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The HIV latency reversing agent HODHBt inhibits the phosphatases PTPN1 and PTPN2
J. Natalie Howard, Thomas D. Zaikos, Callie Levinger, Esteban Rivera, Elyse K. McMahon, Carissa S. Holmberg, Joshua Terao, Marta Sanz, Dennis C. Copertino Jr., Weisheng Wang, Natalia Soriano-Sarabia, R. Brad Jones, Alberto Bosque
J. Natalie Howard, Thomas D. Zaikos, Callie Levinger, Esteban Rivera, Elyse K. McMahon, Carissa S. Holmberg, Joshua Terao, Marta Sanz, Dennis C. Copertino Jr., Weisheng Wang, Natalia Soriano-Sarabia, R. Brad Jones, Alberto Bosque
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Research Article AIDS/HIV

The HIV latency reversing agent HODHBt inhibits the phosphatases PTPN1 and PTPN2

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Abstract

Nonreceptor tyrosine phosphatases (NTPs) play an important role in regulating protein phosphorylation and have been proposed as attractive therapeutic targets for cancer and metabolic diseases. We have previously identified that 3-Hydroxy-1,2,3-benzotriazin-4(3H)-one (HODHBt) enhanced STAT activation upon cytokine stimulation, leading to increased reactivation of latent HIV and effector functions of NK and CD8 T cells. Here, we demonstrate that HODHBt interacted with and inhibited the NTPs PTPN1 and PTPN2 through a mixed inhibition mechanism. We also confirm that PTPN1 and PTPN2 specifically controlled the phosphorylation of different STATs. The small molecule ABBV-CLS-484 (AC-484) is an active site inhibitor of PTPN1 and PTPN2 currently in clinical trials for advanced solid tumors. We compared AC-484 and HODHBt and found similar effects on STAT5 and immune activation, albeit with different mechanisms of action leading to varying effects on latency reversal. Our studies provide the first specific evidence to our knowledge that enhancing STAT phosphorylation via inhibition of PTPN1 and PTPN2 is an effective tool against HIV.

Authors

J. Natalie Howard, Thomas D. Zaikos, Callie Levinger, Esteban Rivera, Elyse K. McMahon, Carissa S. Holmberg, Joshua Terao, Marta Sanz, Dennis C. Copertino Jr., Weisheng Wang, Natalia Soriano-Sarabia, R. Brad Jones, Alberto Bosque

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Figure 3

Inhibiting PTPN1 and PTPN2 with HODHBt enhances activation of different STATs in a cytokine-dependent manner.

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Inhibiting PTPN1 and PTPN2 with HODHBt enhances activation of different ...
(A and B) Analysis of phosphorylation levels of STAT-1, -3, and- 5 (A) or STAT-2, -4, and -6 (B) in primary total CD4 T cells after treatment with DMSO, 100 ng/mL IL-15, 1 ng/mL IFN-α, 2 ng/mL IL-12, and 2 ng/mL IL-4 in the presence of 100 μM HODHBt or HBt for 24 hours. (C) Levels of pSTAT2+ cells in naive CD4 T cells treated with 100 μM HODHBt ± 10 ng/mL IFN-α for 24 hours (n = 3). (D) Levels of STAT2 phosphorylation after transfection of V5-STAT2 into 293FT cells and treatment with DMSO or 100 μM HODHBt. (E) Dose response of STAT1/2 transcriptional activity mediated by IFN-α (left) and IFN-β (right) in the presence of 1, 10, or 100 μM HODHBt in HEK-Blue IFN-α/β cells. The data represent the mean ± SD of an experiment performed in triplicate. (F) Dose response of STAT1 transcriptional activity mediated by IFN-γ in the presence of 1, 10, or 100 μM HODHBt in HEK-Blue IFN-γ cells. The data represent the mean ± the SD of an experiment performed in triplicate.

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