The forkhead transcription factor FOXO3a increases phosphoinositide-3 kinase/Akt activity in drug-resistant leukemic cells through induction of PIK3CA expression.
The phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt signal pathway plays a key role in the tumorigenesis of many cancers and in the subsequent development of drug resistance. Using the K562 chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) cell line and the doxorubicin-resistant derivative lines KD30 and KD225 as models, we observed that enhanced PI3K/Akt activity and the acquisition of chemoresistance correlated unexpectedly with the increased expression and nuclear accumulation of FOXO3a. Moreover, we found that the induction of FOXO3a activity in naïve K562 cells was sufficient to enhance PI3K/Akt activity and to confer resistance to the cytotoxic effects of doxorubicin. Conversely, the knockdown of endogenous FOXO3a expression reduced PI3K/Akt activity and sensitized these cells to doxorubicin. Further chromatin immunoprecipitation and promoter mutation analyses demonstrated that FOXO3a regulates the expression of the PI3K catalytic subunit p110alpha through the activation of a promoter region proximal to a novel untranslated exon upstream from the reported transcription start site of the p110alpha gene PIK3CA. As was the case for FOXO3a, the expression or knockdown of p110alpha was sufficient to amplify or reduce PI3K/Akt activity, respectively. Thus, our results suggest that the chronic activation of FOXO3a by doxorubicin in CML cells can enhance survival through a feedback mechanism that involves enhanced p110alpha expression and hyperactivation of the PI3K/Akt pathway.
Hui
Rosaline C-Y
RC
Cancer Research-UK Laboratories, Department of Oncology, MRC Cyclotron Building, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, London W12 0NN, United Kingdom.
Gomes
Ana R
AR
Constantinidou
Demetra
D
Costa
Joana R
JR
Karadedou
Christina T
CT
Fernandez de Mattos
Silvia
S
Wymann
Matthias P
MP
Brosens
Jan J
JJ
Schulze
Almut
A
Lam
Eric W-F
EW
D000818:Animals; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D058534:Class I Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm; D005091:Exons; D000071316:Forkhead Box Protein O3; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D020014:K562 Cells; D015464:Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / Q000188:drug therapy*; D051379:Mice; D051058:Oncogene Protein v-akt / Q000378:metabolism; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000235:genetics*; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D015398:Signal Transduction
C499517:FOXO3 protein, human; D000071316:Forkhead Box Protein O3; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D004317:Doxorubicin; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D058534:Class I Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; C484760:PIK3CA protein, human; D051058:Oncogene Protein v-akt