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Somatostatin-Dopamine Chimeric Molecules in Neuroendocrine Neoplasms

Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) are a widely heterogeneous family of neoplasms arising from neuroendocrine cells, which are interspersed throughout the body. Despite NENs are relatively rare, their incidence and prevalence are constantly increasing probably due to the improvement in earlier diagnosi...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Cantone, Maria Celeste, Dicitore, Alessandra, Vitale, Giovanni
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7867079/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33535394
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jcm10030501
Descripción
Sumario:Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) are a widely heterogeneous family of neoplasms arising from neuroendocrine cells, which are interspersed throughout the body. Despite NENs are relatively rare, their incidence and prevalence are constantly increasing probably due to the improvement in earlier diagnosis and patients’ management. When surgery is not curative, particularly for patients with metastatic disease, several medical options are available. Somatostatin analogues (SSA) are the first-line medical therapy for well-differentiated NENs. Interestingly, the heterodimerization of somatostatin receptors (SSTs) with dopamine receptors (DRs) has been discovered in NENs. This phenomenon results in hybrid receptors with enhanced functional activity. On these bases, chimeric molecules embracing somatostatin and dopamine features have been recently developed. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive overview of the available preclinical and clinical data regarding chimeric somatostatin-dopamine agonists as a new class of “magic bullet” in the therapy of NENs.