Abstract 4727: ST7612AA1: focus on a drug candidate, front-runner of a new generation of HDAC inhibitors

Abstract

Abstract After more than 20 years of research in the field of HDAC inhibitors, the oncological armamentarium has significantly enriched with new approved drugs. Currently, four drugs, Vorinostat (Zolinza; 2006), Romidepsin (Istodax; 2009) Belinostat (Beleodaq; 2014) and Panobinostat (Farydak; 2015) have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL), and multiple myeloma, respectively. A fifth, Chidamide (Epidaza; 2015), has been recently approved by the China Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of PTCL. Beyond them, more than twenty are currently under pre-clinical and clinical investigation as single agent and in combination therapies against different cancers and in other several novel therapeutic indications. However, it is to emphasize a feature: among all these, no one, with the exception of the natural product Romidepsin, is a thiol derivative. After efforts lasted years, now we have selected ST7612AA1 - a new thiol-ω(γ-lactam amide) SAHA analogues, potential front-runner of a new generation of HDAC inhibitors, [1] highly competitive respect to other HDAC inhibitors drugs, orally administered with a negligible toxicity. ST7612AA1 displays low-nanomolar inhibitor activity on HDACs, being especially powerful on HDAC6 isoform, associated to a wide spectrum of antitumor activity, both in vitro and in vivo [2]; it can be industrially developed with a quick and easy synthetic process [3]. Moreover, it has also been investigated as an enhancer in antiretroviral therapy against HIV, aimed to eradicate the viral reservoirs [4]. All these results encouraged further enrichment experiments with ST7612AA1 as a drug candidate, which is currently in a phase of pre-clinical evaluation. The overall profile of ST7612AA1, including synthesis and a comprehensive pharmacological characterization, will be presented. [1] G. Giannini et al. J Med Chem. 2014, 57, 8358-8377 [2] L. Vesci et al. Oncotarget 2015, 6, 5735-48 [3] G. Battistuzzi, G. Giannini. Bioorg. Med. Chem .Lett. 2015, submitted [4] R. Badia Antiviral Research 2015, 123, 62-69 Citation Format: Giuseppe Giannini, Ferdinando Maria Milazzo, Gianfranco Battistuzzi, Loredana Vesci. ST7612AA1: focus on a drug candidate, front-runner of a new generation of HDAC inhibitors. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 4727.