herbimycin and Leukemia--Myeloid

Fusion gene products such as PML-RARalpha and BCR-ABL generated by leukemia-specific chromosomal translocations have been identified as target molecules for the treatment of leukemia. Here we describe one possibility for extending the frontier of mechanism-based medicine for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). FLT3, a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) preferentially expressed in hematopoietic progenitor cells, frequently has a gain-of-function mutation in AML. To search for FLT3-targeted compounds, we screened the growth-inhibitory effects of several tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) on mutant FLT3-transformed 32D cells. Herbimycin A at a concentration of 0.1 microM markedly inhibited the growth of the transfectants but at that concentration was ineffective in parental 32D cells. It suppressed the constitutive tyrosine phosphorylation of the mutant FLT3, but not the phosphorylation of the ligand-stimulated wild-type FLT3. In mice transplanted with transformed 32D cells, the administration of herbimycin A completely prevented leukemia progression. Recent studies have indicated that herbimycin A binds directly with HSP90, a molecular chaperone, and destabilizes HSP90-associated proteins. Another HSP90 inhibitor, radicicol, also induced apoptosis selectively in transformed 32D cells. HSP90 is a promising target for the treatment of AML with mutant FLT3.

Topics: Acute Disease; Animals; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic; Benzoquinones; Enzyme Inhibitors; fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3; HSP90 Heat-Shock Proteins; Humans; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; Mice; Mutation; Phosphorylation; Proto-Oncogene Proteins; Quinones; Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Rifabutin

The chronic myelogenous leukemic K562 cell line carrying Bcr-Abl tyrosine kinase is considered as pluripotent hematopoietic progenitor cells expressing markers for erythroid, granulocytic, monocytic, and megakaryocytic lineages. Here we investigated the signaling modulations required for induction of erythroid differentiation of K562 cells. When the K562 cells were treated with herbimycin A (an inhibitor of protein tyrosine kinase), ras antisense oligonucleotide, and PD98059 (a specific inhibitor of MEK), inhibition of ERK/MAPK activity and cell growth, and induction of erythroid differentiation were observed. The ras mutant, pZIPRas61leu-transfected cells, K562-Ras61leu, have shown a markedly decreased cell proliferation rate with approximately 2-fold doubling time, compared with the parental K562 cells, and about 60% of these cells have shown the phenotype of erythroid differentiation. In addition, herbimycin A inhibited the growth rate and increased the erythroid differentiation, but did not affect the elevated activity of ERK/MAPK in the K562-Ras61leu cells. On the other hand, effects of PD98059 on the growth and differentiation of K562-Ras61leu cells were biphasic. At low concentration of PD98059, which inhibited the elevated activity of ERK/MAPK to the level of parental cells, the growth rate increased and the erythroid differentiation decreased slightly, and at high concentration of PD98059, which inhibited the elevated activity of ERK/MAPK below that of the parental cells, the growth rate turned down and the erythroid differentiation was restored to the untreated control level. Taken together, these results suggest that an appropriate activity of ERK/MAPK is required to maintain the rapid growth and transformed phenotype of K562 cells.

Topics: Androstadienes; Benzoquinones; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases; Cell Differentiation; Enzyme Inhibitors; Erythroid Precursor Cells; Erythropoiesis; Flavonoids; Humans; K562 Cells; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; Oligonucleotides, Antisense; Quinones; ras Proteins; Rifabutin; Wortmannin

When a human myeloid cell line, U937, was incubated with etoposide (10 micrograms/mL), morphologically apoptotic cells first appeared at 3 hr and increased with time to 50% at 6 hr. Pretreatment of U937 cells for 30 min with a potent tyrosine kinase inhibitor, herbimycin A (10 microM), significantly suppressed the appearance of apoptotic morphological changes. Concomitantly, herbimycin A pretreatment prevented both high molecular weight and internucleosomal DNA fragmentation induced by etoposide. Two major bands at 30 and 66 kDa with enhanced tyrosine phosphorylation inhibited by herbimycin A were detectable after 30 min of incubation with etoposide. In addition, herbimycin A prevented etoposide-induced NF-kappa B activation. The expressions of Bcl-2 and Bax, on the other hand, were not affected by herbimycin A pretreatment. Herbimycin A was also found to inhibit 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine-induced apoptotic changes and NF-kappa B activation. These results suggest that activation of tyrosine kinase(s) may play an important role in apoptotic processes induced by a variety of anti-cancer drugs.

Topics: Apoptosis; bcl-2-Associated X Protein; Benzoquinones; Cytarabine; DNA Fragmentation; Etoposide; Humans; Kinetics; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; NF-kappa B; Phosphorylation; Phosphotyrosine; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Proto-Oncogene Proteins; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; Quinones; Rifabutin; Tumor Cells, Cultured

We have examined the differentiation-inducing effects of ONO-4007, a new synthetic lipid A derivative with low endotoxic activities, on a rat myelomonocytic cell line, c-WRT-7, in vitro and in vivo. ONO-4007 induced the differentiation of c-WRT-7 cells into macrophage-like cells and inhibited the proliferation of c-WRT-7 cells in vitro. Stimulation with ONO-4007 induced messenger RNA expression of interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha), IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), which have been reported to induce differentiation of several leukemia cell lines. However, autocrine production of these cytokines may not be involved in the mechanisms of differentiation induced by ONO-4007, because the treatment with IL-1 alpha, IL-6, or TNF-alpha does not induce the differentiation of c-WRT-7 cells. In vivo treatment by intravenous administration of ONO-4007 resulted in a significant prolongation of survival time of the rats inoculated intravenously with c-WRT-7 cells compared with that of untreated rats. These results suggest that ONO-4007 can be therapeutically useful for the treatment of leukemia.

Topics: Alkaloids; Animals; Base Sequence; Benzoquinones; Calmodulin; Cell Division; Cell Transformation, Neoplastic; In Vitro Techniques; Interleukin-1; Interleukin-6; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; Lipid A; Molecular Sequence Data; Protein Kinase C; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Quinones; Rats; Rifabutin; RNA, Messenger; Staurosporine; Sulfonamides; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

We have investigated the role of protein tyrosine phosphorylation in transmembrane signaling via the IgG receptors Fc gamma RI and Fc gamma RII in the human monocytic cell line THP-1. Fc gamma RI and Fc gamma RII were selectively engaged using the anti-Fc gamma RI mAb 197 (IgG2a) and the anti-Fc gamma RII mAb IV.3 (IgG2b). Addition to cells of mAb 197, but not addition of IgG2a mAb of irrelevant specificity, resulted in the rapid induction of cytoplasmic protein tyrosine phosphorylation as assessed by antiphosphotyrosine immunoblotting. A similar pattern of tyrosine phosphorylation was induced by mAb IV.3, but not by control IgG2b mAb. The induction of tyrosine phosphorylation by anti-Fc gamma R mAb was not dependent on antibody Fc region-FcR interactions, because tyrosine phosphorylation was also induced by cross-linked anti-Fc gamma RI F(ab')2 fragments and by cross-linked anti-Fc gamma RII Fab fragments. To investigate the relationship of Fc gamma R-induced tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of phospholipase C, which is known to follow Fc gamma R engagement, we assessed the effect of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor herbimycin A on Fc gamma R-induced Ca2+ flux. Herbimycin A strongly inhibited cellular Ca2+ flux induced by mAb 197, but did not inhibit Ca2+ flux induced by aluminum fluoride, suggesting that tyrosine phosphorylation may be important in regulating Fc gamma R-mediated activation of phospholipase C. Consistent with this, mAb 197 induced rapid phosphorylation of the gamma-1 isoform of phospholipase C. Finally, herbimycin A strongly inhibited the induction of TNF-alpha mRNA accumulation by Fc gamma R cross-linking. These results suggest that protein tyrosine phosphorylation may play an important role in the activation of phospholipase C and in the induction of monokine gene expression that follows engagement of Fc gamma R in human monocytes.

Topics: Antibodies, Monoclonal; Antigens, Differentiation; Benzoquinones; Calcium; Humans; Immunoglobulin G; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; Monocytes; Phosphorylation; Quinones; Receptors, Fc; Receptors, IgG; Rifabutin; RNA, Messenger; Signal Transduction; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; Type C Phospholipases; Tyrosine

Herbimycin A, a benzoquinonoid ansamycin antibiotic, reduces intracellular phosphorylation by some tyrosine kinases, including v-abl. The mouse megakaryoblastic cell line C1 expresses v-abl protein at high levels. Herbimycin A at about 20 ng/ml caused 50% inhibition of growth of C1 cells but at 100 ng/ml scarcely affected the growth of another mouse leukemia cell line, M1 cells, or of normal bone marrow cells. Injection of 10(6) C1 cells into nude mice resulted in death of all the mice within 30 days. Administration of herbimycin A significantly enhanced the survival of mice inoculated with C1 cells but scarcely affected the survival of mice inoculated with M1 cells. These results suggest that herbimycin A and/or related compounds may be useful for treatment of some types of leukemia in which tyrosine kinase activity is implicated as a determinant of the oncogenic state.

Topics: Animals; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic; Benzoquinones; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; Female; Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; Genes, abl; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Nude; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Quinones; Rifabutin

The human chronic myelogenous leukemia cell line K562 expresses a structurally altered c-abl protein with tyrosine kinase activity. Erythroid differentiation of K562 cells was induced by tyrosine kinase inhibitors, but not by other kinase inhibitors. Treatment of K562 cells with 5'd(TACTGGCCGCTG-AAGGGC)3', complementary to the second exon (codons 2 to 7) of c-abl mRNA, inhibited cell growth and induced benzidine-positive cells in a dose-dependent manner. However, exposure to the sense oligomer did not induce erythroid differentiation of the cells. These results suggest that inhibition of abl tyrosine kinase activity is closely related to induction of erythroid differentiation of K562 cells. A multidrug-resistant subline (K562R) was induced to undergo erythroid differentiation by tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as genistein or herbimycin A as effectively as the parent K562 cells were. Therefore, tyrosine kinase inhibitors might be useful as cancer chemotherapeutic agents against some multidrug-resistant leukemias having abnormally high activity of oncogene tyrosine kinase(s).

Topics: Alkaloids; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic; Azepines; Benzoquinones; Cell Differentiation; Cell Division; Dactinomycin; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Doxorubicin; Erythrocytes; Genes, abl; Genistein; Humans; Hydroquinones; In Vitro Techniques; Isoflavones; Lactams, Macrocyclic; Leukemia, Myeloid; Myosin-Light-Chain Kinase; Oligonucleotides, Antisense; Protein Kinase Inhibitors; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-abl; Quinones; Rifabutin; RNA, Messenger; Sphingosine; Staurosporine