Cetuximab sensitivity of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma xenografts is associated with treatment-induced reduction in EGFR, pEGFR, and pSrc.

BACKGROUND: The aims of this study were to validate in vitro drug sensitivity testing of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cell lines in an in vivo xenograft model and to identify treatment-induced changes in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling pathway that could be used as markers for cetuximab treatment response. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The in vitro and in vivo cetuximab sensitivity of two HNSCC cell lines, UT-SCC-14 and UT-SCC-45, was assessed using a crystal violet assay and xenografts in nude mice, respectively. The expression of EGFR, phosphorylated EGFR (pEGFR), phosphorylated Src (pSrc), and Ki-67 was investigated by immunohistochemistry. To verify these results, the in vitro expression of EGFR and pEGFR was analyzed with ELISA in a panel of 10 HNSCC cell lines. RESULTS: A close correlation was found between in vitro and in vivo cetuximab sensitivity data in the two investigated HNSCC cell lines. In treatment sensitive UT-SCC-14 xenografts, there was a decrease in EGFR, pEGFR, and pSrc upon cetuximab treatment. Interestingly, in insensitive UT-SCC-45 xenografts, an increased expression of these three proteins was found. The change in EGFR and pEGFR expression in vivo was confirmed in cetuximab-sensitive and cetuximab-insensitive HNSCC cell lines using ELISA. CONCLUSION: High sensitivity to cetuximab was strongly associated with a treatment-induced reduction in pEGFR both in vivo and in vitro in a panel of HNSCC cell lines, suggesting that EGFR and pEGFR dynamics could be used as a predictive biomarker for cetuximab treatment response.

Discovery of thioazepinone ligands for Src SH2: from non-specific to specific binding.

The structure-based design and synthesis of new thioazepinones as ligands for Src SH2 protein is presented. From benzothioazepinones, ligands with somewhat unspecific binding properties, simpler thioazepinones were designed, the best ones demonstrated nanomolar affinity for Src SH2. A few of these new ligands were crystallized with the protein and demonstrated a specific binding mode with the protein.

Novobiocin and related coumarins and depletion of heat shock protein 90-dependent signaling proteins.

BACKGROUND: Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) interacts with and stabilizes several oncogenic protein kinases (e.g., p185(erbB2), p60(v-src), and Raf-1) and is required for the stability and dominant-negative function of mutated p53 protein. Two unrelated antibiotics, geldanamycin and radicicol, bind specifically to an atypical nucleotide-binding pocket of Hsp90, a site that shares homology with the adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding domain of bacterial DNA gyrase B. This interaction leads to destabilization of proteins that interact with Hsp90. Since the nucleotide-binding site of gyrase B is targeted by coumarin antibiotics (e.g., novobiocin), we investigated whether these drugs can also interact with Hsp90 and affect its activity. METHODS: We used immobilized novobiocin, geldanamycin, or radicicol to isolate either endogenous Hsp90 from cell lysates or Hsp90 deletion fragments translated in vitro. Effects of the coumarin antibiotics novobiocin, chlorobiocin, and coumermycin A1 on several proteins interacting with Hsp90 were assessed in vitro and in vivo. RESULTS: Hsp90 binding to immobilized novobiocin was competed by soluble coumarins and ATP but not by geldanamycin or radicicol. A carboxy-terminal Hsp90 fragment bound immobilized novobiocin but not immobilized geldanamycin, while a geldanamycin-binding amino-terminal fragment did not bind novobiocin. All three coumarins markedly reduced cellular levels of p185(erbB2), p60(v-src), Raf-1, and mutated p53. Furthermore, novobiocin reduced Raf-1 levels in the spleens of mice treated with the drug. CONCLUSIONS: These coumarin antibiotics, particularly novobiocin, represent a first-generation alternative to other Hsp90-targeting drugs that are not as well tolerated. Novobiocin's unique interaction with Hsp90 identifies an additional site on this protein amenable to pharmacologic interference with small molecules.

Engineering protein kinases with distinct nucleotide specificities and inhibitor sensitivities by mutation of a single amino acid.

A major goal of signal transduction research is to identify the substrates and roles of the many protein kinases. The task might be simplified by the discovery that the mutation of a single amino acid dramatically alters the nucleotide specificity of protein kinases and their inhibition by a particular class of anti-inflammatory drug.

Cdc2-mediated modulation of pp60c-src activity.

Following complete dephosphorylation, purified p60c-src was rephosphorylated with Csk. The Csk-phosphorylated form was isolated and found to be essentially inactive. Both the dephosphorylated p60c-src (Src A) and the inactive, phosphorylated pp60c-src (Src B) were then used to explore the regulatory role of other kinases and phosphatases. Phosphorylation by Cdc2 partially reactivated Csk-inactivated pp60c-src. This reactivation occurred in the absence of Tyr-527 dephosphorylation. Moreover, phosphorylation of Csk-treated pp60c-src by Cdc2 also facilitated complete reactivation by the protein-tyrosine phosphatase CD45 or by a synthetic phosphopeptide corresponding to the C-terminal, regulatory phosphorylation site (Tyr-527). These data indicate that the Src homology 2 domain of Csk-phosphorylated pp60c-src was more accessible for intermolecular interactions and that Tyr-527 was more readily dephosphorylated after treatment with Cdc2. In conjunction with in vivo studies, these data suggest that Cdc2 is involved in the regulation of pp60c-src during mitosis.

PDGF, CSF-1, and EGF induce tyrosine phosphorylation of p120, a pp60src transformation-associated substrate.

Transformation by activated pp60c-src has been correlated by genetic analysis with the tyrosine phosphorylation of a 120 kilodalton (kDa) protein, p120. We now demonstrate tyrosine phosphorylation of p120 following stimulation of cells by growth factors whose receptors have intrinsic tyrosine-specific protein kinase activity. Stimulation of quiescent NIH3T3 cells with platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) resulted in the tyrosine phosphorylation of p120 that was maximal by 5 min and returned to background levels by 30 min. p120 was also phosphorylated on tyrosine after addition of colony-stimulating factor 1 (CSF-1) or epidermal growth factor (EGF) to NIH3T3 cells engineered to express high levels of their respective receptors. Two additional src substrates, p110 and p85, were analysed under identical assay conditions. PDGF, CSF-1, and EGF induced only a minimal increase in the tyrosine phosphorylation of p85 and no change in the phosphorylation of p110. Thus, the marked ligand-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of p120 was a property not shared by the other src substrates examined. Immunoblotting with antibodies to p120 and the ras GTPase activating protein, GAP, suggests that p120 and GAP are unrelated. In addition, the amino acid sequences of four cyanogen bromide peptides derived from p120 showed no homology to GAP or to sequences in either the PIR or Swiss-Prot databases. These data suggest that tyrosine phosphorylation of p120 may contribute to both signal transduction through growth factor receptors and pp60src induced transformation.