TRIP13 impairs mitotic checkpoint surveillance and is associated with poor prognosis in multiple myeloma

AAA-ATPase TRIP13 is one of the chromosome instability gene recently established in multiple myeloma (MM), the second most common and incurable hematological malignancy. However, the specific function of TRIP13 in MM is largely unknown. Using sequential gene expression profiling, we demonstrated that high TRIP13 expression levels were positively correlated with progression, disease relapse, and poor prognosis in MM patients. Overexpressing human TRIP13 in myeloma cells prompted cell growth and drug resistance, and overexpressing murine TRIP13, which shares 93% sequence identity with human TRIP13, led to colony formation of NIH/3T3 fibroblasts in vitro and tumor formation in vivo. Meanwhile, the knockdown of TRIP13 inhibited myeloma cell growth, induced cell apoptosis, and reduced tumor burden in xenograft MM mice. Mechanistically, we observed that the overexpression of TRIP13 abrogated the spindle checkpoint and induced proteasome-mediated degradation of MAD2 primarily through the Akt pathway. Thus, our results demonstrate that TRIP13 may serve as a biomarker for MM disease development and prognosis, making it a potential target for future therapies.