Abstracts


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Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1 Receptor Targeted Therapeutics: Novel Compounds and Novel Treatment Strategies for Cancer Medicine
Madeleine Hewish, Ian Chau and David Cunningham

The insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R) and its associated signalling system has provoked considerable interest over recent years as a novel therapeutic target in cancer. A brief outline of the IGF-1R signalling system and the rationale for its use in cancer medicine is given. This is followed by a discussion of the different possible targets within the IGF-1R system, and drugs developed to interact at each target. A systems-based approach is then used to review the in vitro and in vivo data in the published literature of the following compounds targeting IGF-1R components using specific examples: growth hormone releasing hormone antagonists (e.g. JV-1-38), growth hormone receptor antagonists (e.g. pegvisomant), IGF-1R antibodies (e.g. CP-751,871, AVE1642/EM164, IMC-A12, SCH-717454, BIIB022, AMG 479, MK-0646/h7C10), and IGF-1R tyrosine kinase inhibitors (e.g. BMS-536942, BMS-554417, NVPAEW541, NVP-ADW742, AG1024, potent quinolinyl-derived imidazo (1,5-a)pyrazine PQIP, picropodophyllin PPP, Nordihydroguaiaretic acid Insm-18/NDGA). The following tumour types are specifically discussed: lung, breast, colorectal, pancreatic, NETs, sarcoma, prostate, leukaemia, multiple myeloma. Other tumour types are mentioned briefly: squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck, melanoma, glioblastoma, ovary, gastric and mesothelioma. Results of early stage clinical trials, involving recently patented drugs. are included where appropriate. We then outline the current understanding of toxicity related to IGF-1R targeted therapy, and finally outline areas for further research.


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Recent Developments in Anti-Cancer Agents Targeting the Ras/Raf/ MEK/ERK Pathway
Kwong-Kwok Wong

The Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway mediates cellular responses to different growth signals and is frequently deregulated in cancer. There are three Raf kinases-A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf; however, only B-Raf is frequently mutated in various cancers. The most common B-Raf mutation involves a substitution of a glutamic acid residue to a valine moiety at codon 600. Subsequently, the MAPK pathway is constitutively activated, even in the absence of any growth signals. Although early attempts to target Ras have not yielded any viable drug candidates, many novel compounds inhibiting the activities of Raf and MEK have been developed and investigated in clinical trials in recent years. The first MEK inhibitor (CI-1040) lacked efficacy in clinical trials, but its low toxicity has encouraged the search for novel compounds with enhanced target potency to inhibit MAPK activation at low nanomolar concentrations. In this review, we will discuss new patents or patent applications related to inhibitors of the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK pathway.


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Selective Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) Inhibitors Used for Preventing or Regressing Cancer
Ricardo de Souza Pereira

The current use of antineoplastic drugs in human therapy causes a substancial number of toxic or side effects which consequently lead to a reduction of the amount of drug to be administered, and in some cases to discontinuation of the therapy. A reduction of the amount of drug to be administered or discontinuation of the therapy causes an increase in primary tumour growth and/or the occurrence of tumour metastases. For this reason, the development of new anti-cancer drugs with lower side effects is necessary.

This review gives a general idea about the origins of cancer and the importance of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in oncogenesis. Evidence from clinical and preclinical studies indicates that COX-2 – derived prostaglandins participate in carcinogenesis, inflammation, immune response suppression, apoptosis inhibition, angiogenesis, and tumour cell invasion and metastasis.

The recent anti-tumour drugs are based on tests of known selective COX-2 inhibitors and on the drawing and synthesis of new potent derivatives. Maybe, this can be the way to obtain new anti-tumour drugs with very low collateral effects. Selective COX-2 inhibitors are being mixtured with new anti-cancer drugs in order to obtain better results in the regression of cancers.

Some natural products are selective COX-2 inhibitors and have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. The relevant patents are discussed.


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Flavonoids: Recent Advances as Anticancer Drugs
Hai L. Liu, Wen B. Jiang and Meng X. Xie

Flavonoids belong to polyphenolic secondary metabolites with broad-spectrum pharmacological activities and extensive biological effects, and the most prominent activity is their potential role as anticancer agents. In recent years, flavonoids and their synthetic analogues have been intensely investigated in the treatment of ovarian, breast, cervical, pancreatic, and prostate cancer. To some extent, chemical structures of flavonoids will influence their anticancer activities. Thus, some new analogues based on the structural skeleton of these flavonoids have been synthesized and investigated. This review presents recent advances on the patents concerning of the natural flavonoids and their synthetic analogues in the treatment of cancers, and new synthetic approaches and possible structure-activity relationships of flavonoids are also briefly summarized.


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Inhibitors of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR Pathway: New Hope for Breast Cancer Patients
Sandra E. Ghayad and Pascale A. Cohen

Aberrant activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway is found in many types of cancer and thus plays a major role in breast cancer cell proliferation and anti-cancer drug resistance. The mechanisms involved in the activation of this pathway include: constitutively activated receptor tyrosine kinases (IGF/IGFR, ErbB, FGF/FGFR systems) leading to constitutive activation of PI3K; loss of PTEN function; PI3K mutations; aberrant activation of Akt, eIF4E, 4E-BP1 and p70S6K. These alterations trigger a cascade of biological events, from cell growth and proliferation to survival and migration, which contribute to tumor progression. Therefore, the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway is considered an attractive target for the development of novel anti-cancer molecules, and several specific tyrosine kinase inhibitors and signal transduction inhibitors specifically targeting the kinases involved in this pathway have been developed. Many of these inhibitors currently under clinical evaluation represent a promising approach for the treatment of breast cancer patients. This review provides an overview of the most recent patents, of pre-clinical and clinical studies of inhibitors targeting the different members and/or activators of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, used alone or in combination with other targeted agents for the treatment of breast cancer.

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Targeting RhoA/Rho Kinase and p21-Activated Kinase Signaling to Prevent Cancer Development and Progression
Yu-Wen E. Chang, Ronald R. Bean and Rolf Jakobi

Elevated RhoA/Rho kinase and p21-activated kinase signaling have been shown to promote cancer development and metastasis and have drawn much attention as potential targets of anti-cancer therapy. Elevated RhoA and Rho kinase activity promote cancer cell invasion and eventually lead to metastasis by disrupting E-cadherin-mediated adherens junctions and degradation of the extracellular matrix. Elevated p21-activated kinase activity promotes invasion by stimulating cell motility but also promotes cancer cell survival and growth. In this review we describe normal functions of RhoA/Rho kinase and p21-activated kinase signaling, mechanisms that lead to constitutive activation of RhoA/Rho kinase and p21-activated kinase pathways, and processes by which constitutive RhoA/Rho kinase and p21-activated kinase activity promote cancer development and progression to more aggressive and metastatic phenotypes. In addition, we summarize relevant patents on RhoA/Rho kinase and p21-activated kinase as targets of anti-cancer therapy and discuss the clinical potential of different approaches to modulate RhoA/Rho kinase and p21-activated kinase signaling.

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The Anti-Cancer Activity of Noscapine: A Review
Massoud Mahmoudian and Parvaneh Rahimi-Moghaddam

Noscapine is an isoqiunoline alkaloid found in opium latex. Unlike most other alkaloids obtained from opium latex, noscapine is not sedative and has been used as antitussive drug in various countries. Recently, it has been introduced as an anti-mitotic agent. This drug can be used orally .When the resistance to other anti-cancer drugs such as paclitaxel menifests, noscapine might be effective. Therefore, noscapine and its analogs have great potential as novel anticancer agents.

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Proteasome Inhibitors Therapeutic Strategies for Cancer
Annamaria D'Alessandro, Luisa Pieroni, Maurizio Ronci, Simona D'Aguanno, Giorgio Federici and Andrea Urbani

Aberrations in the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS) have been recently connected to the pathogenesis of several human protein degradation disorders (e.g., cancer and neurodegenerative diseases), so that proteasome is now considered an important target for drug discovery. Small molecules able to inhibit and modulate UPS have been, in fact, described as novel tools for a new approach in anti-cancer therapy. In particular Proteasome Inhibitors (PIs), blocking activation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kB), trigger a decreased cellular proliferation and angiogenic cytokine production, induce cell death and inhibit tumor cell adhesion to stroma. Furthermore, several studies have demonstrated that PIs potentiate the activity of other anti-cancer treatment, in part by down-regulating chemoresistance pathways. Therefore pharmacologic, preclinical, and clinical data suggested the use of PIs in anticancer strategies, for their potential therapeutic relevance in the treatment of cancer and inflammatory-related diseases. This review focuses on recent advances in the development of PIs anticancer agents highlighting both novel patented compounds and novel therapeutic protocol of intervention.

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Recent Developments in Patent Anti-Cancer Agents Targeting the Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMPs)
Xun Li and Ji-Feng Wu

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) belong to a family of closely related calcium- and zinc-dependent endopeptidases involved in the degradation and remodeling of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins that are associated with the tumorigenic processes. MMPs promote tumor invasion and metastasis, regulating host defense mechanisms and normal cell function. Thus, MMP inhibitors (MMPIs) are expected to be useful chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of malignant cancer, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis. A vast number of small molecular MMPIs have been developed in recent years. Although there have been considerable preclinical and clinical studies on these inhibitors, most of the effective candidates in clinical trials, however, have yielded unsatisfactory results, thus they are as yet unavailable for use as therapeutic drugs. Currently, more efforts have been directed to the design of specific inhibitors towards certain MMP family members for selective usage. This review will focus primarily on an analysis of recent developed MMPIs that have entered preclinical or clinical trials, and recently registered patents with regard to new highly selective MMPIs in USA or patent applications related to the specific inhibitors of MMPs. We also analyze the clinical failure and discuss the possible strategies to best optimize the development of these novel agents.

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Pregnane X Receptor and its Potential Role in Drug Resistance in Cancer Treatment
Yakun Chen and Daotai Nie

Multi-drug resistance (MDR) is a significant barrier to effective chemotherapy of cancer. The induction of drug metabolizing enzymes (DMEs) and efflux transporters has been regarded as one of the major mechanisms of drug resistance. As a master transcription factor of DMEs and efflux transporters, pregnane X receptor (PXR), an orphan nuclear receptor known for its activation by structurally diverse compounds, is expressed in some cancer cells and tissues, and is implicated as a novel master regulator of MDR in cancers. This review describes recent publications and patents on the mechanism of PXR transcription, the expression of PXR in cancers, and its potential roles in cancer MDR. We also discuss the recent patents published to overcome PXR-mediated MDR and other potential roles of PXR in cancers.