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Continuous quinacrine treatment results in the formation of drug-resistant prions.

ABSTRACT: Quinacrine is a potent antiprion compound in cell culture models of prion disease but has failed to show efficacy in animal bioassays and human clinical trials. Previous studies demonstrated that quinacrine inefficiently penetrates the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which could contribute to its lack of efficacy in vivo. As quinacrine is known to be a substrate for P-glycoprotein multi-drug resistance (MDR) transporters, we circumvented its poor BBB permeability by utilizing MDR(0/0) mice that are deficient in mdr1a and mdr1b genes. Mice treated with 40 mg/kg/day of quinacrine accumulated up to 100 microM of quinacrine in their brains without acute toxicity. PrP(Sc) levels in the brains of prion-inoculated MDR(0/0) mice diminished upon the initiation of quinacrine treatment. However, this reduction was transient and PrP(Sc) levels recovered despite the continuous administration of quinacrine. Treatment with quinacrine did not prolong the survival times of prion-inoculated, wild-type or MDR(0/0) mice compared to untreated mice. A similar phenomenon was observed in cultured differentiated prion-infected neuroblastoma cells: PrP(Sc) levels initially decreased after quinacrine treatment then rapidly recovered after 3 d of continuous treatment. Biochemical characterization of PrP(Sc) that persisted in the brains of quinacrine-treated mice had a lower conformational stability and different immunoaffinities compared to that found in the brains of untreated controls. These physical properties were not maintained upon passage in MDR(0/0) mice. From these data, we propose that quinacrine eliminates a specific subset of PrP(Sc) conformers, resulting in the survival of drug-resistant prion conformations. Transient accumulation of this drug-resistant prion population provides a possible explanation for the lack of in vivo efficacy of quinacrine and other antiprion drugs.

SUBMITTER: Ghaemmaghami S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2777304 | biostudies-other | 2009 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Project description:IntroductionRepetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) may have anti-epileptic effects, especially in patients with neocortical lesions. Initial clinical trials demonstrated that the duration of the seizure reducing effect is relatively short-lived. In the context of a chronic condition like epilepsy, theta burst stimulation (TBS) may represent a potential solution in optimizing treatment practicality and durability as it was demonstrated to be associated with longer-lasting after-effects. TBS has been studied extensively in diverse neuropsychiatric conditions, but a therapeutic TBS protocol has not previously been applied in epilepsy patients.Materials and methodsWe performed a prospective open-label pilot study of 4-day accelerated continuous TBS (cTBS) treatment in patients with neocortical drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE). A treatment session consisted of 5 cTBS trains, each comprising 600 pulses presented in 50 Hz triplet bursts every 200 ms, delivered at 10-min intertrain-intervals, targeted over the epileptic focus (EF) using a neuronavigation-guided figure-of-8 coil. Safety and feasibility, and seizure frequency were assessed as primary and secondary endpoints, respectively, over a 4-week baseline period, a 1-week treatment period and a 7-week follow-up period, using adverse event logging, electro-encephalography, cognitive, and psychological questionnaires and a seizure diary kept by the patients and/or caregivers.ResultsSeven subjects (4M:3F; median age 48, interquartile ranges 25) underwent the treatment protocol. Adverse events were reported in all subjects but were mild and transient. No clinical or electrographic seizures were evoked during or immediately following stimulation. No deterioration was found in cognition nor in psycho-emotional well-being following treatment. Treatment burden was acceptable, but seems to depend on clinical effect, duration of ongoing effect and stimulation site. Median weekly seizure frequency and ratio of seizure-free weeks did not change significantly in this small patient cohort.ConclusionWe report the results of the first ever trial of cTBS as a treatment for neocortical DRE. A 4-day accelerated cTBS protocol over the EF appears safe and feasible. Although the design and sample size of this open-label pilot study is unfit to reliably identify a therapeutic effect, results encourage further exploration of cTBS as an anti-epileptic treatment and potential optimization compared to conventional rTMS in a dedicated randomized controlled trial. (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02635633).

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Continuous quinacrine treatment results in the formation of drug-resistant prions.

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