Abstract Cancer remains the main cause of disease-related death in childhood. Pediatric tumors are characterized by a low mutational burden and high intertumoral heterogeneity, with multiple subtypes ...compared to their adult counterparts. The lack of access to many innovative therapies remains one of the main challenges in the pediatric oncology, especially for the 25% of patients who experience relapses. In this context, the need for the development of a well characterized collection of pediatric models, to provide large scale preclinical testing, is capital for the subsequent identification and prioritization of promising novel therapeutic options. The EU funded “Innovative Therapies for Children with Cancer-Pediatric Preclinical Proof-of-Concept Platform” (ITCC-P4) consortium is a unique public-private collaborative project consisting of academic and industrial partners that aimed at establishing a collection of >400 patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models representing the most common high-risk pediatric cancers. The project involved various aspects of model development including the thorough molecular and pharmacological characterization. XenTech’s participation was focused on the development and preclinical in vivo drug testing of Ewing sarcoma (n=17), hepatoblastoma (n=10), rhabdoid tumors (n=6), synovial sarcoma (n=2), rhabdomyosarcoma (n=2) and other tumors (n=6), as part of overall cohort. PDXs were obtained by transplantation of post-surgery tumor specimens, either by grafting tumor fragments into the interscapular region or subcutaneously in the right flank of nude, NOD-Scid or NOD-Scid gamma mice. Tumor xenografts were amplified by serial transplantation, and tissue samples were retained at early passages for molecular characterization. Fragments from established PDX models where frozen to generate a revivable ITCC-P4 PDX collection. Then, proof-of-concept drug testing was conducted, in a single mouse trial format: each tumor type (n=X PDX models) was treated with a dedicated panel of Standard-of-Care (SoC;n=3) and novel targeted therapies (n=6), or combinations of 2 or 3 novel targeted therapies; for each PDX model n=1 mouse being included per treatment. All molecular and drug-testing data obtained by the different partners are being centralized in the R2 repository (https://r2.amc.nl), providing a powerful tool for data integration, visualization and interpretation of the results. A unique collection of well characterized pediatric PDX models derived from the most relevant pediatric tumor types was enabled by a strong public-private collaborative project. This large cohort is now available for preclinical testing of novel therapeutic agents within a non-for-profit spinoff company, ITCC-P4 gGmbH (www.itccp4.com), offering new perspectives to the identification of promising treatment options for children with cancer. Citation Format: Emilie Indersie, Sophie Branchereau, Brice Fresneau, Christophe Chardot, Didier Surdez, Alexandra Saint-Charles, Maria Eugénia Marques da Costa, Ángel M. Carcaboso, Katia Scotlandi, Massimo Moro, Heinrich Kovar, Jan-Henning Klusmann, Klaus-Michael Debatin, Simon Bomken, Louis Chesler, Chris Jones, Beat Schäfer, Marco Wachtel, Johannes Gojo, Walter Berger, Christina Guttke, Maureen Hattersley, Frédéric Colland, Ashley Strougo, Dennis Gürgen, Jens Hoffmann, Julia Schueler, Pablo M. Aviles, María José Guillén, Aniello Federico, Apurva Gopisetty, Justyna Anna Wierzbinska, Andreas Schlicker, Sara Colombetti, Olaf Heidenreich, Fatima Iradier, Nicole Huebener, Natalie Jäger, Jan Koster, Marcel Kool, Gudrun Schleiermacher, Jan J. Molenaar, Birgit Geoerger, David J. Shields, Hubert N. Caron, Louis F. Stancato, Stefan M. Pfister, Gilles Vassal, Eva-Maria Rief, Olivier Déas. ITCC-P4, a preclinical proof-of-concept drug testing platform as a tool for pharmacological screening in pediatric tumor models abstract. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 5469.
The TGIF homoeodomain protein functions as an important negative regulator in the TGF-beta signalling pathway. The inhibitory function of TGIF is executed in part through its ability to sequester the ...tumour suppressor cytoplasmic promyelocytic leukaemia (cPML) in the nucleus, thereby preventing the phosphorylation of Smad2 by the activated TGF-beta type I receptor. Here, we report on the identification of PCTA (PML competitor for TGIF association), a TGIF antagonist that promotes TGF-beta-induced transcriptional and cytostatic responses. We provide evidence that PCTA functions in TGF-beta signalling by relieving the suppression of Smad2 phosphorylation by TGIF. Furthermore, we demonstrate that PCTA selectively competes with cPML for TGIF association, resulting in the accumulation of cPML in the cytoplasm, where it associates with SARA and coordinates the access of Smad2 for phosphorylation by the activated TGF-beta type I receptor. Thus, our findings on the mode of action of PCTA provide new and important insights into the molecular mechanism underlying the antagonistic interplay between TGIF and cPML in the TGF-beta signalling network. PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
Abstract
Cancer represents a leading cause of death by disease in childhood. Pediatric tumors exhibit a high intertumoral heterogeneity, as different tumor types and subtypes have emerged with ...peculiar molecular and clinical features; however, compared to cancer in adults, pediatric tumors are rare and mostly present with lower mutational burden. The lack of specific therapeutic options represents the main current challenge; systematic, multi-disciplinary approaches are required to accelerate drug development and ultimately to find cures for all children with cancer. The EU funded “Innovative Therapies for Children with Cancer–Pediatric Preclinical Proof-of-Concept Project” (ITCC-P4; www.itccp4.eu) consortium consists of a public-private partnership including academic and industrial partners with the goal of developing a large-scale platform comprising >400 patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models representing high-risk pediatric cancers. Currently, this collection of PDX models includes the most common types of pediatric tumors, such as leukemia (n=28), bone and soft-tissue sarcomas (n=154), CNS tumors (n=96) and neuroblastomas (n=38), as well as other rare childhood cancers, such as hepatoblastomas (n=20) and malignant rhabdoid tumors (n=18); PDX models have been generated either from primary (n=206) or relapse (n=118) disease. In order to: a) investigate the biology of the pediatric PDX models in a high-throughput and systematic fashion, b) assess whether they accurately reflect the molecular features of the corresponding primary tumor and, c) identify potential new suitable biomarkers, we performed a comprehensive molecular characterization (whole-exome and low-coverage whole-genome sequencing; DNA methylation profiling; RNAseq and gene expression profiling) of the PDX models, as well as their matching human tumors and germline samples. These data contributed to the stratification of the PDX models based on their mutational status and emerging molecular vulnerabilities to inform in vivo drug testing in all these PDX models. This proof-of-concept drug testing has been conducted defining, for each group of models, a panel of single compounds (SOC n=3; novel targeted therapies, n=6) or combinations (with each other or with chemo- or radiotherapy). All processed molecular and drug-testing data are collected in the consortium´s centralized data repository (https://r2.amc.nl) allowing data downstream analysis, visualization and interpretation. Taken together, the ITCC-P4 sustainable platform represents a validated and powerful tool to investigate the biology of pediatric cancer based on the establishment, characterization and preclinical testing of pediatric cancer PDX models, ultimately envisaged to contribute the development of innovative therapeutic options for childhood cancer patients.
Citation Format: Aniello Federico, Apurva Gopisetty, Didier Surdez, Yasmine Iddir, Alexandra Saint-Charles, Justyna Wierzbinska, Andreas Schlicker, Richard Volckmann, Danny Zwijnenburg, Sara Colombetti, Olaf Heidenreich, Fatima Iradier, Heinrich Kovar, Jan-Henning Klusmann, Klaus-Michael Debatin, Simon Bomken, Christina Guttke, Maureen M. Hattersley, Frédéric Colland, Ashley Strougo, María José Guillén, Louis Chesler, Chris Jones, Maria Eugénia Marques da Costa, Katia Scotlandi, Massimo Moro, Beat Schäfer, Marco Wachtel, Johannes Gojo, Walter Berger, Ángel Montero Carcaboso, Dennis Gürgen, Jens Hoffmann, Emilie Indersie, Stefano Cairo, Julia Schueler, Nicole Huebener, Johannes H. Schulte, Jan J. Molenaar, Birgit Geoerger, David J. Shields, Hubert N. Caron, Gilles Vassal, Lou F. Stancato, Lou F. Stancato, Stefan M. Pfister, Natalie Jäger, Jan Koster, Marcel Kool, Gudrun Schleiermacher. The ITCC-P4 sustainable platform of fully characterized PDXs supports the preclinical proof-of-concept drug testing of high-risk pediatric tumor models. abstract. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 3571.
Functional proteomics is a promising technique for the rational identification of novel therapeutic targets by elucidation of the function of newly identified proteins in disease-relevant cellular ...pathways. Of the recently described high-throughput approaches for analyzing protein–protein interactions, the yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) system has turned out to be one of the most suitable for genome-wide analysis. However, this system presents a challenging technical problem: the high prevalence of false positives and false negatives in datasets due to intrinsic limitations of the technology and the use of a high-throughput, genetic assay. We discuss here the different experimental strategies applied to Y2H assays, their general limitations and advantages. We also address the issue of the contribution of protein interaction mapping to functional biology, especially when combined with complementary genomic and proteomic analyses. Finally, we illustrate how the combination of protein interaction maps with relevant functional assays can provide biological support to large-scale protein interaction datasets and contribute to the identification and validation of potential therapeutic targets.
Myeloid cell leukemia 1 (Mcl-1), an antiapoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family of proteins, whose upregulation when observed in human cancers is associated with high tumor grade, poor survival, and ...resistance to chemotherapy, has emerged as an attractive target for cancer therapy. Here, we report the discovery of selective small molecule inhibitors of Mcl-1 that inhibit cellular activity. Fragment screening identified thienopyrimidine amino acids as promising but nonselective hits that were optimized using nuclear magnetic resonance and X-ray-derived structural information. The introduction of hindered rotation along a biaryl axis has conferred high selectivity to the compounds, and cellular activity was brought on scale by offsetting the negative charge of the anchoring carboxylate group. The obtained compounds described here exhibit nanomolar binding affinity and mechanism-based cellular efficacy, caspase induction, and growth inhibition. These early research efforts illustrate drug discovery optimization from thienopyrimidine hits to a lead compound, the chemical series leading to the identification of our more advanced compounds S63845 and S64315.
Abstract
Regulated protein turnover is primarily controlled by the ubiquitin-proteasome system. The only marketed drug related to the ubiquitin-proteasome system, bortezomib, is acting as a ...proteasome inhibitor and has been approved for the treatment of some hematological cancers. Targeting the upstream ubiquitin conjugation/deconjugation system carries out promises of therapeutics with increased specificity and selectivity. Ubiquitin-specific proteases (USP) are involved in the deubiquitination of specific target substrates regulating their stability, subcellular localization and/or activation status. USP represent a drugable target class due to their thiol-protease catalytic core which is amenable to pharmacological inhibition by small molecules. A genome-wide RNAi screen of the catalytically active human USPs in cancer-relevant cellular models and phenotypic assays allowed us to identify USP7/HAUSP as promising cancer target. Fluorescence-based screening assays using optimized USP substrates including various ubiquitin derivatives (ubiquitin precursor, branched ubiquitin chains) as well as specific, physiological substrates were developed. High-throughput screening performed on our chemically diverse library followed by different optimization programs resulted in the discovery of several series as novel USP7 inhibitors. Our progress made towards the specificity issue will be presented here with the identification of the first USP7-specific series. These will help further validate this novel class of molecular targets and may provide a structural basis for the development of new anticancer drugs.
Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010 because the presenter was unable to attend.
Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} abstract. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2642.
Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) regulates a wide variety of biological processes through two types of Ser/Thr transmembrane receptors: the TGF-β type I receptor and the TGF-β type II receptor ...(TβRII). Upon ligand binding, TGF-β type I receptor activated by TβRII propagates signals to Smad proteins, which mediate the activation of TGF-β target genes. In this study, we identify ADAM12 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase 12) as a component of the TGF-β signaling pathway that acts through association with TβRII. We found that ADAM12 functions by a mechanism independent of its protease activity to facilitate the activation of TGF-β signaling, including the phosphorylation of Smad2, association of Smad2 with Smad4, and transcriptional activation. Furthermore, ADAM12 induces the accumulation of TβRII in early endosomal vesicles and stabilizes the TβRII protein presumably by suppressing the association of TβRII with Smad7. These results define ADAM12 as a new partner of TβRII that facilitates its trafficking to early endosomes in which activation of the Smad pathway is initiated. PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
Listeria monocytogenes is an intracellular pathogen responsible for severe foodborne infections. It can replicate in both phagocytic and nonphagocytic mammalian cells. The infectious process at the ...cellular level has been studied extensively, but how the bacterium overcomes early host innate immune responses remains largely unknown. Here we show that InlC, a member of the internalin family, is secreted intracellularly and directly interacts with IKKα, a subunit of the IκB kinase complex critical for the phosphorylation of IκB and activation of NF-κB, the major regulator of innate immune responses. Infection experiments with WT Listeria or the inlC-deletion mutant and transfection of cells with InlC reveal that InlC expression impairs phosphorylation and consequently delays IκB degradation normally induced by TNF-α, a classical NF-κB stimulator. Moreover, infection of RAW 264.7 macrophages by the inlC mutant leads to increased production of proinflammatory cytokines compared with that obtained with the WT. Finally, in a peritonitis mouse model, we show that infection with the inlC mutant induces increased production of chemokines and increased recruitment of neutrophils in the peritoneal cavity compared with infection with WT. Together, these results demonstrate that InlC, by interacting with IKKα, dampens the host innate response induced by Listeria during the infection process.
osmY is a stationary phase‐induced and osmotically regulated gene in Escherichia coli that requires the stationary phase RNA polymerase (EσS) for in vivo expression. We show here that the major RNA ...polymerase, Eσ70, also transcribes osmY in vitro and, depending on genetic background, even in vivo. The cAMP receptor protein (CRP) bound to cAMP, the leucine‐responsive regulatory protein (Lrp) and the integration host factor (IHF) inhibit transcription initiation at the osmY promoter. The binding site for CRP is centred at −12.5 from the transcription start site, whereas Lrp covers the whole promoter region. The site for IHF maps in the −90 region. By mobility shift assay, permanganate reactivity and in vitro transcription experiments, we show that repression is much stronger with Eσ70 than with EσS holoenzyme. We conclude that CRP, Lrp and IHF inhibit open complex formation more efficiently with Eσ70 than with EσS. This different ability of the two holoenzymes to interact productively with promoters once assembled in complex nucleoprotein structures may be a crucial factor in generating σS selectivity in vivo.
Abstract
Regulated protein turnover is primarily controlled by the ubiquitin-proteasome system. The therapeutic efficacy of the proteasome inhibitor Bortezomib establishes this system as a valid ...anticancer therapeutic field. A promising alternative to targeting the proteasome itself lies upstream, at the level of the ubiquitin conjugation/deconjugation step to generate more specific anticancer agents. Ubiquitin-specific proteases (USP) are involved in the deubiquitination of specific target substrates regulating their stability, subcellular localization and/or activation status. USP represent a druggable target class due to their thiol-protease catalytic core which is amenable to pharmacological inhibition by small molecules. A genome-wide RNAi screen of the catalytically active human USPs in cancer-relevant cellular models and phenotypic assays allowed us to identify USP7/HAUSP and USP8/UBPY as promising cancer targets. Fluorescence-based screening assays using optimized USP substrates including various ubiquitin derivatives (ubiquitin precursor, branched ubiquitin chains) as well as specific, physiological substrates were developed. High-throughput screening performed on our chemically diverse library followed by different optimization programs resulted in the discovery of several series as novel USP inhibitors. Our progress made towards the specificity issue will be presented here with the identification of the first USP8- and USP7-specific series.
Citation Information: Mol Cancer Ther 2009;8(12 Suppl):B193.
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