Abstract A165: Antitumor activity of mTOR kinase inhibitor CC-223 in a mouse model of prostate cancer.
Authors: Narla Rama Krishna , Peng Sophie , Gamez Jim , Katz Jason , Apuy Julius , Moghaddam Mehran , Fultz Kimberly E. , Sankar Sabita , Mortensen Deborah S. , Raymon Heather K. 
Published: August 2014

CC-223 is an orally active selective mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) kinase inhibitor which is currently in clinical development. In biochemical assays CC-223 was highly selective to mTOR over 249 kinases. In cellular assays CC-223 inhibited both mTORC1 and mTORC2 as evidenced by inhibition of pS6RP(Ser 235/236) and pAkt(Ser 473). The current study was aimed to determine the pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) relationship, antitumor activity, and mechanism of action of CC-223 in mice with PC3 human prostate cancer tumors. In PK/PD studies with PC3 tumor-bearing mice, CC-223 exhibited a dose-dependent inhibition mTOR pathway biomarkers, pS6RP, and pAkt, which correlated with plasma exposure. Antitumor activity of CC-223 was tested in mice with PC3 tumors of approximately 100-150 mm3 in size. CC-223 consistently exhibited dose-dependent tumor growth inhibition. The minimum dose required to obtain &gt;65% tumor volume reduction compared with vehicle control was 5 mg/kg BID. In addition to showing antitumor activity in smaller tumors, CC-223 also caused the regression or growth delay of larger PC3 tumors. At 10 mg/kg BID, CC-223 caused the regression of tumors, whereas 5 and 1 mg/kg BID slowed tumor growth compared to the vehicle control. The mechanism of action of CC-223 on PC3 tumors was characterized by analyzing tumors for functional markers (proliferation, apoptosis, and blood vessel markers). The number of proliferating cells in CC-223-treated tumors was significantly reduced compared to vehicle control. A significant increase in the number of apoptotic cells and a significant decrease in blood vessel density was observed in CC-223-treated tumors. In conclusion, treatment with the mTOR kinase inhibitor CC-223 significantly inhibited PC3 prostate tumor growth. Significant inhibition of mTOR pathway markers pS6RP and pAkt in CC-223-treated tumors suggests that the observed antitumor activity of CC-223 was mediated through inhibition of both mTORC1 and mTORC2. Maintenance of &gt;80% and &gt;60% biomarker inhibition for pS6 and pAkt, respectively, and plasma levels greater than 0.2 μM through 8 hours twice daily confers good antitumor efficacy in PC3 tumors. Further immunohistochemical data demonstrated that the antitumor activity of CC-223 was not only due to the inhibition of tumor cell proliferation but also due to the increase in apoptosis and antiangiogenic activity of CC-223.

Citation Information: Mol Cancer Ther 2013;12(11 Suppl):A165.

Citation Format: Rama Krishna Narla, Sophie Peng, Jim Gamez, Jason Katz, Julius Apuy, Mehran Moghaddam, Kimberly E. Fultz, Sabita Sankar, Deborah S. Mortensen, Heather K. Raymon. Antitumor activity of mTOR kinase inhibitor CC-223 in a mouse model of prostate cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2013 Oct 19-23; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2013;12(11 Suppl):Abstract nr A165.