Pharmacological targeting of miR-155 via the NEDD8-activating enzyme inhibitor MLN4924 (Pevonedistat) in FLT3-ITD acute myeloid leukemia

Leukemia. 2015 Oct;29(10):1981-92. doi: 10.1038/leu.2015.106. Epub 2015 May 14.

Abstract

High levels of microRNA-155 (miR-155) are associated with poor outcome in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In AML, miR-155 is regulated by NF-κB, the activity of which is, in part, controlled by the NEDD8-dependent ubiquitin ligases. We demonstrate that MLN4924, an inhibitor of NEDD8-activating enzyme presently being evaluated in clinical trials, decreases binding of NF-κB to the miR-155 promoter and downregulates miR-155 in AML cells. This results in the upregulation of the miR-155 targets SHIP1, an inhibitor of the PI3K/Akt pathway, and PU.1, a transcription factor important for myeloid differentiation, leading to monocytic differentiation and apoptosis. Consistent with these results, overexpression of miR-155 diminishes MLN4924-induced antileukemic effects. In vivo, MLN4924 reduces miR-155 expression and prolongs the survival of mice engrafted with leukemic cells. Our study demonstrates the potential of miR-155 as a novel therapeutic target in AML via pharmacologic interference with NF-κB-dependent regulatory mechanisms. We show the targeting of this oncogenic microRNA with MLN4924, a compound presently being evaluated in clinical trials in AML. As high miR-155 levels have been consistently associated with aggressive clinical phenotypes, our work opens new avenues for microRNA-targeting therapeutic approaches to leukemia and cancer patients.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Apoptosis / drug effects
  • Blotting, Western
  • Cell Differentiation / drug effects
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Chromatin Immunoprecipitation
  • Cyclopentanes / pharmacology*
  • Drug Resistance, Neoplasm
  • Female
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Leukemic / drug effects
  • Humans
  • Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / drug therapy*
  • Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / genetics*
  • Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / pathology
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred NOD
  • Mice, SCID
  • MicroRNAs / genetics*
  • Monocytes / drug effects
  • Monocytes / metabolism
  • Monocytes / pathology
  • NEDD8 Protein
  • NF-kappa B / genetics
  • NF-kappa B / metabolism
  • Promoter Regions, Genetic
  • Pyrimidines / pharmacology*
  • RNA, Messenger / genetics
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Signal Transduction / drug effects
  • Tandem Repeat Sequences / genetics*
  • Tumor Cells, Cultured
  • Ubiquitins / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
  • fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3 / genetics*

Substances

  • Cyclopentanes
  • MIRN155 microRNA, human
  • MicroRNAs
  • NEDD8 Protein
  • NEDD8 protein, human
  • NF-kappa B
  • Pyrimidines
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Ubiquitins
  • FLT3 protein, human
  • fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3
  • pevonedistat