Heptamidine is an effective Pentamidine-related inhibitor of the calcium-binding protein S100B (Kd: 6.9 μM). It selectively kills melanoma cells with S100B over those without S100B. It is a useful tool for the investigation of Myotonic dystrophy.
Pentamidine dimesylate is an inhibitor of calcium-dependent complex formation with p53 [(Ca)S100B-p53) in malignant melanoma (MM). Pentamidine dimesylate restores p53 tumor suppressor activity in vivo.
Nε-(1-Carboxyethyl)-L-lysine (CEL), a known advanced glycation end product (AGE), forms through the interaction of methyl glyoxal and lysine residues within proteins. Unlike its free form, protein-bound CEL can attach to the receptor for AGEs (RAGE). Its concentrations are notably higher in the lenses of diabetic cataract patients and are reduced in rat heart mitochondria following sustained caloric restriction. Furthermore, at 1 mM, CEL impedes glutamate uptake and the release of S100B in rat hippocampal slices, an effect that occurs independently of RAGE.