MAP2K1 is a potential therapeutic target in erlotinib resistant head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Ankit P. Jain, Krishna Patel, Sneha Pinto, Aneesha Radhakrishnan, Vishalakshi Nanjappa, Manish Kumar, Remya Raja, Arun H. Patil, Anjali Kumari, Malini Manoharan, Coral Karunakaran, Saktivel Murugan, T. S. Keshava Prasad, Xiaofei Chang, Premendu Prakash Mathur, Prashant Kumar, Ravi Gupta, Rohit Gupta, Arati Khanna-Gupta, David SidranskyAditi Chatterjee, Harsha Gowda

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) targeted therapies have shown limited efficacy in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients despite its overexpression. Identifying molecular mechanisms associated with acquired resistance to EGFR-TKIs such as erlotinib remains an unmet need and a therapeutic challenge. In this study, we employed an integrated multi-omics approach to delineate mechanisms associated with acquired resistance to erlotinib by carrying out whole exome sequencing, quantitative proteomic and phosphoproteomic profiling. We observed amplification of several genes including AXL kinase and transcription factor YAP1 resulting in protein overexpression. We also observed expression of constitutively active mutant MAP2K1 (p.K57E) in erlotinib resistant SCC-R cells. An integrated analysis of genomic, proteomic and phosphoproteomic data revealed alterations in MAPK pathway and its downstream targets in SCC-R cells. We demonstrate that erlotinib-resistant cells are sensitive to MAPK pathway inhibition. This study revealed multiple genetic, proteomic and phosphoproteomic alterations associated with erlotinib resistant SCC-R cells. Our data indicates that therapeutic targeting of MAPK pathway is an effective strategy for treating erlotinib-resistant HNSCC tumors.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number18793
JournalScientific reports
Volume9
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1 2019

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General

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