Monika Kasprzycka

Oncogenic tyrosine kinase NPM/ALK induces activation of the rapamycin-sensitive mTOR signaling pathway

The mechanisms of cell transformation mediated by the nucleophosmin (NPM)/anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) tyrosine kinase are only partially understood. Here, we report that cell lines and native tissues derived from the NPM/ALK-expressing T-cell lymphoma display persistent activation of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) as determined by phosphorylation of mTOR targets S6rp and 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1). The mTOR activation is serum growth factor-independent but nutrient-dependent. It is also dependent on the expression and enzymatic activity of NPM/ALK as demonstrated by cell transfection with wild-type and functionally deficient NPM/ALK, small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated NPM/ALK depletion and kinase activity suppression using the inhibitor WHI-P154. The NPM/ALK-induced mTOR activation is transduced through the mitogen-induced extracellular kinase (MEK)/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathway and, to a much lesser degree, through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) pathway. Accordingly, whereas the low-dose PI3K inhibitor wortmannin and Akt inhibitor III profoundly inhibited Akt phosphorylation, they had a very modest effect on S6rp and 4E-BP1 phosphorylation. In turn, MEK inhibitors U0126 and PD98059 and siRNA-mediated depletion of either ERK1 or ERK2 inhibited S6rp phosphorylation much more effectively. Finally, the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin markedly decreased proliferation and increased the apoptotic rate of ALK+TCL cells. These findings identify mTOR as a novel key target of NPM/ALK and suggest that mTOR inhibitors may prove effective in therapy of ALK-induced malignancies.

Inhibition of ALK enzymatic activity in T-cell lymphoma cells induces apoptosis and suppresses proliferation and STAT3 phosphorylation independently of Jak3

Aberrant expression of the ALK tyrosine kinase as a chimeric protein with nucleophosmin (NPM) and other partners plays a key role in malignant cell transformation of T-lymphocytes and other cells. Here we report that two small-molecule, structurally related, quinazoline-type compounds, WHI-131 and WHI-154, directly inhibit enzymatic activity of NPM/ALK as demonstrated by in vitro kinase assays using a synthetic tyrosine-rich oligopeptide and the kinase itself as the substrates. The inhibition of NPM/ALK activity resulted in malignant T cells in suppression of their growth, induction of apoptosis and inhibition of tyrosine phosphorylation of STAT3, the key effector of the NPM/ALK-induced oncogenesis. We also show that the STAT3 tyrosine phosphorylation is mediated in the malignant T cells by NPM/ALK independently of Jak3 kinase as evidenced by the presence of STAT3 phosphorylation in the NPM/ALK-transfected BaF3 cells that do not express detectable Jak3 and in the NPM/ALK-positive malignant T cells with either Jak3 activity impaired by a pan-Jak or Jak3-selective inhibitor or Jak3 expression abrogated by Jak3 siRNA. The above results represent the ‘proof-of-principle’ experiments with regard to the ALK enzymatic activity as an attractive therapeutic target in T-cell lymphomas and other malignancies that express the kinase in an active form.

Activation of mammalian target of rapamycin in transformed B lymphocytes is nutrient dependent but independent of Akt, mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase kinase, insulin growth factor-I, and serum.

The study examines the preponderance and mechanism of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) activation in three distinct types of transformed B lymphocytes that differ in expression of the EBV genome. All three types [EBV-immortalized cells that express a broad spectrum of the virus-encoded genes (type III latency; EBV+/III), EBV-positive cells that express only a subset of the EBV-encoded genes (EBV+/I), and EBV-negative, germinal center-derived cells (EBV-)] universally displayed activation of the mTOR signaling pathway. However, only the EBV+/III transformed B cells displayed also activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway that is considered to be the key activator of mTOR and of the mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) kinase (MEK)/ERK pathway that coactivates one of the immediate targets of mTOR, p70 S6K1. Activation of the PI3K/Akt and MEK/ERK, but not of the mTOR pathway, was inhibited by serum withdrawal and restored by insulin growth factor-I. In contrast, activation of mTOR, but not PI3K/Akt and MEK/ERK, was sensitive to nutrient depletion. Both direct Akt (Akt inhibitors I-III) and a PI3K inhibitor (wortmannin at 1 nmol/L) suppressed Akt phosphorylation without significantly affecting mTOR activation. Furthermore, rapamycin, a potent and specific mTOR inhibitor, suppressed profoundly proliferation of cells from all three types of transformed B cells. U0126, a MEK inhibitor, had a moderate antiproliferative effect only on the EBV+/III cells. These results indicate that mTOR kinase activation is mediated in the transformed B cells by the mechanism(s) independent of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. They also suggest that inhibition of mTOR signaling might be effective in therapy of the large spectrum of B-cell lymphomas.

Oncogenic tyrosine kinase NPM/ALK induces activation of the MEK/ ERK signaling pathway independently of c-Raf

The mechanisms of cell transformation mediated by the highly oncogenic, chimeric NPM/ALK tyrosine kinase remain only partially understood. Here we report that cell lines and native tissues derived from the NPM/ALK-expressing T-cell lymphoma (ALK+ TCL) display phosphorylation of the extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK) 1/2 complex. Transfection of BaF3 cells with NPM/ALK induces phosphorylation of EKR1/2 and of its direct activator mitogen-induced extracellular kinase (MEK) 1/2. Depletion of NPM/ALK by small interfering RNA (siRNA) or its inhibition by WHI-154 abrogates the MEK1/2 and ERK1/2 phosphorylation. The NPM/ALK-induced MEK/ERK activation is independent of c-Raf as evidenced by the lack of MEK1/2 and ERK1/2 phosphorylation upon c-Raf inactivation by two different inhibitors, RI and ZM336372, and by its siRNA-mediated depletion. In contrast, ERK1/2 activation is strictly MEK1/2 dependent as shown by suppression of the ERK1/2 phosphorylation by the MEK1/2 inhibitor U0126. The U0126-mediated inhibition of ERK1/2 activation impaired proliferation and viability of the ALK+ TCL cells and expression of antiapoptotic factor Bcl-xL and cell cycle-promoting CDK4 and phospho-RB. Finally, siRNA-mediated depletion of both ERK1 and ERK2 inhibited cell proliferation, whereas depletion of ERK 1 (but not ERK2) markedly increased cell apoptosis. These findings identify MEK/ERK as a new signaling pathway activated by NPM/ALK and indicate that the pathway represents a novel therapeutic target in the ALK-induced malignancies.

Differential Effects of Interleukin-2 and Interleukin-15 versus Interleukin-21 on CD4+ Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma Cells

In this study, we compared the effects of interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-15, and IL-21 on gene expression, activation of cell signaling pathways, and functional properties of cells derived from CD4+ cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). Whereas both IL-2 and IL-15 modulated, in a CTCL cell line, the expression of >1,000 gene transcripts by at least 2-fold, IL-21 up-regulated <40 genes. All three cytokines induced tyrosine phosphorylation of Jak1 and Jak3 in CTCL cell lines and native leukemic (Sezary) cells. However, only IL-2 and IL-15 strongly activated signal transducers and activators of transcription 5, phosphoinositide 3-kinase/Akt, and mitogen-activated protein/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) kinase/ERK signaling pathways in the cell lines and mitogen-primed native cells. In contrast, IL-21 selectively activated signal transducers and activators of transcription 3. Whereas all three cytokines protected CTCL cells from apoptosis, only IL-2 and IL-15 promoted their proliferation. The effects of the cytokine stimulation were Jak3 kinase- and Jak1 kinase- dependent. These findings document the vastly different effect of IL-2 and IL-15 versus IL-21 on CTCL cells. They also suggest two novel therapeutic approaches to CTCL and, possibly, other CD4+ T-cell lymphomas: inhibition of the Jak1/Jak3 kinase complex and, given the known strong immunostimulatory properties of IL-21 on CD8+ T, natural killer, and B cells, application of this cytokine to boost an immune response against malignant CD4+ T cells.

γc-Signaling Cytokines Induce a Regulatory T Cell Phenotype in Malignant CD4+ T Lymphocytes

In this study, we demonstrate that malignant mature CD4+ T lymphocytes derived from cutaneous T cell lymphomas (CTCL) variably display some aspects of the T regulatory phenotype. Whereas seven cell lines representing a spectrum of primary cutaneous T cell lymphoproliferative disorders expressed CD25 and TGF-β, the expression of FOXP3 and, to a lesser degree, IL-10 was restricted to two CTCL cell lines that are dependent on exogeneous IL-2. IL-2, IL-15, and IL-21, all of which signals through receptors containing the common γ chain, induced expression of IL-10 in the IL-2-dependent cell lines as well as primary leukemic CTCL cells. However, only IL-2 and IL-15, but not IL-21, induced expression of FOXP3. The IL-2-triggered induction of IL-10 and FOXP3 expression occurred by signaling through STAT3 and STAT5, respectively. Immunohistochemical analysis of the CTCL tissues revealed that FOXP3-expressing cells were common among the CD7-negative enlarged atypical and small lymphocytes at the early skin patch and plaque stages. Their frequency was profoundly diminished at the tumor stage and in the CTCL lymph node lesions with or without large cell transformation. These results indicate that the T regulatory cell features are induced in CTCL T cells by common γ chain signaling cytokines such as IL-2 and do not represent a fully predetermined, constitutive phenotype independent of the local environmental stimuli to which these malignant mature CD4+ T cells become exposed.

Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK)-Induced Malignancies: Novel Mechanisms of Cell Transformation and Potential Therapeutic Approaches

Among the many oncogenic variants of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK), nucleophosmin 1 (NPM)/ALK fusion protein expressed in the subset of T-cell lymphoma (ALK(+)TCL) is currently the best characterized. NPM/ALK activates several signal transduction pathways, including PI3K/AKT, MEK/ERK, mTORC1, STAT3, and STAT5b. In turn, the pathways modulate expression and function of many genes and proteins involved in the key cellular functions such as proliferation, growth, survival, metabolism, and angiogenesis. Recent data indicate that NPM/ALK also promotes immune evasion of the ALK(+)TCL by inducing through STAT3 activation the expression of immunosuppressive cytokines interleukin-10 (IL-10) and transforming growth factor-beta (TGFss) and cell surface protein CD274 (PD-L1, B7-H1). In addition, NPM/ALK protects its own expression by mediating via STAT3 and at least one member of the DNA methyltransferase family DNMT1 epigenetic silencing of the SHP-1 and STAT5a genes. In ALK+TCL cells, SHP-1 and STAT5a proteins act as potent tumor suppressors by promoting degradation of the NPM/ALK protein and inhibiting expression of the NPM/ALK gene, respectively. These findings provide further rationale to therapeutically target ALK and its effector proteins, foremost STAT3. They also suggest that immunotherapeutic approaches to ALK(+)TCL and, possibly, other ALK-driven malignancies may require inhibition of ALK and STAT3 to achieve the optimal clinical efficacy.

PU.1 Activates Transcription of SHP-1 Gene in Hematopoietic Cells

Protein-tyrosine phosphatase SHP-1 is the key negative regulator of numerous signaling pathways. SHP-1 is expressed in the hematopietic and epithelial cells as two structurally similar mRNA transcripts controlled by two different promoters designated P2 and P1, respectively. Whereas the transcriptional regulation of the SHP-1 gene P1 promoter has been partially elucidated, the structure and functional control of the P2 promoter remain unknown despite the critical role played by SHP-1 in the normal and malignant lymphoid and other hematopoetic cells. Using luciferase reporter assays with the set of constructs that contained a gradually truncated intron 1 of the SHP-1 gene, we identified the minimal (<120 bp) fragment that is able to fully activate expression of the reporter gene. Furthermore, we found that PU.1 (a member of the Ets transcription factor family that plays a crucial role in differentiation and function of the lymphoid and myeloid cells) binds to the identified P2 promoter both in vitro and in vivo. PU.1 also activates the promoter in the sequence specific manner and is critical for its expression as evidenced by the profound supression of the SHP-1 gene transcription upon the siRNA-mediated depletion of PU.1. These findings provide an insight into the structure of the hematopoietic cell-specific P2 promoter of the SHP-1 gene and identify PU.1 as the transcriptional activator of the P2 promoter.

Activation of mTORC1 Signaling Pathway in AIDS-Related Lymphomas

Using immunohistochemistry with antibodies against the phosphoserine residues in both S6rp and 4E binding protein 1, we identified the activation of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTORC)1 pathway in 29 cases of AIDS-related lymphoma. These cases represented a diverse spectrum of histological types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (24 cases) and classic Hodgkin lymphoma (five cases). mTORC1 was also activated in the hyperplastic but not involuted follicles of HIV-associated lymphadenopathy in eight cases, supporting the notion that mTORC1 activation is a common feature of transformed lymphocytes irrespective of either their reactive or malignant phenotype. We also found that in B-cell lines that represent diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, Burkitt lymphoma, Epstein-Barr virus-infected lymphocytes, and human herpesvirus 8-positive primary effusion lymphoma, inhibitors of Syk, MEK, and, seemingly, phosphoinositide 3 kinases suppressed mTORC1 activation, in particular when these inhibitors were used in combination. These findings indicate that AIDS-related lymphoma and other histologically similar types of lymphomas that are derived from transformed B lymphocytes may display clinical responses to inhibitors that directly target mTORC1 or, possibly, upstream activators of the mTORC1 pathway.