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Dieter SM, Siegl C, Codó PL, Huerta M, Ostermann-Parucha AL, Schulz E, Zowada MK, Martin S, Laaber K, Nowrouzi A, Blatter M, Kreth S, Westermann F, Benner A, Uhrig U, Putzker K, Lewis J, Haegebarth A, Mumberg D, Holton SJ, Weiske J, Toepper LM, Scheib U, Siemeister G, Ball CR, Kuster B, Stoehr G, Hahne H, Johannes S, Lange M, Herbst F, Glimm H. Degradation of CCNK/CDK12 is a druggable vulnerability of colorectal cancer. Cell Rep 2021; 36:109394. [PMID: 34289372 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 04/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/23/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Novel treatment options for metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) are urgently needed to improve patient outcome. Here, we screen a library of non-characterized small molecules against a heterogeneous collection of patient-derived CRC spheroids. By prioritizing compounds with inhibitory activity in a subset of-but not all-spheroid cultures, NCT02 is identified as a candidate with minimal risk of non-specific toxicity. Mechanistically, we show that NCT02 acts as molecular glue that induces ubiquitination of cyclin K (CCNK) and proteasomal degradation of CCNK and its complex partner CDK12. Knockout of CCNK or CDK12 decreases proliferation of CRC cells in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. Interestingly, sensitivity to pharmacological CCNK/CDK12 degradation is associated with TP53 deficiency and consensus molecular subtype 4 in vitro and in patient-derived xenografts. We thus demonstrate the efficacy of targeted CCNK/CDK12 degradation for a CRC subset, highlighting the potential of drug-induced proteolysis for difficult-to-treat types of cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian M Dieter
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
| | | | - Paula L Codó
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; CureVac AG, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Mario Huerta
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Anna L Ostermann-Parucha
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Erik Schulz
- Department of General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Martina K Zowada
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Sylvia Martin
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Karin Laaber
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ali Nowrouzi
- Division of Molecular and Translational Radiation Oncology, Heidelberg Medical Faculty, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Mona Blatter
- Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; Division of Neuroblastoma Genomics, DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Sina Kreth
- Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; Division of Neuroblastoma Genomics, DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Frank Westermann
- Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; Division of Neuroblastoma Genomics, DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Axel Benner
- Division of Biostatistics, DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ulrike Uhrig
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Chemical Biology Core Facility, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Kerstin Putzker
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Chemical Biology Core Facility, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Joe Lewis
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Chemical Biology Core Facility, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Andrea Haegebarth
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Dominik Mumberg
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Simon J Holton
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany; Nuvisan Innovation Campus Berlin GmbH, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Joerg Weiske
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany; Nuvisan Innovation Campus Berlin GmbH, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Lena-Marit Toepper
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany; Nuvisan Innovation Campus Berlin GmbH, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Ulrike Scheib
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany; Nuvisan Innovation Campus Berlin GmbH, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Gerhard Siemeister
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany; Nuvisan Innovation Campus Berlin GmbH, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Claudia R Ball
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Center for Personalized Oncology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden at TU Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Bernhard Kuster
- Chair of Proteomics and Bioanalytics, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany
| | | | | | - Sarah Johannes
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 42117 Wuppertal, Germany
| | - Martin Lange
- Bayer AG, Research & Development, Pharmaceuticals, 13353 Berlin, Germany; Nuvisan Innovation Campus Berlin GmbH, 13353 Berlin, Germany
| | - Friederike Herbst
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Hanno Glimm
- Department of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, NCT and DKFZ Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), 01307 Dresden, Germany; Center for Personalized Oncology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden at TU Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany.
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Hendricks A, Dall K, Brandt B, Geisen R, Röder C, Schafmayer C, Becker T, Hinz S, Sebens S. Longitudinal Analysis of Circulating Tumor Cells in Colorectal Cancer Patients by a Cytological and Molecular Approach: Feasibility and Clinical Application. Front Oncol 2021; 11:646885. [PMID: 34262858 PMCID: PMC8273730 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2021.646885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Liquid biopsies allowing for individualized risk stratification of cancer patients have become of high significance in individualized cancer diagnostics and treatment. The detection of circulating tumor cells (CTC) has proven to be highly relevant in risk prediction, e.g., in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. In this study, we investigate the clinical relevance of longitudinal CTC detection over a course of follow-up after surgical resection of the tumor and correlate these findings with clinico-pathological characteristics. Methods In total, 49 patients with histologically proven colorectal carcinoma were recruited for this prospective study. Blood samples were analyzed for CTC presence by two methods: first by marker-dependent immunofluorescence staining combined with automated microscopy with the NYONE® cell imager and additionally, indirectly, by semi-quantitative Cytokeratin-20 (CK20) RT-qPCR. CTC quantification data were compared and correlated with the clinico-pathological parameters. Results Detection of CTC over a post-operative time course was feasible with both applied methods. In patients who were pre-operatively negative for CTCs with the NYONE® method or below the cut-off for relative CK20 mRNA expression after analysis by PCR, a statistically significant rise in the immediate post-operative CTC detection could be demonstrated. Further, in the cohort analyzed by PCR, we detected a lower CTC load in patients who were adjuvantly treated with chemotherapy compared to patients in the follow-up subgroup. This finding was contrary to the same patient subset analyzed with the NYONE® for CTC detection. Conclusion Our study investigates the occurrence of CTC in CRC patients after surgical resection of the primary tumor and during postoperative follow-up. The resection of the tumor has an impact on the CTC quantity and the longitudinal CTC analysis supports the significance of CTC as a prognostic biomarker. Future investigations with an even more extended follow-up period and larger patient cohorts will have to validate our results and may help to define an optimal longitudinal sampling scheme for liquid biopsies in the post-operative monitoring of cancer patients to enable tailored therapy concepts for precision medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Hendricks
- Department of General, Visceral, Thoracic, Transplantation and Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Katharina Dall
- Department of General, Visceral, Thoracic, Transplantation and Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Burkhard Brandt
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | | | - Christian Röder
- Institute for Experimental Cancer Research, Kiel University and University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus, Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Clemens Schafmayer
- Department of General, Visceral, Thoracic, Transplantation and Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Thomas Becker
- Department of General, Visceral, Thoracic, Transplantation and Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Sebastian Hinz
- Department of General, Visceral, Thoracic, Transplantation and Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Susanne Sebens
- Institute for Experimental Cancer Research, Kiel University and University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus, Kiel, Kiel, Germany
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