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  • Acquired Diseases
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Modulation of the typical multidrug resistance phenotype by targeting the MED-1 region of human MDR1 promoter

Gene Therapy volume 7, pages 1224–1233 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

Multidrug resistance of cancer (MDR) is the major cause of failure of chemotherapy. The typical MDR phenotype is due to the overexpression of membrane proteins among which the main representative is P-glycoprotein (Pgp) encoded by the MDR1 gene. Many attempts to modulate MDR by chemosensitizers have been unsuccessful in human therapy due to their intrinsic toxic effects. In an effort to modulate the MDR phenotype efficiently we designed an antisense and a transcriptional decoy strategy targeting the TATA-less human MDR1 gene promoter. The choice of the start point of transcription in a multiple start site window is related to an upstream MED-1 cis-element, the sequence and configuration of which are specific to human MDR1 gene expressed in Pgp-overproducing cancer cells. A 12mer antisense oligodeoxynucleotide (ODN) and a 12mer double-stranded ODN, both containing the MED-1 sequence, were designed and efficiently vectorized into the nucleus with the chimerical MPG peptide. A synthetic cellular model (NIH-EGFP) and highly resistant human CEM/VLB0.45 leukemia cells, significantly responded to transfection with the ODN/MPG complex. The level of EGFP fluorescence in NIH-EGFP cells decreased, and thus its production, and viability of CEM/VLB0.45 cells decreased by 63% in the presence of vinblastine, revealing that their resistance to the anticancer drug was reversed. These results open new insights into transcriptional decoy and anti-gene therapies of MDR cancers that overproduce Pgp.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Géraldine Normand and Séverine Boudet for their help and Dr MM Gottesman for his generous gift of the pSV00CAT/pMDR1h plasmid. Vinblastine was a generous gift from Roger Bellon Laboratories. We thank Dr MC Morris for critical reading of the manuscript and correction of English. This work was supported by grants from the Association pour la Recherche contre le Cancer (grant 5207 to LGB), from the Ligue contre le Cancer (Comité Départemental du Rhône to LGB) and from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). EM is a fellowship recipient from the Ligue contre le Cancer (Comité de la Haute Savoie and Comité de la Saône et Loire).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. IBCP – CNRS, Lyon, France

    E Marthinet & LG Baggetto

  2. CRBM – CNRS, UPR 1086, Montpellier, France

    G Divita

  3. ETS, Lyon, France

    J Bernaud & D Rigal

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  1. E Marthinet
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  2. G Divita
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Marthinet, E., Divita, G., Bernaud, J. et al. Modulation of the typical multidrug resistance phenotype by targeting the MED-1 region of human MDR1 promoter. Gene Ther 7, 1224–1233 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.gt.3301231

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