The farnesyltransferase inhibitor lonafarnib induces CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein-dependent expression of death receptor 5, leading to induction of apoptosis in human cancer cells.

Pre-clinical studies have demonstrated that farnesyltransferase inhibitors (FTIs) induce growth arrest or apoptosis in various human cancer cells independently of Ras mutations. However, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. Death receptor 5 (DR5) is a pro-apoptotic protein involved in mediating the extrinsic apoptotic pathway. Its role in FTI-induced apoptosis has not been reported. In this study, we investigated the modulation of DR5 by the FTI lonafarnib and the involvement of DR5 up-regulation in FTI-induced apoptosis. Lonafarnib activated caspase-8 and its downstream caspases, whereas the caspase-8-specific inhibitor benzyloxycarbonyl-Ile-Glu(methoxy)-Thr-Asp(methoxy)-fluoromethyl ketone or small interfering RNA abrogated lonafarnib-induced apoptosis, indicating that lonafarnib induces caspase-8-dependent apoptosis. Lonafarnib up-regulated DR5 expression, increased cell-surface DR5 distribution, and enhanced tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand-induced apoptosis. Overexpression of a dominant-negative Fas-associated death domain mutant or silencing of DR5 expression using small interfering RNA attenuated lonafarnib-induced apoptosis. These results indicate a critical role of the DR5-mediated extrinsic apoptotic pathway in lonafarnib-induced apoptosis. By analyzing the DR5 promoter, we found that lonafarnib induced a CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein (CHOP)-dependent transactivation of the DR5 promoter. Lonafarnib increased CHOP expression, whereas silencing of CHOP expression abrogated lonafarnib-induced DR5 expression. These results thus indicate that lonafarnib induces CHOP-dependent DR5 up-regulation. We conclude that CHOP-dependent DR5 up-regulation contributes to lonafarnib-induced apoptosis.