ERB-26 is a

synthetic Synthetic things are composed of multiple parts, often with the implication that they are artificial. In particular, 'synthetic' may refer to: Science * Synthetic chemical or compound, produced by the process of chemical synthesis * Synthetic o ...

estrogen Estrogen or oestrogen is a category of sex hormone responsible for the development and regulation of the female reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics. There are three major endogenous estrogens that have estrogenic hormonal a ...

and a selective

agonist An agonist is a chemical that activates a receptor to produce a biological response. Receptors are cellular proteins whose activation causes the cell to modify what it is currently doing. In contrast, an antagonist blocks the action of the ago ...

of the

ERβ Estrogen receptor beta (ERβ) also known as NR3A2 (nuclear receptor subfamily 3, group A, member 2) is one of two main types of estrogen receptor—a nuclear receptor which is activated by the sex hormone estrogen. In humans ERβ is encoded by ...

. It is the

active Active may refer to: Music * ''Active'' (album), a 1992 album by Casiopea * Active Records, a record label Ships * ''Active'' (ship), several commercial ships by that name * HMS ''Active'', the name of various ships of the British Royal ...

enantiomer In chemistry, an enantiomer ( /ɪˈnænti.əmər, ɛ-, -oʊ-/ ''ih-NAN-tee-ə-mər''; from Ancient Greek ἐνάντιος ''(enántios)'' 'opposite', and μέρος ''(méros)'' 'part') – also called optical isomer, antipode, or optical ant ...

of the

racemic mixture In chemistry, a racemic mixture, or racemate (), is one that has equal amounts of left- and right-handed enantiomers of a chiral molecule or salt. Racemic mixtures are rare in nature, but many compounds are produced industrially as racemates. ...

ERB-79 ERB-79 is a synthetic estrogen and a selective agonist of the ERβ. It is a racemic mixture, with the active enantiomer being ERB-26. ERB-79 shows more than 484-fold selectivity for transactivation of the ERβ over the ERα. Its EC50 value for ...

. Whereas ERB-79 shows 484-fold selectivity for the ERβ over the ERα, ERB-26 differs slightly in that it is even more selective, showing greater than 1,000-fold selectivity for

transactivation In the context of gene regulation: transactivation is the increased rate of gene expression triggered either by biological processes or by artificial means, through the expression of an intermediate transactivator protein. In the context of recep ...

of the ERβ relative to the ERα. Its EC₅₀ value for the ERβ is 0.21 nM (4-fold weaker than

estradiol Estradiol (E2), also spelled oestradiol, is an estrogen steroid hormone and the major female sex hormone. It is involved in the regulation of the estrous and menstrual female reproductive cycles. Estradiol is responsible for the development o ...

) and for the ERα is 260 nM (10,000-fold weaker than estradiol). It has no antagonistic activity at either receptor. ERB-26 is active in prevention of

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that su ...

development in

preclinical In drug development, preclinical development, also termed preclinical studies or nonclinical studies, is a stage of research that begins before clinical trials (testing in humans) and during which important feasibility, iterative testing and drug ...

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

s. In contrast to ERB-26, the selective ERα agonist ERA-45 induced prostate cancer development in preclinical models when it was given in combination with

testosterone Testosterone is the primary sex hormone and anabolic steroid in males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondary sexual characteris ...

, whereas testosterone alone did not do so. These findings suggest opposing roles of the ERα and ERβ in the

prostate gland The prostate is both an accessory gland of the male reproductive system and a muscle-driven mechanical switch between urination and ejaculation. It is found only in some mammals. It differs between species anatomically, chemically, and physi ...

. The

chemical structure A chemical structure determination includes a chemist's specifying the molecular geometry and, when feasible and necessary, the electronic structure of the target molecule or other solid. Molecular geometry refers to the spatial arrangement of a ...

of ERB-26 does not appear to have been disclosed.

References

Drugs with undisclosed chemical structures Selective ERβ agonists Synthetic estrogens {{Genito-urinary-drug-stub

See also

References