Discovery of an Orally Bioavailable Small-Molecule Inhibitor for the β-Catenin/B-Cell Lymphoma 9 Protein-Protein Interaction

J Med Chem. 2021 Aug 26;64(16):12109-12131. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c00742. Epub 2021 Aug 12.

Abstract

Aberrant activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling is strongly associated with many diseases including cancer invasion and metastasis. Small-molecule targeting of the central signaling node of this pathway, β-catenin, is a biologically rational approach to abolish hyperactivation of β-catenin signaling but has been demonstrated to be a difficult task. Herein, we report a drug-like small molecule, ZW4864, that binds with β-catenin and selectively disrupts the protein-protein interaction (PPI) between B-cell lymphoma 9 (BCL9) and β-catenin while sparing the β-catenin/E-cadherin PPI. ZW4864 dose-dependently suppresses β-catenin signaling activation, downregulates oncogenic β-catenin target genes, and abrogates invasiveness of β-catenin-dependent cancer cells. More importantly, ZW4864 shows good pharmacokinetic properties and effectively suppresses β-catenin target gene expression in the patient-derived xenograft mouse model. This study offers a selective chemical probe to explore β-catenin-related biology and a drug-like small-molecule β-catenin/BCL9 disruptor for future drug development.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / chemical synthesis
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacokinetics
  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Movement / drug effects
  • Drug Design
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, SCID
  • Molecular Structure
  • Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Piperidines / chemical synthesis
  • Piperidines / pharmacokinetics
  • Piperidines / therapeutic use*
  • Protein Binding / drug effects*
  • Structure-Activity Relationship
  • Transcription Factors / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Transcription Factors / metabolism
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
  • beta Catenin / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • beta Catenin / metabolism

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • BCL9 protein, mouse
  • CTNNB1 protein, mouse
  • Piperidines
  • Transcription Factors
  • beta Catenin