Multidrug resistance has appeared to mitigate the efficiency of anticancer drugs and the possibility of successful cancer chemotherapy. The Hedgehog receptor Patched is a multidrug transporter expressed in several cancers and as such it represents a new target to circumvent chemotherapy resistance. We report herein that paniceins and especially panicein A hydroquinone, natural meroterpenoids produced by the Mediterranean sponge Haliclona (Soestella) mucosa, inhibit the doxorubicin efflux activity of Patched and enhance the cytotoxicity of this chemotherapeutic agent on melanoma cells in vitro. These results are supported by the molecular docking performed on the structure of the bacterial drug efflux pump AcrB and on the Patched model built from AcrB structure. Docking calculations show that panicein A hydroquinone interacts with AcrB and Patched model close to the doxorubicin binding site. This compound thus appears as the first antagonist of the doxorubicin efflux activity of Patched. The use of inhibitors of Patched drug efflux activity in combination with classical chemotherapy could represent a novel approach to reduce tumor drug resistance, recurrence and metastasis.
Keywords: Patched; cancer; chemotherapy resistance; drug efflux antagonist; natural sponge compounds.