Discovery of Potent Small-Molecule Inhibitors of MLL Methyltransferase.
Chern, T.R., Liu, L., Petrunak, E., Stuckey, J.A., Wang, M., Bernard, D., Zhou, H., Lee, S., Dou, Y., Wang, S.(2020) ACS Med Chem Lett 11: 1348-1352
- PubMed: 32551023 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsmedchemlett.0c00229
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
6U9K, 6U9M, 6U9N, 6U9R - PubMed Abstract: 
The mixed-lineage leukemia (MLL) protein, also known as MLL1, is a lysine methyltransferase specifically responsible for methylation of histone 3 lysine 4. MLL has been pursued as an attractive therapeutic target for the treatment of acute leukemia carrying the MLL fusion gene or MLL leukemia. Herein, we report the design, synthesis, and evaluation of an S -adenosylmethionine-based focused chemical library which led to the discovery of potent small-molecule inhibitors directly targeting the MLL SET domain. Determination of cocrystal structures for a number of these MLL inhibitors reveals that they adopt a unique binding mode that locks the MLL SET domain in an open, inactive conformation.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Pharmacology, Department of Pathology, and Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, United States.