Microtubule rescue control by drugs and MAPs examined with in vitro pedestal assay.

Microtubules are essential cytoskeletal polymers, which exhibit stochastic transitions between assembly and disassembly, known as catastrophes and rescues. Understanding of catastrophes, rescues, and their control by drugs and microtubule associated proteins (MAPs) has been informed by in vitro reconstitutions of microtubule dynamics. In such experiments microtubules are typically observed on a flat surface of the coverslip. In contrast, we have recently proposed a modified setup in which microtubules assemble from stabilized seeds, overhanging from microfabricated pedestals, so that their dynamic extensions are fully isolated from contact with the coverslip. This assay allows to eliminate potential artifacts, which may substantially affect the frequency of microtubule rescues in vitro. Here we use the pedestal assay to study the sensitivity of microtubules to paclitaxel, one of the best-known inhibitors of microtubule dynamics. By comparing observations in the conventional and the pedestal assays, we find that microtubule dynamics are substantially more sensitive to paclitaxel when the polymers can contact the coverslip. We interpret this as a consequence of the coverslip-induced microtubule assembly perturbation, leading to formation of lattice with defects, and thereby enhancing the efficiency of paclitaxel binding to microtubules in the conventional assay. To test this idea, we use vinblastine, another small-molecule inhibitor, which had been previously shown to cause microtubule growth perturbations. We find that in the pedestal assay vinblastine sensitizes microtubules to paclitaxel to the level, observed in the conventional assay. Interestingly, a minimal fragment of MAP called CLASP2, a previously characterized rescue factor, has a strong effect on microtubule rescues, regardless of the type of assay. Overall, our study underscores the role of microtubule damage in promoting rescues and highlights the utility of the in vitro pedestal assay to study microtubule dynamics modulation by tubulin inhibitors and MAPs.

Conformation and energy investigation of microtubule longitudinal dynamic instability induced by natural products.

The natural products plinabulin, docetaxel, and vinblastine are microtubule targeting agents (MTAs). They have been used alone or in combination in cancer treatment. However, the exact nature of their effects on microtubule (MT) polymerization dynamics is poorly understood. To elucidate the longitudinal conformational and energetic changes during MT dynamics, a total of 140 ns molecular dynamic simulations combined with binding free energy calculations were performed on seven tubulin models. The results indicated that the drugs disrupted MT polymerization by altering both MT conformation and binding free energy of the neighboring tubulin subunits. The combination of plinabulin and docetaxel destabilized MT polymerization due to bending MT and weakening the polarity of tubulin polymerization. The new combination of docetaxel and vinblastine synergistically enhanced MT depolymerization and bending, while plinabulin and vinblastine had no synergistic inhibitory effects. The results were verified by the tubulin assembly assay. Our study obtained a comprehensive understanding of the action mechanisms of three natural drugs and their combinations on MT dynamic, provided theoretical guidance for new MTA combinations, and would promote the optimal use of MTA and contribute to developing new MTAs as anticancer agents.

A label-free electrochemical biosensor based on tubulin immobilized on gold nanoparticle/glassy carbon electrode for the determination of vinblastine.

Vinblastine (VLB) is prescribed for a wide variety of cancers. Therefore, development of sensitive methods for early diagnosis is urgently required. In this work, a highly sensitive and label-free impedimetric biosensor was fabricated for the electrochemical detection of VLB. First, the gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were electrodeposited on the surface of a glassy carbon electrode (GCE). 3-Mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) was self-assembled over the AuNPs. Then, tubulin (TUB), as a receptor, was covalently immobilized at the AuNPs/GCE surface via carbodiimide coupling reaction using N-(3 dimethylaminopropyl)-N'-ethyl carbodiimide (EDC) and N-hydroxy succinimide (NHS). The step-by-step modification process was characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in the presence of a redox probe [Fe(CN)6]3-/4-. The VLB concentration was measured through the increase of impedance values in the corresponding specific binding of VLB and TUB. The increased electron-transfer resistance (R et) values were proportional to the value of VLB concentrations in the range of 0.4 to 65.0 nmol L-1 with a detection limit of 8.4 × 10-2 nmol L-1 (SN-1 = 3). The practical analytical performance of the proposed method was demonstrated by determination of VLB in plant extracts and human serum samples with satisfactory recoveries.

Identification of metabolites of vindoline in rats using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Vindoline (VDL) is an indole alkaloid, possessing hypoglycemic and vasodilator effects, and it is also the prodrug of many vinca alkaloids. In this paper, we analyzed in vivo (including plasma, urine, bile and faeces) and in vitro metabolic profile of VDL in rat with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS). The chromatographic separation was performed on a C18 column with a mobile phase consisted of 3mM ammonium acetate buffer and acetonitrile at a flow rate of 300µL/min. The mass spectral analysis was conducted in a positive electrospray ionization mode, and on-line data acquisition method multiple mass defect filter (MMDF) combined with dynamic background subtraction (DBS) were used in the biological samples analysis to trace all the potential metabolites of VDL. Twenty-five metabolites of VDL were detected by comparing with the blank sample, of which there were 2 sulfate conjugates. These data suggested that the biotransformation of VDL was deacetylation, oxidation, deoxidization, methylation, dealkylation and sulfate conjugation. This study provides useful information for further study of the pharmacology and mechanism of VDL, meanwhile, the research method can be widely applied to speculate structural features of the metabolites of other vinca alkaloids.

Fluorescent vinblastine probes for live cell imaging.

Herein we describe the synthesis of several fluorescent analogues of the clinically approved microtubule destabilizing agent vinblastine. The evaluated probes are the most potent described and provides the first example of uptake, distribution and live cell imaging using this well known antimitotic agent.

Ethylene-Induced Vinblastine Accumulation Is Related to Activated Expression of Downstream TIA Pathway Genes in Catharanthus roseus.

We selected different concentrations of ethephon, to stress C. roseus. We used qRT-PCR and HPLC followed by PCA to obtain comprehensive profiling of the vinblastine biosynthesis in response to ethephon. Based on our findings, the results showed that the high concentration of ethephon had a positive effect at both transcriptional and metabolite level. Meanwhile, there was a remarkable decrease of hydrogen peroxide content and a promoted peroxidase activity in leaves. The loading plot combination with correlation analysis suggested that CrPrx1 could be regarded as a positive regulator and interacts with ethylene response factor (ERF) to play a key role in vinblastine content and peroxidase (POD) activity. This study provides the foundation for a better understanding of the regulation and accumulation of vinblastine in response to ethephon.

Reactivity of vinca alkaloids during water chlorination processes: Identification of their disinfection by-products by high-resolution quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometry.

Concerns about the presence of anticancer drugs in the environment are rapidly increasing mainly due to their growing use in the developed countries and their known cytotoxic effects. Vinca alkaloids are widely used in cancer therapy; however, very scarce information is available on their occurrence, environmental fate and toxicological effects on aquatic organisms. Even less attention has been paid to their potential transformation products, which can exert higher toxicity than the parent compounds. Thus, in the present work, the reactivity of vincristine, vinblastine, vinorelbine and its metabolite 4-O-deacetyl vinorelbine during water chlorination processes has been investigated for the first time. Under the studied chlorination conditions, vincristine was fairly stable whereas vinblastine, vinorelbine and 4-O-deacetyl vinorelbine were quickly degraded. A total of sixty-five disinfection by-products were tentatively identified by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution hybrid quadrupole-Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry. Among them, twenty by-products corresponded to mono-chlorinated compounds, eight to di-chlorinated compounds and two to tri-chlorinated compounds, which may be of major environmental concern. Other disinfection by-products involved hydroxylation and oxidation reactions. Although the structures of these by-products could not be positively confirmed due to lack of commercial standards, their chemical formulas and product ions can be added to databases, which will allow their screening in future monitoring studies.

Simultaneous quantification of vinblastine and desacetylvinblastine concentrations in canine plasma and urine samples using LC-APCI-MS/MS.

A highly sensitive and specific liquid chromatography-atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry (LC/APCI-MS/MS) method has been developed and validated for simultaneous quantification of vinblastine and its metabolite, desacetylvinblastine, in canine plasma and urine samples. Plasma and urine samples were processed by a solid phase extraction procedure. The optimal chromatographic behavior of these analytes was achieved on pentafluorophenyl (PFP) propyl analytical column (5µm, 50×2.1mm) under isocratic elution of 0.75mL/min with a mobile phase of 5mM ammonium acetate and methanol. The samples were analyzed in positive ion, multiple reaction monitoring mode. The calibration curves were linear over 0.125-2ng/mL (lower calibration curve); 2-100ng/mL (higher calibration curve) and 0.125-5ng/mL for vinblastine and desacetylvinblastine in plasma, and over 1-2000ng/mL and 0.5-100ng/mL for vinblastine and desacetylvinblastine in urine samples, respectively. The limits of quantitation of vinblastine and desacetylvinblastine were 0.125ng/mL in both matrices. The intra and interday accuracy was above 89% and precision below 8.6% for both analytes in both matrices. The developed method was successfully applied to ongoing in vivo vinblastine pharmacokinetic studies in dogs.

Structure elucidation of indole-indoline type alkaloids: a retrospective account from the point of view of current NMR and MS technology.

In this review our aim is to look back on how the structure elucidation of bisindoles, especially with focus placed on vinblastine and vincristine analogues, has evolved alongside with the development of MS and NMR over the last 60 years from the perspective of our present-day use of state-of-the-art MS and NMR instrumentation and on the basis of our own accumulated views and experience in the field.

Simultaneous determination of vinblastine and its monomeric precursors vindoline and catharanthine in Catharanthus roseus by capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry.

Catharanthus roseus is an important dicotyledonous medicinal plant that contains various anticancer components, such as vinblastine (VLB) and its monomeric precursors (vindoline and catharanthine). A capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry (CE-MS) approach for the simultaneous determination of three components was developed in this work. Baseline separation for three components was achieved by using a running buffer consisting of 20 mM ammonium acetate and 1.5% acetic acid in <20 min. Quantification of three components was assigned in positive-ion mode at a protonated molecular ion [M+H](+). The CE-MS method was validated for linearity, sensitivity, accuracy and precision, and then used to determine the content of the above components. The detection limits of VLB, catharanthine and vindoline are 0.8, 0.1 and 0.1 µg/mL, respectively. The precision was not more than 4.54% and the mean recovery of the analytes was 95.04-97.04%. The CE-MS method was successfully applied to determine VLB and its monomeric precursors in real sample C. roseus.

TLC and HPLC methods to follow the synthesis of vinorelbine.

The thin-layer chromatography (TLC) combined with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has been proved to be a quick and valid method to detect the intermediates and the end-product created during the chemosynthesis process of vinorelbine (VB). This paper gives a detailed investigation on the results of two determination methods when the condition of the detection changed. It shows that when TLC developer is consisted of petroleum ether, chloroform, acetone, and diethyl amine (23.5:12:2:2.5, v/v/v/v), vinblastine sulfate (VBS), anhydrovinblastine (AHVB), and VB can be separated specifically. When the mobile phase of HPLC is a mixture of methyl alcohol, acetonitrile, diethyl amine, and high purity water (420:252:3:225; v/v/v/v), adjusted with orthophosphoric acid to pH 6.5, the intermediates and the resultants of the chemosynthesis of VB can be determined effectively. It can also be used to fix quantify of the resultants. The calibration curve for VB shows good linearity in the two mass concentration ranges of 0.0100-0.0500 mg/mL (r = 0.9956) and 0.00600-0.0100 mg/mL (r = 0.9978), respectively. The limit of detection of HPLC for VB is 0.200 microg/mL.

[Distribution and accumulation of vindoline, catharanthine and vinblastine in Catharanthus roseus cultivated in China].

OBJECTIVE: The content of vindoline, catharanthine and vinblastine in the root, stem, leaf, flower and fruit of Catharanthus roseus at various developmental stages were determined, and the biomass allocation was also determined to find the best harvest time. METHOD: The content of vindoline, catharanthine and vinblastine in the root, stem, leaf, flower and fruit of C. roseus were determined by HPLC. RESULT: The content of these alkaloids were influenced by season and it varied in the different tissues of the plant. The content of vindoline and catharanthine in the leaves were the highest, and there was no vindoline detected in the root, but the content of vinblastine in the flower was the highest; the content of vindoline and catharanthine reached the maximum between the August and September, and the content of vinblastine reached the highest after the September. The biomass was the highest in the initial stage of September. CONCLUSION: The best harvest time was in the initial stage of September.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-ion mobility separation-mass spectrometry imaging of vinblastine in whole body tissue sections.

During early-stage drug development, drug and metabolite distribution studies are carried out in animal tissues using a range of techniques, particularly whole body autoradiography (WBA). While widely employed, WBA has a number of limitations, including the following: expensive synthesis of radiolabeled drugs and analyte specificity and identification. WBA only images the radiolabel. MALDI MSI has been shown previously to be advantageous for imaging the distribution of a range of drugs and metabolites in whole body sections. Ion mobility separation (IMS) adds a further separation step to imaging experiments; demonstrated here is MALDI-IMS-MS whole body imaging of rats dosed at 6 mg/kg i.v. with an anticancer drug, vinblastine and shown is the distribution of the precursor ion m/z 811.4 and several product ions including m/z 793, 751, 733, 719, 691, 649, 524, and 355. The distribution of vinblastine within the ventricles of the brain is also depicted. Clearly demonstrated in these data are the removal of interfering isobaric ions within the images of m/z 811.4 and also of the transition m/z 811-751, resulting in a higher confidence in the imaging data. Within this work, IMS has shown to be advantageous in both MS and MS/MS imaging experiments by separating vinblastine from an endogenous isobaric lipid.

Attempt to detect natural anticancer compounds--protein binding through precursor ion scan and MS/MS measurements.

A 2'-succinyltaxol-bovine serum albumin (BSA) conjugate was prepared as an antigen to produce an anti-taxol monoclonal antibody by immunizing mice. Formation of a linkage between hapten and protein is usually confirmed by the UV or fluorescamine method. However, it was difficult to confirm the binding of 2'-succinyltaxol to BSA by these methods owing to the similar UV absorption maxima of 2'-succinyltaxol (273 nm) and BSA (280 nm). In the present study, we therefore conducted a mass spectrometric analysis using the precursor ion scan and MS/MS techniques to confirm the formulation of the 2'-succinyltaxol-BSA conjugate in the following way: The conjugate was subjected to thermal denaturalization, dithiothreitol (DTT)-reduction, iodoacetamide-alkylation and trypsin-digestion, affording a peptide fragment mixture. This was then analyzed by electrospray ionization (ESI)-MS in the positive mode by scanning the peaks containing a mass of 854 corresponding to taxol. The detected peaks were in turn subjected to MS/MS measurements. Among them, a peak at m/z 1247.4 was found to be a peptide fragment containing Lys (epsilon-2'-succinyltaxol), demonstrating the formulation of the 2'-succinyltaxol-BSA conjugate. In order to confirm the feasibility of this analytical method, the deacetylvinblastine (deacetylVLB)-BSA antigen which produced the anti-VLB monoclonal antibody (MAb-10-A9), was subjected to the same analytical treatment as above, giving a peak at m/z 851.3 originating from a Lys (epsilon-deacetylVLB). Thus, this new method could serve as an additional tool for confirmation of the formation of hapten-protein conjugates which are difficult to detect by the above spectrophotometric methods.

[Effects of NaCl on the growth and alkaloid content of Catharanthus roseus seedlings].

Catharanthus roseus seedlings were grown in 1/2 Hoagland solution containing 0-250 mmol x L(-1) of NaCl, and their fresh and dry mass, malondialdehyde (MDA) and chlorophyll contents, tryptophan decarboxylase (TDC) and peroxidase (POD) activities, and vindoline, catharanthine, vincristine and vinblastine contents were measured after 7 days. The results showed that NaCl markedly decreased the fresh and dry mass but increased the MDA content. The chlorophyll content had no difference with the control when the concentration of NaCl was 50 mmol x L(-1), but decreased with increasing NaCl concentration when the NaCl concentration was above 50 mmol x L(-1). There was a significant enhancement of POD activity under NaCl stress. The TDC activity was the highest when the concentration of NaCl was 50 mmol x L(-1), but decreased with increasing NaCl concentration. The vindoline, catharanthine, vincristine, and vinblastine contents were the highest under 50 mmol x L(-1) NaCl stress, with the values being 4.61, 3.56, 1.19, and 2.95 mg x g(-1), respectively, and significant higher than the control and other treatments. Salt stress could restrain the growth of C. roseus seedlings, but promote the metabolism of alkaloid and increase the alkaloid content. 50 mmol x L(-1) of NaCl had the greatest promotion effect on the alkaloid content of C. roseus seedlings.

[Simultaneous determination of vindoline, catharanthine and anhydrovinblastine in Catharanthus roseus by high performance liquid chromatography].

A high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method with gradient elution was developed for the simultaneous determination of vindoline, catharanthine and anhydrovinblastine in Catharanthus roseus. The analytes were separated on a Waters (5)C18-MS-II column (4.6 mm x 250 mm) and detected at 220 nm. The mobile phases were methanol-1% (v/v) diethylamine solution (adjusted to pH 7.3 with phosphate) for gradient elution at temperature of 25 degrees C. The calibration curves for vindoline, catharanthine and anhydrovinblastine showed good linearity in the ranges of 0.03-1 mg/mL (r = 0.9997), 0.03-1 mg/mL (r = 0.9999) and 0.01-0.5 mg/mL (r = 0.9986), respectively. The recoveries were 96.8%, 97.0%, and 96.4% and the relative standard deviations (RSDs) were 1.53%, 1.37%, and 1.96%. The method is accurate, rapid and simple for the determination of vindoline, catharanthine and anhydrovinblastine in Catharanthus roseus.

Development of a sensitive liquid chromatography method coupled with a tandem mass spectrometric detection for the clinical analysis of vinflunine and 4-O-deacetyl vinflunine in blood, urine and faeces.

A sensitive and specific liquid chromatographic method coupled with tandem mass spectrometric detection was set up and fully validated for the simultaneous quantification of vinflunine (VFL) and its pharmacologically active metabolite, 4-O-deacetyl vinflunine (DVFL). The two compounds, as well as vinblastine (used as internal standard), were deproteinised from blood and faeces, analysed on a cyano type column and detected on a Micromass Quattro II system in the positive ion mode after ionisation using an electrospray ion source. In blood, linearity was assessed up to 200 ng/ml for vinflunine and 100 ng/ml for 4-O-deacetyl vinflunine. The lower limit of quantification was validated at 250 pg/ml for both compounds. In other biological media, the linearity was assessed within the same range; the limit of quantification was adjusted according to the expected concentration levels of each compound. This method was first developed in order to identify the structures and to elucidate the metabolic pathway of vinflunine. Thanks to its high sensitivity and specificity, the method has enabled the quantification of vinflunine and 4-O-deacetyl vinflunine in blood at trace levels, and has contributed to the knowledge of vinflunine metabolism by monitoring up to 10 metabolites.

Simultaneous determination of vincristine, vinblastine, catharanthine, and vindoline in leaves of catharanthus roseus by high-performance liquid chromatography.

A simple reversed-phase liquid chromatographic method is developed for the simultaneous quantitation of the anticancerous drugs vincristine, vinblastine, and their precursors catharanthine and vindoline using a Merck Chromolith Performance reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography column. A better resolution is obtained in comparison with available particulate-type C18 columns. The column provides good reproducibility and peak symmetry. Chromatography is carried isocratically with a mobile phase of acetonitrile-0.1M phosphate buffer containing 0.5% glacial acetic acid (21:79, v/v; pH 3.5) at a flow rate of 1.2 mL/min and UV detection at 254 nm. Parameters such as linearity, limits of quantitation (LOQ) and detection (LOD), precision, accuracy, recovery, and robustness are studied. The method is selective and linear for alkaloid concentration in the range 0.25 microg-25 microg/mL. The LOQ and LOD are 25, 46, 56, and 32 microg/mL and 8, 14, 18, and 10 microg/mL, respectively. The results of accuracy studies are good. Values for coefficient of variation are 2.50, 1.82, 1.33, and 1.13, respectively. The percent recovery of the alkaloids was found to be 96%, 97%, 98%, and 98%, respectively. Peak purity and homogeneity of these compounds in plant extract is studied using a photodiode-array detector. This simple and rapid method of analysis is applied for the determination of these alkaloids in a large number of leaf extracts of Catharanthus roseus..

[A study on the hairy root culture and antitumor alkaloids production of Catharanthus roseus].

OBJECTIVE: To establish transformation system and obtain alkaloids from the hairy root of Catharanthus roseus. METHOD: Hairy roots were obtained by infecting the different explants of C. roseus. Culture conditions of hairy root were optimized. RESULT: The best transformation condition was leaf infected by two-day's pre-culture and two-day's co-culture and additional A(S) (hydroxyacetosyringone) 100 mg x L(-1). The inducing rate of hairy root was up to 86.25%. The best condition of hairy root culture was MS medium with sucrose as carbon material and lactalbumin as nitron material. The analysis result showed that the contents of total alkaloids in hairy roots were higher than explants and calli. CONCLUSION: Hairy root of C. roseus will be useful for the production of active components in C. roseus.

Comparison of the usefulness of the MTT, ATP, and calcein assays to predict the potency of cytotoxic agents in various human cancer cell lines.

Cell viability assays are important tools in oncological research and clinical practice to assess the tumor cell sensitivity of individual patients. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the comparability of 3 widely used assays (MTT, ATP, calcein assays) by principal component analysis. The study included 4 different cytostatics (cisplatin, docetaxel, doxorubicin, vinblastine) and 3 different human cancer cell lines (MCF-7, A2780, doxorubicin resistant A2780adr). Ninety-three percent of the total variance of all variables included in the principal component analysis (resulting from 3 cell lines and 3 assays) could be explained by 1 principal component. Factor loadings were > 0.937 except for the variable MTT-A2780adr, which was 0.872. These results indicate the similarity of the 3 assays. A 2nd principal component analysis included literature data and showed accordance of data from this study and the literature. The MTT assay was further improved as a high-throughput screening-capable assay. The ATP assay is able to detect effects of cytostatics already after 1 h incubation. The determination of resistance factors allowed to differentiate cytostatics into P-gp or non-P-gp substrates. In conclusion, this study provides improved microplate reader-based cell viability assays and sets a statistically solid basis for a future comparison of data obtained in different laboratories by any of the 3 assays.