Abstract 4896: The role of SLC7A5 (LAT1) in endocrine therapy-resistant breast cancer

Abstract

Abstract Breast cancer is the leading cancer diagnosis for women in the United States. Endocrine therapies, such as tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors, are used to treat the estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancers that comprise 70% of all new cases. Unfortunately, emergence of resistance to these therapies presents a major clinical challenge. Cancer cells can adapt to dysregulate the bioenergetics of cellular metabolism and evade cell death. Solute carrier family 7 member 5 (SLC7A5 or LAT1) is expressed across the cell membrane and is a transporter of large, neutral amino acids (such as leucine or tyrosine) supporting cell proliferation. Using LCC9 breast cancer cells that are resistant to tamoxifen and fulvestrant, we studied the role of LAT1 in endocrine therapy-resistant cells as compared to sensitive MCF7 breast cancer cells. SLC7A5 expression was upregulated by estrogen in MCF7 cells that was blocked in the presence of fulvestrant treatment. A significant 2.75-fold upregulation of SLC7A5 protein and 71-fold upregulation of SLC7A5 mRNA was found in LCC9 cells (as compared with MCF7 cells) without any estrogen regulation. Fulvestrant treatment did not significantly alter SLC7A5 mRNA or protein expression. These data suggest that higher levels of SLC7A5 in resistant cells may help in transporting key amino acids from their microenvironment to support cell growth. Inhibiting the functions of SLC7A5 using a pharmacologic inhibitor, JPH203, or depleting its expression by using siRNA led to significant growth suppression of LCC9 cells. Cell cycle analysis revealed that SLC7A5 depletion increased G1 phase of cell cycle and reduced S phase cells. In five publicly available data sets, of estrogen receptor-positive and tamoxifen-treated breast cancer patients, high expression of SLC7A5 was associated with worse prognosis. Endocrine therapy resistance is partly driven by autophagy in breast cancer cells. We depleted SLC7A5 expression in LCC9s to better understand the role of this transporter in autophagy. This study uncovers a novel adaptive mechanism in endocrine therapy-resistant breast cancer cells that is facilitated by increased SLC7A5 mediated transport of large neutral amino acids enabling them to supplement their increased metabolic needs and promoting cell growth. Therefore, blocking the functions of SLC7A5, perhaps in conjunction with inhibition of autophagy, may offer an avenue of potential therapeutic intervention in endocrine therapy-resistant breast cancers. Citation Format: Catherine M. Sevigny, Surojeet Sengupta, Zhexun Luo, Lu Jin, Dominic Pearce, Robert Clarke. The role of SLC7A5 (LAT1) in endocrine therapy-resistant breast cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4896.