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PubMed1993

Microspectrofluorometry of the protonation state of ellipticine, an antitumor alkaloid, in single cells.

The protonation state and intracellular distribution of ellipticine were investigated in single human mammary T47D cells by confocal laser microspectrofluorimetry. In the cell nucleus, only the protonated form of ellipticine was detected as a direct consequence of its apparent pK increase upon DNA binding. Both protonated and neutral forms were present in the aqueous cytoplasm, where the pH is close to the drug pK. When cells were incubated in high concentrations of K+, a condition that depolarizes the plasma membrane potential, ellipticine cellular accumulation was reduced. In the cytoplasm, ellipticine was mainly bound to mitochondria, and its protonation equilibrium was shifted toward the neutral form. The fluorescence spectrum of ellipticine bound to mitochondria was insensitive to valinomycin, whereas it was markedly shifted toward the protonated form after carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxy-phenylhydrazone or nigericin addition. Similar studies with ellipticine bound to isolated mitochondria suggest that it behaves as a fluorescent probe of mitochondrial pH in both isolated mitochondria and single living cells.

Biophysical Phenomena↗
PubMed1982

Determination of ellipticine in biological samples by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Ellipticine, a plant alkaloid effective against murine leukemias and solid tumors, is presently undergoing toxicological assessment prior to clinical trial. A rapid, sensitive, reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic method employing an internal standard was developed for the detection of ellipticine and its principal metabolite 9-hydroxyellipticine after extraction from biological samples. The method was successfully applied to the quantitation of ellipticine in mouse blood and tissues after intravenous administration of ellipticine and to mouse blood levels of drug after oral administration. Similar success was achieved in determinations of ellipticine and 9-hydroxyellipticine in samples of spiked human blood and plasma. Mouse blood ellipticine levels monitored over 3 h after the intravenous administration of drug demonstrated a biphasic decline with a terminal half-life of 52 min.

Alkaloids↗
PubMed2003

Rescue of mutant p53 transcription function by ellipticine.

The p53 tumor suppressor is frequently inactivated in tumors by point mutations in the DNA-binding domain, resulting in loss of sequence-specific DNA binding and transcription function. We present evidence that ellipticine can restore the transactivation function of several transfected p53 mutants (175 H, 248W, 249S, 273 H, 281G), resulting in the induction of p53-responsive genes (p21(WAF1),MDM2) and activation of a p53-responsive luciferase reporter. Ellipticine also activates mutant p53 function in tumor cells expressing endogenous 194F, 233L, 241F, and 273C mutants. Treatment with ellipticine alters mutant p53 reactivity to conformation-sensitive Pab1620 and Pab240 antibodies and increases its sequence-specific DNA-binding activity in vivo. Finally, ellipticine activates mutant p53 and induces p21(WAF1) and MDM2 expression in nude mouse tumor xenografts. These results demonstrate that ellipticine can restore transcription function to mutant p53. This property may contribute to the selectivity of ellipticine-derived compounds against tumor cell lines expressing mutant p53.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Topoisomerase II binds to ellipticine in the absence or presence of DNA. Characterization of enzyme-drug interactions by fluorescence spectroscopy.

Although a number of drugs currently in use for the treatment of human cancers act by stimulating topoisomerase II-mediated DNA breakage, little is known regarding interactions between these agents and the enzyme. To further define the mechanism of drug action, interactions between ellipticine (an intercalative drug with clinical relevance) and yeast topoisomerase II were characterized. By utilizing a yeast genetic system, topoisomerase II was identified as the primary cellular target of the drug. Furthermore, ellipticine did not inhibit enzyme-mediated DNA religation, suggesting that it stimulates DNA breakage by enhancing the forward rate of cleavage. Finally, ellipticine binding to DNA, topoisomerase II, and the enzyme-DNA complex was assessed by steady-state and frequency domain fluorescence spectroscopy. As determined by changes in fluorescence intensity and emission maximum wavelength, and by lifetime analysis, only the protonated species of ellipticine bound to a double-stranded 40-mer oligonucleotide containing a topoisomerase II cleavage site (KD approximately 65 nM). In contrast, predominantly deprotonated ellipticine bound to the enzyme.DNA complex (KD approximately 1.5 microM) or to the enzyme in the absence of nucleic acids (KD approximately 160 nM). These findings suggest that ellipticine interacts directly with topoisomerase II and that the enzyme dictates the ionic state of the drug in the ternary complex. A model is presented in which the topoisomerase II.ellipticine.DNA complex is formed via initial drug binding to either the enzyme or DNA.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1994

[In vitro stimulation by ellipticine derivatives of DNA cleavage induced by DNA topoisomerase II: a structure-activity relationship].

Ellipticines are intercalating planar polycyclic aromatic molecules that display antitumor activity. The cytotoxicity of these compounds is related to the presence of an hydroxy group at position 9 of the pyridocarbazole ring system and to their interaction with DNA topoisomerase II. The ability of 13 ellipticine derivatives to stabilize the topoisomerase II-DNA covalent complex in vitro is reported. The following observations emerge from our structure-activity relationship study: i) the hydroxy group at position 9 is essential for stabilizing the covalent complex, ii) the replacement of the methyl group at position 5 by an ethyl group (EPC) enhances the complex stabilization. The interaction of EPC and three other ellipticine analogues with DNA shows that the covalent complexes which are most stable have the lowest drug-DNA binding constants. In addition our study suggests that ellipticines induce covalent complex stabilization by a cooperative mechanism. A model is proposed to explain this stabilization by ellipticines. This study supports the idea that topoisomerase II is the primary target involved in the mechanisms of action of ellipticines.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1992

Molecular analysis of mutations induced by the intercalating agent ellipticine at the hisD3052 allele of Salmonella typhimurium TA98.

We have used DNA colony hybridization, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and direct DNA sequencing to determine the mutations induced by the intercalating agent ellipticine in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 in the presence of S9. Of 400 ellipticine-induced revertants that were selected at a mutant yield that was ninefold over the background, 85.5% contained a GC or CG deletion within a common CGCGCGCG hotspot; this deletion occurred among 47% of the spontaneous revertants. In addition to this hotspot, the ellipticine spectrum contained two deletion warmspots that reside opposite each other in looped-out regions of a possible DNA secondary structure. Ellipticine and its metabolites likely revert Salmonella strain TA98 by forming DNA adducts that promote slippage-mismatches and by stabilizing these slipped mismatched sequences via intercalation. The involvement of these mechanisms, along with a likely role for DNA secondary structures and a possible role for DNA gyrase, may account for the site specificity exhibited by ellipticine in strain TA98.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed2004

The mechanism of ellipticine-induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in human breast MCF-7 cancer cells.

Ellipticine, a cytotoxic plant alkaloid, is known to inhibit topoisomerase II. Here, we first report the molecular mechanism of ellipticine's apoptotic action in human breast MCF-7 cancer cells. Treatment of cells with ellipticine resulted in inhibition of growth, and G2/M phase arrest of the cell cycle. This effect was associated with a marked increase in the protein expression of p53 and, p21/WAF1 and KIP1/p27, but not of WAF1/p21. Ellipticine treatment increased the expression of Fas/APO-1 and its ligands, mFas ligand and sFas ligand, and subsequent activation of caspase-8. The mitochondrial apoptotic pathway amplified the Fas/Fas ligand death receptor pathway by Bid interaction. This effect was found to result in a significant increase in activation of caspase-9. Taken together, we have concluded that the molecular mechanisms during ellipticine-mediated growth inhibition and induction of apoptosis in MCF-7 cells were due to (1) cell cycle arrest and induction of apoptosis, (2) induction of p53 and KIP1/p27 expression, (3) triggering of Fas/Fas ligand pathway, (4) disruption of mitochondrial function, and (5) the apoptotic signaling was amplified by cross-talk between Fas death receptor and mitochondrial apoptotic pathway.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1996

Use of micellar media for the fluorimetric determination of ellipticine in aqueous solutions.

Ellipticine is a pyridocarbazole alkaloid with interesting antitumour activity. Use of neutral ellipticine is hampered by its very low water solubility and therefore this compound has been administered as a salt; however, nitrogen quaternization modifies the antitumour properties of ellipticine. Potential alternatives to quaternization include the use of cyclodextrins, and also the use of micellar media. The latter possibility is explored in this work as an analytical tool. The results obtained with model anionic (SDS), cationic (CTAB) and neutral (Brij-35) surfactants are described. Fluorimetric analysis shows that ellipticine solubilizes completely in the presence of all these compounds, as a result of its aromatic, planar structure. The use of micellar media considerably increases the slopes of the calibration curves with improved correlation coefficients (e.g. 0.8904 in water and 0.9982 with SDS). Micellar media also modify proton transfer processes, as a consequence of the apolar environment of the micellar phase. Deprotonation of ellipticine is hampered in SDS because of the relationship between this process and the surface charge of the micelles. Finally, fluorescence quenching in micellar media has been studied, it being found that surfactants provide protection towards this phenomenon.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1992

Binding of a distamycin-ellipticine hybrid molecule to DNA and chromatin: spectroscopic, biochemical, and molecular modeling investigations.

A bifunctional molecule in which an ellipticine chromophore is attached to a distamycin residue via a diaminopropyl tether has been designed and synthesized in the expectation of creating a hybrid molecule capable of bidentate binding to DNA by both intercalation and minor-groove interactions. The strength and mode of binding to DNA of this conjugate have been studied by means of circular and linear dichroism as well as by stopped-flow kinetics and measurements of reactivity toward a chemical probe. The results converge to reveal that the ellipticine moiety of the hybrid largely dominates the binding reaction with DNA. In the presence of chromatin, the hybrid molecule binds preferentially to the internucleosomal DNA, a preference dictated by its intercalating chromophore. Theoretical computations were performed on the comparative complexation energies of distamycin, the ellipticine derivative, and the hybrid ligand with a B-representative octanucleotide, d(GCATATGC)2. The best binding configuration of the ellipticine derivative locates its aminoalkyl side chain in the minor groove where distamycin is also present. The molecular modeling analysis fully supports the involvement of a bimodal binding process for the hybrid and reveals that the binding of the conjugate to DNA favors a pronounced bending toward the minor groove. This effect is attributed to intercalation of the ellipticine chromophore. An interesting link is established between the DEPC reactivity experiments and the theoretical computations, suggesting that DEPC can be used as a probe for drug-induced DNA bending. On the basis of these results, we propose the design of a new hybrid ligand bearing an additional positively-charged amidine side chain to confer higher DNA-binding affinity.

Autoradiography↗
PubMed1982

Interactions of ellipticine with model or natural membranes. A spectrophotometric study.

Ellipticine is the type of a group of substances used against human cancer. It was shown that ellipticine and 9-methoxyellipticine strongly interact with monolayers of negatively charged phospholipids. In the present paper it is shown by spectrophotometric methods that ellipticine interacts with suspensions of a model membrane with a 1/1 charge neutralization, and with a natural membrane, both negatively charged. At a physiological pH, ellipticine undergoes protonation in the presence of these membranes. Its apparent pK is increased by 1, and its spectral behaviour, when the pH is changed, indicates that the drug is in a less polar environment, suggesting that hydrophobic bonds link the drug and the lipids. The existence of such bonds is suggested by the fact that the drug is not significantly released from anionic membranes when the pH is increased to 10, at which value ellipticine is not ionized. The consequences of these ionic and hydrophobic interactions are briefly discussed.

Alkaloids↗
PubMed2004

Extending nature's leads: the anticancer agent ellipticine.

The natural plant product ellipticine was isolated in 1959 from the Australian evergreen tree of the Apocynaceae family. This compound was found to be an extremely promising anticancer drug. The planar polycyclic structure was found to interact with DNA through intercalation, exhibiting a high DNA binding affinity (10(6) M(-1)). The presence of protonatable ring nitrogens distinguished ellipticine from other simple intercalators. Both monocationic and uncharged species were found to be present under physiological conditions. The positive charge stabilized the binding of ellipticine to nucleic acids, while the more lipophilic uncharged compound was shown to readily penetrate membrane barriers. The structural nature of these compounds offers a plausible basis for the implication of multiple modes of action, including DNA binding, interactions with membrane barriers, oxidative bioactivation and modification of enzyme function; most notably that of topoisomerase II and telomerase. Pharmacologically, a number of toxic side effects have been shown to be problematic, but the amenability of ellipticine towards systematic structural modification has permitted the extensive application of rational drug design. A number of successful ellipticine analogs have been designed and synthesized with improved toxicities and anticancer activities. More recently the synthetic focus has broadened to include the design of hybrid compounds, as well as drug delivery conjugates. Considerable research efforts have been directed towards gaining a greater understanding of the mechanism of action of these drugs that will aid further in the optimization of drug design.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress by ellipticine plant alkaloids.

Anticancer drugs often show complex mechanisms of action, including effects on multiple cellular targets. Detailed understanding of these intricate effects is important for the understanding of cytotoxicity. In this study, we examined apoptosis induction by ellipticines, a class of cytotoxic plant alkaloids known to inhibit topoisomerase II. The potent ellipticine derivative 6-propanamine ellipticine (6-PA-ELL) induced rapid apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells, preceded by a conformational change in Bak and cytochrome c release. Experiments using knock-out mouse embryo fibroblasts established that Bak was of particular importance for cytotoxicity. 6-PA-ELL increased the expression of the endoplasmic reticulum chaperones GRP78/BiP and GRP94, suggesting induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress. Induction of GRP78 expression was dependent on the endoplasmic reticulum stress response element (ERSE) of the GRP78 promoter. Examination of different ellipticine derivatives revealed a correlation between pro-apoptotic activity and the ability to induce GRP78 expression. Furthermore, 6-PA-ELL was found to induce splicing of the mRNA encoding the XBP1 transcription factor, characteristic of endoplasmic reticulum stress, and to induce activation of the endoplasmic reticulum-specific caspase-12 in mouse colon cancer cells. We finally demonstrate that 6-PA-ELL induces apoptotic signaling also in enucleated cells, consistent with the existence of a cytoplasmic target for this compound. Our data suggest that induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress may contribute to the cytotoxicity of ellipticines.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

DNA damage and cytotoxicity in L1210 cells by ellipticine and a structural analogue, N-2-(diethylaminoethyl)-9-hydroxyellipticinium chloride.

N-2-(Diethylaminoethyl)-9-hydroxyellipticinium chloride (DHE) is a structural analogue of ellipticine that is currently a leading compound for clinical trials. We have investigated the mechanism of DNA damage by this compound in murine L1210 leukemia cells using the method of alkaline elution. Although DHE was about 100-fold more cytotoxic than ellipticine, this increased cytotoxicity was not accompanied by greater amounts of DNA strand breakage or protein-DNA cross-linking. The single strand breaks caused by both compounds were protein associated and could be accounted for by the presence of double strand breaks. DNA damage by the compounds therefore was consistent with topoisomerase II inhibition. Unlike DHE, 80% of the DNA damage elicited by ellipticine was repaired within 1 h after removal of drug. For DHE, 20-h incubations in drug-free media were required to obtain 70% repair of single strand DNA breaks. These data indicated that although both ellipticine and DHE may inhibit topoisomerase II, the type of DNA damage which resulted in topoisomerase II inhibition by DHE was much more persistent than the DNA damage elicited by ellipticine.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Acid-base properties of ellipticine bound to DNA, micelles and liposomes.

We have determined the acid-base properties of the alkaloid ellipticine, bound to DNA and to micelles and liposomes, taken as models for membranes, in the prospect of characterizing the actual structure of the bound ligand, this being relevant to the mode of action of the drug. The acid-base properties of ellipticine bound to sonicated calf thymus DNA and SDS micelles are similar as regards their pK values and their dependence on NaCl concentrations. This observation is satisfactorily understood in terms of sodium ion condensation around the negative phosphate and sulphate groups. The slope of pK vs log(Na+) is -1, a value predicted by Friedman theory. The pK of ellipticine bound to cationic (CTAB, DDTAB) or to neutral (Triton X100) micelles and to neutral liposomes (PC) is significantly lower than water (7.4), and, in contrast to the situation in DNA and SDS micelles, does not vary with addition of NaCl. Interestingly, this result is good evidence for ellipticine having a specific pK when bound to a hydrophobic structure. This view is likely to hold for ellipticine bound to DNA.

Alkaloids↗
PubMed1997

[Sanguinarine and ellipticine cytotoxic alkaloids isolated from well-known antitumor plants. Intracellular targets of their action].

Common molecular and cellular targets for alkaloids sanguinarine and ellipticine, isolated from well-known antitumor plants (as well as from their various natural and synthetic derivatives), have been studied and described. Sanguinarine and ellipticine are characterized by significant biological activities including a high antitumor potential. Among the important targets of their action the following are to be noted. 1. DNA and other double helical polynucleotides. Due to the ability of DNA-intercalation sanguinarine, ellipticine and some of their derivatives can modify the double helical structures and topological forms of polynucleotides. The results of these modifications in intercalative complexes manifest themselves in the inhibition of numerous enzymatic reactions, dependent on the structures and topological forms of DNA and other polynucleotides. 2. ATP synthesis in mitochondria. Most of DNA-intercalators, including sanguinarine and ellipticine, belong to a group of penetrating (hydrophobic) cations, which are accumulated near the external side of inner mitochondrial membranes during the membrane energization. They neutralize negative charges, arising just as the inner mitochondrial membranes become energized. By this neutralization of membrane charges the ATP synthesis in inhibited and the oxidative phosphorylation renders to be uncoupled. All studied DNA-intercalators under certain conditions uncouple the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. Apparent correlation between the agents' ability for DNA-intercalation and for mitochondrial ATP synthesis inhibition seems to be determined by the importance for both types of reactions of molecule hydrophobicity and positive charges. 3. Cholinesterase systems. Sanguinarine, ellipticine and some of their derivatives, like other DNA-intercalators studied, inhibit also the enzymatic activities of cholinesterase systems due to hydrophobicity and positive charges of their molecules. 4. Sanguinarine (and chelerythrine), are also capable of inhibiting the biological activity of SH-dependent enzymes and proteins. Due to the reactivity of iminium groups in sanguinarine and chelerythrine molecules with nucleophilic reagents, e.g. thiol groups of enzymes and other proteins, the activities of SH-enzymes and proteins are inhibited. In particular, sanguinarine and chelerythrine inhibit enzymatic activity of some SH-dependent ATPases, including membrane-bound cation-transport ATPases. The earlier accumulated experience of the application in medicine of plant saps and extracts containing these alkaloids, and of the treatment of many diseases (including benign and malignant tumors) by isolated alkaloids may be explained, to a certain extent, by the inhibition of activities of the above mentioned cellular targets. The selective toxicity of these alkaloids for the number of transformed cells can be explained in the same manner.

Alkaloids↗
PubMed1975

Intercalative binding of ellipticine to DNA.

Ellipticine (NSC 71795), a plant alkaloid with antitumor activity, is a weakly basic polycyclic molecule with dimensions similar to those of proflavin. Like proflavin, ellipticine exhibits hypocromic and bathochromic changes in absorption spectrum in the presence of DNA. It binds preferentially to helical DNA by intercalation, but the strength of binding is substantially greater than that of proflavin. The evidence for intercalation is based on effects on the sedimentation and viscosity of sheared DNA fragments, removal and reversal of the supercoiling of closed circular DNA, and electric dichroism measurements. The sedimentation and viscosity changes are quantitatively similar to those produced by proflavin. The unwinding angle on binding to supercoiled DNA is estimated to be 7.9 degrees, similar to that of proflavin. Electric dichroism shows the plane of the bound ellipticine molecule to be oriented parallel (plus or minus 7 degrees) to the plane of the bases in helical DNA. Ellipticine differs from proflavin in that it is uncharged at neutral pH and becomes protonated under mildly acid conditions. This feature may influence the intracellular distribution of the drug. Ellipticine bound to DNA is probably in its protonated form.

Alkaloids↗
PubMed2004

Polymer-drug compatibility: a guide to the development of delivery systems for the anticancer agent, ellipticine.

To establish a method for predicting polymer-drug compatibility as a means to guide formulation development, we carried out physicochemical analyses of polymer-drug pairs and compared the difference in total and partial solubility parameters of polymer and drug. For these studies, we employed a range of biodegradable polymers and the anticancer agent Ellipticine as the model drug. The partial and total solubility parameters for the polymer and drug were calculated using the group contribution method. Drug-polymer pairs with different enthalpy of mixing values were analyzed by physicochemical techniques including X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared. Polymers identified to be compatible [i.e., polycaprolactone (PCL) and poly-beta-benzyl-L-aspartate (PBLA)] and incompatible [i.e., poly (d,l-lactide (PLA)], by the above mentioned methods, were used to formulate Ellipticine. Specifically, Ellipticine was loaded into PBLA, PCL, and PLA films using a solvent casting method to produce a local drug formulation; while, polyethylene oxide (PEO)-b-polycaprolactone (PCL) and PEO-b-poly (d,l-lactide) (PLA) copolymer micelles were prepared by both dialysis and dry down methods resulting in a formulation for systemic administration. The drug release profiles for all formulations and the drug loading efficiency for the micelle formulations were also measured. In this way, we compared formulation characteristics with predictions from physicochemical analyses and comparison of total and partial solubility parameters. Overall, a good correlation was obtained between drug formulation characteristics and findings from our polymer-drug compatibility studies. Further optimization of the PEO-b-PCL micelle formulation for Ellipticine was also performed.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1982

Repair of deoxyribonucleic acid lesions caused by adriamycin and ellipticine.

The intercalating agents adriamycin and ellipticine caused DNA single and double strand breaks and DNA-protein crosslinks in mammalian cells. Ellipticine caused a much higher frequency of each of these lesions than adriamycin, at equitoxic doses. However, adriamycin-induced DNA effects were slowly and incompletely repaired over 24 hr after drug removal while the effects of ellipticine were virtually completely repaired within 30 min. Repair of ellipticine-induced lesions was observed only if cells were diluted ( 100-fold) after drug treatment, suggesting that significant amounts of drug may have been sequestered in the cellular membranes. Cell dilution did not alter the effects of adriamycin. Removal of the DNA lesions was temperature dependent. Finally, the similarity in the rates of repair for DNA single and double strand breaks and DNA-protein crosslinks supports the hypothesis that they are functionally related.

Alkaloids↗