Discovery of a heterocyclic aromatic amide based P-gp inhibitor as coadjutant regulating autophagy against drug resistance in breast cancer

P-glycoprotein (P-gp) plays a vital role in the development of multidrug resistance (MDR) during chemotherapy, which mediated lysosomal sequestration of ADM, leading to the development of drug resistance. Lysosomes fuse with autophagosomes to generate autolysosomes in which contents are degraded, thereby achieving the metabolic needs of the cell itself and the renewal of organelles. In this work, a series of N-(3-cyano-4-(alkoxy)phenyl)heterocyclic aromatic amide derivatives (A1-A48) were designed and synthesized as novel P-gp inhibitors. Among them, compound A38 showed low cytotoxicity and excellent reversal activity, which was considered the most promising P-gp inhibitor. P-gp ATPase assay, MOE and CETSA revealed that A38 interacts with P-gp. ADM accumulation assay and other studies were conducted to verify that compound A38 inhibits P-gp function. Further investigation indicated that A38 in combination with ADM significantly promoted apoptosis and markedly suppressed the proliferation, migration and invasion ability in drug resistant breast cancer. mCherry-GFP-LC3B puncta formation assay verified that P-gp inhibitor A38 blocks the formation of autophagic flux and ADM combined with A38 results in the accumulation of autophagosomes, thereby inducing drug-resistant breast cancer cell death. In in vivo and in vitro tumor model experiments, the antitumor activity of ADM combined with P-gp inhibitor A38 was superior to that of tariquidar. The effectiveness of compound A38 and its role in regulating autophagy provided a new reference for the development of P-gp inhibitors and the clinical treatment of drug-resistant breast cancer.