Dissecting the PI3K Signaling Axis in Pediatric Solid Tumors: Novel Targets for Clinical Integration.

Dissecting the PI3K Signaling Axis in Pediatric Solid Tumors: Novel Targets for Clinical Integration.

Front Oncol. 2013; 3: 93
Loh AH, Brennan RC, Lang WH, Hickey RJ, Malkas LH, Sandoval JA

Children with solid tumors represent a unique population. Recent improvements in pediatric solid tumor survival rates have been confined to low- and moderate-risk cancers, whereas minimal to no notable improvement in survival have been observed in high-risk and advanced-stage childhood tumors. Treatments for patients with advanced disease are rarely curative, and responses to therapy are often followed by relapse, which highlights the large unmet need for novel therapies. Recent advances in cancer treatment have focused on personalized therapy, whereby patients are treated with agents that best target the molecular drivers of their disease. Thus, a better understanding of the pathways that drive cancer or drug resistance is of critical importance. One such example is the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway, which is activated in many solid cancer patients and represents a target for therapy. PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway activation has also been observed in tumors resistant to agents targeting upstream receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs). Agents that target this pathway have the potential to shut down survival pathways, and are being explored both in the setting of pathway-activating mutations and for their ability to restore sensitivity to upstream signaling targeted agents. Here, we examine the role of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway in pediatric solid tumors, review the novel agents being explored to target this pathway, and explore the potential role of the inhibition of this pathway in the clinical development of these agents in children. HubMed – drug

Virtual screening for oseltamivir-resistant a (H5N1) influenza neuraminidase from traditional Chinese medicine database: a combined molecular docking with molecular dynamics approach.

Springerplus. 2013 Dec; 2(1): 115
Karthick V, Ramanathan K

The neuraminidase (NA) of the influenza virus is the target of antiviral drug, oseltamivir. Recently, cases are reported that Influenza virus becoming resistant to oseltamivir, necessitating the development of new long-acting antiviral compounds. Most importantly, H274Y mutation in neuraminidase exhibits high levels of resistance to oseltamivir. In this report, a novel class of lead molecule with potential NA inhibitory activity was found from the traditional Chinese medicine database (TCMD) using virtual screening approach. Initially ADME properties of the lead compounds were analyzed with respect to the Lipinski rule of five. Subsequently, the data reduction was carried out by employing molecular docking study. Final validation was done by means of molecular dynamic simulations. The toxicity profiles for the screened compound were also analyzed. The result indicates that neoglucobrassicin (a compound derived from TCMD) become a promising lead compound and be effective in treating oseltamivir-resistant influenza virus strains. HubMed – drug

Analysis of innate and acquired resistance to anti-CD20 antibodies in malignant and nonmalignant B cells.

Peerj. 2013; 1: e31
Small GW, McLeod HL, Richards KL

The anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, rituximab, provides a significant therapeutic benefit for patients with B-cell disorders. However, response to therapy varies and relapses are common, so an understanding of both inherited and acquired rituximab resistance is needed. In order to identify mechanisms of inherited resistance, sensitive versus resistant individuals were selected from a survey of 92 immortalized lymphoblastoid B-cell lines from normal individuals. Levels of CD20 protein and surface expression were lower in the resistant group. In contrast, CD20 mRNA levels were not correlated with susceptibility, suggesting regulation at a post-transcriptional level. To examine acquired resistance, resistant sublines were selected from both lymphoblastoid as well as lymphoma cell lines. Confirming previous findings, there was significant down-regulation of CD20 protein expression in all the resistant sublines. CD20 mRNA splice variants are reported to be associated with development of resistance. Three splice variants were observed in our cell lines, each lacking the binding epitope for rituximab, but none were associated with rituximab resistance. The second generation anti-CD20 mAb, ofatumumab, was more active compared with rituximab in vitro in the survey of all B-cell lines, mirroring results that have been reported previously with malignant B-cells. These studies show that normal B-lymphoblastoid cell lines can be used to model both innate and acquired mechanisms of resistance. They validate the important role of CD20 expression and enable future genetic studies to identify additional mediators of anti-CD20 mAb resistance. HubMed – drug