scholarly journals Anticancer and Differentiation Properties of the Nitric Oxide Derivative of Lopinavir in Human Glioblastoma Cells

Molecules ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (10) ◽  
pp. 2463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Basile ◽  
Emanuela Mazzon ◽  
Tamara Krajnovic ◽  
Dijana Draca ◽  
Eugenio Cavalli ◽  
...  

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most frequent and deadly form of primary malignant brain tumor among adults. A promising emerging approach for GBM treatment may be offered from HIV protease inhibitors (HIV-PIs). In fact, in addition to their primary pharmacological activity in the treatment of HIV infection, they possess important anti-neoplastic effects. According to previous studies, the addition of a nitric oxide (NO) donating group to parental compounds can reduce their toxicity and enhance the anticancer action of various compounds, including HIV-PIs. In this study we compared the effects of the HIV-PI Lopinavir (Lopi) and of its NO-derivative Lopinavir-NO (Lopi-NO) on the in vitro growth of LN-229 and U-251 human GBM cell lines. Lopi-NO reduced the viability of LN-229 and U-251 cells at significantly lower concentrations than the parental drug. In particular, Lopi-NO inhibited tumor cell proliferation and induced the differentiation of U-251 cells toward an astrocyte-like phenotype without triggering significant cell death in both cell types. The anticancer effect of Lopi-NO was persistent even upon drug removal. Furthermore, Lopi-NO induced strong autophagy that did not appear to be related to its chemotherapeutic action. Overall, our results suggest that Lopi-NO could be a potential effective anticancer drug for GBM treatment.

INDIAN DRUGS ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 50 (06) ◽  
pp. 24-28
Author(s):  
A.A Rege ◽  
◽  
A. S Chowdhary

Aqueous extracts of Ocimum sanctum Linn., Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Miers ex Hook. f. & Thoms, Withania somnifera Dunal, Avicennia officinalis Linn. and Rhizophora mucronata Lam. were included for the present in vitro study. Pepsin was used as a substitute for HIV-protease to evaluate inhibitory activity of these extracts, as pepsin has close resemblance with HIV-protease in proteolytic activity. O. sanctum revealed the highest inhibitory activity followed by R. mucronata. In our earlier study, O. sanctum and R. mucronata exerted anti-HIV activity via multiple mechanisms of action; viz., interference with the gp120 / CD4 interaction and inhibition of HIV-reverse transcriptase. In the present study, they also showed potent inhibitory activity against pepsin enzyme (indirectly against HIV-protease) which may be due their flavonoids content.


2005 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 1729-1739 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donglu Zhang ◽  
Theodore J. Chando ◽  
Donald W. Everett ◽  
Christopher J. Patten ◽  
Shangara S. Dehal ◽  
...  

2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (9) ◽  
pp. 3816-3824 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Weinheimer ◽  
L. Discotto ◽  
J. Friborg ◽  
H. Yang ◽  
R. Colonno

ABSTRACT Substitution of leucine for isoleucine at residue 50 (I50L) of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease is the signature substitution for atazanavir (ATV) resistance. A unique phenotypic profile has been associated with viruses containing the I50L substitution, which produces ATV-specific resistance and increased susceptibility to most other approved HIV protease inhibitors (PIs). The basis for this unique phenotype has not been clearly elucidated. In this report, a direct effect of I50L on the susceptibility to the PI class is described. Cell-based protease assays using wild-type and PI-resistant proteases from laboratory and clinical isolates and in vitro antiviral assays were used to demonstrate a strong concordance between changes in PI susceptibility at the level of protease inhibition and changes in susceptibility observed at the level of virus infection. The results show that the induction of ATV resistance and increased susceptibility to other PIs by the I50L substitution is likely determined at the level of protease inhibition. Moreover, the I50L substitution functions to increase PI susceptibility even in the presence of other primary and secondary PI resistance substitutions. These findings may have implications regarding the optimal sequencing of PI therapies necessary to preserve PI treatment options of patients with ATV-resistant HIV infections.


2000 ◽  
Vol 100 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. HICKEY

Constitutively produced nitric oxide released by endothelial cells has been shown to act as an endogenous agent which inhibits the rolling and adhesion of leucocytes in the microcirculation. However, during various types of inflammation, expression of the inducible form of nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) can dramatically increase the amount of nitric oxide present in tissues. Furthermore, as iNOS can be expressed by a wide variety of cell types, the distribution of nitric oxide is likely to be altered relative to that in unstimulated tissue. Under these conditions, it is less well understood whether iNOS-derived nitric oxide retains the anti-adhesive capabilities of constitutively produced nitric oxide. This review summarizes work done to examine this issue. Three main approaches have been used. In vitro studies have examined the role of iNOS in adhesive interactions between stimulated endothelial cells and leucocytes, providing evidence of an anti-adhesive effect of iNOS. In addition, the role of iNOS has been examined in vivo in animal models of inflammation using pharmacological iNOS inhibitors. These experiments were extended by the advent of the iNOS-deficient (iNOS-/-) mouse. Intravital microscopy studies of these mice have indicated that, under conditions of low-dose endotoxaemia, iNOS-derived nitric oxide can inhibit leucocyte rolling and adhesion. The potential mechanisms for these effects are discussed. In contrast, several other studies have observed either no effect or an enhancing effect of iNOS on inflammatory leucocyte recruitment. Taken together, these studies suggest that the importance of iNOS in modulating leucocyte recruitment can vary according to the type of inflammatory response.


2007 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 1515-1521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurit Hadad ◽  
Rachel Levy ◽  
Francisc Schlaeffer ◽  
Klaris Riesenberg

ABSTRACT Impairment of neutrophil functions and high levels of apoptotic neutrophils have been reported in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients. The aim of the present study was to investigate the direct in vitro effects of the different HIV protease inhibitors (PIs) on neutrophil functions and apoptosis and to explore their mechanisms of action. The effects of nelfinavir (NFV), saquinavir (SQV), lopinavir (LPV), ritonavir (RTV), and amprenavir (APV) in the range of 5 to 100 μg/ml on neutrophil function, apoptosis, and μ-calpain activity were studied. The neutrophil functions studied included superoxide production stimulated by 5 ng/ml phorbol myristate acetate, 5 × 10−7 M N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine, and 1 mg/ml opsonized zymosan; specific chemotaxis; random migration; and phagocytosis. Apoptosis was determined by DNA fragmentation, fluorescein isothiocyanate-annexin V binding, and nuclear morphology. All three neutrophil functions, as well as apoptosis, were similarly affected by the PIs. SQV and NFV caused marked inhibition and LPV and RTV caused moderate inhibition, while APV had a minor effect. μ-Calpain activity was not affected by the PIs in neutrophil lysate but was inhibited after its translocation to the membranes after cell stimulation. SQV, which was the most potent inhibitor of neutrophil functions and apoptosis, caused significant inhibition of calpain activity, while APV had no effect. The similar patterns of inhibition of neutrophil functions and apoptosis by the PIs, which coincided with inhibition of calpain activity, suggest the involvement of calpain activity in the regulation of these processes.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Byeongsang Oh ◽  
Jihun Kim ◽  
Weidong Lu ◽  
David Rosenthal

Background. Despite a number ofin vitroandin vivostudies reporting the efficacy of fucoidan in treating various cancers, few studies have measured the efficacy of dietary fucoidan (DF) in combination with cancer drugs. Thus, we examined the sensitivity of DF in combination with the EGFR/ERBB2-targeting reagent lapatinib on cancer cells.Method. We selected six EGFR/ERBB2-amplified cancer cell lines (OE19, NCI-N87, OE33, ESO26, MKN7, and BT474) as anin vitromodel and tested their sensitivity to DF alone and to DF in combination with the well-known EGFR/ERBB2-targeting reagent lapatinib.Result. Overall, in drug independent sensitivity test, DF alone did not significantly inhibit the growth of EGFR/ERBB2-amplified cancer cellsin vitro. When DF was given in combination with lapatinib, however, it tended to synergistically inhibit cell growth in OE33 but antagonized the action of lapatinib in ESO26, NCI-N87, and OE19.Conclusion. This study suggests that DF has the potential to increase or decrease the effects of certain anticancer drugs on certain cancer cell types. Further study is needed to explore the mechanism of interaction and synergistic antitumor activity of DF in combination with chemotherapy and targeted therapy.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document