Novel Mechanisms of Resistance to Investigational Molecularly Targeted Drugs
1Division of Chemotherapy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Keio University.
Abstract:
Drug resistance is a critical problem inhibiting the effective use of targeted molecular cancer therapies. Investigators have revealed a variety of resistance mechanisms, including alterations in drug targets, activation of pro-survival pathways, and the ineffective induction of cell death. The key alterations driving this resistance are likely condition-dependent, and a detailed analysis would be required to characterize these diverse alterations under a variety of conditions in order to facilitate practical precision medicine for treating individual cancer patients. We have been investigating the molecular mechanisms of anti-cancer drug resistance, and analyzed our original resistant cells against anti-mitotic kinase inhibitors. This study suggests that novel mechanisms reduce cytokinetic dysregulation caused by those inhibitors, and anti-apoptotic activities are associated with resistant phenotypes. These observations suggest that the activation of various bypass mechanisms may allow cancer cells to avoid the selective antiproliferative effect of molecularly targeted drugs, and such bypass activation mechanism would thus be a critical target for designing combination chemotherapy to overcome non-genetic drug resistance.
Insights
Drug resistance in cancer therapies can be overcome by targeting bypass mechanisms. This study reveals novel ways cancer cells evade anti-mitotic kinase inhibitors, suggesting new combination chemotherapy strategies.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Molecular Biology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Drug resistance is a major challenge in targeted cancer therapy.
- Mechanisms include target alteration, pro-survival pathway activation, and impaired cell death.
- Understanding condition-dependent resistance is crucial for precision medicine.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate molecular mechanisms of anti-cancer drug resistance.
- To analyze resistant cells against anti-mitotic kinase inhibitors.
- To identify novel resistance mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of original resistant cancer cell lines.
- Investigation of cellular responses to anti-mitotic kinase inhibitors.
- Characterization of cytokinetic and apoptotic pathways.
Main Results:
- Novel mechanisms were identified that reduce cytokinetic dysregulation.
- Anti-apoptotic activities were associated with resistant phenotypes.
- Activation of bypass pathways allows cancer cells to evade targeted drug effects.
Conclusions:
- Cancer cells employ bypass mechanisms to resist targeted therapies.
- These bypass mechanisms are critical targets for combination chemotherapy.
- Overcoming non-genetic drug resistance requires targeting these evasion strategies.
More Related Videos
08:46Implementation of In Vitro Drug Resistance Assays: Maximizing the Potential for Uncovering Clinically Relevant Resistance Mechanisms
Published on: December 9, 2015
09:58Using RNA-sequencing to Detect Novel Splice Variants Related to Drug Resistance in In Vitro Cancer Models
Published on: December 9, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Treatment Resistant Cancers
Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
Combination Therapies and Personalized Medicine
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...
Targets for Drug Action: Overview
Receptors are either membrane-spanning or intracellular proteins, which upon binding a ligand, get activated and transmit the signal downstream to elicit a response. Drugs bind receptors, either mimicking the action of endogenous ligands or blocking the receptor activity to bring about a modified response. Nearly 35% of approved drugs target the G...
Pharmacogenetics of Drug Targets: β₂-Adrenergic Receptors, Apo E, Thymidylate Synthase
