COH-203, a novel microtubule inhibitor, exhibits potent anti-tumor activity via p53-dependent senescence in hepatocellular carcinoma.

5-(3-Hydroxy-4-methoxyphenyl)-4-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-3H-1,2-dithiol-3-one (COH-203) is a novel synthesized analogue of combretastatin A-4 that can be classified as a microtubule inhibitor. In this study, we evaluated the anti-hepatoma effect of COH-203 in vitro and in vivo and explored the underlying molecular mechanisms. COH-203 was shown to be more effective in inhibiting the proliferation of liver cancer cells compared with normal liver cells. COH-203 also displayed potent anti-tumor activity in a hepatocellular carcinoma xenograft model without significant toxicity. Mechanistic studies demonstrated that treatment with COH-203 induced mitotic arrest by inhibiting tubulin polymerization in BEL-7402 liver cancer cells. Long-term COH-203 treatment in BEL-7402 cells led to mitotic slippage followed by senescence via the p14(Arf)-p53-p21 and p16(INK4α)-Rb pathways. Furthermore, suppression of p53 via pifithrin-α (p53 inhibitor) and p53-siRNA attenuated COH-203-induced senescence in BEL-7402 cells, suggesting that COH-203 induced senescence p53-dependently. In conclusion, we report for the first time that COH-203, one compound in the combretastatin family, promotes anti-proliferative activity through the induction of p-53 dependent senescence. Our findings will provide a molecular rationale for the development of COH-203 as a promising anti-tumor agent.