SUMMARY Crosstalk and complexity within signaling pathways, and their perturbation by oncogenes, limits component-by-component approaches to understanding human disease. Network analysis of how normal and oncogenic signaling can be re-wired by drugs may provide opportunities to target tumors with high specificity and efficacy. Using targeted inhibition of oncogenic signaling pathways combined with DNA damaging chemotherapy, we report that time-staggered EGFR inhibition, but not simultaneous co-administration, dramatically sensitizes a subset of triple-negative breast cancer cells to genotoxic drugs. Systems-level analysis—using high-density time-dependent measurements of signaling networks, gene expression profiles, and cell phenotypic responses in combination with mathematical modeling— revealed an approach for altering the intrinsic state of the cell through dynamic re-wiring of oncogenic signaling pathways. This process converts these cells to a less tumorigenic state that is more susceptible to DNA damage-induced cell death by re-activation of an extrinsic apoptotic pathway whose function is suppressed in the oncogene-addicted state.

Summary Plasmodium parasites infect the liver and replicate inside hepatocytes before they invade erythrocytes and trigger clinical malaria. Analysis of host signaling pathways affected by liver stage infection could provide critical insights into host-pathogen interactions and reveal targets for intervention. Using protein lysate microarrays we found that Plasmodium yoelii rodent malaria parasites perturb hepatocyte regulatory pathways involved in cell survival, proliferation and autophagy. Notably, the pro-death protein p53 was substantially decreased in infected hepatocytes, suggesting it could be targeted by the parasite to foster survival. Indeed, mice that express increased levels of p53 showed reduced liver stage parasite burden whereas p53 knockout mice suffered increased liver stage burden. Furthermore, boosting p53 levels using the small molecule Nutlin-3 dramatically reduced liver stage burden in vitro and in vivo. We conclude that perturbation of the hepatocyte p53 pathway critically impacts parasite survival. Thus, host pathways might constitute potential targets for host-based antimalarial prophylaxis.