PIM kinase inhibitor, AZD1208, inhibits protein translation and induces autophagy in primary chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells.

PIM kinase inhibitor, AZD1208, inhibits protein translation and induces autophagy in primary chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells. Oncotarget. 2019 Apr 19;10(29):2793-2809 Authors: Cervantes-Gomez F, Stellrecht CM, Ayres ML, Keating MJ, Wierda WG, Gandhi V Abstract The PIM1, PIM2, and PIM3 serine/threonine kinases play a role in the proliferation and survival of cancer cells. Mice lacking these three kinases were viable. Further, in human hematological malignancies, these proteins are overexpressed making them suitable targets. Several small molecule inhibitors against this enzyme were synthesized and tested. AZD1208, an orally available small-molecule drug, inhibits all three PIM kinases at a low nanomolar range. AZD1208 has been tested in clinical trials for patients with solid tumors and hematological malignancies, especially acute myelogenous leukemia. The present study evaluated the efficacy and biological actions of AZD1208 in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells. CLL cells had higher levels of PIM2 protein and mRNAs than did normal lymphocytes from healthy donors. Treatment of CLL lymphocytes with AZD1208 resulted in modest cell death, whereas practically no cytotoxicity was observed in healthy lymphocytes. To determine the mechanism by which AZD1208 inhibits PIM kinase function, we evaluated PIM kinase pathway and downstream substrates. Because peripheral blood CLL cells are replicationally quiescent, we analyzed substrates...
Source: Oncotarget - Category: Cancer & Oncology Tags: Oncotarget Source Type: research