Discovery and Synthesis of a Naturally Derived Protein Kinase Inhibitor that Selectively Inhibits Distinct Classes of Serine/Threonine Kinases

J Nat Prod. 2023 Oct 27;86(10):2283-2293. doi: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.3c00394. Epub 2023 Oct 16.

Abstract

The DNAJB1-PRKACA oncogenic gene fusion results in an active kinase enzyme, J-PKAcα, that has been identified as an attractive antitumor target for fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma (FLHCC). A high-throughput assay was used to identify inhibitors of J-PKAcα catalytic activity by screening the NCI Program for Natural Product Discovery (NPNPD) prefractionated natural product library. Purification of the active agent from a single fraction of an Aplidium sp. marine tunicate led to the discovery of two unprecedented alkaloids, aplithianines A (1) and B (2). Aplithianine A (1) showed potent inhibition against J-PKAcα with an IC50 of ∼1 μM in the primary screening assay. In kinome screening, 1 inhibited wild-type PKA with an IC50 of 84 nM. Further mechanistic studies including cocrystallization and X-ray diffraction experiments revealed that 1 inhibited PKAcα catalytic activity by competitively binding to the ATP pocket. Human kinome profiling of 1 against a panel of 370 kinases revealed potent inhibition of select serine/threonine kinases in the CLK and PKG families with IC50 values in the range ∼11-90 nM. An efficient, four-step total synthesis of 1 has been accomplished, enabling further evaluation of aplithianines as biologically relevant kinase inhibitors.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Biological Products*
  • Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* / pathology
  • HSP40 Heat-Shock Proteins / chemistry
  • HSP40 Heat-Shock Proteins / genetics
  • HSP40 Heat-Shock Proteins / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Protein Kinase Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
  • Serine

Substances

  • Protein Kinase Inhibitors
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
  • Biological Products
  • Serine
  • DNAJB1 protein, human
  • HSP40 Heat-Shock Proteins