Search

Supplemental Figure 1. RET expression is higher in prostate cancer lines that have lost androgen receptor signaling Supplemental Figure 2. RET gene expression is higher in patient samples with pure/mixed small cell phenotype or primary NEPC and correlates with other neuroendocrine markers. Supplemental Figure 3. Knockdown of RET kinase in PC3 cells shows a modest reduction in cellular proliferation. Supplemental Figure 4. Prostate cancer cell lines show variable sensitivity to RET inhibitor treatment. Supplemental Figure 5. Organoids derived from PTEN-/- and Rb-/- prostate cells model multiple aspects of NEPC including resistance to enzalutamide treatment. Supplemental Figure 6. A higher dose replicate of AD80 treatment of NCI-H660 xenograft tumors shows a similar effect of restricting tumor growth.

Supplemental Table 1: Known genetic mutations of genes commonly mutated in mCRPC in cell lines used in phosphoproteome analysis Supplemental Table 2: Phospho-Serine/Threonine proteome of Prostate Cancer Adenocarcinoma and Aggressive Variant Prostate Cancer Cell Lines Supplemental Table 3: Phospho-Tyrosine proteome of Prostate Cancer Adenocarcinoma and Aggressive Variant Prostate Cancer Cell Lines Supplemental Table 4: Kinase Substrate Enrichment Analysis results from phospho-serine/threonine proteome dataset Supplemental Table 5: Kinase Substrate Enrichment Analysis results from phospho-tyrosine proteome dataset Supplemental Table 6: Phospho-Serine/Threonine proteome of Adenocarcinoma or Small cell/Mixed phenotype mCRPC patient samples Supplemental Table 7. Spearman's Correlation Between the Dependency Ranks of RET and Other Genes in Prostate Cancer Cell Lines Supplemental Table 8. RET Dependency Scores of Cancer Cell Lines

The increased treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) with second-generation antiandrogen therapies (ADT) has coincided with a greater incidence of lethal, aggressive variant prostate cancer (AVPC) tumors that have lost dependence on androgen receptor (AR) signaling. These AR-independent tumors may also transdifferentiate to express neuroendocrine lineage markers and are termed neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC). Recent evidence suggests kinase signaling may be an important driver of NEPC. To identify targetable kinases in NEPC, we performed global phosphoproteomics comparing several AR-independent to AR-dependent prostate cancer cell lines and identified multiple altered signaling pathways, including enrichment of RET kinase activity in the AR-independent cell lines. Clinical NEPC patient samples and NEPC patient-derived xenografts displayed upregulated RET transcript and RET pathway activity. Genetic knockdown or pharmacologic inhibition of RET kinase in multiple mouse and human models of NEPC dramatically reduced tumor growth and decreased cell viability. Our results suggest that targeting RET in NEPC tumors with high RET expression could be an effective treatment option. Currently, there are limited treatment options for patients with aggressive neuroendocrine prostate cancer and none are curative.Implications:Identification of aberrantly expressed RET kinase as a driver of tumor growth in multiple models of NEPC provides a significant rationale for testing the clinical application of RET inhibitors in patients with AVPC.

Confining the activity of a designed protein to a specific microenvironment would have broad-ranging applications, such as enabling cell type-specific therapeutic action by enzymes while avoiding off-target effects. While many natural enzymes are synthesized as inactive zymogens that can be activated by proteolysis, it has been challenging to redesign any chosen enzyme to be similarly stimulus responsive. Here, we develop a massively parallel computational design, screening, and next-generation sequencing-based approach for proenzyme design. For a model system, we employ carboxypeptidase G2 (CPG2), a clinically approved enzyme that has applications in both the treatment of cancer and controlling drug toxicity. Detailed kinetic characterization of the most effectively designed variants shows that they are inhibited by ∼80% compared to the unmodified protein, and their activity is fully restored following incubation with site-specific proteases. Introducing disulfide bonds between the pro- and catalytic domains based on the design models increases the degree of inhibition to 98% but decreases the degree of restoration of activity by proteolysis. A selected disulfide-containing proenzyme exhibits significantly lower activity relative to the fully activated enzyme when evaluated in cell culture. Structural and thermodynamic characterization provides detailed insights into the prodomain binding and inhibition mechanisms. The described methodology is general and could enable the design of a variety of proproteins with precise spatial regulation.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is aggressive cancer characterized by rapid progression, metastatic recurrence, and highly resistant to treatment. PDA cells exhibit aerobic glycolysis, or the Warburg effect, which reduces the flux of pyruvate into mitochondria. As a result, more glycolytic metabolites are shunted to pathways for the production of building blocks (e.g., ribose) and reducing agents (e.g., NADPH) for biosynthesis that are necessary for cell proliferation. In addition, PDA cells are highly addicted to glutamine for both maintaining biosynthetic pathways and achieving redox balance. Mitochondrial uncoupling facilitates proton influx across the mitochondrial inner membrane without generating ATP, leading to a futile cycle that consumes glucose metabolites and glutamine. We synthesized a new mitochondrial uncoupler MB1-47 and tested its effect on cancer cell metabolism and the anticancer activity in pancreatic cancer cell models and murine tumor transplantation models. MB1-47 uncouples mitochondria in the pancreatic cancer cells, resulting in: (1) the acceleration of pyruvate oxidation and TCA turnover; (2) increases in AMP/ATP and ADP/AMP ratios; and (3) a decrease in the synthesis rate of nucleotides and sugar nucleotides. Moreover, MB1-47 arrests cell cycle at G0-G1 phase, reduces clonogenicity, and inhibits cell growth of murine and human pancreatic cancer cells. In vivo studies showed that MB1-47 inhibits tumor growth in murine tumor transplantation models, and inhibits the hepatic metastasis when tumor cells were transplanted intrasplenically. Our results provide proof of concept for a potentially new strategy of treating PDA, and a novel prototype experimental drug for future studies and development.

Conventional CRISPR approaches for precision genome editing rely on the introduction of DNA double-strand breaks (DSB) and activation of homology-directed repair (HDR), which is inherently genotoxic and inefficient in somatic cells. The development of base editing (BE) systems that edit a target base without requiring generation of DSB or HDR offers an alternative. Here, we describe a novel BE system called Pin-point(TM) that recruits a DNA base-modifying enzyme through an RNA aptamer within the gRNA molecule. Pin-point is capable of efficiently modifying base pairs in the human genome with precision and low on-target indel formation. This system can potentially be applied for correcting pathogenic mutations, installing premature stop codons in pathological genes, and introducing other types of genetic changes for basic research and therapeutic development.

Confining the activity of a designed protein to a specific microenvironment would have broad-ranging applications, such as enabling cell type-specific therapeutic action by enzymes while avoiding off-target effects. While many natural enzymes are synthesized as inactive zymogens that can be activated by proteolysis, it has been challenging to re-design any chosen enzyme to be similarly stimulus-responsive. Here, we develop a massively parallel computational design, screening, and next-generation sequencing-based approach for pro-enzyme design. As a model system, we employ carboxypeptidase G2 (CPG2), a clinically approved enzyme that has applications in both the treatment of cancer and controlling drug toxicity. Detailed kinetic characterization of the most effective designed variants shows that they are inhibited by approximately 80% compared to the unmodified protein, and their activity is fully restored following incubation with site-specific proteases. Introducing disulfide bonds between the pro-and catalytic domains based on the design models increases the degree of inhibition to 98%, but decreases the degree of restoration of activity by proteolysis. A selected disulfide-containing pro-enzyme exhibits significantly lower activity relative to the fully activated enzyme when evaluated in cell culture. Structural and thermodynamic characterization provides detailed insights into the pro-domain binding and inhibition mechanisms. The described methodology is general and could enable the design of a variety of pro-proteins with precise spatial regulation.SignificanceProteins have shown promise as therapeutics and diagnostics, but their effectiveness is limited by our inability to spatially target their activity. To overcome this limitation, we developed a computationally-guided method to design inactive “pro-enzymes” or “zymogens,” which are activated through cleavage by a protease. Since proteases are differentially expressed in various tissues and disease states, including cancer, these pro-enzymes could be targeted to the desired microenvironment. We tested our method on the therapeutically-relevant protein, carboxypeptidase G2 (CPG2). We designed Pro-CPG2s that are inhibited by 80-98% and are partially to fully re-activatable following protease treatment. The developed methodology, with further refinements, could pave the way for routinely designing protease-activated protein-based therapeutics and diagnostics that act in a spatially controlled manner.

The increased treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) with second-generation antiandrogen therapies (ADT) has coincided with a greater incidence of lethal, aggressive variant prostate cancer (AVPC) tumors that have lost dependence on androgen receptor (AR) signaling. These AR-independent tumors may also transdifferentiate to express neuroendocrine lineage markers and are termed neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC). Recent evidence suggests kinase signaling may be an important driver of NEPC. To identify targetable kinases in NEPC, we performed global phosphoproteomics comparing several AR-independent to AR-dependent prostate cancer cell lines and identified multiple altered signaling pathways, including enrichment of RET kinase activity in the AR-independent cell lines. Clinical NEPC patient samples and NEPC patient-derived xenografts displayed upregulated RET transcript and RET pathway activity. Genetic knockdown or pharmacologic inhibition of RET kinase in multiple mouse and human models of NEPC dramatically reduced tumor growth and decreased cell viability. Our results suggest that targeting RET in NEPC tumors with high RET expression could be an effective treatment option. Currently, there are limited treatment options for patients with aggressive neuroendocrine prostate cancer and none are curative. Implications: Identification of aberrantly expressed RET kinase as a driver of tumor growth in multiple models of NEPC provides a significant rationale for testing the clinical application of RET inhibitors in patients with AVPC.

BACKGROUND:Metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) is incurable and progression after drugs that target the androgen receptor-signaling axis is inevitable. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop more effective treatments beyond hormonal manipulation. We sought to identify activated kinases in mCRPC as therapeutic targets for existing, approved agents, with the goal of identifying candidate drugs for rapid translation into proof of concept Phase II trials in mCRPC. METHODS:To identify evidence of activation of druggable kinases in these patients, we compared mRNA expression from metastatic biopsies of patients with mCRPC (n = 101) to mRNA expression in localized prostate from TCGA and used this analysis to infer differential kinase activity. In addition, we assessed the differential phosphorylation levels for key MAPK pathway kinases between mCRPC and localized prostate cancers. RESULTS:Transcriptomic profiling of 101 patients with mCRPC as compared to patients with localized prostate cancer identified evidence of hyperactive ERK1, and whole genome sequencing revealed frequent amplifications of members of the MAPK pathway in 32% of this cohort. Next, we confirmed elevated levels of phosphorylated ERK1/2 in castration resistant prostate cancer as compared to untreated primary prostate cancer. We observed that the presence of detectable phosphorylated ERK1/2 in the primary tumor is associated with biochemical failure after radical prostatectomy independent of clinicopathologic features. ERK1 is the immediate downstream target of MEK1/2, which is druggable with trametinib, an approved therapeutic for melanoma. Trametinib elicited a profound biochemical and clinical response in a patient who had failed multiple prior treatments for mCRPC. CONCLUSIONS:We conclude that pharmacologic targeting of the MEK/ERK pathway may be a viable treatment strategy for patients with refractory metastatic prostate cancer. An ongoing Phase II trial tests this hypothesis.

After influenza infection, lineage-negative epithelial progenitors (LNEPs) exhibit a binary response to reconstitute epithelial barriers: activating a Notch-dependent ΔNp63/cytokeratin 5 (Krt5) remodelling program or differentiating into alveolar type II cells (AEC2s). Here we show that local lung hypoxia, through hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF1α), drives Notch signallingandKrt5pos basal-like cell expansion. Single-cell transcriptional profiling of human AEC2s from fibrotic lungs revealed a hypoxic subpopulation with activated Notch, suppressed surfactant protein C (SPC), and transdifferentiation toward a Krt5pos basal-likestate. Activated murine Krt5pos LNEPs and diseased human AEC2s upregulate strikingly similar core pathways underlyingmigration and squamous metaplasia. While robust, HIF1α-driven metaplasia is ultimately inferior to AEC2 reconstitution inrestoring normal lung function. HIF1α deletion or enhanced Wnt/β-catenin activity in Sox2pos LNEPs blocks Notch andKrt5activation, instead promoting rapid AEC2 differentiation and migration and improving the quality of alveolar repair.

Broadly, tissue regeneration is achieved in two ways: by proliferation of common differentiated cells and/or by deployment of specialized stem/progenitor cells. Which of these pathways applies is both organ- and injury-specific. Current models in the lung posit that epithelial repair can be attributed to cells expressing mature lineage markers. By contrast, here we define the regenerative role of previously uncharacterized, rare lineage-negative epithelial stem/progenitor (LNEP) cells present within normal distal lung. Quiescent LNEPs activate a ΔNp63 (a p63 splice variant) and cytokeratin 5 remodelling program after influenza or bleomycin injury in mice. Activated cells proliferate and migrate widely to occupy heavily injured areas depleted of mature lineages, at which point they differentiate towards mature epithelium. Lineage tracing revealed scant contribution of pre-existing mature epithelial cells in such repair, whereas orthotopic transplantation of LNEPs, isolated by a definitive surface profile identified through single-cell sequencing, directly demonstrated the proliferative capacity and multipotency of this population. LNEPs require Notch signalling to activate the ΔNp63 and cytokeratin 5 program, and subsequent Notch blockade promotes an alveolar cell fate. Persistent Notch signalling after injury led to parenchymal 'micro-honeycombing' (alveolar cysts), indicative of failed regeneration. Lungs from patients with fibrosis show analogous honeycomb cysts with evidence of hyperactive Notch signalling. Our findings indicate that distinct stem/progenitor cell pools repopulate injured tissue depending on the extent of the injury, and the outcomes of regeneration or fibrosis may depend in part on the dynamics of LNEP Notch signalling.

Tumor suppressor p53 is frequently mutated in human cancer. Mutant p53 often promotes tumor progression through gain-of-function (GOF) mechanisms. However, the mechanisms underlying mutant p53 GOF are not well understood. In this study, we found that mutant p53 activates small GTPase Rac1 as a critical mechanism for mutant p53 GOF to promote tumor progression. Mechanistically, mutant p53 interacts with Rac1 and inhibits its interaction with SUMO-specific protease 1 (SENP1), which in turn inhibits SENP1-mediated de-SUMOylation of Rac1 to activate Rac1. Targeting Rac1 signaling by RNAi, expression of the dominant-negative Rac1 (Rac1 DN), or the specific Rac1 inhibitor NSC23766 greatly inhibits mutant p53 GOF in promoting tumor growth and metastasis. Furthermore, mutant p53 expression is associated with enhanced Rac1 activity in clinical tumor samples. These results uncover a new mechanism for Rac1 activation in tumors and, most importantly, reveal that activation of Rac1 is an unidentified and critical mechanism for mutant p53 GOF in tumorigenesis, which could be targeted for therapy in tumors containing mutant p53.

Phosphoproteomic analysis of tumor samples has the potential to uncover significant insights into kinase signaling networks present in late stage prostate cancer that are complementary to genomic and transcriptomic approaches. Phosphoproteomics could potentially aid drug development in clinical trial design as well as provide utility for oncologists in the personalized therapeutic management of individual cancers through identifying novel biomarkers and druggable targets. Rapid advancement of targeted mass spectrometry platforms is underway to integrate phosphoproteomic technology with genomic assays to soon translate this information into the cancer clinic.