Knockdown of the DJ-1 (PARK7) gene sensitizes pancreatic cancer to erlotinib inhibition

Autor: Xiangyi He, Yunwei Sun, Rong Fan, Jing Sun, Douwu Zou, Yaozong Yuan
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Zdroj: Molecular Therapy: Oncolytics, Vol 20, Iss , Pp 364-372 (2021)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2372-7705
DOI: 10.1016/j.omto.2021.01.013
Popis: The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib, in combination with gemcitabine, has been shown to be a promising therapy in the treatment of pancreatic cancer. Our previous study showed that DJ-1 promotes invasion and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells by activating SRC/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)/uPA. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether knockdown of DJ-1 expression can sensitize pancreatic cancer cells to erlotinib treatment. Knockdown of DJ-1 expression accelerated erlotinib-induced cell apoptosis and improved the inhibitory effect of erlotinib on pancreatic cancer cell proliferation (for the BxPC-3, PANC-1, and MiaPACa-2 cell lines, regardless of KRAS mutation status) in vitro and in xenograft tumor growth in vivo. Knockdown of DJ-1 decreased K-RAS expression, membrane translocation, and activity in BxPC-3 cells. Knockdown of DJ-1 also decreased K-RAS, H-RAS, and N-RAS expression in PANC-1 and MiaPACa-2 cells. Knockdown of DJ-1 synergistically inhibited AKT and ERK1/2 phosphorylation with erlotinib in pancreatic cancer cells. These findings indicate that DJ-1 may activate the RAS pathway, reinforcing erlotinib drug resistance. Therefore, blocking DJ-1 in combination with the EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib may be an attractive therapeutic target in pancreatic cancer.
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