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Chen YC, Gowda K, Amin S, Schell TD, Sharma AK, Robertson GP. Pharmacological agents targeting drug-tolerant persister cells in cancer. Pharmacol Res 2024; 203:107163. [PMID: 38569982 DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2024.107163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2023] [Revised: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Current cancer therapy can be effective, but the development of drug resistant disease is the usual outcome. These drugs can eliminate most of the tumor burden but often fail to eliminate the rare, "Drug Tolerant Persister" (DTP) cell subpopulations in residual tumors, which can be referred to as "Persister" cells. Therefore, novel therapeutic agents specifically targeting or preventing the development of drug-resistant tumors mediated by the remaining persister cells subpopulations are needed. Since approximately ninety percent of cancer-related deaths occur because of the eventual development of drug resistance, identifying, and dissecting the biology of the persister cells is essential for the creation of drugs to target them. While there remains uncertainty surrounding all the markers identifying DTP cells in the literature, this review summarizes the drugs and therapeutic approaches that are available to target the persister cell subpopulations expressing the cellular markers ATP-binding cassette sub-family B member 5 (ABCB5), CD133, CD271, Lysine-specific histone demethylase 5 (KDM5), and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH). Persister cells expressing these markers were selected as the focus of this review because they have been found on cells surviving following drug treatments that promote recurrent drug resistant cancer and are associated with stem cell-like properties, including self-renewal, differentiation, and resistance to therapy. The limitations and obstacles facing the development of agents targeting these DTP cell subpopulations are detailed, with discussion of potential solutions and current research areas needing further exploration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Chi Chen
- Department of Pharmacology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Krishne Gowda
- Department of Pharmacology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Shantu Amin
- Department of Pharmacology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Todd D Schell
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Arun K Sharma
- Department of Pharmacology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Gavin P Robertson
- Department of Pharmacology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA; Department of Pathology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA; Department of Dermatology, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA; Department of Surgery, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA; The Pennsylvania State University Melanoma and Skin Cancer Center, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA; Penn State Melanoma Therapeutics Program, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA.
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Reddi KK, Guruvaiah P, Edwards YJK, Gupta R. Changes in the Transcriptome and Chromatin Landscape in BRAFi-Resistant Melanoma Cells. Front Oncol 2022; 12:937831. [PMID: 35785205 PMCID: PMC9247198 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.937831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Metastatic and drug-resistant melanoma are leading causes of skin cancer-associated death. Mitogen-associated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway inhibitors and immunotherapies have provided substantial benefits to patients with melanoma. However, long-term therapeutic efficacy has been limited due to emergence of treatment resistance. Despite the identification of several molecular mechanisms underlying the development of resistant phenotypes, significant progress has still not been made toward the effective treatment of drug-resistant melanoma. Therefore, the identification of new targets and mechanisms driving drug resistance in melanoma represents an unmet medical need. In this study, we performed unbiased RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) and assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with sequencing (ATAC-seq) to identify new targets and mechanisms that drive resistance to MAPK pathway inhibitors targeting BRAF and MAPK kinase (MEK) in BRAF-mutant melanoma cells. An integrative analysis of ATAC-seq combined with RNA-seq showed that global changes in chromatin accessibility affected the mRNA expression levels of several known and novel genes, which consequently modulated multiple oncogenic signaling pathways to promote resistance to MAPK pathway inhibitors in melanoma cells. Many of these genes were also associated with prognosis predictions in melanoma patients. This study resulted in the identification of new genes and signaling pathways that might be targeted to treat MEK or BRAF inhibitors resistant melanoma patients. The present study applied new and advanced approaches to identify unique changes in chromatin accessibility regions that modulate gene expression associated with pathways to promote the development of resistance to MAPK pathway inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiran Kumar Reddi
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
| | - Praveen Guruvaiah
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
| | - Yvonne J. K. Edwards
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
| | - Romi Gupta
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
- O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
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