Simultaneous Inhibition of PI3Kδ and PI3Kα Induces ABC-DLBCL Regression Via Attenuation of BCR-Dependent and Independent Activation of NF-Kb and AKT

Introduction: ABC-DLBCL is a subtype of DLBCL with less favorable clinical outcomes to the standard of care (SoC) therapies. Constitutive activation of NF-κB by various genetic alterations in ABC-DLBCL has been identified as one of the key mechanisms driving chemotherapy resistance. Inhibition of B cell receptor (BCR) signaling with BTK (Bruton's tyrosine kinase) inhibitor ibrutinib demonstrated encouraging clinical responses in ABC-DLBCL. However, patients with CD79wt/MyD88mut, or CARD11mut did not respond to ibrutinib, indicating the need for new therapies targeting ibrutinib refractory ABC-DLBCL. Recent approval of PI3Kδ selective inhibitor idelalisib for the treatment of indolent NHL (iNHL) as monotherapy highlighted selective inhibition of PI3Kδ as an effective therapeutic strategy. However, idelalisib did not show clinical activity in DLBCL in a Phase I expansion cohort study. Here we report immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis of clinical tumor samples from follicular lymphoma (FL) and DLBCL patients and a series of in vitro and in vivo mechanistic and functional studies to explore the importance of PI3K isoforms in regulating key signaling pathways in ABC-DLBCL. Methods: Expression of PI3K isoforms and PTEN was assessed by IHC and western blot from a panel of 45 FL and 45 DLBCL primary tumors. Effects of PI3K inhibitors (PI3Kδ-selective inhibitor idelalisib, PI3Kα-selective inhibitor BLY-719, PI3Kβ-selective inhibitor TGX-221, predominant PI3Kα/δ inhibitor copanlisib and BTK inhibitor ibrutinib) on nuclear NF-κB activation were determined using stable cell lines expressing NF-κB-luciferase reporter (obtained by lentiviral infection), IHC staining of p65 NF-κB, expression of CCL4, IL-6, and IL-10 by RT-PCR and protein production by ELISA assays. In vitro and in vivo mechanisms of action were addressed by assessing the activities of the key survival signaling pathways. In vitro and in vivo anti-tumor activities were investigated using cell lines and patient derived xenograft ABC-DLBCL models representing the key molecular features of BCR-dependent and independent ABC-DLBCL. Results: Although PI3Kδ was predominantly expressed in both FL and DLBCL, high PI3Kα expression was more prevalent in DLBCL (60% vs 18%), a patient population resistant to PI3Kδ-selective inhibition in the clinic. Simultaneous inhibition of PI3Kα and PI3Kδ with BYL-719 plus idelalisib or copanlisib alone dramatically enhanced anti-tumor profile in ABC-DLBCL models compared to selective inhibition of PI3Kδ, PI3Kα or BTK. The anti-tumor activity was associated with suppression of p-AKT and a novel mechanism of blocking NF-κB activation driven by CD79mut, CARD11mut, A20mut or MyD88mutin vitro and in vivo. Suppression of NF-kB activation by PI3K inhibition is independent from AKT, but involves a novel mechanism of modulating c-IAP expression. Inhibition of PI3Kα/δ resulted in complete tumor regression in an ibrutinib-resistant MyD88mut-LY0257 patient-derived (PDx) ABC-DLBCL model. Furthermore, rebound activation of BTK and AKT was identified as a mechanism limiting CD79mut ABC-DLBCL to show robust response to PI3K and BTK inhibitors, respectively, as single agents in vivo. Combination of ibrutinib with PI3Kα/δ inhibitor copanlisib dosed intermittently iv was well tolerated and produced complete tumor regression in CD79Bmut TMD-8 cell line and Ly2298 PDx ABC-DLBCL models. Conclusions: High expression of PI3Kα in addition to PI3Kδ in ABC-DLBCL is associated with intrinsic resistance to PI3Kδ selective inhibition. Simultaneous inhibition of PI3Kα/δ by copanlisib modulates not only the PI3K/AKT pathway but also BCR-dependent and independent activation of nuclear NF-κB via a novel AKT-independent mechanism, indicating a promising utility for the treatment of clinically relevant ibrutinib-resistant ABC-DLBCL patients with CD79wt/MyD88mut, A20mut, or CARD11mut tumor genotypes. Combination of PI3Kα/δ and BTK inhibitors demonstrated promising potential for ibrutinib-responsive ABC-DLBCL to achieve complete tumor regression by blocking rebound activation of BTK and AKT. Thus, our findings presented here provide additional insights on intrinsic and acquired resistance mechanisms to selective PI3Kδ and BTK inhibitors and provide rationale for clinical development of PI3K inhibitors with specific isoform profile in combination for the treatment of ABC-DLBCL. Disclosures Paul: Bayer AG: Employment. Sojoun:Bayer AG: Employment. Wengner:Bayer AG: Employment. Zitzmann-Kolbe:Bayer AG: Employment. Sturz:Bayer AG: Employment. Haike:Bayer AG: Employment. Martin:Bayer AG: Employment. Mumberg:Bayer AG: Employment. Ziegelbauer:Bayer AG: Employment. Liu:Bayer AG: Employment.