Title:Role of Lysine-specific Demethylase 1 and Its Small Molecule Inhibitors in Glioblastoma
Multiforme Therapy
Volume: 22
Issue: 18
Author(s): Rangan Mitra and Senthil Raja Ayyannan*
Affiliation:
- Department of Pharmaceutical, Pharmaceutical Chemistry Research Laboratory, Engineering and Technology, Indian Institute of
Technology (Banaras Hindu University), Varanasi - 221005, Uttar Pradesh, India
Keywords:
Glioblastoma multiforme, histone demethylases, Lysine-specific demethylase 1, LSD1 inhibitors, dual inhibitors, monoamine oxidase.
Abstract: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is among the most critical and aggressive carcinomas of CNS, characterised
by poor prognosis, low survival rate and difficult clinical correlations. Current treatment opportunities have
proved to be insufficient due to high chemoresistance and relapse of the disease with enhanced malignancy. Molecular
diagnostics and epigenetic profiling of GBM have discovered several signaling pathways and cellular mediators, which
play key roles in triggering GBM phenotypic manifestations via somatic and genetic aberrations and recruitment of
GBM stem-like cells (GSCs). Lysine specific demethylase 1 (LSD1), a flavin-containing oxidoreductase encoded by
the KDM1A gene and containing the unique CoREST component, is an important histone-modifying enzyme
belonging to the histone demethylase (KDM) subfamily and is responsible for master regulation of several signaling
pathways in glioma cells. Pharmacological inhibition of LSD1, either individually or in a dual-targeted approach, is a
logical strategy for the management of GBM. The current review discusses the role of LSD1 in various epigenetic
modulations in differentiated glioma cells and GSCs. The 2D and 3D structural similarities/dissimilarities between
LSD1 and MAOs have been analysed and presented along with a detailed discussion on different chemical classes of
small molecule LSD1 inhibitors (both standalone and hybrid pharmacophores) that have shown promise in GBM
chemotherapy.