Prevention of DMBA-induced mammary gland tumors in mice by a dual-function inhibitor of JAK3 and EGF receptor tyrosine kinases

Systemic and Local Strategies for Primary Prevention of Breast Cancer

One in eight women will develop breast cancer in the US. For women with moderate (15-20%) to average (12.5%) risk of breast cancer, there are few options available for risk reduction. For high-risk (>20%) women, such as BRCA mutation carriers, primary prevention strategies are limited to evidence-based surgical removal of breasts and/or ovaries and anti-estrogen treatment. Despite their effectiveness in risk reduction, not many high-risk individuals opt for surgical or hormonal interventions due to severe side effects and potentially life-changing outcomes as key deterrents. Thus, better communication about the benefits of existing strategies and the development of new strategies with minimal side effects are needed to offer women adequate risk-reducing interventions. We extensively review and discuss innovative investigational strategies for primary prevention. Most of these investigational strategies are at the pre-clinical stage, but some are already being evaluated in clinical trials and others are expected to lead to first-in-human clinical trials within 5 years. Likely, these strategies would be initially tested in high-risk individuals but may be applicable to lower-risk women, if shown to decrease risk at a similar rate to existing strategies, but with minimal side effects.

ERBB1/EGFR and JAK3 Tyrosine Kinases as Potential Therapeutic Targets in High-Risk Multiple Myeloma

Our main objective was to identify abundantly expressed tyrosine kinases in multiple myeloma (MM) as potential therapeutic targets. We first compared the transcriptomes of malignant plasma cells from newly diagnosed MM patients who were risk-categorized based on the patient-specific EMC-92/SKY-92 gene expression signature values vs. normal plasma cells from healthy volunteers using archived datasets from the HOVON65/GMMG-HD4 randomized Phase 3 study evaluating the clinical efficacy of bortezomib induction/maintenance versus classic cytotoxic drugs and thalidomide maintenance. In particular, ERBB1/EGFR was significantly overexpressed in MM cells in comparison to normal control plasma cells, and it was differentially overexpressed in MM cells from high-risk patients. Amplified expression of EGFR/ERBB1 mRNA in MM cells was positively correlated with increased expression levels of mRNAs for several DNA binding proteins and transcription factors with known upregulating activity on EGFR/ERBB1 gene expression. MM patients with the highest ERBB1/EGFR expression level had significantly shorter PFS and OS times than patients with the lowest ERBB1/EGFR expression level. High expression levels of EGFR/ERBB1 were associated with significantly increased hazard ratios for unfavorable PFS and OS outcomes in both univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models. The impact of high EGFR/ERBB1 expression on the PFS and OS outcomes remained significant even after accounting for the prognostic effects of other covariates. These results regarding the prognostic effect of EGFR/ERBB1 expression were validated using the MMRF-CoMMpass RNAseq dataset generated in patients treated with more recently applied drug combinations included in contemporary induction regimens. Our findings provide new insights regarding the molecular mechanism and potential clinical significance of upregulated EGFR/ERBB1 expression in MM.

N-(benzylidene)-2-((2-hydroxynaphthalen-1-yl)diazenyl)benzohydrazides (1-2) (NCHDH and NTHDH) attenuate DMBA-induced breast cancer via Nrf2/NF-κB/apoptosis signaling

The present study investigated the effect of the N-(benzylidene)-2-((2-hydroxynaphthalen-1-yl)diazenyl)benzohydrazides (1-2) (NCHDH and NTHDH) against breast cancer using in vitro and in vivo approaches. The NCHDH and NTHDH significantly inhibited the growth of the MCF-7 cells using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The NCHDH and NTHDH treatment significantly inhibited the tumor size, tumor weight, and tumor volume, while it enhanced the survival and tumor free survival rate following 7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced breast cancer. The NCHDH and NTHDH markedly attenuated the oxidative stress markers and induced the antioxidant level. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed significant reduction in the inflammatory cytokines production compared with the DMBA control. The NCHDH and NTHDH treatment significantly improved the histological features using hematoxylin and eosin (H and E) staining, Masson's trichrome, PAS (periodic acid Schiff), and Toluidine blue staining compared with the DMBA-induced group. The NCHDH and NTHDH treatment improved the hematological and serological parameters following DMBA-induced breast tumor compared with DMBA-induced group. Furthermore, the NCHDH and NTHDH treatment significantly enhanced the antioxidants signaling proteins such as nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and Heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1). The NCHDH and NTHDH enhanced the inhibitor of NF-κB (IκB) level, while it attenuated the NF-κB level. Similarly, the NCHDH and NTHDH showed marked increase in the apoptosis proteins such as Caspase-3, Caspase-9, and Bcl-2 Associated X-protein (Bax), while it inhibited the B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) expression. In conclusion, the NCHDH and NTHDH significantly improved the DMBA-induced breast cancer via attenuating oxidative stress and inflammatory cytokines.

Data-Driven identification of chemopreventive agents for breast cancer

Preclinical animal models of breast cancer provide the opportunity to identify chemopreventive drugs with single-agent activity as well as effective multi-modality regimens for primary as well as secondary prevention in high-risk persons. Our group has used the 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA) mouse model of carcinogen-induced breast cancer to explore the clinical potential of two tyrosine kinase inhibitors and a nucleoside analog as chemopreventive agents. All three agents exhibited promising preclinical activity both as monotherapy and as components of combination therapy with the standard chemotherapy drug paclitaxel. The tumors developing despite chemoprevention were not only small and grew slowly, but they also displayed a uniquely more pro-apoptotic protein expression profile. Hence, our experimental chemopreventive drugs were capable of preventing the development of aggressive mammary gland tumors with an apoptosis-resistant protein expression profile.