Development of novel quinoline derivatives as selective HDAC6 inhibitors exhibiting multiple anticancer effects

  • Bioorg Chem. 2026 Sep 5:179:110034. doi: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2026.110034.
Jie Peng  1 Qianlong Zhao  1 Changan Yu  2 Wenjia Liu  1 Xinyang Yu  1 Pengxia Qin  1 Yujing Liu  1 Haoqian Niu  1 Jie Sun  1 Haoyu Xue  1 Jingqian Liu  1 Huabei Hao  1 Rui Zhang  3 Fei Xie  4 Jingde Wu  5
Affiliations
  • 1. Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan 250012, PR China.
  • 2. Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan 250012, PR China; Shandong Qidu Pharmaceutical Research Institute, Zibo 255400, PR China.
  • 3. Phase I Clinical Trial Center, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, PR China.
  • 4. Joint Research Institute of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan 250012, PR China.
  • 5. Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan 250012, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
Abstract

Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) is an important player in the cellular process. Overexpression of HDAC6 is associated with tumorigenesis and becomes a major cause of death in patients with cancers. Herein, Optimization of the lead compound MPT0G211 yielded a potent HDAC6 Inhibitor, P21, with significantly improved potency and selectivity over Other isoforms Western blot analysis further confirmed that the compound selectively increased the acetylation levels of α-tubulin without affecting histone H3. Furthermore, compound P21 exhibited potent anti-proliferative, anti-invasive, and anti-angiogenic activities, alongside the induction of Apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Notably, it demonstrated significant anti-proliferative efficacy in vivo in a patient-derived xenograft (PDX) mouse model. Collectively, the results strongly encourage further development of P21 as an Anticancer agent.

Keywords
Cancer; HDAC6; HDAC6 inhibitor; Histone deacetylase.
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