Leonardo Daniel Alvarez Coronel

Analyze of prediction of pranlukast as a PD-L1 homodimer stabilizer

Tumors can be targeted by modulating the patient’s immune response. The programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) and its ligand, the programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), are critical immune checkpoints in cancer biology. Effective cancer immunotherapy has been achieved by targeting these molecules using monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Small-molecule drugs have also been developed as inhibitors of the PD-1/PD-L1 axis through a different mechanism of action by forming PD-L1 homodimers, causing their stabilization, internalization, and subsequent degradation. Drug repurposing is a strategy that seeks new activities of approved drugs, speeding the clinical translation of the new findings. Using computer simulations, we found that pranlukast, a drug used in asthma, had the potential to bind PD-L1 in a way that resembles that of other reported inhibitors. I analyzed pranlukast as immune checkpoint inhibitor for cancer therapy.