Combined CDK4/6 and ERK1/2 Inhibition Enhances Antitumor Activity in NF1-Associated Plexiform Neurofibroma.

PURPOSE: Plexiform neurofibromas (PNF) are peripheral nerve sheath tumors that cause significant morbidity in persons with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), yet treatment options remain limited. To identify novel therapeutic targets for PNF, we applied an integrated multi-omic approach to quantitatively profile kinome enrichment in a mouse model that has predicted therapeutic responses in clinical trials for NF1-associated PNF with high fidelity. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Utilizing RNA sequencing combined with chemical proteomic profiling of the functionally enriched kinome using multiplexed inhibitor beads coupled with mass spectrometry, we identified molecular signatures predictive of response to CDK4/6 and RAS/MAPK pathway inhibition in PNF. Informed by these results, we evaluated the efficacy of the CDK4/6 inhibitor, abemaciclib, and the ERK1/2 inhibitor, LY3214996, alone and in combination in reducing PNF tumor burden in Nf1flox/flox;PostnCre mice. RESULTS: Converging signatures of CDK4/6 and RAS/MAPK pathway activation were identified within the transcriptome and kinome that were conserved in both murine and human PNF. We observed robust additivity of the CDK4/6 inhibitor, abemaciclib, in combination with the ERK1/2 inhibitor, LY3214996, in murine and human NF1(Nf1) mutant Schwann cells. Consistent with these findings, the combination of abemaciclib (CDK4/6i) and LY3214996 (ERK1/2i) synergized to suppress molecular signatures of MAPK activation and exhibited enhanced antitumor activity in Nf1flox/flox;PostnCre mice in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide rationale for the clinical translation of CDK4/6 inhibitors alone and in combination with therapies targeting the RAS/MAPK pathway for the treatment of PNF and other peripheral nerve sheath tumors in persons with NF1.

Phase Ib/II Study of Enzalutamide with Samotolisib (LY3023414) or Placebo in Patients with Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer.

PURPOSE: To report efficacy and safety of samotolisib (LY3023414; PI3K/mTOR dual kinase and DNA-dependent protein kinase inhibitor) plus enzalutamide in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) following cancer progression on abiraterone. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this double-blind, placebo-controlled phase Ib/II study (NCT02407054), following a lead-in segment for evaluating safety and pharmacokinetics of samotolisib and enzalutamide combination, patients with advanced castration-resistant prostate cancer with progression on prior abiraterone were randomized to receive enzalutamide (160 mg daily)/samotolisib (200 mg twice daily) or placebo. Primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS) assessed by Prostate Cancer Clinical Trials Working Group criteria (PCWG2). Secondary and exploratory endpoints included radiographic PFS (rPFS) and biomarkers, respectively. Log-rank tests assessed treatment group differences. RESULTS: Overall, 13 and 129 patients were enrolled in phase Ib and II, respectively. Dose-limiting toxicity was not reported in patients during phase Ib and mean samotolisib exposures remained in the targeted range despite a 35% decrease when administered with enzalutamide. In phase II, median PCWG2-PFS and rPFS was significantly longer in the samotolisib/enzalutamide versus placebo/enzalutamide arm (3.8 vs. 2.8 months; P = 0.003 and 10.2 vs. 5.5 months; P = 0.03), respectively. Patients without androgen receptor splice variant 7 showed a significant and clinically meaningful rPFS benefit in the samotolisib/enzalutamide versus placebo/enzalutamide arm (13.2 months vs. 5.3 months; P = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Samotolisib/enzalutamide has tolerable side effects and significantly improved PFS in patients with mCRPC with cancer progression on abiraterone, and this may be enriched in patients with PTEN intact and no androgen receptor splice variant 7.

Preclinical Evaluation and Phase Ib Study of Prexasertib, a CHK1 Inhibitor, and Samotolisib (LY3023414), a Dual PI3K/mTOR Inhibitor.

PURPOSE: Prexasertib, a checkpoint kinase 1 inhibitor (CHK1), exhibited modest monotherapy antitumor activity in previous studies. Preclinical data were generated to support the clinical combination of prexasertib + samotolisib, a PI3K/mTOR inhibitor. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Prexasertib + samotolisib was first evaluated in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells, MDA-MB-231 orthotopic xenograft tumors, and TNBC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) mouse models. In the phase Ib trial, following dose escalation, the initial expansion arm (E1, solid tumors) explored prexasertib 105 mg/m2 intravenously every 14 days + samotolisib 200 mg orally twice daily. Subsequent expansion arms evaluated samotolisib 150 mg twice daily in patients carrying PIK3CA mutations (E2, solid tumors) or with TNBC (E3). Safety and antitumor activity were assessed. RESULTS: Prexasertib + samotolisib inhibited cell proliferation in TNBC lines and primary tumor growth in the MDA-MB-231 model. Prexasertib + samotolisib exhibited synergistic or additive effects in 30 of 38 PDX single-mouse ("n = 1") models, and provided rationale for clinical evaluation. In the phase Ib study, 53 patients were enrolled (escalation, n = 13; E1, n = 9; E2, n = 15; and E3, n = 16). No dose-limiting toxicities (DLT) were observed during escalation; however, DLT-equivalent toxicities were observed in E1, leading to samotolisib dose reduction (150 mg twice daily) in E2/E3. Common treatment-related adverse events were leukopenia/neutropenia (94.3%), thrombocytopenia (62.3%), and nausea (52.8%). During escalation, 2 patients achieved partial response for an overall response rate (ORR) of 15.4%, and ORRs were 13.3% for E2 (PIK3CA) and 25% for E3 (TNBC). CONCLUSIONS: Prexasertib + samotolisib showed antitumor activity in preclinical models and preliminary efficacy in heavily pretreated patients. The clinical combination was associated with toxicity, suggesting supportive measures may be required. However, these data may inform future trials using other CHK1 and PI3K pathway inhibitors.

A pan-cancer transcriptome analysis identifies replication fork and innate immunity genes as modifiers of response to the CHK1 inhibitor prexasertib.

The combined influence of oncogenic drivers, genomic instability, and/or DNA damage repair deficiencies increases replication stress in cancer. Cells with high replication stress rely on the upregulation of checkpoints like those governed by CHK1 for survival. Previous studies of the CHK1 inhibitor prexasertib demonstrated activity across multiple cancer types. Therefore, we sought to (1) identify markers of prexasertib sensitivity and (2) define the molecular mechanism(s) of intrinsic and acquired resistance using preclinical models representing multiple tumor types. Our findings indicate that while cyclin E dysregulation is a driving mechanism of prexasertib response, biomarkers associated with this aberration lack sufficient predictive power to render them clinically actionable for patient selection. Transcriptome analysis of a pan-cancer cell line panel and in vivo models revealed an association between expression of E2F target genes and prexasertib sensitivity and identified innate immunity genes associated with prexasertib resistance. Functional RNAi studies supported a causal role of replication fork components as modulators of prexasertib response. Mechanisms that protect cells from oncogene-induced replication stress may safeguard tumors from such stress induced by a CHK1 inhibitor, resulting in acquired drug resistance. Furthermore, resistance to prexasertib may be shaped by innate immunity.

Aurora A-Selective Inhibitor LY3295668 Leads to Dominant Mitotic Arrest, Apoptosis in Cancer Cells, and Shows Potent Preclinical Antitumor Efficacy.

Although Aurora A, B, and C kinases share high sequence similarity, especially within the kinase domain, they function distinctly in cell-cycle progression. Aurora A depletion primarily leads to mitotic spindle formation defects and consequently prometaphase arrest, whereas Aurora B/C inactivation primarily induces polyploidy from cytokinesis failure. Aurora B/C inactivation phenotypes are also epistatic to those of Aurora A, such that the concomitant inactivation of Aurora A and B, or all Aurora isoforms by nonisoform-selective Aurora inhibitors, demonstrates the Aurora B/C-dominant cytokinesis failure and polyploidy phenotypes. Several Aurora inhibitors are in clinical trials for T/B-cell lymphoma, multiple myeloma, leukemia, lung, and breast cancers. Here, we describe an Aurora A-selective inhibitor, LY3295668, which potently inhibits Aurora autophosphorylation and its kinase activity in vitro and in vivo, persistently arrests cancer cells in mitosis, and induces more profound apoptosis than Aurora B or Aurora A/B dual inhibitors without Aurora B inhibition-associated cytokinesis failure and aneuploidy. LY3295668 inhibits the growth of a broad panel of cancer cell lines, including small-cell lung and breast cancer cells. It demonstrates significant efficacy in small-cell lung cancer xenograft and patient-derived tumor preclinical models as a single agent and in combination with standard-of-care agents. LY3295668, as a highly Aurora A-selective inhibitor, may represent a preferred approach to the current pan-Aurora inhibitors as a cancer therapeutic agent.

The Folate Pathway Inhibitor Pemetrexed Pleiotropically Enhances Effects of Cancer Immunotherapy.

PURPOSE: Combination strategies leveraging chemotherapeutic agents and immunotherapy have held the promise as a method to improve benefit for patients with cancer. However, most chemotherapies have detrimental effects on immune homeostasis and differ in their ability to induce immunogenic cell death (ICD). The approval of pemetrexed and carboplatin with anti-PD-1 (pembrolizumab) for treatment of non-small cell lung cancer represents the first approved chemotherapy and immunotherapy combination. Although the clinical data suggest a positive interaction between pemetrexed-based chemotherapy and immunotherapy, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Mouse tumor models (MC38, Colon26) and high-content biomarker studies (flow cytometry, Quantigene Plex, and nCounter gene expression analysis) were deployed to obtain insights into the mechanistic rationale behind the efficacy observed with pemetrexed/anti-PD-L1 combination. ICD in tumor cell lines was assessed by calreticulin and HMGB-1 immunoassays, and metabolic function of primary T cells was evaluated by Seahorse analysis. RESULTS: Pemetrexed treatment alone increased T-cell activation in mouse tumors in vivo, robustly induced ICD in mouse tumor cells and exerted T-cell-intrinsic effects exemplified by augmented mitochondrial function and enhanced T-cell activation in vitro. Increased antitumor efficacy and pronounced inflamed/immune activation were observed when pemetrexed was combined with anti-PD-L1. CONCLUSIONS: Pemetrexed augments systemic intratumor immune responses through tumor intrinsic mechanisms including immunogenic cell death, T-cell-intrinsic mechanisms enhancing mitochondrial biogenesis leading to increased T-cell infiltration/activation along with modulation of innate immune pathways, which are significantly enhanced in combination with PD-1 pathway blockade.See related commentary by Buque et al., p. 6890.

Direct analysis of PI(3,4,5)P3 using liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.

Phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5) trisphosphate (PIP3) is a biologically active membrane phospholipid that is essential for the growth and survival of all eukaryotic cells. We describe a new method that directly measures PIP3 and describe the HPLC separation and measurement of the positional isomers of phosphatidylinositol bisphosphate, PI(3,5)P2, PI(3,4)P2 and PI(4,5)P2. Mass spectrometric analyses were performed online using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC)-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS) in the negative multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM) modes. Rapid separation of PIP3 from PI, phosphatidylinositol phosphate (PIP) and PIP2 was accomplished by C18 reverse phase chromatography with the addition of the ion pairing reagents diisopropylethanolamine (DiiPEA) and ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid tetrasodium salt dihydrate (EDTA) to the samples and mobile phase with a total run time, including equilibration, of 12 min. Importantly, these chromatography conditions result in no carryover of PIP, PIP2, and PIP3 between samples. To validate the new method, U87MG cancer cells were serum starved and treated with PDGF to stimulate PIP3 biosynthesis in the presence or absence of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor LY294002. Results generated with the LC/MS method were in excellent agreement with results generated using [33P] phosphate radiolabeled U87MG cells and anion exchange chromatography analysis, a well validated method for measuring PIP3. To demonstrate the usefulness of the new method, we generated reproducible IC50 data for several well-characterized PI3K small molecule inhibitors using a U87MG cell-based assay as well as showing PIP3 can be measured from additional cancer cell lines. Together, our results demonstrate this novel method is sensitive, reproducible and can be used to directly measure PIP3 without radiolabeling or complex lipid derivatization.

Mouse PDX Trial Suggests Synergy of Concurrent Inhibition of RAF and EGFR in Colorectal Cancer with BRAF or KRAS Mutations.

Purpose: To evaluate the antitumor efficacy of cetuximab in combination with LSN3074753, an analog of LY3009120 and pan-RAF inhibitor in 79 colorectal cancer patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models.Experimental Design: Seventy-nine well-characterized colorectal cancer PDX models were employed to conduct a single mouse per treatment group (n = 1) trial.Results: Consistent with clinical results, cetuximab was efficacious in wild-type KRAS and BRAF PDX models, with an overall response rate of 6.3% and disease control rate (DCR) of 20.3%. LSN3074753 was active in a small subset of PDX models that harbored KRAS or BRAF mutations. However, the combination treatment displayed the enhanced antitumor activity with DCR of 35.4%. Statistical analysis revealed that BRAF and KRAS mutations were the best predictors of the combinatorial activity and were significantly associated with synergistic effect with a P value of 0.01 compared with cetuximab alone. In 12 models with BRAF mutations, the combination therapy resulted in a DCR of 41.7%, whereas either monotherapy had a DCR of 8.3%. Among 44 KRAS mutation models, cetuximab or LSN3074753 monotherapy resulted in a DCR of 13.6% or 11.4%, respectively, and the combination therapy increased DCR to 34.1%. Molecular analysis suggests that EGFR activation is a potential feedback and resistant mechanism of pan-RAF inhibition.Conclusions: MAPK and EGFR pathway activations are two major molecular hallmarks of colorectal cancer. This mouse PDX trial recapitulated clinical results of cetuximab. Concurrent EGFR and RAF inhibition demonstrated synergistic antitumor activity for colorectal cancer PDX models with a KRAS or BRAF mutation. Clin Cancer Res; 23(18); 5547-60. ©2017 AACR.

Characterization of LY3023414, a Novel PI3K/mTOR Dual Inhibitor Eliciting Transient Target Modulation to Impede Tumor Growth.

The PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway is among the most frequently altered pathways in cancer cell growth and survival. LY3023414 is a complex fused imidazoquinolinone with high solubility across a wide pH range designed to inhibit class I PI3K isoforms and mTOR kinase. Here, we describe the in vitro and in vivo activity of LY3023414. LY3023414 was highly soluble at pH 2-7. In biochemical testing against approximately 266 kinases, LY3023414 potently and selectively inhibited class I PI3K isoforms, mTORC1/2, and DNA-PK at low nanomolar concentrations. In vitro, inhibition of PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling by LY3023414 caused G1 cell-cycle arrest and resulted in broad antiproliferative activity in cancer cell panel screens. In vivo, LY3023414 demonstrated high bioavailability and dose-dependent dephosphorylation of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway downstream substrates such as AKT, S6K, S6RP, and 4E-BP1 for 4 to 6 hours, reflecting the drug's half-life of 2 hours. Of note, equivalent total daily doses of LY3023414 given either once daily or twice daily inhibited tumor growth to similar extents in multiple xenograft models, indicating that intermittent target inhibition is sufficient for antitumor activity. In combination with standard-of-care drugs, LY3023414 demonstrated additive antitumor activity. The novel, orally bioavailable PI3K/mTOR inhibitor LY3023414 is highly soluble and exhibits potent in vivo efficacy via intermittent target inhibition. It is currently being evaluated in phase I and II trials for the treatment of human malignancies. Mol Cancer Ther; 15(10); 2344-56. ©2016 AACR.

Inhibition of RAF Isoforms and Active Dimers by LY3009120 Leads to Anti-tumor Activities in RAS or BRAF Mutant Cancers.

LY3009120 is a pan-RAF and RAF dimer inhibitor that inhibits all RAF isoforms and occupies both protomers in RAF dimers. Biochemical and cellular analyses revealed that LY3009120 inhibits ARAF, BRAF, and CRAF isoforms with similar affinity, while vemurafenib or dabrafenib have little or modest CRAF activity compared to their BRAF activities. LY3009120 induces BRAF-CRAF dimerization but inhibits the phosphorylation of downstream MEK and ERK, suggesting that it effectively inhibits the kinase activity of BRAF-CRAF heterodimers. Further analyses demonstrated that LY3009120 also inhibits various forms of RAF dimers including BRAF or CRAF homodimers. Due to these unique properties, LY3009120 demonstrates minimal paradoxical activation, inhibits MEK1/2 phosphorylation, and exhibits anti-tumor activities across multiple models carrying KRAS, NRAS, or BRAF mutation.

A Novel Eg5 Inhibitor (LY2523355) Causes Mitotic Arrest and Apoptosis in Cancer Cells and Shows Potent Antitumor Activity in Xenograft Tumor Models.

Intervention of cancer cell mitosis by antitubulin drugs is among the most effective cancer chemotherapies. However, antitubulin drugs have dose-limiting side effects due to important functions of microtubules in resting normal cells and are often rendered ineffective by rapid emergence of resistance. Antimitotic agents with different mechanisms of action and improved safety profiles are needed as new treatment options. Mitosis-specific kinesin Eg5 represents an attractive anticancer target for discovering such new antimitotic agents, because Eg5 is essential only in mitotic progression and has no roles in resting, nondividing cells. Here, we show that a novel selective Eg5 inhibitor, LY2523355, has broad target-mediated anticancer activity in vitro and in vivo. LY2523355 arrests cancer cells at mitosis and causes rapid cell death that requires sustained spindle-assembly checkpoint (SAC) activation with a required threshold concentration. In vivo efficacy of LY2523355 is highly dose/schedule-dependent, achieving complete remission in a number of xenograft tumor models, including patient-derived xenograft (PDX) tumor models. We further establish that histone-H3 phosphorylation of tumor and proliferating skin cells is a promising pharmacodynamic biomarker for in vivo anticancer activity of LY2523355.

Intrinsic Resistance to Cixutumumab Is Conferred by Distinct Isoforms of the Insulin Receptor.

UNLABELLED: Despite a recent shift away from anti-insulin-like growth factor I receptor (IGF-IR) therapy, this target has been identified as a key player in the resistance mechanisms to various conventional and targeted agents, emphasizing its value as a therapy, provided that it is used in the right patient population. Molecular markers predictive of antitumor activity of IGF-IR inhibitors remain largely unidentified. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of insulin receptor (IR) isoforms on the antitumor efficacy of cixutumumab, a humanized mAb against IGF-IR, and to correlate their expression with therapeutic outcome. The data demonstrate that expression of total IR rather than individual IR isoforms inversely correlates with single-agent cixutumumab efficacy in pediatric solid tumor models in vivo. Total IR, IR-A, and IR-B expression adversely affects the outcome of cixutumumab in combination with chemotherapy in patient-derived xenograft models of lung adenocarcinoma. IR-A overexpression in tumor cells confers complete resistance to cixutumumab in vitro and in vivo, whereas IR-B results in a partial resistance. Resistance in IR-B-overexpressing cells is fully reversed by anti-IGF-II antibodies, suggesting that IGF-II is a driver of cixutumumab resistance in this setting. The present study links IR isoforms, IGF-II, and cixutumumab efficacy mechanistically and identifies total IR as a biomarker predictive of intrinsic resistance to anti-IGF-IR antibody. IMPLICATIONS: This study identifies total IR as a biomarker predictive of primary resistance to IGF-IR antibodies and provides a rationale for new clinical trials enriched for patients whose tumors display low IR expression.

A novel CDK9 inhibitor shows potent antitumor efficacy in preclinical hematologic tumor models.

DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) largest subunit RPB1 C-terminal domain (CTD) kinases, including CDK9, are serine/threonine kinases known to regulate transcriptional initiation and elongation by phosphorylating Ser 2, 5, and 7 residues on CTD. Given the reported dysregulation of these kinases in some cancers, we asked whether inhibiting CDK9 may induce stress response and preferentially kill tumor cells. Herein, we describe a potent CDK9 inhibitor, LY2857785, that significantly reduces RNAP II CTD phosphorylation and dramatically decreases MCL1 protein levels to result in apoptosis in a variety of leukemia and solid tumor cell lines. This molecule inhibits the growth of a broad panel of cancer cell lines, and is particularly efficacious in leukemia cells, including orthotopic leukemia preclinical models as well as in ex vivo acute myeloid leukemia and chronic lymphocytic leukemia patient tumor samples. Thus, inhibition of CDK9 may represent an interesting approach as a cancer therapeutic target, especially in hematologic malignancies.

Inhibition of tumor growth and metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer by LY2801653, an inhibitor of several oncokinases, including MET.

PURPOSE: Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Sustained activation, overexpression, or mutation of the MET pathway is associated with a poor prognosis in a variety of tumors, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), implicating the MET pathway as a potential therapeutic target for lung cancer. Previously, we reported on the development of LY2801653: a novel, orally bioavailable oncokinase inhibitor with MET as one of its targets. Here, we discuss the evaluation of LY2801653 in both preclinical in vitro and in vivo NSCLC models. Experimental Design/ RESULTS: Treatment with LY2801653 showed tumor growth inhibition in tumor cell lines and patient-derived tumor xenograft models as a single agent (37.4%-90.0% inhibition) or when used in combination with cisplatin, gemcitabine, or erlotinib (66.5%-86.3% inhibition). Mechanistic studies showed that treatment with LY2801653 inhibited the constitutive activation of MET pathway signaling and resulted in inhibition of NCI-H441 cell proliferation, anchorage-independent growth, migration, and invasion. These in vitro findings were confirmed in the H441 orthotopic model where LY2801653 treatment significantly inhibited both primary tumor growth (87.9% inhibition) and metastasis (64.5% inhibition of lymph node and 67.7% inhibition of chest wall). Tumor-bearing animals treated with LY2801653 had a significantly greater survival time (87% increase compared with the vehicle-treated mice). In the MET-independent NCI-H1299 orthotopic model, treatment with LY2801653 showed a significant inhibition of primary tumor growth but not metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, these results support clinical evaluation of LY2801653 in NSCLCs and suggest that differences in the MET activation of tumors may be predictive of response.

Efficacy of low-dose oral metronomic dosing of the prodrug of gemcitabine, LY2334737, in human tumor xenografts.

LY2334737, an oral prodrug of gemcitabine, is cleaved in vivo, releasing gemcitabine and valproic acid. Oral dosing of mice results in absorption of intact prodrug with slow systemic hydrolysis yielding higher plasma levels of LY2334737 than gemcitabine and prolonged gemcitabine exposure. Antitumor activity was evaluated in human colon and lung tumor xenograft models. The dose response for efficacy was examined using 3 metronomic schedules, once-a-day dosing for 14 doses, every other day for 7 doses, and once a day for 7 doses, 7 days rest, followed by an additional 7 days of once-a-day dosing. These schedules gave significant antitumor activity and were well tolerated. Oral gavage of 6 mg/kg LY2334737 daily for 21 days gave equivalent activity to i.v. 240 mg/kg gemcitabine. HCl administered once a week for 3 weeks to mice bearing a patient mesothelioma tumor PXF 1118 or a non-small cell lung cancer tumor LXFE 937. The LXFE 397 tumor possessed elevated expression of the equilibrative nucleoside transporter-1 (ENT1) important for gemcitabine uptake but not prodrug uptake and responded significantly better to treatment with LY2334737 than gemcitabine (P ≤ 0.001). In 3 colon xenografts, antitumor activity of LY2334737 plus a maximally tolerated dose of capecitabine, an oral prodrug of 5-fluorouracil, was significantly greater than either monotherapy. During treatment, the expression of carboxylesterase 2 (CES2) and concentrative nucleoside transporter-3 was induced in HCT-116 tumors; both are needed for the activity of the prodrugs. Thus, metronomic oral low-dose LY2334737 is efficacious, well tolerated, and easily combined with capecitabine for improved efficacy. Elevated CES2 or ENT1 expression may enhance LY2334737 tumor response.

A transforming mutation in the pleckstrin homology domain of AKT1 in cancer.

Although AKT1 (v-akt murine thymoma viral oncogene homologue 1) kinase is a central member of possibly the most frequently activated proliferation and survival pathway in cancer, mutation of AKT1 has not been widely reported. Here we report the identification of a somatic mutation in human breast, colorectal and ovarian cancers that results in a glutamic acid to lysine substitution at amino acid 17 (E17K) in the lipid-binding pocket of AKT1. Lys 17 alters the electrostatic interactions of the pocket and forms new hydrogen bonds with a phosphoinositide ligand. This mutation activates AKT1 by means of pathological localization to the plasma membrane, stimulates downstream signalling, transforms cells and induces leukaemia in mice. This mechanism indicates a direct role of AKT1 in human cancer, and adds to the known genetic alterations that promote oncogenesis through the phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase/AKT pathway. Furthermore, the E17K substitution decreases the sensitivity to an allosteric kinase inhibitor, so this mutation may have important clinical utility for AKT drug development.

Positive and negative regulation of the gamma-secretase activity by nicastrin in a murine model.

Nicastrin is a component of the gamma-secretase complex that has been shown to adhere to presenilin-1 (PS1), Notch, and APP. Here we demonstrate that Nicastrin-deficient mice showed a phenotype that is indistinguishable from PS1/PS2 double knock-out mice, whereas heterozygotes were healthy and viable. Fibroblasts derived from Nicastrin-deficient embryos were unable to generate amyloid beta-peptide and failed to release the intracellular domain of APP- or Notch1-Gal4-VP16 fusion proteins. Additionally, C- and N-terminal fragments of PS1 and the C-terminal fragments of PS2 were not detectable in Nicastrin-null fibroblasts, whereas full-length PS1 accumulated in null fibroblasts, indicating that Nicastrin is required for the endoproteolytic processing of presenilins. Interestingly, cells derived from Nicastrin heterozygotes produced relatively higher levels of amyloid beta-peptide whether the source was endogenous mouse or transfected human APP. These data demonstrate that Nicastrin is essential for the gamma-secretase cleavage of APP and Notch in mammalian cells and that Nicastrin has both positive and negative functions in the regulation of gamma-secretase activity.