Cynthia Licona

Discovery and Investigation of Anticancer Ruthenium–Arene Schiff-Base Complexes via Water-Promoted Combinatorial Three-Component Assembly

The structural diversity of metal scaffolds makes them a viable alternative to traditional organic scaffolds for drug design. Combinatorial chemistry and multicomponent reactions, coupled with high-throughput screening, are useful techniques in drug discovery, but they are rarely used in metal-based drug design. We report the optimization and validation of a new combinatorial, metal-based, three-component assembly reaction for the synthesis of a library of 442 Ru-arene Schiff-base (RAS) complexes. These RAS complexes were synthesized in a one-pot, on-a-plate format using commercially available starting materials under aqueous conditions. The library was screened for their anticancer activity, and several cytotoxic lead compounds were identified. In particular, [(η6-1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene)RuCl(4-methoxy-N-(2-quinolinylmethylene)aniline)]Cl (4) displayed low micromolar IC50 values in ovarian cancers (A2780, A2780cisR), breast cancer (MCF7), and colorectal cancer (HCT116, SW480). The absence of p53 activation or changes in IC50 value between p53+/+ and p53-/- cells suggests that 4 and possibly the other lead compounds may act independently of the p53 tumor suppressor gene frequently mutated in cancer.

Induction of caspase 8 and reactive oxygen species by ruthenium-derived anticancer compounds with improved water solubility and cytotoxicity

Organometallic compounds which contain metals, such as ruthenium or gold, have been investigated as a replacement for platinum-derived anticancer drugs. They often show good antitumor effects, but the identification of their precise mode of action or their pharmacological optimization is still challenging. We have previously described a class of ruthenium(II) compounds with interesting anticancer properties. In comparison to cisplatin, these molecules have lower side effects, a reduced ability to interact with DNA, and they induce cell death in absence of p53 through CHOP/DDIT3. We have now optimized these molecules by improving their cytotoxicity and their water solubility. In this article, we demonstrate that by changing the ligands around the ruthenium we modify the ability of the compounds to interact with DNA. We show that these optimized molecules reduce tumor growth in different mouse models and retain their ability to induce CHOP/DDIT3. However, they are more potent inducers of cancer cell death and trigger the production of reactive oxygen species and the activation of caspase 8. More importantly, we show that blocking reactive oxygen species production or caspase 8 activity reduces significantly the activity of the compounds. Altogether our data suggest that water-soluble ruthenium(II)-derived compounds represent an interesting class of molecules that, depending on their structures, can target several pro-apoptotic signaling pathways leading to reactive oxygen species production and caspase 8 activation.

Subcellular localization and transport kinetics of ruthenium organometallic anticancer compounds in living cells: a dose-dependent role for amino acid and iron transporters.

Ruthenium-based compounds are developed for anticancer treatment, but their mode of action including their import mechanism and subcellular localization remains elusive. Here, we used the intrinsic luminescent properties of cytotoxic organoruthenium (Ru(II)) compounds obtained with an anionic cyclometalated 2-phenylpyridine chelate and neutral aromatic chelating ligands (e.g., phenanthrolines) to follow their behavior in living cells. We established that the difference in sensitivity between cancer cells and noncancerous cells toward one of the compounds correlates with its import kinetics and follows a balance between active and passive transport. The active-transport mechanism involves iron and amino-acid transporters, which are transcriptionally regulated by the drug. We also demonstrated a correlation between the accumulation of these compounds in specific compartments (endoplasmic reticulum, nucleus, mitochondria) and the activation of specific cytotoxic mechanisms such as the mitochondrial stress pathway. Our study pinpoints a novel and complex mechanism of accumulation of ruthenium drugs in cancer cells.

Regulation of a Notch3-Hes1 Pathway and Protective Effect by a Tocopherol-Omega Alkanol Chain Derivative in Muscle Atrophy

Muscular atrophy, a physiopathologic process associated with severe human diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or cancer, has been linked to reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. The Notch pathway plays a role in muscle development and in muscle regeneration upon physical injury. In this study, we explored the possibility that the Notch pathway participates in the ROS-related muscular atrophy occurring in cancer-associated cachexia and ALS. We also tested whether hybrid compounds of tocopherol, harboring antioxidant activity, and the omega-alkanol chain, presenting cytoprotective activity, might reduce muscle atrophy and impact the Notch pathway. We identified one tocopherol-omega alkanol chain derivative, AGT251, protecting myoblastic cells against known cytotoxic agents. We showed that this compound presenting antioxidant activity counteracts the induction of the Notch pathway by cytotoxic stress, leading to a decrease of Notch1 and Notch3 expression. At the functional level, these regulations correlated with a repression of the Notch target gene Hes1 and the atrophy/remodeling gene MuRF1. Importantly, we also observed an induction of Notch3 and Hes1 expression in two murine models of muscle atrophy: a doxorubicin-induced cachexia model and an ALS murine model expressing mutated superoxide dismutase 1. In both models, the induction of Notch3 and Hes1 were partially opposed by AGT251, which correlated with ameliorations in body and muscle weight, reduction of muscular atrophy markers, and improved survival. Altogether, we identified a compound of the tocopherol family that protects against muscle atrophy in various models, possibly through the regulation of the Notch pathway.

A ruthenium anticancer compound interacts with histones and impacts differently on epigenetic and death pathways compared to cisplatin

Ruthenium complexes are considered as potential replacements for platinum compounds in oncotherapy. Their clinical development is handicapped by a lack of consensus on their mode of action. In this study, we identify three histones (H3.1, H2A, H2B) as possible targets for an anticancer redox organoruthenium compound (RDC11). Using purified histones, we confirmed an interaction between the ruthenium complex and histones that impacted on histone complex formation. A comparative study of the ruthenium complex versus cisplatin showed differential epigenetic modifications on histone H3 that correlated with differential expression of histone deacetylase (HDAC) genes. We then characterized the impact of these epigenetic modifications on signaling pathways employing a transcriptomic approach. Clustering analyses showed gene expression signatures specific for cisplatin (42%) and for the ruthenium complex (30%). Signaling pathway analyses pointed to specificities distinguishing the ruthenium complex from cisplatin. For instance, cisplatin triggered preferentially p53 and folate biosynthesis while the ruthenium complex induced endoplasmic reticulum stress and trans-sulfuration pathways. To further understand the role of HDACs in these regulations, we used suberanilohydroxamic acid (SAHA) and showed that it synergized with cisplatin cytotoxicity while antagonizing the ruthenium complex activity. This study provides critical information for the characterization of signaling pathways differentiating both compounds, in particular, by the identification of a non-DNA direct target for an organoruthenium complex.

A redox ruthenium compound directly targets PHD2 and inhibits the HIF1 pathway to reduce tumor angiogenesis independently of p53

Targeting specific tumor metabolic needs represents an actively investigated therapeutic strategy to bypass tumor resistance mechanisms. In this study, we describe an original approach to impact the cancer metabolism by exploiting the redox properties of a ruthenium organometallic compound. This organometallic complex induced p53-independent cytotoxicity and reduced size and vascularization of patients-derived tumor explants that are resistant to platinum drugs. At the molecular level, the ruthenium complex altered redox enzyme activities and the intracellular redox state by increasing the NAD+/NADH ratio and ROS levels. Pathway analysis pointed to HIF-1 as a top deregulated metabolite pathway. Unlike cisplatin, treatment with the ruthenium complex decreased HIF1A protein levels and expression of HIF1A target genes. The rapid downregulation of HIF1A protein levels involved a direct interaction of the ruthenium compound with the redox enzyme PHD2, a HIF1A master regulator. HIF1A inhibition led to decreased angiogenesis in patient-derived xenografted using fragments of primary human colon tumors. Altogether, our results show that a ruthenium compound impacts metabolic pathways acting as anticancer agents in colon cancer via an original mechanism of action that affects redox enzymes differently than platinum-based drugs.