title: Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2/neu as a novel therapeutic target in sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma.
abstract: Sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma (SNUC) is a rare and aggressive cancer. Despite multimodal therapy, the prognosis in SNUC remains poor, and new therapies are needed. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore potential therapeutic targets in SNUC.
  
  
  
  Using the human-derived SNUC MDA8788-6 cell line, we performed whole genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis to identify copy number changes in this line. Protein expression levels were evaluated by Western blotting. Cell growth inhibition was assessed by methylthiazol tetrazolium (MTT) and clonogenic assays. The mouse flank model was used to examine the effect of growth inhibition in vivo.
  
  
  
  The ERBB2 gene was highly amplified and cell extracts showed human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) was overexpressed and phosphorylated in MDA8788-6. Lapatinib effectively inhibited the HER2 signaling pathway in our SNUC cell line. HER2 inhibition successfully suppressed the cell growth of MDA8788-6 cells both in vitro and in vivo.
  
  
  
  Targeting HER2 may be a promising avenue for the development of novel therapies for SNUC. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 38: E1926-E1934, 2016.
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Yoko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Junegoo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Curtis
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pickering
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Tilahun W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Jiffar
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Jeffrey N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Ehab Y
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Hanna
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Michael E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Kupferman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D006801:Humans; D000077341:Lapatinib; D008297:Male; D008444:Maxillary Sinus Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011799:Quinazolines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism*; D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
chemical_list: D000077341:Lapatinib; D011799:Quinazolines; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; C508053:ERBB2 protein, human
keywords: apoptosis; gene amplification; human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)/neu; molecular targeted therapy; sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma