pralatrexate

Pralatrexate is an antineoplastic (cancer) agent classified as an antifolate and a structural analog of methotrexate. It is primarily used for the treatment of relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL). Pralatrexate works by competitively inhibiting dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), a key enzyme in folate metabolism, thereby disrupting DNA and RNA synthesis essential for cell replication. The drug has been designed to have higher affinity for the reduced folate carrier type 1 (RFC-1), which is overexpressed in many cancer cells, allowing selective uptake and enhanced retention through polyglutamylation catalyzed by folylpolyglutamate synthetase (FPGS). This mechanism results in greater cytotoxicity toward malignant cells compared to normal tissues. Pralatrexate was developed following collaborations among SRI International, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Southern Research Institute, and later Allos Therapeutics; it was subsequently acquired by Spectrum Pharmaceuticals[3][5][6][8].

Brand names

Folotyn

Other names

10-deazaaminopterin analog of methotrexate