Structural similarity-based search for glinides exhibiting cis- and trans-inhibitory activity toward uric acid transporter 1.

Abstract

Various types of drugs can affect serum urate levels as side effects. Although these drugs are used to treat different diseases, they might share a structural component that acts on a common target to affect urate levels. Human urate transporter 1 (URAT1) plays an essential role in urate reabsorption at the renal proximal tubule and thus might be a common target for drugs that can affect serum urate levels. Our aim was to elucidate the structural requirements for a compound to show activity toward URAT1 and to identify clinically used drugs that can affect URAT1 activity. Our search was based on structural similarities in the compounds. [¹⁴C]Urate uptake by URAT1-expressing human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK-hURAT1) cells in the presence of an analog of a small molecule with known URAT1 activity suggested that structural moieties of salicylic acid can increase URAT1 cis-inhibitory activity. Therefore, we searched a database for drugs with substructures similar to salicylic acid. We were able to predict some types of loop diuretics, statins, and angiotensin receptor blockers as drug candidates that might affect URAT1. In addition, we found that glinides inhibit urate uptake by HEK-hURAT1 cells. Three glinides (nateglinide, mitiglinide, and repaglinide) all inhibited urate uptake by HEK-hURAT1 cells concentration-dependently (IC₅₀: nateglinide, 39 μM; mitiglinide, 63 μM; repaglinide, 3.9 μM). Furthermore, glinides also showed trans-inhibition activity in URAT1-expressing Xenopus oocytes pretreated with the glinides. These findings suggest that glinides sharing a salicylic acid-like substructure might affect serum urate level by acting on URAT1. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Some types of loop diuretics, statins, angiotensin receptor blockers, and glinides were predicted to affect URAT1, based on their chemical structural similarity to salicylic acid, the structure of which allows it to interact with URAT1. Glinides in particular showed cis- and trans-inhibitory activity toward URAT1.