Genotoxicity and Anticancer Effects of the Aminothiophene Derivatives SB-44, SB- 83, and SB-200 in Cancer Cells.

INTRODUCTION: Thiophene derivatives have been widely studied as promising options for the treatment of solid tumors. Previous studies have shown that thiophene derivatives have antileishmanial activity and cytotoxic activity against breast, colon, and ovarian cancer cells. METHODS: In our study, we evaluated the anticancer activities of three aminothiophene derivatives: SB-44, SB-83, and SB-200, in prostate and cervical adenocarcinoma cells. Several in vitro methods were performed, including cytotoxicity, clonogenic migration, mutagenic, and cleaved Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) assays and annexin V staining. RESULTS: Significant cytotoxicity was observed in cell lines with IC50 values less than 35 µM (15.38-34.04 µM). All aminothiophene derivatives significantly reduced clone formation but had no effect on cell motility. SB-83 and SB-44 induced a significant increase in the percentage of cells in the sub-G1 phase, while SB-200 derivatives significantly decreased the percentage of S/G2/M as well as induced apoptosis, with an increase of cleaved PARP. SBs compounds also showed significant mutagenic potential. Beyond that, in silico analyses revealed that all three thiophene derivatives fulfilled the criteria for oral druggability, which underscores the potential of using them in anticancer therapies. CONCLUSION: Our findings show that the thiophene nucleus may be used to treat solid tumors, including prostate cancer and cervical adenocarcinoma.

Synthesis, ADMET Prediction, and Antitumor Profile of Phenoxyhydrazine- 1,3-thiazoles Derivatives.

BACKGROUND: Cancer is one of the most important barriers to increasing life expectancy in all countries in the 21st century. Investigations of new anti-cancer drugs with low side effects are an urgent demand for medicinal chemists. Considering the known antitumor and immunomodulatory activity of thiazoles, this work presents the synthesis and antineoplastic activity of new thiazoles. METHODS: The 22 new compounds (2a-v) were synthesized from different thiosemicarbazones and 2-bromoacetophenone. The compounds were evaluated on: MOLT-4, HL-60, HL-60/MX1, MM1S, SKMEL-28, DU145, MCF-7, and T47d. RESULTS: Compound 2b induced cellular viability on MOLT-4 (37.1%), DU145 (41.5%), and HL- 60/MX1 (58.8%) cells. On MOLT-4 cells, compound 2b exhibited an IC50 of 8.03 µM, and against DU145 cells, an IC50 of 6.04µM. Besides, at IC50 and fold of IC50, 20% to 30% of dead cells were found, most due to necrosis/late apoptosis. Most compounds no showed cytotoxicity against fibroblast cells L929 at the concentrations tested. The compound did not alter the cell cycle of DU145 cells when compared to the negative control. Therefore, compound 2b stands out against DU145 and MOLT-4 cells. CONCLUSION: Our study reinforced the importance of 1,3-thiazoles nuclei in antitumor activity. In addition, derivative 2b stands out against DU145 and MOLT-4 cells and could be a starting point for developing new antineoplastic agents.

Potential Therapeutic Agents Against Par-4 Target for Cancer Treatment: Where Are We Going?

One of the greatest challenges of cancer therapeutics nowadays is to find selective targets successfully. Prostate apoptosis response-4 (Par-4) is a selective tumor suppressor protein with an interesting therapeutic potential due to its specificity on inducing apoptosis in cancer cells. Par-4 activity and levels can be downregulated in several tumors and cancer cell types, indicating poor prognosis and treatment resistance. Efforts to increase Par-4 expression levels have been studied, including its use as a therapeutic protein by transfection with adenoviral vectors or plasmids. However, gene therapy is very complex and still presents many hurdles to be overcome. We decided to review molecules and drugs with the capacity to upregulate Par-4 and, thereby, be an alternative to reach this druggable target. In addition, Par-4 localization and function are reviewed in some cancers, clarifying how it can be used as a therapeutic target.

Anticancer properties of thiophene derivatives in breast cancer MCF-7 cells.

Substitutions in thiophene structure give rise to new derivatives with different biological and pharmacological activities. The present study investigated the cytotoxicity activity of some thiophene derivatives in breast cancer cells maintained in two-dimensional (2D) or in three-dimensional (3D) culture and evaluated the anticancer mechanism of these compounds. Cytotoxicity assays were performed against untransformed cells and against breast cancer cell MCF-7. Apoptosis analysis and in-vitro migration assay were also performed to evaluate the mechanism of induction of cell death. All thiophene derivatives reduced the cell viability in breast cancer cells, showing cytotoxic activity (IC50<30 µmol/l), and SB-200 compound showed the best selectivity index in MCF-7 cells compared with doxorubicin in 2D culture. All thiophene derivatives significantly induced G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest. However, only SB-83 treatment was effective against motility of MCF-7 cells in 2D culture (P=0.0059). The SB-200 derivative treatment induced an increased proportion of acridine orange/Hoechst double-stained cells (35.35 vs. 3.14%, P=0.0002) compared with nontreated cells, with apoptosis morphological alterations independent of caspase 7 activation (P>0.05). MCF-7 cells became less responsive to SB-200 and to doxorubicin in 3D culture compared with cells in 2D culture (higher IC50 values); however, SB-200 showed a better cytotoxic effect compared with doxorubicin in 3D culture. Therefore, the current study provides an insight into anticancer potential of thiophene derivatives, and further studies should be conducted to understand the mechanism by which thiophene derivatives act on cancer cells.

Decreased serum interleukin 27 in Brazilian systemic lupus erythematosus patients.

The immunological role of interleukin 27 has been reported in various inflammatory diseases, but its importance in systemic lupus erythematosus pathogenesis is not completely established. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum levels of IL-27 in SLE patients and its correlation with clinical manifestations and disease activity. IL-27 levels were assessed in 70 SLE patients and 30 healthy controls by ELISA. Clinical and laboratory parameters were recorded. Statistic analyzes were performed by Graph Prism 3.02 software. The IL-27 serum levels were significantly decreased in SLE patients compared with controls (mean 899.92 and 1,531.22 pg/ml, P=0.0005). There was a correlation between IL-27 levels and C3 levels (P=0.004). Nevertheless, there was no association of serum IL-27 levels with disease activity evaluated by SLEDAI score (P=0.9605). No significant difference was found regarding IL-27 levels between SLE patients with and without nephritis, haematuria, proteinuria and positive anti-dsDNA. Correlation analysis between serum IL-27 levels and SLEDAI, SLICC, proteinuria levels, C4 and CH50 levels also showed no association. These data demonstrated decreased serum levels of IL-27 in SLE patients but further studies are needed to clarify the precise role of this cytokine and its potential use as therapeutic target.