In-vitro and in-vivo investigations into the carbene-gold anticancer drug candidates NHC*-Au-SCSNMe2 and NHC*-Au-S-GLUC against advanced prostate cancer PC3

Anticancer Drugs. 2020 Aug;31(7):672-683. doi: 10.1097/CAD.0000000000000930.

Abstract

The anticancer drug candidates 1,3-dibenzyl-4,5-diphenyl-imidazol-2-ylidene gold(I) dimethylamino dithiocarbamate and 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-D-glucopyranosyl-1-thiolate derivative exhibited nanomolar in-vitro activity against prostate cancer cells advanced prostate cancer (PC3) and micromolar inhibition of mammalian thioredoxin reductase. Encouraging maximum tolerable dose experiments led to human prostate cancer subcutaneous xenograft experiments; 1,3-dibenzyl-4,5-diphenyl-imidazol-2-ylidene gold(I) dimethylamino dithiocarbamate and 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-D-glucopyranosyl-1-thiolate derivative were applied twelve times at two doses in groups of n = 5 PC3 to tumor-bearing NMRI:nu/nu mice. 1,3-dibenzyl-4,5-diphenyl-imidazol-2-ylidene gold(I) dimethylamino dithiocarbamate and 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-D-glucopyranosyl-1-thiolate derivative at the dose of 10 and 20 mg/kg showed good tolerability, while no significant body weight loss was seen in both groups. In particular, for the drug 1,3-dibenzyl-4,5-diphenyl-imidazol-2-ylidene gold(I) dimethylamino dithiocarbamate the tumor growth inhibition suggested to be dose dependent, reflected by the respective optimal T/C values of 0.45 at the dose of 10 mg/kg and of 0.31 at the dose of 20 mg/kg. By contrast, the 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-D-glucopyranosyl-1-thiolate derivative treated groups showed no indication for dose-dependent antitumoral activity, as reflected by the optimal T/C values of 0.44 for the 10 mg/kg and for the 20 mg/kg treated mice. Immunohistochemical experiments involving Ki67 staining of tumor tissue showed that both compounds reduced PC3 cell proliferation against the difficult to treat advanced human prostate tumors derived from PC3.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / chemistry
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology
  • Cell Growth Processes / drug effects
  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor
  • Glucose Transporter Type 1 / chemistry
  • Glucose Transporter Type 1 / metabolism
  • Gold / chemistry
  • Gold / pharmacology*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Nude
  • Molecular Docking Simulation
  • Organometallic Compounds / chemical synthesis
  • Organometallic Compounds / chemistry
  • Organometallic Compounds / pharmacology*
  • PC-3 Cells
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / metabolism
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / pathology
  • Random Allocation
  • Sulfhydryl Compounds / chemical synthesis
  • Sulfhydryl Compounds / chemistry
  • Sulfhydryl Compounds / pharmacology
  • Thiocarbamates / chemical synthesis
  • Thiocarbamates / chemistry
  • Thiocarbamates / pharmacology*
  • Thioredoxin-Disulfide Reductase / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Thioredoxin-Disulfide Reductase / metabolism
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Glucose Transporter Type 1
  • Organometallic Compounds
  • SLC2A1 protein, human
  • Sulfhydryl Compounds
  • Thiocarbamates
  • Gold
  • Thioredoxin-Disulfide Reductase