Journal
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
Volume 8, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
NATURE PORTFOLIO
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-28107-4
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Funding
- Swedish Cancer Society
- Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation
- Swedish Research Council
- Olle Engkvists Foundation
- Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation
- KI Foundation
- Bayer's Grants4targets
- Felix Mindus Leukemia Research Grant
- Mary Beve's Childhood Cancer Research Grant
- KID
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MYC is a key player in tumor development, but unfortunately no specific MYC-targeting drugs are clinically available. MYC is strictly dependent on heterodimerization with MAX for transcription activation. Aiming at targeting this interaction, we identified MYCMI-6 in a cell-based protein interaction screen for small inhibitory molecules. MYCMI-6 exhibits strong selective inhibition of MYC: MAX interaction in cells and in vitro at single-digit micromolar concentrations, as validated by split Gaussia luciferase, in situ proximity ligation, microscale thermophoresis and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) assays. Further, MYCMI-6 blocks MYC-driven transcription and binds selectively to the MYC bHLHZip domain with a K-D of 1.6 +/- 0.5 mu M as demonstrated by SPR. MYCMI-6 inhibits tumor cell growth in a MYC-dependent manner with IC50 concentrations as low as 0.5 mu M, while sparing normal cells. The response to MYCMI-6 correlates with MYC expression based on data from 60 human tumor cell lines and is abrogated by MYC depletion. Further, it inhibits MYC: MAX interaction, reduces proliferation and induces massive apoptosis in tumor tissue from a MYC-driven xenograft tumor model without severe side effects. Since MYCMI-6 does not affect MYC expression, it is a unique molecular tool to specifically target MYC: MAX pharmacologically and it has good potential for drug development.
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