Hannah Brocks
Research Mentor: Maryam Nakhjiri
Mentor Department: Internal Medicine, Medicine
Author(s): Hannah Brocks, Hassan Zibb, Marayam Nakhijiri, Nathan Merrill, Sofia Merajver
Session: Session 3 (11:00 AM – 11:50 AM)
Presentation Type: Poster 59
Abstract
Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rare and aggressive subtype characterized by rapid progression and poor clinical outcomes. Due to its reliance on multiple survival pathways, single-agent therapies are often insufficient, highlighting the need for effective combination treatment strategies. This study evaluates the combined effects of BCL-2 (B-cell lymphoma 2) inhibitors and HDAC (histone deacetylase) inhibitors in IBC cell lines. BCL-2 inhibitors promote apoptosis by targeting anti-apoptotic proteins that support cancer cell survival, while HDAC inhibitors regulate gene expression through chromatin remodeling and can induce tumor suppressor activity. Together, these agents may enhance therapeutic response by simultaneously disrupting survival signaling and altering gene regulation. Previous studies in our lab identified subtype-specific drug synergy patterns, where BCL-2 inhibitors combined with MEK inhibitors showed strong synergy in IBC models, while BCL-2 and HDAC inhibitor combinations were more effective in non-IBC cell lines. Based on these findings, this project examines whether BCL-2 and HDAC inhibitors also exhibit synergistic effects in IBC, testing the hypothesis that this combination will demonstrate reduced synergy compared to non-IBC models. Combination drug screening is being performed in IBC cell lines to assess treatment response. Results from this study will help clarify whether HDAC-based combinations are subtype-dependent and may inform the development of more targeted therapeutic strategies for inflammatory breast cancer.
