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3D spheroids of primary human hepatocytes (3D PHH) retain a differentiated phenotype with largely conserved metabolic function and proteomic fingerprint over weeks in culture. As a result, 3D PHH are gaining importance as a model for mechanistic liver homeostasis studies and in vitro to in vivo extrapolation (IVIVE) in drug discovery. However, the kinetics and regulation of drug transporters have not yet been assessed in 3D PHH. Here, we used organic cation transporter 1 (OCT1/SLC22A1) as a model to study both transport kinetics and the long-term regulation of transporter activity via relevant signalling pathways. The kinetics of the OCT1 transporter was studied using the fluorescent model substrate 4-(4-(dimethylamino)styryl)-N-methylpyridinium (ASP+) and known OCT1 inhibitors in individual 3D PHH. For long-term studies, 3D PHH were treated with xenobiotics for seven days, after which protein expression and OCT1 function were assessed. Global proteomic analysis was used to track hepatic phenotypes as well as prototypical changes in other regulated proteins, such as P-glycoprotein and Cytochrome P450 3A4. ASP+ kinetics indicated a fully functional OCT1 transporter with a K m value of 14 ± 4.0µM as the mean from three donors. Co-incubation with known OCT1 inhibitors decreased the uptake of ASP+ in the 3D PHH spheroids by 35-52%. The long-term exposure studies showed that OCT1 is relatively stable upon activation of nuclear receptor signalling or exposure to compounds that could induce inflammation, steatosis or liver injury. Our results demonstrate that 3D PHH spheroids express physiologically relevant levels of fully active OCT1 and that its transporter kinetics can be accurately studied in the 3D PHH configuration. We also confirm that OCT1 remains stable and functional during the activation of key metabolic pathways that alter the expression and function of other drug transporters and drug-metabolizing enzymes. These results will expand the range of studies that can be performed using 3D PHH., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Magnetic hyperthermia holds significant therapeutic potential, yet its clinical adoption faces challenges. One obstacle is the large-scale synthesis of high-quality superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) required for inducing hyperthermia. Robust and scalable manufacturing would ensure control over the key quality attributes of SPIONs, and facilitate clinical translation and regulatory approval. Therefore, we implemented a risk-based pharmaceutical quality by design (QbD) approach for SPION production using flame spray pyrolysis (FSP), a scalable technique with excellent batch-to-batch consistency. A design of experiments method enabled precise size control during manufacturing. Subsequent modeling linked the SPION size (6-30 nm) and composition to intrinsic loss power (ILP), a measure of hyperthermia performance. FSP successfully fine-tuned the SPION composition with dopants (Zn, Mn, Mg), at various concentrations. Hyperthermia performance showed a strong nonlinear relationship with SPION size and composition. Moreover, the ILP demonstrated a stronger correlation to coercivity and remanence than to the saturation magnetization of SPIONs. The optimal operating space identified the midsized (15-18 nm) Mn 0.25 Fe 2.75 O 4 as the most promising nanoparticle for hyperthermia. The production of these nanoparticles on a pilot scale showed the feasibility of large-scale manufacturing, and cytotoxicity investigations in multiple cell lines confirmed their biocompatibility. In vitr o hyperthermia studies with Caco-2 cells revealed that Mn 0.25 Fe 2.75 O 4 nanoparticles induced 80% greater cell death than undoped SPIONs. The systematic QbD approach developed here incorporates process robustness, scalability, and predictability, thus, supporting the clinical translation of high-performance SPIONs for magnetic hyperthermia.

Detailed metabolic imaging of specific brain regions in early aging may expose pathophysiological mechanisms and indicate effective neuropharmacological targets in the onset of cognitive decline. Comprehensive imaging of brain aging and drug-target effects is restricted using conventional methodology. We simultaneously visualized multiple metabolic alterations induced by normal aging in specific regions of mouse brains by integrating Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry imaging and combined supervised and unsupervised machine learning models. We examined the interplay between aging and the response to tacrine-induced acetylcholinesterase inhibition, a well-characterized therapeutic treatment against dementia. The dipeptide carnosine (β-alanyl-l-histidine) and the vitamin α-tocopherol were significantly elevated by aging in different brain regions. l-Carnitine and acetylcholine metabolism were found to be major pathways affected by aging and tacrine administration in a brain region-specific manner, indicating altered mitochondrial function and neurotransmission. The highly interconnected hippocampus and retrosplenial cortex displayed different age-induced alterations in lipids and acylcarnitines, reflecting diverse region-specific metabolic effects. The subregional differences observed in the hippocampal formation of several lipid metabolites demonstrate the unique potential of the technique compared to standard mass spectrometry approaches. An age-induced increase of endogenous antioxidants, such as α-tocopherol, in the hippocampus was detected, suggesting an augmentation of neuroprotective mechanisms in early aging. Our comprehensive imaging approach visualized heterogeneous age-induced metabolic perturbations in mitochondrial function, neurotransmission, and lipid signaling, not always attenuated by acetylcholinesterase inhibition.

The Breast Cancer Resistance Protein (BCRP) is a key transporter in drug efflux and drug-drug interactions. However, endogenous expression of Multidrug Resistance Protein 1 (MDR1) confounds the interpretation of BCRP-mediated transport in in vitro models. Here we used a CRISPR-Cas9 edited Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) II cell line (MDCK cMDR1-KO ) for stable expression of human BCRP (hBCRP) with no endogenous canine MDR1 (cMDR1) expression (MDCK-hBCRP cMDR1-KO ). Targeted quantitative proteomics verified expression of hBCRP, and global analysis of the entire proteome corroborated no or very low background expression of other drug transport proteins or metabolizing enzymes. This new cell line, had similar proteome like MDCK cMDR1-KO and a previously established, corresponding cell line overexpressing human MDR1 (hMDR1), MDCK-hMDR1 cMDR1-KO . Functional studies with MDCK-hBCRP cMDR1-KO confirmed high hBCRP activity. The MDCK-hBCRP cMDR1-KO cell line together with the MDCK-hMDR1 cMDR1-KO easily and accurately identified shared or specific substrates of the hBCRP and the hMDR1 transporters. These cell lines offer new, improved in vitro tools for the assessment of drug efflux and drug-drug interactions in drug development., (Copyright © 2020 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Acamprosate is an anionic drug substance widely used in treating symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. It was recently shown that oral acamprosate absorption is likely due to paracellular transport. In contrast, little is known about the eliminating mechanism clearing acamprosate from the blood in the kidneys, despite the fact that studies have shown renal secretion of acamprosate. The hypothesis of the present study was therefore that renal organic anion transporters (OATs) facilitate the renal excretion of acamprosate in humans. The aim of the present study was to establish and apply OAT1 (gene product of SLC22A6 ) and OAT3 (gene product of SLC22A8 ) expressing cell lines to investigate whether acamprosate is a substrate or inhibitor of OAT1 and/or OAT3. The studies were performed in HEK293-Flp-In cells stably transfected with SLC22A6 or SLC22A8 . Protein and functional data showed that the established cell lines are useful for studying OAT1- and OAT3-mediated transport in bi-laboratory studies. Acamprosate inhibited OAT1-mediated p -aminohippuric acid (PAH) uptake but did not inhibit substrate uptake via OAT3 expressing cells, neither when applied concomitantly nor after a 3 h preincubation with acamprosate. The uptake of PAH via OAT1 was inhibited in a competitive manner by acamprosate and cellular uptake studies showed that acamprosate is a substrate for OAT1 with a K m -value of approximately 700 µM. Probenecid inhibited OAT1-mediated acamprosate uptake with a K i -value of approximately 13 µM, which may translate into an estimated clinically significant DDI index. In conclusion, acamprosate was identified as a substrate of OAT1 but not OAT3.

In drug development, estimating fraction absorbed ( F a ) in man for permeability-limited compounds is important but challenging. To model F a of such compounds from apparent permeabilities ( P app ) across filter-grown Caco-2 cell monolayers, it is central to elucidate the intestinal permeation mechanism(s) of the compound. The present study aims to refine a computational permeability model to investigate the relative contribution of paracellular and transcellular routes to the P app across Caco-2 monolayers of the permeability-limited compound acamprosate having a bioavailability of ∼11%. The P app values of acamprosate and of several paracellular marker molecules were measured. These P app values were used to refine system-specific parameters of the Caco-2 monolayers, that is, paracellular pore radius, pore capacity, and potential drop. The refined parameters were subsequently used as an input in modeling the permeability ( P modeled ) of the tested compounds using mathematical models collected from two published permeability models. The experimental data show that acamprosate P app across Caco-2 monolayers is low and similar in both transport directions. The obtained acamprosate P app , 1.56 ± 0.28 × 10 -7 cm·s -1 , is similar to the P app of molecular markers for paracellular permeability, namely, mannitol (2.72 ± 0.24 × 10 -7 cm·s -1 ), lucifer yellow (1.80 ± 0.35 × 10 -7 cm·s -1 ), and fluorescein (2.10 ± 0.28 × 10 -7 cm·s -1 ), and lower than that of atenolol (7.32 ± 0.60 × 10 -7 cm·s -1 ; mean ± SEM, n = 3-6), while the end-point amount of acamprosate internalized by the cell monolayer, Q monolayer , was lower than that of mannitol. Acamprosate did not influence the barrier function of the monolayers since it altered neither the P app of the three paracellular markers nor the transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) of the cell monolayer. The P modeled for all the paracellular markers and acamprosate was dominated by the P para component and matched the experimentally obtained P app . Furthermore, acamprosate did not inhibit the uptake of probe substrates for solute carriers PEPT1, TAUT, PAT1, EAAT1, B 0,+ AT/rBAT, OATP2B1, and ASBT expressed in Caco-2 cells. Thus, the P modeled estimated well P para , and the paracellular route appears to be the predominant mechanism for acamprosate P app across Caco-2 monolayers, while the alternative transcellular routes, mediated by passive diffusion or carriers, are suggested to only play insignificant roles.

The dipeptide amide H-Phe-Phe-NH 2 (1) that previously was identified as a ligand for the substance P 1-7 (SP 1-7 ) binding site exerts intriguing results in animal models of neuropathic pain after central but not after peripheral administration. The dipeptide 1 is derived from stepwise modifications of the anti-nociceptive heptapeptide SP 1-7 and the tetrapeptide endomorphin-2 that is also binding to the SP 1-7 site. We herein report a strong anti-allodynic effect of a new H-Phe-Phe-NH 2 peptidomimetic (4) comprising an imidazole ring as a bioisosteric element, in the spare nerve injury (SNI) mice model after peripheral administration. Peptidomimetic 4 was stable in plasma, displayed a fair membrane permeability and a favorable neurotoxic profile. Moreover, the effective dose (ED 50 ) of 4 was superior as compared to gabapentin and morphine that are used in clinic., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

There is a high need to develop quantitative imaging methods capable of providing detailed brain localization information of several molecular species simultaneously. In addition, extensive information on the effect of the blood-brain barrier on the penetration, distribution and efficacy of neuroactive compounds is required. Thus, we have developed a mass spectrometry imaging method to visualize and quantify the brain distribution of drugs with varying blood-brain barrier permeability. With this approach, we were able to determine blood-brain barrier transport of different drugs and define the drug distribution in very small brain structures (e.g., choroid plexus) due to the high spatial resolution provided. Simultaneously, we investigated the effect of drug-drug interactions by inhibiting the membrane transporter multidrug resistance 1 protein. We propose that the described approach can serve as a valuable analytical tool during the development of neuroactive drugs, as it can provide physiologically relevant information often neglected by traditional imaging technologies., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) II cells stably transfected with transport proteins are commonly used models for drug transport studies. However, endogenous expression of especially canine MDR1 (cMDR1) confounds the interpretation of such studies. Here we have established an MDCK cell line stably overexpressing the human MDR1 transporter (hMDR1; P-glycoprotein), and used CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to knockout the endogenous cMDR1. Genomic screening revealed the generation of a clonal cell line homozygous for a 4-nucleotide deletion in the canine ABCB1 gene leading to a frameshift and a premature stop codon. Knockout of cMDR1 expression was verified by quantitative protein analysis and functional studies showing retained activity of the human MDR1 transporter. Application of this cell line allowed unbiased reclassification of drugs previously defined as both substrates and non-substrates in different studies using commonly used MDCK-MDR1 clones. Our new MDCK-hMDR1 cell line, together with a previously developed control cell line, both with identical deletions in the canine ABCB1 gene and lack of cMDR1 expression represent excellent in vitro tools for use in drug discovery., (Copyright © 2017 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Intracellular drug exposure is influenced by cell- and tissue-dependent expression of drug-transporting proteins and metabolizing enzymes. Here, we introduce the concept of intracellular bioavailability (F ic ) as the fraction of extracellular drug available to bind intracellular targets, and we assess how F ic is affected by cellular drug disposition processes. We first investigated the impact of two essential drug transporters separately, one influx transporter (OATP1B1; SLCO1B1) and one efflux transporter (P-gp; ABCB1), in cells overexpressing these proteins. We showed that OATP1B1 increased F ic of its substrates, while P-gp decreased F ic . We then investigated the impact of the concerted action of multiple transporters and metabolizing enzymes in freshly-isolated human hepatocytes in culture configurations with different levels of expression and activity of these proteins. We observed that F ic was up to 35-fold lower in the configuration with high expression of drug-eliminating transporters and enzymes. We conclude that F ic provides a measurement of the net impact of all cellular drug disposition processes on intracellular bioavailable drug levels. Importantly, no prior knowledge of the involved drug distribution pathways is required, allowing for high-throughput determination of drug access to intracellular targets in highly defined cell systems (e.g., single-transporter transfectants) or in complex ones (including primary human cells).

Sustained autophagy contributes to the metabolic adaptation of cancer cells to hypoxic and acidic microenvironments. Since cells in such environments are resistant to conventional cytotoxic drugs, inhibition of autophagy represents a promising therapeutic strategy in clinical oncology. We previously reported that the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), an autophagy inhibitor under clinical investigation is strongly impaired in acidic tumor environments, due to poor uptake of the drug, a phenomenon widely associated with drug resistance towards many weak bases. In this study we identified salinomycin (SAL) as a potent inhibitor of autophagy and cytotoxic agent effective on several cancer cell lines under conditions of transient and chronic acidosis. Since SAL has been reported to specifically target cancer-stem cells (CSC), we used an established model of breast CSC and CSC derived from breast cancer patients to examine whether this specificity may be associated with autophagy inhibition. We indeed found that CSC-like cells are more sensitive to autophagy inhibition compared to cells not expressing CSC markers. We also report that the ability of SAL to inhibit mammosphere formation from CSC-like cells was dramatically enhanced in acidic conditions. We propose that the development and use of clinically suitable SAL derivatives may result in improved autophagy inhibition in cancer cells and CSC in the acidic tumor microenvironment and lead to clinical benefits., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Isolated human hepatocytes are commonly used to predict transporter-mediated clearance in vivo. Such predictions, however, do not provide estimations of transporter contributions and consequently do not allow predictions of the outcome resulting from a change in the activity of a certain transporter, for example, by inhibition or a genetic variant with reduced function. Pitavastatin is a drug that is heavily dependent on hepatic transporters for its elimination, and it is excreted mainly as unchanged drug in the bile. For this reason, pitavastatin was used as a model drug to demonstrate the applicability of a bottom-up approach to predict transporter-mediated disposition in sandwich-cultured human hepatocytes (SCHHs), allowing for the estimation of transporter contributions. Transport experiments in transfected human embryonic kidney cells (HEK293 cell lines) and inverted membrane vesicles overexpressing each of the relevant transport proteins were used to generate parameter estimates for the mechanistic model. By adjusting for differences in transporter abundance between the in vitro systems and individual SCHH batches, the model successfully predicted time profiles of medium and intracellular accumulation. Our predictions of pitavastatin bile accumulation could not be confirmed, however, because of a very low biliary excretion of pitavastatin in relation to the hepatic uptake in our SCHHs. This study is, to our knowledge, the first to successfully simulate transporter-mediated processes in a complex system such as SCHHs at the level of individual transport proteins using a bottom-up approach., (Copyright © 2016 by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.)

Madin-Darby canine kidney II cells transfected with one or several transport proteins are commonly used models to study drug transport. In these cells, however, endogenous transporters such as canine Mdr1/P-glycoprotein (Abcb1) complicate the interpretation of transport studies. The aim of this investigation was to establish a Madin-Darby canine kidney II cell line using CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology to knock out endogenous canine Mdr1 (cMdr1) expression. CRISPR-Cas9-mediated Abcb1 homozygous disruption occurred at frequencies of around 20% and resulted in several genotypes. We selected 1 clonal cell line, cMdr1 KO Cl2, for further examination. Consistent with an on-target effect of CRISPR-Cas9 in specific regions of the endogenous canine Abcb1 gene, we obtained a cell clone with Abcb1 gene alterations and without any cMdr1 expression, as confirmed by genome sequencing and quantitative protein analysis. Functional studies of these cells, using digoxin and other prototypic MDR1 substrates, showed close to identical transport in the apical-to-basolateral and basolateral-to-apical directions, resulting in efflux ratios indistinguishable from unity., (Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Freshly isolated human hepatocytes are considered the gold standard for in vitro studies of liver functions, including drug transport, metabolism, and toxicity. For accurate predictions of the in vivo outcome, the isolated hepatocytes should reflect the phenotype of their in vivo counterpart, i.e., hepatocytes in human liver tissue. Here, we quantified and compared the membrane proteomes of freshly isolated hepatocytes and human liver tissue using a label-free shotgun proteomics approach. A total of 5144 unique proteins were identified, spanning over 6 orders of magnitude in abundance. There was a good global correlation in protein abundance. However, the expression of many plasma membrane proteins was lower in the isolated hepatocytes than in the liver tissue. This included transport proteins that determine hepatocyte exposure to many drugs and endogenous compounds. Pathway analysis of the differentially expressed proteins confirmed that hepatocytes are exposed to oxidative stress during isolation and suggested that plasma membrane proteins were degraded via the protein ubiquitination pathway. Finally, using pitavastatin as an example, we show how protein quantifications can improve in vitro predictions of in vivo liver clearance. We tentatively conclude that our data set will be a useful resource for improved hepatocyte predictions of the in vivo outcome.

Differences in the expression and function of the organic anion transporting polypeptide (OATP) transporters contribute to interindividual variability in atorvastatin clearance. However, the importance of the bile acid transporter sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP, SLC10A1) in atorvastatin uptake clearance (CLupt) is not yet clarified. To elucidate this issue, we investigated the relative contribution of NTCP, OATP1B1, OATP1B3, and OATP2B1 to atorvastatin CLupt in 12 human liver samples. The impact of inhibition on atorvastatin CLupt was also studied, using inhibitors of different isoform specificities. Expression levels of the four transport proteins were quantified by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. These data, together with atorvastatin in vitro kinetics, were used to predict the maximal transport activity (MTA) and interindividual differences in CLupt of each transporter in vivo. Subsequently, hepatic uptake impairment on coadministration of five clinically interacting drugs was predicted using in vitro inhibitory potencies. NTCP and OATP protein expression varied 3.7- to 32-fold among the 12 sample donors. The rank order in expression was OATP1B1 > OATP1B3 ≈ NTCP ≈ OATP2B1. NTCP was found to be of minor importance in atorvastatin disposition. Instead, OATP1B1 and OATP1B3 were confirmed as the major atorvastatin uptake transporters. The average contribution to atorvastatin uptake was OATP1B1 > OATP1B3 >> OATP2B1 > NTCP, although this rank order varied among individuals. The interindividual differences in transporter expression and CLupt resulted in marked differences in drug-drug interactions due to isoform-specific inhibition. We conclude that this variation should be considered in in vitro to in vivo extrapolations., (Copyright © 2014 by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.)

Two clinical trials and a large set of in vitro transporter experiments were performed to investigate if the hepatobiliary disposition of the direct thrombin inhibitor prodrug AZD0837 is the mechanism for the drug-drug interaction with ketoconazole observed in a previous clinical study. In Study 1, [(3)H]AZD0837 was administered to healthy male volunteers (n = 8) to quantify and identify the metabolites excreted in bile. Bile was sampled directly from the jejunum by duodenal aspiration via an oro-enteric tube. In Study 2, the effect of ketoconazole on the plasma and bile pharmacokinetics of AZD0837, the intermediate metabolite (AR-H069927), and the active form (AR-H067637) was investigated (n = 17). Co-administration with ketoconazole elevated the plasma exposure to AZD0837 and the active form approximately 2-fold compared to placebo, which may be explained by inhibited CYP3A4 metabolism and reduced biliary clearance, respectively. High concentrations of the active form was measured in bile with a bile-to-plasma AUC ratio of approximately 75, indicating involvement of transporter-mediated excretion of the compound. AZD0837 and its metabolites were further investigated as substrates of hepatic uptake and efflux transporters in vitro. Studies in MDCK-MDR1 cell monolayers and P-glycoprotein (P-gp) expressing membrane vesicles identified AZD0837, the intermediate, and the active form as substrates of P-gp. The active form was also identified as a substrate of the multidrug and toxin extrusion 1 (MATE1) transporter and the organic cation transporter 1 (OCT1), in HEK cells transfected with the respective transporter. Ketoconazole was shown to inhibit all of these three transporters; in particular, inhibition of P-gp and MATE1 occurred in a clinically relevant concentration range. In conclusion, the hepatobiliary transport pathways of AZD0837 and its metabolites were identified in vitro and in vivo. Inhibition of the canalicular transporters P-gp and MATE1 may lead to enhanced plasma exposure to the active form, which could, at least in part, explain the clinical interaction with ketoconazole.

The absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) of drugs in vivo are to a large extent dependent on different transport and metabolism routes. Elucidation of this complex transport-metabolism interplay is a major challenge in drug development and at present no in vitro models suitable for this purpose are at hand. The aim of this study was to develop flexible, well-controlled, easy-to-use, integrated cell models, where drug transport and drug metabolism processes could be studied simultaneously. HEK293 cells stably transfected with the organic anion transporting polypeptide 1B1 (OATP1B1) were subjected to either transient transfection or adenoviral infection to introduce the genes expressing cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4), NADPH cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (POR), cytochrome b5 (CYB5A), and multidrug resistance protein 1 (MDR1), in different combinations. Thereafter, the time and concentration-dependent transport and metabolism of two well-characterized statins, atorvastatin (acid and lactone forms) and simvastatin (acid form), were determined in the different models. The results show that CYP3A4-dependent metabolism of the more hydrophilic atorvastatin acid was dependent on OATP1B1 uptake and influenced by MDR1 efflux. In contrast, the metabolism of the more lipophilic atorvastatin lactone was not affected by active transport, whereas the metabolism of simvastatin acid was less influenced by active transport than atorvastatin acid. Our results, together with the models being applicative for any combination of drug transporters and CYP metabolizing enzymes of choice, provide proof-of-concept for the potential of the new integrated cell models presented as valuable screening tools in drug discovery and development.

The hepatic organic anion transporting polypeptides (OATPs) influence the pharmacokinetics of several drug classes and are involved in many clinical drug-drug interactions. Predicting potential interactions with OATPs is, therefore, of value. Here, we developed in vitro and in silico models for identification and prediction of specific and general inhibitors of OATP1B1, OATP1B3, and OATP2B1. The maximal transport activity (MTA) of each OATP in human liver was predicted from transport kinetics and protein quantification. We then used MTA to predict the effects of a subset of inhibitors on atorvastatin uptake in vivo. Using a data set of 225 drug-like compounds, 91 OATP inhibitors were identified. In silico models indicated that lipophilicity and polar surface area are key molecular features of OATP inhibition. MTA predictions identified OATP1B1 and OATP1B3 as major determinants of atorvastatin uptake in vivo. The relative contributions to overall hepatic uptake varied with isoform specificities of the inhibitors.

Purpose: To establish in vitro and in silico models that predict clinical drug-drug interactions (DDIs) with the OATP1B1 (SLCO1B1) transporter., Methods: The inhibitory effect of 146 drugs and drug-like compounds on OATP1B1-mediated transport was studied in HEK293 cells. A computational model was developed to predict OATP1B1 inhibition. Concentration-dependent effects were investigated for six compounds; clinical DDIs were predicted by calculating change in exposure (i.e. R-values) in eight different ways., Results: Sixty-five compounds were identified as OATP1B1 inhibitors at 20 μM. The computational model predicted the test set with 80% accuracy for inhibitors and 91% for non-inhibitors. In vitro-in vivo comparisons underscored the importance of using drugs with known clinical effects as references. Thus, reference drugs, cyclosporin A, gemfibrozil, and fenofibrate, provided an inhibition interval to which three antiviral drugs, atazanavir, lopinavir, and amprenavir, could be compared and their clinical DDIs with OATP1B1 classified., Conclusions: Twenty-two new OATP1B1 inhibitors were identified, a predictive OATP1B1 inhibition in silico model was developed, and successful predictions of clinical DDIs were obtained with OATP1B1.

The cytochromes P450 (CYPs) are very efficient catalysts of foreign compound metabolism and are responsible for the major part of metabolism of clinically important drugs. The enzymes are important in cancer since they (a) activate dietary and environmental components to ultimate carcinogens, (b) activate or inactivate drugs used for cancer treatment, and (c) are potential targets for anticancer therapy. The genes encoding the CYP enzymes active in drug metabolism are highly polymorphic, whereas those encoding metabolism of precarcinogens are relatively conserved. A vast amount of literature is present where investigators have tried to link genetic polymorphism in CYPs to cancer susceptibility, although not much conclusive data have hitherto been obtained, with exception of CYP2A6 polymorphism and tobacco induced cancer, to a great extent because of lack of important functional polymorphisms in the genes studied. With respect to anticancer treatment, the genetic CYP polymorphism is of greater importance, where treatment with tamoxifen, but also with cyclophosphamide and maybe thalidomide is influenced by CYP genetic variants. In the present review we present updates on CYP genetics, cancer risk and treatment and also epigenetic aspects of interindividual variability in CYP expression and the use of these enzymes as targets for cancer therapy. We conclude that the CYP polymorphism does not predict cancer susceptibility to any large extent but that this polymorphism might be an important factor for optimal cancer therapy using selected anticancer agents.

Aim: Cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes are important for drug metabolism. A novel cytochrome P450 enzyme, CYP2W1, has recently been identified. This enzyme is mainly found in foetal colon tissue and in tumour tissue. In this pilot study, we have investigated the expression of CYP2W1 in 162 tumours from patients with stages II and III colorectal cancer., Methods: The expression of CYP2W1 enzyme was immunohistochemically detected using a polyclonal antibody. Staining intensity was defined using a visual grading scale from 0 to 3. Grades 0-2 were classified as low, and grade 3 was classified as high expression of CYP2W1., Results: About 64% of the tumours expressed a low level of CYP2W1-expression, and 36% expressed a high level. CYP2W1-expression was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival (p=0.007), where a high expression was associated with a worse clinical outcome., Conclusions: Immunohistochemically assessed expression of CYP2W1 is an independent prognostic factor in patients with stages II and III colorectal cancer.

Introduction: CYP2W1 is a novel enzyme shown to be selectively expressed in rat fetal colon and in human colon cancer and has previously been suggested as a potential drug target for cancer therapy. Here, the expression and gene methylation of CYP2W1 were analyzed in human colon carcinoma cell lines, colon tumors and in corresponding normal colon tissue., Methods: CYP2W1 mRNA and protein expression in HepG2 and Caco-2TC7 cells and normal colon and colon tumor tissue samples were analyzed using real-time PCR and Western blotting. CYP2W1 gene methylation status in the same samples was analyzed using the sodium bisulfite sequencing method., Results & Discussion: CYP2W1 mRNA was detected in all (n = 39) tumor samples analyzed. Moreover, in 60% (12/20) of the colon tumors, CYP2W1 mRNA levels were substantially higher than in corresponding normal tissues. CYP2W1 protein was detected in most of the colon tumor samples analyzed (n = 16), which appeared to be of two apparent phenotypes: those with five- to ten-fold induced CYP2W1 (approximately 50% of the tumors), and those with low expression, harboring similar or only slightly higher amounts of CYP2W1 as compared with surrounding control tissue. Methylation analysis of the CpG island in the exon 1-intron 1 junction of the CYP2W1 gene from both cell lines, tumors and normal tissues revealed that demethylated CpG dinucleotides appeared as a requirement for high CYP2W1 gene expression., Conclusion: The expression of CYP2W1 is colon tumor-specific and is associated with methylation status of the CYP2W1 gene, suggesting a potential causal link between the gene hypomethylation and its enhanced expression.

Recently, a new cytochrome P450, designated CYP2W1, was identified. This enzyme is expressed in transformed tissues and during fetal life, whereas in human adult tissues only low levels of expression have been detected. CYP2W1 has been shown to metabolise arachidonic acid and benzfetamine, as well as being able to metabolically activate several procarcinogens, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon dihydrodiols, aflatoxin B1 and sterigmatocystin. The gene expression is governed by gene methylation. The selective expression in some forms of cancers and the low expression in normal tissues render CYP2W1 as a possible drug target during cancer therapy. Here, the authors review the data currently available for this enzyme and discuss its potential as a drug target.

A novel human cytochrome P450, CYP2W1, was cloned and expressed heterologously. No or very low CYP2W1 mRNA levels were detected in fetal and adult human tissues, expression was however seen in 54% of human tumor samples investigated (n=37), in particular colon and adrenal tumors. Western blotting also revealed high expression of CYP2W1 in some human colon tumors. In rat tissues, CYP2W1 mRNA was expressed preferentially in fetal but also in adult colon. The CYP2W1 gene was shown to encompass one functional CpG island in the exon 1-intron 1 region which was methylated in cell lines lacking CYP2W1 expression, but unmethylated in cells expressing CYP2W1. Re-expression of CYP2W1 was seen following demethylation by 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine. Transfection of HEK293 cells with CYP2W1 caused the formation of a properly folded enzyme, which was catalytically active with arachidonic acid as a substrate. It is concluded that CYP2W1 represents a tumor-specific P450 isoform with potential importance as a drug target in cancer therapy.

The cytochrome P450 enzymes are highly expressed in the liver and are involved in the metabolism of xenobiotics. Because of the initiatives associated with the Human Genome Project, a great progress has recently been seen in the identification and characterization of novel extrahepatic P450s, including CYP2S1, CYP2R1, CYP2U1 and CYP2W1. Like the hepatic enzymes, these P450s may play a role in the tissue-specific metabolism of foreign compounds, but they may also have important endogenous functions. CYP2S1 has been shown to metabolize all-trans retinoic acid and CYP2R1 is a major vitamin D 25-hydroxylase. Regarding their metabolism of xenobiotics, much remains to be established, but CYP2S1 metabolizes naphthalene and it is likely that these P450s are responsible for metabolic activation of several different kinds of xenobiotic chemicals and contribute to extrahepatic toxicity and carcinogenesis.

A novel human cytochrome P450 cDNA designated CYP2U1 was identified using homology searches, and the corresponding gene is located on chromosome 4. The deduced 544 amino acid sequence displays up to 39% identity to other CYP2 family members, with closest resemblance to CYP2R1 and is highly conserved between species. CYP2U1 shows some structural differences compared to other CYP2 family members. The gene has only five exons and the enzyme harbors two insertions in the N-terminal region. Northern blot analysis revealed high mRNA expression in human thymus, with weaker expression in heart and brain, whereas in the rat similar mRNA levels were detected in thymus and brain. Western blot analysis revealed much higher CYP2U1 protein expression in rat brain than in thymus, particularly in limbic structures and in cortex. The physiological and toxicological role of this novel P450 is still unknown, but the selective tissue distribution suggests an important endogenous function.