Pharmaceuticals (Apr 2021)

Metabolic Profiles of New Unsymmetrical Bisacridine Antitumor Agents in Electrochemical and Enzymatic Noncellular Systems and in Tumor Cells

  • Anna Mieszkowska,
  • Anna M. Nowicka,
  • Agata Kowalczyk,
  • Agnieszka Potęga,
  • Monika Pawłowska,
  • Michał Kosno,
  • Ewa Augustin,
  • Zofia Mazerska

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/ph14040317
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 4
p. 317

Abstract

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New unsymmetrical bisacridines (UAs) demonstrated high activity not only against a set of tumor cell lines but also against human tumor xenografts in nude mice. Representative UA compounds, named C-2028, C-2045 and C-2053, were characterized in respect to their physicochemical properties and the following studies aimed to elucidate the role of metabolic transformations in UAs action. We demonstrated with phase I and phase II enzymes in vitro and in tumors cells that: (i) metabolic products generated by cytochrome P450 (P450), flavin monooxygenase (FMO) and UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) isoenzymes in noncellular systems retained the compound’s dimeric structures, (ii) the main transformation pathway is the nitro group reduction with P450 isoenzymes and the metabolism to N-oxide derivative with FMO1, (iii), the selected UGT1 isoenzymes participated in the glucuronidation of one compound, C-2045, the hydroxy derivative. Metabolism in tumor cells, HCT-116 and HT-29, of normal and higher UGT1A10 expression, respectively, also resulted in the glucuronidation of only C-2045 and the specific distribution of all compounds between the cell medium and cell extract was demonstrated. Moreover, P4503A4 activity was inhibited by C-2045 and C-2053, whereas C-2028 affected UGT1A and UGT2B action. The above conclusions indicate the optimal strategy for the balance among antitumor therapeutic efficacy and drug resistance in the future antitumor therapy.

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