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Abstract
Ibrutinib has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment
of patients with untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) since 2016 but has not
been compared with chemoimmunotherapy. We conducted a phase 3 trial to evaluate the
efficacy of ibrutinib, either alone or in combination with rituximab, relative to
chemoimmunotherapy.
Irreversible inhibition of Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) by ibrutinib represents an important therapeutic advance for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). However, ibrutinib also irreversibly inhibits alternative kinase targets, which potentially compromises its therapeutic index. Acalabrutinib (ACP-196) is a more selective, irreversible BTK inhibitor that is specifically designed to improve on the safety and efficacy of first-generation BTK inhibitors.
B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling is aberrantly activated in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) is essential to BCR signaling and in knockout mouse models its mutation has a relatively B cell-specific phenotype. Herein, we demonstrate that BTK protein and mRNA are significantly over expressed in CLL compared with normal B cells. Although BTK is not always constitutively active in CLL cells, BCR or CD40 signaling is accompanied by effective activation of this pathway. Using the irreversible BTK inhibitor PCI-32765, we demonstrate modest apoptosis in CLL cells that is greater than that observed in normal B cells. No influence of PCI-32765 on T-cell survival is observed. Treatment of CD40 or BCR activated CLL cells with PCI-32765 results in inhibition of BTK tyrosine phosphorylation and also effectively abrogates downstream survival pathways activated by this kinase including ERK1/2, PI3K, and NF-κB. In addition, PCI-32765 inhibits activation-induced proliferation of CLL cells in vitro, and effectively blocks survival signals provided externally to CLL cells from the microenvironment including soluble factors (CD40L, BAFF, IL-6, IL-4, and TNF-α), fibronectin engagement, and stromal cell contact. Based on these collective data, future efforts targeting BTK with the irreversible inhibitor PCI-32765 in clinical trials of CLL patients is warranted.
B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling is a critical pathway in the pathogenesis of several B-cell malignancies, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), and can be targeted by inhibitors of BCR-associated kinases, such as Bruton tyrosine kinase (Btk). PCI-32765, a selective, irreversible Btk inhibitor, is a novel, molecularly targeted agent for patients with B-cell malignancies, and is particularly active in patients with CLL. In this study, we analyzed the mechanism of action of PCI-32765 in CLL, using in vitro and in vivo models, and performed correlative studies on specimens from patients receiving therapy with PCI-32765. PCI-32765 significantly inhibited CLL cell survival, DNA synthesis, and migration in response to tissue homing chemokines (CXCL12, CXCL13). PCI-32765 also down-regulated secretion of BCR-dependent chemokines (CCL3, CCL4) by the CLL cells, both in vitro and in vivo. In an adoptive transfer TCL1 mouse model of CLL, PCI-32765 affected disease progression. In this model, PCI-32765 caused a transient early lymphocytosis, and profoundly inhibited CLL progression, as assessed by weight, development, and extent of hepatospenomegaly, and survival. Our data demonstrate that PCI-32765 effectively inhibits CLL cell migration and survival, possibly explaining some of the characteristic clinical activity of this new targeted agent.
Publisher:
New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM/MMS)
ISSN
(Print):
0028-4793
ISSN
(Electronic):
1533-4406
Publication date Created:
December
2018
Publication date
(Electronic):
December
2018
Affiliations
[1
]From Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus (J.A.W., A.S.R.,
N.A.H., W.Z., K.A.R., G.L., J.S.B., H.G.O., J.C.B.); the Alliance Statistics and Data
Center (A.S.R., A.M.B., B.M.-E., B.F., S.J.M.), Mayo Clinic (W.D., S.A.P., M.L.),
Rochester, MN; Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis (N.L.B.); Duke
Cancer Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham (D.M.B., H.E.), and First
Health of the Carolinas Cancer Center, Pinehurst (C.K.) — both in North Carolina;
the...
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