Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.

Retinoic acid receptor-related orphan nuclear receptor (ROR) γt is a member of the RORC nuclear hormone receptor family of transcription factors. RORγt functions as a critical regulator of thymopoiesis and immune responses. RORγt is expressed in multiple immune cell populations including Th17 cells,...

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Main Authors: Steven A Saenz, Andrea Local, Tiffany Carr, Arvind Shakya, Shivsmriti Koul, Haiqing Hu, Lisa Chourb, Justin Stedman, Jenna Malley, Laura Akullian D'Agostino, Veerabahu Shanmugasundaram, John Malona, C Eric Schwartz, Lisa Beebe, Meghan Clements, Ganesh Rajaraman, John Cho, Lan Jiang, Alex Dubrovskiy, Matt Kreilein, Roman Shimanovich, Lawrence G Hamann, Laure Escoubet, J Michael Ellis
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2021-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248034
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author Steven A Saenz
Andrea Local
Tiffany Carr
Arvind Shakya
Shivsmriti Koul
Haiqing Hu
Lisa Chourb
Justin Stedman
Jenna Malley
Laura Akullian D'Agostino
Veerabahu Shanmugasundaram
John Malona
C Eric Schwartz
Lisa Beebe
Meghan Clements
Ganesh Rajaraman
John Cho
Lan Jiang
Alex Dubrovskiy
Matt Kreilein
Roman Shimanovich
Lawrence G Hamann
Laure Escoubet
J Michael Ellis
author_facet Steven A Saenz
Andrea Local
Tiffany Carr
Arvind Shakya
Shivsmriti Koul
Haiqing Hu
Lisa Chourb
Justin Stedman
Jenna Malley
Laura Akullian D'Agostino
Veerabahu Shanmugasundaram
John Malona
C Eric Schwartz
Lisa Beebe
Meghan Clements
Ganesh Rajaraman
John Cho
Lan Jiang
Alex Dubrovskiy
Matt Kreilein
Roman Shimanovich
Lawrence G Hamann
Laure Escoubet
J Michael Ellis
author_sort Steven A Saenz
collection DOAJ
description Retinoic acid receptor-related orphan nuclear receptor (ROR) γt is a member of the RORC nuclear hormone receptor family of transcription factors. RORγt functions as a critical regulator of thymopoiesis and immune responses. RORγt is expressed in multiple immune cell populations including Th17 cells, where its primary function is regulation of immune responses to bacteria and fungi through IL-17A production. However, excessive IL-17A production has been linked to numerous autoimmune diseases. Moreover, Th17 cells have been shown to elicit both pro- and anti-tumor effects. Thus, modulation of the RORγt/IL-17A axis may represent an attractive therapeutic target for the treatment of autoimmune disorders and some cancers. Herein we report the design, synthesis and characterization of three selective allosteric RORγt inhibitors in preclinical models of inflammation and tumor growth. We demonstrate that these compounds can inhibit Th17 differentiation and maintenance in vitro and Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo, in a dose-dependent manner. Finally, RORγt inhibitors were assessed for efficacy against tumor formation. While, RORγt inhibitors were shown to inhibit tumor formation in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) organoids in vitro and modulate RORγt target genes in vivo, this activity was not sufficient to delay tumor volume in a KP/C human tumor mouse model of pancreatic cancer.
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spelling doaj.art-56f95d2f88a74dbfab93005fd298c8a62022-12-21T23:27:51ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032021-01-011611e024803410.1371/journal.pone.0248034Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.Steven A SaenzAndrea LocalTiffany CarrArvind ShakyaShivsmriti KoulHaiqing HuLisa ChourbJustin StedmanJenna MalleyLaura Akullian D'AgostinoVeerabahu ShanmugasundaramJohn MalonaC Eric SchwartzLisa BeebeMeghan ClementsGanesh RajaramanJohn ChoLan JiangAlex DubrovskiyMatt KreileinRoman ShimanovichLawrence G HamannLaure EscoubetJ Michael EllisRetinoic acid receptor-related orphan nuclear receptor (ROR) γt is a member of the RORC nuclear hormone receptor family of transcription factors. RORγt functions as a critical regulator of thymopoiesis and immune responses. RORγt is expressed in multiple immune cell populations including Th17 cells, where its primary function is regulation of immune responses to bacteria and fungi through IL-17A production. However, excessive IL-17A production has been linked to numerous autoimmune diseases. Moreover, Th17 cells have been shown to elicit both pro- and anti-tumor effects. Thus, modulation of the RORγt/IL-17A axis may represent an attractive therapeutic target for the treatment of autoimmune disorders and some cancers. Herein we report the design, synthesis and characterization of three selective allosteric RORγt inhibitors in preclinical models of inflammation and tumor growth. We demonstrate that these compounds can inhibit Th17 differentiation and maintenance in vitro and Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo, in a dose-dependent manner. Finally, RORγt inhibitors were assessed for efficacy against tumor formation. While, RORγt inhibitors were shown to inhibit tumor formation in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) organoids in vitro and modulate RORγt target genes in vivo, this activity was not sufficient to delay tumor volume in a KP/C human tumor mouse model of pancreatic cancer.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248034
spellingShingle Steven A Saenz
Andrea Local
Tiffany Carr
Arvind Shakya
Shivsmriti Koul
Haiqing Hu
Lisa Chourb
Justin Stedman
Jenna Malley
Laura Akullian D'Agostino
Veerabahu Shanmugasundaram
John Malona
C Eric Schwartz
Lisa Beebe
Meghan Clements
Ganesh Rajaraman
John Cho
Lan Jiang
Alex Dubrovskiy
Matt Kreilein
Roman Shimanovich
Lawrence G Hamann
Laure Escoubet
J Michael Ellis
Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.
PLoS ONE
title Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.
title_full Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.
title_fullStr Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.
title_full_unstemmed Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.
title_short Small molecule allosteric inhibitors of RORγt block Th17-dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo.
title_sort small molecule allosteric inhibitors of rorγt block th17 dependent inflammation and associated gene expression in vivo
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248034
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