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Borenäs M, Umapathy G, Lind DE, Lai WY, Guan J, Johansson J, Jennische E, Schmidt A, Kurhe Y, Gabre JL, Aniszewska A, Strömberg A, Bemark M, Hall MN, den Eynden JV, Hallberg B, Palmer RH. ALK signaling primes the DNA damage response sensitizing ALK-driven neuroblastoma to therapeutic ATR inhibition. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2315242121. [PMID: 38154064 PMCID: PMC10769851 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2315242121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023] Open
Abstract
High-risk neuroblastoma (NB) is a significant clinical challenge. MYCN and Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK), which are often involved in high-risk NB, lead to increased replication stress in cancer cells, suggesting therapeutic strategies. We previously identified an ATR (ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related)/ALK inhibitor (ATRi/ALKi) combination as such a strategy in two independent genetically modified mouse NB models. Here, we identify an underlying molecular mechanism, in which ALK signaling leads to phosphorylation of ATR and CHK1, supporting an effective DNA damage response. The importance of ALK inhibition is supported by mouse data, in which ATRi monotreatment resulted in a robust initial response, but subsequent relapse, in contrast to a 14-d ALKi/ATRi combination treatment that resulted in a robust and sustained response. Finally, we show that the remarkable response to the 14-d combined ATR/ALK inhibition protocol reflects a robust differentiation response, reprogramming tumor cells to a neuronal/Schwann cell lineage identity. Our results identify an ability of ATR inhibition to promote NB differentiation and underscore the importance of further exploring combined ALK/ATR inhibition in NB, particularly in high-risk patient groups with oncogene-induced replication stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Borenäs
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Ganesh Umapathy
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Dan E. Lind
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Wei-Yun Lai
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Jikui Guan
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Joel Johansson
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Eva Jennische
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Alexander Schmidt
- Proteomics Core Facility, Biozentrum, Basel University, Basel4056, Switzerland
| | - Yeshwant Kurhe
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Jonatan L. Gabre
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
- Department of Human Structure and Repair, Anatomy and Embryology Unit, Ghent University, Ghent9000, Belgium
| | - Agata Aniszewska
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Anneli Strömberg
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Mats Bemark
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Immunology and Transfusion Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg SE-405 30, Sweden
| | | | - Jimmy Van den Eynden
- Department of Human Structure and Repair, Anatomy and Embryology Unit, Ghent University, Ghent9000, Belgium
| | - Bengt Hallberg
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
| | - Ruth H. Palmer
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, GothenburgSE-405 30, Sweden
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Ariey-Bonnet J, Berges R, Montero MP, Mouysset B, Piris P, Muller K, Pinna G, Failes TW, Arndt GM, Morando P, Baeza-Kallee N, Colin C, Chinot O, Braguer D, Morelli X, André N, Carré M, Tabouret E, Figarella-Branger D, Le Grand M, Pasquier E. Combination drug screen targeting glioblastoma core vulnerabilities reveals pharmacological synergisms. EBioMedicine 2023; 95:104752. [PMID: 37572644 PMCID: PMC10433015 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104752] [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: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pharmacological synergisms are an attractive anticancer strategy. However, with more than 5000 approved-drugs and compounds in clinical development, identifying synergistic treatments represents a major challenge. METHODS High-throughput screening was combined with target deconvolution and functional genomics to reveal targetable vulnerabilities in glioblastoma. The role of the top gene hit was investigated by RNA interference, transcriptomics and immunohistochemistry in glioblastoma patient samples. Drug combination screen using a custom-made library of 88 compounds in association with six inhibitors of the identified glioblastoma vulnerabilities was performed to unveil pharmacological synergisms. Glioblastoma 3D spheroid, organotypic ex vivo and syngeneic orthotopic mouse models were used to validate synergistic treatments. FINDINGS Nine targetable vulnerabilities were identified in glioblastoma and the top gene hit RRM1 was validated as an independent prognostic factor. The associations of CHK1/MEK and AURKA/BET inhibitors were identified as the most potent amongst 528 tested pairwise drug combinations and their efficacy was validated in 3D spheroid models. The high synergism of AURKA/BET dual inhibition was confirmed in ex vivo and in vivo glioblastoma models, without detectable toxicity. INTERPRETATION Our work provides strong pre-clinical evidence of the efficacy of AURKA/BET inhibitor combination in glioblastoma and opens new therapeutic avenues for this unmet medical need. Besides, we established the proof-of-concept of a stepwise approach aiming at exploiting drug poly-pharmacology to unveil druggable cancer vulnerabilities and to fast-track the identification of synergistic combinations against refractory cancers. FUNDING This study was funded by institutional grants and charities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jérémy Ariey-Bonnet
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Raphael Berges
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, UMR 7051, INP, Inst Neurophysiopathol, Marseille, France
| | - Marie-Pierre Montero
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Baptiste Mouysset
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Patricia Piris
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Kevin Muller
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Guillaume Pinna
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, University Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette F-91198, France
| | - Tim W Failes
- Children's Cancer Institute, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; ACRF Drug Discovery Centre for Childhood Cancer, Children's Cancer Institute, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Greg M Arndt
- Children's Cancer Institute, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; ACRF Drug Discovery Centre for Childhood Cancer, Children's Cancer Institute, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Philippe Morando
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, UMR 7051, INP, Inst Neurophysiopathol, Marseille, France
| | - Nathalie Baeza-Kallee
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, UMR 7051, INP, Inst Neurophysiopathol, Marseille, France
| | - Carole Colin
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, UMR 7051, INP, Inst Neurophysiopathol, Marseille, France
| | - Olivier Chinot
- Aix-Marseille University, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Marseille, Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire Timone, Service de Neuro-Oncologie, Marseille, France
| | - Diane Braguer
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, UMR 7051, INP, Inst Neurophysiopathol, Marseille, France
| | - Xavier Morelli
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Nicolas André
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France; Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Department, Hôpital pour Enfant de La Timone, AP-HM, Marseille, France; Metronomics Global Health Initiative, Marseille 13385, France
| | - Manon Carré
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France
| | - Emeline Tabouret
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, UMR 7051, INP, Inst Neurophysiopathol, Marseille, France; Aix-Marseille University, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Marseille, Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire Timone, Service de Neuro-Oncologie, Marseille, France
| | | | - Marion Le Grand
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France.
| | - Eddy Pasquier
- Aix Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Institut Paoli Calmettes, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Marseille, France; Metronomics Global Health Initiative, Marseille 13385, France.
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Ando K, Suenaga Y, Kamijo T. DNA Ligase 4 Contributes to Cell Proliferation against DNA-PK Inhibition in MYCN-Amplified Neuroblastoma IMR32 Cells. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24109012. [PMID: 37240360 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24109012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Revised: 05/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Identifying the vulnerability of altered DNA repair machinery that displays synthetic lethality with MYCN amplification is a therapeutic rationale in unfavourable neuroblastoma. However, none of the inhibitors for DNA repair proteins are established as standard therapy in neuroblastoma. Here, we investigated whether DNA-PK inhibitor (DNA-PKi) could inhibit the proliferation of spheroids derived from neuroblastomas of MYCN transgenic mice and MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cell lines. DNA-PKi exhibited an inhibitory effect on the proliferation of MYCN-driven neuroblastoma spheroids, whereas variable sensitivity was observed in those cell lines. Among them, the accelerated proliferation of IMR32 cells was dependent on DNA ligase 4 (LIG4), which comprises the canonical non-homologous end-joining pathway of DNA repair. Notably, LIG4 was identified as one of the worst prognostic factors in patients with MYCN-amplified neuroblastomas. It may play complementary roles in DNA-PK deficiency, suggesting the therapeutic potential of LIG4 inhibition in combination with DNA-PKi for MYCN-amplified neuroblastomas to overcome resistance to multimodal therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiyohiro Ando
- Research Institute for Clinical Oncology, Saitama Cancer Center, Saitama 362-0806, Japan
| | - Yusuke Suenaga
- Chiba Cancer Center Research Institute, Chiba 260-8717, Japan
| | - Takehiko Kamijo
- Research Institute for Clinical Oncology, Saitama Cancer Center, Saitama 362-0806, Japan
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