New triazole-attached quinoxalines selectively recognize the telomeric multimeric G-quadruplexes and inhibit breast cancer cell growth

Int J Biol Macromol. 2023 Jun 30:241:124548. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.124548. Epub 2023 Apr 23.

Abstract

The telomeric 3'-overhang had potential to form into higher-order structures termed multimeric G-quadruplexes (G4s), which may mainly exist in telomeres, representing an attractive drug target for development of anticancer agents with few side effects. However, only a few molecules that selectively bind to multimeric G4s have been found by random screening, which means a lot of room for improvement. In this study, we raised a feasible strategy to design small-molecule ligands with possible selectivity to multimeric G4s, and then synthesized a focused library of multi-aryl compounds by attaching triazole rings to the quinoxaline skeleton. Among them, QTR-3 was identified as the most promising selective ligand that may bind at the G4-G4 interface, which accordingly stabilized multimeric G4s and induced DNA damage in telomeric region, thereby leading to cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Notably, QTR-3 showed more significant inhibition on breast cancer cells against normal mammary cells.

Keywords: Breast cancer; Multimeric G-quadruplex; Selective; Telomere; Triazole.

MeSH terms

  • Antineoplastic Agents* / chemistry
  • Antineoplastic Agents* / pharmacology
  • Breast Neoplasms* / drug therapy
  • Female
  • G-Quadruplexes*
  • Humans
  • Ligands
  • Quinoxalines / pharmacology
  • Telomere

Substances

  • Quinoxalines
  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Ligands