A novel, glutathione-activated prodrug of pimasertib loaded in liposomes for targeted cancer therapy

Pimasertib, a potent antiproliferative drug, has been extensively studied for treating cancers characterized by dysregulation in the ERK/MAPK signaling pathway, such as melanoma. However, its therapeutic efficacy would greatly benefit from an increased selectivity for tumour cells and a longer half-life. Such improvements may be achieved by combining the rational design of a prodrug with its encapsulation in a potential nanodelivery system. For this reason, we synthesized a glutathione (GSH)-responsive putative prodrug of pimasertib (PROPIMA), which contains a redox-sensitive disulphide linker that can be processed by GSH to activate pimasertib. The synthesis of PROPIMA and its <i>in vitro</i> biological activity on a human melanoma cell line as a model are described. The results showed that PROPIMA, either free or embedded in liposomes, selectively inhibits cell proliferation and cell viability, reducing by about 5-fold the levels of pERK. Additionally, PROPIMA shows stronger inhibition of the cancer cell migration than the parent drug.