This application outlines a multidisciplinary research program at the cross-section of anticancer drug development, molecular and structural biology, and biocoordination chemistry. The proposed research was sparked by the recent discovery of the unusual DNA damage profile of a cytotoxic platinum-acridine hybrid agent (""""""""PT-ACRAMTU""""""""). Unlike the clinical cisplatin-based agents, this drug does not cross-link DNA bases but induces structurally unique coordinative-intercalative monoadducts in both the DNA major and minor grooves. In particular, the formation of adducts with adenine-N3 in the minor groove is a damage mechanism previously unknown in platinum antitumor chemistry. Novel types of DNA lesions, such as PT-ACRAMTU's monoadducts, have the potential to overcome tumor resistance by providing alternate pathways to cell death and therefore should be pursued rigorously at the preclinical development stage. PT-ACRAMTU-type conjugates have demonstrated enhanced cytotoxic activity compared with cisplatin in various solid tumors, especially non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC), which are difficult to treat with current regimens. Spanning the range from basic science to biomedical application, the proposed experiments aim to unravel the agent's unusual DNA-binding mechanism and elucidate the DNA structural impact caused by its adducts. The results expected from these studies will be used to develop the prototypical agent, which has already demonstrated potent activity in xenograft models, into a clinically useful therapy that acts through a mechanism unlike that of clinical platinum drugs. Specifically, the research will (1) use modular synthesis to produce PT-ACRAMTU derivatives with enhanced target selectivity and minimal side effects, (2) study their DNA-damage profiles using newly developed (bio)chemical assays, (3) test the hypothesis that PT-ACRAMTU-type adducts are able to evade nucleotide excision repair (NER) because they do not bend or destabilize DNA, and (4) establish relationships between chemical properties, the specific type of lesion formed within nuclear DNA, its persistence in NER-proficient cells, and its cytotoxic and antitumor potential. Thus, the study holds considerable promise of providing novel chemotypes that show activity in tumors inherently insensitive to platinum and chemotherapeutic intervention in general and salvage therapies for cancers that have acquired resistance to cisplatin and other DNA-targeted drugs.

Public Health Relevance

The research described in this proposal is centered on the development of a new platinum-based cancer treatment for chemoresistant using a unique chemical approach. The study has the potential to identify a new class of anticancer drugs for the management of intractable tumors, especially non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLC), based on a unique mechanism of action at the cancer cell's DNA previously unknown for platinum containing chemotherapies currently used in the clinic.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01CA101880-07
Application #
8067157
Study Section
Synthetic and Biological Chemistry A Study Section (SBCA)
Program Officer
Lees, Robert G
Project Start
2003-07-01
Project End
2013-04-30
Budget Start
2011-05-01
Budget End
2012-04-30
Support Year
7
Fiscal Year
2011
Total Cost
$223,135
Indirect Cost
Name
Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Department
Chemistry
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
041418799
City
Winston-Salem
State
NC
Country
United States
Zip Code
27106
Fahrenholtz, Cale D; Ding, Song; Bernish, Brian W et al. (2016) Design and cellular studies of a carbon nanotube-based delivery system for a hybrid platinum-acridine anticancer agent. J Inorg Biochem 165:170-180
Ding, S; Bierbach, U (2016) Linker design for the modular assembly of multifunctional and targeted platinum(ii)-containing anticancer agents. Dalton Trans 45:13104-13
Liu, Fang; Suryadi, Jimmy; Bierbach, Ulrich (2015) Cellular Recognition and Repair of Monofunctional-Intercalative Platinum--DNA Adducts. Chem Res Toxicol 28:2170-8
Ding, Song; Pickard, Amanda J; Kucera, Gregory L et al. (2014) Design of enzymatically cleavable prodrugs of a potent platinum-containing anticancer agent. Chemistry 20:16164-73
Pickard, Amanda J; Liu, Fang; Bartenstein, Thomas F et al. (2014) Redesigning the DNA-targeted chromophore in platinum-acridine anticancer agents: a structure-activity relationship study. Chemistry 20:16174-87
Qiao, Xin; Ding, Song; Liu, Fang et al. (2014) Investigating the cellular fate of a DNA-targeted platinum-based anticancer agent by orthogonal double-click chemistry. J Biol Inorg Chem 19:415-26
Dutta, Samrat; Snyder, Matthew J; Rosile, David et al. (2013) PT-ACRAMTU, a platinum-acridine anticancer agent, lengthens and aggregates, but does not stiffen or soften DNA. Cell Biochem Biophys 67:1103-13
Pickard, Amanda J; Bierbach, Ulrich (2013) The cell's nucleolus: an emerging target for chemotherapeutic intervention. ChemMedChem 8:1441-9
Ding, Song; Qiao, Xin; Kucera, Gregory L et al. (2013) Design of a platinum-acridine-endoxifen conjugate targeted at hormone-dependent breast cancer. Chem Commun (Camb) 49:2415-7
Ding, Song; Qiao, Xin; Suryadi, Jimmy et al. (2013) Using fluorescent post-labeling to probe the subcellular localization of DNA-targeted platinum anticancer agents. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 52:3350-4

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