Bifunctional Naphthoquinone Aromatic Amide-Oxime Derivatives Exert Combined Immunotherapeutic and Antitumor Effects through Simultaneous Targeting of Indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase and Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3

J Med Chem. 2020 Feb 27;63(4):1544-1563. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.9b01386. Epub 2020 Feb 17.

Abstract

Indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) are important targets in the tumor microenvironment for cancer therapy. In the present study, a set of naphthoquinone aromatic amide-oxime derivatives were designed, which stimulated the immune response via IDO1 inhibition and simultaneously displayed powerful antitumor activity against three selected cancer cell lines through suppressing STAT3 signaling. The representative compound 8u bound effectively to IDO1, with greater inhibitory activity relative to the commercial IDO1 inhibitor 4-amino-N-(3-chloro-4-fluorophenyl)-N'-hydroxy-1,2,5-oxadiazole-3-carboximidamide (IDO5L) in addition to the efficient suppression of nuclear translocation of STAT3. Consistently, in vivo assays demonstrated a higher antiproliferative activity of compound 8u in both wild-type B16-F10 isograft tumors and an athymic HepG2 xenograft model relative to 1-methyl-l-tryptophan (1-MT) and doxorubicin (DOX). This bifunctional compound with dual immunotherapeutic and anticancer efficacy may represent a new generation of highly efficacious drug candidates for cancer therapy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / chemical synthesis
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology
  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / chemical synthesis
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Humans
  • Immunologic Factors / chemical synthesis
  • Immunologic Factors / pharmacology*
  • Indoleamine-Pyrrole 2,3,-Dioxygenase / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Nude
  • Molecular Docking Simulation
  • Molecular Structure
  • Naphthoquinones / chemical synthesis
  • Naphthoquinones / pharmacology
  • Naphthoquinones / therapeutic use*
  • Oximes / chemical synthesis
  • Oximes / pharmacology
  • Oximes / therapeutic use*
  • STAT3 Transcription Factor / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Structure-Activity Relationship
  • Tumor Escape / drug effects
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • IDO1 protein, human
  • Immunologic Factors
  • Indoleamine-Pyrrole 2,3,-Dioxygenase
  • Naphthoquinones
  • Oximes
  • STAT3 Transcription Factor
  • STAT3 protein, human