p21Waf1/Cip1 Inhibition of Cyclin E/Cdk2 Activity Prevents Endoreduplication after Mitotic Spindle Disruption

During a normal cell cycle, entry into S phase is dependent on completion of mitosis and subsequent activation of cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) in G₁. These events are monitored by checkpoint pathways. Recent studies and data presented herein show that after treatment with microtubule inhibitors (MTIs), cells deficient in the Cdk inhibitor p21^Waf1/Cip1 enter S phase with a ≥4N DNA content, a process known as endoreduplication, which results in polyploidy. To determine how p21 prevents MTI-induced endoreduplication, the G₁/S and G₂/M checkpoint pathways were examined in two isogenic cell systems: HCT116 p21^+/+ and p21^−/− cells and H1299 cells containing an inducible p21 expression vector (HIp21). Both HCT116 p21^−/− cells and noninduced HIp21 cells endoreduplicated after MTI treatment. Analysis of G₁-phase Cdk activities demonstrated that the induction of p21 inhibited endoreduplication through direct cyclin E/Cdk2 regulation. The kinetics of p21 inhibition of cyclin E/Cdk2 activity and binding to proliferating-cell nuclear antigen in HCT116 p21^+/+ cells paralleled the onset of endoreduplication in HCT116 p21^−/− cells. In contrast, loss of p21 did not lead to deregulated cyclin D1-dependent kinase activities, nor did p21 directly regulate cyclin B1/Cdc2 activity. Furthermore, we show that MTI-induced endoreduplication in p53-deficient HIp21 cells was due to levels of p21 protein below a threshold required for negative regulation of cyclin E/Cdk2, since ectopic expression of p21 restored cyclin E/Cdk2 regulation and prevented endoreduplication. Based on these findings, we propose that p21 plays an integral role in the checkpoint pathways that restrain normal cells from entering S phase after aberrant mitotic exit due to defects in microtubule dynamics.