Abstract 3078: Effects of upamostat and opaganib on cholangiocarcinoma patient derived xenografts
Authors: Asumda Faizal Z. , Hassan Mohamed A. , Kim Yo Han , Campbell Nellie A. , Luo Xin , O'Brien Daniel R. , Buhrow Sarah A. , Reid Joel M. , Moore Michael J. , Ben-Yair Vered Katz , Fathi Reza , Levitt Mark L. , Lucien-Matteoni Fabrice , Leiting Jennifer L. , Truty Mark J. , Roberts Lewis R. 
Published: September 2020

Background: Upamostat is an orally available small molecule serine protease inhibitor that is a highly potent inhibitor of trypsin 1, trypsin 2 and trypsin 3 (PRSS1/2/3) as well as urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) which are expressed in many cancers and mediate cell migration, invasion and tissue remodeling. Opaganib (ABC294640), a novel, orally available small molecule is a specific inhibitor of sphingosine kinase 2 (SPHK2), which phosphorylates sphingosine to sphingosine-1-phosphate (S-1-P). While proliferation induced by S-1-P is regulated by both sphingosine kinase 1 (SPHK1) and SPHK2, SPHK2 appears to be more involved in cancer. We aimed to investigate the potential antitumor effect of upamostat and opaganib, individually and in combination, on cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) patient derived xenografts (PDX) in nude mice.

Methods: PAX165, a PDX from a surgically resected CCA, expresses substantial levels of SPHK2, PRSS1, PRSS2 and PRSS3. 4 groups of 18 mice were treated with either drug or both. Mouse weights and tumor volumes were measured. In addition, experiments were conducted using the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of chicken embryos.

Results: Table 1 shows the average tumor size for the control, upamostat, opaganib, and upamostat+opaganib groups at the study end point (Day 42). Tumor volumes in the upamostat, opaganib, and upamostat+opagnib groups were significantly decreased compared to the control group. The CAM experiments are ongoing and will be presented at the AACR Annual Meeting.

Change in tumor volumes (mean) of CCA PDX after opaganib, upamostat or combination treatmentControlOpaganibUpamostatOpaganib+UpamostatPre-treatment129.9128.7118.8126.8Day 42198.6102.093.3186.09Percent change Day 0-42+53%-21%-21%-32%P value vs. control0.00020.00100.0008

Conclusion: This preclinical study demonstrated that upamostat and opaganib resulted in tumor regression in mice. Body weights of the mice showed no significant inter- or intra- group differences. The combination of upamostat and opaganib treatment showed greater regression compared to either upamostat or opaganib alone. Studies are underway to identify the molecular mechanisms of their interaction.

Citation Format: Faizal Z. Asumda, Mohamed A. Hassan, Yo Han Kim, Nellie A. Campbell, Xin Luo, Daniel R. O'Brien, Sarah A. Buhrow, Joel M. Reid, Michael J. Moore, Vered Katz Ben-Yair, Reza Fathi, Mark L. Levitt, Fabrice Lucien-Matteoni, Jennifer L. Leiting, Mark J. Truty, Lewis R. Roberts. Effects of upamostat and opaganib on cholangiocarcinoma patient derived xenografts [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 3078.