Geldanamycin induces ErbB-2 degradation by proteolytic fragmentation.

Exposure of carcinoma cell lines to the antibiotic geldanamycin induces the degradation of ErbB-2, a co-receptor tyrosine kinase that is frequently overexpressed in certain tumors. Using ErbB-2 mutants expressed as chimeric receptors or green fluorescent protein fusion proteins, we report that the kinase domain of ErbB-2 is essential for geldanamycin-induced degradation. The kinase domain of the related epidermal growth factor receptor was not sensitive to this drug. The data further indicate mechanistic aspects of ErbB-2 degradation by geldanamycin. The data show that exposure to the drug induces at least one cleavage within the cytoplasmic domain of ErbB-2 producing a 135-kDa fragment and a 23-kDa fragment. The latter represents the carboxyl-terminal domain of ErbB-2, whereas the former represents the ectodomain and part of the cytoplasmic domain. Degradation of the carboxyl-terminal fragment is prevented by proteasome inhibitors, whereas degradation of the membrane-anchored 135-kDa ErbB-2 fragment is blocked by inhibitors of the endocytosis-dependent degradation pathway. Confocal microscopy studies confirm a geldanamycin-induced localization of ErbB-2 on intracellular vesicles.