Comparison of two anthracycline-based prodrugs for activation by a monoclonal antibody-beta-glucuronidase conjugate in the specific treatment of cancer.

Antibody-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (ADEPT) may improve the therapeutic index of cytostatic agents. We compared two prodrugs, epirubicin-glucuronide (Epi-glu) and doxorubicin-spacer-glucuronide (Dox-sp-glu), for their cytotoxicity on activation by a monoclonal antibody-enzyme conjugate bound to tumor cells. The results showed that the prodrugs were 10 (Dox-sp-glu) and 100 (Epi-glu) times less toxic than the parent drugs against OVCAR-3 cells. This difference was a result of the hydrophilic property of the prodrugs resulting in a reduced cellular uptake. The enzyme-catalyzed hydrolysis of Dox-sp-glu by E. coli-derived beta-glucuronidase (GUS) (Km 500 microM, Vmax 21,000 mumol/min/g) was much more efficient than that of Epi-glu (Km 10 microM, Vmax 40 mumol/min/g). Incubation of OVCAR-3 cells with an enzyme-immunoconjugate prepared from monoclonal antibody 323/A3 and E. coli-derived GUS before treatment with prodrugs completely restored the cytotoxicity of the prodrugs to the level of the parent drugs.