Search

Si113, a pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine derivative, gained more attention as an anticancer agent due to its potent anticancer activity on both in vitro and in vivo hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) and ovarian carcinoma models. But the drawback is the low water solubility which prevents its further development. In this context, we successfully overcame this limitation by synthesizing two novel prodrugs introducing the amino acid sequence D-Ala-Leu-Lys (TP). Moreover, TP sequence has a high affinity with plasmin, a protease recognized as overexpressed in many solid cancers, including HCC and ovarian carcinoma. The prodrugs were synthesized and fully characterized in terms of in vitro ADME properties, plasma stability and plasmin-induced release of the parent drug. The inhibitory activity against Sgk1 was evaluated and in vitro growth inhibition was evaluated on ovarian carcinoma and HCC cell lines in the presence and absence of human plasmin. In vivo pharmacokinetic properties and preliminary tissue distribution confirmed a better profile highlighting the importance of the prodrug approach. Finally, the prodrug antitumor efficacy was evaluated in an HCC xenografted murine model, where a significant reduction (around 90%) in tumor growth was observed. Treatment with ProSi113-TP in combination with paclitaxel in a paclitaxel-resistant ovarian carcinoma xenografted murine model, resulted in an impressive reduction of tumor volume greater than 95%. Our results revealed a promising activity of Si113 prodrugs and pave the way for their further development against resistant cancer., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Parasites of the Plasmodium genus are unable to produce purine nucleotides de novo and depend completely on the salvage pathway. This fact makes plasmodial hypoxanthine-guanine-(xanthine) phosphoribosyltransferase [HG(X)PRT] a valuable target for development of antimalarial agents. A series of nucleotide analogues was designed, synthesized and evaluated as potential inhibitors of Plasmodium falciparum HGXPRT, P. vivax HGPRT and human HGPRT. These novel nucleoside phosphonates have a pyrrolidine, piperidine or piperazine ring incorporated into the linker connecting the purine base to a phosphonate group(s) and exhibited a broad range of K i values between 0.15 and 72 μM. The corresponding phosphoramidate prodrugs, able to cross cell membranes, have been synthesized and evaluated in a P. falciparum infected human erythrocyte assay. Of the eight prodrugs evaluated seven exhibited in vitro antimalarial activity with IC 50 values within the range of 2.5-12.1 μM. The bis-phosphoramidate prodrug 13a with a mean (SD) IC 50 of 2.5 ± 0.7 μM against the chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum W2 strain exhibited low cytotoxicity in the human hepatocellular liver carcinoma (HepG2) and normal human dermal fibroblasts (NHDF) cell lines at a concentration of 100 μM suggesting good selectivity for further structure-activity relationship investigations., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) is the master regulator of cap-dependent protein synthesis. Overexpression of eIF4E is implicated in diseases such as cancer, where dysregulation of oncogenic protein translation is frequently observed. eIF4E has been an attractive target for cancer treatment. Here we report a high-resolution X-ray crystal structure of eIF4E in complex with a novel inhibitor (i4EG-BiP) that targets an internal binding site, in contrast to the previously described inhibitor, 4EGI-1, which binds to the surface. We demonstrate that i4EG-BiP is able to displace the scaffold protein eIF4G and inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells. We provide insights into how i4EG-BiP is able to inhibit cap-dependent translation by increasing the eIF4E-4E-BP1 interaction while diminishing the interaction of eIF4E with eIF4G. Leveraging structural details, we designed proteolysis targeted chimeras (PROTACs) derived from 4EGI-1 and i4EG-BiP and characterized these on biochemical and cellular levels. We were able to design PROTACs capable of binding eIF4E and successfully engaging Cereblon, which targets proteins for proteolysis. However, these initial PROTACs did not successfully stimulate degradation of eIF4E, possibly due to competitive effects from 4E-BP1 binding. Our results highlight challenges of targeted proteasomal degradation of eIF4E that must be addressed by future efforts., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: E. S. F. is a founder, science advisory board member and equity holder in Civetta, Jengu (board member) and Neomorph, an equity holder in C4, and a consultant to Astellas, Novartis, Deerfield, RA Capital and EcoR1. The Fischer lab receives or has received research funding from Novartis, Astellas, Ajax and Deerfield. G.W. is co-founder of PIC Therapeutics, Cellmig biolabs, Skinap therapeutics and Virtual Discovery. H.A. is an equity holder in PIC Therapeutics. The research described here is scientifically and financially independent of the efforts in any of the above-mentioned companies., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The synthesis and in vitro anti-HIV activity of a novel series of phosphoramidate pronucleotides including a S-pivaloyl-2-thioethyl (tBuSATE) group as biolabile phosphate protecting group are reported. Such constructs, obtained through different phosphorus chemistries, are characterized by the association of two different anti-HIV nucleoside analogues linked to the phosphorus atom respectively by the sugar residue and the exocyclic amino function of the nucleobase. In vitro, comparative anti-HIV evaluation demonstrates that such original prodrugs are able to allow the efficient intracellular combination release of a 5'-mononucleotide as well as another nucleoside analogue. In human T4-lymphoblastoid cells, the pronucleotide 1 shows remarkable antiviral activity with an EC 50 in the nanomolar range (0.6 ηM) and without additional cytotoxicity. In addition, these two pronucleotide models exhibit higher selectivity index than the equimolar mixture of their constitutive nucleoside analogues opening the way to further studies with regard to the current use of drug combinations., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A series of novel amphiphilic paclitaxel (PTX) small molecule prodrugs, PTX-succinic anhydride-cystamine (PTX-Cys), PTX-dithiodipropionic anhydride (PTX-SS-COOH) and PTX-succinic anhydride-cystamine-valine (PTX-SS-Val) were designed, synthesized and evaluated against cancer cell lines. Compared with paclitaxel, these prodrugs contained water-soluble groups such as amino, carboxyl and amino acid, which improved the aqueous solubility of the prodrugs. More importantly, the valine was introduced in PTX-SS-Val molecule and made the molecule conform to the structural characteristics of intestinal oligopeptide transporter PEPT1 substrate. Thus the oral bioavailability of prodrug could be improved because of the mediation of PEPT1 transporter. These small molecule paclitaxel prodrugs could self-assemble into nanoparticles in aqueous solution, which effectively improved the solubility of paclitaxel, and had certain stability in pH 6.5, pH 7.4 buffer solutions and simulated gastrointestinal fluids. Some of these prodrugs, especially for PTX-Cys and PTX-SS-Val, exhibited nearly equal or slightly better anticancer activity when compared to paclitaxel. Further studies on PTX-Cys and PTX-SS-Val showed that both had good intestinal absorption in the rat single-pass intestinal perfusion (SPIP) experiments. Oral pharmacokinetic experiments showed that PTX-SS-Val could effectively improve the oral bioavailability of PTX., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Kinesin spindle protein (KSP) is expressed only in cells undergoing cell division, and hence represents an attractive target for the treatment of cancer. Several KSP inhibitors have been developed and undergone clinical trial, but their clinical use is limited by their toxicity to rapidly proliferating non-cancerous cells. To create new KSP inhibitors that are highly selective for cancer cells, we optimized the amino acid moiety of S-trityl- l -cysteine (STLC) derivative 1 using in silico modeling. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation were performed to investigate the binding mode of 1 with KSP. Consistent with the structure activity relationship studies, we found that a cysteine amino moiety plays an important role in stabilizing the interaction. Based on these findings and the structure of GSH, a substrate of γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT), we designed and synthesized the prodrug N-γ-glutamylated STLC derivative 9, which could be hydrolyzed by GGT to produce 1. The KSP ATPase inhibitory activity of 9 was lower than that of 1, and LC-MS analysis indicated that 9 was converted to 1 only in the presence of GGT in vitro. In addition, the cytotoxic activity of 9 was significantly attenuated in GGT-knockdown A549 cells. Since GGT is overexpressed on the cell membrane of various cancer cells, these results suggest that compound 9 could be a promising prodrug that selectively inhibits the proliferation of GGT-expressing cancer cells., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

We describe the design, synthesis and pharmacokinetic (PK) evaluation of a series of amino acid-based prodrugs of the HIV-1 protease inhibitor atazanavir (1) derivatized on the pharmacophoric secondary alcohol using a (carbonyl)oxyalkyl linker. Prodrugs of 1 incorporating simple (carbonyl)oxyalkyl-based linkers and a primary amine in the promoiety were found to exhibit low chemical stability. However, chemical stability was improved by modifying the primary amine moiety to a tertiary amine, resulting in a 2-fold enhancement of exposure in rats following oral dosing compared to dosing of the parent drug 1. Further refinement of the linker resulted in the discovery of 22 as a prodrug that delivered the parent 1 to rat plasma with a 5-fold higher AUC and 67-fold higher C 24 when compared to oral administration of the parent drug. The PK profile of 22 indicated that plasma levels of this prodrug were higher than that of the parent, providing a more sustained release of 1 in vivo., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) are a family of enzymes which play important roles in the development and progression of cancers. Inhibition of HDACs has been widely studied as a therapeutic strategy in the discovery of anticancer drugs. HDAC inhibitors (HDACIs) have exhibited potency against a variety of cancer types, and four of them have been approved by the US FDA for cancer treatment. However, the clinical benefits of current HDACIs is limited by the insufficient physicochemical property, selectivity and potency. To improve the clinical potential of HDACIs, the prodrug strategy had been utilized to improve the in vivo pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic performances of HDACIs. Enhancements in the stability, water solubility, lipophilicity, oral bioavailability and tumor cell selectivity were reported by various studies. Herein, the development of different kinds of HDACI-based prodrug is summarized for the further structural modification of HDACIs with high potential to be drug candidates., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

We previously reported that MGS0008 is a selective group II metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGlu2/3 receptor) agonist that is effective in animal models of schizophrenia. MGS0008 is a highly hydrophilic glutamate analog and is therefore expected to show low oral bioavailability in humans. To improve the oral bioavailability of MGS0008, ester prodrugs of MGS0008 were synthesized and their usefulness was evaluated. Among the prodrugs, the l-menthol-ester prodrug 4h demonstrated preferable lipophilicity, good chemical stability, and a high conversion rate to MGS0008 in human and monkey liver microsomes. A pharmacokinetic study in monkeys revealed that the oral bioavailability of MGS0008 after oral dosing of compound 4h was approximately 15-fold higher than that after oral dosing of MGS0008. Based on these findings, a diastereomer of compound 4h (compound 4j, or MGS0274), was selected as a candidate for clinical drug development, and its besylate is currently under development for the treatment of schizophrenia (Development code: TS-134)., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Hypoxia, a common characteristic in solid tumors, is found in phenotypically aggressive cancers that display resistance to typical cancer interventions. Due to its important role in tumor progression, tumor hypoxia has been considered as a primary target for cancer diagnosis and treatment. An advantage of hypoxia-activated nanomedicines is that they are inactive in normoxic cells. In hypoxic tumor tissues and cells, these nanomedicines undergo reduction by activated enzymes (usually through 1 or 2 electron oxidoreductases) to produce cytotoxic substances. In this review, we will focus on approaches to design nanomedicines that take advantage of tumor hypoxia. These approaches include: i) inhibitors of hypoxia-associated signaling pathways; ii) prodrugs activated by hypoxia; iii) nanocarriers responsive to hypoxia, and iv) bacteria mediated hypoxia targeting therapy. These strategies have guided and will continue to guide nanoparticle design in the near future. These strategies have the potential to overcome tumor heterogeneity to improve the efficiency of radiotherapy, chemotherapy and diagnosis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

5-Aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and its two ester derivatives (5-ALA-OMe and 5-ALA-OHex) have been approved for photodiagnosis and photodynamic therapy (PDT) of tumors in the clinical. However, their pharmacological activities are limited by their instability under physiological conditions and lack of tumor selectivity. With the aim to overcome these shortcomings, a glutathione-responsive 5-ALA derivative (SA) was designed based on the fact that many types of tumor cells have higher intracellular glutathione level than normal cells. SA was synthesized by masking the 5-amion group of 5-ALA methyl ester (5-ALA-OMe) with a self-immolative disulfide linker. Compared with 5-ALA and 5-ALA-OMe, SA exhibited higher stability under physiological conditions, and it can efficiently release the parent compound 5-ALA-OMe in response to glutathione. In tumor cells, SA displayed excellent protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) production activity at low concentrations while 5-ALA and 5-ALA-OMe were ineffective at the same concentration. The SA-induced PpIX production was positively correlated with the intracellular glutathione level, and SA exhibited enhanced phototoxicity due to its excellent PpIX generation activity. This study indicates that modification of the amino group in 5-ALA derivatives with a self-immolative disulfide linker is an effective strategy to improve their chemical stability and pharmacological activities, and SA is a potential photosensitizer for photodiagnosis and PDT of tumors., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The colchicine site inhibitors (CSIs) showed promising prospects as antitumor agents due to their vascular disrupting activities besides antimitotic activities. 1-Phenyl-dihydrobenzoindazole was found as a novel scaffold of CSI without the cis-trans isomerization problem. The X-ray co-crystal structure of the lead compound with tubulin was determined, which revealed the binding mode including special water-bridged hydrogen bonds. The structure also provided guidance for the structural optimization of this type of CSI, which led to the discovery of the most potent inhibitor A3, with growth IC 50 lower than 1 nM against human colon cancer cell lines and tubulin polymerization IC 50 of 1.6 μM. In addition, its water-soluble prodrug B1 showed good in vivo antitumor activity on two human colon cancer xenograft nude mice models, encouraging further study of this type of antitumor compound., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Development of peptide-based conjugates for targeted tumour therapy is a current research topic providing new possibilities in cancer treatment. In this study, VHLGYAT heptapeptide selected by phage display technique for HT-29 human colon cancer was investigated as homing peptide for drug delivery. Daunomycin was conjugated to the N-terminus of the peptide directly or through Cathepsin B cleavable spacers. Conjugates showed moderate in vitro cytostatic effect. Therefore, sequence modifications were performed by Ala-scan and positional scanning resulting in conjugates with much higher bioactivity. Conjugates in which Gly was replaced by amino acids with bulky apolaric side chains provided the best efficacy. The influence of the cellular uptake, stability and drug release on the anti-tumour activity was investigated. It was found that mainly the difference in the cellular uptake of the conjugates generated the distinct effect on cell viability. One of the most efficient conjugate Dau = Aoa-LRRY-VHLFYAT-NH 2 showed tumour growth inhibition on orthotopically developed HT-29 colon cancer in mice with negligible toxic side effect compared to the free drug. We also indicate that this sequence is not specific to HT-29 cells, but it has a remarkable effect on many other cancer cells. Nevertheless, the Phe-containing conjugate was more active in all cases compared to the conjugate with the parent sequence. The literature data suggested that this sequence is highly overlapped with peptides that recognize Hsp70 membrane bound protein overexpressed in many types of tumours., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Peptide-drug conjugates have emerged as a potent approach to enhance the targeting and pharmacokinetic profiles of drugs. However, the impact of the linker unit has not been explored/exploited in depth. Gemcitabine (dFdC) is an anticancer agent used against a variety of solid tumours. Despite its potency, gemcitabine suffers mostly due to its unspecific toxicity, lack of targeting and rapid metabolic inactivation. To minimize these limitations and enable its targeting to tumours overexpressing the GnRH receptor, we examined the peptide-drug conjugation approach. Our design hypothesis was driven by the impact that the linker unit could have on the peptide-drug conjugate efficacy. Along these lines, in order to exploit the potential to manipulate the potency of gemcitabine through altering the linker unit we constructed three different novel peptide-drug conjugates assembled of gemcitabine, the tumour-homing peptide D-Lys 6 -GnRH and modified linker building blocks. Specifically, the linker was sculpted to either allow slow drug release (utilizing carbamate bond) or rapid disassociation (using amide and ester bonds). Notably, the new analogues possessed up to 95.5-fold enhanced binding affinity for the GnRH receptor (GnRH-R) compared to the natural peptide ligand D-Lys 6 -GnRH. Additionally, their in vitro cytotoxicity was evaluated in four different cancer cell lines. Their cellular uptake, release of gemcitabine and inactivation of gemcitabine to its inactive metabolite (dFdU) was explored in a representative cell line. In vitro stability and the consequent drug release were evaluated in cell culture medium and human plasma. In vivo pharmacokinetic studies were performed in mice, summarizing the relative stability of the three conjugates and the released levels of gemcitabine in comparison with dFdU. These studies suggest that the fine tuning of the linkage within a peptide-drug conjugate affects the drug release rate and its overall pharmaceutical profile. This could eventually emerge as an intriguing medicinal chemistry approach to optimize bio-profiles of prodrugs., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Due to an abundant chondrogenic, poorly vascularized and particularly hypoxic extracellular matrix, chondrosarcoma, a malignant cartilaginous tumour, is chemo- and radio-resistant. Surgical resection with wide margins remains the mainstay of treatment. To address the lack of therapy, our strategy aims to increase anticancer drugs targeting and delivery in the tumour, by leveraging specific chondrosarcoma hallmarks: an extensive cartilaginous extracellular matrix, namely the high negative fixed charge density and severe chronic hypoxia. A dual targeted therapy for chondrosarcoma was investigated by conjugation of a hypoxia-activated prodrug (HAP) to quaternary ammonium (QA) functions which exhibit a high affinity for polyanionic sites of proteoglycans (PGs), the major components of the chondrosarcoma extracellular matrix. Based on preclinical results, an imidazole prodrug, ICF05016, was identified and provided the basis for a lead optimization study. A series of 27 QA-phosphoramide mustard conjugates, differing by the type of QA function and the length of the alkyl linker, was yielded by a common multi-step sequence involving phosphorylation of a key 2-nitroimidazole alcohol. Then, a screening was realized by surface plasmon resonance technology to assess biomolecular interactions between QA derivatives and aggrecan, the most abundant PG in chondrosarcoma. Results revealed that affinity depends more on the type of QA function, than on the linker length. Moreover, the presence of a benzyl group enhanced affinity to aggrecan. Twelve compounds were shortlisted and evaluated for antiproliferative activity (i.e., growth inhibiting concentration 50), under normoxic and hypoxic conditions using the human extraskeletal myeloid chondrosarcoma cell line (HEMC-SS). For all prodrugs, hypoxic selectivity was maintained and even increased, compared with the lead. From this study, compound 31f emerged as the most effective PG-targeted HAPs with a dissociation constant of 2.10 μM in the SPR experiment, a hypoxia cytotoxicity ratio of 24 and an efficient reductive cleavage under chemical and enzymatic conditions., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

We report on the synthesis and in vitro biological evaluations of a nanomolar protein kinase inhibitor (PKI) and its β-glucuronidase-responsive albumin-binding prodrug. The highly potent PKI is 400-3400 times more cytotoxic than the well-known PKI Roscovitine. The prodrug is able to bind covalently to human serum albumin through Michael addition and release the cytotoxic PKI in the presence of β-glucuronidase, an enzyme over-expressed in the microenvironment of solid tumours., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The broad substrate capacity of the intestinal oligopeptide transporter, PepT1, has made it a key target of research into drug delivery. Whilst the substrate capacity of this transporter is broad, studies have largely been limited to small peptides and peptide-like drugs. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that a diverse range of drugs can be targeted towards transport by PepT1 using a hydrolysis resistant carrier. Eleven prodrugs were synthesized by conjugating modified dipeptides containing a thioamide bond to the approved drugs ibuprofen, gabapentin, propofol, aspirin, acyclovir, nabumetone, atenolol, zanamivir, baclofen and mycophenolate. Except for the aspirin and acyclovir prodrugs, which were unstable in the assay conditions and were not further studied, the prodrugs were tested for affinity and transport by PepT1 expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes: binding affinities ranged from approximately 0.1 to 2 mM. Compounds which showed robust transport in an oocyte trans-stimulation assay were then tested for transcellular transport in Caco-2 cell monolayers: all five tested prodrugs showed significant PepT1-mediated transcellular uptake. Finally, the ibuprofen and propofol prodrugs were tested for absorption in rats: following oral dosing the intact prodrugs and free ibuprofen were measured in the plasma. This provides proof-of-concept for the idea of targeting poorly bioavailable drugs towards PepT1 transport as a general means of improving oral permeability., (Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.)

Resveratrol is a naturally occurring stilbene which has shown promising results as treatment for several neurodegenerative diseases. However, its application is limited due to its low efficacy and bioavailability. Here, we have designed and synthesized alkylated resveratrol prodrugs combining structural modification to improve antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and the preparation of prodrugs to extend drug bioavailability. For comparison we also studied resveratrol prodrugs and alkylated resveratrol derivatives. Methylated and butylated resveratrol derivatives showed the best in vitro neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory activity. The glucosyl- and glucosyl-acyl- prodrugs of these derivatives showed lower toxicity on zebra fish embryo. When neuroprotection was examined on pentylenetetrazole challenged zebra fish, they were capable of reverting neuronal damage but to a lower extent than resveratrol. Nevertheless, 3-O-(6'-O-octanoyl)-β-d-glucopyranoside resveratrol (compound 8) recovered AChE activity over 100% whereas resveratrol only up to 92%. In a 3-nitropropionic acid mice model of Huntington's disease, resveratrol derivative 8 delayed the onset and reduced the severity of HD-like symptoms, by improving locomotor activity and protecting against weight loss. Its effects involved an equal antioxidant but better anti-inflammatory profile than resveratrol as shown by SOD2 expression in brain tissue and circulating levels of IL-6 (11 vs 18 pg/mL), respectively. Finally, the octanoyl chain in compound 8 could be playing a role in inflammation and neuronal development indicating it could be acting as a double-drug, instead of as a prodrug., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.)

The efficiency of a drug is usually highly dependent on the way it is administered or delivered. As such, targeted-therapy, which requires conceiving drug-delivery vehicles that will change their state from a relatively stable structure with a very slow leak-rate to an unstable structure with a fast release, clearly improves the pharmacokinetics, the absorption, the distribution, the metabolism and the therapeutic index of a given drug. In this context, we have developed a particularly effective double stimuli-responsive drug-delivery method allowing an ultrasound-induced release of a monomethylauristatin E-glucuronide prodrug and its subsequent activation by a β-glucuronidase. This led to an increase of cytotoxicity of about 80% on cancer cells., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

In this review we highlight the most modern trends in the prodrug strategy. In drug research and development, the prodrug concept has found a number of useful applications. Selected examples of this approach are provided in this paper and they are classified according to the aim of their design., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Thiazolides are polypharmacology agents with at least three mechanisms of action against a broad spectrum of parasites, bacteria and viruses. In respiratory viruses they inhibit the replication of orthomyxoviridae and paramyxoviridae at a post-translational level. Nitazoxanide 1a, the prototype thiazolide, was originally developed as an antiparasitic agent and later repurposed for the treatment of viral respiratory infections. The second generation thiazolides following nitazoxanide, such as the 5-chloro analogue RM-5038 2a, are also broad-spectrum antiviral agents as we have reported. Both 1a and its effective circulating metabolite, tizoxanide 1b, are 5-nitrothiazole derivatives, while RM-5038 2a and its de-acetyl derivative RM-4848 2b are the corresponding 5-chloro derivatives. Recently 1a has completed phase II-III clinical trials in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand in a total of 2865 adults and adolescents of at least 12 months of age with viral acute respiratory illness. Since its biodisposition is primarily seen in the gastro-intestinal tract, its efficacy in systemic viral diseases requires relatively high oral doses. The chemical synthesis of new derivatives with a better systemic absorption was therefore urgently needed. In order to improve their systemic absorption, new amino-ester prodrug derivatives of 1b and RM4848 2b were prepared and tested for their animal pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and toxicology. RM-5061 8a in rats showed 7-fold higher blood concentration compared to 1a: absolute bioavailability increased from 3 to 20%, with a good safety profile in animal safety pharmacology and toxicology., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The development of iron chelators suitable for the chronic treatment of diseases where iron accumulation and subsequent oxidative stress are implicated in disease pathogenesis is an active area of research. The clinical use of the strong chelator N,N'-bis(2-hydroxybenzyl)ethylenediamine-N,N'-diacetic acid (HBED) and its alkyl ester prodrugs has been hindered by poor oral bioavailability and lack of conversion to the parent chelator, respectively. Here, we present novel double prodrugs of HBED that have the carboxylate and phenolate donors of HBED masked with carboxylate esters and boronic acids/esters, respectively. These double prodrugs were successfully synthesized as free bases (7a-f) or as dimesylate salts (8a-c,e), and were characterized by (1)H, (13)C, and (11)B NMR; MP; MS; and elemental analysis. The crystal structure of 8a was solved. Three of the double prodrugs (8a-c) were selected for further investigation into their abilities to convert to HBED by stepwise hydrolysis and H2O2 oxidation. The serial hydrolysis of the pinacol and methyl esters of N,N'-bis(2-boronic acid pinacol ester benzyl)ethylenediamine-N,N'-diacetic acid methyl ester dimesylate (8a) was verified by LC-MS. The macro half-lives for the hydrolyses of 8a-c, measured by UV, ranged from 3.8 to 26.3 h at 37 °C in pH 7.5 phosphate buffer containing 50% MeOH. 9, the product of hydrolysis of 8a-c and the intermediate in the conversion pathway, showed little-to-no affinity for iron or copper in UV competition experiments. 9 underwent a serial oxidative deboronation by H2O2 in N-methylmorpholine buffer to generate HBED (k = 10.3 M(-1) min(-1)). The requirement of this second step, oxidation, before conversion to the active chelator is complete may confer site specificity when only localized iron chelation is needed. Overall, these results provide proof of principle for the activation of the double prodrugs by chemical hydrolysis and H2O2 oxidation, and merit further investigation into the protective capabilities of the prodrugs against H2O2-induced cell death., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Malignant tumor cells have been found to have high levels of reactive oxygen species such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), supporting the hypothesis that a prodrug could be activated by intracellular H2O2 and lead to a potential antitumor therapy. In this study, the 7-ethyl-10-boronic acid camptothecin (B1) was synthesized for the first time as prodrug of SN-38, by linking a cleavable aryl carbon-boron bond to the SN-38. Prodrug B1 selectively activated by H2O2, converted rapidly to the active form SN-38 under favorable oxidative conditions in cancer cells with elevated levels of H2O2. The cell survival assay showed that prodrug B1 was equally or more effective in inhibiting the growth of six different cancer cells, as compared to SN-38. Unexpectedly, prodrug B1 displayed even more potent Topo I inhibitory activity than SN-38, suggesting that it was not only a prodrug of SN-38 but also a typical Topo I inhibitor. Prodrug B1 also demonstrated a significant antitumor activity at 2.0 mg/kg in a xenograft model using human brain star glioblastoma cell lines U87MG., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

In a previous work we reported the antiproliferative effects of (±)-MRJF4, a novel haloperidol metabolite II (HP-mII) (a sigma-1 antagonist and sigma-2 agonist) prodrug, obtained through conjugation to 4-phenylbutyric acid (PhBA) [a histone deacetylase inhibitor (HDACi)] via an ester bond. As a continuation of this work, here we report the asymmetric synthesis of compounds (R)-(+)-MRJF4 and (S)-(-)-MRJF4 and the evaluation of their biological activity on rat C6 glioma cells, derived from glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), which is the most common and deadliest central nervous system (CNS) invasive malignancy. Favourable physicochemical properties, high permeability in the parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA), good enzymatic and chemical stability, in vivo anticancer activity, associated with the capacity to reduce cell viability and to increase cell death by apoptosis, render compound (R)-(+)-MRJF4 a promising candidate for the development of a useful therapeutic for gliomas therapy., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The amino acid-conjugates (1a-k) with eleven amino acids attached to primary amine of (S)-1-[1-(4-aminobenzoyl)-2,3-dihydro-1H-indol-6-sulfonyl]-4-phenyl-imidazolidin-2-one (DW2282, 1) were prepared and studied for their prodrug characteristics and anti-cancer activity against SW620 cell line. All the amino acid derivatives showed not only improved water solubility but also displayed potent anti-cancer activity in vitro. Among these amino acid-conjugates the compounds, DW2282-L-Ala (1b), DW2282-L-Phe (1e), DW2282-L-Leu (1g) and DW2282-L-Met (1h) showed good reconversion within 8 h (104.76%, 84.03%, 95.02% and 78.34%, respectively) to the parent drug in human plasma. In addition, the compounds 1e, 1g and 1j also showed good bioavailability profile along with potent in vivo anticancer activity., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A potential anti-melanoma prodrug containing a phenolic activator, a hydrazine linker, and a nitrogen mustard effector - (N-{4-[bis-(2-chloroethyl)amino]benzoyl}-N'-(4-hydroxybenzyl)hydrazine) has been synthesized in seven steps. Spectrophotometric measurements of its oxidation by tyrosinase showed a rapid increase of absorbance at 337 nm. HPLC analysis demonstrated that two major products were formed. However, during the reaction one of the products was converted into the other. The stable product with a maximum of absorption at 337 nm was isolated and identified as 5,6-dihydroxy-1H-indazol-1-yl 4-[bis-(2-chloroethyl)amino]benzoate. It was formed by a cyclization of the enzymatically generated o-quinone. This reaction was unexpected, since the acylated hydrazine nitrogen atom should not be sufficiently nucleophilic to attack the o-quinone ring. This cyclization prevented the effector release from the enzyme-activated prodrug. As a result, the prodrug showed only limited specificity for B16-F10 murine melanoma cells compared to reference cell lines. When applied in solid tumors in mice it showed slightly higher activity than the parent mustard drug (4-[bis-(2-chloroethyl)amino]benzoic cid), but significantly lower activity than melphalan, a commercial mustard drug with a structure resembling tyrosine, occasionally used in the treatment of melanoma., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

We herein report for the first time the successful use of the dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPPIV/CD26) prodrug approach to guanine derivatives such as the antiviral acyclovir (ACV). The solution- and solid-phase synthesis of the tetrapeptide amide prodrug 3 and the tripeptide ester conjugate 4 of acyclovir are reported. The synthesis of the demanding tetrapeptide amide prodrug of ACV 3 was first established in solution and successfully transferred onto solid support by using Ellman's dihydropyran (DHP) resin. In contrast with the valyl ester prodrug (valacyclovir, VACV), the tetrapeptide amide prodrug 3 and the tripeptide ester conjugate 4 of ACV proved fully stable in PBS. Both prodrugs converted to VACV (for 4) or ACV (for 3) upon exposure to purified DPPIV/CD26 or human or bovine serum. Vildagliptin, a potent inhibitor of DPPIV/CD26 efficiently inhibited the DPPIV/CD26-catalysed hydrolysis reaction. Both amide and ester prodrugs of ACV showed pronounced anti-herpetic activity in cell culture and significantly improved the water solubility in comparison with the parent drug., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

In this research work we report the synthesis of a new series of triazene prodrugs designed for Melanocyte-Directed Enzyme Prodrug Therapy (MDEPT). These compounds are derived from the N-acyltyrosine amino acid - a good enzyme substrate for the tyrosinase enzyme, which is significantly overexpressed in melanoma cells. We analysed their chemical stability and plasma enzymatic hydrolysis, and we also evaluated the release of the antitumoral drug in the presence of the tyrosinase. Subsequently, we performed the evaluation of the prodrug cytotoxicity in melanoma cell lines with different levels of tyrosinase activity. Prodrug 5c showed the highest cytotoxicity against melanoma cell lines, and this effect correlated well with the tyrosinase activity suggesting that prodrug cytotoxicity is tyrosinase-dependent., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Hexadecyloxypropyl esters of acyclic nucleoside phosphonates containing guanine (G) or hypoxanthine (Hx) and a (S)-[3-hydroxy-2-(phosphonomethoxy)propyl] [(S)-HPMP] or 2-(2-phosphonoethoxy)ethyl (PEE) acyclic moiety have been prepared. The activity of the prodrugs was evaluated in vitro against different virus families. Whereas ester derivatives of PEEHx and (S)-HPMPHx were antivirally inactive, monoesters of PEEG, and mono- and diesters of (S)-HPMPG showed pronounced antiviral activity against vaccinia virus and/or herpesviruses. Monoesters of (S)-HPMPG emerged as the most potent and selective derivatives against these DNA viruses. None of the compounds were inhibitory against RNA viruses and retroviruses., (Crown Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Various water-soluble L-valine-, L-glutamate-, and glycine ester prodrugs of two 3-Carboranyl Thymidine Analogs (3-CTAs), designated N5 and N5-2OH, were synthesized for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) of brain tumors since the water solubilities of the parental compounds proved to be insufficient in preclinical studies. The amino acid ester prodrugs were prepared and stored as hydrochloride salts. The water solubilities of these amino acid ester prodrugs, evaluated in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) at pH 5, pH 6 and pH 7.4, improved 48-6600 times compared with parental N5 and N5-2OH. The stability of the amino acid ester prodrugs was evaluated in PBS at pH 7.4, Bovine serum, and Bovine cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The rate of the hydrolysis in all three incubation media depended primarily on the amino acid promoiety and, to a lesser extend, on the site of esterification at the deoxyribose portion of the 3-CTAs. In general, 3'-amino acid ester prodrugs were less sensitive to chemical and enzymatic hydrolysis than 5'-amino acid ester prodrugs and the stabilities of the latter decreased in the following order: 5'-valine > 5'-glutamate > 5'-glycine. The rate of the hydrolysis of the 5'-amino acid ester prodrugs in Bovine CSF was overall higher than in PBS and somewhat lower than in Bovine serum. Overall, 5'-glutamate ester prodrug of N5 and the 5'-glycine ester prodrugs of N5 and N5-2OH appeared to be the most promising candidates for preclinical BNCT studies., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Since Mycobacterium tuberculosis sets up several multiple anti-tuberculosis drug resistance mechanisms, development of new drugs with innovative target is urgent. The methylerythritol phosphate pathway (MEP) involved in the biosynthesis of essential metabolites for the survival of mycobacteria, represents such a target. Fosmidomycin 1a and FR900098 1b, two inhibitors of DXR, do not affect the viability of M. tuberculosis cells, due to a lack of uptake. To overcome the absence of the mycobacterial cell wall crossing of these compounds, we synthesized and tested the inhibition potency of acyloxymethyl phosphonate esters as prodrugs of fosmidomycin 1a, FR900098 1b and their analogs 2a and 2b on Mycobacterium smegmatis. Only the prodrugs 4b-6b inhibit the bacterial growth and could be effective anti-mycobacterial agents., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

An efficient synthesis method for fusing triazole ring onto the naphthalimide core was described. The anti-cancer activities of the generated triazolonaphthalimide derivatives were evaluated with five cancer cell lines. The compounds generally displayed higher potency than amonafide. 4d,4e carrying two amino side chains showed the strongest cytotoxicities. N-oxide 5, a prodrug of 4a, was designed and synthesized. The agent was expected to be activated under the hypoxic condition in tumor tissue. Compared with 4a, 5 manifested much lower cytotoxicity both in cancer cell lines and human normal cells in the in vitro assays. However, N-oxide 5 performed potent anti-cancer activity in vivo using S-180 sarcoma bearing mice. All the results suggested that 5 was a promising anti-cancer agent., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

In order to identify new efficient prodrugs of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and to develop an original targeting approach using 2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) as a potential drug carrier, eight original 5-FU derivatives were synthesized: 5-FU was attached by the N1 position of the pyrimidinic ring to the C1 position of the FDG structure either by direct coupling (2a) or via various spacers (3, 6a-c, 10b and 19). A new sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography method was developed to simultaneously quantify 5-FU and its derivatives in human plasma and other relevant media at physiological temperatures. Half-lives were determined from the degradation profiles of these conjugates. Slow degradation of compounds 2a, 3, 10b and 19 was observed in vitro at 37 °C, but no 5-FU release was noticed. By contrast, the in vitro drug release profiles of compounds 6a-c followed pseudo-first-order kinetics, and 5-FU was found in all the media. The antiproliferative activity of the eight compounds was assessed in vitro by a fluorometric assay against two human solid cancer cell lines and one healthy cell line. A correlation was found between the activities of the compounds and their ability to release 5-FU efficiently., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A series of novel substituted pyridyl phenyl oxazolidinone analogues were synthesized and their structure-activity relationship (SAR) was investigated based on in vitro and in vivo antibacterial activities. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the synthesized compounds against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) ranged from 0.12 to 2.0 μg/mL, and against Haemophilus influenzae (Hi) from 2.0 to 8.0 μg/mL. Compared to linezolid, only four compounds (11, 12, 21 and 29) showed higher in vitro antibacterial activities and better in vivo protective effects in mice. To improve the aqueous solubility, various prodrugs of compound 11 (DA-7157), which exerted a potency that was enhanced by 2-8-fold compared to that of linezolid, were synthesized. Among the prodrugs, the phosphate compound 42 exhibited excellent aqueous solubility (>50mg/mL in DW) and good pharmacokinetic profiles, along with better in vivo efficacy than linezolid. This compound 42 is currently undergoing clinical trials with the brand name Torezolid., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Recently we have reported anti-TB properties of a new class of conformationally-constrained indeno[2,1-c]quinolines, which are although considerably active (MIC 0.39-0.78 μg/mL) suffered from intense solubility problems. We thought of improving their bioavailability by prodrugs approach. Accordingly esters of the "Lead" indeno[2,1-c]quinolines 1, 15 and 27 derivatives were synthesized and their prodrug nature at the physiological pH were confirmed. Prodrugs were evaluated for their antimycobacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv by MABA assay to show that they have 2- to 4-fold improved anti-TB activities, increased aqueous solubility and superior selectivity index over their respective parent compounds. MIC of these prodrugs was in the range of <0.20-6.0 μg/mL, and in general, no cytotoxicity was observed in VERO cells., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A range of amide derivatives of L-dopa were synthesized and investigated for their pharmacological activity and their ability to be converted to L-dopa using the unilaterally 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rat, as an experimental model of Parkinson's disease. The diacetyl derivative of L-dopa amide (11b) was found to be more active than L-dopa after its oral administration and generated plasma levels of L-dopa in the therapeutic range for an antiparkinsonian effect in man., (2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A probable NRTI molecule, viz. 3'-N,N-dimethylamino-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (4) and its 5'-O-carboxyl ester prodrugs - 5'-(N-alpha-BOC-L-phenylalanyl)-3'-N,N-dimethylamino-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (5), 5'-L-phenylalanyl-3'-N,N-dimethylamino-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (6) and 5'-decanoyl-3'-N,N-dimethylamino-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (7) have been synthesized and screened against HIV, HSV-1 and 2, parainfluenza-3, vesicular stomatitis and several other viruses. The compound 6 showed good antiviral activity with EC(50) value 0.03 microM (SI=8) against VSV in Hela and HEL cell lines. However, the lead compound 4 and its derivatives 5, 6 and 7 showed no remarkable activity against HIV-1 and other viruses. Molecular docking studies with HIV-1 RT using DS 2.5 and pymol softwares have shown marked differences in the interaction patterns between the lead compound 4 and AZT., (2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Sphingosine kinase (SphK) is a lipid kinase with oncogenic activity, and SphK inhibitors (SKIs) are known for their anti-cancer activity. Here, we report highly efficient syntheses of SKIs and their aspirinyl (Asp) analogs. Both SKIs and their Asp analogs were highly cytotoxic towards multiple human cancer cell lines; in several cases the Asp analogs were up to three times more effective. Furthermore, they were equally potent inhibitors of SphK. The pharmacokinetic study indicated that SKI-I-Asp cleaved efficiently to form SKI-I and the half-life of SKI-I was increased from approximately 7 h in SKI-I to approximately 10 h in SKI-I-Asp injected mice, thereby prolonging its effect. In summary, the Asp-conjugated SKIs seem to be promising prodrugs of SKIs where delivery in vivo remains a problem., (2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A metabolite-based prodrug strategy to increase the solubility of anethole trithione was reported to facilitate the clinical application of this hepatoprotective agent. Water-soluble analogs of anethole trithione were synthesized via substituting the methyl group of anethole trithione with the simple hydrophilic alkylamino group, and subjected to physiochemical, pharmacological and metabolic studies. The prodrugs displayed increased solubility as well as other physiochemical properties favorable for parenteral use. Among the analogs synthesized, the compound 5a exhibited best hepatoprotective activity at the dose of 2.0 mg/kg in mice equal to that of anethole trithione. The in vivo metabolic investigation demonstrated that the straight-side chain prodrug 5a could convert to desmethyl anethole trithione in vivo, while the ring-side chain prodrug 5d could not. The hepatoprotective activity of the prodrugs might result from the active metabolite desmethyl anethole trithione., (Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Three half-ester derivatives 10-12 of 5'-O-2',3'-dideoxydidanosine (DDI, 1) have been synthesized. The compounds exhibited excellent correlation between partition coefficients LogP and relative in vitro bovine serum albumin binding. Using high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), DDI (1) was quantitatively determined in rat plasma after intravenous injection of the azelaic acid monoester derivative (11) of DDI. The pharmacokinetic data obtained for DDI were consistent with literature. The pharmacokinetic profile of 11 showed no significant difference in AUC(0-360) or curve shape compared to the parent drug DDI (1). The data indicate that the prodrug was converted to DDI within minutes after administration. High relative protein binding in vitro holds a promise for validity of the concept using more stable linker bonds.

The currently approved treatment for hepatitis C virus infections is a combination of Ribavirin and pegylated Interferon. It leads to a sustained virologic response in approximately only half of the patients treated. For this reason there is an urgent need of new therapeutic agents. 2'-C-Methylcytidine is the first nucleoside inhibitor of the HCV NS5B polymerase that was efficacious in reducing the viral load in patients infected with HCV. The application of a monophosphate prodrug approach based on unprecedented cyclic phosphoramidates is reported. Our SAR studies led to compounds that are efficiently converted to the active triphosphate in human hepatocytes.

A range of triazene derivatives were synthesized and investigated as prodrug candidates for melanocyte-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (MDEPT). The prodrugs contained a tyramine or dopamine promoiety required for tyrosinase activation and this was joined via a urea functional group to the cytotoxic triazene. The stability of each of the prodrugs in phosphate buffer, human plasma and in mushroom tyrosinase is discussed. The identification of the main peak formed after the tyrosinase reaction was attempted by LC-MS and the conversion of prodrug to the quinone was confirmed.

Glutathione transferases (GSTs) are enzymes involved in cellular detoxification by catalysing the nucleophilic attack of glutathione (GSH) on the electrophilic centre of a number of toxic compounds and xenobiotics, including certain chemotherapeutic drugs. The encountered chemotherapeutic resistant of tumour cells, thus, has been associated with the increase of total GST expression. GSTs, in addition to GSH-conjugating activity, exhibit sulphonamidase activity, catalyzing the GSH-mediated hydrolysis of sulphonamide bonds. Such reactions are of interest as potential tumour-directed prodrug activation strategies. In the present work we report the design and synthesis of novel chimaeric sulphonamide derivatives of bombesin, able to be activated by the model human isoenzyme GSTA1-1 (hGSTA1-1). These derivatives bear a peptidyl-moiety (analogues of bombesin peptide: R-[Lue(13)]-bombesin, R-[Phe(13)]-bombesin and R-[Ser(3),Arg(10),Phe(13)]-bombesin, where R=C(6)H(5)SO(2)NH-) as molecular recognition element for targeting the drug selectively to tumour cells. The released S-alkyl-glutathione, after hGSTA1-1-mediated cleavage of the sulphonamide bond, provides an inhibitor of varied strength against GSTs from different sources. These prodrugs are envisaged as a plausible means to sensitize drug-resistant tumours that overexpress GSTs.

Ketorolac (KC) suffers from the general side effects of NSAIDs, owing to presence of free carboxylic acid group. The study aimed to retard the adverse effects of gastrointestinal origin. Ten prodrugs of KC were synthesized by amidation with ethyl esters of amino acids, namely, glycine, l-phenylalanine, l-tryptophan, l-valine, l-isoleucine, l-alanine, l-leucine, l-glutamic acid, l-aspartic acid and beta-alanine. Purified synthesized prodrugs were characterized by m.p., TLC, solubility, partition coefficients, elemental analyses, UV, FTIR, NMR and MS. Synthesized prodrugs were subjected for biopharmaceutical studies, analgesic, anti-inflammatory activities and ulcerogenic index. Marked reduction of ulcerogenic index and comparable analgesic, anti-inflammatory activities were obtained in all cases as compared to KC. Among synthesized prodrugs, viz. AR-11, AR-19 and AR-20 showed excellent pharmacological response and encouraging hydrolysis rate both in SIF and in 80% human plasma. Prodrugs with increased aliphatic side chain length or introduction of aromatic substituent showed enhanced partition coefficient but diminished dissolution and hydrolysis rates. Such prodrugs can be considered for sustained release purpose.

As an approach to the development of specific drug delivery systems, a new class of low macromolecular carriers called 'telomers' endowed with an antitumour agent, such as arabinofuranosylcytosine (Ara-C), RGDSK peptidic sequences, as tumour targeting moieties, and tyrosine groups labelled with 125I atoms allowing the in vivo scintigraphic follow up, were synthesized. Their tumour targeting ability was assessed in vivo in mice bearing a murine B16 melanoma. The biological results showed that the presence of RGDSK sequences onto the macromolecules leads to the selective targeting and the accumulation of telomers within the vascularized zone of the tumour. Moreover, such compounds exhibited in vitro a better IC(50) (0.015 muM) than pure Ara-C and in vivo an oncostatic index higher than 160%.