Dapoxetine(Yuhan Corp.)

Cisplatin is a common chemotherapy agent for solid tumors but severe nephrotoxicity limits its application, with no effective pharmacological treatments. Organic cation transporter 2 (OCT2) is involved in cisplatin uptake in kidneys. This study aimed to find drugs with promising clinical applications that could prevent cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (Cis-AKI) by inhibiting OCT2.

The mRNA level of OCT2 was examined in human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from Cis-AKI patients and paired non-AKI patients. The association between OCT2 and Cis-AKI was investigated by HEK293FT cells and kidney organoids. We screened potential compounds exhibiting protective effects against Cis-AKI in US Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs through virtual screening and activity screening. Subsequently, we determined the effects of these compounds on OCT2 expression, cisplatin uptake, and apoptosis in cells, kidney organoids and mice. A549 and HeLa cells were adopted to observe the influence of drugs on the anti-tumor function of cisplatin.

Compared to non-AKI patients, the OCT2 mRNA levels of iPSCs from Cis-AKI patients were elevated. OCT2 exhibits similar expression patterns in kidney organoids and human kidney tissues. Furthermore, the overexpression of OCT2 in kidney organoids and HEK293FT cells exacerbated the injury caused by cisplatin. Carvedilol and cimetidine were identified as potent OCT2 inhibitors by drug screening. Further analysis revealed that the pretreatment of carvedilol or cimetidine downregulated OCT2, reduced cisplatin uptake, and alleviated cisplatin-induced apoptosis, but the combination of the two drugs didn't further improve these outcomes. Additionally, carvedilol and cimetidine didn't compromise the cisplatin-induced cell death in A549 and HeLa cells.

Our study confirmed that carvedilol and cimetidine exert protective effects against Cis-AKI by inhibiting OCT2, without altering the anti-tumor effects of cisplatin.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are known to have anticancer activity against different types of cancer. In this study, an integrative informatics approach was applied to identify compound and genetic perturbations that produce similar effects to SSRIs to formulate systems biology hypotheses and identify biological pathways involved in the putative anticancer effects of SSRIs in prostate cancer. An 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay assessed the antiproliferative effects of SSRIs and drug combinations. Cell death mechanisms were studied using annexin V-FITC/PI staining, and the cell cycle analysis was carried out by counterstaining with propidium iodide. Relative gene expression was assessed using a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Computational results hypothesized that SSRIs could potentially exert anticancer effects in prostate cancer cell lines by modulating apoptotic and tumorigenesis pathways and significantly inhibiting the growth of prostate cancer cells in a time and concentration-dependent manner. The combination of SSRIs with cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil, and raloxifene resulted in either synergistic or additive effects. SSRIs resulted in a significant increase in the early and late apoptotic activity in PC3 cells. Dapoxetine, paroxetine, and sertraline resulted in cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase. Treatment with either dapoxetine or paroxetine decreases the expression of Bcl-2, CASP8, DR5, and VEGF. At the same time, sertraline decreases the expression of Bcl-2 and VEGF and increases the expression of CASP8 and DR5. Results revealed that SSRIs can potentially act as antiproliferative agents against prostate cancer cells, and their activity is mediated through different signaling pathways.