BRD-7389

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the fourth most common cause of cancer-related death in the United States. PDAC is difficult to manage effectively, with a five-year survival rate of only 5%. PDAC is largely driven by activating KRAS mutations, and as such, cannot be directly targeted with therapeutic agents that affect the activated protein. Instead, inhibition of downstream signaling and other targets will be necessary to effectively manage PDAC. Here, we describe a tiered single-agent and combination compound screen to identify targeted agents that impair growth of a panel of PDAC cell lines. Several of the combinations identified from the screen were further validated for efficacy and mechanism. Combination of the bromodomain inhibitor JQ1 and the neddylation inhibitor MLN4294 altered the production of reactive oxygen species in PDAC cells, ultimately leading to defects in the DNA damage response. Dual bromodomain/neddylation blockade inhibited in vivo growth of PDAC cell line xenografts. Overall, this work revealed novel combinatorial regimens, including JQ1 plus MLN4294, which show promise for the treatment of RAS-driven PDAC. Mol Cancer Ther; 16(6); 1041–53. ©2017 AACR.

The ribosomal S6 protein kinase (RSK) family is an important effector of extracellular signal-regulated kinase/mitogen-activated protein kinase (ERK/MAPK) that could influence tumour metastasis by phosphorylating proteins in both the nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments. Aberrant expression of RSK is evident in certain malignancies but the role played by RSK in breast cancer is still not clear. This study aimed to examine the expression of RSK in human breast cancer specimens and its role to breast cancer metastasis.

The expression of RSK1 to -3 were separately examined in human breast cancer tissues (normal, n=33; cancer, n=112) using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR) and immunohistochemistry. Migration and adhesion of breast cancer cells treated with the RSK inhibitor SL0101 were investigated by electric cell impedance sensing (ECIS). The effect on growth and invasion of RSK1-3 was then investigated using in vitro models.

The clinical data and immunohistochemistry revealed that expression of RSK1 and RSK3 were less in tumour tissues than normal. mRNA expression of RSK2 was negatively correlated with grade, TNM staging, and survival rate. SL0101 inhibited adhesion of the MCF-7 and MDA-231 breast cancer cell lines. SL0101 suppressed MDA-231 invasion and the alternate RSK inhibitor BRD7389 inhibited the invasion of MCF-7 and MDA-231 cells.

RSK1 and 3 but not RSK2 are down-regulated in breast tumour and are associated with disease progression. RSK may be a key component in the progression and metastasis of breast cancer.