Novel Src/Abl tyrosine kinase inhibitor bosutinib suppresses neuroblastoma growth via inhibiting Src/Abl signaling

Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common extracranial solid tumor in children. Aberrant activation of the non-receptor tyrosine kinases Src and c-Abl contributes to the progression of NB. Thus, targeting these kinases could be a promising strategy for NB therapy. In this paper, we report that the potent dual Src/Abl inhibitor bosutinib exerts anti-tumor effects on NB. Bosutinib inhibited NB cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner and suppressed colony formation ability of NB cells. Mechanistically, bosutinib effectively decreased the activity of Src/Abl and PI3K/AKT/mTOR, MAPK/ERK, and JAK/STAT3 signaling pathways. In addition, bosutinib enhanced doxorubicin (Dox)- and etoposide (VP-16)-induced cytotoxicity in NB cells. Furthermore, bosutinib demonstrated anti-tumor efficacy in an orthotopic xenograft NB mouse model in a similar mechanism as of that in vitro. In summary, our results reveal that Src and c-Abl are potential therapeutic targets in NB and that the novel Src/Abl inhibitor bosutinib alone or in combination with other chemotherapeutic agents may be a valuable therapeutic option for NB patients.