SHP2 is required for growth of KRAS-mutant non-small-cell lung cancer in vivo

RAS mutations are frequent in human cancer, especially in pancreatic, colorectal and non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLCs)(1-3). Inhibition of the RAS oncoproteins has proven difficult(4), and attempts to target downstream effectors(5-7) have been hampered by the activation of compensatory resistance mechanisms(8). It is also well established that KRAS-mutant tumors are insensitive to inhibition of upstream growth factor receptor signaling. Thus, epidermal growth factor receptor antibody therapy is only effective in KRAS wild-type colon cancers(9,10). Consistently, inhibition of SHP2 (also known as PTPN11), which links receptor tyrosine kinase signaling to the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK pathway(11,12), was shown to be ineffective in KRAS-mutant or BRAF-mutant cancer cell lines(13). Our data also indicate that SHP2 inhibition in KRAS-mutant NSCLC cells under normal cell culture conditions has little effect. By contrast, SHP2 inhibition under growth factor-limiting conditions in vitro results in a senescence response. In vivo, inhibition of SHP2 in KRAS-mutant NSCLC also provokes a senescence response, which is exacerbated by MEK inhibition. Our data identify SHP2 inhibition as an unexpected vulnerability of KRAS-mutant NSCLC cells that remains undetected in cell culture and can be exploited therapeutically.