Germline mutations of homologous recombination genes and clinical outcomes in pancreatic cancer: a multicenter study in Taiwan.

Background: Cancer susceptibility germline mutations are associated with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). However, the hereditary status of PDAC and its impact on survival is largely unknown in the Asian population.

Methods: Exome sequencing was performed on 527 blood samples from PDAC individuals and analyzed for mutations in 80 oncogenic genes.

Synthesis and Structure-Activity Relationship of Salvinal Derivatives as Potent Microtubule Inhibitors.

Salvinal is a natural lignan isolated from the roots of Bunge (Danshen). Previous studies have demonstrated its anti-proliferative activity in both drug-sensitive and -resistant cancer cell lines, with IC values ranging from 4-17 µM. In this study, a series of salvinal derivatives was synthesized and evaluated for the structure-activity relationship.

Alpha-tubulin acetyltransferase/MEC-17 regulates cancer cell migration and invasion through epithelial-mesenchymal transition suppression and cell polarity disruption.

MEC-17, a newly identified alpha-tubulin-N-acetyltransferase 1, serves as the major α-tubulin acetyltransferase to promote α-tubulin acetylation in vitro and in vivo. Alteration of α-tubulin acetylation may be involved in morphology regulation, cell migration, and tumour metastasis. However, MEC-17's role in cell physiology and its effect on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cell polarity remain elusive.

1-Arylsulfonyl indoline-benzamides as a new antitubulin agents, with inhibition of histone deacetylase.

We report structure-activity relationships of 1-arylsulfonyl indoline based benzamides. The benzamide (9) exhibits striking tubulin inhibition with an IC value of 1.1 μM, better than that of combretastain A-4 (3), and substantial antiproliferative activity against a variety of cancer cells, including MDR-positive cell lines with an IC value of 49 nM (KB), 79 nM (A549), 63 nM (MKN45), 64 nM (KB-VIN10), 43 nM (KB-S15), and 46 nM (KB-7D).

Antimitotic and antivascular activity of heteroaroyl-2-hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxybenzenes.

This study reports the synthesis of a series of heteroaroyl-2-hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxybenzenes, which are potent antitubulin agents. Compound 13, (2-hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-(6-methoxy-1H-indol-3-yl)-methanone exhibits marked antiproliferative activity against KB and MKN45 cells with IC50 values of 8.8 and 10.

Aspects of digestive anatomy, feed intake and digestion in the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) at Taipei zoo.

Pangolins are considered difficult to maintain in zoos, often attributed to problems in feeding management. Taipei Zoo's designation as a wildlife rescue center for Chinese pangolins (Manis pentadactyla) has resulted in long term feeding experience with development of diets that support recovery, maintenance, and reproduction, as well as experimental opportunities to further understand digestive physiology to optimize nutrition. Opportunistic dissection of 10 animals revealed details of the tongue, salivary glands, stomach and gastrointestinal tract (GIT), including confirmation of anatomical differences between Asian and African pangolin species.

Concise syntheses of 7-anilino-indoline-N-benzenesulfonamides as antimitotic and vascular disrupting agents.

Described herein is the development of a novel series of 7-anilino-indoline-N-benzenesulfonamides, derived from ABT751 (1), as potent anticancer agents. Amongst the synthesized series, compounds 6, 12, 13, and 14 have shown comparable to better anticancer activity on comparing with compound 1. 7-(4-Cyanophenylamino)-1-(4-methoxybenzenesulfonyl)indoline (13) was found to be the most potent one with up to 6 fold better activity against KB, HT29, and MKN45 cancer cell lines with IC50 values of 49.

Azaindolylsulfonamides, with a more selective inhibitory effect on histone deacetylase 6 activity, exhibit antitumor activity in colorectal cancer HCT116 cells.

A series of indolylsulfonylcinnamic hydroxamates has been synthesized. Compound 12, (E)-3-(3-((1H-pyrrolo[2,3-b]pyridin-1-yl)sulfonyl)phenyl)-N-hydroxyacrylamide, which has a 7-azaindole core cap, was shown to have antiproliferative activity against KB, H460, PC3, HSC-3, HONE-1, A549, MCF-7, TSGH, MKN45, HT29, and HCT116 human cancer cell lines. Pharmacological studies indicated that 12 functions as a potent HDAC inhibitor with an IC50 value of 0.

Antimitotic and vascular disrupting agents: 2-hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxybenzophenones.

2-Hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxybenzophenones (8-16) manifest pseudo-ring formation involving intramolecular hydrogen bonding of the 2-OH and the carbonyl group. Among the synthetic products described in this report, (3-hydroxy-4-methoxyphenyl)(2-hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-methanone (14) and (3-amino-4-methoxyphenyl)(2-hydroxy-3,4,5-trimethoxy-phenyl)methanone (16) exhibit significant antiproliferative activity against KB cells with IC50 values of 11.1 and 11.

Furanylazaindoles: potent anticancer agents in vitro and in vivo.

Preliminary biological data on 7-anilino-6-azaindoles (8-11) suggested that hydrophobic substituents at C7 contribute to enhancement of antiproliferative activity. A novel series of 7-aryl-6-azaindole-1-benzenesulfonamides (12-22) were developed and showed improved cytotoxicity compared to ABT751 (5). The conversion of C7 phenyl rings into C7 heterocycles led to a remarkable improvement of antiproliferative activity.

MPT0B098, a novel microtubule inhibitor that destabilizes the hypoxia-inducible factor-1α mRNA through decreasing nuclear-cytoplasmic translocation of RNA-binding protein HuR.

Microtubule inhibitors have been shown to inhibit hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) expression through inhibition translation or enhancing protein degradation. Little is known of the effect of microtubule inhibitors on the stability of HIF-1α mRNA. We recently discovered a novel indoline-sulfonamide compound, 7-aryl-indoline-1-benzene-sulfonamide (MPT0B098), as a potent microtubule inhibitor through binding to the colchicine-binding site of tubulin.

A novel synthetic microtubule inhibitor, MPT0B214 exhibits antitumor activity in human tumor cells through mitochondria-dependent intrinsic pathway.

Agents that interfere with mitotic progression by disturbing microtubule dynamics are commonly used for cancer treatment. Previously, a series of aroylquinolone regioisomers as novel microtubule inhibitors were discovered. One of these new compounds, MPT0B214 inhibited tubulin polymerization through strongly binding to the tubulin's colchicine-binding site and had cytotoxic activity in a variety of human tumor cell lines.

Application of Suzuki arylation, Sonogashira ethynylation and Rosenmund-von Braun cyanation in the exploration of substitution effects on the anticancer activity of 2-aroylquinolines.

A variety of functionalities were introduced at 2-aroylquinoline's C5 position, which is considered equivalent to C-3' of the B-ring of CA4, via Suzuki arylation, Sonogashira ethynylation, and Rosenmund-von Braun cyanation. These substitutions are rarely utilized in the modification of 3'-OH of CA4. The resulting products 6 and 7 having cyano and ethynyl groups exhibited comparable antiproliferative and tubulin inhibitory activities to colchicine.

5-Amino-2-aroylquinolines as highly potent tubulin polymerization inhibitors. Part 2. The impact of bridging groups at position C-2.

A variety of studies on the modification of combretastatin A-4 triggered our interest in the impact of the linkers between the 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl ring and 5-amino-6-methoxyquinoline on biological activity. The replacement of the carbonyl group with bond, amine, ether, sulfide, and sulfone groups was evaluated in this study. The results showed that compounds 14 and 15 containing sulfide and sulfone groups between the 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl ring (A-ring) and 5-amino-6-methoxyquinoline exhibited substantial antiproliferative activity against KB, HT29, and MKN45 cells with mean IC50 values of 42 and 12 nM, respectively.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1-(4'-Indolyl and 6'-Quinolinyl) indoles as a new class of potent anticancer agents.

A novel series of the biheterocycles-based compounds with core structure distinguished from combretastatin A-4 (1) and colchicine (5) have been synthesized and evaluated as potent anti-mitotic agents. Compound 1-(4'-Indolyl and 6'-quinolinyl)-4,5,6-trimethoxyindoles 13 and 19 showed substantial anti-proliferative activity against various human cancer cell lines, regardless to the tissue origin and the expression of multiple-drug resistance MDR1, with a mean IC(50) value of 38 and 24 nM respectively. Compound 13 (IC(50) = 1.

Scaffold-hopping strategy: synthesis and biological evaluation of 5,6-fused bicyclic heteroaromatics to identify orally bioavailable anticancer agents.

Utilizing scaffold-hopping drug-design strategy, we sought to identify a backup drug candidate for BPR0L075 (1), an indole-based anticancer agent. For this purpose, 5,6-fused bicyclic heteroaromatic scaffolds were designed and synthesized through shuffling of the nitrogen from the N-1 position or by insertion of one or two nitrogen atoms into the indole core of 1. Among these, 7-azaindole core 12 showed potent in vitro anticancer activity and improved oral bioavailability (F = 35%) compared with 1 (F < 10%).

Concise syntheses of N-aryl-5,6,7-trimethoxyindoles as antimitotic and vascular disrupting agents: application of the copper-mediated Ullmann-type arylation.

In an attempt to mimic the 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl-Z-stilbene moiety of combretastatin A-4, a series of N-aryl-5,6,7-trimethoxyindoles were synthesized via copper-catalyzed Ullmann-type N-arylation through the corresponding 5,6,7-trimethoxyindole and aryl halides. These synthesized compounds demonstrated potent antiproliferative activity providing a novel skeleton for potent tubulin polymerization inhibitors.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 4-aroyl-6,7,8-trimethoxyquinolines as a novel class of anticancer agents.

A series of 2-aroyl and 2-aryl-5,6,7-trimethoxyquinoline and 4-aroyl-6,7,8-trimethoxyquinoline combretastatin analogs were synthesized and evaluated for their potential anticancer activity. The 4-aroylquinoline 11 inhibited the growth of the human cancer cells lines KB, HT-29, and MKN45, as well as the three human resistant cancer cell lines KB-vin10, KB-S15, and KB-7D, with IC₅₀ values of 217, 327, 239, 246, 213, and 252 nM, respectively.

BPR0C261 is a novel orally active antitumor agent with antimitotic and anti-angiogenic activities.

BPR0C261 is a synthetic small molecule compound cytotoxic against human cancer cells and active prolonging the lifespan of leukemia mice. In the present study, we further investigated the mechanisms of its anticancer action and found that BPR0C261 inhibited microtubule polymerization through interacting with the colchicine binding sites on tubulins, disrupted microtubule arrangement and caused cell cycle arrest at G(2)/M phase in cancer cells. BPR0C261 also inhibited the clonogenic growths of cancer cells and showed cytotoxicity against human cervical cancer cells of multidrug-resistant phenotype.

Cancer cells acquire mitotic drug resistance properties through beta I-tubulin mutations and alterations in the expression of beta-tubulin isotypes.

Background: Anti-mitotic compounds (microtubule de-stabilizers) such as vincristine and vinblastine have been shown clinically successful in treating various cancers. However, development of drug-resistance cells limits their efficacies in clinical situations. Therefore, experiments were performed to determine possible drug resistance mechanisms related to the application of anti-mitotic cancer therapy.

5-Amino-2-aroylquinolines as highly potent tubulin polymerization inhibitors.

A series of aroylquinoline derivatives were synthesized and evaluated for anticancer activity. 5-Amino-6-methoxy-2-aroylquinoline 15 showed more potent antiproliferative activity (IC(50) values ranging from 0.2 to 0.

Chamaecypanone C, a novel skeleton microtubule inhibitor, with anticancer activity by trigger caspase 8-Fas/FasL dependent apoptotic pathway in human cancer cells.

Microtubule is a popular target for anticancer drugs. Chamaecypanone C, is a natural occurring novel skeleton compound isolated from the heartwood of Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana.

Antitumor activities and pharmacokinetics of silatecans DB-67 and DB-91.

DB-67 and its lactone homolog DB-91 are derivatives of topoisomerase I inhibitor camptothecin (CPT) with silyl moiety, which may exhibit a slower inactivation process by changed kinetics of protein binding and/or hydrolysis of its lactone ring and result in increased antitumor activity and decreased toxicity. Pharmacokinetic properties and antitumor activities of the two silatecans were studied and compared. The lactone ring of DB-91 is more stable than those of all the other CPT derivatives in mouse plasma.

Synthesis and evaluation of 3-aroylindoles as anticancer agents: metabolite approach.

BPR0L075 (2) is a potential anticancer drug candidate designed from Combretastatin A-4 (1) based on the bioisosterism principle. Metabolites of 2, proposed from in vitro human microsome studies, were synthesized, leading to the identification of metabolite-derived analogue 10 with 40-350 pM potency against various cancer cell lines. Insights gained from the major inactive metabolite of 2 led to the development of 29, with better pharmacokinetics and improved potency in the tumor xenograft model than 2.

Survivin counteracts the therapeutic effect of microtubule de-stabilizers by stabilizing tubulin polymers.

Background: Survivin is a dual function protein. It inhibits the apoptosis of cells by inhibiting caspases, and also promotes cell growth by stabilizing microtubules during mitosis. Over-expression of survivin has been demonstrated to induce drug-resistance to various chemo-therapeutic agents such as cisplatin (DNA damaging agent) and paclitaxel (microtubule stabilizer) in cancers.