Human malignancies exhibit elevated levels of homologous recombinational (HR) DNA repair proficiency, and we propose that this common feature of malignancy can be exploited therapeutically. We have supported this central hypothesis by developing drug candidates that specifically inhibit HR and overcome the treatment resistance associated with HR up-regulation in cancer cells. Our renewal application builds on these drug discovery efforts and explores novel applications for compounds that target the central HR protein, RAD51. The major hypotheses and goals of this proposal are as follow: First, we will further optimize RAD51-inhibitory compounds with the goal of overcoming tumor resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. We will develop a novel class of compounds that target a specialized activity of RAD51, which we hypothesize will generate less toxicity than more generalized RAD51 inhibitors. Second, we hypothesize that RAD51-inhibitory compounds will inactivate an HR-related mechanism called alternative lengthening of telomere (ALT), which is required for cell proliferation in some cancer subtypes. Since normal human cells exclusively utilize telomerase instead of ALT to maintain their telomeres, we predict that RAD51 inhibition will force ALT-dependent tumor cells into senescence while exerting little or no normal tissue toxicity. Third, we hypothesize that RAD51-stimulatory compounds can specifically promote death in tumor cells that overexpress RAD51. This concept builds on our observations that high levels of RAD51 overexpression cause the formation of toxic RAD51 protein complexes on undamaged chromatin in cancer cells. We have also shown that RAD51-stimulatory compounds accentuate this potentially toxic feature in susceptible cancer types. All of these hypotheses wil be tested using the same three integrated aims, which incorporate a wide range of drug development methods.
The first aim will consist of medicinal chemistry optimization and ADMET testing. Specifically, the structures of our lead RAD51-modulating compounds will be optimized via targeted chemical modifications aimed at improving both activity and pharmacologic properties. In the second aim, we will characterize the activity and specificity of RAD51-modulating compounds, using both purified in vitro biochemical systems and cell-based assays.
The third aim will validate the highest priority compounds in animal models. RAD51-inhibitory compounds will be tested in two mouse models to confirm that they: 1) sensitize human tumor xenografts to treatment with replication-disrupting chemotherapeutic drugs and/or radiation, and 2) prevent the ALT-dependent cancer cells from forming lung metastases in mice. RAD51- stimulatory compounds will be tested for the ability to shrink susceptible tumor types, by catalyzing toxic RAD51 protein aggregation on undamaged chromatin. Our ultimate goal is to generate two or three drug candidates that are suitable for extended pharmacologic testing and subsequent testing in clinical trials.

Public Health Relevance

Human malignancies exhibit elevated levels of homologous recombinational (HR) DNA repair proficiency, and we propose that this common feature of malignancy can be exploited therapeutically. By specifically targeting the central HR protein RAD51, we are developing drug candidates that either exert single- agent anti-cancer activities or sensitize tumors to existing oncology treatments. The aims of this project incorporate a wide range of drug development methods, ranging from chemical synthesis of novel small molecules to pre-clinical testing of drug candidates in animals.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01CA142642-07
Application #
9102981
Study Section
Drug Discovery and Molecular Pharmacology Study Section (DMP)
Program Officer
Kondapaka, Sudhir B
Project Start
2009-12-01
Project End
2020-06-30
Budget Start
2016-07-01
Budget End
2017-06-30
Support Year
7
Fiscal Year
2016
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Chicago
Department
Radiation-Diagnostic/Oncology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
005421136
City
Chicago
State
IL
Country
United States
Zip Code
60637
Pitroda, Sean P; Bao, Riyue; Andrade, Jorge et al. (2017) Low Recombination Proficiency Score (RPS) Predicts Heightened Sensitivity to DNA-Damaging Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer. Clin Cancer Res 23:4493-4500
Budke, Brian; Lv, Wei; Kozikowski, Alan P et al. (2016) Recent Developments Using Small Molecules to Target RAD51: How to Best Modulate RAD51 for Anticancer Therapy? ChemMedChem 11:2468-2473
Lv, Wei; Budke, Brian; Pawlowski, Michal et al. (2016) Development of Small Molecules that Specifically Inhibit the D-loop Activity of RAD51. J Med Chem 59:4511-25
Thierry, Sylvain; Benleulmi, Mohamed Salah; Sinzelle, Ludivine et al. (2015) Dual and Opposite Effects of hRAD51 Chemical Modulation on HIV-1 Integration. Chem Biol 22:712-23
Mason, Jennifer M; Dusad, Kritika; Wright, William Douglass et al. (2015) RAD54 family translocases counter genotoxic effects of RAD51 in human tumor cells. Nucleic Acids Res 43:3180-96
Mason, Jennifer M; Logan, Hillary L; Budke, Brian et al. (2014) The RAD51-stimulatory compound RS-1 can exploit the RAD51 overexpression that exists in cancer cells and tumors. Cancer Res 74:3546-55
Pitroda, Sean P; Pashtan, Itai M; Logan, Hillary L et al. (2014) DNA repair pathway gene expression score correlates with repair proficiency and tumor sensitivity to chemotherapy. Sci Transl Med 6:229ra42
Budke, Brian; Kalin, Jay H; Pawlowski, Michal et al. (2013) An optimized RAD51 inhibitor that disrupts homologous recombination without requiring Michael acceptor reactivity. J Med Chem 56:254-63
Connell, Philip P; Weichselbaum, Ralph R (2013) Small molecule derived from a natural product that mitigates radiation injury. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 110:18355-6
Liauw, Stanley L; Connell, Philip P; Weichselbaum, Ralph R (2013) New paradigms and future challenges in radiation oncology: an update of biological targets and technology. Sci Transl Med 5:173sr2

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