Browsing by Author "Zora, M"

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    Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Induced Apoptotic Effects of Novel 1-Pyrroline (3,4-Dihydro-2H-pyrrole) Derivatives on Breast Cancer Cells
    Atmaca, H; Ilhan, S; Korkmaz, E; Zora, M
    Heterocyclic compounds have emerged as promising and appealing scaffolds for developing effective antitumor agents. Here, the effects of synthesized 24 different 1-pyrroline derivatives (PDs) containing substituted aryl sulfide moiety were investigated on human breast cancer cell lines. The viability of cells was assessed via MTT assay. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was analyzed via fluorescent dye CM-H2DCFDA. Apoptotic cells were determined via flow cytometry. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-associated protein levels were analyzed via western blot analysis. Four of the PDs (PD-12, -14, -16 and -17) had great cytotoxic selectivity against breast cancer cells. Apoptotic cell death was induced by PDs via the generation of ROS. PDs significantly increased the GRP78, p-PEAK, p-eIF2 alpha, and CHOP protein levels indicating ER stress in breast cancer cells. These results imply that newly synthesized PDs may be potential anticancer agents as they selectively inhibit breast cancer cells.
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    4-Propargyl-substituted 1H-pyrroles induce apoptosis and autophagy via extracellular signal-regulated signaling pathway in breast cancer
    Atmaca, H; Ilhan, S; Yilmaz, ES; Zora, M
    Novel pyrrole derivatives (PDs) with propargyl units (1-7) were investigated for their anticancer activity on breast cancer cells. The MTT assay was used to assess the cell viability. Morphological changes in human breast cancer cells were visualized under a phase-contrast microscope. Apoptosis and autophagy were detected using the DNA fragmentation assay and staining by autophagic vacuoles, respectively. The levels of apoptosis- and autophagy-related proteins such as cytochrome c, Bcl-2, LC3-I/II were investigated by Western blot analysis. The effect of PDs on the ERK1/2 signaling pathway was investigated using specific inhibitors. All the tested PDs were found to be active in the range of 36.7 +/- 0.2 to 459.7 +/- 4.2 mu M. Compounds 3 and 4 showed cytotoxic activity in breast cancer cells, but were found to be safer with lower cytotoxicity on human nontumorigenic epithelial breast cells. Compound 4 induced apoptosis, whereas compound 3 induced autophagy. Both compounds inhibited the ERK signaling pathway in breast cancer cells. The present study revealed that both synthesized PDs induced different programmed cell death types by inhibiting the ERK signaling pathway in two genotypically different breast cancer cells. Therefore, novel PDs might be promising anticancer agents for breast cancer therapy and further structural modifications of PDs may yield promising anticancer agents.
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    Novel Enyne-Modified 1,4-Thiazepines as Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Inhibitors: Anticancer and Computational Studies
    Atmaca, H; Pulat,ÇÇ; Ilhan, S; Yilmaz, ES; Zora, M
    1,4-Thiazepines (TZEPs) featuring enyne modifications represent promising candidates in cancer therapy. We synthesized novel TZEP derivatives and assessed their cytotoxicity, apoptosis induction, EGFR inhibition, and molecular interactions. TZEPs exhibited cytotoxic effects against cancer cell lines, with compounds TZEP6 and TZEP7 showing significant activity. Flow cytometry analysis revealed TZEP7-induced apoptosis across various cancer types. RT-qPCR analysis demonstrated downregulation of antiapoptotic Bcl-2, upregulation of pro-apoptotic Bax, and increased caspase levels following TZEP7 treatment. Additionally, TZEP7 inhibited EGFR kinase activity in cancer cells, with molecular docking confirming strong binding affinities to EGFRWT and mutant EGFRT790M. AdmetSAR analysis indicated favorable pharmacokinetic properties for TZEP7. These findings underscore the potential of enyne-modified TZEPs as selective cytotoxic agents with apoptotic and EGFR inhibitory activities, highlighting their significance in cancer therapy.
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    Novel ferrocenyl pyrazoles inhibit breast cancer cell viability via induction of apoptosis and inhibition of PI3K/Akt and ERK1/2 signaling
    Atmaca, H; Özkan, AN; Zora, M
    Despite the advances in early detection and targeted therapies, chemotherapy is still of vital importance in breast cancer treatment. However, development of drug resistance and serious side effects limits their usage. Thus, there is an urgent need for safer and more effective agents against breast cancer. We have previously described the synthesis of a number of pyrazole derivatives, and in the current study, we have investigated the effects of two different ferrocenyl pyrazole (FP) derivates, 5-ferrocenyl-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazole (FP-Ph) and 5-ferrocenyl-IH-pyrazole (FP-H), on breast cancer cells. First, we investigated the effects of both FPs on cell viability and induction of cell death in breast cancer cells and benign MCF-10A cells by XTT and DNA fragmentation assays, respectively. Morphological changes in human breast cancer cells after FPs treatment were detected by both phase contrast microscope and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Then, we tested whether FPs exert their cytotoxic effect through inhibiting PI3K/Akt and/or ERK1/ 2 signaling pathways by using specific inhibitors. Both FPs induced cytotoxicity in a time and concentration-dependent manner in breast cancer cells; however, MCF-10A benign breast epithelial cells were much less susceptible to the cytotoxic effect of both FPs. FPs inhibited both PI3K/Akt and ERK 1/2 signaling pathways in breast cancer cells. The ultra structure images of MCF-7 cells by AFM showed that the cell surface was smooth in untreated cells, but it was rough with protrusions in treated cells. Both FPs induced apoptotic cell death in MDA-MB-231 cells; however, necrotic cell death was induced in caspase-3 lack MCF-7 cells, which implies that the synthesized FPs may induce apoptosis through caspase-3 dependent mechanism. In summary, these results suggest that FPs might be promising agents for the breast cancer therapy. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
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    Bioevaluation of Spiro N-Propargylic β-Enaminones as Anti-Breast Cancer Agents: In Vitro and Molecular Docking Studies
    Atmaca, H; Ilhan, S; Dundar, BA; Zora, M
    The study aimed to investigate the in vitro inhibitory activities of spiro N-propargylic beta-enaminones, SPEs 1-31, against BCa cells, to perform in silico molecular docking studies to understand the nature of the interaction between the compounds and the ER alpha, PR, EGFR, and Her2, and to determine the ADMET and drug-likeness properties. Cytotoxic activity was investigated via MTT assay. DNA fragmentation was evaluated via ELISA assay. Cell cycle distributions were investigated by flow cytometry. Expression levels of Bcl-2, Bax, p21 and Cyclin D1 were measured by qRT-PCR and western blot analysis. Molecular docking was done using Autodock/vina software. ADMET analysis was calculated using the ADMETlab 2.0 tool. SPEs 1, 22, and 28 showed selective cytotoxic activity against all BCa cells with SI values >2. SPEs induced apoptosis and caused significant changes in Bcl-2 and Bax levels. The cell cycle was arrested at the S phase and levels of p21 and Cyclin D1 were induced in all BCa cells. Molecular docking analysis revealed that SPE1, SPE22, and SPE28 showed high binding affinities with ER alpha, PR, EGFR, and Her2. ADMET analysis revealed that SPEs are drug-like compounds as they obey the five rules of Lipinsky and are not toxic. Therefore, these potential anticancer compounds should be further validated by in vivo studies for their appropriate function in human health with a safety profile, and a comprehensive drug interaction study should be performed.
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    N-Propargylic β-enaminones in breast cancer cells: Cytotoxicity, apoptosis, and cell cycle analyses
    Ilhan, S; Atmaca, H; Yilmaz, ES; Korkmaz, E; Zora, M
    Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide and the discovery of new cytotoxic agents is needed. Enaminones are regarded to be a significant structural motif that is found in a variety of pharmacologically active compounds however the number of studies investigating the anticancer activities of N-propargylic beta-enaminones (NPEs) is limited. Herein we investigated the potential cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of 23 different NPEs (1-23) on human breast cancer cells. Cytotoxicity was evaluated via MTT assay. Apoptotic cell death and cell cycle distributions were investigated by flow cytometry. CM-H2DCFDA dye was used to evaluate cellular ROS levels. Expression levels of Bcl-2, Bax, p21, and Cyclin D1 were measured by quantitative real-time PCR. ADME properties were calculated using the ADMET 2.0 tool. NPEs 4, 9, 16, and 21 showed selective cytotoxic activity against breast cancer cells with SI values > 2. NPEs induced apoptosis and caused significant changes in Bcl-2 and Bax mRNA levels. The cell cycle was arrested at the G0/G1 phase and levels of p21 and Cyclin D1 were upregulated in both breast cancer cells. ROS levels were significantly increased by NPEs, suggesting that the cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of NPEs were mediated by ROS. ADME analysis revealed that NPEs showed favorable distributions in both breast cancer cell lines, meaning good lipophilicity values, low unfractionated values, and high bioavailability. Therefore, these potential anticancer compounds should be further validated by in vivo studies for their appropriate function in human health with a safety profile, and a comprehensive drug interaction study should be performed.
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    Evaluation of Novel Spiro-pyrrolopyridazine Derivatives as Anticancer Compounds: In Vitro Selective Cytotoxicity, Induction of Apoptosis, EGFR Inhibitory Activity, and Molecular Docking Analysis
    Atmaca, H; Ilhan, S; Pulat, CC; Dundar, BA; Zora, M
    Cancer, characterized by uncontrolled cell proliferation, remains a global health challenge. Despite advancements in cancer treatment, drug resistance and adverse effects on normal cells remain challenging. The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a transmembrane tyrosine kinase protein, is crucial in controlling cell proliferation and is implicated in various cancers. Here, the cytotoxic and apoptotic potential of 21 newly synthesized spiro-pyrrolopyridazine (SPP) derivatives was investigated on breast (MCF-7), lung (H69AR), and prostate (PC-3) cancer cells. XTT assay was used for cytotoxicity assessment. Flow cytometry and western blot (WB) analyses were conducted for apoptosis detection. Additionally, the EGFR inhibitory potential of these derivatives was evaluated via a homogeneous time-resolved fluorescence (HTRF) assay, and WB and molecular docking studies were conducted to analyze the binding affinities of SPP10 with EGFR. SPPs, especially SPP10, exhibit significant cytotoxicity across MCF-7, H69AR, and PC-3 cancer cells with IC50 values of 2.31 +/- 0.3, 3.16 +/- 0.8, and 4.2 +/- 0.2 mu M, respectively. Notably, SPP10 demonstrates selective cytotoxicity against cancer cells with a low impact on nontumorigenic cells (IC50 value: 26.8 +/- 0.4 mu M). Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated the potent induction of apoptotic cell death by SPP10 in all of the tested cancer cells. Western blot analysis revealed the involvement of key apoptotic proteins, with SPP10 notably inhibiting antiapoptotic Bcl-2 while inducing pro-apoptotic Bax and cytochrome c. SPP10 exhibited significant EGFR kinase inhibitory activity, surpassing the efficacy of the reference drug erlotinib. Molecular docking studies support these findings, revealing strong binding affinities of SPP10 with both wild-type and mutated EGFR. The study underscores the significance of heterocyclic compounds, particularly spiro-class heterocyclic molecules, in advancing cancer research. Overall, SPP10 emerges as a promising candidate for further investigations in cancer treatment, combining potent cytotoxicity, apoptotic induction, and targeted EGFR inhibition.