Discovery of a potent and selective cell division cycle 7 inhibitor from 6-(3-fluoropyridin4-yl)thieno[3,2-d]pyrimidin-4(3H)-one derivatives as an orally active antitumor agent

To the Editor:Kinase cell division cycle 7(CDC7),a cell division cycle protein,takes a vital role in mediating DNA replication1.CDC7 complexes in the nucleus can phosphorylate the minichromosome maintenance complex(MCM)family members that bind to chromosomes.In addition,CDC7 kinase,as a molecular switch regulating DNA replication,can mediate DNA damage signaling pathways to stimulate cell cycle termination as well as DNA replication2.Studies have shown that CDC7 is overexpressed in many types of cancer cells,and its overexpression was related to poor patient survival,tumor grade,genetic instability,aneuploidy and so on3.Therefore,CDC7 is a promising target for antitumor therapy.

Mechanisms simultaneously regulate smooth muscle proliferation and differentiation

Vascular smooth muscle cell （VSMC） differentiation and proliferation are two important physiological proc- esses during vascular development. The phenotypic alteration from differentiated to proliferative VSMC contrib- utes to the development of several major cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis, hypertension, resteno- sis after angioplasty or bypass, diabetic vascular complications, and transplantation arteriopathy. Since the VSMC phenotype in these pathological conditions resembles that of developing VSMC during embryonic development, understanding of the molecular mechanisms that control VSMC differentiation will provide fundamental insights into the pathological processes of these cardiovascular diseases. Although VSMC differentiation is usually ac- companied by an irreversible cell cycle exit, VSMC proliferation and differentiation occur concurrently during embryonic development. The molecular mechanisms simultaneously regulating these two processes, however, remain largely unknown. Our recent study demonstrates that cell division cycle 7, a key regulator of cell cycle, promotes both VSMC differentiation and proliferation through different mechanisms during the initial phase of VSMC differentiation. Conversely, Kriappel-like factor 4 appears to be a repressor for both VSMC differentia- tion and proliferation. This review attempts to highlight the novel role of cell division cycle 7 in TGF-β-induced VSMC differentiation and proliferation. The role of K141ppel-like factor 4 in suppressing these two processes will also be discussed.