Abstract 421: PLX-3618, a potent, selective monovalent BRD4 degrader demonstrates activity in models of prostate cancer
Authors: Steadman Kenneth , Parker Gregory S. , Leriche Geoffray , Fish Sarah , Toth Julia , Spalding Mary E. , Daniele Elizabeth , Jamborcic Aleksandar , Li Xiaoming , Kallel E Adam , Barmare Farhana , Chng Kenneth , Green Erika , Hocker Michael , Imler Elliot , Zhang Yi , Thompson Peggy A. , Bailey Simon 
Published: June 2022

Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer related deaths in men in the United States. Pathogenesis is driven by the androgen receptor (AR), which has led to front-line treatment modalities that are based on androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). About 10-20% of all prostate cancers evolve to resist ADT and are classified as castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) indicating the continued need for new treatment options. Bromodomain-containing protein 4 (BRD4) is an acetylated-chromatin associating protein that is involved in transcriptional elongation, mRNA splicing, epigenetic bookmarking, and super-enhancer activity. The BRD4 protein has been shown to both bind and colocalize with AR at androgen response elements (AREs) on chromatin. Furthermore, elevated BRD4 expression is prognostic of increased prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels following radical prostatectomy and is correlated with higher Gleason scores and poor overall survival. The intertwined activity of BRD4 with multiple essential driver mechanisms of prostate cancer suggests it may be a key target for developing novel therapeutics. Using our ultra-high throughput cell-based screening platform, which directly measures degradation of pathogenic proteins upon exposure to diverse chemical libraries, we identified a series of novel monovalent BRD4 degraders that was optimized to produce our lead compound PLX-3618. A cancer cell panel screen for antiproliferative effects of PLX-3618 indicated enhanced sensitivity in subsets of prostate cancer lines. PLX-3618 elicited selective, rapid, and deep degradation of BRD4 protein in prostate cancer cell models, without degrading the closely related BRD2 and BRD3 proteins. Addition of either proteosome or neddylation inhibitors blocked BRD4 degradation indicating a ubiquitin-proteosome system mediated clearance mechanism. Degradation of BRD4 led to sustained multimodal inhibition of the AR pathway and disruption of key oncogene enhancer networks. When compared to pan-BET inhibitors, treatment of select prostate cancer cell lines with PLX-3618 resulted in increased levels of the tumor suppressors p53 and p21, an aberrant DNA damage response, and substantially amplified apoptosis. Finally, in in vivo preclinical models of prostate cancer, PLX-3618 showed far superior efficacy over a pan-BET inhibitor. Taken together, the selective degradation of BRD4 via the potent monovalent degrader PLX-3618 represents a novel strategy in treating prostate cancer.

Citation Format: Kenneth Steadman, Gregory S. Parker, Geoffray Leriche, Sarah Fish, Julia Toth, Mary E. Spalding, Elizabeth Daniele, Aleksandar Jamborcic, Xiaoming Li, E Adam Kallel, Farhana Barmare, Kenneth Chng, Erika Green, Michael Hocker, Elliot Imler, Yi Zhang, Peggy A. Thompson, Simon Bailey. PLX-3618, a potent, selective monovalent BRD4 degrader demonstrates activity in models of prostate cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 421.