Abstract 3557: Cancerous inhibitor of PP2A is a novel molecular target and resistance factor of Lapatinib
Authors: Zhao Ming , Blackwelder Amanda , Lee Harry , Yang Xiaohe 
Published: August 2015

Deregulation of erbB-2 and EGFR is frequently detected in breast cancer, which has been associated with poor prognosis. Lapatinib, an orally active small molecule acting as a dual inhibitor of erbB-2 and EGFR, has been used for the treatment of patients with advanced or metastatic erbB-2+ breast cancer. Lapatinib resistance, however, is emerging as a clinical challenge. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of Lapatinib-mediated anti-cancer activities and identifying relevant resistance factors are of pivotal significance in breast cancer treatment. Cancerous inhibitor of PP2A (CIP2A) is a recently identified oncoprotein that is overexpressed in breast and other types of cancers. Through interacting with protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), CIP2A regulates c-Myc and factors involved in cell proliferation and survival. This study aimed to investigate the role of CIP2A in Lapatinib-mediated inhibition of erbB-2 overexpressing breast cancer cells. Our data showed that Lapatinib downregulated CIP2A in erbB-2 overexpressing SK-BR-3 and 78617 cells, which was correlated with concurrent inactivation of erbB-2, EGFR, Akt, Erk1/2 and mTOR. Overexpression of CIP2A rendered the cells resistant to Lapatinib induced apoptosis and growth inhibition. Conversely, CIP2A knockdown via siRNA sensitized the cells to Lapatinib-mediated effects. We also demonstrated that Lapatinib-induced downregulation of CIP2A can be abolished by LY294002, suggesting that CIP2A downregulation was regulated by Akt. Analysis with cycloheximide (CHX) and MG132 indicated that Lapatinib modulates CIP2A protein stability and promotes its degradation through prosteasome pathway. More importantly, we found that Lapatinib induced differential downregulation of CIP2A between the parental and Lapatinib-resistant (LR) BT-474 cells. Decrease in CIP2A downregulation in BT-474-LR cells suggests its association with Lapatinib resistance. Knockdown of CIP2A via lentiviral siRNA system significantly sensitized Lapatinib induced growth inhibition and apoptosis. Taken together, our results demonstrate that CIP2A is a molecular target of Lapatinib, which plays a critical role in Lapatinib-induced cellular responses. Lapatinib-induced downregulation of CIP2A involves the inhibition of the Akt-CIP2A feedback loop. Correlation between Lapatinib resistance and decreased CIP2A downregulation, as well as CIP2A knockdown-mediated sensitization of BT-474-LR cells indicate that CIP2A is a resistance factor of Lapatinib. Further investigation on Lapatinib-mediated regulation of CIP2A will advance our understanding of Lapatinib-associated antitumor activities and drug resistance.

Citation Format: Ming Zhao, Amanda Blackwelder, Harry Lee, Xiaohe Yang. Cancerous inhibitor of PP2A is a novel molecular target and resistance factor of Lapatinib. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 3557. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-3557