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Flavopiridol, a Protein Kinase Inhibitor, Down-Regulates Hypoxic Induction of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Expression in Human Monocytes

Clinical Trials Unit, Developmental Therapeutic Program, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland 20892 [G. M., E. A. S., K. C., T. L., A. M. S.], and Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Institute G. Gaslini, Genoa 16157, Italy [L. V.]

We have investigated the effects of flavopiridol, a novel protein kinase inhibitor that is selective for cyclin-dependent kinases, on hypoxia-induced vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in human monocytes. We found that hypoxia induces a time-dependent increase of VEGF mRNA expression and protein levels in human monocytes. Flavopiridol showed a minimal effect on the constitutive levels of VEGF mRNA but completely blocked hypoxia-induced VEGF mRNA and protein expression. The inhibitory effects of flavopiridol on VEGF mRNA induction also occurred in the presence of cycloheximide. The transcriptional activation of either a VEGF promoter-luciferase construct or a hypoxia-inducible factor 1 reporter plasmid was not affected by addition of flavopiridol in transient transfection experiments. In contrast, actinomycin D experiments demonstrated that flavopiridol dramatically decreased VEGF mRNA stability. These data provide the first evidence that flavopiridol can affect gene expression by altering mRNA stability. We propose that flavopiridol may interfere with one or more signaling events, leading to hypoxia-induced, protein kinase-modulated, RNA protein binding activity. An important clinical implication of our results is that flavopiridol, presently under investigation in clinical trials, might have antiangiogenic as well as direct antiproliferative effects.

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