Validating TDP1 as an Inhibition Target for the Development of Chemosensitizers for Camptothecin-Based Chemotherapy Drugs

Cancer chemotherapy sensitizers hold the key to maximizing the potential of standard anticancer treatments. We have a long-standing interest in developing and validating inhibitors of the DNA repair enzyme tyrosyl-DNA phosphodiesterase 1 (TDP1) as chemosensitizers for topoisomerase I poisons such as topotecan. Herein, by using thieno[2,3-b]pyridines, a class of TDP1 inhibitors, we showed that the inhibition of TDP1 can restore sensitivity to topotecan, results that are supported by TDP1 knockout cell experiments using CRISPR/Cas9. However, we also found that the restored sensitivity towards topoisomerase I inhibitors is likely regulated by multiple complementary DNA repair pathways. Our results showed that one of these pathways is likely modulated by PARP1, although it is also possible that other redundant and partially overlapping pathways may be involved in the DNA repair process. Our work thus raises the prospect of targeting multiple DNA repair pathways to increase the sensitivity to topoisomerase I inhibitors.