Paradoxical activation of MEK/ERK signaling induced by B-Raf inhibition enhances DR5 expression and DR5 activation-induced apoptosis in Ras-mutant cancer cells.
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Oh YT, Deng J, Yue P, Sun SY
Paradoxical activation of MEK/ERK signaling induced by B-Raf inhibition enhances DR5 expression and DR5 activation-induced apoptosis in Ras-mutant cancer cells.
Sci Rep. 2016 May 25;6:26803. doi: 10.1038/srep26803.
- PubMed ID
- 27222248 [ View in PubMed]
- Abstract
B-Raf inhibitors have been used for the treatment of some B-Raf-mutated cancers. They effectively inhibit B-Raf/MEK/ERK signaling in cancers harboring mutant B-Raf, but paradoxically activates MEK/ERK in Ras-mutated cancers. Death receptor 5 (DR5), a cell surface pro-apoptotic protein, triggers apoptosis upon ligation with tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) or aggregation. This study focused on determining the effects of B-Raf inhibition on DR5 expression and DR5 activation-induced apoptosis in Ras-mutant cancer cells. Using chemical and genetic approaches, we have demonstrated that the B-Raf inhibitor PLX4032 induces DR5 upregulation exclusively in Ras-mutant cancer cells; this effect is dependent on Ras/c-Raf/MEK/ERK signaling activation. PLX4032 induces DR5 expression at transcriptional levels, largely due to enhancing CHOP/Elk1-mediated DR5 transcription. Pre-exposure of Ras-mutated cancer cells to PLX4032 sensitizes them to TRAIL-induced apoptosis; this is also a c-Raf/MEK/ERK-dependent event. Collectively, our findings highlight a previously undiscovered effect of B-Raf inhibition on the induction of DR5 expression and the enhancement of DR5 activation-induced apoptosis in Ras-mutant cancer cells and hence may suggest a novel therapeutic strategy against Ras-mutated cancer cells by driving their death due to DR5-dependent apoptosis through B-Raf inhibition.