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Downes CEJ, McClure BJ, McDougal DP, Heatley SL, Bruning JB, Thomas D, Yeung DT, White DL. JAK2 Alterations in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Molecular Insights for Superior Precision Medicine Strategies. Front Cell Dev Biol 2022; 10:942053. [PMID: 35903543 PMCID: PMC9315936 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.942053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common pediatric cancer, arising from immature lymphocytes that show uncontrolled proliferation and arrested differentiation. Genomic alterations affecting Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) correlate with some of the poorest outcomes within the Philadelphia-like subtype of ALL. Given the success of kinase inhibitors in the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia, the discovery of activating JAK2 point mutations and JAK2 fusion genes in ALL, was a breakthrough for potential targeted therapies. However, the molecular mechanisms by which these alterations activate JAK2 and promote downstream signaling is poorly understood. Furthermore, as clinical data regarding the limitations of approved JAK inhibitors in myeloproliferative disorders matures, there is a growing awareness of the need for alternative precision medicine approaches for specific JAK2 lesions. This review focuses on the molecular mechanisms behind ALL-associated JAK2 mutations and JAK2 fusion genes, known and potential causes of JAK-inhibitor resistance, and how JAK2 alterations could be targeted using alternative and novel rationally designed therapies to guide precision medicine approaches for these high-risk subtypes of ALL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte EJ. Downes
- Blood Cancer Program, Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, SA, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Barbara J. McClure
- Blood Cancer Program, Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Daniel P. McDougal
- School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS), University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Susan L. Heatley
- Blood Cancer Program, Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Australian and New Zealand Children’s Oncology Group (ANZCHOG), Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - John B. Bruning
- School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS), University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Daniel Thomas
- Blood Cancer Program, Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - David T. Yeung
- Blood Cancer Program, Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Department of Haematology, Royal Adelaide Hospital and SA Pathology, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Deborah L. White
- Blood Cancer Program, Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, SA, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- Australian and New Zealand Children’s Oncology Group (ANZCHOG), Clayton, VIC, Australia
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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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Wöss K, Simonović N, Strobl B, Macho-Maschler S, Müller M. TYK2: An Upstream Kinase of STATs in Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2019; 11:E1728. [PMID: 31694222 PMCID: PMC6896190 DOI: 10.3390/cancers11111728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2019] [Revised: 10/28/2019] [Accepted: 11/02/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
In this review we concentrate on the recent findings describing the oncogenic potential of the protein tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2). The overview on the current understanding of TYK2 functions in cytokine responses and carcinogenesis focusses on the activation of the signal transducers and activators of transcription (STAT) 3 and 5. Insight gained from loss-of-function (LOF) gene-modified mice and human patients homozygous for Tyk2/TYK2-mutated alleles established the central role in immunological and inflammatory responses. For the description of physiological TYK2 structure/function relationships in cytokine signaling and of overarching molecular and pathologic properties in carcinogenesis, we mainly refer to the most recent reviews. Dysregulated TYK2 activation, aberrant TYK2 protein levels, and gain-of-function (GOF) TYK2 mutations are found in various cancers. We discuss the molecular consequences thereof and briefly describe the molecular means to counteract TYK2 activity under (patho-)physiological conditions by cellular effectors and by pharmacological intervention. For the role of TYK2 in tumor immune-surveillance we refer to the recent Special Issue of Cancers "JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway in Cancer".
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Mathias Müller
- Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, A-1210 Vienna, Austria; (K.W.); (N.S.); (B.S.); (S.M.-M.)
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