NMK-BH2, a novel microtubule-depolymerising bis (indolyl)-hydrazide-hydrazone, induces apoptotic and autophagic cell death in cervical cancer cells by binding to tubulin at colchicine – site

Microtubules, the key components of the eukaryotic cytoskeleton and mitotic spindle, are one of the most sought-after targets for cancer chemotherapy, especially due to their indispensible role in mitosis. Cervical cancer is a prevalent malignancy among women of developing countries including India. In spite of the remarkable therapeutic advancement, the non-specificity of chemotherapeutic drugs adversely affect the patients' survival and well-being, thus, necessitating the quest for novel indole-based anti-microtubule agent against cervical cancer, with high degree of potency and selectivity. For in vitro studies, we used MTT assay, confocal microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry and Western blot analysis. Study in cell free system was accomplished by spectrophotometry, fluorescence spectroscopy and TEM and computational analysis was done by AutodockTools 1.5.6. NMK-BH2 exhibited significant and selective anti-proliferative activity against cervical cancer HeLa cells (IC50 = 1.5 μM) over normal cells. It perturbed the cytoskeletal and spindle microtubules of HeLa cells leading to mitotic block and cell death by apoptosis and autophagy. Furthermore, NMK-BH2 targeted the tubulin-microtubule system through fast and strong binding to the αβ-tubulin heterodimers at colchicine-site. This study identifies and characterises NMK-BH2 as a novel anti-microtubule agent and provides insights into its key anti-cancer mechanism through two different cell death pathways: apoptosis and autophagy, which are mutually independent. It navigates the potential of the novel bis (indolyl)-hydrazide-hydrazone, NMK-BH2, to serve as lead for development of new generation microtubule-disrupting chemotherapeutic with improved efficacy and remarkable selectivity towards better cure of cervical cancer. [Display omitted] •NMK-BH2 efficiently killed cervical cancer cells over other cancer and normal cells.•It targets tubulin-microtubule equilibrium by binding to colchicine-site of tubulin.•In cell free system, NMK-BH2 inhibited tubulin assembly and depolymerised microtubule.•In HeLa cell, it disrupted spindle and cytoskeletal microtubule and led to G2/M block.•It induced apoptosis and lethal autophagy, which are mutually independent.