Cadmium pyrithione

Cadmium pyrithione is a metal compound that inhibits protein deubiquitinase activity. Cadmium pyrithione treatment results in significant accumulation of ubiquitinated proteins in cancer cells and primary leukemia cells. Cadmium pyrithione strongly inhibits the activity of proteasome deubiquitinase (such as USP14 and UCHL5), but has a smaller inhibitory effect on 20S proteasome activity. The anticancer activity of Cadmium pyrithione is associated with the induction of apoptosis through caspase activation. Furthermore, Cadmium pyrithione inhibition inhibited proteasome function and suppressed tumor growth in animal xenograft models[1].