Small Molecule Microarray Based Discovery of PARP14 Inhibitors

Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARPs) are key enzymes in a variety of cellular processes. Most small-molecule PARP inhibitors developed to date have been against PARP1, and suffer from poor selectivity. PARP14 has recently emerged as a potential therapeutic target, but its inhibitor development has trailed behind. Herein, we describe a small molecule microarray-based strategy for high-throughput synthesis, screening of >1000 potential bidentate inhibitors of PARPs, and the successful discovery of a potent PARP14 Inhibitor H10 with >20-fold selectivity over PARP1. Co-crystallization of the PARP14/H10 complex indicated H10 bound to both the nicotinamide and the adenine subsites. Further structure-activity relationship studies identified important binding elements in the adenine subsite. In tumor cells, H10 was able to chemically knockdown endogenous PARP14 activities.