A DNA Repair Inhibitor Isolated from an Ecuadorian Fungal Endophyte Exhibits Synthetic Lethality in PTEN-Deficient Glioblastoma

J Nat Prod. 2020 Jun 26;83(6):1899-1908. doi: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.0c00012. Epub 2020 May 14.

Abstract

Disruption of the tumor suppressor PTEN, either at the protein or genomic level, plays an important role in human cancer development. The high frequency of PTEN deficiency reported across several cancer subtypes positions therapeutic approaches that exploit PTEN loss-of-function with the ability to significantly impact the treatment strategies of a large patient population. Here, we report that an endophytic fungus isolated from a medicinal plant produces an inhibitor of DNA double-strand-break repair. Furthermore, the novel alkaloid product, which we have named irrepairzepine (1), demonstrated synthetic lethal targeting in PTEN-deficient glioblastoma cells. Our results uncover a new therapeutic lead for PTEN-deficient cancers and an important molecular tool toward enhancing the efficacy of current cancer treatments.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

  • Brain Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Brain Neoplasms / genetics
  • Cell Cycle / drug effects
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Comet Assay
  • DNA Breaks, Double-Stranded / drug effects
  • DNA Repair / drug effects*
  • Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor
  • Ecuador
  • Endophytes / chemistry*
  • Glioblastoma / drug therapy*
  • Glioblastoma / genetics
  • Humans
  • Molecular Structure
  • Mutagens / toxicity
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase / genetics*
  • Synthetic Lethal Mutations / genetics*
  • Tumor Stem Cell Assay

Substances

  • Mutagens
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase
  • PTEN protein, human