Reference

HU-331, a novel cannabinoid-based anticancer topoisomerase II inhibitor

All Rights Reserved. HU-331, a novel cannabinoid-based anticancer topoisomerase II inhibitor. Kogan, Natalya M.; Schlesinger, Michael; Priel, Esther; Rabinowitz, Ruth; Berenshtein, Eduard; Chevion, Mordechai; Mechoulam, Raphael (Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products, School of Pharmacy, Departments of Experimental Medicine and Cancer Research, Cellular Biochemistry and Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel). Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, 6(1), 173-183 (English) 2007 American Association for Cancer Research. CODEN: MCTOCF. ISSN: 1535-7163. DOCUMENT TYPE: Journal CA Section: 1 (Pharmacology) Anthracyclines, a large group of quinonoid compds., are used to treat some forms of cancer.In this article, certain chemicals are used. Some of their cas registry numbers are 142805-56-9 and 137252-25-6 Although highly effective in cancer therapy, the mechanism of action of these compds. is not specific; they act on cancer and other cells by numerous mechanisms. A new anticancer quinone (HU-331) was synthesized from cannabidiol. It shows significant high efficacy against human cancer cell lines in vitro and against in vivo tumor grafts in nude mice. In this study, we investigated its mode of action and present evidence on its unique mechanism. HU-331 does not cause cancer cell cycle arrest, cell apoptosis, or caspase activation. HU-331-caused cell death of human cancer cell lines is not mediated by reactive oxygen intermediates/species, as exposure to HU-331 failed to elicit the generation of reactive oxygen species. HU-331 inhibits DNA topoisomerase II even at nanomolar concns. but has only a slight nonsignificant effect on DNA topoisomerase I action. The cannabinoid quinone HU-331 is a highly specific inhibitor of topoisomerase II, compared with most known anticancer quinones. It might represent a new potent anticancer drug. .