Phenotypic heterogeneity and molecular diversity make diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) a challenging disease. We recently illustrated that amoeboid movement plays an indispensable role in DLBCL dissemination and inadvertently identified that the inhibitor of bromodomain and extra-terminal (BET) proteins JQ1 could repress DLBCL migration. To explore further, we dissected the impacts of BET inhibition in DLBCL. We found that JQ1 abrogated amoeboid movement of DLBCL cells through both restraining RAS signaling and suppressing MYC-mediated RhoA activity. We also demonstrated that BET inhibition resulted in the upregulation of a GTPase regulatory protein, the IQ motif containing GTPase activating protein 3 (IQGAP3). IQGAP3 similarly exhibited an inhibitory effect on RAS activity in DLBCL cells. Through barcoded mRNA/protein profiling in clinical samples, we identified a specific subgroup of DLBCL tumors with enhanced phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) activity, which led to an inferior survival in these patients. Strikingly, a lower IQGAP3 expression level further portended those with PI3K-activated DLBCL a very dismal outcome. The inhibition of BET and PI3K signaling activity led to effective suppression of DLBCL dissemination in vivo. Our study provides an important insight into the ongoing efforts of targeting BET proteins as a therapeutic approach for DLBCL.
Keywords: BET inhibition; IQGAP3; PI3K; RAS GTPase; Rho GTPase; diffuse large B-cell lymphoma; migration.