Ablation of Cancer Stem Cells by Therapeutic Inhibition of the MDM2-p53 Interaction in Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma

Unique cells characterized by multipotency, self-renewal, and high tumorigenic potential have been recently discovered in mucoepidermoid carcinomas. These cells are defined by high aldehyde dehydrogenase activity and high CD44 expression (ALDH CD44 ) and function as cancer stem cells (CSC). It has been recently shown that p53 regulates cell differentiation, suggesting that induction of p53 by therapeutic blockade of the MDM2-p53 interaction may constitute a novel strategy to ablate CSCs. Here, we evaluated the effect of a small-molecule inhibitor of MDM2-p53 interaction (MI-773) on the fraction of CSCs in mucoepidermoid carcinoma. Human mucoepidermoid carcinoma cells (UM-HMC-1,-3A,-3B) were used to assess the effect of MI-773 on cell survival, cell cycle, fraction of CSCs, and expression of p53, p21, MDM2, and Bmi-1 (key regulator of self-renewal). Mice bearing xenograft tumors generated with these mucoepidermoid carcinoma cells were treated with MI-773 to determine the effect of MDM2-p53 inhibition on CSCs . MDM2 is highly expressed in human mucoepidermoid carcinoma tissues. MI-773 induced expression of p53 and its downstream targets p21 and MDM2, caused G cell-cycle arrest, and induced mucoepidermoid carcinoma tumor cell apoptosis . Importantly, a marked decrease in expression of Bmi-1 and in the fraction of ALDH CD44 (CSCs) was caused by MI-773 and in mice harboring mucoepidermoid carcinoma xenografts. Collectively, these data demonstrate that MI-773 reduces the fraction of CSCs, suggesting that patients with mucoepidermoid carcinoma might benefit from therapeutic inhibition of the MDM2-p53 interaction.