The serine protease urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) interacts with a specific receptor (uPAR) on the surface of various cell types, including tumor cells, and plays a crucial role in pericellular proteolysis. High levels of uPA and uPAR often correlate with poor prognosis of cancer patients. Therefore, the specific inhibition of uPA with small molecule active-site inhibitors is one strategy to decrease the invasive and metastatic activity of tumor cells. We have developed a series of highly potent and selective uPA inhibitors with a C-terminal 4-amidinobenzylamide residue. Optimization was directed toward reducing the fast elimination from circulation that was observed with initial analogues. The x-ray structures of three inhibitor/uPA complexes have been solved and were used to improve the inhibition efficacy. One of the most potent and selective derivatives, benzylsulfonyl-D-SerSer-4-amidinobenzylamide (inhibitor 26), inhibits uPA with a K i of 20 nM. This inhibitor was used in a fibrosarcoma model in nude mice using lacZ-tagged human HT1080 cells, to prevent experimental lung metastasis formation. Compared with control (100%), an inhibitor dose of 2 ؋ 1.5 mg/kg/day reduced the number of experimental metastases to 4.6 ؎ 1%. Under these conditions inhibitor 26 also significantly prolonged survival. All mice from the control group died within 43 days after tumor cell inoculation, whereas 50% of mice from the inhibitor-treated group survived more than 117 days. This study demonstrates that the specific inhibition of uPA by these inhibitors may be a useful strategy for the treatment of cancer to prevent metastasis.The detachment of malignant cells from the primary tumor and their subsequent migration within the surrounding tissue, including intravasation and extravasation into blood and lymph vessels, leads to tumor dissemination and the formation of metastases at distant loci. Whereas a solid tumor can be removed by surgery or treated by radio-, chemo-, or hormone therapy, invasive tumor cells that have spread over the whole body can form secondary tumors leading to poor prognosis or death of cancer patients. Several proteases, such as matrix metalloproteases, the cysteine proteases cathepsin B and L, the aspartyl protease cathepsin D, and serine proteases, e.g. plasmin and uPA, 1 are involved at multiple stages during growth, invasion and progression of tumors, including metastases formation (1). High levels of expression of these proteases often correlate with poor prognosis for cancer patients (2). However, in several clinical cancer trials with different types of nonspecific matrix metalloprotease inhibitors, disappointing results with poor benefit and severe side effects were observed (3). This stimulated the search for alternative proteases with matrix degrading activity as new targets for anti-cancer drugs. An important role in metastasis has been recently ascribed to the plasmin-plasminogen activation system and especially to uPA.Both, uPA and the second endogenous plasminogen activator tPA are...

Matriptase is an epithelium-derived type II transmembrane serine protease and has been implicated in the activation of substrates such as pro-HGF/SF and pro-uPA, which are likely involved in tumor progression and metastasis. Through screening, we have identified bis-basic secondary amides of sulfonylated 3-amidinophenylalanine as matriptase inhibitors. X-ray analyses of analogues 8 and 31 in complex with matriptase revealed that these inhibitors occupy, in addition to part of the previously described S4-binding site, the cleft formed by the molecular surface and the unique 60 loop of matriptase. Therefore, optimization of the inhibitors included the incorporation of appropriate sulfonyl substituents that could improve binding of these inhibitors into both characteristic matriptase subsites. The most potent derivatives inhibit matriptase highly selective with K(i) values below 5 nM. Molecular modeling revealed that their improved affinity results from interaction with the S4 site of matriptase. Analogues 8 and 59 were studied in an orthotopic xenograft mouse model of prostate cancer. Compared to control, both inhibitors reduced tumor growth, as well as tumor dissemination.

No abstract