Yuqing Liu

Novel Histone Demethylase LSD1 Inhibitors Selectively Target Cancer Cells with Pluripotent Stem Cell Properties

Histone modification determines epigenetic patterns of gene expression with methylation of histone H3 at lysine 4 (H3K4) often associated with active promoters. LSD1/KDM1 is a histone demethylase that suppresses gene expression by converting dimethylated H3K4 to mono- and unmethylated H3K4. LSD1 is essential for metazoan development, but its pathophysiologic functions in cancer remain mainly uncharacterized. In this study, we developed specific bioactive small inhibitors of LSD1 that enhance H3K4 methylation and derepress epigenetically suppressed genes in vivo. Strikingly, these compounds inhibited the proliferation of pluripotent cancer cells including teratocarcinoma, embryonic carcinoma, and seminoma or embryonic stem cells that express the stem cell markers Oct4 and Sox2 while displaying minimum growth-inhibitory effects on non-pluripotent cancer or normal somatic cells. RNA interference-mediated knockdown of LSD1 expression phenocopied these effects, confirming the specificity of small molecules and further establishing the high degree of sensitivity and selectivity of pluripotent cancer cells to LSD1 ablation. In support of these results, we found that LSD1 protein level is highly elevated in pluripotent cancer cells and in human testicular seminoma tissues that express Oct4. Using these novel chemical inhibitors as probes, our findings establish LSD1 and histone H3K4 methylation as essential cancer-selective epigenetic targets in cancer cells that have pluripotent stem cell properties.

Inhibition of PDGF, TGF-β, and Abl signaling and reduction of liver fibrosis by the small molecule Bcr-Abl tyrosine kinase antagonist Nilotinib

BACKGROUND & AIMS Nilotinib is a novel tyrosine kinase inhibitor of Bcr-Abl and other kinases. In this study, we have examined its activity as an anti-fibrotic agent. METHODS The in vitro effect of Nilotinib on rat and human HSCs was assessed using proliferation assays and Western blotting. The in vivo antifibrotic efficacy of Nilotinib was assessed in mice with liver fibrosis induced by CCl(4) and bile duct ligation (BDL). RESULTS Nilotinib inhibited proliferation, migration, and actin filament formation, as well as the expression of α-SMA and collagen in activated HSCs. Nilotinib induced apoptosis of HSCs, which was correlated with reduced bcl-2 expression, increased p53 expression, cleavage of PARP, as well as increased expression of PPARγ and TRAIL-R. Nilotinib also induced cell cycle arrest, accompanied by increased expression of p27 and downregulation of cyclin D1. Interestingly, Nilotinib not only inhibited activation of PDGFR, but also TGFRII through Src. Nilotinib significantly inhibited PDGF and TGFβ-simulated phosphorylation of ERK and Akt. Furthermore, PDGF- and TGFβ-activated phosphorylated form(s) of Abl in human HSCs were inhibited by Nilotinib. In vivo, Nilotinib reduced collagen deposition and α-SMA expression in CCl(4) and BDL-induced fibrosis. These beneficial effects were associated with suppressed expression of procollagen-(I), TIMP-1, CD31, CD34, VEGF, and VEGFR. Nilotinib could induce HSC undergoing apoptosis in vivo, which was correlated with downregulation of bcl-2. We also observed reduced expression of phosphorylated ERK, Akt, and Abl in the Nilotinib-treated CCl(4) and BDL livers. In addition to its antifibrotic activity, the drug was hepatoprotective and reduced the elevations of ALT and AST after CCl(4) and BDL. CONCLUSIONS These studies uncover a novel role of Bcr-Abl activity in treatment of liver fibrosis through multiple mechanisms and indicate that Nilotinib represents a potentially effective antifibrotic agent.

Both antiangiogenesis- and angiogenesis-independent effects are responsible for hepatocellular carcinoma growth arrest by tyrosine kinase inhibitor PTK787/ZK222584.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) plays an important role in tumor angiogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma. Inhibition of VEGF receptors could theoretically reduce angiogenesis and tumor growth in hepatocellular carcinoma, but this remains to be proven with an experimental study. This study examined the angiogenesis-dependent and angiogenesis-independent activities of PTK787/ZK222584 (PTK787), a tyrosine kinase inhibitor of VEGF receptors, in nude mice bearing human hepatocellular carcinoma xenografts. The in vitro effects of PTK787 on proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle distribution in human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines were also studied. Oral administration of PTK787 resulted in a significant reduction in tumor volume and microvessel formation of hepatocellular carcinoma xenografts in nude mice. PTK787 inhibited tumor cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner and also induced tumor cells to undergo apoptosis both in vivo and in vitro. The proapoptotic response was associated with down-regulation of Bcl-2 and Bcl-x(L) expression and induction of cleavage of caspase-3. In addition, PTK787 induced growth arrest in hepatocellular carcinoma cells, which was associated with G1 arrest and partial G2-M block. This effect correlated with an increase in p21(WAF1/ CIP1) (p21) and p27KIP1 (p27) protein expression. In conclusion, this study showed that PTK787 is a potent inhibitor of tumor growth in hepatocellular carcinoma by both antiangiogenic effect and direct effects on tumor cell proliferation and apoptosis. Our data suggest that blockage of VEGF receptors may provide an effective therapeutic approach for human hepatocellular carcinoma.

Pluripotent Stem Cell Protein Sox2 Confers Sensitivity to LSD1 Inhibition in Cancer Cells

Gene amplification of Sox2 at 3q26.33 is a common event in squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) of the lung and esophagus, as well as several other cancers. Here, we show that the expression of LSD1/KDM1 histone demethylase is significantly elevated in Sox2-expressing lung SCCs. LSD1-specific inhibitors selectively impair the growth of Sox2-expressing lung SCCs, but not that of Sox2-negative cells. Sox2 expression is associated with sensitivity to LSD1 inhibition in lung, breast, ovarian, and other carcinoma cells. Inactivation of LSD1 reduces Sox2 expression, promotes G1 cell-cycle arrest, and induces genes for differentiation by selectively modulating the methylation states of histone H3 at lysines 4 (H3K4) and 9 (H3K9). Reduction of Sox2 further suppresses Sox2-dependent lineage-survival oncogenic potential, elevates trimethylation of histone H3 at lysine 27 (H3K27) and enhances growth arrest and cellular differentiation. Our studies suggest that LSD1 serves as a selective epigenetic target for therapy in Sox2-expressing cancers.

Therapeutic targeting of the PDGF and TGF-β-signaling pathways in hepatic stellate cells by PTK787/ZK22258

Stimulation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) by platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) is an essential pathway of proliferation and fibrogenesis, respectively, in liver fibrosis. We provide evidence that PTK787/ZK222584 (PTK/ZK), a potent tyrosine kinase inhibitor that blocks vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR), significantly inhibits PDGF receptor expression, as well as PDGF-simulated HSC proliferation, migration and phosphorylation of ERK1/2, Akt and p70S6 kinase. Interestingly, PTK/ZK also antagonizes the TGF-β1-induced expression of VEGF and VEGFR1. Furthermore, PTK/ZK downregulates TGF-β receptor expression, which is associated with reduced Akt, ERK and p38MAPK phosphorylation. Furthermore, PDGF-induced TGF-β1 expression is inhibited by PTK/ZK. These findings provide evidence that PTK/ZK targets multiple essential pathways of stellate cell activation that provoke proliferation and fibrogenesis. Our study underscores the potential use of PTK/ZK as an antifibrotic drug in chronic liver disease.

A histone deacetylase inhibitor, largazole, decreases liver fibrosis and angiogenesis by inhibiting transforming growth factor-β and vascular endothelial growth factor signalling.

Largazole is a novel histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. This study investigated the effects of largazole against liver fibrosis.

Total synthesis and stereochemical reassignment of bisebromoamide.

A revised configurational assignment for the thiazoline moiety of the marine peptide bisebromoamide is proposed and validated by total synthesis.

Total Synthesis and Stereochemical Reassignment of Mandelalide A

The total synthesis of the tunicate metabolite mandelalide A and the correction of its originally assigned stereochemistry are reported. Key features of the convergent, fully stereocontrolled route include the use of a Prins cyclization for the diastereoselective construction of the tetrahydropyran subunit, Rychnovsky-Bartlett cyclization for the preparation of the tetrahydrofuran moiety, Suzuki coupling, Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons macrocyclization, and glycosylation to append the L-rhamnose-derived pyranoside.

Total synthesis of sintokamide C.

A convergent stereoselective synthesis of sintokamide C was accomplished in 14 steps with an overall yield of 3.8% starting from Garners aldehyde, unambiguously confirming its structure.

LSD1 Regulates Pluripotency of Embryonic Stem/Carcinoma Cells through Histone Deacetylase 1-Mediated Deacetylation of Histone H4 at Lysine 16

ABSTRACT LSD1 is essential for the maintenance of pluripotency of embryonic stem (ES) or embryonic carcinoma/teratocarcinoma (EC) cells. We have previously developed novel LSD1 inhibitors that selectively inhibit ES/EC cells. However, the critical targets of LSD1 remain unclear. Here, we found that LSD1 interacts with histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) to regulate the proliferation of ES/EC cells through acetylation of histone H4 at lysine 16 (H4K16), which we show is a critical substrate of HDAC1. The LSD1 demethylase and HDAC1 deacetylase activities were both inactivated if one of them in the complex was chemically inhibited in ES/EC cells or in reconstituted protein complexes. Loss of HDAC1 phenocopied the selective growth-inhibitory effects and increased the levels of H3K4 methylation and H4K16 acetylation of LSD1 inactivation on ES/EC cells. Reduction of acetylated H4K16 by ablation of the acetyltransferase males absent on the first (MOF) is sufficient to rescue the growth inhibition induced by LSD1 inactivation. While LSD1 or HDAC1 inactivation caused the downregulation of Sox2 and Oct4 and induction of differentiation genes, such as FOXA2 or BMP2, depletion of MOF restored the levels of Sox2, Oct4, and FoxA2 in LSD1-deficient cells. Our studies reveal a novel mechanism by which LSD1 acts through the HDAC1- and MOF-mediated regulation of H4K16 acetylation to maintain the pluripotency of ES/EC cells.