Deficient drug transporter function of bone marrow-localized and leukemic plasma cells in multiple myeloma

Although chemotherapy effectively reduces the plasma cell burden in multiple myeloma (MM), the disease recurs. MM includes circulating and bone marrow (BM) localized components. A large majority of circulating CD11b+ MM B cells (81%) express an IgH VDJ rearrangement identical to that of autologous BM plasma cells. Unlike plasma cells, these monoclonal circulating B cells exhibit dye and drug transport activity before and throughout chemotherapy. Drug resistance was measured as the ability to export the fluorescent dye Rhodamine123 (Rh123) or the drug adriamycin, using flow cytometry. The role of P-glycoprotein 170 (P-gp), the multidrug transporter, was defined by cyclosporin A (CsA)-sensitive dye export. Only 8% to 11% of BM-localized plasma cells exported dye with the majority retaining dye, identified as bright staining. Circulating leukemic plasma cells were also unable to export dye and remained Rh123(bright). However, 53% of circulating clonotypic MM B cells exhibited CsA-sensitive dye export. BM plasma cells taken before or after initiation of first line chemotherapy were equally unable to export dye. Thus in myeloma, differentiation to the plasma cell stage is accompanied by a loss of P-gp function, although P-gp phenotypic expression is retained. In contrast, for monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), 54% of BM-localized plasma cells exported dye, comparable to the 53% of circulating MGUS B cells that also exported dye, suggesting that the apparent defect in P-gp function is unique to myeloma plasma cells. Virtually all BM plasma cells in MM retained the drug adriamycin, consistent with their initial drug sensitivity in vivo, in contrast to circulating MM B cells, or to T cells in BM or blood. Thus, circulating B cells appear to be the predominant drug resistant component of the MM B-lineage hierarchy. This report suggests that successful therapeutic strategies will be those that target circulating B cells. Chemosensitization methods involving inhibition of P-gp are likely to improve depletion of these cells by compromising their ability to exclude drug. This work suggests that circulating clonotypic B cells should be monitored in clinical trials to confirm their depletion and the overall efficacy of novel treatment strategies.