Tigapotide Triflutate

This review focuses on the promising roles of prostate secretory protein of 94 amino acids (PSP-94) and one of its derived peptides (PCK3145) as potential therapeutic modalities for prostate cancer and its associated complications. Evaluation of these compounds was carried out in vitro and in vivo using syngeneic models of rat prostate cancer. Overproduction of parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) results in the development of hypercalcemia of malignancy in several malignancies including prostate cancer. In order to evaluate the effect of PSP-94 and PCK3145 on prostate cancer progression, the rat Dunning R3227 MatLyLu cell line transfected with full-length cDNA encoding PTHrP (MatLyLu-PTHrP) was used. As the main pathogenetic factor of hypercalcemia of malignancy, overexpression of PTHrP was aimed at mimicking the hypercalcemic nature seen in patients suffering from late-stage cancer. In vitro studies showed that PSP-94 and PCK3145 can cause a dose-dependent inhibition in the growth of MatLyLu-PTHrP cells. For in vivo studies, male Copenhagen rats were inoculated either s.c. into the right flank or directly into the left ventricle via intracardiac (i.c.) inoculation with MatLyLu-PTHrP cells. In these models, s.c. injection of MatLyLu cells results in the development of primary tumor growth, whereas i.c. inoculation routinely results in the development of experimental skeletal metastases in the lumbar vertebrae causing hind-limb paralysis. Administration of PSP-94 and PCK3145 into tumor-bearing animals resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of primary tumor growth, and tumoral and plasma PTHrP levels, and in the reduction of plasma calcium levels. Additionally, treatment with PSP-94 or PCK3145 caused an inhibition of skeletal metastases resulting in a significant delay in the development of hind-limb paralysis. Interestingly, equimolar concentrations of PCK3145 were shown to be more effective in delaying the development of experimental skeletal metastases as compared to PSP-94. One of the possible mechanisms of action of these modalities is through the induction of apoptosis which was observed by both in-vitro and in-vivo analyses of MatLyLu-PTHrP cells and tumors. Several intracellular mechanisms can also be involved in inhibiting PTHrP production and anti-tumor effects of PSP-94 and PCK3145. Collectively, these studies warrant the continued clinical development of these agents as therapeutic agents for patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer.

In previous studies, we have shown that prostate secretory protein (PSP-94) can reduce prostate cancer growth in vivo. In the current study, we identified the amino acid sequence of PSP-94 that is required for eliciting this response. For these studies, we used rat prostate cancer Mat Ly Lu cells overexpressing parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP), which is the main pathogenetic factor responsible for hypercalcemia of malignancy. Synthetic peptides corresponding to amino acids 7–21 (PCK721), 31–45 (PCK3145), and 76–94 (PCK7694) of PSP-94 were synthesized. Only PCK3145 showed a significant reduction in tumor cell proliferation. For in vivo studies, syngenic male Copenhagen rats were inoculated s.c. with Mat Ly Lu cells overexpressing PTHrP into the right flank or into the left ventricle via intracardiac injection, which results in experimental metastases to the lumbar vertebrae causing hind-limb paralysis. Animals were infused with different doses (1, 10, and 100 μg/kg/day) of peptides for 15 days, and the effect of these treatments on tumor volume, skeletal metastases, or development of hind-limb paralysis was determined. Treatment with PCK3145 resulted in a dose-dependent decrease in tumor volume and delay in the development of skeletal metastases. Bone histomorphometry showed that after intracardiac inoculation of tumor cells, the highest dose of PCK3145 (100 μg/kg/day) resulted in reducing skeletal tumor burden, which delayed the development of hind-limb paralysis. Treatment with PCK3145 led to reduction of plasma calcium and PTHrP levels and a significant decrease in PTHrP levels in the primary tumors and in vertebrae of experimental animals. These effects of PCK3145 were due to its ability to promote tumor cell apoptosis. Collectively, the results of these studies have demonstrated the ability of a small peptide derived from PSP-94 to reduce tumor volume and experimental skeletal metastases—results that will be highly beneficial in the continued development of this peptide as a novel therapeutic agent for patients with hormone refractory, late-stage prostate cancer.