{"title":"Dangerous liaisons: Promiscuous inhibition of CHK1 and AMPK is a lethal affair for cancer cells","authors":"Eudora L. Lu, Kevin Nay, John W. Scott","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.011","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this issue of <em>Cell Chemical Biology</em>, Guo et al.<span><span><sup>1</sup></span></span> reveal that the Checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) inhibitor Prexasertib moonlights as an AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) inhibitor that primes cancer cells for destruction. This off-target synergy highlights that serendipitous promiscuity can supercharge the efficacy of some “selective” kinase inhibitors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 733-735"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148275359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cell Chemical BiologyPub Date : 2026-06-18Epub Date: 2026-05-28DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.017
Jacob I. Stuckey, Jennifer A. Mertz, Jonathan E. Wilson, Kaylyn E. Williamson, Yong Li, Miljan Kuljanin, Jeremy W. Setser, Byron DeLaBarre, Gregg Chenail, Phuong A. Nguyen, Mark E. Scott, Michael J. Geier, Christopher M. Bailey, William W. Motley, James E. Audia, Robert J. Sims III
{"title":"Covalent PPARγ inverse agonism by FX-909 reveals mechanistic insights into therapeutic targeting of PPARγ/RXRα-activated urothelial carcinoma","authors":"Jacob I. Stuckey, Jennifer A. Mertz, Jonathan E. Wilson, Kaylyn E. Williamson, Yong Li, Miljan Kuljanin, Jeremy W. Setser, Byron DeLaBarre, Gregg Chenail, Phuong A. Nguyen, Mark E. Scott, Michael J. Geier, Christopher M. Bailey, William W. Motley, James E. Audia, Robert J. Sims III","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.017","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.017","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We investigated the conformational mechanisms underlying PPARγ activation in muscle-invasive urothelial carcinoma (MIUC) and sought to develop covalent inverse agonists to therapeutically reinforce a repressive state. The integration of mutational, structural, and biochemical analyses of PPARγ and RXRα guided the discovery of FX-909, a first-in-class clinical PPARγ inverse agonist that enforces a repressive conformational state, even in highly activated biological contexts. FX-909 is a potent, highly selective, and powerful suppressor of PPARγ transcriptional activity through the enhancement of PPARγ-nuclear co-repressor (NCOR) binding affinity. Treatment with FX-909 resulted in selective growth inhibition in PPARγ-activated MIUC cell lines and durable regressions in xenograft models of MIUC. FX-909 is capable of recapitulating <em>PPARG</em> genetic knockout phenotypes <em>in vivo</em> and is currently in clinical development for the treatment of intractable MIUC.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 837-847.e14"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148051400","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cell Chemical BiologyPub Date : 2026-06-18Epub Date: 2026-05-20DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.014
Jacob D. Bradbury, Timothy R. Walsh, Thomas Lanyon-Hogg
{"title":"SpsB is a target of SOS-response inhibitor OXF-077 and regulates quinolone resistance emergence","authors":"Jacob D. Bradbury, Timothy R. Walsh, Thomas Lanyon-Hogg","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.014","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.014","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health threat, urgently requiring novel compounds with new targets. One emerging strategy is the development of antibiotic adjuvants that inhibit the mutagenic SOS response in bacteria, thus prolonging antibiotic efficacy. <strong>OXF-077</strong> is a potent SOS-response inhibitor that suppresses the emergence of ciprofloxacin resistance in <em>Staphylococcus aureus</em>; however, the cellular target of <strong>OXF-077</strong> is unknown. We report here the use of affinity-based protein profiling to identify signal peptidase IB (SpsB) as a target of <strong>OXF-077</strong>. Genetic and chemical studies demonstrated that SpsB is required for the upregulation of the SOS response gene <em>recA</em> and increased frequency of resistance to ciprofloxacin. SpsB is therefore postulated to regulate the SOS response in <em>S. aureus,</em> representing a cell surface peptidase that can be targeted by small molecules to slow the evolution of resistance. Collectively, this work delivers SpsB as an attractive target to combat the urgent threat of AMR.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 877-885.e7"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147985782","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The cytotoxic effect of prexasertib is a consequence of dual inhibition on both CHK1 and AMPK","authors":"Jing Guo, Ping Wang, Wei Liu, Xin Shi, Wei Wu, Xiaoyan Zhang, Qiang Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Prexasertib (Prex) is a selective checkpoint kinase 1 and 2 (CHK1/2) inhibitor reported to induce the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) at threonine 172. However, the mechanism by which Prex regulates AMPK and whether this regulation contributes to Prex sensitivity is unknown. Here, we provide data that suggest that Prex directly binds to the cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) pockets of AMPK complex, leading to increased AMPKα Thr172 phosphorylation via CAMKK2 and LKB1. Intriguingly, Prex also functions as an ATP-competitive inhibitor of AMPK, and prolonged Prex treatment significantly inhibited AMPK <em>in vivo</em>. AMPK depletion enhanced cellular sensitivity to CHK1 inhibition, suggesting that Prex-induced cytotoxicity results from inhibition of CHK1 and AMPK. Exonuclease 1 (Exo1) hyperactivation following combined AMPK and CHK1 inhibition may represent a critical mechanism underlying Prex sensitivity. Our findings revealed an additional role of Prex in AMPK regulation and elucidated the functional significance of AMPK inhibition in CHK1 inhibitor-induced cell death.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 767-784.e7"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147809185","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cell Chemical BiologyPub Date : 2026-06-18Epub Date: 2026-05-19DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.008
Wei Zhou, Musaddeque Ahmed, Jane Guan, Natalie S. Fox, Jason Oeh, Ellen Ingalla, Amy Young, Lisa Tai, Jennifer Giltnane, Robert A. Blake, Jun Liang, Sharada S. Labadie, Vidhi Mody, Tom de Bruyn, Alejandro M. Chibly, Thao Nguyen, Xiaosai Yao, Xiaojing Wang, Marc Hafner, Ciara Metcalfe
{"title":"Giredestrant immobilizes the estrogen receptor to exert potent antitumor efficacy against ER-active breast cancers","authors":"Wei Zhou, Musaddeque Ahmed, Jane Guan, Natalie S. Fox, Jason Oeh, Ellen Ingalla, Amy Young, Lisa Tai, Jennifer Giltnane, Robert A. Blake, Jun Liang, Sharada S. Labadie, Vidhi Mody, Tom de Bruyn, Alejandro M. Chibly, Thao Nguyen, Xiaosai Yao, Xiaojing Wang, Marc Hafner, Ciara Metcalfe","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.008","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.04.008","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Estrogen receptor α (ER) is one of the most successfully prosecuted therapeutic targets in oncology. Selective ER degraders (SERDs) are being pursued as next-generation therapies. Giredestrant is a potent orally bioavailable SERD and full ER antagonist, which has demonstrated clinical superiority over standard-of-care therapy. Here, we describe its key pharmacological attributes, and account for its benefit across the ER+ breast cancer spectrum. The antiproliferative potential of giredestrant is dictated by ER activity; it outperforms approved agents in ER activity-high contexts. ER immobilization likely underlies giredestrant’s profound inhibitory potential. ER immobilization is not observed for heterobifunctional chimera degraders, which fail to match the antiproliferative potential of giredestrant despite superior ER degradation. Giredestrant redistributes enhancers, decreasing the expression of estrogen-induced genes and inducing the expression of putative tumor suppressors. These molecular data, together with results from recent trials, rationalize giredestrant’s potential to serve as an optimized endocrine backbone for ER+ breast cancer.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 785-798.e11"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147979738","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"S-acylation of TDP-43: PALMing down aggregation?","authors":"Ruonan Yang, Yanshan Fang","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.009","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>S-acylation is well known for regulating protein stability and trafficking. In a recent issue of <em>Molecular Cell</em>, Xu et al.<span><span><sup>1</sup></span></span> reveal a distinct, aggregation-suppressing function of this posttranslational lipid modification: S-acylation of the RNA-binding protein TDP-43 antagonizes poly(ADP-ribose)-driven condensation. Moreover, reduced S-acylation levels are linked to ALS pathogenesis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 742-744"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148275441","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cell Chemical BiologyPub Date : 2026-06-18Epub Date: 2026-06-02DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.002
Qiang Zhu , Qianyu Liu , Zhiya Fan , Yixiang Shi , Xinliang Liu , Yibo Guo , Jiancheng Luo , Jingguo Zhao , Weijie Qin , Yong Wang , Ping Wang , Haifeng Ye , Wen Yi
{"title":"Optogenetic control of plasma membrane O-GlcNAcylation regulates WNK1 condensates and cellular signaling","authors":"Qiang Zhu , Qianyu Liu , Zhiya Fan , Yixiang Shi , Xinliang Liu , Yibo Guo , Jiancheng Luo , Jingguo Zhao , Weijie Qin , Yong Wang , Ping Wang , Haifeng Ye , Wen Yi","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Glycosylation plays a pivotal role in regulating diverse biological processes. However, the lack of tools capable of controlling the spatiotemporal dynamics of glycosylation has largely hindered its functional elucidation. Here, we introduce an optogenetic approach that employs red/far-red light to dynamically and reversibly control the plasma membrane localization of O-linked N-acetylglucosamine transferase (OGT) in living systems. Red-light-induced translocation of OGT suppresses insulin signaling in both cells and mice. Glycoproteomic and phosphoproteomic analyses reveal a global impact of OGT-mediated glycosylation on signal transduction. Moreover, using protein semisynthesis, cell-based assays, and molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate that red-light-induced O-GlcNAcylation of WNK1 at S1949 inhibits downstream cell volume response signaling pathways by suppressing WNK1 biomolecular condensate formation. Together, our findings provide a valuable tool to modulate subcellular O-GlcNAcylation and control cellular signaling in living systems, with broad applicability to the study of glycosylation in cells.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 862-876.e8"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148147845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cell Chemical BiologyPub Date : 2026-06-18Epub Date: 2026-06-09DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.006
Qingqing Hao (郝青青) , Laurie Wang , Hui Pan (潘慧) , Xihui Xiao (萧锡辉) , Wenyan Dong (董文艳) , Wencong Pan (盘文聪) , Jingjing Sun (孙晶晶) , Wu Su (粟武) , Lijing Fang (房丽晶) , Eunyong Park , Guiyang Yao (姚贵阳)
{"title":"Structure-based design of Sec61 translocon targeting prodrugs minimize off-target toxicity","authors":"Qingqing Hao (郝青青) , Laurie Wang , Hui Pan (潘慧) , Xihui Xiao (萧锡辉) , Wenyan Dong (董文艳) , Wencong Pan (盘文聪) , Jingjing Sun (孙晶晶) , Wu Su (粟武) , Lijing Fang (房丽晶) , Eunyong Park , Guiyang Yao (姚贵阳)","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.006","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.006","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Coibamide A (CbA) is a cyclic depsipeptide that inhibits the function of the Sec61 translocon and exhibits significant antitumor activity. However, its broad Sec61 inhibition results in non-selective cytotoxicity, limiting therapeutic applications. To elucidate the molecular mechanism of CbA-mediated Sec61 blockade and enable rational prodrug design, we determined the cryo-EM structure of human Sec61 bound to CbA at 3.1 Å resolution. The structure reveals that CbA adopts a distinctive lasso-like conformation and occupies the lateral gate of Sec61, a binding site shared with other Sec61 inhibitors, while forming a particularly more expansive set of interactions with the lateral gate. Guided by these structural insights, we conducted structure-activity relationship studies and developed prodrug strategies that modulate CbA’s antitumor activity through the controlled perturbation of intramolecular and protein hydrogen bonding interactions. Together, these results establish a structure-guided strategy for prodrug design of CbA and demonstrate the general applicability of backbone-caging to enhance the tolerability of Sec61 inhibitors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 823-836.e21"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148209325","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Marina Murillo-Torres, Sara Diaz-Diaz, José Manuel Rodríguez-Martínez
{"title":"Intercepting the SOS message: SpsB inhibition by OXF-077 stalls the evolution of antibiotic resistance","authors":"Marina Murillo-Torres, Sara Diaz-Diaz, José Manuel Rodríguez-Martínez","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.010","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this issue of <em>Cell Chemical Biology</em>, Bradbury et al.<span><span><sup>1</sup></span></span> identify signal peptidase IB (SpsB) as the cellular target of the SOS-response inhibitor OXF-077. This uncovers an unexpected role for SpsB in bacterial mutagenesis, highlighting its potential as an extracellular target for dual-action antibiotic adjuvants that impair survival while limiting SOS-driven mutagenesis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 739-741"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148275337","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Extrabody: An optogenetic remote for extracellular antigen-driven cell behaviors","authors":"Zhenghua Wang, Yulong Li","doi":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.018","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chembiol.2026.05.018","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this issue of <em>Cell Chemical Biology</em>, Kwon et al.<span><span><sup>1</sup></span></span> develop extrabody, a modular light-gated antibody platform that enables stimulus-dependent antigen recognition. By splitting surface-displayed antibodies into fragments that reassemble upon light stimulation, the system provides precise spatiotemporal control of engineered cell behaviors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":265,"journal":{"name":"Cell Chemical Biology","volume":"33 6","pages":"Pages 736-738"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148275423","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}