Abstract 3341: Synthetic lethality by targeting ribonucleotide reductase in PP2A deficient uterine serous carcinoma

Abstract

Abstract Uterine serous carcinoma (USC) is a highly aggressive endometrial cancer subtype with limited therapeutic options and a lack of targeted therapies. While mutations to PPP2R1A, encoding the predominant protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) scaffolding protein Aα, occur in 30-40% of cases, the clinical actionability of these mutations has not been studied. Here, we show that mutation to Aα results in synthetic lethality to treatment with inhibitors of ribonucleotide reductase (RNR), and multiple models of Aα mutant uterine serous tumors were sensitive to Clofarabine, an RNR inhibitor in vivo. Aα mutant cells displayed impaired checkpoint signaling upon RNRi treatment, and subsequently accumulated more DNA damage than wild type cells. This was PP2A dependent as complete inhibition of PP2A activity using LB-100, a catalytic site inhibitor, sensitized wild type USC cells to RNRi. Analysis of TCGA data indicated that inactivation of PP2A, through loss of PP2A subunit expression, was prevalent in USC, with 88% of USC patients harboring loss of at least one PP2A gene. In contrast, loss of PP2A subunit expression was rare in uterine endometrioid carcinomas. While RNR inhibitors are not routinely used for uterine cancers, we identified a cohort of patients with recurrent disease treated with gemcitabine at MSKCC as a second or later line therapy. In a retrospective analysis of this cohort there was a trend for improved outcomes in USC patients treated with RNRi gemcitabine compared to patients with endometrioid histology. Overall, our data provide experimental evidence to support the use of ribonucleotide reductase inhibitors for the treatment of USC. Citation Format: Caitlin M. O'Connor, Sarah E. Taylor, Kathryn M. Miller, Lauren Hurst, Terrance J. Haanen, Tahra K. Suhan, Kaitlin P. Zawacki, Fallon K. Noto, Jonida Trako, Arathi Mohan, Jaya Sangodkar, Dmitriy Zamarin, Analisa DiFeo, Goutham Narla. Synthetic lethality by targeting ribonucleotide reductase in PP2A deficient uterine serous carcinoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 3341.