Amplification of CyclinL1 in uterine cervical carcinoma has prognostic implications

Cyclin L1 participates in Adriamycin resistance and progression of osteosarcoma via PI3K/AKT-mTOR pathway

Chemoresistance is a common and thorny problem in the treatment of osteosarcoma (OS), which obstructs the response of relapse or metastasis of OS to chemotherapy and leads to the unfavorable prognosis of OS patients. Cyclin L1 (CCNL1) is a non-canonical cyclin that plays an important role in the regulation of tumor cell proliferation and lymph node metastasis. In this work, we explored the impact of CCNL1 expression levels on proliferation, migration, and Adriamycin (ADM) resistance in OS and related mechanisms. We found that CCNL1 expression levels were significantly associated with clinical prognosis of patients with OS and CCNL1 could promote OS proliferation and migration. In addition, we also revealed that cellular CCNL1 was significantly increased in ADM-resistant OS cells and promoted ADM resistance. The PI3K/AKT-mTOR pathway is involved in CCNL1-mediated ADM resistance in OS. In summary, CCNL1 is involved in the progression of ADM resistance and OS through the PI3K/AKT-mTOR pathway, which will provide a new clue to the mechanism of ADM resistance and a potential target for the treatment of ADM-resistant OS.

Cellular signaling modulated by miRNA-3652 in ovarian cancer: unveiling mechanistic pathways for future therapeutic strategies

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNA molecules that play pivotal roles in regulating gene expression and have been implicated in the pathogenesis of numerous cancers. miRNA-3652, though relatively less explored, has recently emerged as a potential key player in ovarian cancer's molecular landscape. This review aims to delineate the functional significance and tumor progression role of miRNA-3652 in ovarian cancer, shedding light on its potential as both a diagnostic biomarker and therapeutic target. A comprehensive literature search was carried out using established databases, the focus was on articles that reported the role of miRNA-3652 in ovarian cancer, encompassing mechanistic insights, functional studies, and its association with clinical outcomes. This updated review highlighted that miRNA-3652 is intricately involved in ovarian cancer cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, its dysregulation was linked to altered expression of critical genes involved in tumor growth and metastasis; furthermore, miRNA-3652 expression levels were found to correlate with clinical stages, prognosis, and response to therapy in ovarian cancer patients. miRNA-3652 holds significant promise as a vital molecular player in ovarian cancer's pathophysiology. Its functional role and impact on tumor progression make it a potential candidate for diagnostic and therapeutic applications in ovarian cancer. Given the pivotal role of miRNA-3652 in ovarian cancer, future studies should emphasize in-depth mechanistic explorations, utilizing advanced genomic and proteomic tools. Collaboration between basic scientists and clinicians will be vital to translating these findings into innovative diagnostic and therapeutic strategies, ultimately benefiting ovarian cancer patients. Video Abstract.

SCFFBXW7 regulates G2-M progression through control of CCNL1 ubiquitination

FBXW7, which encodes a substrate-specific receptor of an SCF E3 ligase complex, is a frequently mutated human tumor suppressor gene known to regulate the post-translational stability of various proteins involved in cellular proliferation. Here, using genome-wide CRISPR screens, we report a novel synthetic lethal genetic interaction between FBXW7 and CCNL1 and describe CCNL1 as a new substrate of the SCF-FBXW7 E3 ligase. Further analysis showed that the CCNL1-CDK11 complex is critical at the G2-M phase of the cell cycle since defective CCNL1 accumulation, resulting from FBXW7 mutation, leads to shorter mitotic time. Cells harboring FBXW7 loss-of-function mutations are hypersensitive to treatment with a CDK11 inhibitor, highlighting a genetic vulnerability that could be leveraged for cancer treatment.

MiR-5195-3p functions as a tumor suppressor in prostate cancer via targeting CCNL1

BACKGROUND

Accumulating evidence indicates that miR-5195-3p exerts tumor-suppressive roles in several tumors. However, the clinical significance and biological function of miR-5195-3p in prostate cancer (PCa) have not been reported yet.

METHODS

The expression levels of miR-5195-3p and Cyclin L1 (CCNL1) were determined using quantitative real-time PCR in clinical specimens and cell lines. The clinical significance of miR-5195-3p in patients with PCa was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Cox regression models. Cell proliferation and cell cycle distribution were measured by CCK-8 assay and flow cytometry, respectively. The association between miR-5195-3p and CCNL1 was analyzed by luciferase reporter assay.

RESULTS

MiR-5195-3p expression levels were significantly downregulated in 69 paired PCa tissues compared with matched adjacent normal tissues. The decreased miR-5195-3p expression was associated with Gleason score and TNM stage, as well as worse survival prognosis. The in vitro experiments showed that miR-5195-3p overexpression suppressed the proliferation and cell cycle G1/S transition in PC-3 and DU145 cells. Elevated miR-5195-3p abundance obviously impaired tumor formation in vivo using PC-3 xenografts. Mechanistically, CCNL1 was a direct target of miR-5195-3p in PCa cells, which was inversely correlated with miR-5195-3p in PCa tissues. Importantly, CCNL1 knockdown imitated, while overexpression reversed, the effects of miR-5195-3p overexpression on PCa cell proliferation and cell cycle G1/S transition.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data suggest that miR-5195-3p functions as a tumor suppressor by targeting CCNL1 in PCa.

DNA methylome profiling identifies novel methylated genes in epithelial ovarian cancer patients with platinum resistance

AIM

Platinum-based chemotherapy is widely used for epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). As high as 20-25% of EOC patients will not respond to the initial chemotherapy. Accumulated evidences have implied that DNA methylation may serve as a potential bio-marker for chemotherapy-resistant phenotypic screening; however, the pattern underlying primary platinum resistance remains unclear.

METHODS

Reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) analysis was performed to identify differences in methylation status between primary platinum-resistant patients Progression free survival (PFS) (PFS < 6 months, n = 8) and extreme sensitive patients (PFS ≥ 24 months, n = 8). The Qubit 3.0 Fluorometer was used for the quantification of RRBS library. The RRBS library was sequenced on Illumina HiSeq2500 sequencer as 50 bp paired-end reads.

RESULTS

After screening, 94 valid hyper-/hypo-methylated regions were identified to be located within 94 gene promoter and exon regions (adjusted q ≤ 0.5), which were primarily associated with cell-cell adhesion, B cell activation and lymphocyte activation according to GO analysis. The 19 differentially methylated regions (DMR) located in the promoter region including TRC-GCA11-1, LOC105370912, ANO7P1, DHX4,MSH2, CDCP2, CCNL1, ARHGAP42P2, PRDM13, LOC101928344, USP29, ZIC5,IL1RAPL1, EVX2, ABR, MGRN1, UBALD1, LINC00261, and ISL2 were identified according to the order of P-values from low to high, of which MSH2, LINC00261, MGRN1, ZIC5, EVX2, CCNL1, and DHX40 were presented to play a variety of roles in cancers process based on the previous studies.

CONCLUSION

DNA methylome profiling based on RRBS assay is an effective method for screening aberrantly methylated genes in primary platinum-resistant patients, which may serve as a potential epigenetic bio-marker for the prediction of primary platinum resistance.

DNA Methylation Associated With Diabetic Kidney Disease in Blood-Derived DNA

A subset of individuals with type 1 diabetes will develop diabetic kidney disease (DKD). DKD is heritable and large-scale genome-wide association studies have begun to identify genetic factors that influence DKD. Complementary to genetic factors, we know that a person’s epigenetic profile is also altered with DKD. This study reports analysis of DNA methylation, a major epigenetic feature, evaluating methylome-wide loci for association with DKD. Unique features (n = 485,577; 482,421 CpG probes) were evaluated in blood-derived DNA from carefully phenotyped White European individuals diagnosed with type 1 diabetes with (cases) or without (controls) DKD (n = 677 samples). Explicitly, 150 cases were compared to 100 controls using the 450K array, with subsequent analysis using data previously generated for a further 96 cases and 96 controls on the 27K array, and de novo methylation data generated for replication in 139 cases and 96 controls. Following stringent quality control, raw data were quantile normalized and beta values calculated to reflect the methylation status at each site. The difference in methylation status was evaluated between cases and controls; resultant P-values for array-based data were adjusted for multiple testing. Genes with significantly increased (hypermethylated) and/or decreased (hypomethylated) levels of DNA methylation were considered for biological relevance by functional enrichment analysis using KEGG pathways. Twenty-two loci demonstrated statistically significant fold changes associated with DKD and additional support for these associated loci was sought using independent samples derived from patients recruited with similar inclusion criteria. Markers associated with CCNL1 and ZNF187 genes are supported as differentially regulated loci (P < 10^–8), with evidence also presented for AFF3, which has been identified from a meta-analysis and subsequent replication of genome-wide association studies. Further supporting evidence for differential gene expression in CCNL1 and ZNF187 is presented from kidney biopsy and blood-derived RNA in people with and without kidney disease from NephroSeq. Evidence confirming that methylation sites influence the development of DKD may aid risk prediction tools and stimulate research to identify epigenomic therapies which might be clinically useful for this disease.

De novo assembly and functional annotation of the Red-striped golden stink bug (Poecilocoris lewisi) transcriptome

Insect antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have a wide range of functions and potential applications, and have recently attracted attention as alternative foods and medicines for humans. Our study performed transcriptome analysis to explore the potential of the red-striped golden stink bug (Poecilocoris lewisi), and as a result, we have discovered new features of P. lewisi that have not been identified. Specifically, defensin found in P. lewisi is a well-known AMP and is expressed by various plants, animals and fungi for host defense. Moreover, the discovery of defensin in P. lewisi provides new research and important information. In this study, we identified AMP and related DEG in P. lewisi that are closely related to human disease and immune response. These findings will provide the basis and important information for future research on P. lewisi that has not yet been studied.

Roles of CDK/Cyclin complexes in transcription and pre-mRNA splicing: Cyclins L and CDK11 at the cross-roads of cell cycle and regulation of gene expression

Cyclin Dependent Kinases (CDKs) represent a large family of serine/threonine protein kinases that become active upon binding to a Cyclin regulatory partner. CDK/cyclin complexes recently identified, as well as "canonical" CDK/Cyclin complexes regulating cell cycle, are implicated in the regulation of gene expression via the phosphorylation of key components of the transcription and pre-mRNA processing machineries. In this review, we summarize the role of CDK/cyclin-dependent phosphorylation in the regulation of transcription and RNA splicing and highlight recent findings that indicate the involvement of CDK11/cyclin L complexes at the cross-roads of cell cycle, transcription and RNA splicing. Finally, we discuss the potential of CDK11 and Cyclins L as therapeutic targets in cancer.

QKI5-mediated alternative splicing of the histone variant macroH2A1 regulates gastric carcinogenesis

Alternative pre-mRNA splicing is a key mechanism for increasing proteomic diversity and modulating gene expression. Emerging evidence indicated that the splicing program is frequently dysregulated during tumorigenesis. Cancer cells produce protein isoforms that can promote growth and survival. The RNA-binding protein QKI5 is a critical regulator of alternative splicing in expanding lists of primary human tumors and tumor cell lines. However, its biological role and regulatory mechanism are poorly defined in gastric cancer (GC) development and progression. In this study, we demonstrated that the downregulation of QKI5 was associated with pTNM stage and pM state of GC patients. Re-introduction of QKI5 could inhibit GC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro and in vivo, which might be due to the altered splicing pattern of macroH2A1 pre-mRNA, leading to the accumulation of macroH2A1.1 isoform. Furthermore, QKI5 could inhibit cyclin L1 expression via promoting macroH2A1.1 production. Thus, this study identified a novel regulatory axis involved in gastric tumorigenesis and provided a new strategy for GC therapy.

Cyclin-dependent kinase 11(p110) (CDK11(p110)) is crucial for human breast cancer cell proliferation and growth

Cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) play important roles in the development of many types of cancers by binding with their paired cyclins. However, the function of CDK11 larger protein isomer, CDK11(p110), in the tumorigenesis of human breast cancer remains unclear. In the present study, we explored the effects and molecular mechanisms of CDK11(p110) in the proliferation and growth of breast cancer cells by determining the expression of CDK11(p110) in breast tumor tissues and examining the phenotypic changes of breast cancer cells after CDK11(p110) knockdown. We found that CDK11(p110) was highly expressed in breast tumor tissues and cell lines. Tissue microarray analysis showed that elevated CDK11(p110) expression in breast cancer tissues significantly correlated with poor differentiation, and was also associated with advanced TNM stage and poor clinical prognosis for breast cancer patients. In vitro knockdown of CDK11(p110) by siRNA significantly inhibited cell growth and migration, and dramatically induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells. Flow cytometry demonstrated that cells were markedly arrested in G1 phase of the cell cycle after CDK11(p110) downregulation. These findings suggest that CDK11(p110) is critical for the proliferation and growth of breast cancer cells, which highlights CDK11(p110) may be a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of breast cancer.

Preclinical evaluation of cyclin dependent kinase 11 and casein kinase 2 survival kinases as RNA interference targets for triple negative breast cancer therapy

Introduction

Targeted therapies for aggressive breast cancers like triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) are needed. The use of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to disable expression of survival genes provides a tool for killing these cancer cells. Cyclin dependent kinase 11 (CDK11) is a survival protein kinase that regulates RNA transcription, splicing and mitosis. Casein kinase 2 (CK2) is a survival protein kinase that suppresses cancer cell death. Eliminating the expression of these genes has potential therapeutic utility for breast cancer.

Methods

Expression levels of CDK11 and CK2 mRNAs and associated proteins were examined in breast cancer cell lines and tissue arrays. RNA expression levels of CDC2L1, CDC2L2, CCNL1, CCNL2, CSNK2A1, CSNK2A2, and CSNK2B genes in breast cancer subtypes were analyzed. Effects following transfection of siRNAs against CDK11 and CK2 in cultured cells were examined by viability and clonal survival assays and by RNA and protein measures. Uptake of tenfibgen (TBG) nanocapsules by TNBC cells was analyzed by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. TBG nanocapsules delivered siRNAs targeting CDK11 or CK2 in mice carrying TNBC xenograft tumors. Transcript cleavage and response parameters were evaluated.

Results

We found strong CDK11 and CK2 mRNA and protein expression in most human breast cancer cells. Immunohistochemical analysis of TNBC patient tissues showed 100% of tumors stained positive for CDK11 with high nuclear intensity compared to normal tissue. The Cancer Genome Atlas analysis comparing basal to other breast cancer subtypes and to normal breast revealed statistically significant differences. Down-regulation of CDK11 and/or CK2 in breast cancer cells caused significant loss of cell viability and clonal survival, reduced relevant mRNA and protein expression, and induced cell death changes. TBG nanocapsules were taken up by TNBC cells both in culture and in xenograft tumors. Treatment with TBG- siRNA to CDK11 or TBG- siRNA to CK2αα’ nanocapsules induced appropriate cleavage of CDK11 and CK2α transcripts in TNBC tumors, and caused MDA-MB-231 tumor reduction, loss of proliferation, and decreased expression of targeted genes.

Conclusions

CDK11 and CK2 expression are individually essential for breast cancer cell survival, including TNBC. These genes serve as promising new targets for therapeutic development in breast cancer.

Inactivation of SLIT2-ROBO1/2 pathway in premalignant lesions of uterine cervix: clinical and prognostic significances

The SLIT2-ROBO1/2 pathways control diverse biological processes, including growth regulation. To understand the role of SLIT2 and ROBO1/2 in cervical carcinogenesis, firstly their RNA expression profiles were screened in 21 primary uterine cervical carcinoma (CACX) samples and two CACX cell lines. Highly reduced expressions of these genes were evident. Concomitant alterations [deletion/methylation] of the genes were then analyzed in 23 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and 110 CACX samples. In CIN, SLIT2 was deleted in 22% samples compared to 9% for ROBO1 and none for ROBO2, whereas comparable methylation was observed for both SLIT2 (30%) and ROBO1 (22%) followed by ROBO2 (9%). In CACX, alteration of the genes were in the following order: Deletion:ROBO1 (48%) > SLIT2 (35%) > ROBO2 (33%), Methylation:SLIT2 (34%) > ROBO1 (29%) > ROBO2 (26%). Overall alterations of SLIT2 and/or ROBO1 (44%) and SLIT2 and/or ROBO2 (39%) were high in CIN followed by significant increase in stage I/II tumors, suggesting deregulation of these interactions in premalignant lesions and early invasive tumors. Immunohistochemical analysis of SLIT2 and ROBO1/2 in CACX also showed reduced expression concordant with molecular alterations. Alteration of all these genes predicted poor patient outcome. Multiparous (≥ 5) women with altered SLIT2 and ROBO1 along with advanced tumor stage (III/IV) and early sexual debut (<19 years) had worst prognosis. Our data suggests the importance of abrogation of SLIT2-ROBO1 and SLIT2-ROBO2 interactions in the initiation and progression of CACX and also for early diagnosis and prognosis of the disease.