Abstract 6623: Ala59 mutants of KRAS cooperate with Nf1 loss to enhance colon tumorigenesis
Authors: Johnson Christian William , Terrell Elizabeth M. , Cook Josh , Shui Bing , O'Donoghue Eve , Hull Shannon , Yang Moon Hee , Sheth Shikha , Yaeger Rona , Kopetz Scott , Morrison Deborah K. , Haigis Kevin 
Published: March 2024

Understanding the role of KRAS allele heterogeneity in tumor development, and its influence on therapeutic efficacy, is critical for the improvement of cancer treatment. The Kirsten rat sarcoma (KRAS) gene is the most frequently mutated oncogene in colorectal cancer (CRC) and patients with CRC tumors positive for KRAS mutations have poorer outcomes and limited treatment options. Extensive work over the past four decades has shown that common oncogenic alleles of KRAS are associated with hyperactivation of the MAPK signaling pathway (i.e. RAF/MEK/ERK), and it is for this reason that patients with KRAS mutant tumors are excluded from targeted therapies against EGFR. Recently, we characterized two alleles of KRAS, KRASA59T and KRASA59E, that paradoxically promote KRAS activation but are impaired in their ability to promote BRAF dimerization (Johnson et al. Mol Cell. 2022. PMID: 35202574). Consistent with these biochemical functions, KRASA59T and KRASA59E are enriched in CRC tumors that already have genetic alterations in genes that regulate MAPK signaling (e.g. EGFR, BRAF, NRAS, NF1). Further, unlike other described oncogenic alleles of KRAS, clinical data suggest that these KRASA59T and KRASA59E may not confer intrinsic resistance to anti-EGFR therapies at all. While KRASA59T and KRASA59E may not promote BRAF dimers, here we show that KRASA59T and KRASA59E does promote dimerization between ARAF and CRAF, and using an unpublished conditional mouse mode of K-Ras (i.e. LSL-K-RasA59E) we tested (1) whether Ala59 alleles are oncogenic or (2) require cooperation with additional MAPK pathway activating mutations, and (3) whether Ala59 alleles can promote intrinsic resistance to EGFR inhibition. Here, we show that endogenous K-RasA59E can disturb colon homeostasis and decrease mouse survival in an autochthonous colon tumor model, demonstrating that A59E alone is an oncogenic allele of KRAS in the colon. Breeding of LSL-K-RasA59E mice with mice harboring a conditional knockout of Nf1 (i.e. Nf1fl/fl), a GTPase activating protein (GAP) that promotes activation of wildtype RAS, show that combined expression of K-RasA59E and wildtype RAS activation cooperatively perturb colon homeostasis and decrease mouse survival. Thus, while KRASA59E may not require a second genetic alteration to activate the MAPK signaling pathway, it can cooperate with these alterations to increase the severity of disease. Finally, using mouse colon derived organoids, we show that endogenous K-RasA59E neither promotes EGF independence of organoid growth nor confers on these organoids a resistance to EGFR inhibition. Thus, our data support a unique role for RAF dimer function in in KRAS mutant tumors of the colon in both development and sensitivity to drugs, as well as argue for the inclusion of KRASA59T and KRASA59E bearing CRC tumors in anti-EGFR therapies.

Citation Format: Christian William Johnson, Elizabeth M. Terrell, Josh Cook, Bing Shui, Eve O'Donoghue, Shannon Hull, Moon Hee Yang, Shikha Sheth, Rona Yaeger, Scott Kopetz, Deborah K. Morrison, Kevin Haigis. Ala59 mutants of KRAS cooperate with Nf1 loss to enhance colon tumorigenesis [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 6623.