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Herein we report the first example of an isoDGR-drug conjugate ( 2), designed to release paclitaxel selectively within cancer cells expressing integrin αVβ3. Conjugate 2 was synthesized by connecting the isoDGR peptidomimetic 5 with paclitaxel via the lysosomally cleavable Val-Ala dipeptide linker. Conjugate 2 displayed a low nanomolar affinity for the purified integrin αVβ3 receptor (IC50=11.0 n m). The tumor targeting ability of conjugate 2 was assessed in vitro in anti-proliferative assays on two isogenic cancer cell lines characterized by different integrin αVβ3 expression: human glioblastoma U87 (αVβ3+) and U87 β3-KO (αVβ3−). The isoDGR-PTX conjugate 2 displayed a remarkable targeting index (TI=9.9), especially when compared to the strictly related RGD-PTX conjugate 4 (TI=2.4). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two small-molecule-drug conjugates (SMDCs, 6 and 7) featuring lysosomally cleavable linkers (namely the Val-Ala and Phe-Lys peptide sequences) were synthesized by conjugation of the αvβ3-integrin ligand cyclo[DKP-RGD]-CH2NH2 ( 2) to the anticancer drug paclitaxel (PTX). A third cyclo[DKP-RGD]-PTX conjugate with a nonpeptide 'uncleavable' linker ( 8) was also synthesized to be tested as a negative control. These three SMDCs were able to inhibit biotinylated vitronectin binding to the purified αVβ3-integrin receptor at nanomolar concentrations and showed good stability at pH 7.4 and pH 5.5. Cleavage of the two peptide linkers was observed in the presence of lysosomal enzymes, whereas conjugate 8, which possesses a nonpeptide 'uncleavable' linker, remained intact under these conditions. The antiproliferative activities of the conjugates were evaluated against two isogenic cell lines expressing the integrin receptor at different levels: the acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell line CCRF-CEM (αVβ3−) and its subclone CCRF-CEM αVβ3 (αVβ3+). Fairly effective integrin targeting was displayed by the cyclo[DKP-RGD]-Val-Ala-PTX conjugate ( 6), which was found to differentially inhibit proliferation in antigen-positive CCRF-CEM αVβ3 versus antigen-negative isogenic CCRF-CEM cells. The total lack of activity displayed by the 'uncleavable' cyclo[DKP-RGD]-PTX conjugate ( 8) clearly demonstrates the importance of the peptide linker for achieving the selective release of the cytotoxic payload. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel series of PIM inhibitors was derived from a combined effort in natural product-inspired library generation and screening. The novel pyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazinones initial hits are inhibitors of PIM isoforms with IC50 values in the low micromolar range. The application of a rational optimization strategy, guided by the determination of the crystal structure of the complex in the kinase domain of PIM1 with compound 1, led to the discovery of compound 15a, which is a potent PIM kinases inhibitor exhibiting excellent selectivity against a large panel of kinases, representative of each family. The synthesis, structure–activity relationship studies, and pharmacokinetic data of compounds from this inhibitor class are presented herein. Furthermore, the cellular activities including inhibition of cell growth and modulation of downstream targets are also described. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A novel series of 3-amino-1H-thieno[3,2-c]pyrazole derivatives demonstrating high potency in inhibiting Aurora kinases was developed. Here we describe the synthesis and a preliminary structure–activity relationship, which led to the discovery of a representative compound (38), which showed low nanomolar inhibitory activity in the anti-proliferation assay and was able to block the cell cycle in HCT-116 cell line. This compound demonstrated favorable pharmacokinetic properties and good efficacy in the HL-60 xenograft tumor model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The synthesis and the preliminary expansion of this new class of CDK2 inhibitors are presented. The synthesis was accomplished using a solution-phase protocol amenable to rapid parallel expansion and suitable to be scaled-up in view of possible lead development. Following a medicinal chemistry program aimed at improving cell permeability and selectivity, a series of compounds with nanomolar activity in the biochemical assay and able to efficiently inhibit tumor cell proliferation has been obtained. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose. The effect of an anticancer treatment on tumor cell proliferation in vitro can be described as a three-dimensional surface where the inhibitory effect is related to drug concentration and treatment time. The analysis of this kind of response surface could provide critical information: for example, it could indicate whether a prolonged exposure to a low concentration of an anticancer agent will produce a different effect from exposure to higher concentrations for a shorter period of time. The parametric approach available in the literature was not flexible enough to accommodate the behavior of the response surface in some of the data sets collected as part of our research programs. Therefore, a new, general, nonparametric approach was developed. Methods. The response surface of the inhibition of cell-based tumor growth was described using a radial basis function neural network (RBF-NN). The RBF-NN was trained using regularization theory, which provided the initialization of a constrained quadratic optimization algorithm that imposes monotonicity of the surface with respect to both concentration and exposure time. Results. In the two analyzed cases (doxorubicin and flavopiridol), the proposed method was accurate and reliable in describing the inhibition surface of tumor cell growth as a function of drug concentration and exposure time. Residuals were small and unbiased. The new method improved on the parametric approach when the relative importance of drug concentration and exposure time in determining the overall effect was not constant across the experimental data. Conclusions. The proposed RBF-NN can be reliably applied for the analysis in cell-based tumor growth inhibition studies. This approach can be used for optimizing the administration regimens to be adopted in vivo. The use of this methodology can be easily extended to any cell-based experiment, in which the outcome can be seen as a function of two experimental variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]