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Kuusanmäki H, Kytölä S, Vänttinen I, Ruokoranta T, Ranta A, Huuhtanen J, Suvela M, Parsons A, Holopainen A, Partanen A, Kuusisto MEL, Koskela S, Räty R, Itälä-Remes M, Västrik I, Dufva O, Siitonen S, Porkka K, Wennerberg K, Heckman CA, Ettala P, Pyörälä M, Rimpiläinen J, Siitonen T, Kontro M. Ex vivo venetoclax sensitivity testing predicts treatment response in acute myeloid leukemia. Haematologica 2023; 108:1768-1781. [PMID: 36519325 PMCID: PMC10316276 DOI: 10.3324/haematol.2022.281692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The BCL-2 inhibitor venetoclax has revolutionized the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in patients not benefiting from intensive chemotherapy. Nevertheless, treatment failure remains a challenge, and predictive markers are needed, particularly for relapsed or refractory AML. Ex vivo drug sensitivity testing may correlate with outcomes, but its prospective predictive value remains unexplored. Here we report the results of the first stage of the prospective phase II VenEx trial evaluating the utility and predictiveness of venetoclax sensitivity testing using different cell culture conditions and cell viability assays in patients receiving venetoclax-azacitidine. Participants with de novo AML ineligible for intensive chemotherapy, relapsed or refractory AML, or secondary AML were included. The primary endpoint was the treatment response in participants showing ex vivo sensitivity and the key secondary endpoints were the correlation of sensitivity with responses and survival. Venetoclax sensitivity testing was successful in 38/39 participants. Experimental conditions significantly influenced the predictive accuracy. Blast-specific venetoclax sensitivity measured in conditioned medium most accurately correlated with treatment outcomes; 88% of sensitive participants achieved a treatment response. The median survival was significantly longer for participants who were ex vivo-sensitive to venetoclax (14.6 months for venetoclax-sensitive patients vs. 3.5 for venetoclax-insensitive patients, P<0.001). This analysis illustrates the feasibility of integrating drug-response profiling into clinical practice and demonstrates excellent predictivity. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04267081.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heikki Kuusanmäki
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Biotech Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC), University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; Foundation for the Finnish Cancer Institute, Helsinki
| | - Sari Kytölä
- Department of Hematology, Helsinki University Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki
| | - Ida Vänttinen
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Tanja Ruokoranta
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Amanda Ranta
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Jani Huuhtanen
- Hematology Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Minna Suvela
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Alun Parsons
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | | | - Anu Partanen
- Department of Medicine, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio
| | - Milla E L Kuusisto
- Department of Medicine, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu, Finland; Department of Hematology, University of Oulu, Oulu
| | - Sirpa Koskela
- Department of Internal Medicine, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere
| | - Riikka Räty
- Department of Hematology, Helsinki University Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki
| | | | - Imre Västrik
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Olli Dufva
- Hematology Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Sanna Siitonen
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital
| | - Kimmo Porkka
- Department of Hematology, Helsinki University Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki, Finland; Hematology Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Krister Wennerberg
- Biotech Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC), University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen
| | - Caroline A Heckman
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
| | - Pia Ettala
- Department of Clinical Hematology, Turku University Hospital, Turku
| | - Marja Pyörälä
- Department of Medicine, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio
| | | | - Timo Siitonen
- Department of Medicine, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu
| | - Mika Kontro
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Foundation for the Finnish Cancer Institute, Helsinki, Finland; Department of Hematology, Helsinki University Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki.
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Expression of RUNX1-JAK2 in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Hematopoietic Cells Activates the JAK-STAT and MYC Pathways. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22147576. [PMID: 34299194 PMCID: PMC8304339 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22147576] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
A heterogeneous genetic subtype of B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia is driven by constitutive kinase-activation, including patients with JAK2 fusions. In our study, we model the impact of a novel JAK2 fusion protein on hematopoietic development in human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). We insert the RUNX1-JAK2 fusion into one endogenous RUNX1 allele through employing in trans paired nicking genome editing. Tagging of the fusion with a degron facilitates protein depletion using the heterobifunctional compound dTAG-13. Throughout in vitro hematopoietic differentiation, the expression of RUNX1-JAK2 is driven by endogenous RUNX1 regulatory elements at physiological levels. Functional analysis reveals that RUNX1-JAK2 knock-in cell lines yield fewer hematopoietic progenitors, due to RUNX1 haploinsufficiency. Nevertheless, these progenitors further differentiate toward myeloid lineages to a similar extent as wild-type cells. The expression of the RUNX1-JAK2 fusion protein only elicits subtle effects on myeloid differentiation, and is unable to transform early hematopoietic progenitors. However, phosphoprotein and transcriptome analyses reveal that RUNX1-JAK2 constitutively activates JAK-STAT signaling in differentiating hiPSCs and at the same time upregulates MYC targets—confirming the interaction between these pathways. This proof-of-principle study indicates that conditional expression of oncogenic fusion proteins in combination with hematopoietic differentiation of hiPSCs may be applicable to leukemia-relevant disease modeling.
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Narayanan P, Man TK, Gerbing RB, Ries R, Stevens AM, Wang YC, Long X, Gamis AS, Cooper T, Meshinchi S, Alonzo TA, Redell MS. Aberrantly low STAT3 and STAT5 responses are associated with poor outcome and an inflammatory gene expression signature in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia. Clin Transl Oncol 2021; 23:2141-2154. [PMID: 33948920 PMCID: PMC8390401 DOI: 10.1007/s12094-021-02621-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The relapse rate for children with acute myeloid leukemia is nearly 40% despite aggressive chemotherapy and often stem cell transplant. We sought to understand how environment-induced signaling responses are associated with clinical response to treatment. We previously reported that patients whose AML cells showed low G-CSF-induced STAT3 activation had inferior event-free survival compared to patients with stronger STAT3 responses. Here, we expanded the paradigm to evaluate multiple signaling parameters induced by a more physiological stimulus. We measured STAT3, STAT5 and ERK1/2 responses to G-CSF and to stromal cell-conditioned medium for 113 patients enrolled on COG trials AAML03P1 and AAML0531. Low inducible STAT3 activity was independently associated with inferior event-free survival in multivariate analyses. For inducible STAT5 activity, those with the lowest and highest responses had inferior event-free survival, compared to patients with intermediate STAT5 responses. Using existing RNA-sequencing data, we compared gene expression profiles for patients with low inducible STAT3/5 activation with those for patients with higher inducible STAT3/5 signaling. Genes encoding hematopoietic factors and mitochondrial respiratory chain subunits were overexpressed in the low STAT3/5 response groups, implicating inflammatory and metabolic pathways as potential mechanisms of chemotherapy resistance. We validated the prognostic relevance of individual genes from the low STAT3/5 response signature in a large independent cohort of pediatric AML patients. These findings provide novel insights into interactions between AML cells and the microenvironment that are associated with treatment failure and could be targeted for therapeutic interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Narayanan
- Texas Children's Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - T-K Man
- Texas Children's Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - R B Gerbing
- Children's Oncology Group, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - R Ries
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - A M Stevens
- Texas Children's Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Y-C Wang
- Children's Oncology Group, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - X Long
- Texas Children's Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - A S Gamis
- Children's Mercy Hospital and Clinics, Kansas, MO, USA
| | - T Cooper
- Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - S Meshinchi
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - T A Alonzo
- Children's Oncology Group, Monrovia, CA, USA.,Division of Biostatistics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - M S Redell
- Texas Children's Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
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Rodrigues ACBDC, Costa RGA, Silva SLR, Dias IRSB, Dias RB, Bezerra DP. Cell signaling pathways as molecular targets to eliminate AML stem cells. Crit Rev Oncol Hematol 2021; 160:103277. [PMID: 33716201 DOI: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2021.103277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains the most lethal of leukemias and a small population of cells called leukemic stem cells (LSCs) has been associated with disease relapses. Some cell signaling pathways play an important role in AML survival, proliferation and self-renewal properties and are abnormally activated or suppressed in LSCs. This includes the NF-κB, Wnt/β-catenin, Hedgehog, Notch, EGFR, JAK/STAT, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, TGF/SMAD and PPAR pathways. This review aimed to discuss these pathways as molecular targets for eliminating AML LSCs. Herein, inhibitors/activators of these pathways were summarized as a potential new anti-AML therapy capable of eliminating LSCs to guide future researches. The clinical use of cell signaling pathways data can be useful to enhance the anti-AML therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rafaela G A Costa
- Gonçalo Moniz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (IGM-FIOCRUZ/BA), Salvador, Bahia, 40296-710, Brazil
| | - Suellen L R Silva
- Gonçalo Moniz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (IGM-FIOCRUZ/BA), Salvador, Bahia, 40296-710, Brazil
| | - Ingrid R S B Dias
- Gonçalo Moniz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (IGM-FIOCRUZ/BA), Salvador, Bahia, 40296-710, Brazil
| | - Rosane B Dias
- Gonçalo Moniz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (IGM-FIOCRUZ/BA), Salvador, Bahia, 40296-710, Brazil
| | - Daniel P Bezerra
- Gonçalo Moniz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (IGM-FIOCRUZ/BA), Salvador, Bahia, 40296-710, Brazil.
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Conneely SE, Stevens AM. Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Children: Emerging Paradigms in Genetics and New Approaches to Therapy. Curr Oncol Rep 2021; 23:16. [PMID: 33439382 PMCID: PMC7806552 DOI: 10.1007/s11912-020-01009-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in children remains a challenging disease to cure with suboptimal outcomes particularly when compared to the more common lymphoid leukemias. Recent advances in the genetic characterization of AML have enhanced understanding of individualized patient risk, which has also led to the development of new therapeutic strategies. Here, we review key cytogenetic and molecular features of pediatric AML and how new therapies are being used to improve outcomes. RECENT FINDINGS Recent studies have revealed an increasing number of mutations, including WT1, CBFA2T3-GLIS2, and KAT6A fusions, DEK-NUP214 and NUP98 fusions, and specific KMT2A rearrangements, which are associated with poor outcomes. However, outcomes are starting to improve with the addition of therapies such as gemtuzumab ozogamicin and FLT3 inhibitors, initially developed in adult AML. The combination of advanced risk stratification and ongoing improvements and innovations in treatment strategy will undoubtedly lead to better outcomes for children with AML.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon E Conneely
- Department of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children's Hospital, 6701 Fannin, Suite 1510, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
| | - Alexandra M Stevens
- Department of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children's Hospital, 6701 Fannin, Suite 1510, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
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Morales-Martinez M, Lichtenstein A, Vega MI. Function of Deptor and its roles in hematological malignancies. Aging (Albany NY) 2021; 13:1528-1564. [PMID: 33412518 PMCID: PMC7834987 DOI: 10.18632/aging.202462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2020] [Accepted: 12/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Deptor is a protein that interacts with mTOR and that belongs to the mTORC1 and mTORC2 complexes. Deptor is capable of inhibiting the kinase activity of mTOR. It is well known that the mTOR pathway is involved in various signaling pathways that are involved with various biological processes such as cell growth, apoptosis, autophagy, and the ER stress response. Therefore, Deptor, being a natural inhibitor of mTOR, has become very important in its study. Because of this, it is important to research its role regarding the development and progression of human malignancies, especially in hematologic malignancies. Due to its variation in expression in cancer, it has been suggested that Deptor can act as an oncogene or tumor suppressor depending on the cellular or tissue context. This review discusses recent advances in its transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of Deptor. As well as the advances regarding the activities of Deptor in hematological malignancies, its possible role as a biomarker, and its possible clinical relevance in these malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Morales-Martinez
- Molecular Signal Pathway in Cancer Laboratory, UIMEO, Oncology Hospital, Siglo XXI National Medical Center, IMSS, México City, México
| | - Alan Lichtenstein
- Department of Medicine, Hematology-Oncology Division, Greater Los Angeles VA Healthcare Center, UCLA Medical Center, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
| | - Mario I Vega
- Molecular Signal Pathway in Cancer Laboratory, UIMEO, Oncology Hospital, Siglo XXI National Medical Center, IMSS, México City, México.,Department of Medicine, Hematology-Oncology Division, Greater Los Angeles VA Healthcare Center, UCLA Medical Center, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
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7
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Skånland SS, Karlsen L, Taskén K. B cell signalling pathways-New targets for precision medicine in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Scand J Immunol 2020; 92:e12931. [PMID: 32640099 DOI: 10.1111/sji.12931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/02/2020] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
The B cell receptor (BCR) is a master regulator of B cells, controlling cellular processes such as proliferation, migration and survival. Cell signalling downstream of the BCR is aberrantly activated in the B cell malignancy chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), supporting the pathophysiology of the disease. This insight has led to development and approval of small molecule inhibitors that target components of the BCR pathway. These advances have greatly improved the management of CLL, but the disease remains incurable. This may partly be explained by the inter-patient heterogeneity of the disease, also when it comes to treatment responses. Precision medicine is therefore required to optimize treatment and move towards a cure. Here, we discuss how the introduction of BCR signalling inhibitors has facilitated the development of functional in vitro assays to guide clinical treatment decisions on use of the same therapeutic agents in individual patients. The cellular responses to these agents can be analysed in high-throughput assays such as dynamic BH3 profiling, phospho flow experiments and drug sensitivity screens to identify predictive biomarkers. This progress exemplifies the positive synergy between basal and translational research needed to optimize patient care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sigrid S Skånland
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.,K. G. Jebsen Centre for B Cell Malignancies, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Linda Karlsen
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.,K. G. Jebsen Centre for B Cell Malignancies, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.,Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Kjetil Taskén
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.,K. G. Jebsen Centre for B Cell Malignancies, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.,Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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