Aerosol administration of phospho-sulindac inhibits lung tumorigenesis

Mol Cancer Ther. 2013 Aug;12(8):1417-28. doi: 10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-13-0006-T. Epub 2013 May 3.

Abstract

Phospho-sulindac is a sulindac derivative with promising anticancer activity in lung cancer, but its limited metabolic stability presents a major challenge for systemic therapy. We reasoned that inhalation delivery of phospho-sulindac might overcome first-pass metabolism and produce high levels of intact drug in lung tumors. Here, we developed a system for aerosolization of phospho-sulindac and evaluated the antitumor efficacy of inhaled phospho-sulindac in an orthotopic model of human non-small cell lung cancer (A549 cells). We found that administration by inhalation delivered high levels of phospho-sulindac to the lungs and minimized its hydrolysis to less active metabolites. Consequently, inhaled phospho-sulindac (6.5 mg/kg) was highly effective in inhibiting lung tumorigenesis (75%; P < 0.01) and significantly improved the survival of mice bearing orthotopic A549 xenografts. Mechanistically, phospho-sulindac suppressed lung tumorigenesis by (i) inhibiting EGF receptor (EGFR) activation, leading to profound inhibition of Raf/MEK/ERK and PI3K/AKT/mTOR survival cascades; (ii) inducing oxidative stress, which provokes the collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential and mitochondria-dependent cell death; and (iii) inducing autophagic cell death. Our data establish that inhalation delivery of phospho-sulindac is an efficacious approach to the control of lung cancer, which merits further evaluation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Administration, Inhalation
  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / administration & dosage
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology*
  • Apoptosis / drug effects
  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / drug therapy
  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / pathology
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / drug effects*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • ErbB Receptors / antagonists & inhibitors
  • ErbB Receptors / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Lung Neoplasms / drug therapy
  • Lung Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Mitochondria / drug effects
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / metabolism
  • Oxidative Stress / drug effects
  • Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / metabolism
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / metabolism
  • Signal Transduction / drug effects
  • Sulindac / administration & dosage
  • Sulindac / analogs & derivatives
  • Sulindac / pharmacology*
  • Tumor Burden / drug effects
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
  • raf Kinases / metabolism*

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Sulindac
  • Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases
  • ErbB Receptors
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt
  • raf Kinases
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases