Discovery of Novel d-(+)-Biotin-Conjugated Resorcinol Dibenzyl Ether-Based PD-L1 Inhibitors for Targeted Cancer Immunotherapy

J Med Chem. 2023 Aug 10;66(15):10364-10380. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c00479. Epub 2023 Jul 21.

Abstract

In this work, we rationally designed, synthesized, and evaluated a series of novel d-(+)-biotin-conjugated PD-L1 inhibitors for targeted cancer therapy. Among them, SWS1 exhibited the highest anti-PD-1/PD-L1 activity with an IC50 of 1.8 nM. In addition, SWS1 dose-dependently promoted tumor cell death in a HepG2/Jurkat cell co-culture model. Importantly, SWS1 displayed high antitumor efficacy in a B16-F10 mouse model with tumor growth inhibition of 66.1%, which was better than that of P18 (44.3%). Furthermore, SWS1 exerted antitumor effects by increasing the number of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and reducing the expression of PD-L1 in tumor tissues. Moreover, tissue distribution studies revealed a substantial accumulation of SWS1 in tumors (404.1 ng/mL). Lastly, the safety profiles of SWS1 were better (e.g., less immune-mediated colitis) than those of P18, indicating the advantages of biotin-enabled tumor targeting capability. Taken together, our results suggest that these novel tumor-targeted PD-L1 inhibitors are worthy of further investigation as potential anticancer agents for targeted cancer immunotherapy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • B7-H1 Antigen
  • Biotin
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors*
  • Immunotherapy / methods
  • Mice
  • Neoplasms*
  • Resorcinols

Substances

  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors
  • B7-H1 Antigen
  • dibenzyl ether
  • Biotin
  • Resorcinols