Microtubule targeting agents (MTAs) that interfere with the dynamic state of the mitotic spindle are well-known and effective chemotherapeutic agents. These agents interrupt the microtubule network via polymerization or depolymerization, halting the cell cycle progression and leading to apoptosis. We report two novel pyrrole-based carboxamides (CAs) (CA-61 and -84) as the compounds exhibiting potent anti-cancer properties against a broad spectrum of epithelial cancer cell lines, including breast, lung, and prostate cancer. The anti-cancer activity of CAs is due to their ability to interfere with the microtubules network and inhibit tubulin polymerization. Molecular docking demonstrated an efficient binding between these ligands and the colchicine-binding site on the tubulin. CA-61 formed two hydrogen bond interactions with THR 179 (B) and THR 353 (B), whereas two hydrogen bonds with LYS 254 (B) and 1 with ASN 101 (A) were identified for CA-84. The binding energy for CA-84 and CA-61 was −9.910 kcal/mol and −9.390 kcal/mol. A tubulin polymerization assay revealed a strong inhibition of tubulin polymerization induced by CA-61 and -84. The immunofluorescence data revealed the disruption of the tubulin assembly in CA-treated cancer cells. As an outcome of the tubulin inhibition, these compounds halted the cell cycle progression in the G2/M phase, leading to the accumulation of the mitotic cells, and further induced apoptosis. Lastly, the in vivo study indicated that CAs significantly inhibited the HCC1806 breast cancer xenograft tumor growth in a nude mouse model. Collectively, we identified the novel CAs as potent MTAs, inhibiting tubulin polymerization via binding to the colchicine-binding site, disrupting the microtubule network, and exhibiting potent pro-apoptotic activities against the epithelial cancer cell lines both in vitro and in vivo.

Microtubules are known as the most attractive molecular targets for anti-cancer drugs. However, the number of serious limitations of the microtubule targeting agents (MTAs) including poor bioavailability, adverse effects (e.g., systemic and neural toxicity), and acquired resistance after initiation of MTA-based therapy remain the driving forces to develop the novel therapeutic agents effectively targeting microtubules and exhibiting potent anti-tumor activities. Here, we report the discovery of 2-amino-pyrrole-carboxamides (2-APCAs), a novel class of MTA, which effectively inhibited the growth of the broad spectrum of cancer cell lines in vitro, including various types of breast, prostate, and non-small lung cancer (NSLC), soft tissue sarcomas (STS) (e.g., leio-, rhabdomyo-, and fibrosarcomas), osteosarcomas and gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). Importantly, 2-APCAs were also effective in cancer cell lines exhibiting resistance to certain chemotherapeutic agents, including MTAs and topoisomerase II inhibitors. The anti-proliferative effect of 2-APCAs was due to their ability to interfere with the polymerization of tubulin and thereby leading to the accumulation of tumor cells in the M-phase. As an outcome of the mitotic arrest, cancer cells underwent apoptotic cell death which was evidenced by increased expression of cleaved forms of the poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and caspase-3 and the increased numbers of Annexin V-positive cells, as well. Among the compounds exhibiting the potent anti-cancer activities against the various cancer cell lines indicated above, 2-APCA-III was found the most active. Importantly, its cytotoxic activities correlated with its highest potency to interfere with the dynamics of tubulin polymerization and inducement of cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase. Interestingly, the cytotoxic and tubulin polymerization activities of 2-APCAs correlated with the stability of the «tubulin—2-АРСА» complexes, illustrating the “tubulin-2-APCA-III” complex as the most stable. Molecular docking showed that the binding site for 2-АРСА-III is located in α tubulin by forming a hydrogen bond with Leu23. Of note, single-cell electrophoresis (Comet assay) data illustrated the low genotoxic activities of 2-APCAs when compared to certain anti-cancer chemotherapeutic agents. Taken together, our study describes the novel MTAs with potent anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic activities, thereby illustrating them as a scaffold for the development of successful chemotherapeutic anti-cancer agent targeting microtubules.

Despite the tubulin-binding agents (TBAs) that are widely used in the clinic for cancer therapy, tumor resistance to TBAs (both inherited and acquired) significantly impairs their effectiveness, thereby decreasing overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) rates, especially for the patients with metastatic, recurrent, and unresectable forms of the disease. Therefore, the development of novel effective drugs interfering with the microtubules’ dynamic state remains a big challenge in current oncology. We report here about the novel ethyl 2-amino-1-(furan-2-carboxamido)-5-(2-aryl/tert-butyl-2-oxoethylidene)-4-oxo-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrole-3-carboxylates (EAPCs) exhibiting potent anti-cancer activities against the breast and lung cancer cell lines in vitro. This was due to their ability to inhibit tubulin polymerization and induce cell cycle arrest in M-phase. As an outcome, the EAPC-treated cancer cells exhibited a significant increase in apoptosis, which was evidenced by the expression of cleaved forms of PARP, caspase-3, and increased numbers of Annexin-V-positive cells. By using the in silico molecular modeling methods (e.g., induced-fit docking, binding metadynamics, and unbiased molecular dynamics), we found that EAPC-67 and -70 preferentially bind to the colchicine-binding site of tubulin. Lastly, we have shown that the EAPCs indicated above and colchicine utilizes a similar molecular mechanism to inhibit tubulin polymerization via targeting the T7 loop in the β-chain of tubulin, thereby preventing the conformational changes in the tubulin dimers required for their polymerization. Collectively, we identified the novel and potent TBAs that bind to the colchicine-binding site and disrupt the microtubule network. As a result of these events, the compounds induced a robust cell cycle arrest in M-phase and exhibited potent pro-apoptotic activities against the epithelial cancer cell lines in vitro.