Cross-species transcriptomic signatures predict response to MK2 inhibition in mouse models of chronic inflammation.

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are genetically complex and exhibit significant inter-patient heterogeneity in disease presentation and therapeutic response. Here, we show that mouse models of IBD exhibit variable responses to inhibition of MK2, a pro-inflammatory serine/threonine kinase, and that MK2 inhibition suppresses inflammation by targeting inflammatory monocytes and neutrophils in murine models. Using a computational approach (TransComp-R) that allows for cross-species comparison of transcriptomic features, we identified an IBD patient subgroup that is predicted to respond to MK2 inhibition, and an independent preclinical model of chronic intestinal inflammation predicted to be non-responsive, which we validated experimentally. Thus, cross-species mouse-human translation approaches can help to identify patient subpopulations in which to deploy new therapies.

Translating JAKs to Jakinibs.

The discovery of JAKs and STATs and their roles in cytokine and IFN action represented a significant basic advance and a new paradigm in cell signaling. This was quickly followed by discoveries pointing to their essential functions, including identification of JAK3 mutations as a cause of SCID. This and other findings predicted the use of therapeutically targeting JAKs as a new strategy for treating immune and inflammatory diseases. This now is a reality with seven approved jakinibs being used to treat multiple forms of arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and myeloproliferative neoplasms, and numerous ongoing clinical trials in other settings. This story provides interesting insights into the process of translating basic discoveries and also reveals the need to return to basic work to fill gaps that now become apparent.

Substrate-based kinase activity inference identifies MK2 as driver of colitis.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic and debilitating disorder that has few treatment options due to a lack of comprehensive understanding of its molecular pathogenesis. We used multiplexed mass spectrometry to collect high-content information on protein phosphorylation in two different mouse models of IBD. Because the biological function of the vast majority of phosphorylation sites remains unknown, we developed Substrate-based Kinase Activity Inference (SKAI), a methodology to infer kinase activity from phosphoproteomic data. This approach draws upon prior knowledge of kinase-substrate interactions to construct custom lists of kinases and their respective substrate sites, termed kinase-substrate sets that employ prior knowledge across organisms. This expansion as much as triples the amount of prior knowledge available. We then used these sets within the Gene Set Enrichment Analysis framework to infer kinase activity based on increased or decreased phosphorylation of its substrates in a dataset. When applied to the phosphoproteomic datasets from the two mouse models, SKAI predicted largely non-overlapping kinase activation profiles. These results suggest that chronic inflammation may arise through activation of largely divergent signaling networks. However, the one kinase inferred to be activated in both mouse models was mitogen-activated protein kinase-activated protein kinase 2 (MAPKAPK2 or MK2), a serine/threonine kinase that functions downstream of p38 stress-activated mitogen-activated protein kinase. Treatment of mice with active colitis with ATI450, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of the MK2 pathway, reduced inflammatory signaling in the colon and alleviated the clinical and histological features of inflammation. These studies establish MK2 as a therapeutic target in IBD and identify ATI450 as a potential therapy for the disease.

PI3K-δ and PI3K-γ inhibition by IPI-145 abrogates immune responses and suppresses activity in autoimmune and inflammatory disease models.

Phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K)-δ and PI3K-γ are preferentially expressed in immune cells, and inhibitors targeting these isoforms are hypothesized to have anti-inflammatory activity by affecting the adaptive and innate immune response. We report on a potent oral PI3K-δ and PI3K-γ inhibitor (IPI-145) and characterize this compound in biochemical, cellular, and in vivo assays. These studies demonstrate that IPI-145 exerts profound effects on adaptive and innate immunity by inhibiting B and T cell proliferation, blocking neutrophil migration, and inhibiting basophil activation. We explored the therapeutic value of combined PI3K-δ and PI3K-γ blockade, and IPI-145 showed potent activity in collagen-induced arthritis, ovalbumin-induced asthma, and systemic lupus erythematosus rodent models. These findings support the hypothesis that inhibition of immune function can be achieved through PI3K-δ and PI3K-γ blockade, potentially leading to significant therapeutic effects in multiple inflammatory, autoimmune, and hematologic diseases.

Discovery of CP-690,550: a potent and selective Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and organ transplant rejection.

There is a critical need for safer and more convenient treatments for organ transplant rejection and autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis. Janus tyrosine kinases (JAK1, JAK3) are expressed in lymphoid cells and are involved in the signaling of multiple cytokines important for various T cell functions. Blockade of the JAK1/JAK3-STAT pathway with a small molecule was anticipated to provide therapeutic immunosuppression/immunomodulation. The Pfizer compound library was screened against the catalytic domain of JAK3 resulting in the identification of a pyrrolopyrimidine-based series of inhibitors represented by CP-352,664 (2a). Synthetic analogues of 2a were screened against the JAK enzymes and evaluated in an IL-2 induced T cell blast proliferation assay. Select compounds were evaluated in rodent efficacy models of allograft rejection and destructive inflammatory arthritis. Optimization within this chemical series led to identification of CP-690,550 1, a potential first-in-class JAK inhibitor for treatment of autoimmune diseases and organ transplant rejection.

Ecto-5'-nucleotidase (CD73) attenuates allograft airway rejection through adenosine 2A receptor stimulation.

There are multiple drivers of leukocyte recruitment in lung allografts that contribute to lymphocytic bronchitis (LB) and bronchiolitis obliterans (BO). The innate mechanisms driving (or inhibiting) leukocyte trafficking to allografts remain incompletely understood. This study tested the hypothesis that CD73 (ecto-5'nucleotidase), an enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of AMP to adenosine, is a critical negative regulator of LB and BO. Implantation of tracheal allografts from wild type (WT) mice into CD73(-/-) recipients revealed a striking increase in airway luminal obliteration at 7 d (62 +/- 4% and 47 +/- 5% for CD73(-/-) and WT allograft recipients, respectively; p = 0.046). There was also a concordant increase in CD3(+) lymphocytic infiltration (523 +/- 41 cells and 313 +/- 43 cells for CD73(-/-) and WT allograft recipients, respectively; p = 0.013). Because real-time PCR revealed a 43-fold upregulation of mRNA for the adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR) in WT allografts compared with WT isografts (p = 0.032), additional experiments were performed to determine whether the protective effect of CD73 was due to generation of adenosine and its stimulation of the A2AR. Treatment of WT recipients with an A2AR agonist significantly reduced CD3(+) lymphocyte infiltration and airway luminal obliteration; similar treatment of CD73(-/-) recipients rescued them from LB and airway obliteration. These data implicate CD73 acting through adenosine generation and its stimulation of the A2AR as a critical negative modulator of lymphocyte recruitment into airway allografts. The CD73/adenosine axis might be a new therapeutic target to prevent BO.

The specificity of JAK3 kinase inhibitors.

PF-956980 is a selective inhibitor of JAK3, related in structure to CP-690550, a compound being evaluated in clinical trials for rheumatoid arthritis and prevention of allograft rejection. PF-956980 has been evaluated against a panel of 30 kinases, and found to have nanomolar potency against only JAK3. Cellular and whole blood activity of this compound parallels its potency and selectivity in enzyme assays. It was effective in vivo at inhibiting the delayed type hypersensivity reaction in mice. We compared 2 commercially available JAK3 inhibitors (WHI-P131 and WHI-P154) in the same panel of biochemical and cellular assays and found them to be neither potent nor selective for JAK3. Both were found to be nanomolar inhibitors of the EGF receptor family of kinases. As these compounds have been used in numerous publications in the transplant and autoimmune disease literature, their specificity should be considered when interpreting these results.

Janus kinase 3 inhibition with CP-690,550 prevents allograft vasculopathy.

Janus kinase 3 (JAK3) mediates signal transduction from cytokine receptors using the common gamma chain. The rationally designed inhibitor of JAK3, CP-690,550, prevents acute allograft rejection in rodents and in nonhuman primates. Here we investigated the ability of CP-690,550, to prevent allograft vasculopathy in a rodent model of aorta transplantation. Aortas from AxC Irish (RT1(a)) or Lewis (RT1(l)) rats were heterotopically transplanted into the infra-renal aorta of Lewis recipients and harvested at 28 or 56 days. Treated recipients received CP-690,550 by osmotic pumps (mean drug exposure of 110 +/- 38 ng/ml). Significant intimal hyperplasia was demonstrated in untreated allografts when compared with isografts at 28 days (2.08 +/- 0.85% vs. 0.43 +/- 0.2% luminal obliteration, respectively, P = 0.001) and 56 days (5.3 +/- 2.4% vs. 0.38 +/- 0.3%, P = 0.002). Treatment caused a 51% reduction in intimal hyperplasia at day 56. CP-690,550-treated animals also had a significant reduction of donor-specific IgG production and of the gene expression for suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 and with unchanged levels of expression of RANTES, IP-10 and transforming growth factor-beta1. These results are the first to show that JAK3 blockade by CP-690,550 effectively prevents allograft vasculopathy in this rat model of aorta transplantation.

Combined use of the JAK3 inhibitor CP-690,550 with mycophenolate mofetil to prevent kidney allograft rejection in nonhuman primates.

BACKGROUND: Immunosuppression via Janus kinase (JAK) 3 inhibition affords significant prolongation of allograft survival. We investigated the effects of an immunosuppressive regimen combining the JAK3 inhibitor CP-690,550 with mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) in nonhuman primates (NHPs). METHODS: Life-supporting kidney transplantations were performed between ABO-compatible, MLR-mismatched NHPs. Animals were treated orally twice a day with CP-690,550 and MMF (n=8) or MMF alone (n=2) and were euthanized at day 90 or earlier due to allograft rejection. RESULTS: Mean survival time (+/-SEM) in animals treated with MMF alone (23+/-1 days) was significantly extended in animals that concurrently received CP-690,550 (59.5+/-9.8 days, P=0.02). Combination animals exposed to higher levels of CP-690,550 had a significantly better survival (75.2+/-8.7 days) than animals that received less CP-690,550 (33.3+/-12.6 days, P=0.02). Three combination therapy animals were euthanized at day 90 with a subnormal renal function and early-stage acute graft rejection. Rejection, delayed by treatment, ultimately developed in other animals. Anemia and gastrointestinal intolerance was seen in combination therapy animals that otherwise did not show evidence of viral or bacterial infection besides signs consistent with subclinical pyelonephritis (n=3). One incidental lymphosarcoma was noted. CONCLUSIONS: Addition of CP-690,550 to MMF significantly improved allograft survival. The observed side effects appear amenable to improvements upon alteration of dosing strategies. Efficacy of this combination regimen suggests that it could become the backbone of calcineurin inhibitor-free regimens.

Effects of JAK3 inhibition with CP-690,550 on immune cell populations and their functions in nonhuman primate recipients of kidney allografts.

BACKGROUND: Janus Kinase (JAK) 3 is a tyrosine kinase essential for proper signal transduction downstream of selected cytokine receptors and for robust T-cell and natural killer cells activation and function. JAK3 inhibition with CP-690,550 prevents acute allograft rejection. To provide further insight into the mechanisms of efficacy, we investigated the immunomodulatory effects of CP-690,550 in vitro and in vivo in nonhuman primates. METHODS: Pharmacodynamic assessments of lymphocyte activation, function, proliferation and phenotype were performed in three settings: in vitro in whole blood isolated from untransplanted cynomolgus monkeys (cynos), in vivo in blood from untransplanted cynos dosed with CP-690,550 for 8 days, and in vivo in blood from transplanted cynos immunosuppressed with CP-690,550. Cell surface activation markers expression, IL-2- enhanced IFN-gamma production, lymphocyte proliferation and immune cell phenotype analyzes were performed with multiparametric flow cytometry. RESULTS: In vitro exposure to CP-690,550 resulted in significant reduction of IL-2-enhanced IFN-gamma production by T-cells (maximum inhibition of 55-63%), T-cell surface expression of CD25 (50% inhibitory concentration (IC50); 0.18 microM) and CD71 (IC50; 1.6 microM), and T-cell proliferative capacities measured by proliferating cell nuclear antigen expression (IC50; 0.87 microM). Similar results were observed in animals dosed with CP-690,550. In addition, transplanted animals displayed significant reduction of NK cell (90% from baseline) and T-cell numbers whereas CD8 effector memory T-cell populations were unaffected. CONCLUSIONS: Potent in vitro and in vivo immunomodulatory effects of the JAK3 inhibitor CP-690,550 likely contribute to its efficacy in the prevention of organ allograft rejection.

Quantitative analysis of the immunosuppressant CP-690,550 in whole blood by column-switching high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry detection.

A fast and accurate method to quantify the new immunosuppressive JAK3 inhibitor CP-690,550 in whole blood using a dual-pump liquid chromatography-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/LC-MS) system was developed and validated in nonhuman primate blood. Before injection, blood samples were prepared by precipitation with a reagent that included methanol and acetonitrile (30:70, vol/vol) along with the internal standard (CP-istd). Column-switching LC/LC-MS analysis used online extraction followed by separation on a C8 analytic column and MS detection of the [M + H] CP-690,550 (m/z = 313.1) and CP internal standard (m/z = 288.1). Linearity was always better than r = 0.99 (n = 7) for CP-690,550 (range 2.5-750 ng/mL), with a lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) of 2.5 ng/mL. The intrarun accuracy and precision ranged from 103.0% to 105.4% and 2.7% to 4.3%, respectively (n = 5), and the interday precision ranged from 8.7% to 11.1%, and the interday accuracy ranged from 98.1% to 103.8% of nominal values (n = 14). The injection repeatability for the method was 1.3% (n = 7). Except for the LLOQ, the intraday accuracy and precision in human blood were also within 15% (n = 5). The combination of simple sample preparation and short analytic run time of this sensitive procedure makes it effective for monitoring the concentration of CP-690,550 in whole blood in organ-transplant recipients.

Immunosuppression by the JAK3 inhibitor CP-690,550 delays rejection and significantly prolongs kidney allograft survival in nonhuman primates.

BACKGROUND: Janus kinase 3 (JAK3) mediates signal transduction from cytokine receptors using the common chain (gammac). Because mutations in genes encoding gammac or JAK3 result in immunodeficiency, we investigated the potential of a rationally designed inhibitor of JAK3, CP-690,550, to prevent renal allograft rejection in nonhuman primates. METHODS: Life-supporting kidney transplantations were performed between mixed leukocyte reaction-mismatched, ABO blood group-matched cynomolgus monkeys. Animals were treated with CP-690,550 (n = 18) or its vehicle (controls, n = 3) and were euthanized at day 90 or earlier if there was allograft rejection. RESULTS: Mean survival time (+/- standard error of mean) in animals treated with CP-690,550 (53 +/- 7 days) was significantly longer than in control animals (7 +/- 1 days, P=0.0003) and was positively correlated with exposure to the drug (r = 0.79, P < 0.01). Four treated animals were euthanized at 90 days with a normal renal function and low-grade rejection at final pathology. Occurrence of rejection was significantly delayed in treated animals (46 +/- 7 days from transplantation vs. 7 +/- 1 days in controls, P = 0.0003). Persistent anemia, polyoma virus-like nephritis (n = 2), and urinary calcium carbonate accretions (n = 3) were seen in animals with high exposure. Natural killer cell and CD4 and CD8 T-cell numbers were significantly reduced in treated animals. Blood glucose, serum lipid levels, and arterial blood pressure were within normal range in treated animals, and no cancers were demonstrated. CONCLUSIONS: CP-690,550 is the first reported JAK3 inhibitor combining efficacy and good tolerability in a preclinical model of allotransplantation in nonhuman primates and thus has interesting potential for immunosuppression in humans.

JAK3 inhibition, a viable new modality of immunosuppression for solid organ transplants.

The field of organ transplantation has had tremendous success because of the availability of immunosuppressive drugs that efficiently prevent acute organ rejection. Numerous and severe side effects are, however, associated with all current immunosuppressive therapies and justify a search for drugs with better efficacy and safety profiles. Janus kinase (JAK) 3, a tyrosine kinase that is crucial for mediating signals from the common gamma-chain of cytokine receptors, is peculiar in that its expression, contrarily to the targets of most current immunosuppressive drugs, is limited to cells that actively participate to the immune response to allografts. The recent demonstration in stringent preclinical models that JAK3 inhibition results in efficacy for the prevention of allograft rejection with a narrow side-effect profile might lead to a new era in the field of immunosuppression.

Prevention of organ allograft rejection by a specific Janus kinase 3 inhibitor.

Because of its requirement for signaling by multiple cytokines, Janus kinase 3 (JAK3) is an excellent target for clinical immunosuppression. We report the development of a specific, orally active inhibitor of JAK3, CP-690,550, that significantly prolonged survival in a murine model of heart transplantation and in cynomolgus monkeys receiving kidney transplants. CP-690,550 treatment was not associated with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or lymphoproliferative disease. On the basis of these preclinical results, we believe JAK3 blockade by CP-690,550 has potential for therapeutically desirable immunosuppression in human organ transplantation and in other clinical settings.

JAK3 inhibition as a new concept for immune suppression.

Although current immunosuppressive drugs are effective, they have numerous severe side effects that mandate the search for new agents. Mutations in the gene for janus kinase (JAK)3 result in severe combined immune deficiency with severely impaired humoral and cellular immunity, an observation that has prompted the development of JAK3 inhibitors. Due to its central role in lymphocyte activation, proliferation and homeostasis, targeting the JAK/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway may provide the required efficacy, without the toxicities associated with current therapies. Several studies conducted in rodents have validated the proof-of-concept, with a variety of JAK3 inhibitors demonstrating efficacy for immune suppression. In addition, the selective JAK3 inhibitor CP-690550 (Pfizer Inc) significantly improved allograft survival in a stringent preclinical model in primates and exhibited a good safety profile in non-human primates. This, along with studies of protein kinase inhibitors for cancer treatment, could demonstrate that development of effective, safe and selective kinase inhibitors for immunosuppression is possible.