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MYC pathway activation in triple-negative breast cancer is synthetic lethal with CDK inhibition

Journal Article · · Journal of Experimental Medicine
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.20111512· OSTI ID:1625196
 [1];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [2];  [5];  [2];  [6];  [7];  [8];  [9];  [10]
  1. University of California, San Francisco, CA (United States); DOE/OSTI
  2. University of California, San Francisco, CA (United States)
  3. Boston University, MA (United States)
  4. M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX (United States)
  5. University of California, San Francisco, CA (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
  6. Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States)
  7. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Life Sciences Division
  8. M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX (United States). Dept of Breast Medical Oncology and Systems Biology
  9. Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States). Dept. of Surgery; Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States). Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
  10. Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States). Dept. of Medicine; Univ. of California, San Francisco, CA (United States). Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
Estrogen, progesterone, and HER2 receptor-negative triple-negative breast cancers encompass the most clinically challenging subtype for which targeted therapeutics are lacking. We find that triple-negative tumors exhibit elevated MYC expression, as well as altered expression of MYC regulatory genes, resulting in increased activity of the MYC pathway. In primary breast tumors, MYC signaling did not predict response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy but was associated with poor prognosis. We exploit the increased MYC expression found in triple-negative breast cancers by using a synthetic-lethal approach dependent on cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibition. CDK inhibition effectively induced tumor regression in triple-negative tumor xenografts. The proapoptotic BCL-2 family member BIM is up-regulated after CDK inhibition and contributes to this synthetic-lethal mechanism. These results indicate that aggressive breast tumors with elevated MYC are uniquely sensitive to CDK inhibitors.
Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
California Breast Cancer Research Program; Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Susan G. Komen Foundation; UC Cancer Coordinating Committee; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER). Biological Systems Science Division
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1625196
Journal Information:
Journal of Experimental Medicine, Journal Name: Journal of Experimental Medicine Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 209; ISSN 0022-1007
Publisher:
Rockefeller University PressCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Erratum: Meta-analysis of the global gene expression profile of triple-negative breast cancer identifies genes for the prognostication and treatment of aggressive breast cancer journal October 2014
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Midostaurin preferentially attenuates proliferation of triple-negative breast cancer cell lines through inhibition of Aurora kinase family journal July 2015
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MYC and AMPK–Save Energy or Die! journal April 2017
Characterization of Frequently Mutated Cancer Genes and Tumor Mutation Burden in Chinese Breast Cancer journal April 2021
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Additional file 2 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
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Additional file 4 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
Additional file 5 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
Additional file 6 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
Additional file 7 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
Additional file 8 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
Additional file 9 of Actin-like protein 6A/MYC/CDK2 axis confers high proliferative activity in triple-negative breast cancer image January 2021
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