The bromodomain and extraterminal (BET) domain family of proteins binds to acetylated lysines on histones and regulates gene transcription. Recently, BET inhibitors (BETi) have been developed that show promise as potent anticancer drugs against various solid and hematological malignancies. Here we show that the structurally novel and orally bioavailable BET inhibitor RVX2135 inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis of lymphoma cells arising in Myctransgenic mice in vitro and in vivo. We find that BET inhibition exhibits broad transcriptional effects in Myc-transgenic lymphoma cells affecting many transcription factor networks. By examining the genes induced by BETi, which have largely been ignored to date, we discovered that these were similar to those induced by histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi). HDACi also induced cell-cycle arrest and cell death of Myc-induced murine lymphoma cells and synergized with BETi. Our data suggest that BETi sensitize Myc-overexpressing lymphoma cells partly by inducing HDAC-silenced genes, and suggest synergistic and therapeutic combinations by targeting the genetic link between BETi and HDACi.T he bromodomain and extraterminal (BET) domain family of proteins Brd2, Brd3, Brd4, and BrdT bind via their tandem bromodomains (BD1 and BD2) to acetylated lysines in histones and other proteins (1). On binding, they regulate the transcription of genes critical for cell-cycle progression and apoptosis. Therefore, BET proteins have emerged as interesting proteins for targeted intervention of cancer.Recently, the small-molecule BET inhibitor (+)-JQ-1 (hereafter JQ1) was found to be a potent and specific suppressor of B cell-lineage malignancies (2, 3). In acute myelogenous leukemia, BRD4 is essential for tumor maintenance, and JQ1 recapitulates the effects of RNA interference of BRD4 (4, 5). JQ1 was subsequently shown to have an antiproliferative effect in other hematological malignancies and solid organ tumors including glioblastoma, prostate cancer, and neuroblastoma (6-10). The current model of how BET inhibitors (BETi) inhibit tumor cell proliferation places inhibition of MYC as mediating activity in lymphoid tumors, with Myc-independent activity in some solid tumor types such as lung adenocarcinoma (11). However, it has not been clear in hematopoietic tumor types whether the antiproliferative effects of BETi are mediated by suppression of MYC expression or whether effects on MYC are a correlative bystander of the mechanism, perhaps useful as a biomarker but not necessarily mechanistic (12).We have assessed the effect of RVX2135, a novel and orally bioavailable selective inhibitor of Brd2, Brd3, Brd4, and BrdT, in in vitro and in vivo models of Myc-induced lymphoma. We find that the effects are mediated by broad transcriptional changes and that these are genetically and functionally linked to histone deacetylase inhibitors. Results RVX2135 Blocks Proliferation of Myc-Induced Mouse Lymphoma Cellsand Induces Caspase-Dependent Apoptosis. RVX2135 is a novel small-molecule BET bromodoma...
Agents that trigger cell differentiation are highly efficacious in treating certain cancers, but such approaches are not generally effective in most malignancies. Compounds such as DMSO and hexamethylene bisacetamide (HMBA) have been used to induce differentiation in experimental systems, but their mechanisms of action and potential range of uses on that basis have not been developed. Here, we show that HMBA, a compound first tested in the oncology clinic over 25 years ago, acts as a selective bromodomain inhibitor. Biochemical and structural studies revealed an affinity of HMBA for the second bromodomain of BET proteins. Accordingly, both HMBA and the prototype BET inhibitor JQ1 induced differentiation of mouse erythroleukemia cells. As expected of a BET inhibitor, HMBA displaced BET proteins from chromatin, caused massive transcriptional changes, and triggered cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis in Myc-induced B-cell lymphoma cells. Furthermore, HMBA exerted anticancer effects in vivo in mouse models of Myc-driven B-cell lymphoma. This study illuminates the function of an early anticancer agent and suggests an intersection with ongoing clinical trials of BET inhibitor, with several implications for predicting patient selection and response rates to this therapy and starting points for generating BD2-selective BET inhibitors. Cancer Res; 76(8); 2376-83. Ó2016 AACR.
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM, astrocytoma grade IV) is the most common malignant primary brain tumor in adults. Addressing the shortage of effective treatment options for this cancer, we explored repurposing of existing drugs into combinations with potent activity against GBM cells. We report that the phytoalexin pterostilbene is a potentiator of two drugs with previously reported anti-GBM activity, the EGFR inhibitor gefitinib and the antidepressant sertraline. Combinations of either of these two compounds with pterostilbene suppress cell growth, viability, sphere formation and inhibit migration in tumor GBM cell (GC) cultures. The potentiating effect of pterostilbene was observed to a varying degree across a panel of 41 patient-derived GCs, and correlated in a case specific manner with the presence of missense mutation of EGFR and PIK3CA and a focal deletion of the chromosomal region 1p32. We identify pterostilbene-induced cell cycle arrest, synergistic inhibition of MAPK activity and induction of Thioredoxin interacting protein (TXNIP) as possible mechanisms behind pterostilbene's effect. Our results highlight a nontoxic stilbenoid compound as a modulator of anticancer drug response, and indicate that pterostilbene might be used to modulate two anticancer compounds in well-defined sets of GBM patients.
Elevated expression of TLX (also called as NR2E1) in neuroblastoma (NB) correlates with unfavorable prognosis, and TLX is required for self-renewal of NB cells. Knockdown of TLX has been shown to reduce the NB sphere-forming ability. ASK1 (MAP3K5) and TLX expression are both enhanced in SP (side population) NB and patient-derived primary NB sphere cell lines, but the majority of non-SP NB lines express lower ASK1 expression. We found that ASK1 phosphorylated and stabilized TLX, which led induction of HIF-1α, and its downstream VEGF-A in an Akt dependent manner. In depleting ASK1 upon hypoxia, TLX decreased and the apoptosis ratio of NB cells was enhanced, while low-ASK1-expressing NB cell lines were refractory in TUNEL assay by using flow cytometry. Interestingly, primary NB spheres cell lines express only high levels of active pASK1Thr-838 but the established cell lines expressed inhibitory pASK1Ser-966, and both could be targeted by ASK1 depletion. We report a novel pro-survival role of ASK1 in the tumorigenic NB cell populations, which may be applied as a therapeutic target, inducing apoptosis specifically in cancer stem cells.
<p>Figure S1: Molecular modelling and structure determination by X ray crystallography. Expanded data related to Figure 1B. Figure S2-S3: Ingenuity Pathway analyses of microarray data. Expanded analyses related to Figure 4 and Supplemental dataset 1. Figure S4: Gene-set enrichment analyses of microarray data. Expanded analyses related to Figure 4 and Supplemental dataset 1.</p>
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