CDK4/6 Inhibitor Palbociclib Amplifies the Radiosensitivity to Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells via Mediating Apoptosis and Suppressing DNA Damage Repair

BACKGROUND: Radiotherapy is the primary approach for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Although high survival rates can be obtained with radiation for early stage lesions, distant metastasis and local recurrence frequently occur. In this study, we pioneeringly investigated the antitumor activity and underlying mechanism of cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor (palbociclib) combined with radiation on NPC cells. METHODS: Evaluation of radiation enhancement with palbociclib was based on results from CCK8 and clonogenicity assays for cell proliferation, flow cytometry for apoptosis, ROS level and cell cycle and immunocytochemistry for DNA double-strand break repair. RESULTS: Palbociclib inhibited cellular growth of RB-proficient CNE-1 and CNE-2 via reducing RB phosphorylation and arresting cell cycle. Combination regimens of palbociclib plus radiation were significantly superior to palbociclib or radiation only through inhibiting cellular growth and inducing apoptosis. Moreover, the antitumor activity of both concurrent palbociclib plus radiation and radiation followed by palbociclib consistently preceded that of palbociclib followed by radiation. Meanwhile, the two preferable combination regimens possessed higher proportion of G2/M phase cells, evidently inhibited DNA double-strand break repair and eventually triggered tumor cell apoptosis. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that palbociclib could provoke a strong antitumor activity as a potential adjuvant to radiation therapy for NPC harboring RB expression.