Project description:By coupling activity-based protein profiling (ABPP) with covalent ligand screening experiment, we have identified a cysteine-reactive covalent ligand, CL16, which can bind strongly and selectively with RhoA in vitro. In this experiment, we performed shotgun proteomics to investigate protein targets of CL16 in colorectal cancer HCT116 cells.
Project description:Proteasome inhibitor (PI) resistance remains a central challenge in multiple myeloma. To identify pathways mediating resistance, we first map proteasome-associated genetic co-dependencies. We identify cytosolic heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) chaperones as a potential target, consistent with proposed mechanisms of myeloma tumor cells overcoming PI-induced stress. These results led us to explore allosteric HSP70 inhibitors as myeloma therapeutics. We show these compounds exhibit increased efficacy against both acquired and intrinsic PI-resistant myeloma models, unlike HSP90 inhibition. Surprisingly, shotgun and pulsed-SILAC proteomics reveal that JG’s overcome PI resistance not via the expected mechanism of inhibiting cytosolic HSP70s, but instead through mitochondrial-localized HSP70, HSPA9, destabilizing the 55S mitoribosome. Analysis of myeloma patient data further supports strong effects of global proteostasis capacity, and particularly HSPA9 expression, on PI response. Our results characterize dynamics of myeloma proteostasis networks under therapeutic pressure while further motivating investigation of HSPA9 as a specific target in PI-resistant disease.