Differential JAK-STAT Pathway Activation in Primary Mediastinal Large B-Cell Lymphoma: Two Subgroups with Differential Cytokine Activation Patterns and Predicted Responses to Kinase Inhibitors.

Primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma (PMBCL) is a specialized type of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma which shows diagnostic and pathogenetic overlap with mediastinal classical Hodgkin lymphoma. Approximately 60% of patients with PMBCL have good response to conventional chemoradiotherapy with the rest often showing distant relapses. Microarray studies of PMBCL have revealed overexpression of components and targets of the JAK-STAT signaling pathways including upregulation of IL13 receptor and STAT1; a subset of PMBCL have genome amplification of JAK2 or deletion of the JAK suppressor SOCS1. Given this complexity, we examined the most common mechanism and effects of JAK-STAT dysregulation in a series of newly diagnosed and recurrent PMBCL.

Fifty-three biopsies from 23 patients with PMBCL were assessed and correlated with outcome. JAK2 and SOCS1 copy number status were determined by quantitative PCR on genomic DNA. JAK-STAT pathway activation was probed using reverse transcription quantitative (RQ)-PCR for JAK2, JAK3, and a panel of IL-4 and IL-13 transcriptional targets. JAK-STAT activation was assessed in tissue arrays using antisera against phospho-activation epitopes of STAT1, STAT3, STAT5, and STAT6 using immunohistochemistry (IHC). Activation patterns were modeled in the PMBCL cell line Karpas (K)1106P at baseline and following IL-4 and IL-13 stimulation with or without a range of small molecule inhibitors and blocking antibodies. Growth parameters were measured by MTT and protein levels by flow cytometry, Western blot, RQ-PCR and kinase profiling.

JAK2 genomic amplification was present in 40% of PMBCL and SOCS1 deletion in 10% as well as in the K1106P line. By phospho-activation IHC, tumors in 20/23 (87%) patients showed STAT activation, mostly due to STAT1 (60.8%) followed by STAT3 (26.1%), with 6 cases showing mixed patterns. In different tumors, localized and uniform STAT activation patterns were seen. Constitutive STAT activation was correlated with high expression of IL-4 transcription targets including CCL17 and IL13RA as well as JAK2 autophosphorylation and inferior outcome (p = .007). Tumors with more localized foci of activation were associated with alternate transcription patterns. In the K1106P cell line, IL-4 but not IL-13 treatment led to inducible STAT1 activation whereas baseline STAT3/6 activation was highly regulated by cytokine exposure. The JAK2 inhibitor JSI124 blocked IL-4 induced STAT1 activation whereas the JAK inhibitors AG-490, NSC7908 and WHI-P154 did not but did block IL-4/IL-13-induced STAT3 activation. The JAK3 inhibitor ZM39923 was most effective in blocking cell growth but did not block STAT1 activation.

JAK2-STAT pathway activation characterizes nearly all cases of PMBCL but genetic mechanisms are distinct leading to distinct patterns of STAT1 activation (driven predominantly through the type I IL-4 receptor) and STAT3/6 activation (driven predominantly through the type II IL13RA/IL4RA) with differential effects on growth parameters and gene regulation. The patterns of STAT activation and target gene expression in primary tumors comprising these two groups mirrored the response to small molecule inhibitors following cytokine exposure in vitro in the K1106P line and highlights differences between IL-4 and IL-13 signaling in PMBCL. Profiling of PMBCL biopsies with phosphoactivation IHC for STAT isoforms may be useful to subcategorize cases and select the optimal JAK-STAT pathway inhibitors for adjuvant therapy.

No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.