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Biomedical subjects

G I Shapiro

Publications and source records attributed to G I Shapiro.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

Lurbinectedin, a selective inhibitor of oncogenic transcription, in patients with pretreated germline BRCA1/2 metastatic breast cancer: results from a phase II basket study.

BACKGROUND: Lurbinectedin, a selective inhibitor of oncogenic transcription, has shown preclinical antitumor activity against homologous recombination repair-deficient models and preliminary clinical activity in BRCA1/2 breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This phase II basket multitumor trial (NCT02454972) evaluated lurbinectedin 3.2 mg/m2 1-h intravenous infusion every 3 weeks in a cohort of 21 patients with pretreated germline BRCA1/2 breast cancer. Patients with any hormone receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 status were enrolled. The primary efficacy endpoint was overall response rate (ORR) according to RECIST v1.1. Secondary endpoints included duration of response (DoR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS) and safety. RESULTS: Confirmed partial response (PR) was observed in six patients [ORR = 28.6%; 95% confidence interval (CI) 11.3% to 52.2%] who had received a median of two prior advanced chemotherapy lines. Lurbinectedin was active in both BRCA mutations: four PRs in 11 patients (36.4%) with BRCA2 and two PRs in 10 patients (20.0%) with BRCA1. Median DoR was 8.6 months, median PFS was 4.1 months and median OS was 16.1 months. Stable disease (SD) was observed in 10 patients (47.6%), including 3 with unconfirmed response in a subsequent tumor assessment [ORR unconfirmed = 42.9% (95% CI 21.8% to 66.0%)]. Clinical benefit rate (PR + SD ≥ 4 months) was 76.2% (95% CI 52.8% to 91.8%). No objective response was observed among patients who had received prior poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors. The most common treatment-related adverse events (AEs) were nausea (61.9%), fatigue (38.1%) and vomiting (23.8%). These AEs were mostly grade 1/2. The most common grade 3/4 toxicity was neutropenia (42.9%: grade 4, 23.8%: with no febrile neutropenia). CONCLUSIONS: This phase II study met its primary endpoint and showed activity of lurbinectedin in germline BRCA1/2 breast cancer. Lurbinectedin showed a predictable and manageable safety profile. Considering the exploratory aim of this trial as well as previous results in other phase II studies, further development of lurbinectedin in this indication is warranted.

Humans

p16INK4A participates in a G1 arrest checkpoint in response to DNA damage.

Members of the INK4 protein family specifically inhibit cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (cdk4) and cdk6-mediated phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma susceptibility gene product (Rb). p16INK4A, a prototypic INK4 protein, has been identified as a tumor suppressor in many human cancers. Inactivation of p16INK4A in tumors expressing wild-type Rb is thought to be required in order for many malignant cell types to enter S phase efficiently or to escape senescence. Here, we demonstrate another mechanism of tumor suppression by implicating p16INK4A in a G1 arrest checkpoint in response to DNA damage. Calu-1 non-small cell lung cancer cells, which retain Rb and lack p53, do not arrest in G1 following DNA damage. However, engineered expression of p16INK4A at levels compatible with cell proliferation restores a G1 arrest checkpoint in response to treatment with gamma-irradiation, topoisomerase I and II inhibitors, and cisplatin. A similar checkpoint can be demonstrated in p53-/- fibroblasts that express p16INK4A. DNA damage-induced G1 arrest, which requires the expression of pocket proteins such as Rb, can be abrogated by overexpression of cdk4, kinase-inactive cdk4 variants capable of sequestering p16INK4A, or a cdk4 variant incapable of binding p16INK4A. After exposure to DNA-damaging agents, there was no change either in overall levels of p16INK4A or in amounts of p16INK4A found in complex with cdks 4 and 6. Nonetheless, p16INK4A expression is required for the reduction in cdk4- and cdk6-mediated Rb kinase activity observed in response to DNA damage. During tumor progression, loss of p16INK4A expression may be necessary for cells with wild-type Rb to bypass this G1 arrest checkpoint and attain a fully transformed phenotype.

Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16

Mutation analysis of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor, a ligand for an RET/coreceptor complex, in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 and sporadic neuroendocrine tumors.

Causative germline missense mutations in the RET proto-oncogene have been associated with over 92% of families with the inherited cancer syndrome multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN 2). MEN 2A is characterized primarily by medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) and pheochromocytoma, both tumors of neural crest origin. Parathyroid hyperplasia or adenoma is also seen in MEN 2A, but rarely in MEN 2B, which has additional stigmata, including a marfanoid habitus, mucosal neuromas, and ganglioneuromatosis of the gastrointestinal tract. In familial MTC, MTC is the only lesion present. Somatic RET mutations have also been identified in a subset of sporadic MTCs, pheochromocytomas, and rarely, small cell lung cancer, but not in sporadic parathyroid hyperplasias/adenomas or other neuroendocrine tumors. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and its receptor molecule GDNFR-alpha, have recently been identified as members of the RET ligand binding complex. Therefore, the genes encoding both GDNF and GDNFR-alpha are excellent candidates for a role in the pathogenesis of those MEN 2 families and sporadic neuroendocrine tumors without RET mutations. No mutations were found in the coding region of GDNF in DNA samples from 9 RET mutation negative MEN 2 individuals (comprising 6 distinct families), 12 sporadic MTCs, 17 sporadic cases of parathyroid adenoma, and 10 small cell lung cancer cell lines. Therefore, we find no evidence that mutation within the coding regions of GDNF plays a role in the genesis of MEN 2 and sporadic neuroendocrine tumors.

DNA Mutational Analysis

Multiple mechanisms of p16INK4A inactivation in non-small cell lung cancer cell lines.

p16INK4A, a specific inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinase (cdk)4 and cdk6, is a candidate tumor suppressor in malignancies with wild-type retinoblastoma (Rb). Loss of p16INK4A frees these cdks from inhibition, permitting constitutive phosphorylation of Rb and inactivation of its growth suppressive properties. Consistent with this model, Rb-positive non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) have little or no detectable p16INK4A protein, whereas Rb-negative lung cancers have abundant p16INK4A. However, only some NSCLCs have homozygous deletions or nonsense mutations in a remaining p16INK4A allele, suggesting that other mechanisms must account for absent or low levels of p16INK4A protein. Here, we analyzed 9 Rb-positive NSCLC cell lines for the controls governing p16INK4A activity. Four lines had homozygous deletions of p16INK4A (SK-LU-1, SK-MES-1, A-427, and SW900), and three had a point mutation in a single allele. First, in H520 cells, the previously reported deletion at codon 45 results in a frameshift that produces no detectable protein. Second, in Calu-3 cells, a His to Tyr substitution at codon 83 produced a variant with a shortened half-life that was unable to form complexes with cdk4 or cdk6. Third, in H661 cells, the previously reported point mutation in the second intron splice donor site resulted in a smaller p16INK4A protein. Although this variant formed complexes with cdk4 and cdk6, it had a profoundly reduced half-life, producing low steady-state levels of p16INK4A and abundant levels of free cdks. Finally, Calu-1 and Calu-6 cells transcribed no detectable mRNA encoding authentic p16INK4A. These cell lines displayed methylation of the CpG island surrounding the first exon of p16INK4A and expressed abundant levels of a nontranslated mRNA containing an alternative first exon (E1 beta), as did all other cell lines in which the p16INK4A locus was not deleted. These data indicate that Rb-positive NSCLC cells have evolved a variety of pathways to suppress p16INK4A expression. Reintroduction of p16INK4A into these cell lines by retroviral transfer resulted in a reduced growth rate, increased abundance of hypophosphorylated Rb, accumulation of cells in G1, and a less transformed morphology in Rb-positive, but not Rb-negative cells, suggesting that loss of p16INK4A is essential for maintenance of the transformed phenotype.

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung

A novel p16INK4A transcript.

p16INK4A and p15INK4B were initially identified as potent inhibitors of activated cyclin/cyclin-dependent kinase complexes. These genes were colocalized to chromosome 9p21, and p16 was subsequently found to be mutated in familial melanoma and deleted in a wide variety of sporadic cancers. We recently found that de novo methylation of a 5' CpG island led to transcriptional block of full-length p16 in many neoplasms. However, the presence of a truncated p16 transcript in methylated cell lines led us to investigate the presence of an alternative promoter or initiation site. We have now identified an abundant alternative p16 transcript in both methylated and unmethylated cell lines generated from a novel sequence (exon 1 beta) potentially involved in the complex regulation of these critical cell cycle genes.

Base Sequence

Reciprocal Rb inactivation and p16INK4 expression in primary lung cancers and cell lines.

cdk4-mediated phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma susceptibility protein (Rb) is stimulated by cyclin D1, an oncogene, and inhibited by p16, a candidate tumor suppressor. We examined these proteins in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which is predominantly Rb positive, and small cell lung cancer (SCLC), which is Rb negative. Most NSCLC and SCLC resection specimens and cell lines overexpress cyclin D1 (indicating that cyclin D1 overexpression and Rb inactivation can coexist in SCLC). However, 9 of 9 Rb-positive NSCLC cell lines have absent or low p16, while an Rb-negative NSCLC line and 5 of 5 SCLC cell lines have high levels of p16. In primary resection specimens, p16 was undetectable in 18 of 27 NSCLC samples and abundant in 4 of 5 SCLC samples. Our data confirm the predicted reciprocity between Rb inactivation and p16 expression in a common human malignancy and define differential p16 expression as a fundamental distinction between NSCLC and SCLC.

Blotting, Southern

Influenza virus RNA replication in vitro: synthesis of viral template RNAs and virion RNAs in the absence of an added primer.

The two steps in influenza virus RNA replication are (i) the synthesis of template RNAs, i.e., full-length copies of the virion RNAs, and (ii) the copying of these template RNAs into new virion RNAs. We prepared nuclear extracts from infected HeLa cells that catalyzed both template RNA and virion RNA synthesis in vitro in the absence of an added primer. Antibody depletion experiments implicated nucleocapsid protein molecules not associated with nucleocapsids in template RNA synthesis for antitermination at the polyadenylation site used during viral mRNA synthesis. Experiments with the WSN influenza virus temperature-sensitive mutant ts56 containing a defect in the nucleocapsid protein proved that the nucleocapsid protein was indeed required for template RNA synthesis both in vivo and in vitro. Nuclear extracts prepared from mutant virus-infected cells synthesized template RNA at the permissive temperature but not at the nonpermissive temperature, whereas the synthesis of mRNA-size transcripts was not decreased at the nonpermissive temperature. Antibody depletion experiments showed that nucleocapsid protein molecules not associated with nucleocapsids were also required for the copying of template RNA into virion RNA. In contrast to the situation with the synthesis of transcripts complementary to virion RNA, no discrete termination product(s) were made during virion RNA synthesis in vitro in the absence of nucleocapsid protein molecules.

Capsid

Influenza virus gene expression: control mechanisms at early and late times of infection and nuclear-cytoplasmic transport of virus-specific RNAs.

Single-stranded M13 DNAs specific for various influenza virus genomic segments were used to analyze the synthesis of virus-specific RNAs in infected cells. The results show that influenza virus infection is divided into two distinct phases. During the early phase, the syntheses of specific virion RNAs, viral mRNAs, and viral proteins were coupled. Thus, the NS (nonstructural) virion RNA was preferentially synthesized early, leading to the preferential synthesis of NS1 viral mRNA and NS1 protein; in contrast, M (matrix) RNA synthesis was delayed, leading to the delayed synthesis of M1 viral mRNA and M1 protein. This phase lasted for 2.5 h in BHK-21 cells, the time at which the rate of synthesis of all the viral mRNAs was maximal. During the second phase, the synthesis of all the virion RNAs remained at or near maximum until at least 5.5 h postinfection, whereas the rate of synthesis of all the viral mRNAs declined dramatically. By 4.5 h, the rate of synthesis of all the viral mRNAs was 5% of the maximum rate. Viral mRNA and protein syntheses were also not coupled, as the synthesis of all the viral proteins continued at maximum levels, indicating that protein synthesis during this phase was directed principally by previously synthesized viral mRNAs. Short pulses (3 min) with [3H]uridine and nonaqueous fractionation of cells were used to show that influenza virion RNA synthesis occurred in the nucleus, demonstrating that all virus-specific RNA synthesis was nuclear. Virion RNAs, like viral mRNAs, were efficiently transported to the cytoplasm at both early and late times of infection. In contrast, the full-length transcripts of the virion RNAs, which are the templates for virion RNA synthesis, were sequestered in the nucleus. Thus, the template RNAs, which were synthesized only at early times, remained in the nucleus to direct virion RNA synthesis throughout infection. These results enabled us to present an overall scheme for the control of influenza virus gene expression.

Cell Compartmentation