The 44-kDa Pim-1 kinase phosphorylates BCRP/ABCG2 and thereby promotes its multimerization and drug-resistant activity in human prostate cancer cells

J Biol Chem. 2008 Feb 8;283(6):3349-3356. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M707773200. Epub 2007 Dec 5.

Abstract

We previously showed that the 44-kDa serine/threonine kinase Pim-1 (Pim-1L) can protect prostate cancer cells from apoptosis induced by chemotherapeutic drugs (Xie, Y., Xu, K., Dai, B., Guo, Z., Jiang, T., Chen, H., and Qiu, Y. (2006) Oncogene 25, 70-78). To further explore the mechanisms of Pim-1L-mediated resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs in prostate cancer cells, we employed a yeast two-hybrid screening to identify cellular proteins that were associated with Pim-1L, and we found the ABC transporter BCRP/ABCG2 as one of the potential interacting partners of Pim-1L. We also showed that the expression level of Pim-1L and BCRP was up-regulated in mitoxantrone and docetaxel-resistant prostate cancer cell lines. Pim-1L was co-localized with BCRP on the plasma membrane and induced phosphorylation of BCRP at threonine 362. Knocking-down Pim-1L expression in the drug-resistant prostate cancer cells abolished multimer formation of endogenous BCRP and resensitized the resistant cells to chemotherapeutic drugs suggesting that BCRP phosphorylation induced by Pim-1L was essential for its functionality. This is further corroborated by our finding that the plasma membrane localization and drug-resistant activity of BCRP were compromised by T362A mutation. Our data suggest that Pim-1L may protect prostate cancer cells from apoptosis, at least in part, through regulation of transmembrane drug efflux pump. These findings may provide a potential therapeutic approach by disrupting Pim-1 signaling to reverse BCRP-mediated multidrug resistance.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily G, Member 2
  • ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters / biosynthesis
  • ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters / physiology*
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Membrane / metabolism
  • Drug Resistance, Neoplasm*
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Neoplasm Proteins / biosynthesis
  • Neoplasm Proteins / physiology*
  • Phosphorylation
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / metabolism*
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
  • Threonine / chemistry
  • Two-Hybrid System Techniques

Substances

  • ABCG2 protein, human
  • ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily G, Member 2
  • ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters
  • Neoplasm Proteins
  • Threonine