Abstract 3029: An in vivo role for Argonaute 2 in KRAS driven pancreatic cancer

Abstract

Abstract Oncogenic mutations in RAS provide a compelling yet intractable therapeutic target. Using co-immunoprecipitation mass spectrometry, we recently identified an interaction between RAS and Argonaute 2 (AGO2), the core component of the RNA silencing machinery exerting translational control of mRNA transcripts. RAS and AGO2 co-sediment and co-localize in intracellular endomembrane bound organelles. The AGO2 N-terminal domain directly binds the KRAS Switch II region, irrespective of GDP/GTP bound to RAS. Functionally, we observed that AGO2 was required for maximal oncogenic KRAS levels and AGO2 knock-down attenuates cell proliferation in mutant KRAS-dependent cells. Intriguingly, AGO2 mediated microRNA processing (RISC activity) was attenuated in cancer cells expressing mutant KRAS compared to those expressing wild type RAS. Yet, these initial investigations using cell line models do not reveal a clear role for AGO2 in KRAS driven oncogenesis. Therefore, we probed the role of AGO2 in the well-established pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) mouse model driven by oncogenic KRAS. Towards this end, we generated LSL-KrasG12D; Pft1a Cre; AGO2flox/flox (KCA) mice. Preliminary analysis (8-10 weeks of age) suggests that compared to LSL-KRASG12D (KC) mice, homozygous loss of AGO2 results in increased KRAS driven Acinar to Ductal Metaplasia (ADM) phenotype considered as precursors of PanIN (pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia) and PDAC. This mirrors the phenotype of loss of Dicer in the same model further reinforcing a role for microRNAs in restraining KRAS oncogenic programs. Yet unlike Dicer, loss of AGO2 alone did not cause any gross or histological changes in the development of the mouse pancreata. In an effort to understand the underlying mechanisms that are regulated by AGO2, we also studied the activated levels of a variety of signaling molecules in pancreata obtained from different genotypes. Primary analysis indicates that wild type RAS levels are elevated during AGO2 loss and has a bearing on PDAC initiation. Using both Western blot and Immunohistochemical analyses, we demonstrate a previously unknown and critical role for AGO2 in KRAS-MAPK signaling pathway. Citation Format: Sunita Shankar, Jean Tien, Vijaya L. Dommeti, Sylvia Zelenka-Wang, Ingrid A. Apel, Jiaqi Shi, Chandan Kumar-Sinha, Arul M. Chinnaiyan. An in vivo role for Argonaute 2 in KRAS driven pancreatic cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3029. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-3029