On-patent and off-patent drugs with previously unrecognized anticancer activity could be rapidly repurposed for this new indication given their prior toxicity testing. To identify such compounds, we conducted chemical screens and identified the antihelmintic flubendazole. Flubendazole induced cell death in leukemia and myeloma cell lines and primary patient samples at nanomolar concentrations. ...

The cytotoxic, antimitotic, and growth inhibition properties of a pho toactive analogue of vinblastine, Ar-(p-azidobenzoyl)-A''-0-aminoethylvindesine (NÕBV), and vinblastine on P388 murine leukemia cells were compared. After 72-h exposure, the 50% drug-inhibitory concentrations for exponentially growing P388 leukemic cells were 1.2 n\i for NABV and 0.6 n\i for vinblastine. The ultrastructural ...

Surface-exposed proteins of vinblastine-sensitive human lymphoid cell line of leukemic origin (CCRF-CEM) were exam ined by the lactoperoxidase-catalyzed iodination and two-di mensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis methods. Spots which comigrate with bovine brain tubulin and rabbit muscle actin were prominently labeled in the whole membrane but not in the high-speed supernatant fraction of...

Taxol, a natural plant product that enhances the rate and extent of microtubule assembly in vitro and stabilizes microtubules in vitro and in cells, was labeled with tritium by catalytic exchange with (3)H(2)O. The binding of [(3)H]taxol to microtubule protein was studied by a sedimentation assay. Microtubules assembled in the presence of [(3)H]taxol bind drug specifically with an apparent bind...

Previous ultrastructural studies appear to indicate that the lacinate appendages (highly elaborated laminar structures which cover the surface of moth spermatozoa) may be intracellular derivatives of transient microtobules found in the elongating spermatids of these insects. Additional support for this theory is supplied by the present study in which testes of the warehouse moth Ephestia cautel...

Vinepidine, a new derivative of vincristine, and three clinically used Catharanthus derivatives, vinblastine, vincristine, and vindesine, were examined for their abilities to inhibit net tubulin addition at the assembly ends of bovine brain microtubules at steady state. Although all four derivatives were generally similar in potency, their relative abilities to inhibit tubulin addition were dis...

Ultraviolet irradiation of the [3H]colchicine-tubulin complex leads to direct photolabeling of tubulin with low but practicable efficiency. The bulk (70% to greater than 90%) of the labeling occurs on beta-tubulin and appears early after irradiation, whereas alpha-tubulin is labeled later. The labeling ratio of beta-tubulin to alpha-tubulin (beta/alpha ratio) is reduced by prolonged incubation,...

The thermal depolymerization procedure of Stephens (1970 . J . Mol. Biol . 47:353) has been employed for solubilization of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus sperm tail outer doublet microtubules with the use of a buffer during solubilization which is of optimal pH and ionic strength for the preservation of colchicine binding activity of chick embryo brain tubulin. Colchicine binding values were cor...

Colchicine-binding activity of mouse liver high-speed supernate has been investigated. It has been found to be time and temperature dependent. Two binding activities with different affinities for colchicine seem to be present in this high-speed supernate, of which only the high-affinity binding site (half maximal binding at 5 x 10(-6) M colchicine) can be attributed to microtubular protein by...