The mTOR inhibitor, everolimus (RAD001), overcomes resistance to imatinib in quiescent Ph-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells.

ABSTRACT: In Ph-positive (Ph(+)) leukemia, the quiescent cell state is one of the reasons for resistance to the BCR-ABL-kinase inhibitor, imatinib. In order to examine the mechanisms of resistance due to quiescence and the effect of the mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor, everolimus, for such a resistant population, we used Ph(+) acute lymphoblastic leukemia patient cells serially xenotransplanted into NOD/SCID/IL2rγ(null) (NOG) mice. Spleen cells from leukemic mice showed a higher percentage of slow-cycling G(0) cells in the CD34(+)CD38(-) population compared with the CD34(+)CD38(+) and CD34(-) populations. After ex vivo imatinib treatment, more residual cells were observed in the CD34(+)CD38(-) population than in the other populations. Although slow-cycling G(0) cells were insensitive to imat

SUBMITTER: Kuwatsuka Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3255258 | biostudies-literature | 2011 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature