Dovitinib demonstrates antitumor and antimetastatic activities in xenograft models of hepatocellular carcinoma

Background & aims: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third leading cause of Cancer death. Although sorafenib has been shown to improve survival of patients with advanced HCC, this improvement is modest and patients eventually have refractory disease. This study aims at investigating the antitumor, antiangiogenesis and antimetastatic activities of dovitinib in preclinical models of HCC.

Methods: 21-0208 and SK-HEP1 cells as well as patient-derived HCC models were employed to study the antitumor effect of dovitinib. Changes of biomarkers relevant to FGFR/VEGFR/PDGFR pathways were determined by Western blotting. Microvessel density, Apoptosis and cell proliferation were analyzed by immunohistochemistry.

Results: Treatment of SK-HEP1 cells with dovitinib resulted in G2/M cell cycle arrest, inhibition of colony formation in soft agar and blockade of bFGF-induced cell migration. Dovitinib inhibited basal expression and FGF-induced phosphorylation of FGFR-1, FRS2-α and ERK1/2. In vivo, dovitinib potently inhibited tumor growth of six HCC lines. Inhibition of angiogenesis correlated with inactivation of FGFR/PDGFR-β/VEGFR-2 signaling pathways. Dovitinib also caused dephosphorylation of retinoblastoma, upregulation of p-histone H2A-X and p27, and downregulation of p-cdk-2 and cyclin B1, which resulted in a reduction in cellular proliferation and the induction of tumor cell Apoptosis. In an orthotopic model, dovitinib potently inhibited primary tumor growth and lung metastasis and significantly prolonged mouse survival.

Conclusions: Dovitinib demonstrated significant antitumor and antimetastatic activities in HCC xenograft models. This study provides a compelling rationale for clinical investigation in patients with advanced HCC.