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Biomedical subjects

M Masquelier

Publications and source records attributed to M Masquelier.

16 recordsLinked to original sources

Plasma stability and cytotoxicity of lipophilic daunorubicin derivatives incorporated into low density lipoproteins.

The selective targeting of antineoplastic drugs to tumours by incorporation in low density lipoproteins (LDL) is an attractive possibility if the drug-LDL complex remains stable in the circulation and is taken up by the tumour. In previous studies we have shown that vincristine- and N-trifluoroacetyladriamycin-14-valerate-LDL complexes were unstable in vivo. We synthesized five N-substituted lipophilic derivatives of daunorubicin and studied their incorporation into LDL. Three out of five daunorubicin derivatives incorporated successfully into LDL. In vitro these complexes were more cytotoxic towards LDL receptor positive Chinese hamster ovary cells than LDL receptor negative cells. Non-specific cytotoxicity was explained by slow dissociation of the drug-LDL complex in plasma. Our results underline the importance of careful studies of plasma stability when investigating lipoproteins and other carriers in drug targeting.

Animals↗

Low density lipoprotein as a carrier of cytostatics in cancer chemotherapy: study of stability of drug-carrier complexes in blood.

Several solid tumour and leukemia cell types have a higher low density lipoprotein (LDL) uptake than the corresponding normal cells. We are investigating the possibilities to use LDL as a drug carrier to increase the selectivity of antineoplastic drugs in cancer chemotherapy. We have developed a method to incorporate lipophilic cytotoxic agents without interfering with the in vitro and in vivo properties of LDL. In this study, we examined the stability of some drug-LDL complexes in blood and plasma as this is an important prerequisite to achieve a selective therapy. The in vitro dialysis of N-trifluoroacetyl-adriamycin-14-valerat-LDL (AD-32-LDL) against plasma revealed a slow dissociation of the complex. The same method showed a fast and total leakage of paclitaxel from paclitaxel-LDL into the plasma chamber. The dissociation of paclitaxel was confirmed by an autoradiographic study of the distribution of paclitaxel-LDL in tumour-bearing mice. In patients with leukemia the rapid plasma dissociation of AD-32 from LDL illustrated a much higher in vivo instability of this complex. With this method, cholesteryl-linoleate only could be incorporated into LDL in a stable manner as shown by dialysis and autoradiography results. The incorporation of cytotoxic drug derivatives, containing lipophilic anchors, is now under study in order to obtain LDL complexes with better plasma stability.

Aged↗

On the paradoxically concentration-dependent metabolism of 6-mercaptopurine in WEHI-3b murine leukemia cells.

The intracellular metabolism of 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP) was studied in a murine leukemia cell line, WEHI-3b. Cells were incubated 3 to 24 h with 10 nM to 50 microM 6-MP. Nucleotides were extracted with perchloric acid, and the 6-thiopurine nucleotides were isolated on mercurial cellulose. The endogenous ribonucleotides in the perchloric acid extracts as well as 6-thiopurine nucleotides were separated and quantified with anion exchange high-performance liquid chromatography. The concentration of 6-thioinosinate (6-TIMP) and 6-thioxantinate (6-TXMP) increased with an increasing 6-MP dose. The concentration of the 6-thioguanosine nucleotides (6-TGN) increased with 6-MP concentrations between 10 nM and 1 microM. However, further increase in 6-MP concentration led to a decrease in the formation of 6-TGN. At 50 microM 6-MP, the concentration of 6-thioguanosine 5'-triphosphate was one fifth of that seen at 1 microM. The incorporation of 6-[35S]mercaptopurine into DNA was also slightly higher at 1 microM compared with 50 microM. The cytocidal effect on clonogenic cells was one log greater at 1 microM 6-MP compared with 50 microM 6-MP. The decrease of 6-TGN was accompanied not only by an increased 6-TIMP concentration but also by an inhibition of the purine de novo synthesis and consequently by a decrease of the cellular ATP concentration. The ATP concentration in the cells treated with 1 microM 6-MP could be reduced to the level seen in cells treated with 50 microM 6-MP by simultaneous incubation with 0.3 microM antimycin A. This decrease of ATP concentration was accompanied by a reduction of 6-TGN and to a lesser extent of 6-TXMP. These experiments suggest that the "self-limiting" phenomenon in the metabolism of 6-MP might be caused by a depletion of ATP by inhibition of purine de novo synthesis presumably by 6-TIMP.

Animals↗

Low density lipoprotein for delivery of a water-insoluble alkylating agent to malignant cells. In vitro and in vivo studies of a drug-lipoprotein complex.

Previous studies have shown that human leukaemic cells and certain tumour tissues have a higher receptor-mediated uptake of low density lipoprotein (LDL) than the corresponding normal cells or tissues. LDL has therefore been proposed as a carrier for anti-cancer agents. In the current study, a water-insoluble mitoclomine derivative (WB 4291) was incorporated into LDL. The WB 4291-LDL complex contained about 1,500 drug molecules per LDL particle and showed receptor-mediated toxicity in vitro as judged from the difference in growth inhibitory effect on normal and mutant (LDL-receptor-negative) cultured Chinese hamster ovary cells. However, cellular drug uptake did not exclusively occur by the receptor pathway since mutant cells were also affected to some extent. The LDL part of the complex had the same plasma clearance and organ distribution as native LDL after i.v. injection in mice and rabbits. Therapeutic effects were observed when Balb-C mice with experimental leukaemia were treated with the complex. After i.p. administration to mice with i.p. leukaemia median survival time was prolonged 2.5-fold and 40% became long time survivors. The effect was weaker (42% increase in life span) after i.v. injections of the complex to mice with i.v. leukaemia.

Alkylating Agents↗

Uptake of low density lipoproteins by human leukemic cells in vivo: relation to plasma lipoprotein levels and possible relevance for selective chemotherapy.

The success of cancer chemotherapy is dependent on the possibility to utilize biological differences between malignant and normal cells to selectively destroy the tumor cells. One such difference may be that of receptor-mediated cellular uptake of low density lipoproteins (LDLs). Previous studies have shown that leukemic cells from patients with acute myelogenous leukemia have elevated receptor-mediated uptake and degradation rates of plasma LDL in vitro compared to normal white blood and bone marrow cells, and that plasma cholesterol levels at diagnosis are inversely correlated with the LDL receptor activity of the malignant cells. An important question is whether the uptake of LDL by the leukemic cells is also increased in vivo. To evaluate the in vivo uptake of LDL, 11 adult patients with newly diagnosed acute myelogenous leukemia received an i.v. injection of [14C]-sucrose-labeled LDL. On degradation of [14C]sucrose-LDL, the radiolabeled sucrose moiety is known to remain trapped in the lysosomal compartment of the cells. After injection, radioactivity accumulated progressively for at least 12 hr in the leukemic cells. The uptake of radioactivity in vivo correlated with the rate of receptor-mediated degradation of 125I-labeled LDL by the leukemic cells assayed in vitro (r = +0.88, P less than 0.001). An inverse correlation between plasma LDL cholesterol concentrations and the in vivo cellular uptake of [14C]sucrose-LDL in whole blood (r = -0.76, P less than 0.01) indicates that the hypocholesterolemia is due to elevated LDL uptake by the leukemic cells. Postmortem biopsies from virtually all tissues were obtained from one patient, and the distribution of radioactivity revealed that the liver and bone marrow had accumulated most radioactivity; the adrenals had the highest uptake of label per gram of tissue weight. The results indicate that LDL may be used as a carrier targeting lipophilic cytotoxic drugs to leukemic cells.

Adult↗

Low-density lipoprotein as a carrier of antitumoral drugs: in vivo fate of drug-human low-density lipoprotein complexes in mice.

Previous studies have demonstrated that human leukemic cells and certain cancer cells in culture have a higher uptake of plasma low-density lipoprotein (LDL) than the corresponding normal cells. Therefore LDL has been proposed as a drug carrier for anticancer agents. In the present investigation, we have developed a method to incorporate a lipophilic derivative of doxorubicin, N-trifluoroacetyladriamycin-14-valerate, into LDL. The method involves lyophilization of LDL in the presence of sucrose as protective agent and gives an N-trifluoroacetyladriamycin-14-valerate-LDL complex containing about 100 drug molecules per LDL particle. The in vivo fate of the complex in mice as judged from the disappearance from plasma and accumulation in organs was similar to that of native LDL. When cultured human fibroblasts were incubated with N-trifluoroacetyladriamycin-14-valerate-LDL, cellular drug accumulation was dependent on the LDL receptor activity of the cells. The covalent linkage of two anthracycline derivatives to lysine residues of LDL yielded conjugates with drug/LDL molar ratios ranging up to 80. With increasing substitution, there was a progressive decline in the affinity of the conjugate for the LDL receptor in vitro. The in vivo fate of such conjugates was quite similar to that of native LDL. We conclude that it is possible to associate cytotoxic agents with LDL without interfering with its in vivo behavior.

Animals↗

Selective uptake of a toxic lipophilic anthracycline derivative by the low-density lipoprotein receptor pathway in cultured fibroblasts.

N-(N-Retinoyl)-L-leucyldoxorubicin 14-linoleate (r11-DOX), a new lipophilic derivative of doxorubicin, was synthesized and incorporated into low-density lipoprotein (LDL). The drug-LDL complex contained 100-200 drug molecules/LDL particle. When cultured normal human fibroblasts were incubated with 125I-LDL-incorporated drug, there was a perfect correlation between the cellular uptake plus degradation of 125I-LDL and the cellular drug accumulation. The presence of excess native LDL inhibited the cellular uptake and degradation of 125I-LDL and the drug accumulation to the same extent. In contrast, methylated LDL, which does not bind to the LDL receptor, did not alter the cellular uptake and degradation of 125I-LDL nor did it alter the drug accumulation. When LDL receptor negative fibroblasts from a patient with the homozygous form of familial hypercholesterolemia were incubated with the drug-125I-LDL complex, cellular drug accumulation was very low. The drug-LDL complex inhibited the growth of cultured normal human fibroblasts. The drug incorporated into methylated LDL was much less toxic. These findings suggest that r11-DOX incorporated into LDL is delivered to cells selectively by the LDL receptor pathway. This might be of value in the treatment of leukemia, since we have previously found that leukemic cells exhibit higher LDL receptor activity than white blood cells and bone marrow cells from healthy subjects.

Adolescent↗

Cellular pharmacology of amino acid derivatives of daunorubicin and doxorubicin in suspension of renal proximal tubules.

One approach currently being used to target drug action selectively to specific cells and tissues is to link active drugs to proteins and peptides that are preferentially recognized by, distributed to or activated by the target cells. Inasmuch as the kidney proximal tubule cells are very active in recapturing and catabolizing peptides and proteins which appear in the glomerular filtrate, we have examined the cellular pharmacology of daunorubicin (DNR) and doxorubicin (DOX) and selected amino acid and dipeptide derivatives in suspensions of rabbit renal proximal proximal tubules. The tubules accumulated the DNR series of drugs and their metabolites to a greater extent than the DOX series. Although all of the amino acid derivatives of these drugs entered the cells for sequestration and metabolism, the dipeptide derivative, alanyl-leucyl-DNR, was not detected within the cells. Using high-performance liquid chromatography to quantify the various metabolites and isopycnic centrifugation of tubule-derived post-nuclear supernates in linear sucrose gradients to resolve various subcellular organelles, the subcellular sites of metabolism of these drugs were examined. A NADPH-dependent reduction of the C-13 carbonyl group of the parent drugs, which was the primary route of metabolism, was localized to the cytoplasm. Formation of aglycones generated by the cleavage of the daunosamine moiety from the anthracycline core followed the microsomal marker, NADPH-cytochrome reductase, in the sucrose gradients. Removal of the terminal amino acid from alanyl-leucyl-DNR was tentatively assigned to a cysteine-requiring enzyme on the plasma membrane.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Amino Acids↗

A covalent linkage between daunorubicin and proteins that is stable in serum and reversible by lysosomal hydrolases, as required for a lysosomotropic drug-carrier conjugate: in vitro and in vivo studies.

Daunorubicin (DNR) has been conjugated to succinylated serum albumin by an amide bond joining the amino group of the drug and a carboxyl side chain of the protein either directly or with the intercalation of a peptide spacer arm varying from one to four amino acids. During in vitro incubation with lysosomal hydrolases, intact DNR could be released extensively only from conjugates prepared with a tri- or tetrapeptide spacer arm. These latter conjugates remained very stable in the presence of serum. When tested in vivo against the intraperitoneal form of L1210 leukemia, the conjugates in which DNR was linked to serum albumin directly or via one amino acid were completely inactive but the conjugate with a dipeptide spacer arm was not more active than free DNR. In parallel with the in vitro studies, the best therapeutic results were obtained with the conjugates formed with tri- and tetrapeptidic spacer arms; they were much more active than DNR, inducing a high percentage of long-term survivors. Thus, use of a tri- or tetrapeptide spacer arm is essential to obtain DNR-protein conjugates that remain stable in serum and from which DNR can be released through the action of lysosomal hydrolases. The in vivo results suggest, moreover, that these conjugates are endocytosed by L1210 cells and that DNR is released intracellularly after digestion by lysosomal enzymes. This conjugation method can be applied to other drugs possessing a free amino group and to various potential carriers, such as antibodies, polypeptide hormones, and glycoproteins, that have amino or carboxyl side chains.

Albumins↗

Development of new derivatives of primaquine by association with lysosomotropic carriers.

On the basis of the drug-carrier concept of chemotherapy, we entrapped primaquine in liposomes, and linked it to an amino acid (leucine), and to peptides (alanyl-leucine and alanyl-leucyl-alanyl-leucyl) as intermediate steps in the synthesis of covalent primaquine-glycoprotein conjugates that would be selectively recognized by hepatocytes.The therapeutic activity of these compounds was tested in mice infected with sporozoites of Plasmodium berghei. Causal prophylatic cures were obtained after a single intravenous injection of primaquine-liposomes (60-70 mg of primaquine/kg of bodyweight) and lower doses (35 mg of primaquine/kg of bodyweight) of ala-leu-primaquine and ala-leu-ala-leu-primaquine.The administration of such high doses was only possible as a result of the decreased toxicity of primaquine when entrapped in liposomes and confirms the validity of the drug-carrier concept for the treatment of malarial infections. The improved chemotherapeutic index of ala-leu-primaquine and ala-leu-ala-leu-primaquine resulted from their decreased toxicity and increased chemotherapeutic activity. These peptide derivatives are probably acting as pro-drugs of primaquine.

Animals↗

Amino acid and dipeptide derivatives of daunorubicin. 1. Synthesis, physicochemical properties, and lysosomal digestion.

The synthesis of amino acid and dipeptide derivatives of daunorubicin (DNR) is described. The binding-affinity parameters for DNA of those derivatives were determined by a spectral titration method. The affinity constants of the amino acid and dipeptide derivatives are, respectively, three and ten times lower than that of DNR. The susceptibility of those derivatives toward lysosomal peptidases was studied. It was found that the Leu and the Ala-Leu derivatives are the most rapidly hydrolyzed into DNR. It is concluded that Leu-DNR and Ala-Leu-DNR could act as prodrugs of DNR, which could be activated inside or in the close vicinity of tumor cells which display a high aminopeptidase activity.

Animals↗

Amino acid and dipeptide derivatives of daunorubicin. 2. Cellular pharmacology and antitumor activity on L1210 leukemic cells in vitro and in vivo.

The accumulation of amino acid and dipeptide derivatives of DNR has been studied in vitro on L1210 cells. Only Leu-DNR reaches accumulation levels close to DNR, while Val-DNR, Ile-DNR, and Leu-Leu-DNR reach intermediate values. Intracellular DNR was found when the L1210 cells were incubated in the presence of DNR, Leu-Leu-DNR, Leu-Ala-DNR, and Leu-DNR. The cytostatic activity of the derivatives in vitro on L1210 cells cannot be correlated with their uptake or conversion into DNR. At equitoxic doses given iv on the iv inoculated form of L1210 leukemia, all the derivatives are less active than DNR. When given iv on the sc inoculated L1210 leukemia, Leu-DNR, Ala-Leu-DNR and Leu-Leu-DNR are much more active than DNR with a striking increase in ILS and reduction of tumor progression. The superiority of those compounds could be due to their greater hydrophobicity and to their hydrolysis in situ by enzymes secreted by tumor cells or present on the tumor cells surface.

Animals↗