Uveal melanoma is the most common intraocular tumor in adults and often metastasizes to the liver, leaving patients with few options. Recurrent activating mutations in the G proteins, Gαq and Gα11, are observed in approximately 93% of all uveal melanomas. While therapeutic intervention of downstream Gαq/11 targets has been unsuccessful in treating uveal melanoma, using in vitro [35S]GTPγS binding and cell signaling assays we have found that the Gαq/11 inhibitor, FR900359 (FR), effectively inhibits oncogenic Gαq/11 signaling in uveal melanoma cells expressing either mutant Gαq or Gα11. Inhibition of oncogenic Gαq/11 by FR results in cell cycle arrest and induction of apoptosis. Furthermore, colony formation is prevented by FR treatment of uveal melanoma cells in 3D‐cell culture, providing promise for future in vivo studies. This suggests direct inhibition of activating Gαq/11 mutants may be a potential means of treating uveal melanoma.
Support or Funding Information
Dr. Ralph and Marian Falk Medical Research Trust and NIH award F31 CA225064
This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.