An introduction to genetic analysis (5th edn): by Anthony J.F. Griffiths, Jeffrey H. Miller, David T. Suzuki, Richard C. Lewontin and William M. Gelbart Freeman, 1993. £25.95 hbk (840 pages) ISBN 0 7167 2285 2

Abstract

Vorinostat (suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid; SAHA) and Belinostat are two hydroxamate-based histone deacetylase inhibitors that are used clinically as potent anti-cancer agents. Their metabolic breakdown into inactive metabolites such as carboxylic acid and glucuronic derivatives results in them having short half-lives, which can negatively impact their pharmacokinetic profiles. Herein we report the potential of both Vorinostat and Belinostat to also act as nitric oxide donors under both chemical and biological ex vivo experimental conditions. More specifically, using ruthenium(III) as an effective NO scavenger, we were able to establish, in the first instance, that both Vorinostat and Belinostat had the capacity to release NO under chemical conditions. Both Vorinostat and Belinostat were then shown to cause vascular relaxation of rat aorta via NO-mediated activation of the haem-containing guanylate cyclase enzyme. A summary of our findings is reported herein.