Project description:The transcription factor c-Myb a key regulator in proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic progenitor cells, is precisely regulated during essential cellular processes. Overexpression and rearrangement of c-myb has been reported in human tumors including myeloid leukemia, but exact regulatory mechanisms have remained elusive. Here, we identified, using 4C assay with the c-myb promoter as an anchor, the interaction site at -34k region upstream of c-myb gene that are involved in c-myb expression. Furthermore, we found that the long-range interactions changed with c-myb being down-regulated on differentiation progress in human myeloid leukemia cell lines. Taken together, our date revealed that a potential c-myb enhancer-promoter interactions may be a particularly important regulatory mechanism for c-myb gene expression in human myeloid leukemia cells.
Project description:Aberrant gene expression is a hallmark of acute leukemias. However, therapeutic strategies for its blockade are generally lacking, in large part due to the pharmacologic challenges of drugging transcription factors. MYB-driven gene trans-activation with CREB-binding protein (CBP) is required for the initiation and maintenance of a variety of acute lymphoblastic and myeloid leukemias, including refractory MLL-rearranged leukemias. Using structure-guided molecular design, we developed a prototypical peptidomimetic inhibitor MYBMIM that interferes with the assembly of the molecular MYB:CBP complex at ¼M concentrations and rapidly accumulates in the nuclei of AML cells. We found that treatment of AML cells with MYBMIM, but not with its inactive near-isosteric analogue TG3, led to the displacement and dissociation of MYB:CBP complex in cells, displacement of MYB from oncogenic enhancers and promoters enriched for MYB binding sites, and rapid downregulation of MYB-dependent gene expression, including of MYC and BCL2 oncogenes. Both human MLL-rearranged and non-rearranged AML cells, but not normal CD34+ umbilical cord blood progenitor cells, underwent sustained mitochondrial apoptosis in response to MYBMIM treatment, an effect that could be partially rescued by ectopic expression of BCL2. We observed that MYBMIM treatment impeded leukemia growth and extended survival of immunodeficient mice engrafted with primary patient-derived MLL-rearranged leukemia cells. These findings emphasize the exquisite dependence of human AML on MYB:CBP transcriptional dysregulation, and establish a pharmacologic approach for its therapeutic blockade.
Project description:Aberrant gene expression is a hallmark of acute leukemias. However, therapeutic strategies for its blockade are generally lacking, in large part due to the pharmacologic challenges of drugging transcription factors. MYB-driven gene trans-activation with CREB-binding protein (CBP) is required for the initiation and maintenance of a variety of acute lymphoblastic and myeloid leukemias, including refractory MLL-rearranged leukemias. Using structure-guided molecular design, we developed a prototypical peptidomimetic inhibitor MYBMIM that interferes with the assembly of the molecular MYB:CBP complex at ¼M concentrations and rapidly accumulates in the nuclei of AML cells. We found that treatment of AML cells with MYBMIM, but not with its inactive near-isosteric analogue TG3, led to the displacement and dissociation of MYB:CBP complex in cells, displacement of MYB from oncogenic enhancers and promoters enriched for MYB binding sites, and rapid downregulation of MYB-dependent gene expression, including of MYC and BCL2 oncogenes. Both human MLL-rearranged and non-rearranged AML cells, but not normal CD34+ umbilical cord blood progenitor cells, underwent sustained mitochondrial apoptosis in response to MYBMIM treatment, an effect that could be partially rescued by ectopic expression of BCL2. We observed that MYBMIM treatment impeded leukemia growth and extended survival of immunodeficient mice engrafted with primary patient-derived MLL-rearranged leukemia cells. These findings emphasize the exquisite dependence of human AML on MYB:CBP transcriptional dysregulation, and establish a pharmacologic approach for its therapeutic blockade.
Project description:Subtype-specific leukemia oncogenes drive aberrant gene expression profiles that converge on common essential mediators to ensure leukemia self-renewal and inhibition of differentiation. The transcription factor c-MYB functions as one such mediator in a diverse range of leukemias. Here we show that transcriptional repression of myeloid differentiation associated c-MYB target genes in AML is enforced by the AAA+ ATPAse RUVBL2. Silencing RUVBL2 expression resulted in increased binding of c-MYB to these loci and their transcriptional derepression. RUVBL2 inhibition induced AML cell apoptosis and severely impaired disease progression of established AML in engrafted mice. In contrast, such inhibition had little impact on normal hematopoietic progenitor differentiation. These data reveal a central mechanism governing inhibition of myeloid differentiation by c-MYB in AML. They also indicate that targeting the control of c-MYB function by RUVBL2 is likely to be a promising approach to developing future anti-AML therapies.
Project description:The MYB oncogene is widely expressed in acute leukemias and is important for the continued proliferation of leukemia cells, raising the possibility that MYB may be a therapeutic target. However realization of this potential requires (i) a significant therapeutic window for MYB inhibition, given its essential role in normal hematopoiesis; and (ii) an approach for developing an effective therapeutic. We previously showed that the interaction of Myb with the coactivator CBP/p300 is essential for its transforming activity. Here we use hematopoietic cells from the Booreana mouse strain, which carries a mutation in Myb that prevents interaction with CBP/p300, to examine the requirement for this interaction in myeloid transformation and leukemogenesis. Using this strain and a strain (plt6) carrying a “complementary” mutation in p300, we show that the Myb-p300 interaction is essential for in vitro transformation by the myeloid leukemia oncogenes AML1-ETO, AML1-ETO9a, MLL-ENL, and MLL-AF9. We further show that unlike cells from wild-type (WT) mice, Booreana cells fail to induce leukemia upon transplantation into irradiated recipients following transduction with an AML1-ETO9a retrovirus. These data highlight disruption of the Myb-p300 interaction as a potential therapeutic strategy for AML and suggest that such a strategy would have a useable therapeutic index since Booreana mice, unlike Myb null mice, are viable. Finally we have begun to explore the molecular basis of the these observations by gene expression profiling; this highlighted several genes previously implicated in myeloid leukemogenesis as being differentially expressed between WT and Booreana cells transduced with AML1-ETO9a. Total RNA was obtained from FACS sorted GFP+;c-Kit+ primary bone marrow cells from WT and Booreana mouse strains which had been cultured for 48 hours post-transduction with Control or AML1-ETO9a retroviruses. RNA was extracted from each of 4 samples per group and used to probe Illumina mouse Beadchips array.
Project description:Aberrant gene expression is a hallmark of acute leukemias. However, therapeutic strategies for its blockade are generally lacking, in large part due to the pharmacologic challenges of drugging transcription factors. MYB-driven gene trans-activation with CREB-binding protein (CBP) is required for the initiation and maintenance of a variety of acute lymphoblastic and myeloid leukemias, including refractory MLL-rearranged leukemias. Using structure-guided molecular design, we developed a prototypical peptidomimetic inhibitor MYBMIM that interferes with the assembly of the molecular MYB:CBP complex at ¼M concentrations and rapidly accumulates in the nuclei of AML cells. We found that treatment of AML cells with MYBMIM, but not with its inactive near-isosteric analogue TG3, led to the displacement and dissociation of MYB:CBP complex in cells, displacement of MYB from oncogenic enhancers and promoters enriched for MYB binding sites, and rapid downregulation of MYB-dependent gene expression, including of MYC and BCL2 oncogenes. Both human MLL-rearranged and non-rearranged AML cells, but not normal CD34+ umbilical cord blood progenitor cells, underwent sustained mitochondrial apoptosis in response to MYBMIM treatment, an effect that could be partially rescued by ectopic expression of BCL2. We observed that MYBMIM treatment impeded leukemia growth and extended survival of immunodeficient mice engrafted with primary patient-derived MLL-rearranged leukemia cells. These findings emphasize the exquisite dependence of human AML on MYB:CBP transcriptional dysregulation, and establish a pharmacologic approach for its therapeutic blockade.
Project description:Using an integrative approach combining a Tet-off conditional AML mouse model, global expression profiling following suppression of the driving MLL-AF9 oncogene, and a new Tet-on conditional shRNA expression system we have identified Myb as critical mediator of addiction to MLL-AF9. Suppression of Myb in established AML in vivo terminates aberrant self-renewal and triggers a terminal myeloid differentiation program that precisely phenocopies the effects of suppressing MLL-AF9. Remarkably, suppressing Myb effectively eradicates aggressive and chemotherapy resistant AML. To further investigate Myb dependent transcriptional programs involved in mediating aberrant self-renewal in leukemia, we globally surveyed gene expression changes following acute shRNA-induced suppression of Myb in an established Tet-on competent model of MLL-AF9;NrasG12D-induced AML. To enable regulatable suppression of Myb in AML, we retrovirally transduced established Tet-on competent MLL-AF9;NrasG12D induced AML cells with TRMPV-Neo vectors (Zuber et al., Nature Biotech, 2010) harboring shRNAs targeting Myb (shMyb.2572 and shMyb.2652), a control shRNA targeting Renilla Luciferase (shRen.713), or an empty miR30 cassette of the recipient cloning vector (Rec). Following drug selection, shRNA expression was induced by doxycycline treatment and total RNA was isolated from sorted shRNA expressing (Venus+/dsRed+) leukemia cells after 3 days of dox treatment, and subjected to Affymetrix microarray expression analysis. Expression profiles following expression of two independent Myb shRNAs were compared to those observed after induction in shRen.713- and Rec-expressing control samples (each in 3 biological replicates).
Project description:Histone modifcations and CTCF binding at the c-myb locus were compared in cell lines with c-myb expressing, which are myeloblatic M1 cells and leukemia cells with virus integration, VS. M1 cells without c-myb expression induced by IL-6. Distribution of active histone marks at the c-myb gene and the upstream regions are associated with active c-myb transcription. The enrichment of all of these active histone marks decreased with differentiation-induced down-regulation of c-myb, but increased and spread in tumor cells. ChIP-on-chip from murine myeloid cell line M1 and virus-induced myeloid leukemia cell lines for H3K4me3, H3K9/14ac, H3K4me1, H3K27me3, H3K9me3 and CTCF