|
1
|
Xue Z, Qin L, Xuan H, Luo K, Huang M, Xie L, Su Y, Xu L, Harsh J, Dale B, Shi X, Chen X, Kaniskan HÜ, Jin J, Wen H. A potent and selective ENL degrader suppresses oncogenic gene expression and leukemia progression. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eado1432. [PMID: 39196923 PMCID: PMC11352836 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ado1432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 07/24/2024] [Indexed: 08/30/2024]
Abstract
The histone acylation reader eleven-nineteen leukemia (ENL) plays a pivotal role in sustaining oncogenesis in acute leukemias, particularly in mixed-lineage leukemia-rearranged (MLL-r) leukemia. ENL relies on its reader domain to recognize histone lysine acylation promoting oncogenic gene expression and leukemia progression. Here, we report the development of MS41, a highly potent and selective von Hippel-Lindau-recruiting ENL degrader that effectively inhibits the growth of ENL-dependent leukemia cells. MS41-induced ENL degradation reduces the chromatin occupancy of ENL-associated transcription elongation machinery, resulting in the suppression of key oncogenic gene expression programs and the activation of differentiation genes. MS41 is well-tolerated in vivo and substantially suppresses leukemia progression in a xenograft mouse model of MLL-r leukemia. Notably, MS41 also induces the degradation of mutant ENL proteins identified in Wilms' tumors. Our findings emphasize the therapeutic potential of pharmacological ENL degradation for treating ENL-dependent cancers, making MS41 not only a valuable chemical probe but also potential anticancer therapeutic for further development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhaoyu Xue
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Lihuai Qin
- Mount Sinai Center for Therapeutics Discovery, Departments of Pharmacological Sciences, Oncological Sciences, and Neuroscience, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, New York, USA
| | - Hongwen Xuan
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Kaixiu Luo
- Mount Sinai Center for Therapeutics Discovery, Departments of Pharmacological Sciences, Oncological Sciences, and Neuroscience, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, New York, USA
| | - Mengying Huang
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Ling Xie
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Yangzhou Su
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Longxia Xu
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Josiah Harsh
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Brandon Dale
- Mount Sinai Center for Therapeutics Discovery, Departments of Pharmacological Sciences, Oncological Sciences, and Neuroscience, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, New York, USA
| | - Xiaobing Shi
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| | - Xian Chen
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - H Ümit Kaniskan
- Mount Sinai Center for Therapeutics Discovery, Departments of Pharmacological Sciences, Oncological Sciences, and Neuroscience, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, New York, USA
| | - Jian Jin
- Mount Sinai Center for Therapeutics Discovery, Departments of Pharmacological Sciences, Oncological Sciences, and Neuroscience, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, New York, USA
| | - Hong Wen
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
| |
Collapse
|
|
2
|
Becht DC, Kanai A, Biswas S, Halawa M, Zeng L, Cox KL, Poirier MG, Zhou MM, Shi X, Yokoyama A, Kutateladze TG. The winged helix domain of MORF binds CpG islands and the TAZ2 domain of p300. iScience 2024; 27:109367. [PMID: 38500836 PMCID: PMC10946326 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Acetylation of histones by lysine acetyltransferases (KATs) provides a fundamental mechanism by which chromatin structure and transcriptional programs are regulated. Here, we describe a dual binding activity of the first winged helix domain of human MORF KAT (MORFWH1) that recognizes the TAZ2 domain of p300 KAT (p300TAZ2) and CpG rich DNA sequences. Structural and biochemical studies identified distinct DNA and p300TAZ2 binding sites, allowing MORFWH1 to independently engage either ligand. Genomic data show that MORF/MOZWH1 colocalizes with H3K18ac, a product of enzymatic activity of p300, on CpG rich promoters of target genes. Our findings suggest a functional cooperation of MORF and p300 KATs in transcriptional regulation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dustin C. Becht
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Akinori Kanai
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, the University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0882, Japan
| | - Soumi Biswas
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Mohamed Halawa
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Lei Zeng
- Bethune Institute of Epigenetic Medicine, First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130061, China
- International Center of Future Science, Jilin University, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Khan L. Cox
- Department of Physics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | | | - Ming-Ming Zhou
- Department of Pharmacological Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Xiaobing Shi
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Akihiko Yokoyama
- Tsuruoka Metabolomics Laboratory, National Cancer Center, Tsuruoka, Yamagata 997-0052, Japan
| | - Tatiana G. Kutateladze
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| |
Collapse
|
|
3
|
Konuma T, Zhou MM. Distinct Histone H3 Lysine 27 Modifications Dictate Different Outcomes of Gene Transcription. J Mol Biol 2024; 436:168376. [PMID: 38056822 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2023.168376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Revised: 11/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
Site-specific histone modifications have long been recognized to play an important role in directing gene transcription in chromatin in biology of health and disease. However, concrete illustration of how different histone modifications in a site-specific manner dictate gene transcription outcomes, as postulated in the influential "Histone code hypothesis", introduced by Allis and colleagues in 2000, has been lacking. In this review, we summarize our latest understanding of the dynamic regulation of gene transcriptional activation, silence, and repression in chromatin that is directed distinctively by histone H3 lysine 27 acetylation, methylation, and crotonylation, respectively. This represents a special example of a long-anticipated verification of the "Histone code hypothesis."
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tsuyoshi Konuma
- Graduate School of Medical Life Science, Yokohama 230-0045, Japan; School of Science, Yokohama City University, Yokohama 230-0045, Japan
| | - Ming-Ming Zhou
- Department of Pharmacological Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
| |
Collapse
|