Molecular Design of Bisphosphonate-Modified Proteins for Efficient Bone Targeting In Vivo.

To establish a rational molecular design for bisphosphonate (BP)-modified proteins for efficient bone targeting, a pharmacokinetic study was performed using a series of alendronate (ALN), a nitrogen-containing BP, modified proteins with various molecular weights and varying degrees of modification. Four proteins with different molecular weight-yeast glutathione reductase (GR; MW: 112,000 Da), bovine serum albumin (BSA; MW: 67,000 Da), recombinant human superoxide dismutase (SOD; MW: 32,000 Da), and chicken egg white lysozyme (LZM; MW: 14,000 Da)-were modified with ALN to obtain ALN-modified proteins. Pharmacokinetic analysis of the tissue distribution of the ALN-modified and unmodified proteins was performed after radiolabeling them with indium-111 (111In) by using a bifunctional chelating agent. Calculation of tissue uptake clearances revealed that the bone uptake clearances of 111In-ALN-modified proteins were proportional to the degree of ALN modification. 111In-GR-ALN and BSA-ALN, the two high-molecular-weight proteins, efficiently accumulated in bones, regardless of the degree of ALN modification. Approximately 36 and 34% of the dose, respectively, was calculated to be delivered to the bones. In contrast, the maximum amounts taken up by bone were 18 and 13% of the dose for 111In-SOD-ALN(32) and LZM-ALN(9), respectively, because of their high renal clearance. 111In-SOD modified with both polyethylene glycol (PEG) and ALN (111In-PEG-SOD-ALN) was efficiently delivered to the bone. Approximately 36% of the dose was estimated to be delivered to the bones. In an experimental bone metastasis mouse model, treatment with PEG-SOD-ALN significantly reduced the number of tumor cells in the bone of the mice. These results indicate that the combination of PEG and ALN modification is a promising approach for efficient bone targeting of proteins with a high total-body clearance.

Development of polyethylene glycol-conjugated alendronate, a novel nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate derivative: evaluation of absorption, safety, and effects after intrapulmonary administration in rats.

Bisphosphonates are widely used for the treatment of bone diseases, including hypercalcemia and osteoporosis. However, the bioavailability (BA) of orally administered bisphosphonates is low, at approximately 0.9%-1.8%. In addition, the oral administration of bisphosphonates is associated with mucosal damage, including gastritis, gastric ulcer, and erosive esophagitis. Here, to develop a new delivery system for bisphosphonates that improve their BA and safety, we developed polyethylene glycol (PEG)-conjugated alendronate, a novel nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate derivative. We evaluated the absorption and safety of PEG-alendronate in rats following intrapulmonary administration. The BA of PEG-alendronate after intrapulmonary administration was approximately 44 ± 10% in rats, which was similar to that of alendronate (54 ± 3.9%). Alendronate significantly increased total protein concentration and lactate dehydrogenase activity in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, suggesting that pulmonary epithelium was locally damaged by intrapulmonary administration of alendronate. In marked contrast, PEG-alendronate did not significantly increase the markers following intrapulmonary administration. In an osteoporosis model in rats, intrapulmonary administration of PEG-alendronate effectively inhibited decreases in the width of the growth plate to a level similar to that achieved by intrapulmonary administration of alendronate. These results indicate that pulmonary delivery of PEG-alendronate is a promising approach for the treatment of bone diseases.

Absorption and safety of alendronate, a nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate, after intrapulmonary administration in rats.

Alendronate, a nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate, has been used as a first-choice drug for the treatment of hypercalcemia and osteoporosis. In the present study, we examined the absorption and safety of alendronate after intrapulmonary administration in rats. The bioavailability (BA) of alendronate after intrapulmonary administration was 47% at a dose of 5 mg/kg, while the BA after oral administration was only 2.9% at a dose of 50 mg/kg in rats. Plasma calcium level, an index of the pharmacological effect of alendronate, was effectively reduced after intrapulmonary administration of alendronate. Furthermore, alendronate continuously reduced the increase in plasma calcium levels for 9 days after a single intrapulmonary administration in rats with 1α-hydroxyvitamin-D(3)-induced hypercalcemia. Intrapulmonary administration of alendronate also effectively suppressed the decrease in bone mass in a rat model of osteoporosis. Alendronate significantly increased the activity of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), indicating that pulmonary mucosal damage was induced by intrapulmonary administration of alendronate. However, co-administration of superoxide dismutase (SOD) with alendronate completely suppressed the alendronate-induced increase in LDH activity in BALF, while maintaining sufficient pulmonary absorption and therapeutic effects of alendronate in rats with 1α-hydroxyvitamin-D(3)-induced hypercalcemia. These findings indicated that the lung is a promising, noninvasive alternative route for the delivery of alendronate in the treatment of bone diseases.

Foam cells generated by a combination of hyperglycemia and hyperlipemia in rats.

Diabetes is a major risk factor for atherosclerosis, as well as hyperlipemia. Investigators have suggested that denatured lipoprotein in hyperglycemia transforms macrophages into foam cells, which correlates with the development or progression of atherosclerosis. In the present study, we examined the generation of foam cells in rats caused by a combination of hyperglycemia and hyperlipemia. Streptozotocin-induced diabetic male Wister rats were fed a high cholesterol diet (HCD) containing 1% cholesterol and 0.5% cholic acid to maintain a hyperglycemic and hyperlipemic state. Animals fed the HCD for 8 weeks or longer showed a high incidence of foam cell accumulation in the renal glomerulus, intima of aortic arch, splenic red pulp and marginal zone, liver sinusoid and intestinal lamina propria. The foam cells exhibited positive staining for antimonocyte/macrophage antibody and lipids in all these tissues. Anti-rat apolipoprotein B (apo B) antibody revealed that positive staining existed only in the cytoplasm of glomerular foam cells. These results suggest that the origin of these foam cells can be attributed to lipid-laden macrophages. The generation of foam cells in the hyperglycemia-hyperlipidemia supervening rat model presented in the present study might be a useful tool for investigations of the pathogenesis of foam cells.

Accelerated neutrophil apoptosis in 2 canine cases of hepatic disorder.

Accelerated neutrophil apoptosis was confirmed by TUNEL assay in two canine cases of hepatic disorder. One dog was diagnosed as having lymphocytic hepatitis and the other lymphocytic cholangitis by histopathology of liver biopsy specimen.

KF24345, an adenosine uptake inhibitor, ameliorates the severity and mortality of lethal acute pancreatitis via endogenous adenosine in mice.

Adenosine protects against cellular damage and dysfunction under several adverse conditions including inflammation and ischemia. In this study, we examined the effects of 3-[1-(6,7-diethoxy-2-morpholinoquinazolin-4-yl)piperidin-4-yl]-1,6-dimethyl-2,4(1H,3H)-quinazolinedione hydrochloride (KF24345), an adenosine uptake inhibitor, on experimental acute pancreatitis induced by choline-deficient and ethionine-supplemented diet in mice. KF24345, administered with the diet onset and every 24 h thereafter, prevented hyperamylasemia, acinar cell injury and serum tumor necrosis factor-alpha elevation and ultimately decreased mortality. Therapeutic treatment with KF24345, which started 32 h after the diet onset, also decreased mortality. The beneficial effect of KF24345 on mortality was abolished by the pretreatment with 4-(2-[7-amino-2-(2-furyl)[1,2,4]triazolo[2,3-a][1,3,5]triazin-5-ylamino]ethyl)phenol (ZM 241385), a selective adenosine A(2A) receptor antagonist. An intravenous injection of KF24345 at 48 h after the diet onset increased plasma adenosine concentrations in mice with acute pancreatitis. These results suggest that KF24345 shows anti-pancreatitis effects via endogenous adenosine and adenosine A(2A) receptors. The adenosine uptake inhibition could be a new therapeutic approach for acute pancreatitis.

Adenosine uptake inhibition ameliorates cerulein-induced acute pancreatitis in mice.

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS: Adenosine shows protective effects against cellular damage and dysfunction under several adverse conditions such as inflammation and ischemia. In the current study, we examined the effects of 3-[1-(6,7-diethoxy-2-morpholinoquinazolin-4-yl)piperidin-4-yl]-1,6-dimethyl-2,4(1,3 )-quinazolinedione hydrochloride (KF24345), an adenosine uptake inhibitor, on cerulein-induced acute pancreatitis in mice to investigate whether inhibition of adenosine uptake could ameliorate the severity of acute pancreatitis. METHODOLOGY: Acute pancreatitis was induced in mice with six intraperitoneal injections of cerulein (50 microg/kg each) at hourly intervals. RESULTS: The cerulein injection increased activities of serum amylase and lipase and caused pathologic changes such as interstitial edema, polymorphonuclear cell infiltration, and acinar cell necrosis in the pancreas. KF24345 (10 mg/kg p.o.) ameliorated all these changes observed in mice with acute pancreatitis, and the suppressing effect of KF24345 on the elevation in serum amylase activity was abolished by the treatment with 8-(p-sulfophenyl)theophylline, an adenosine receptor antagonist. In addition, 2-(aminocarbonyl)- -(4-amino-2,6-dichlorophenyl)-4-[5,5-bis-(4-fluorophenyl)pentyl]-1-piperazineacetamide (R75231) and dipyridamole, other adenosine uptake inhibitors, also decreased the elevated serum amylase activity. CONCLUSIONS: These are the first demonstrations that the adenosine uptake inhibitors ameliorate cerulein-induced acute pancreatitis in mice, and these data suggest that adenosine uptake inhibition could ameliorate the severity of acute pancreatitis in vivo.

Treatment with an adenosine uptake inhibitor attenuates glomerulonephritis in mice.

This study evaluated the effects of KF24345 (3-[1-(6,7-diethoxy-2-morpholinoquinazolin-4-yl)piperidin-4-yl]-1,6-dimethyl-2,4(1H,3H)-quinazolinedione hydrochloride), a novel adenosine uptake inhibitor, on experimental glomerulonephritis induced in mice by two intravenous injections of rabbit anti-mouse glomerular basement membrane antiserum. Mice with glomerulonephritis showed continuous proteinuria and the histological evaluation revealed glomerular and tubular damage at 7 weeks after the first antiserum injection. KF24345 as well as prednisolone and cyclophosphamide significantly inhibited proteinuria and glomerular damage when it was orally administered once a day from 2 to 7 weeks. Prednisolone elevated plasma bilirubin and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase levels, and cyclophosphamide decreased erythrocytes. Moreover, both prednisolone and cyclophosphamide decreased spleen and thymus weights. KF24345 did not show this kind of side effects. These results demonstrate that KF24345 ameliorates glomerulonephritis with minimal side effects in mice, suggesting that the adenosine uptake inhibitor may be useful for the treatment of glomerulonephritis.