Insights into PARP Inhibitors’ Selectivity Using Fluorescence Polarization and Surface Plasmon Resonance Binding Assays

PARP inhibitors are an exciting new class of antineoplastic drugs that have been proven to be efficacious as single agents in cancer settings with inherent DNA repair defects, as well as in combination with DNA-damaging chemotherapeutics. Currently, they are designed to target the catalytic domain of PARP-1, the most studied member of the family, with a key role in the DNA-damage repair process. Because PARP inhibitors are substrate (NAD+) competitors, there is a need for a deeper understanding of their cross-reactivity. This is particularly relevant for PARP-2, the PARP-1 closest homologue, for which an embryonic lethal phenotype has been observed in double knockout mice. In this study, we describe the development and validation of binding assays based on fluorescence polarization (FP) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) techniques. PARP-1, PARP-2, PARP-3, and TNKS-1 FP displacement assays are set up by employing ad hoc synthesized probes. These assays are suitable for high-throughput screening (HTS) and selectivity profiling, thus allowing the identification of NAD+ binding site selective inhibitors. The PARP-1 and PARP-2 complementary SPR binding assays confirm displacement data and the in-depth inhibitor characterization. Moreover, these formats have the potential to be broadly applicable to other members of the PARP family.