Time-dependent inhibition of isoprenylcysteine carboxyl methyltransferase by indole-based small molecules

Isoprenylcysteine carboxyl methyltransferase (Icmt) catalyzes the methylation of the C-terminal prenylcysteine found on prenylated proteins. Numerous studies have shown that the methylation step is important for the correct localization and function of many prenylated proteins, most notably GTPases in the Ras superfamily. We recently reported identification of a small molecule derived from an indole core as a potent, cell-active inhibitor of Icmt whose potency was increased upon preincubation with the enzyme [Winter-Vann, A. M., Baron, R. A., et al. (2005) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 102 (12), 4336-41]. In the study presented here, we performed a kinetic characterization of this time-dependent inhibition of Icmt by 2-[5-(3-methylphenyl)-1-octyl-1H-indol-3-yl]acetamide (cysmethynil). These analyses revealed that cysmethynil is a competitive inhibitor with respect to the isoprenylated cysteine substrate and a noncompetitive inhibitor with respect to AdoMet, the methyl donor in the reaction. The Ki of cysmethynil for Icmt, which represents the dissociation constant of the initial complex with the enzyme, was 2.39 +/- 0.02 microM, and the Ki*, which is the overall dissociation constant of the inhibitor for the final complex, was 0.14 +/- 0.01 microM. The first-order rate constant for the conversion of the initial enzyme-inhibitor complex to the final high-affinity complex was 0.87 +/- 0.06 min-1, and that for the reverse process was 0.053 +/- 0.003 min-1; the latter rate constant corresponds to a half-life for the high-affinity complex of 15 min. Structure-activity relationships of a number of closely related indole compounds revealed that the hydrophobicity of the substituent on the nitrogen of the indole core was responsible for the manifestation of time-dependent inhibition. These findings markedly enhance our understanding of the mechanism of inhibition of Icmt by this indole class of compounds and should facilitate ongoing efforts to assess the potential of targeting this enzyme in anticancer drug design.