-(methylethyl) pentanenitrile and its N-methyl derivative.

Several ring-substituted derivatives of previously studied MDR inhibitors 2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-5-(9-fluorenylamino)-2-(methylethyl)pentanenitrile and 2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-5-[(9-fluorenyl)-N-methylamino]-2-(methylethyl)pentanenitrile have been synthesised and studied with the aim of optimising activity and selectivity. The results show that MDR inhibition is scarcely sensitive to modulation of the electronic properties of the fluorene ring. Even if dramatic improvement was not obtained, one of the compounds (2) showed improved potency and selectivity with respect to the leads and appears to be a better candidate for drug development.

Drug sequestration in cytoplasmic organelles does not contribute to the diminished sensitivity of anthracyclines in multidrug resistant K562 cells.

Cells that acquire multidrug resistance (MDR) are characterized by a decreased accumulation of a variety of drugs. In addition, sequestration of drugs in intracellular vesicles has often been associated with MDR. However, the nature and role of intracellular vesicles in MDR are unclear. We addressed the relationship between MDR and vesicular anthracycline accumulation in the erythroleukemia cell line K562 and a drug-resistant counterpart K562/ADR that overexpresses P-glycoprotein. We used four anthracyclines (all of which are P-glycoprotein substrates): daunorubicin and idarubicin, which have good affinity for DNA and as weak bases can accumulate inside acidic compartments; hydroxyrubicin, which binds to DNA but is uncharged at physiological or acidic pH and thus cannot accumulate in acidic compartments; and WP900, an enantiomer of daunorubicin, which is a weak DNA binder but has the same pKa and lipophilicity as daunorubicin. The intrinsic fluorescence of anthracyclines allowed us to use macro- and micro-spectrofluorescence, flow cytometry, and confocal microscopy to characterize their nuclear or intravesicular accumulation in living cells. We found that vesicular accumulation of daunorubicin, WP900 and idarubicin, containing a basic 3'-amine was predominantly restricted to lysosomes in both cell lines, that pH regulation of acidic compartments was not defective in human K562 cells, and that vesicular drug accumulation was much more pronounced in the parental tumor cell line than in the multidrug-resistant cells. These results indicate that vesicular anthracycline sequestration does not contribute to the diminished sensitivity to anthracyclines in multidrug-resistant K562 cells.

Fluorescent verapamil analogue for monitoring acidic intracellular organelles in multidrug resistant and sensitive cells.

Resistance to chemotherapeutic agent is a major cause of treatment failure in patients with cancer. In many cases, the primaly mechanism leading to a multidrug-resistant phenotype is the plasma-membrane localized overexpression of drug efflux transporters, such as P-glycoprotein. However, acidic intracellular organelles seem also to participate in resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs and the determination of the pH of these organelles is of importance. In the present study we have used a new fluorescent derivative of verapamil, 2-2-diphenyl-5-[(methylaminomethyl)anthracene] pentanenitrile (EDP 96), and show that it is an efficient inhibitor of the P-gp-mediated efflux of anthracycline in K562 resistant cells. The fluorescence of EDP 96 is environmental and pH sensitive. EDP 96 is a weak base (pKa=6.0) and its accumulation into K562 cells is accompanied by a significant fluorescence increase due to its entry of the drug into acidic regions in the cells. We have used this properties to develop a new method to accurately determine the pH of acidic organelle.

Kinetics of glutathione and daunorubicin efflux from multidrug resistance protein overexpressing small-cell lung cancer cells.

The present study examined how the multidrug resistance protein (MRP1), which is an ATP-dependent anionic conjugate transporter, also mediates the transport of reduced glutathione (GSH) and the co-transport of the cationic drug, daunorubicin, with GSH in living GLC4/Adr cells. To obtain information on the affinity of GSH for the multidrug resistance protein in GLC4/Adr cells, we investigated the GSH concentration dependence of the ATP-dependent GSH efflux. The intracellular GSH concentration was modulated by preincubation of the cells with 25 microM buthionine sulfoximine, an inhibitor of GSH synthetase, for 0-24 h. The transport of GSH was related to the intracellular GSH concentration up to approximately 5 mM and then plateaued. Fitting of the obtained data according to the Michaelis-Menten equation revealed a Km of 3.4+/-1.4 mM and a Vmax of 1.5+/-0.2x10(-18) mol/cell/s. The ATP-dependent transport of GSH was inhibited by 3-([[3-(2-[7-chloro-2-quinolinyl]ethenyl)phenyl]-[(3-dimethylamino-3-oxopropyl)-thio]-methyl]thio)propanoic acid (MK571), with 50% inhibition being obtained with 1.4 microM MK571. We investigated the GSH concentration dependence of the MRP1-mediated ATP-dependent transport of daunorubicin under conditions where the transport of daunorubicin became saturated. The daunorubicin transport was related to the intracellular GSH concentration up to approximately 5 mM and then plateaued. We were therefore in the situation where GSH acted as an activator: its presence was necessary for the binding and transport of daunorubicin by MRP1. However, GSH was also transported by the multidrug resistance protein. The concentration of GSH that gave half the maximal rate of daunorubicin efflux was 2.1+/-0.8 mM, very similar to the Km value obtained for GSH. In conclusion, the rate of daunorubicin efflux, under conditions where the transport of daunorubicin became saturated, and the rate of GSH efflux determined at any intracellular concentration of GSH were very similar, yielding a 1:1 stoichiometry with respect to GSH and daunorubicin transport. These results support a model in which daunorubicin is co-transported with GSH.

Mitomycin antitumor compounds. Part 1. CD studies on their molecular structure.

The UV-Vis and circular dichroism (CD) spectra of several mitomycin antitumor compounds and some of their derivatives were analyzed in order to attribute the proper assignment to their electronic transitions. The lowest energy pi-->pi* transition was found to depend on the effect of the auxochromic group in the aromatic ring, whereas the three n-->pi* transitions, present at around 240, 400 and 560 nm, are related to the C(9)==O of the carbamoyl group and to the C(8)==O and the C(5)==O of the quinone, respectively. The chirality of the C(9) is responsible for the sign of the Cotton effect (CE) at around 240 nm, whereas the substituents of the chromophore for mitosane derivatives and the conformation of the carbamoyloxymethyl group at C(9) determine the CE sign of the (1)A-->(1)L(b) transition. When the aziridine ring was opened and mitosenes derivatives were obtained, CD spectra did not differ significantly among the compounds and the bands associated to the different transitions had similar Cotton effect. Our findings suggest that the differences in the CD spectra, observed between mitosanes and mitosenes, are probably related to the more rigid molecular structure of the mitosene derivatives and the different conformations in solution of the C(9) side chain.

P-glycoprotein preferentially effluxes anthracyclines containing free basic versus charged amine.

The multidrug resistant (MDR) tumor phenotype, characterized by a decreased cellular drug accumulation is achieved by ATP-dependent extrusions of drugs from cells by P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and/or by multidrug resistance protein (MRP1). Despite the huge amount of research that has been performed on the mechanisms of P-gp-mediated efflux of drug, it is not yet known what the molecular parameters are required for a molecule to be recognized and pumped out by P-gp. Anthracyclines are weak bases and, depending on the pH, can exist either in the neutral or in the positively charged form. The aim of the work reported here was to determine which molecular form is actively pumped out by P-gp (the neutral form, the protonated form, or both), and if both, the relative efficiencies of pumping. We used spectrofluorometric methods to determine the efflux of anthracyclines in K562/Adr cells, at different intracellular and extracellular pH levels. Using 3'-deamino, 3'-hydroxyl doxorubicin (OH-DOX), which is permanently neutral, we first verified that our methodologies were accurate and that the P-gp-mediated efflux of OH-DOX would not depend on the pH being in the range 6.6--8.4. The P-gp-mediated efflux of daunorubicin (DNR) and 3'-hydroxy-4-amino (WP608) was determined at different pH values. These two drugs were chosen because: (a) the lipophilicity of the neutral forms of these two molecules is so similar that any difference in the P-gp-mediated efflux cannot be assigned to lipohilicity variation, and (b) their pKa values are different (8.4 and 7.7 for DNR and WP608, respectively), which makes it easy to obtain a large variation in the proportions of the neutral and positively charged forms. Our data show that both forms are recognized by P-gp but the neutral form is pumped about three times more efficiently than the charged form. This is corroborated by results showing the active efflux (checked at pH(i) 7.3 only) of five other anthracycline containing a basic center. We interpret these data to mean that: (a) the positive charge of anthracycline is not a necessary requirement for P-gp recognition, but that (b) the presence of a protonable basic nitrogen facilitates the processing of these compounds by MDR efflux system.

Analysis of drug transport kinetics in multidrug-resistant cells: implications for drug action.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) in model systems is known to be conferred by two different integral proteins--the 170-kDa P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and the 190-kDa multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP1)--that pump drugs out of MDR cells. The intracellular level of a drug, which influences the drug's cytotoxic effect, is a function of the amount of drug transported inside the cell (influx) and the amount of drug expelled from the cell (efflux). One possible pharmacological approach to overcoming drug resistance is the use of specific inhibitors that enhance the cytotoxicity of known antineoplastic agents. Many compounds have been proven to be very efficient in inhibiting P-gp activity, but only some of them can inhibit MRP1. However, the clinical results obtained so far by this approach have been rather disappointing. The other likely approach is based on the design and synthesis of new non-cross-resistant drugs whose physicochemical properties favor the uptake of such drug by resistant cells. Our recent studies have shown that whereas the P-gp- and MRP1-mediated efflux of different anthracycline-based drugs may not differ considerably, their kinetics of uptake do. Thus, the high uptake of drug by cells may lead to concentrations at the cellular target site high enough to achieve the needed cytotoxicity against MDR cells. Therefore, increased drug lipophilicity might be one factor in improving drug cytotoxicity in MDR cells. In vitro studies have shown that idarubicin, an analogue of daunorub cin, is more effective than daunorubicin and doxorubicin against MDR tumor cell lines and that this increased effectiveness is related in part to the increased lipophilicity of idarubicin. Other studies have also confirmed the strong impact of lipophilicity on the uptake and retention of anthracyclines in MDR cells.

Transport of new non-cross-resistant antitumor compounds of the benzoperimidine family in multidrug resistant cells.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) phenotype in mammalian cells is often correlated with overexpression of P-glycoprotein or multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP1). Both proteins are energy-dependent drug efflux pumps that efficiently reduce the intracellular accumulation and hence the cytotoxicity of many natural cytotoxins. The influx and efflux of drugs across the cell membrane are in large part responsible for their intracellular concentrations, and in the search for new compounds able to overcome MDR, it is of prime importance to determine the molecular parameters whose modification would lead to an increase in the kinetics of uptake and/or to a decrease in the pump-mediated efflux. Here, we studied three members of a new family of benzoperimidine antitumor compounds which exhibit comparable cytotoxicity towards resistant cells expressing P-glycoprotein, or MRP1, and sensitive cells. We used spectrofluorometric methods to determine the kinetics of the uptake and release of these three drugs in different cell lines: the erythroleukemia cell line K562 and the resistant K562/Adr expressing P-glycoprotein, the small-cell lung cancer cell line GLC4 and resistant GLC4/Adr expressing MRP1. We also studied, using confocal microscopy, the intracellular distribution of these drugs in NIH/3T3 cells. Our data show that (i) the kinetics for the uptake of these drugs is very rapid, higher than 2 x 10(-17) mole cell(-1) s(-1), (ii) the drugs are strongly accumulated in the nucleus and lysosomes, (iii) the three drugs are recognized and pumped out by both transporters, as shown by the inhibition of P-glycoprotein- and MRP1-mediated efflux of pirarubicin by benzoperimidine, with inhibitory constants of 1.5 and 2.1 microM for P-glycoprotein and MRP1, respectively, suggesting that benzoperimidine is transported by the two transporters with K(m) approximately 2 microM. In conclusion, the fast uptake kinetics of the benzoperimidines counterbalance their efflux by P-glycoprotein and MRP1.

Structural characterization of Ru-bleomycin complexes by resonance Raman, circular dichroism, and NMR spectroscopy.

A series of spectroscopic techniques including absorption and CD spectra, resonance Raman spectra, and (1)H NMR as well as electrospray mass spectrometry have shown that Ru(II) ion binds to bleomycin, forming an equimolar complex, similarly to Fe(II), i.e., via the secondary amine nitrogen, the pyrimidine ring nitrogen, the deprotonated peptide bond nitrogen of the histydyl residue, and the histidine imidazole nitrogen, which are bound in the equatorial positions, and the alpha-amino nitrogen of beta-aminoalanine, which coordinates in the apical position above pH 7. The reaction of Ru(II)-BLM with O(2), H(2)O(2),or PhIO leads to formation of the oxy species in which only one oxygen atom is bound to metal ion. According to our data, the reaction of Ru(II)-BLM complex with oxygen species leads to different product than that suggested for Fe(II)-BLM. The formation of the BLM-Ru-O-Ru-BLM dimeric unit, similar to that found for sterically unhindered Ru porphyrins, seems to be the most likely.

Multidrug resistance protein functionality: no effect of intracellular or extracellular pH changes.

A major problem in the treatment of cancer is cellular resistance to cytotoxic drugs. In tumor cells in vitro, the development of multidrug resistance is usually accompanied by increased expression of drug transporters, either P-glycoprotein (P-gp) or multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP(1)). Both proteins belong to the superfamily of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter proteins and mediate the transport of a broad range of drugs. Altenberg et al. (Proc Natl Acad Sci USA90: 9735-9738, 1993) have shown that changes in intra- or extracellular pH do not mediate P-gp-dependent multidrug resistance. Therefore, we similarly studied whether changes in intra- or extracellular pH could mediate MRP(1)-dependent multidrug resistance. In particular, we measured the MRP(1)-mediated efflux of hydroxyrubicin from GLC4/ADR cells. Since hydroxyrubicin is a fully neutral anthracycline derivative that has no deprotonable function at pH lower than 10 and so cannot accumulate in non-nuclear compartments under the influence of pH or transmembrane gradients, we hypothesized that any modifications of its kinetics of efflux as a function of pH can be assigned to a modification of the transporter efficiency. However, as our data show, modifications of extra- and/or intracellular pH yielded no modification of the MRP(1)-mediated efflux of hydroxyrubicin.

Inhibition of the P-glycoprotein- and multidrug resistance protein-mediated efflux of anthracyclines and calceinacetoxymethyl ester by PAK-104P.

Multidrug resistance phenotype in mammalian cells is often correlated with overexpression of P-glycoprotein or Multidrug Resistance-Associated protein (MRP(1)). Both proteins are energy-dependent drug efflux pumps that efficiently reduce the intracellular accumulation and hence the cytotoxicity of many natural cytotoxins. Overexpression of these transporters by tumor cells is thought to be a significant factor in both intrinsic and acquired resistance to anticancer drugs. Consequently a great deal of interest is focused on identifying chemical agents that can either antagonise drug transport by these proteins or that can inhibit the proliferation of tumors cells despite the expression of these transporters. P-glycoprotein-mediated multidrug resistance is reversed by a variety of compounds, but surprisingly, few agents reverse the MRP(1)-mediated multidrug resistance. However, it has recently been shown that 2-[4-(diphenylmethyl)-1-piperazinyl]ethyl-5-(trans-4,6-dimethyl-1, 3, 2-dioxaphosphorinan-2-yl)-2, 6-dimethyl-4-(3-nitrophenyl)-3-pyridinecarboxylate P oxide (PAK-104P) was able to inhibit the P-glycoprotein and MRP(1)-mediated efflux of several compounds. Understanding of the interactions between transporters and multidrug resistance reversing agents is important in the design of more effective multidrug resistance modulators. We now examined the effect of PAK-104P on Pgp-and MRP1-mediated efflux of three anthracyclines, daunorubicin, pirarubicin, hydroxydoxorubicin and of calcein acetoxymethyl ester and calcein. Our data show that PAK-104P non-competitively inhibits the P-glycoprotein-mediated efflux of anthracycline derivatives and calcein acetoxymethyl ester with an inhibitory constant K(I)=0. 25+/-0.05 microM. PAK-104P also non-competitively inhibits the MRP(1)-mediated efflux of daunorubicin, pirarubicin, hydroxyrubicin, calcein acetoxymethyl ester and calcein. However, surprisingly, in this case the K(I) values obtained were very different ranging from 0.06 for hydroxyrubicin to 10 microM for calcein. These data strongly suggested the existence of two different mechanisms for the inhibition by PAK-104P of the MRP(1)-mediated efflux of molecules: a first mechanism, involving a low-affinity site for PAK-104P, and which would concern molecules such as calcein, cysteinyl leukotriene LCT(4) etc. whose efflux do not depend on glutathione. A second mechanism involving a high-affinity site for PAK-104P and which would concern molecules such as anthracyclines, calcein acetoxymethyl ester whose efflux depends on the presence of glutathione.

Synthesis and binding properties of photoactivable biotin-conjugated verapamil derivatives for the study of P-170 glycoprotein.

The design and synthesis of two photoactivable biotin-labeled analogues of verapamil (6 and 7) is reported. Preliminary evaluation of the biological profile of 6 (EDP 137) and 7 (EDP 141) shows that they have comparable affinities to that of verapamil for P-170, the protein responsible for multidrug resistance (MDR). Since both appear to bind irreversibly to the protein and the presence of biotin in their structure makes them easily detectable by avidin, they promise to be of great help in studying the protein and its mechanism of action.

How Fe3+ binds anthracycline antitumour compounds. The myth and the reality of a chemical sphinx.

The interaction of Fe3+ with several anthracycline antitumour antibiotics has been reinvestigated. Absorption and circular dichroism (CD) measurements were carried out (i) in aqueous solution and (ii) in semi-aqueous MeOH to avoid the stacking of the anthracycline molecules. The Fe3+ binding to anthracycline was dependent on the metal-to-ligand molar ratio, antibiotic concentration, ionic strength, and pH. The formation of two major Fe3(+)-anthracycline complexes, I and II, was observed for all the drugs. These species differed in their coordination modes to the anthracycline ligands. Complex I was a monomeric species, where Fe3+ was bound to the anthracycline through the {C(11)-O-; C(12) = O} chelating site. In complex II, Fe3+ was also bound through the {C(5) = O; C(6)-O-} coordination site. Thus, the antibiotic ligand was acting as a bridge between two metal ions, forming oligomeric (or polymeric) structures. The different degree of association of the anthracyclines could be responsible for the reactivity of the metal ion. In fact, complexes I and II could constitute mononuclear, binuclear or polynuclear Fe3+ species depending on the competitive kinetics of both coordination and hydrolysis of the metal ion.

Correlation between the kinetics of anthracycline uptake and the resistance factor in cancer cells expressing the multidrug resistance protein or the P-glycoprotein.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) in model systems is known to be conferred by two different integral proteins, the 170-kDa P-glycoprotein (Pgp) and the 190-kDa multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP1). One possible pharmacological approach to overcome drug resistance is the use of specific inhibitors, which enhance the cytotoxicity of known antineoplastic agents. However, while many compounds have been proven to be very efficient in inhibiting Pgp activity only some of them are able to inhibit MRP1. The other likely approach is based on the design and synthesis of new non-cross-resistant drugs with physicochemical properties favoring the uptake of the drug by the resistant cells. The intracellular drug retention influences its cytotoxic effect. The level of the intracellular drug content is a function of the amount of drug transported inside the cell (influx) and the amount of drug expelled from the cell (efflux). In this work, the kinetics of drug uptake and the kinetics of active efflux of several anthracycline derivatives in both Pgp expressing K562/Adr cells and MRP1 expressing GLC4/Adr cells was determined. Our data have shown that in both cell lines there is no correlation between the resistance factor and the kinetics of drug efflux by these pumping systems. However, a very good correlation between the resistance factor and the kinetics of drug uptake has been established in both cell lines: the resistance factor decreases when the kinetics of drug uptake increases. This work has clearly shown that when the rate of transmembrane transport of anthracycline is high enough, the efflux mediated by the protein transporter is not able to pace with it. The protein transporter essentially operates in a futile cycle and the resistance factor is tending to one. It does not mean, however, that when the resistance factor is close to one the anthracycline is not transported by the pump.