nsc-95397 and Neoplasms

Cell division cycle phosphatases CDC25 A, B and C are involved in modulating cell cycle processes and are found overexpressed in a large panel of cancer typology. Here, we describe the development of two novel quinone-polycycle series of CDC25A and C inhibitors on the one hand 1a-k, coumarin-based, and on the other 2a-g, quinolinone-based, which inhibit either enzymes up to a sub-micro molar level and at single-digit micro molar concentrations, respectively. When tested in six different cancer cell lines, compound 2c displayed the highest efficacy to arrest cell viability, showing in almost all cell lines sub-micro molar IC

Topics: Antineoplastic Agents; Apoptosis; cdc25 Phosphatases; Cell Cycle; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation; Coumarins; Enzyme Inhibitors; Humans; Neoplasms; Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship; Quinolones

Cdc25 phosphatases have been considered as attractive drug targets for anticancer therapy due to the correlation of their overexpression with a wide variety of cancers. We have been able to identify 32 novel Cdc25 phosphatase inhibitors with micromolar activity by means of a structure-based de novo design method with the two known inhibitor scaffolds. Because the newly discovered inhibitors are structurally diverse and have desirable physicochemical properties as a drug candidate, they deserve further investigation as anticancer drugs. The differences in binding modes of the identified inhibitors in the active sites of Cdc25A and B are addressed in detail.

Topics: Antineoplastic Agents; Catalytic Domain; cdc25 Phosphatases; Cell Line, Tumor; Chemistry, Pharmaceutical; Computer Simulation; Drug Design; Enzyme Inhibitors; Humans; Inhibitory Concentration 50; Models, Chemical; Molecular Conformation; Neoplasms; Structure-Activity Relationship

The identification of self-renewing and multipotent neural stem cells (NSCs) in the mammalian brain holds promise for the treatment of neurological diseases and has yielded new insight into brain cancer. However, the complete repertoire of signaling pathways that governs the proliferation and self-renewal of NSCs, which we refer to as the 'ground state', remains largely uncharacterized. Although the candidate gene approach has uncovered vital pathways in NSC biology, so far only a few highly studied pathways have been investigated. Based on the intimate relationship between NSC self-renewal and neurosphere proliferation, we undertook a chemical genetic screen for inhibitors of neurosphere proliferation in order to probe the operational circuitry of the NSC. The screen recovered small molecules known to affect neurotransmission pathways previously thought to operate primarily in the mature central nervous system; these compounds also had potent inhibitory effects on cultures enriched for brain cancer stem cells. These results suggest that clinically approved neuromodulators may remodel the mature central nervous system and find application in the treatment of brain cancer.

Topics: Animals; Cell Survival; Cells, Cultured; Mice; Molecular Structure; Neoplasms; Neurons; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Sensitivity and Specificity; Stem Cells