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Study Finds Key to Drug Resistance.

Article / Review by on January 4, 2012 – 8:18 pmNo Comments

Study Finds Key to Drug Resistance

Sophisticated “targeted” drug therapies are improving cancer care by selectively shutting down abnormal growth switches in tumor cells while avoiding toxicity to normal tissues. In some cases, though, tumors that are initially sensitive to these drugs first regress but then activate different, “backup” genetic signals that enable them to circumvent the therapy.

Jean Zhao, HMS associate professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

A new discovery by Jean Zhao, HMS associate professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and colleagues may help physicians predict which tumors are likely to become resistant to a given drug, and identify the secondary pathways they are activating to escape the original therapy.

The discovery could lead to tests of a patient’s tumor that would tell doctors they need to utilize an additional drug during therapy to block tumor growth via the secondary gene abnormality.

“We are trying to be a step ahead so we can inform the scientists conducting the clinical trials of what to expect,” explained Zhao. “If we can identify potential drug resistance mechanisms, we can more rapidly design combination drug therapies to overcome the resistance.”

In the report, published by Nature Medicine, researchers described how they created a genetically engineered mouse model of human breast cancer in which the most frequently occurring breast cancer “oncogene,” PIK3CA, could be turned on and off.

Surprisingly, the researchers found that while all of the PIK3CA oncogene-induced breast tumors initially shrank following inhibition of the oncogene, a large fraction of tumors shrank partially and then later resumed growth. Moreover, about half of these recurrent tumors did not respond to PI3K inhibitors currently in clinical trails for cancer therapy, meaning the cancer cells were no longer dependent on the PI3K pathway to survive.

The scientists performed genomic and genetic analyses on a large collection of recurrent tumors and found that about 30 percent of recurrent tumors have either an increased copy number or higher expression levels of another common oncogene known as c-MYC, which is independent of the PI3K pathway. These tumors were not sensitive to PI3K inhibitor treatment. When the researchers used a molecular tool to block c-MYC activity, it suppressed the growth of these recurrent tumors.

More importantly, the researchers analyzed multiple samples of human breast tumors, revealing that more than 30 percent of those tumors that carry the PIK3CA mutation also contained high levels of c-MYC.

At this time there aren’t good drugs to block c-MYC in cancer, Zhao noted. Nevertheless, she said the experimental results suggest it would be useful to test patients’ breast cancers for c-MYC when they’re being treated with PI3K inhibitors to alert doctors to the likelihood of tumor recurrence.

And eventually, Zhao added, “I’m optimistic that we can overcome tumor resistance caused by increased c-MYC abundance.”

The research was funded by a grant to the Stand Up to Cancer PI3K Dream Team, led by Lewis Cantley, HMS professor of systems biology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Cantley commented, “This is a signature paper from our Stand Up to Cancer PI3K Dream Team and serves as an example of how genetically engineered mouse models can provide a powerful framework for identifying mechanisms that circumvent oncoprotein inhibition.  Understanding this mechanism will greatly improve development of targeted therapy.”

As a measure of the journal article’s importance, it has been picked for inclusion in a library of the top 2 percent of published articles in biology and medicine by The Faculty of 1,000, an organization of scientists that evaluates biomedical publications.

By Richard Saltus

Originally published by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
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About Harvard Medical School (HMS)

Driving Change. Building Momentum. Making History. 

“Since 1872, Harvard Medical School has been the incubator of bold ideas—a place where extraordinary people advance education, science and health care with unrelenting passion.

Whether training tomorrow’s doctors and scientists, decoding the fundamental nature of life, advancing patient care or improving health delivery systems around the world, we are never at rest. Allied with some of the world’s best hospitals, research institutes and a University synonymous with excellence, the School’s mission remains as ambitious as it is honorable: to alleviate human suffering caused by disease.”

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About Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH)

Harvard School of Public Health is dedicated to advancing the public’s health through learning, discovery and communication. More than 400 faculty members are engaged in teaching and training the 1,000-plus student body in a broad spectrum of disciplines crucial to the health and well being of individuals and populations around the world. Programs and projects range from the molecular biology of AIDS vaccines to the epidemiology of cancer; from risk analysis to violence prevention; from maternal and children’s health to quality of care measurement; from health care management to international health and human rights.

More at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) & Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). History.

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About Harvard University.

Established in 1636, Harvard is the oldest institution of higher education in the United States. The University, which is based in Cambridge and Boston, Massachusetts, has an enrollment of over 20,000 degree candidates, including undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. Harvard has more than 360,000 alumni around the world.

Harvard University is devoted to excellence in teaching, learning, and research, and to developing leaders in many disciplines who make a difference globally. Harvard faculty are engaged with teaching and research to push the boundaries of human knowledge. For students who are excited to investigate the biggest issues of the 21st century, Harvard offers an unparalleled student experience and a generous financial aid program, with over $160 million awarded to more than 60% of our undergraduate students. The University has twelve degree-granting Schools in addition to the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, offering a truly global education.

‘Universities nurture the hopes of the world: in solving challenges that cross borders; in unlocking and harnessing new knowledge; in building cultural and political understanding; and in modeling environments that promote dialogue and debate… The ideal and breadth of liberal education that embraces the humanities and arts as well as the social and natural sciences is at the core of Harvard’s philosophy. ’/ Drew Gilpin Faust

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*  The above story is adapted from materials provided by Harvard University

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