Pentostatin Explained

Pentostatin (or deoxycoformycin, trade name Nipent, manufactured by SuperGen) is an anticancer chemotherapeutic drug.^[1]

Mechanism

It is classified as a purine analog, which is a type of antimetabolite.

It mimics the nucleoside adenosine and thus inhibits the enzyme adenosine deaminase, interfering with the cell's ability to process DNA.^[2]

Cancer cells generally divide more often than healthy cells; DNA is highly involved in cell division (mitosis) and drugs which target DNA-related processes are therefore more toxic to cancer cells than healthy cells.

Uses

Pentostatin is used to treat hairy cell leukemia.^[3] It is given by intravenous infusion once every two weeks for three to six months.

Additionally, pentostatin has been used to treat steroid-refractory acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease.^[4]

Pentostatin is also used in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients who have relapsed.

Synthesis

This is the original synthetic pathway although improvements were made.

Notes and References

1. Kay NE, Geyer SM, Call TG, etal . Combination chemoimmunotherapy with pentostatin, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab shows significant clinical activity with low accompanying toxicity in previously untreated B chronic lymphocytic leukemia . Blood . 109 . 2 . 405–11 . January 2007 . 17008537 . 1785105 . 10.1182/blood-2006-07-033274 .
2. Sauter C, Lamanna N, Weiss MA . Pentostatin in chronic lymphocytic leukemia . Expert Opin Drug Metab Toxicol . 4 . 9 . 1217–22 . September 2008 . 18721115 . 10.1517/17425255.4.9.1217 .
3. Cannon T, Mobarek D, Wegge J, Tabbara IA . Hairy cell leukemia: current concepts . Cancer Invest. . 26 . 8 . 860–5 . October 2008 . 18798068 . 10.1080/07357900801965034 .
4. Bolaños-Meade J, Jacobsohn DA, Margolis J, Ogden A, Wientjes MG, Byrd JC, Lucas DM, Anders V, Phelps M, Grever MR, Vogelsang GB . Pentostatin in steroid-refractory acute graft-versus-host disease . J Clin Oncol . 23 . 12 . 2661–8 . April 2005 . 15837980 . 10.1200/JCO.2005.06.130. free .