Search

Identifying chemical lead matter by high-throughput screening (HTS) has been a common practice in early stage drug discovery. Evolution of small-molecule library composition to include more drug-like molecules with desirable physical chemical properties combined with improving assay technologies has vastly enhanced the capability of HTS. However, HTS campaigns can still be plagued by false positives arising from nonspecific inhibitors. The generation of assay-ready plates has permitted an incremental advancement to the speed and efficiency of HTS but has the potential to enhance the occurrence of nonspecific inhibitors. A subtle change in the order of reagent addition to the assay-ready plates can greatly alleviate falsepositive inhibition. Our case studies with six different kinase and protease targets reveal that this type of inhibition affects targets regardless of enzyme class and is unpredictable based on protein construct or inhibitor chemical scaffold. These case studies support a model where a diversity set of compounds should be tested first for hit rates as a function of order of addition, carrier protein, and relevant mechanistic studies prior to launch of the HTS campaign. (Journal of Biomolecular Screening 2011:000-000)

Designed second mitochondrial activator of caspases (Smac) mimetics based on an accessible [7,5]-bicyclic scaffold bind to and antagonize protein interactions involving the inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) proteins, X-chromosome-linked IAP (XIAP), melanoma IAP (ML-IAP), and c-IAPs 1 and 2 (cIAP1 and cIAP2). The design rationale is based on a combination of phage-panning data, peptide binding studies, and a survey of potential isosteres. The synthesis of two scaffolds is described. These compounds bind the XIAP-baculoviral IAP repeat 3 (BIR3), cIAP1-BIR3, cIAP2-BIR3, and ML-IAP-BIR domains with submicromolar affinities. The most potent Smac mimetic binds the cIAP1-BIR3 and ML-IAP-BIR domains with a K i of 50 nM. The X-ray crystal structure of this compound bound to an ML-IAP/XIAP chimeric BIR domain protein is compared with that of a complex with a phage-derived tetrapeptide, AVPW. The structures show that these compounds bind to the Smac-binding site on ML-IAP with identical hydrogen-bonding patterns and similar hydrophobic interactions. Consistent with the structural data, coimmunoprecipitation experiments demonstrate that the compounds can effectively block Smac interactions with ML-IAP. The compounds are further demonstrated to activate caspase-3 and -7, to reduce cell viability in assays using MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells and A2058 melanoma cells, and to enhance doxorubicin-induced apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 cells.

The serine protease factor VIIa (FVIIa) in complex with its cellular cofactor tissue factor (TF) initiates the blood coagulation reactions. TF.FVIIa is also implicated in thrombosis-related disorders and constitutes an appealing therapeutic target for treatment of cardiovascular diseases. To this end, we generated the FVIIa active site inhibitor G17905, which displayed great potency toward TF.FVIIa (Ki = 0.35 +/- 0.11 nM). G17905 did not appreciably inhibit 12 of the 14 examined trypsin-like serine proteases, consistent with its TF.FVIIa-specific activity in clotting assays. The crystal structure of the FVIIa.G17905 complex provides insight into the molecular basis of the high selectivity. It shows that, compared with other serine proteases, FVIIa is uniquely equipped to accommodate conformational disturbances in the Gln217-Gly219 region caused by the ortho-hydroxy group of the inhibitor's aminobenzamidine moiety located in the S1 recognition pocket. Moreover, the structure revealed a novel, nonstandard conformation of FVIIa active site in the region of the oxyanion hole, a "flipped" Lys192-Gly193 peptide bond. Macromolecular substrate activation assays demonstrated that G17905 is a noncompetitive, slow-binding inhibitor. Nevertheless, G17905 effectively inhibited thrombus formation in a baboon arterio-venous shunt model, reducing platelet and fibrin deposition by approximately 70% at 0.4 mg/kg + 0.1 mg/kg/min infusion. Therefore, the in vitro potency of G17905, characterized by slow binding kinetics, correlated with efficacious antithrombotic activity in vivo.

A series of compounds were designed and synthesized as antagonists of cIAP1/2, ML-IAP, and XIAP based on the N-terminus, AVPI, of mature Smac. Compound 1 (GDC-0152) has the best profile of these compounds; it binds to the XIAP BIR3 domain, the BIR domain of ML-IAP, and the BIR3 domains of cIAP1 and cIAP2 with K(i) values of 28, 14, 17, and 43 nM, respectively. These compounds promote degradation of cIAP1, induce activation of caspase-3/7, and lead to decreased viability of breast cancer cells without affecting normal mammary epithelial cells. Compound 1 inhibits tumor growth when dosed orally in the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer xenograft model. Compound 1 was advanced to human clinical trials, and it exhibited linear pharmacokinetics over the dose range (0.049 to 1.48 mg/kg) tested. Mean plasma clearance in humans was 9 ± 3 mL/min/kg, and the volume of distribution was 0.6 ± 0.2 L/kg.

A series of IAP antagonists based on thiazole or benzothiazole amide isosteres was designed and synthesized. These compounds were tested for binding to the XIAP-BIR3 and ML-IAP BIR using a fluorescence polarization assay. The most potent of these compounds, 19a and 33b, were found to have K(i)'s of 20-30 nM against ML-IAP and 50-60 nM against XIAP-BIR3.

A series of IAP antagonists based on an azabicyclooctane scaffold was designed and synthesized. The most potent of these compounds, 14b, binds to the XIAP BIR3 domain, the BIR domain of ML-IAP, and the BIR3 domain of c-IAP1 with K(i) values of 140, 38, and 33 nM, respectively. These compounds promote degradation of c-IAP1, activate caspases, and lead to decreased viability of breast cancer cells without affecting normal mammary epithelial cells. Finally, compound 14b inhibits tumor growth when dosed orally in a breast cancer xenograft model.