Nilotinib hampers the proliferation and function of CD8(+) T lymphocytes through inhibition of T cell receptor signalling

作者:Chen J; Schmitt A; Chen B; Rojewski M; Ruesseler V; Fei F; Yu Y; Yu X; Ringhoffer M; von Harsdorf S; Greiner J; Goetzz M; Guillaume P; Doehner H; Bunjes D; Schmitt M*
来源:JOURNAL OF CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MEDICINE, 2008, 12(5B): 2107-2118.
DOI:10.1111/j.1582-4934.2008.00234.x

摘要

The novel selective BCR-ABL Breakpoint cluster region - Abelson murine leukemia viral oncogene homolog 1 (BCR-AML) inhibitor nilotinib (AMN107) is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor that is more potent against leukaemia cells in vitro than imatinib. As nilotinib might be used in the context of allogeneic stem cell transplantation where CD8(+) T lymphocytes play a pivotal role in the graft-versus-leukaemia (GVL) effect, we investigated effects of nilotinib on this lymphocyte subpopulation. Nilotinib inhibits phytohemagglutinin (PHA)-induced proliferation of CD8(+)T lymphocytes in vitro at therapeutically relevant concentrations (0.5-4 mu M). The inhibition of CD8(+) T lymphocytes specific for leukaemia or viral antigens through nilotinib was associated with a reduced expansion of antigen peptide specific CD8(+) T lymphocytes and with a decreased release of interferon-gamma and granzyme B by these cells as analysed by flow cytometry and enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assays. The inhibitory effect caused by nilotinib was two times stronger than by imatinib. These effects were mediated through the inhibition of the phosphorylation of ZAP-70, Lck and ERK 1/2 and the NF-kappa beta signalling transduction pathway. Taken together, we observed a strong suppressive impact of nilotinib on the CD8(+) T lymphocyte function which should be considered carefully in the framework of allogeneic stem cell transplantation or other T cell based immunotherapies.