No abstract

VCP (also known as p97 or Cdc48p in yeast) is an AAA(+) ATPase regulating endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation. After high-throughput screening, we developed compounds that inhibit VCP via different mechanisms, including covalent modification of an active site cysteine and a new allosteric mechanism. Using photoaffinity labeling, structural analysis and mutagenesis, we mapped the binding site of allosteric inhibitors to a region spanning the D1 and D2 domains of adjacent protomers encompassing elements important for nucleotide-state sensing and ATP hydrolysis. These compounds induced an increased affinity for nucleotides. Interference with nucleotide turnover in individual subunits and distortion of interprotomer communication cooperated to impair VCP enzymatic activity. Chemical expansion of this allosteric class identified NMS-873, the most potent and specific VCP inhibitor described to date, which activated the unfolded protein response, interfered with autophagy and induced cancer cell death. The consistent pattern of cancer cell killing by covalent and allosteric inhibitors provided critical validation of VCP as a cancer target.

Allosteric regulation of proteins by conformational change is a primary means of biological control. Traditionally it has been difficult to identify and characterize novel allosteric sites and ligands that freeze these conformational states. We present a site-directed approach using Tethering for trapping inhibitory small molecules at sites away from the active site by reversible disulfide bond formation. We screened a library of 10,000 thiolcontaining compounds against accessible cysteines of two members of the caspase family of proteases, caspase-3 and -7. We discovered a previously unreported and conserved allosteric site in a deep cavity at the dimer interface 14 Å from the active site. This site contains a natural cysteine that, when disulfide-bonded with either of two specific compounds, inactivates these proteases. The allosteric site is functionally coupled to the active site, such that binding of the compounds at the allosteric site prevents peptide binding at the active site. The x-ray crystal structures of caspase-7 bound by either compound demonstrates that they inhibit caspase-7 by trapping a zymogen-like conformation. This approach may be useful to identify new allosteric sites from natural or engineered cysteines, to study allosteric transitions in proteins, and to nucleate drug discovery efforts. C aspases are highly regulated cysteine proteases that cleave specific aspartate-containing substrates with exquisite specificity (1). As critical mediators of apoptosis and the inflammatory response they represent an important class of drug targets for stroke, ischemia, cancer, and inflammatory diseases (2). The active sites of all caspases stringently prefer an electrophilic carbonyl and an aspartyl functionality that have frustrated drug discovery efforts (3-7), so despite their biological significance in cell death and survival, to date no caspase-directed therapies are available. Given the weighty consequences in cell survival for inappropriate activation, caspases are known to be regulated by both binding to inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs), and by proteolytic cleavage during zymogen activation (8).In response to apoptotic stimuli, the initiator caspases are activated and proteolytically process the executioner caspases-3, -6, and -7. Proteolytic cleavage of the executioners at one site releases a pro-peptide. A second cleavage generates a large and a small subunit and is the essential event in executioner caspase zymogen activation (Fig. 1A), enabling them to cleave downstream targets, which ultimately results in cell death. Caspase substrate-binding regions are composed of four flexible loops, two of which are generated by the proteolytic cleavage. Three of the substratebinding region loops (L2, L3, and L4) are in one half of the dimer, but interaction of L2Ј from the opposite half of the dimer is crucial for forming the substrate-binding groove (9). Thus, although all caspase inhibitors reported to date have relied on inactivating the active site directly, molecules that prevent proper for...

p21-activated kinases (PAKs) are serine/threonine protein kinases that serve as important mediators of Rac and Cdc42 GTPase function as well as pathways required for Ras-driven tumorigenesis. PAK1 has been implicated in signaling by growth factor receptors and morphogenetic processes that control cell polarity, invasion, and actin cytoskeleton organization. To better understand the role of PAK1 in tumorigenesis, PAK1 genomic copy number and expression were determined for a large panel of breast, lung, and head and neck tumors. PAK1 genomic amplification at 11q13 was prevalent in luminal breast cancer, and PAK1 protein expression was associated with lymph node metastasis. Breast cancer cells with PAK1 genomic amplification rapidly underwent apoptosis after inhibition of this kinase. Strong nuclear and cytoplasmic PAK1 expression was also prevalent in squamous nonsmall cell lung carcinomas (NSCLCs), and selective PAK1 inhibition was associated with delayed cell-cycle progression in vitro and in vivo. NSCLC cells were profiled using a library of pathway-targeted small-molecule inhibitors, and several synergistic combination therapies, including combination with antagonists of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins, were revealed for PAK1. Dual inhibition of PAK1 and X chromosome-linked inhibitor of apoptosis efficiently increased effector caspase activation and apoptosis of NSCLC cells. Together, our results provide evidence for dysregulation of PAK1 in breast and squamous NSCLCs and a role for PAK1 in cellular survival and proliferation in these indications.

Cysteine aspartyl protease-3 (caspase-3) is a mediator of apoptosis and a therapeutic target for a wide range of diseases. Using a dynamic combinatorial technology, 'extended tethering', we identified unique nonpeptidic inhibitors for this enzyme. Extended tethering allowed the identification of ligands that bind to discrete regions of caspase-3 and also helped direct the assembly of these ligands into small-molecule inhibitors. We first designed a small-molecule 'extender' that irreversibly alkylates the cysteine residue of caspase-3 and also contains a thiol group. The modified protein was then screened against a library of disulfide-containing small-molecule fragments. Mass-spectrometry was used to identify ligands that bind noncovalently to the protein and that also form a disulfide linkage with the extender. Linking the selected fragments with binding elements from the extenders generates reversible, tight-binding molecules that are druglike and distinct from known inhibitors. One molecule derived from this approach inhibited apoptosis in cells.