The protein kinase Cβ-selective inhibitor, enzastaurin (LY317615.HCI), suppresses signaling through the AKT pathway, induces apoptosis, and suppresses growth of human colon cancer and glioblastoma xenografts

Activation of protein kinase C beta (PKC beta) has been repeatedly implicated in tumor-induced angiogenesis. The PKC beta-selective inhibitor, Enzastaurin (LY317615.HCl), suppresses angiogenesis and was advanced for clinical development based upon this antiangiogenic activity. Activation of PKC beta has now also been implicated in tumor cell proliferation, apoptosis, and tumor invasiveness. Herein, we show that Enzastaurin has a direct effect on human tumor cells, inducing apoptosis and suppressing the proliferation of cultured tumor cells. Enzastaurin treatment also suppresses the phosphorylation of GSK3 beta(ser9), ribosomal protein S6(S240/244), and AKT(Thr308). Oral dosing with Enzastaurin to yield plasma concentrations similar to those achieved in clinical trials significantly suppresses the growth of human glioblastoma and colon carcinoma xenografts. As in cultured tumor cells, Enzastaurin treatment suppresses the phosphorylation of GSK3 beta in these xenograft tumor tissues. Enzastaurin treatment also suppresses GSK3 beta phosphorylation to a similar extent in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from these treated mice. These data show that Enzastaurin has a direct antitumor effect and that Enzastaurin treatment suppresses GSK3 beta phosphorylation in both tumor tissue and in PBMCs, suggesting that GSK3 beta phosphorylation may serve as a reliable pharmacodynamic marker for Enzastaurin activity. With previously published reports, these data support the notion that Enzastaurin suppresses tumor growth through multiple mechanisms: direct suppression of tumor cell proliferation and the induction of tumor cell death coupled to the indirect effect of suppressing tumor-induced angiogenesis.