Charles University in Prague Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology Student: Eva Troppová Supervisor: PharmDr. Marie Vopršalová, CSc. Specialized supervisor: Prof. Dr. Antje Gohla Title of diploma thesis: Establishment of screening methods to find new regulators of the activity of phosphoglycolate phosphatase This work deals with the siRNA-based genomic screening for the modification of phosphoglycolate phosphatase (PGP) activity. 235 proteins were affected by transient transfection of siRNAs in vitro. Each siRNA was used in duplicates and the control was carried out by two control siRNAs. After downregulation of protein by siRNA PGP activity was evaluated, whether any modifications of PGP activity have occurred. PGP was the main research target. The main goal of this study before the screening was to set up a method, to create a reliable protocol. The whole study was 96 plate well. It was necessary to find the right conditions to measure PGP activity in two cell types (HEK AD 293 and Hep G2). Subsequently, optimal conditions were set up to influence expression of the protein. The method was optimalized using PGP siRNAs and 2 types of transfection reagents were tested. During our study the following methods were used: PGP activity assay, Bicinchoninic acid...

Les travaux décrits dans ce manuscrit portent sur l’étude de nanostructures obtenues par auto-assemblages d’amphiphiles diacétyléniques polymérisables. Essentiellement deux familles de composés ont été étudiées (micelles sphériques et rubans en bicouches) et valorisées, d'une part, pour des applications biomédicales et, d’autre part, pour la catalyse. Dans un premier temps, des micelles cationiques polymérisées assemblées à partir d’amphiphiles diacétyléniques sont synthétisées. Ces micelles ont été valorisées pour la prise en charge et la transfection d’ARN interférents in vitro. Ensuite, un catalyseur micellaire « biocompatible » incorporant du cuivre a été développé pour promouvoir des transformations chimiques in vitro. Nos études ont ainsi porté sur la réaction de cycloaddition 1,3-dipolaire de Huisgen que nous avons mise en œuvre dans le compartiment intracellulaire. Enfin, nous nous intéressons à la synthèse et à la formulation d’amphiphiles diacétyléniques en architectures supramoléculaires qui ont été utilisées pour la catalyse asymétrique et semi-hétérogène de la réaction d'aldolisation. / The work described in this manuscript focuses on the study of nanostructures obtained by self-assembly of polymerizable diacetylenic amphiphiles. Two families of compounds have been studied (spherical micelles and bilayer ribbons) and used for biomedical applications on the one hand and for catalysis on the other. At first, polymerized cationic micelles assembled from diacetylenic amphiphiles are synthesized. These micelles were valorized for the transfection of small interfering RNAs in vitro. Then a "biocompatible" micellar catalyst incorporating copper was developed to promote in vitro chemical transformations. Our studies focused on the Huisgen 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition that we implemented in the intracellular compartment. Finally, we are interested in the synthesis and formulation of supramolecular architectures from diacetylenic amphiphiles. These systems have been used for the asymmetric and semi-heterogeneous catalysis of the aldol reaction.

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Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC), which accounts for 80% of all lung cancer cases, is associated with resistance to chemotherapy and poor prognosis. Exploitation of NSCLC-upregulated pathways that can either be targeted by novel therapeutics or used to improve the tumour-delivery of current chemotherapeutics are required. Among the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) that are essential for tumour development, MMP10 is a potential candidate as a therapeutic target based on its expression and contribution to NSCLC development. This research aims to explore the expression and functions of MMP10 in the tumour microenvironment of NSCLC and evaluate the potential of MMP10 as a target for therapeutic intervention. Herein, MMP10 expression at gene and protein levels were analysed in a panel of NSCLC cell lines using RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis. To determine MMP10 functional relevance, an in vitro angiogenesis assay using cell conditioned media was carried out. To identify specific peptide sequences for the design of prodrugs rationalised to be MMP10 activated, in vitro substrate cleavage studies were performed using a mass spectrometry approach to differentiate between MMP10 and the structurally similar MMP3. This study demonstrates that MMP10 is highly expressed in NSCLC and that high levels of MMP10 are associated with induction of angiogenesis, a crucial process supporting tumour growth. In addition to the achievement of having been able to differentiate between closely similar MMP3 and MMP10 through carefully monitoring the hydrolysis rate of compound 444259 (a known MMP substrate), data generated herein provides the basis for further studies to exploit MMP10 as a prodrug-activator. / Full text was made available at the end of the embargo period, 12th Dec 2019

The delivery of small interfering RNAs (siRNA) is an efficient method for gene silencing through the induction of RNA interference (RNAi). It critically relies, however, on efficient vehicles for siRNA formulation, for transfection in vitro as well as for their potential use in vivo. While polyethylenimines (PEIs) are among the most studied cationic polymers for nucleic acid delivery including small RNA molecules, polypropylenimines (PPIs) have been explored to a lesser extent. Previous studies have shown the benefit of the modification of small PEIs by tyrosine grafting which are featured in this paper. Additionally, we have now extended this approach towards PPIs, presenting tyrosine-modified PPIs (named PPI-Y) for the first time. In this study, we describe the marked improvement of PPI upon its tyrosine modification, leading to enhanced siRNA complexation, complex stability, siRNA delivery, knockdown efficacy and biocompatibility. Results of PPI-Y/siRNA complexes are also compared with data based on tyrosine-modified linear or branched PEIs (LPxY or PxY). Taken together, this establishes tyrosine-modified PPIs or PEIs as particularly promising polymeric systems for siRNA formulation and delivery.

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Mehrere Studien haben gezeigt, daß die Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) eine bedeutende Rolle sowohl bei Entstehung als auch Progression maligner Tumoren spielt. COX-2-Inhibitoren werden bereits in klinischen Studien zur Krebstherapie getestet. COX-2 ist die induzierbare Isoform der Cyclooxygenase - dem Schlüsselenzym der Synthese von Prostaglandinen und anderen Eicosanoiden. Im Tier- und Zellkulturmodell konnten COX-Hemmer anti-Tumor-Effekte hervorrufen. Es ist jedoch unklar, ob diese Effekte durch Hemmung des COX-Enzyms oder durch COX-unabhängige Mechanismen vermittelt werden. Wir untersuchten daher die Auswirkung der COX-Inhibition zum einen durch den selektiven COX-2-Hemmer NS-398 sowie zum anderen durch COX-Isoform-spezifische RNA-Interferenz (RNAi) in zwei humanen Ovarialkarzinomzellinien (OVCAR-3 und SKOV-3). OVCAR-3 zeigte eine konstitutive COX-1-Expression und eine durch IL-1beta induzierbare COX-2-Expression. SKOV-3 war COX-1- und COX-2-negativ. IL-1beta führte bei OVCAR-3 zu einer vermehrten Produktion von Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), die durch eine gegen die COX-2 gerichtete siRNA gehemmt werden konnte, wohingegen COX-1-siRNA keinen Effekt hatte. Das deutet darauf hin, daß die COX-2 die Hauptquelle von PGE2 in OVCAR-3 ist. 1mikroM NS-398 waren ausreichend, um die PGE2-Produktion und somit auch die COX-2 in OVCAR-3 zu inhibieren. Höhere Konzentrationen NS-398 (>10mikroM) hatten einen antiproliferativen Effekt. Auch in der COX-2-negativen Zellinie SKOV-3 trat diese Wachstumshemmung auf; sie war nicht durch exogene Zufuhr von PGE2 (10mikroM) reversibel. Durchflußzytometrische Zellzyklusanalyse ergab, daß der Wachstumshemmung in beiden Zellinien ein G0/G1-Zellzyklusarrest zugrunde liegt. Dagegen führten weder COX-1- noch COX-2-Ausschaltung durch RNAi zu ähnlichen Auswirkungen auf Proliferation bzw. Zellzyklus. Diese Ergebnisse zeigen, dass ein COX-2-unabhängiger Mechanismus für den durch NS-398 induzierten G0/G1-Arrest verantwortlich ist. / Several studies have provided evidence that the enzyme Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) plays an important role in tumor development and progression. COX-2-inhibitors are already evaluated in clinical trials as cancer therapeutics. COX-2 is the inducible isoform of cyclooxygenase - the rate-limiting enzyme in the synthesis of prostaglandins and other eicosanoids. COX-inhibitors cause antitumor effects in animal models and in cell culture experiments. However, it is not clear, whether these effects are due to inhibition of the COX-enzyme or mediated via a COX-independent mechanism. We therefore investigated the effects of COX inhibition by the selective COX-2-inhibitor NS-398, as well as by COX-isoform specific RNA interference (RNAi) in the human ovarian carcinoma cell lines OVCAR-3 and SKOV-3. OVCAR-3 cells showed a constitutive expression of COX-1, and an inducible COX-2 expression. COX-2 was induced through stimulation with Interleukin-1beta, leading to production of high levels of Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). SKOV-3 cells were negative for both COX isoforms. Selective COX-2-suppression by RNAi reduced PGE2 production in OVCAR-3, whereas COX-1-siRNA had no effect on PGE2 synthesis. Thus, COX-2 is the main source of PGE2 in OVCAR-3 cells. In these cells, 1microM NS-398 was sufficient to completely inhibit PGE2-synthesis - and thus the activity of the COX-2 enzyme. Increasing amounts of NS-398 (>10microM) had an antiproliferative effect. This growth inhibition was also observed in the COX-negative cell line SKOV-3, it could not be reverted by exogenous addition of PGE2 (10microM). Flowcytometric analysis of the cell cycle revealed that this growth inhibition was based on a G0/G1-cell-cycle-arrest. In contrast, suppression of COX-1 or COX-2 by RNAi had no effect on proliferation or cell cycle progression. These results suggest that a COX-independent mechanism is responsible for the G0/G1-arrest induced by NS-398.

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