Bortezomib, a clinical
drug for
multiple myeloma (MM) and
mantle cell lymphoma, exhibits complex mechanisms of action, which vary depending on the
cancer type and the critical genetic alterations of each
cancer. Here we investigated the signaling mechanisms of
bortezomib in mouse B
lymphoma and human MM cells deficient in a new tumor suppressor gene,
TRAF3. We found that
bortezomib consistently induced up-regulation of the cell cycle inhibitor p21(WAF1) and the
pro-apoptotic protein Noxa as well as cleavage of the
anti-apoptotic protein Mcl-1. Interestingly,
bortezomib induced the activation of NF-κB1 and the accumulation of the
oncoprotein c-Myc, but inhibited the activation of NF-κB2. Furthermore, we demonstrated that
oridonin (an inhibitor of NF-κB1 and NF-κB2) or
AD 198 (a drug targeting c-Myc) drastically potentiated the anti-
cancer effects of
bortezomib in TRAF3-deficient malignant B cells. Taken together, our findings increase the understanding of the mechanisms of action of
bortezomib, which would aid the design of novel
bortezomib-based combination
therapies. Our results also provide a rationale for clinical evaluation of the combinations of
bortezomib and
oridonin (or other inhibitors of NF-κB1/2) or
AD 198 (or other drugs targeting c-Myc) in the treatment of
lymphoma and MM, especially in patients containing
TRAF3 deletions or relevant mutations.