Abstract
CDK4/6 inhibition is a promising therapy for medulloblastoma, one of the most common malignant pediatric brain tumors. To improve pharmacokinetics, we developed a polyoxazoline nanoparticle-encapsulated formulation of the FDA-approved CDK4/6 inhibitor palbociclib (POx-palbo). We then administered POx-palbo to transgenic medulloblastoma-prone GFAP-Cre/SmoM2 mice, to determine the efficacy and mechanisms of action and resistance. We found that POx-palbo slowed tumor progression, but consistently failed to be curative. Further analysis showed that while CDK4/6 inhibition acutely blocked G1 cells from re-entering the cell cycle, this effect wore off within hours of drug administration. However, flow cytometric analysis of EdU uptake hours after palbociclib demonstrated aberrant S-phase with reduced rate of DNA synthesis. This POx-palbociclib-induced alteration of S-phase progression seems to remain true at later time points even when we observed that palbociclib G1/S inhibition began to decrease. Based on these data, we propose that the combinational therapy of POx-palbociclib and S-phase targeting agents will further improve treatment. Faulty tumor cell cycle progression in the presence of Pox-palbociclib may give increased window to target the S-phase for irreversible cell-cycle exit.
Flow Cytometric Characterization of S-phase Fraction and Ploidy in Lymph Node Aspirates from Dogs with Lymphoma