Intratumoral heterogeneity predicts resistance in CTC-derived models of small cell lung cancer [RNA-Seq]
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is an aggressive malignancy characterized by rapid onset of resistance to platinum chemotherapy. However, the mechanisms underlying platinum-resistance remain obscure in part due to scarcity of tissue samples, particularly from relapsed patients. Here, we generated circulating tumor cell (CTC)-derived xenograft (CDX) models from SCLC patients before or after relapse that faithfully recapitulate patient tumor genomics and platinum response. Platinum-sensitive models were relatively homogeneous, whereas transcriptomic and proteomic analyses revealed enrichment of multiple targetable pathways and intertumoral heterogeneity among resistant models. Single-cell RNAseq profiling further identified greater intratumoral heterogeneity (ITH) associated with platinum-resistance. This included a population of DLL3low cells in resistant CDX models that demonstrated greater chemoresistance, suggesting that subtle shifts in the proportion of DLL3-expressing cells could impact response. Similarly, longitudinal single-cell transcriptional profiling of CTCs from patient blood reveals emergence of molecular markers of resistance and significantly greater ITH after disease relapse. Together, these data suggest that platinum-resistance involves a heterogeneous process of transcriptional fluidity with contributions from both preexisting cellular subpopulations and outgrowth of resistant populations, yielding a diverse cellular composition refractory to single-agent therapeutics.
Project description:The natural history of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) includes rapid evolution from exquisite chemosensitivity to insurmountable chemoresistance. The mechanisms underlying treatment-resistance in SCLC remain obscure due to scarcity of tissue samples following relapse. We generated circulating tumor cell (CTC)-derived xenografts (CDXs) from SCLC patients to study intratumoral heterogeneity (ITH) and its contribution to treatment resistance. To investigate this, we performed single-cell RNAseq analyses of chemo-sensitive and -resistant CDXs, as well as longitudinal analyses of CDXs and patient CTCs. We found increased ITH, heterogeneous expression of pathways known to be associated with resistance, and transcriptional diversity of either therapeutic targets or EMT genes between cellular subpopulations following treatment-resistance to either chemotherapy or targeted therapies (PARP or CHK inhibitors). Similarly, serial profiling of patient CTCs directly from blood confirmed increased ITH post-relapse, with gene expression patterns similar to a CDX from the same patient. These data suggest that treatment-resistance in SCLC is characterized by the presence of coexisting subpopulations of tumor cells with heterogeneous gene expression leading to activation of multiple, concurrent resistance mechanisms. These findings emphasize the need for drug development efforts to focus on rational combination therapies for treatment-naïve SCLC tumors to maximize the depth and duration of initial responses and counteract the rapid increase in ITH and emergence of broad therapeutic resistance.
Project description:Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) remains a significant health problem with more than 180,000 newly afflicted patients worldwide per year. Recurrence following initial frontline therapy is associated with resistance to salvage treatment and remains the area of greatest unmet need for SCLC patients. This study systematically examined the efficacy of three different polo like kinase 1 (PLK1) inhibitors in preclinical models of SCLC. The study uncovered robust in vitro activity of PLK1 inhibitors against SCLC cell lines and confirmed the efficacy in patient-derived xenograft models of platinum sensitive and resistant SCLC. A known challenge of targeted therapies in the clinic is the inevitable development of resistance and loss of efficacy. Therefore, understanding the potential mechanisms driving acquired resistance could offer additional strategies to enhance efficacy, delay the development of resistance or reverse the resistance. We generated lab-derived resistant SCLC cells by continuous exposure of parental cells to increasing concentration of onvansertib and performed RNA-seq to identify potential resistance mechanisms.
Project description:Resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy represents a major clinical challenge for many tumors, particularly epithelial ovarian cancer. After initial response, patients often experience several response-relapse events, until tumors start to resist the treatment. Resistant patients have low response rate to other chemotherapy regimens, with life expectancy of 12-15 months. Despite improved knowledge of the molecular determinants of platinum resistance, the lack of clinical applicability limits exploitation of many potential targets, and no novel drugs have been approved for resistant disease. By investigating the functional link between metabolic adaptations and resistance, we discovered that resistant cells modify their serine metabolism and acquire a specific NAD+ generating phenotype, which allows them to sustain PARP activity under treatment. Our findings reveal a novel metabolic vulnerability of resistant tumors that might have an immediate clinical implication, showing that ex vivo patient derived resistant models can be re-sensitized to platinum by combining it with PARP inhibition.
Project description:Platinum-based chemotherapies are widely used anti-cancer drugs. Tumor resistance to platinum compounds is a major determinant of patient survival, including in high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC). To understand mechanisms of platinum resistance and identify potential therapeutic targets in resistant HGSOC, we generated a comprehensive, reproducible data resource comprised of dynamic (+/-carboplatin) proteomic/posttranslational modification and RNASeq profiles from HGSOC intra-patient cell line pairs derived from 3 patients before and after acquiring platinum resistance. The molecular profiles revealed extensive responses to carboplatin and differential responses between sensitive and resistant cells. Higher oxidative phosphorylation and fatty acid oxidation (FAO) pathway expression were observed in the platinum-resistant cells, which was further validated in patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models. We show that both pharmacologic inhibition and CRISPR knockout of CPT1A, which represents a rate limiting step of FAO, sensitize HGSOC cells to platinum. Thus, FAO is a candidate therapeutic target to overcome platinum resistance.
Project description:Changes in chromatin organization are associated with resistance to anti-cancer drugs, such as platinum-based chemotherapy used as the primary treatment of ovarian cancer. We have examined the genomic distribution of chromatin accessibility changes, and relationship to gene expression changes, occurring during acquisition of resistance in vivo of high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) patients and whether this associates with genomic DNA damage distribution. Using matched chemo-sensitive and chemo-resistant ovarian cell lines isolated from HGSOC patients before and following acquisition of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, we have examined the relationship between chromatin accessibility by ATAC-seq, platinum-DNA adduct distribution by Pt-Exo-seq and gene expression by RNA-seq. We have correlated chromatin changes between the lines at gene promoters, CpG islands, enhancer sequences and other genomic regions with changes in gene expression and platinum-DNA adduct distribution. We observe chromatin conformation differences following acquisition of platinum-resistance, with the HGSOC resistant lines clustering together, separately from their respective sensitive counterparts. Resistant lines show altered chromatin accessibility at intergenic regions, but less so at gene promoters. Super-enhancers, as defined by clusters of cis-regulatory elements, at these intergenic regions show chromatin changes that are associated with altered expression of linked genes, with enrichment for genes involved in the Fanconi anemia/BRCA DNA damage response pathway. Genome-wide distribution of platinum adducts associates with the chromatin changes and distinguish sensitive from resistant lines. Regions incurring fewer platinum-adducts showed a significant reduction in accessibility the resistant HGSOC cell line PEO4 compared to the sensitive PEO1 counterpart. Surprisingly, regions showing increased damage in PEO4 had an even greater reduction in accessibility. In the resistant line, we observe fewer adducts around gene promoters and more adducts at intergenic regions. In cell lines derived from patients following acquisition of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, chromatin changes at super-enhancers correlate with gene expression changes in DNA repair pathways known to influence platinum sensitivity. Although cisplatin is a relatively non-specific DNA damaging agent, there are consistent differences in distribution of adducts between the matched sensitive and resistant ovarian cell lines, which is independent of the overall level of adducts formed.
Project description:Changes in chromatin organization are associated with resistance to anti-cancer drugs, such as platinum-based chemotherapy used as the primary treatment of ovarian cancer. We have examined the genomic distribution of chromatin accessibility changes, and relationship to gene expression changes, occurring during acquisition of resistance in vivo of high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) patients and whether this associates with genomic DNA damage distribution. Using matched chemo-sensitive and chemo-resistant ovarian cell lines isolated from HGSOC patients before and following acquisition of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, we have examined the relationship between chromatin accessibility by ATAC-seq, platinum-DNA adduct distribution by Pt-Exo-seq and gene expression by RNA-seq. We have correlated chromatin changes between the lines at gene promoters, CpG islands, enhancer sequences and other genomic regions with changes in gene expression and platinum-DNA adduct distribution. We observe chromatin conformation differences following acquisition of platinum-resistance, with the HGSOC resistant lines clustering together, separately from their respective sensitive counterparts. Resistant lines show altered chromatin accessibility at intergenic regions, but less so at gene promoters. Super-enhancers, as defined by clusters of cis-regulatory elements, at these intergenic regions show chromatin changes that are associated with altered expression of linked genes, with enrichment for genes involved in the Fanconi anemia/BRCA DNA damage response pathway. Genome-wide distribution of platinum adducts associates with the chromatin changes and distinguish sensitive from resistant lines. Regions incurring fewer platinum-adducts showed a significant reduction in accessibility the resistant HGSOC cell line PEO4 compared to the sensitive PEO1 counterpart. Surprisingly, regions showing increased damage in PEO4 had an even greater reduction in accessibility. In the resistant line, we observe fewer adducts around gene promoters and more adducts at intergenic regions. In cell lines derived from patients following acquisition of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, chromatin changes at super-enhancers correlate with gene expression changes in DNA repair pathways known to influence platinum sensitivity. Although cisplatin is a relatively non-specific DNA damaging agent, there are consistent differences in distribution of adducts between the matched sensitive and resistant ovarian cell lines, which is independent of the overall level of adducts formed.
Project description:Changes in chromatin organization are associated with resistance to anti-cancer drugs, such as platinum-based chemotherapy used as the primary treatment of ovarian cancer. We have examined the genomic distribution of chromatin accessibility changes, and relationship to gene expression changes, occurring during acquisition of resistance in vivo of high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) patients and whether this associates with genomic DNA damage distribution. Using matched chemo-sensitive and chemo-resistant ovarian cell lines isolated from HGSOC patients before and following acquisition of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, we have examined the relationship between chromatin accessibility by ATAC-seq, platinum-DNA adduct distribution by Pt-Exo-seq and gene expression by RNA-seq. We have correlated chromatin changes between the lines at gene promoters, CpG islands, enhancer sequences and other genomic regions with changes in gene expression and platinum-DNA adduct distribution. We observe chromatin conformation differences following acquisition of platinum-resistance, with the HGSOC resistant lines clustering together, separately from their respective sensitive counterparts. Resistant lines show altered chromatin accessibility at intergenic regions, but less so at gene promoters. Super-enhancers, as defined by clusters of cis-regulatory elements, at these intergenic regions show chromatin changes that are associated with altered expression of linked genes, with enrichment for genes involved in the Fanconi anemia/BRCA DNA damage response pathway. Genome-wide distribution of platinum adducts associates with the chromatin changes and distinguish sensitive from resistant lines. Regions incurring fewer platinum-adducts showed a significant reduction in accessibility the resistant HGSOC cell line PEO4 compared to the sensitive PEO1 counterpart. Surprisingly, regions showing increased damage in PEO4 had an even greater reduction in accessibility. In the resistant line, we observe fewer adducts around gene promoters and more adducts at intergenic regions. In cell lines derived from patients following acquisition of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, chromatin changes at super-enhancers correlate with gene expression changes in DNA repair pathways known to influence platinum sensitivity. Although cisplatin is a relatively non-specific DNA damaging agent, there are consistent differences in distribution of adducts between the matched sensitive and resistant ovarian cell lines, which is independent of the overall level of adducts formed.
Project description:Veliparib showed limited single agent cytotoxicity but selectively potentiated (≥50% reduction in IC50) cisplatin, carboplatin and etoposide in vitro in 5 of 9 SCLC cell lines. Veliparib with cisplatin, etoposide or with both cisplatin and etoposide showed greater delay in tumor growth than chemotherapy alone in H146 but not H128. The potentiating effect of veliparib was associated with in vitro cell line sensitivity to cisplatin (CC=0.672; p=0.048) and DNA-PKcs protein modulation. Gene expression profiling identified differential expression of a 5-gene panel (GLS, UBEC2, HACL1, MSI2 and LOC100129585) in cell lines with relatively greater sensitivity to platinum and veliparib combination. Veliparib potentiates standard cytotoxic agents against SCLC in a cell specific manner. This potentiation correlates with platinum sensitivity, DNA-PKcs expression and a 5-gene expression profile.
Project description:To identify the possible targets in EMT-acquisition after developing acquired platinum resistance in urothelial carcinoma (UC), we examined the changes in global gene expression before and after development of acquired platinum resistance. Comparing two types of acquired platinum resistant UC cells and their corresponding parent cells, in the end we identified 49 genes (25 up-regulated and 24 down-regulated genes) which were commonly changed in two acquired platinum resistant UC cells. Four invasive UC cell lines, T24, 5637, and those acquired platinum-resistant sublines T24PR and 5637PR, were used for microarrays. T24PR and 5637PR cells were newly established in our laboratory, which were grown and passaged upon reaching confluence in medium containing CDDP over a 6-month period. In preliminary studies, we found that these cell lines had an altered phenotype with morphologic and molecular changes consistent with EMT, and exhibited a marked difference in migratory potential before and after developing platinum resistance.
Project description:To determine molecular processes in vasculogenic mimicry (VM) competent human SCLC CDX, we profiled gene expression by RNA sequencing in separated NE (VM deficient) and non-NE (VM competent) cells from four CDX cultured on plastic or on Matrigel.