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The complexation with organoruthenium fragments confers 4-anilinoquinazoline pharmacophores with higher potential for inducing cellular apoptosis while the highly inhibitory activity of 4-anilinoquinazolines against EGFR and the reactivity of the ruthenium centre to 9-ethylguanine are well preserved. Show less

Two series of tetrazole-containing platinum(II) and palladium(II) chlorido complexes, trans-[ML(2)Cl(2)] (M=Pt, Pd) and cis-[PtL(2)Cl(2)]·nH(2)O (n=0, 1), where L is 1- or 2-substituted 5-aminotetrazole, have been synthesized and thoroughly characterized. Configuration of platinum(II) complexes obtained from the reaction of 5-aminotetrazoles with K(2)PtCl(4) has been found to vary depending on the nature of tetrazole derivatives and reaction conditions. According to in vitro cytotoxic evaluation, only platinum complexes display noticeable antiproliferative effect, and their cytotoxicity depends strongly on their geometry and hydrophobicity of the carrier ligands. The most promising complexes are cis-[Pt(1-apt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O and cis-[Pt(2-abt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O, where 1-apt is 5-amino-1-phenyltetrazole and 2-abt is 5-amino-2-tert-butyltetrazole. In comparison with cisplatin, they show comparable cytotoxic potency against cisplatin-sensitive human cancer cell lines, cis-[Pt(2-abt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O performing substantially higher activity against cisplatin-resistant cell lines. Cell cycle studies in H1299 cell line indicated that cis-[Pt(2-abt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O induced apoptosis launched from G2 accumulations. The DNA interaction with cis-[Pt(1-apt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O was followed by UV spectroscopy, circular dichroism, hydrodynamic and electrophoretic mobility studies. Both cis-[Pt(1-apt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O and cis-[Pt(2-abt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O complexes appeared to be significantly less toxic than cisplatin in mice, while only compound cis-[Pt(1-apt)(2)Cl(2)]·H(2)O displayed noticeable efficacy in vivo. Show less

A ruthenium(II) β-carboline complex [Ru(tpy)(Nh)3](2+) (tpy = 2,2':6',2″-terpyridine, Nh = Norharman, Ru1) has been synthesized and characterized. This complex induced apoptosis against various cancer cell lines and had high selectivity between tumor cells and normal cells. In vivo examination indicated Ru1 decreased mouse MCF-7 and HepG2 tumor growth. Signaling pathways analysis demonstrated that this complex induced apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway, as evidenced by the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP, ΔΨm) and the release of cytochrome c. The resulting accumulation of p53 proteins from phosphorylation at Ser-15 and Ser-392 correlated with an increase in p21 and caspase activation. Taken together, these findings suggest that Ru1 exhibits high and selective cytotoxicity induced p53-mediated apoptosis and may contribute to the future development of improved chemotherapeutics against human cancers. Show less

The targeted activation of nuclear factor erythroid-derived-2-like 2 (Nrf2) to alleviate symptoms of chronic kidney disease has recently garnered much attention. Unfortunately, the greatest clinical success to date, bardoxolone, failed in phase III clinical trial for unspecified safety reasons. The present letter to the editor discusses the clinical development of bardoxolone and explores potential reasons for the ultimate withdrawal from clinical trials. In particular, was the correct clinical indication pursued and would improved specificity have mitigated the safety concerns? Ultimately, it is concluded that the right clinical indication and heightened specificity will lead to successful Nrf2-based therapies. Therefore, the bardoxolone clinical results do not dampen enthusiasm for Nrf2-based therapies; rather it illuminates the clinical potential of the Nrf2 pathway as a drug target. Show less

We report crystallographic evidence for the significance of C–H⋯π hydrogen bonds in the crystal stabilization of 1,4-di-O-benzoyl-myo-inositol. The strength of this otherwise weak hydrogen bond matches with the strength of O–H⋯O hydrogen bonds. Show less

Nucleotide excision repair is the sole mechanism for removing the major UV photoproducts from genomic DNA in human cells. In vitro with human cell-free extract or purified excision repair factors, the damage is removed from naked DNA or nucleosomes in the form of 24- to 32-nucleotide-long oligomers (nominal 30-mer) by dual incisions. Whether the DNA damage is removed from chromatin in vivo in a similar manner and what the fate of the excised oligomer was has not been known previously. Here, we demonstrate that dual incisions occur in vivo identical to the in vitro reaction. Further, we show that transcription-coupled repair, which operates in the absence of the XPC protein, also generates the nominal 30-mer in UV-irradiated XP-C mutant cells. Finally, we report that the excised 30-mer is released from the chromatin in complex with the repair factors TFIIH and XPG. Taken together, our results show the congruence of in vivo and in vitro data on nucleotide excision repair in humans. Show less

Nucleotide excision repair is the sole mechanism for removing the major UV photoproducts from genomic DNA in human cells. In vitro with human cell-free extract or purified excision repair factors, the damage is removed from naked DNA or nucleosomes in the form of 24- to 32-nucleotide-long oligomers (nominal 30-mer) by dual incisions. Whether the DNA damage is removed from chromatin in vivo in a similar manner and what the fate of the excised oligomer was has not been known previously. Here, we demonstrate that dual incisions occur in vivo identical to the in vitro reaction. Further, we show that transcription-coupled repair, which operates in the absence of the XPC protein, also generates the nominal 30-mer in UV-irradiated XP-C mutant cells. Finally, we report that the excised 30-mer is released from the chromatin in complex with the repair factors TFIIH and XPG. Taken together, our results show the congruence of in vivo and in vitro data on nucleotide excision repair in humans. Show less

Life is the harnessing of chemical energy in such a way that the energy-harnessing device makes a copy of itself. This paper outlines an energetically feasible path from a particular inorganic setting for the origin of life to the first free-living cells. The sources of energy available to early organic synthesis, early evolving systems and early cells stand in the foreground, as do the possible mechanisms of their conversion into harnessable chemical energy for synthetic reactions. With regard to the possible temporal sequence of events, we focus on: (i) alkaline hydrothermal vents as the far-from-equilibrium setting, (ii) the Wood-Ljungdahl (acetyl-CoA) pathway as the route that could have underpinned carbon assimilation for these processes, (iii) biochemical divergence, within the naturally formed inorganic compartments at a hydrothermal mound, of geochemically confined replicating entities with a complexity below that of free-living prokaryotes, and (iv) acetogenesis and methanogenesis as the ancestral forms of carbon and energy metabolism in the first free-living ancestors of the eubacteria and archaebacteria, respectively. In terms of the main evolutionary transitions in early bioenergetic evolution, we focus on: (i) thioester-dependent substrate-level phosphorylations, (ii) harnessing of naturally existing proton gradients at the vent-ocean interface via the ATP synthase, (iii) harnessing of Na(+) gradients generated by H(+)/Na(+) antiporters, (iv) flavin-based bifurcation-dependent gradient generation, and finally (v) quinone-based (and Q-cycle-dependent) proton gradient generation. Of those five transitions, the first four are posited to have taken place at the vent. Ultimately, all of these bioenergetic processes depend, even today, upon CO2 reduction with low-potential ferredoxin (Fd), generated either chemosynthetically or photosynthetically, suggesting a reaction of the type 'reduced iron → reduced carbon' at the beginning of bioenergetic evolution. Show less

Computational modeling has been adopted in all aspects of drug research and development, from the early phases of target identification and drug discovery to the late-stage clinical trials. The different questions addressed during each stage of drug R&D has led to the emergence of different modeling methodologies. In the research phase, systems biology couples experimental data with elaborate computational modeling techniques to capture lifecycle and effector cellular functions (e.g. metabolism, signaling, transcription regulation, protein synthesis and interaction) and integrates them in quantitative models. These models are subsequently used in various ways, i.e. to identify new targets, generate testable hypotheses, gain insights on the drug’s mode of action (MOA), translate preclinical findings, and assess the potential of clinical drug efficacy and toxicity. In the development phase, pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) modeling is the established way to determine safe and efficacious doses for testing at increasingly larger, and more pertinent to the target indication, cohorts of subjects. First, the relationship between drug input and its concentration in plasma is established. Second, the relationship between this concentration and desired or undesired PD responses is ascertained. Recognizing that the interface of systems biology with PK/PD will facilitate drug development, systems pharmacology came into existence, combining methods from PK/PD modeling and systems engineering explicitly to account for the implicated mechanisms of the target system in the study of drug–target interactions. Herein, a number of popular system biology methodologies are discussed, which could be leveraged within a systems pharmacology framework to address major issues in drug development. © 2013 The Authors. Biopharmaceutics & Drug Disposition published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Key words: systems pharmacology; systems biology; modeling of signaling pathways; identification of drug mode of action; prediction of clinical drug efficacy Show less

TLDR: The title compound was found to exhibit strong cytotoxicity, showing 85 fold greater toxicity than cisplatin on the HCT-116 line and was particularly effective in inhibiting thioredoxin reductase and subsequent apoptosis induction via the mitochondrial pathway. Show less

Human cells lacking DNA polymerase η (polη) are sensitive to platinum-based cancer chemotherapeutic agents. Using DNA combing to directly investigate the role of polη in bypass of platinum-induced DNA lesions in vivo, we demonstrate that nascent DNA strands are up to 39% shorter in human cells lacking polη than in cells expressing polη. This provides the first direct evidence that polη modulates replication fork progression in vivo following cisplatin and carboplatin treatment. Severe replication inhibition in individual platinum-treated polη-deficient cells correlates with enhanced phosphorylation of the RPA2 subunit of replication protein A on serines 4 and 8, as determined using EdU labelling and immunofluorescence, consistent with formation of DNA strand breaks at arrested forks in the absence of polη. Polη-mediated bypass of platinum-induced DNA lesions may therefore represent one mechanism by which cancer cells can tolerate platinum-based chemotherapy. Show less

AbstractNew water‐soluble phosphanes derived from 1,3,5‐triaza‐7‐phosphaadamantane, namely, [PTA–R]Br (R = –CH2C≡CH, –CH2CONH2, –CH2COOH), are described. Coordination of these phosphanes and their previously reported counterparts (R = –CH2CN, –CH2Ph and –CH2COOMe) to gold(I) salts gives water‐soluble derivatives with chlorido, bromido or pentafluorophenyl coligands. The luminescence properties of all new compounds have been studied in the solid state and compared with the respective free PTA ligands. [PTA–CH2Ph]Br, [PTA–CH2COOMe]Br and [AuBr(PTA–CH2Ph)]Br have also been characterised by X‐ray diffraction analysis. Some of the new gold(I) compounds exhibit strong antiproliferative effects in the human ovarian carcinoma cell line A2780 and its cisplatin‐resistant variant (A2780cisR). A balanced relationship between lipophilicity and hydrophilicity is found in these derivatives, with distribution coefficients (log D7.4) that range from 0.14 to –0.40. Show less

A series of new organoiridium(III) complexes [Ir(N-C)(2)(N-S)]Cl (HN-C = 2-phenylpyridine (Hppy), N-S = methyl thiosemicarbazide (1), phenyl thiosemicarbazide (2) and naphtyl thiosemicarbazide (3)) have been synthesized and characterized. The crystal structure of (1) has been established by X-ray diffraction, showing the thiosemicarbazide ligand bound to the iridium atom as N,S-chelate. The cytotoxicity studies show that they are more active than cisplatin (about 5-fold) in T47D (breast cancer) at 48 h incubation time. On the other hand, very low resistance factors (RF) of 1-3 in A2780cisR (cisplatin-resistant ovarian carcinoma) at 48 h were observed (RF ≈ 1). Ir accumulation in T47D cell line after 48 h continuous exposure for complexes 1-3 are higher than that corresponding to cisplatin (about 10 times). The complexes 1-3 bind strongly to HSA with binding constants of about 10(4) M(-1) at 296 K, binding occurring at the warfarin site I for 2. Complexes 2 and 3 are also capable of binding in the minor groove of DNA as shown by Hoechst 33258 displacement experiments. Furthermore, complex 2 is also a good cathepsin B inhibitor (an enzyme implicated in a number of cancer related events), being the enzyme reactivated by cysteine. Show less