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Targeted agents have greatly improved outcomes for patients (pts) with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and other B cell lymphomas; however, single agents have been limited by intolerance, resistance and depth/durability of responses. Current novel targeted agent combinations may improve depth of response, but such "full dose" strategies have been associated with significant AEs, dose reductions/interruptions and discontinuations. Our in vitro & in vivo screening/optimization studies identified that concurrent inhibition of BTK & mTOR targets plus IMiD at low doses of each inhibitor can synergistically kill B-cell malignancies and may address drug-resistance. DTRM-555 is an optimized oral triplet combination of a novel BTK inhibitor DTRMWXHS-12 (DTRM-12) with everolimus (EV) & pomalidomide (POM). This once daily therapy was tested in a stepwise, phase I, US multicenter study in patients with highest unmet medical needs including r/r CLL, Richter's transformation (RT) of CLL, DLBCL, transformed B-cell lymphomas. We conducted a 3+3 design phase I, first human trial exploring DTRM-555 in pts ≥18 years, ECOG PS ≤1 with CLL, B-cell NHL, or Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) with no available standard therapy (NCT02900716). Our goal was to determine optimal doses for triplet combination therapy through 3 escalating phases of study: DTRM-12 in escalating doses (50, 100, 200, & 300 mg/day) in Part Ia, DTRM-12 at 200 mg or 300 mg & EV at 5 mg (doublet or DTRM-505) in Part Ib Arm A while DTRM-12 at 200 mg or 300 mg, EV at 5 mg & POM at 2 mg in Part Ib Arm B. For all arms, treatment was administered for 21 consecutive days of a 28-day cycle, until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Safety was the primary endpoint, and the dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) period was cycle 1. Secondary endpoints included response (iwCLL 2018 or Cheson 2014), progression free survival, duration of response and pharmacokinetics. Intra-patient migration between arms (Mono to doublet to triplet) was permitted if subsequent doses were tolerated. The trial commenced 9/27/2016 and completed enrollment 7/25/2019. Thirty-three pts were enrolled, including 2 screen failures and 4 intra-cohort migrations, with r/r DLBCL (n=8), CLL/SLL (n=5), RT (n=6), FL (n=5), MCL (n=4), MZL/LPL (n=3), HL (n=2). 30 of 31 treated pts were evaluated: 8 pts participated in phase Ia (DTRM-12) while 23 pts were treated on phase Ib combinations (DTRM-505 & DTRM-555). Baseline characteristics: 70% male (n=23), median age 70 years (range 46-94) and 94% white. Median prior therapies were 3 (range 1-10), 53% had been treated with ≥1 prior targeted agent (i.e., CD19/CD3 bispecific antibody, obtinutuzumab, pembrolizumab, nivolumab, ibrutinib, venetoclax, PI3k-i), CAR-T or HSCT. 35% pts were previously treated with ibrutinib. Table 1 describes Grade (Gr) 3 and 4 AEs (all causality, stratified by treatment arm). Regarding safety, AEs were manageable, with a total of 5 DLTs were observed: 2 (Gr 3 febrile neutropenia, URI) in part Ib arm A, 3 (Gr 4 thrombocytopenia, Gr 3 diarrhea, G3 febrile neutropenia) in Part Ib arm B. No MTD was reached for the mono & doublet arms, with the MTD of the triplet determined to be DTRM-12 200 mg, EV 5 mg, & POM 2 mg. Spider plot (Figure 1a) shows the clinical response for individual CLL and lymphoma pts treated with mono, doublet and triplet therapies. Depth and durability of response improved with combination therapies (vs. mono). Of note, 48% of all patients had a ≥50% reduction in sum of the products of lymph node diameters. Representative PET-CT scans are in Figure 1b-c. Responses in multi-refractory pts are ongoing (including 15+ mos in a pt with r/r DLBCL and 5+ mos PR in a pt aged > 90 yrs with r/r DLBCL; 4+ & 13+ mos PRs in two pts with RT). DTRM-12 plasma concentrations were unaffected by EV & POM (Once Daily Oral Therapies) in Figure 1d. The clinical trial met its primary endpoint as the triple combination DTRM-555 had an acceptable safety profile. Dose dependent drug levels with minimal inter-pt variations were observed in all arms, supporting once daily oral administration of this low-dose combination therapy. Encouraging clinical activity was observed in several high-risk, multi-refractory CLL and lymphoma pts, including those previously treated with ibrutinib. Thus synthetic lethality is a viable treatment approach. A phase II US expansion study is underway targeting pts with transformed lymphomas (follicular or prior CLL) and r/r DLBCL cohorts. Table 1. Disclosures Mato: AbbVie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Sunesis: Consultancy, Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy, Research Funding; Johnson & Johnson: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy; AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Gilead: Research Funding; Acerta: Consultancy; Janssen: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Other: DSMB member , Research Funding; LOXO: Consultancy, Research Funding; DTRM Biopharma: Research Funding. Schuster:DTRM Biopharma: Research Funding. Foss:Mallinckrodt: Consultancy; Acrotech: Consultancy; miRagen: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Other: fees for non-CME/CE services ; Eisai: Consultancy; Spectrum: Other: fees for non-CME/CE services . Isufi:Novartis: Consultancy; Astra Zeneca: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy. Ding:Merck: Research Funding; DTRM Biopharma: Research Funding. Brander:Novartis: Consultancy; MEI: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy; BeiGene: Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Research Funding; Acerta: Research Funding; Tolero: Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Teva: Consultancy, Honoraria; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; DTRM Biopharma: Research Funding. Tun:Mundi-pharma: Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Research Funding; Curis: Research Funding; DTRM Biopharma: Research Funding; Celgene: Research Funding; BMS: Research Funding. He:DTRM Biopharma: Employment, Equity Ownership. Kearney:DTRM Biopharma: Employment, Equity Ownership. Gui:DTRM Biopharma: Employment, Equity Ownership. Anderson:Theradex: Employment. Roeker:AbbVie: Equity Ownership; Abbott Laboratories: Equity Ownership. Huntington:Bayer: Consultancy, Honoraria; AbbVie: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Honoraria; DTRM Biopharm: Research Funding. OffLabel Disclosure: Everolimus in B cell lymphomas and CLL Pomalidomide in B cell lymphomas and CLL

PURPOSE: Patients with acute myeloid leukemia with high-risk cytogenetics in first complete remission (CR1) achieve better outcomes if they undergo allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) compared with consolidation chemotherapy alone. However, only approximately 40% of such patients typically proceed to HCT. METHODS: We used a prospective organized approach to rapidly identify donors to improve the allogeneic HCT rate in adults with high-risk acute myeloid leukemia in CR1. Newly diagnosed patients had cytogenetics obtained at enrollment, and those with high-risk cytogenetics underwent expedited HLA typing and were encouraged to be referred for consultation with a transplantation team with the goal of conducting an allogeneic HCT in CR1. RESULTS: Of 738 eligible patients (median age, 49 years; range, 18-60 years of age), 159 (22%) had high-risk cytogenetics and 107 of these patients (67%) achieved CR1. Seventy (65%) of the high-risk patients underwent transplantation in CR1 ( P < .001 compared with the historical rate of 40%). Median time to HCT from CR1 was 77 days (range, 20-356 days). In landmark analysis, overall survival (OS) among patients who underwent transplantation was significantly better compared with that of patients who did not undergo transplantation (2-year OS, 48% v 35%, respectively [ P = .031]). Median relapse-free survival after transplantation in the high-risk cohort who underwent transplantation in CR1 (n = 70) was 11.5 months (range, 4-47 months), and median OS after transplantation was 14 months (range, 4-44 months). CONCLUSION: Early cytogenetic testing with an organized effort to identify a suitable allogeneic HCT donor led to a CR1 transplantation rate of 65% in the high-risk group, which, in turn, led to an improvement in OS when compared with the OS of patients who did not undergo transplantation.

We clarify that DNA damage triggers autophagy by CHK2-FOXK axis, and misregulation of this pathway leads to chemoresistance.

Abstract Although degenerative disc disease (DDD) and related low back pain (LBP) are growing public health problems, the underlying disease mechanisms remain unclear. An increase in the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels in DDD has been reported. This study aimed to examine the role of VEGF receptors (VEGFRs) in DDD, using a mouse model of DDD. Progressive DDD was induced by anterior stabbing of lumbar intervertebral discs in wild type (WT) and VEGFR‐1 tyrosine‐kinase deficient mice ( vegfr‐1 TK−/ − ). Pain assessments were performed weekly for 12 weeks. Histological and immunohistochemical assessments were made for discs, dorsal root ganglions, and spinal cord. Both vegfr‐1 TK − / − and WT mice presented with similar pathological changes in discs with an increased expression of inflammatory cytokines and matrix‐degrading enzymes. Despite the similar pathological patterns, vegfr‐1 TK − / − mice showed insensitivity to pain compared with WT mice. This insensitivity to discogenic pain was related to lower levels of pain factors in the discs and peripheral sensory neurons and lower spinal glial activation in the vegfr‐1 TK − / − mice than in the WT mice. Exogenous stimulation of bovine disc cells with VEGF increased inflammatory and cartilage degrading enzyme. Silencing vegfr‐1 by small‐interfering‐RNA decreased VEGF‐induced expression of pain markers, while silencing vegfr‐2 decreased VEGF‐induced expression of inflammatory and metabolic markers without changing pain markers. This suggests the involvement of VEGFR‐1 signaling specifically in pain transmission. Collectively, our results indicate that the VEGF signaling is involved in DDD. Particularly, VEGFR‐1 is critical for discogenic LBP transmission independent of the degree of disc pathology.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is among the most commonly diagnosed malignancies in the world. Patients with OSCC often develop treatment resistance, resulting in a poor prognosis. Mounting evidence indicates that interactions between cancerous cells and other components of the tumor microenvironment (TME) determine their response to treatment. Herein, we examined the role of cancer stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles (CSC_EVs) generated from CAL27 and SCC-15 OSCC cells in the development of cisplatin (CDDP) resistance. We demonstrated that CSC_EVs enhance CDDP resistance, clonogenicity, and the tumorsphere formation potential of OSCC cells. Our bioinformatics analyses revealed that OSCC_EVs are enriched with microRNA (miR)-21-5p and are associated with increased metastasis, stemness, chemoresistance, and poor survival in patients with OSCC. Mechanistically, enhanced activity of CSC_EVs was positively correlated with upregulated β-catenin, phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K), signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 messenger (m)RNA and protein expression levels. CSC_EVs also conferred a cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype on normal gingival fibroblasts (NGFs), with the resultant CAFs enhancing the oncogenicity of OSCC cells. Interestingly, treatment with ovatodiolide (OV), the bioactive component of Anisomeles indica, suppressed OSCC tumorigenesis by reducing the cargo content of EVs derived from CSCs, suppressing self-renewal, and inhibiting the NGF-CAF transformation by disrupting EV-TME interactions. Moreover, by suppressing miR-21-5p, STAT3, and mTOR expressions in CSC_EVs, OV re-sensitized CSCs to CDDP and suppressed OSCC tumorigenesis. In vivo, treatment with OV alone or in combination with CDDP significantly reduced the tumor sphere-forming ability and decreased EV cargos containing mTOR, PI3K, STAT3, β-catenin, and miR-21-5p. In summary, our findings provide further strong evidence of OV’s therapeutic effect in OSCC.