Arachidonic Acid Drives Adaptive Responses to Chemotherapy-induced Stress in Malignant Mesothelioma

Methods: Mass spectrometry-based (LC/MS and GC/MS) identification of extracellular metabolites and unbiased statistical analysis were performed on the spent media of mesothelial and mesothelioma cell lines, at steady state and after a pulse with pharmacologically relevant doses of the drug. ELISA based evaluation of arachidonic acid (AA) levels and enzyme inhibition assays were used to explore the role of cPLA2 in AA release and that of LOX/COX-mediated processing of AA. QRT-PCR, flow cytometry analysis of ALDH expressing cells and 3D spheroid growth assays were employed to assess the role of AA at mediating chemoresistance features of MPM. ELISA based detection of p65 and IkBalpha were used to interrogate the NFkB pathway activation in AA-treated cells.

Results: We first validated what is known or expected from the mechanism of action of the antifolate. Further, we found increased levels of PUFAs and, more specifically, arachidonic acid (AA), in the transformed cell lines treated with pemetrexed. We showed that pharmacologically relevant doses of AA tightly recapitulated the rearrangement of cell subpopulations and the gene expression changes happening in pemetrexed -treated cultures and related to chemoresistance. Further, we showed that release of AA following pemetrexed treatment was due to cPLA2 and that AA signaling impinged on NFkB activation and largely affected anchorage-independent, 3D growth and the resistance of the MPM 3D cultures to the drug.

Conclusions: AA is an early mediator of the adaptive response to pem in chemoresistant MPM and, possibly, other malignancies.