Role for PP2A Regulatory Subunit B55α as A Regulator of AKT and Other Signaling Pathways In AML.

Abstract 1668

Activation of survival kinases such as Protein Kinase B (AKT), Protein Kinase C (PKC), and Extracellular Receptor Activated Kinase (ERK) predict poor clinical outcome for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML; Kornblau et al Blood 2006). A better understanding of how the activities of these kinases are regulated by phosphorylation and dephosphorylation will enable the development of targeted therapies directed against this axis. Protein Phosphatase 2A (PP2A) negatively regulates PKC, AKT, and ERK but its role in AML is not clear. In the current study we examined the role of PP2A in regulating AKT in AML. Activation of AKT involves phosphorylation of threonine 308 (T308) and serine 473 (S473). A recent study has indicated that phosphorylation of AKT at T308 but not S473 is a poor prognostic factor for AML patients and that PP2A activity negatively correlated with T308 phosphorylation (Gallay et al Leukemia 2009). PP2A is a family of different isoforms that form hetero-trimers consisting of a catalytic C subunit, a scaffold A subunit, and one of at least 21 different regulatory B subunits. The functionality of each PP2A isoform is determined by the regulatory B subunit. Thus to understand PP2A regulation of AKT in AML, it is essential to study the B subunit that regulates the AKT phosphatase. The PP2A isoform regulating AKT in the AML patients is currently unknown. Evidence suggests that the B55a subunit is responsible for dephosphorylation of AKT at T308. In the current study, we compared B55α gene expression in blast cells derived from AML patients with normal counterpart (i.e. CD34+) cells derived from normal bone marrow donors by real time PCR. Surprisingly, B55α gene expression was higher in the patients. Reverse Phase Protein Analysis (RPPA) is a powerful tool that allows for the analysis of protein expression from patient samples. Protein levels of the PP2A B subunit were analyzed by RPPA in AML blast cells obtained from 511 newly diagnosed AML patients and CD34+ cells obtained from 11 normal bone marrow donors. Levels of B55α protein were significantly lower in the blast cells from the AML patients compared to normal CD34+ cells. While the mechanism for the observed difference in gene versus protein expression in the leukemia cells has yet to be determined, a plausible mechanism is that the B55α protein is being proteolyzed since monomeric PP2A B subunits that are not part of the PP2A hetero-trimer are degraded. Importantly the reduced levels of B55α protein observed would be predicted if AKT were activated in the AML blast cells. We next compared AKT phosphorylation status with B55α protein expression in the AML blast cells using RPPA to answer this question. Analysis of RPPA data revealed that there was no correlation between B55α protein levels and levels of total AKT protein or with levels of AKT phosphorylated at S473 in the AML samples. However, there was a moderate but significant negative correlation between B55α protein levels and levels of AKT phosphorylated at T308. This result suggests that B55α is mediating dephosphorylation of AKT at T308 but not S473 in the AML cells. B55α expression was not associated with FAB classification but was positively correlated with high blast and peripheral blood counts. While the level of expression of the B subunit did not correlate with overall survival, intermediate levels of B55α expression were associated with longer complete remission duration. We predict that higher levels of B55α would reflect low levels of other PP2A B subunits. Consistent with this prediction, B55α expression positively correlated with MYC expression in the AML patients. MYC expression is regulated by a B subunit that competes with B55α (i.e. B56α). These findings suggest that B55α may play an important role in AML as a negative regulator of AKT and perhaps by other as yet unidentified functions. Activation of B55α is a potential therapeutic target for overcoming the AKT activation frequently observed in AML.