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Both glycolate oxidase (GO) and lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) influence the endogenous synthesis of oxalate and are clinically validated targets for treatment of primary hyperoxaluria (PH). We investigated whether dual inhibition of GO and LDHA may provide advantage over single agents in treating PH. Utilizing a structure-based drug design (SBDD) approach, we developed a series of novel, potent, dual GO/LDHA inhibitors. X-ray crystal structures of compound 15 bound to individual GO and LDHA proteins validated our SBDD strategy. Dual inhibitor 7 demonstrated an IC 50 of 88 nM for oxalate reduction in an Agxt -knockdown mouse hepatocyte assay. Limited by poor liver exposure, this series of dual inhibitors failed to demonstrate significant PD modulation in an in vivo mouse model. This work highlights the challenges in optimizing in vivo liver exposures for diacid containing compounds and limited benefit seen with dual GO/LDHA inhibitors over single agents alone in an in vitro setting., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following competing financial interest(s): Some authors are current or former employees of Chinook Therapeutics and potentially own and/or hold stocks in the company., (© 2021 American Chemical Society.)

Studies indicate that MAO-B is induced in peripheral inflammatory diseases. To target peripheral tissues using MAO-B inhibitors that do not permeate the blood-brain barrier (BBB) the MAO-B-selective inhibitor deprenyl was remodeled by replacing the terminal acetylene with a CO 2 H function, and incorporating a para-OCH 2 Ar motif (compounds 10a-s). Further, in compound 32 the C-2 side chain corresponded to CH 2 CN. In vitro, 10c, 10j, 10k, and 32 were identified as potent reversible MAO-B inhibitors, and all four compounds were more stable than deprenyl in plasma, liver microsomal, and hepatocyte stability assays. In vivo, they demonstrated greater plasma bioavailability. Assessment of in vitro BBB permeability showed that compound 10k is a P-glycoprotein (P-gp) substrate and 10j displayed mild interaction. Importantly, compounds 10c, 10j, 10k, and 32 displayed significantly reduced BBB permeability after intravenous, subcutaneous, and oral administration. These polar MAO-B inhibitors are pertinent leads for evaluation of efficacy in noncentral nervous system (CNS) inflammatory disease models.

Acyl glucuronides are reactive electrophilic metabolites implicated in the toxicity of carboxylic acid drugs. Valproyl 1-O-β-acyl glucuronide (VPA-G), which is a major metabolite of valproic acid (VPA), has been linked to the development of oxidative stress in VPA-treated rats. However, relatively little is known about the toxicity of in situ generated VPA-G and its contribution to VPA hepatotoxicity. Therefore, we investigated the effects of modulating the in situ formation of VPA-G on lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release (a marker of necrosis), BODIPY 558/568 C12 accumulation (a marker of steatosis), and cellular glutathione (GSH) content in VPA-treated sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes. VPA increased LDH release and BODIPY 558/568 C12 accumulation, whereas it had little or no effect on total GSH content. Among the various uridine 5'-diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase inducers evaluated, β-naphthoflavone produced the greatest increase in VPA-G formation. This was accompanied by an attenuation of the increase in BODIPY 558/568 C12 accumulation, but did not affect the change in LDH release or total GSH content in VPA-treated hepatocytes. Inhibition of in situ formation of VPA-G by borneol was not accompanied by substantive changes in the effects of VPA on any of the toxicity markers. In a comparative study, in situ generated diclofenac glucuronide was not toxic to rat hepatocytes, as assessed using the same chemical modulators, thereby demonstrating the utility of the sandwich-cultured rat hepatocyte model. Overall, in situ generated VPA-G was not toxic to sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes, suggesting that VPA glucuronidation per se is not expected to be a contributing mechanism for VPA hepatotoxicity., (Copyright © 2014 by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.)

A rapid and sensitive ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the determination of valproyl-1-O-acyl glucuronide (VPA-G) levels in hepatocyte culture medium. Chromatographic separation was achieved using a Waters Acquity UPLC(®) BEH C18 column (1.7μm, 2.1mm×50mm) with gradient elution and a total run time of 4min. [(2)H6]-VPA-G was used as internal standard (IS). Quantification was performed in the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode using the total ion current of the MRM transition pairs m/z 319.1→142.7 and m/z 319.1→175.2 for VPA-G, and m/z 325.1→149.3 and m/z 325.1→174.9 for the IS under negative electrospray ionization mode. The assay was linear over the VPA-G concentrations of 0.5-500ng/mL, with a r(2) value of 0.995±0.002 (mean±SD). The intra- and inter-day accuracy (% deviation) ranged from -10.2% to 11.1%, whereas the intra- and inter-day precision (% RSD) were ≤7.43%. The method was applied successfully to the quantification of VPA-G levels in culture supernatants of sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes treated with valproic acid (VPA). No significant difference in the levels of VPA-G over a culture period of 6 days was observed in an experiment that investigated the effect of the age of hepatocyte culture on the extent of VPA glucuronidation. The method presented here for the direct quantification of VPA-G is an improvement of existing methods in the literature and offers a shorter run time and greater sensitivity that enables the use of small volumes of sample. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first validated UHPLC-MS/MS method applied to the quantification of VPA-G in cell culture supernatants., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Valproic acid (VPA) undergoes cytochrome P450-mediated desaturation to form 4-ene-VPA, which subsequently yields (E)-2,4-diene-VPA by β-oxidation. Another biotransformation pathway involves β-oxidation of VPA to form (E)-2-ene-VPA, which also generates (E)-2,4-diene-VPA by cytochrome P450-mediated desaturation. Although the synthetic form of (E)-2,4-diene-VPA is more hepatotoxic than VPA as shown in various experimental models, there is no conclusive evidence to implicate the in situ generated (E)-2,4-diene-VPA in VPA hepatotoxicity. The present study investigated the effects of modulating the in situ formation of (E)-2,4-diene-VPA on markers of oxidative stress (formation of 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein; DCF), steatosis (accumulation of BODIPY 558/568 C₁₂), necrosis (release of lactate dehydrogenase; LDH), and on cellular total glutathione (GSH) levels in sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes treated with VPA or (E)-2-ene-VPA. Treatment with either of these chemicals alone increased each of the toxicity endpoints. In VPA-treated hepatocytes, (E)-2,4-diene-VPA was detected only at trace levels, even after phenobarbital (PB) pretreatment and there was no effect on the toxicity of VPA. Furthermore, pretreatment with a cytochrome P450 enzyme inhibitor, 1-aminobenzotriazole (1-ABT), did not influence the extent of VPA toxicity in both PB-pretreated and vehicle-pretreated hepatocytes. However, in (E)-2-ene-VPA-treated hepatocytes, PB pretreatment greatly enhanced the levels of (E)-2,4-diene-VPA and this was accompanied by a further enhancement of the effects of (E)-2-ene-VPA on DCF formation, BODIPY accumulation, LDH release, and GSH depletion. Pretreatment with 1-ABT reduced the concentrations of (E)-2,4-diene-VPA and the extent of (E)-2-ene-VPA toxicity; however, this occurred in PB-pretreated hepatocytes, but not in control hepatocytes. In conclusion, in situ generated (E)-2,4-diene-VPA is not responsible for the hepatocyte toxicity of VPA, whereas it contributes to the toxicity of (E)-2-ene-VPA in PB-pretreated rat hepatocytes., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The present study was conducted in sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes to investigate the chemical basis of glutathione (GSH) depletion by valproic acid (VPA) and evaluate the role of GSH depletion in VPA toxicity. Among the synthetic metabolites of VPA investigated, 4-ene-VPA and (E)-2,4-diene-VPA decreased cellular levels of total GSH, but only (E)-2,4-diene-VPA was more effective and more potent than the parent drug. The in situ generated, cytochrome P450-dependent 4-ene-VPA did not contribute to GSH depletion by VPA, as suggested by the experiment with a cytochrome P450 inhibitor, 1-aminobenzotriazole, to decrease the formation of this metabolite. In support of a role for metabolites, alpha-F-VPA and octanoic acid, which do not undergo biotransformation to form a 2,4-diene metabolite, CoA ester, or glucuronide, did not deplete GSH. A time course experiment showed that GSH depletion did not occur prior to the increase in 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein (a marker of oxidative stress), the decrease in [2-(4-iodophenyl)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-5-(2,4-disulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium] (WST-1) product formation (a marker of cell viability), or the increase in lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release (a marker of necrosis) in VPA-treated hepatocytes. In conclusion, the cytochrome P450-mediated 4-ene-VPA pathway does not play a role in the in situ depletion of GSH by VPA, and GSH depletion is not an initiating event in VPA toxicity in sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Valproic acid (VPA) is a drug known for idiosyncratic hepatotoxicity and is associated with oxidative stress. It is metabolized extensively with at least one pathway leading to reactive metabolites. The primary aim of the present study was to determine whether oxidative metabolites of VPA generated in situ contribute to the toxicity of the parent drug in sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes. Concentration-response experiments with VPA produced median effective concentration values (mean ± SEM) of 1.1 ± 0.4, 12.2 ± 1.4, and 12.3 ± 1.9mM in the 2-(4-iodophenyl)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-5-(2,4-disulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium (WST-1; cell viability), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH; necrosis), and 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein (DCF; oxidative stress) assays, respectively. At equimolar concentrations, only the unsaturated metabolites of VPA gave responses comparable to VPA, with 2,4-diene-VPA calculated to be 3-, 6-, and 10-fold more potent than VPA in the WST-1, LDH, and DCF assays, respectively. In support of a role for reactive metabolites, 2-fluoro-2-propylpentanoic acid, which is relatively resistant to biotransformation to form a 2,4-diene metabolite, yielded little or no toxicity when compared with the nonhepatotoxic octanoic acid or the vehicle-treated control. By comparison, attenuating the in situ formation of 2-propylpent-4-enoic acid (4-ene-VPA), 3-hydroxy-2-propylpentanoic acid, 4-hydroxy-2-propylpentanoic acid, and 5-hydroxy-2-propylpentanoic acid by an inhibitor of cytochrome P450 (1-aminobenzotriazole) did not alter the effects of VPA on the WST-1, LDH, or DCF assay. Overall, VPA toxicity in sandwich-cultured rat hepatocytes is independent of the in situ formation of cytochrome P450-dependent oxidative metabolites, including 4-ene-VPA. However, the data obtained from structural analogues of VPA suggest that biotransformation does appear to play a role in VPA toxicity in rat hepatocytes.