Abstract PR16: Targeting the chromatin architecture established by PAX3-FOXO1 in rhabdomyosarcoma
Authors: Gryder Berkley E. , Yohe Marielle E. , Shern Jack , Chou Hsien-Chao , Song Young , Patidar Rajesh , Li Sam , Sindiri Sivasish , Cleveland Abigail , Liao Hongling , Wen Xinyu , Zhang Xiaohu , Mathews-Griner Lesley , Guha Rajarshi , Shinn Paul , Ferrer Marc , Martin Scott , Lal Madhu , Thomas Craig , Khan Javed 
Published: May 2016

Master transcription factors establish enhancers to regulate cell identity genes by recruiting epigenetic machinery, and are sequentially exchanged during changes in cell identity (ie, differentiation). Commonly, the fusion of transcription factors profoundly alters proper progression of cell identity, serving as the signature oncogenic event in many malignancies. The most common soft tissue cancer of childhood, rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), is characterized by an inability to exit the proliferative myoblast-like state, presumably by blocking myogenic transcription factors from advancing the active enhancer landscape. This is achieved by either chromosomal translocation resulting in the oncogenic fusion transcription factor PAX3/7-FOXO1 (Fusion-Positive alveolar subtype, FP-RMS) or mutations in the tyrosine kinase/RAS/PIK3C axis (Fusion-Negative embryonal subtype, FN-RMS). Patients who harbor a PAX-fusion typically relapse despite aggressive therapy and have very poor survival.

Here we hypothesized that the PAX3-FOXO1 fusion gene causes epigenetic reprogramming resulting in increased proliferation and a failure to terminally differentiate. Furthermore we hypothesized that disrupting the epigenetic machinery recruited by this fusion gene would provide a tractable target for therapy.

We mapped the landscape of epigenetic alterations caused by the PAX3-FOXO1 fusion gene using a combination of RNA-seq, DNase hypersensitivity, and ChIP-seq against histone marks and transcription factors in cell lines and models of FP-RMS. We found high expression of several master transcription factors (including MYOD1, MYOG, MYCN, and SOX8) in FP-RMS primary tumors and cell lines, resembling human skeletal muscle myoblasts. ChIP-seq revealed that PAX3-FOXO1 is exclusively bound to distal, active enhancers and the histone modification most enriched surrounding PAX3-FOXO1 was acetylated H3K27. Furthermore we found that the introduction of the fusion gene into fibroblast cells opened up the chromatin at these same sites, completely rewiring the active enhancer landscape, recapitulating a transcriptome locked in a myoblast-like state. Genome-wide profiling of MYOD1, MYOG and MYCN reveals that all three master regulators collaborative bind at nearly every PAX3-FOXO1 driven super enhancer (SE), while typical enhancers (TEs) rarely have more than two of these four. PAX3-FOXO1 has a 7-fold preference for SEs over TEs. We also find that PAX3-FOXO1 bound, myogenic enhancers are decommissioned throughout normal skeletal muscle differentiation.

To identify small molecules that would inhibit the PAX3-FOXO1 induced epigenetic machinery we treated a panel of FP-RMS cell lines with 1912 targeted agents and chemical probes at multiple concentrations and measured cell viability. Classes of molecules selectively potent for PAX3-FOXO1 driven cells (as compared to normal fibroblasts) hit connected biologically relevant targets including SE controlled receptor tyrosine kinases (including FGFR4, IGF1R, ALK), and transcriptional cofactors involved in SE complexes (including HDACs and BRD). In an expanded panel of RMS cell lines we confirmed that FP-RMS is selectively sensitive to the BET bromodomain inhibitors with the most potent being JQ1. These inhibitors selectively suppress PAX3-FOXO1 dependent transcription as measured by reporter assays and RNA-seq analysis. Indeed, coactivators of looped chromatin p300, MED1 and BRD4 excessively co-localize with PAX3-FOXO1 genome wide. In vivo, JQ1 selectively ablated PAX3-FOXO1 dependent SE driven transcription, and significantly delayed tumor progression in xenografts of PAX3-FOXO1 driven cell lines.

In conclusion we found that PAX3-FOXO1 establishes myogenic super enhancers that are sensitive to BET bromodomain inhibition which constitutes a novel therapeutic strategy for children with PAX-fusion driven rhabdomyosarcoma.

This abstract is also presented as Poster A16.

Citation Format: Berkley E. Gryder, Marielle E. Yohe, Jack Shern, Hsien-Chao Chou, Young Song, Rajesh Patidar, Sam Li, Sivasish Sindiri, Abigail Cleveland, Hongling Liao, Xinyu Wen, Xiaohu Zhang, Lesley Mathews-Griner, Rajarshi Guha, Paul Shinn, Marc Ferrer, Scott Martin, Madhu Lal, Craig Thomas, Javed Khan. Targeting the chromatin architecture established by PAX3-FOXO1 in rhabdomyosarcoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Pediatric Cancer Research: From Mechanisms and Models to Treatment and Survivorship; 2015 Nov 9-12; Fort Lauderdale, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(5 Suppl):Abstract nr PR16.