Manipulating histone acetylation leads to antitumor effects in hemangiosarcoma cells

Canine hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is a malignant tumour derived from endothelial cells. No effective treatment has yet been developed because of the lack of understanding of its pathogenesis. Histone acetylation, an epigenetic modification, is highly associated with cancer pathogenesis. Manipulating histone acetylation by histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) or bromodomain and extraterminal domain inhibitors (BETi) is one approach to treat various cancers. However, the role of histone acetylation in HSA remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate how histone acetylation functions in HSA pathogenesis using two HDACi, suberanilohydroxamic acid (SAHA) and valproic acid (VPA), and one BETi, JQ1, in vitro and in vivo. Histone acetylation levels were high in cell lines and heterogeneous in clinical cases. SAHA and JQ1 induced apoptosis in HSA cell lines. HSA cell lines treated with SAHA and VPA upregulated inflammatory-related genes and attracted macrophage cell line RAW264 cells, which suggests that SAHA and VPA can affect immune responses. JQ1 stimulated autophagy and inhibited the cell cycle in HSA cell lines. Finally, we demonstrated that JQ1 suppressed HSA tumour cell proliferation in vivo although SAHA and VPA did not affect tumour growth. These results suggest that BETi can be alternative drugs for HSA treatment. Although further research is required, our study indicated that dysregulation of histone acetylation is likely to be involved in HSA malignancy.