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Huang C, Aghaei-Zarch SM. From molecular pathogenesis to therapy: Unraveling non-coding RNAs/DNMT3A axis in human cancers. Biochem Pharmacol 2024; 222:116107. [PMID: 38438051 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2024.116107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2023] [Revised: 02/03/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/06/2024]
Abstract
Cancer is a comprehensive classification encompassing more than 100 forms of malignancies that manifest in diverse tissues within the human body. Recent studies have provided evidence that aberrant epigenetic modifications are pivotal indicators of cancer. Epigenetics encapsulates DNA methyltransferases as a crucial class of modifiers. DNMTs, including DNMT3A, assume central roles in DNA methylation processes that orchestrate normal biological functions, such as gene transcription, predominantly in mammals. Typically, deviations in DNMT3A function engender distortions in factors that drive tumor growth and progression, thereby exacerbating the malignant phenotype of tumors. Consequently, such abnormalities pose significant challenges in cancer therapy because they impede treatment efficacy. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) represent a group of RNA molecules that cannot encode functional proteins. Recent investigation attests to the crucial significance of regulatory ncRNAs in epigenetic regulation. Notably, recent reports have illuminated the complex interplay between ncRNA expression and epigenetic regulatory machinery, including DNMT3A, particularly in cancer. Recent findings have demonstrated that miRNAs, namely miR-770-5p, miR-101, and miR-145 exhibit the capability to target DNMT3A directly, and their aberration is implicated in diverse cellular abnormalities that predispose to cancer development. This review aims to articulate the interplay between DNMT3A and the ncRNAs, focusing on its impact on the development and progression of cancer, cancer therapy resistance, cancer stem cells, and prognosis. Importantly, the emergence of such reports that suggest a connection between DNMT3A and ncRNAs in several cancers indicates that this connecting axis offers a valuable target with significant therapeutic potential that might be exploited for cancer management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunjie Huang
- School of Medicine, Nantong University, Nantong 226001, China
| | - Seyed Mohsen Aghaei-Zarch
- Department of Medical Genetics, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
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2
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Jurkowska RZ, Jeltsch A. Enzymology of Mammalian DNA Methyltransferases. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2022; 1389:69-110. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-11454-0_4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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3
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Lu R, Wang J, Ren Z, Yin J, Wang Y, Cai L, Wang GG. A Model System for Studying the DNMT3A Hotspot Mutation (DNMT3A R882) Demonstrates a Causal Relationship between Its Dominant-Negative Effect and Leukemogenesis. Cancer Res 2019; 79:3583-3594. [PMID: 31164355 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-18-3275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2018] [Revised: 04/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Mutation of DNA methyltransferase 3A at arginine 882 (DNMT3AR882mut) is prevalent in hematologic cancers and disorders. Recently, DNMT3AR882mut has been shown to have hypomorphic, dominant-negative, and/or gain-of-function effects on DNA methylation under different biological contexts. However, the causal role for such a multifaceted effect of DNMT3AR882mut in leukemogenesis remains undetermined. Here, we report TF-1 leukemia cells as a robust system useful for modeling the DNMT3AR882mut-dependent transformation and for dissecting the cause-effect relationship between multifaceted activities of DNMT3AR882mut and leukemic transformation. Ectopic expression of DNMT3AR882mut and not wild-type DNMT3A promoted TF-1 cell transformation characterized by cytokine-independent growth, and induces CpG hypomethylation predominantly at enhancers. This effect was dose dependent, acted synergistically with the isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutation, and resembled what was seen in human leukemia patients carrying DNMT3AR882mut. The transformation- and hypomethylation-inducing capacities of DNMT3AR882mut relied on a motif involved in heterodimerization, whereas its various chromatin-binding domains were dispensable. Mutation of the heterodimerization motif that interferes with DNMT3AR882mut binding to endogenous wild-type DNMT proteins partially reversed the CpG hypomethylation phenotype caused by DNMT3AR882mut, thus supporting a dominant-negative mechanism in cells. In mice, bromodomain inhibition repressed gene-activation events downstream of DNMT3AR882mut-induced CpG hypomethylation, thereby suppressing leukemogenesis mediated by DNMT3AR882mut. Collectively, this study reports a model system useful for studying DNMT3AR882mut, shows a requirement of the dominant-negative effect by DNMT3AR882mut for leukemogenesis, and describes an attractive strategy for the treatment of leukemias carrying DNMT3AR882mut. SIGNIFICANCE: These findings highlight a model system to study the functional impact of a hotspot mutation of DNMT3A at R882 in leukemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Lu
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.,Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Jun Wang
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.,Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Zhihong Ren
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.,Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Jiekai Yin
- Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, University of California, Riverside, California.,Department of Chemistry, University of California, Riverside, California
| | - Yinsheng Wang
- Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, University of California, Riverside, California.,Department of Chemistry, University of California, Riverside, California
| | - Ling Cai
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.,Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Gang Greg Wang
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. .,Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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4
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Sergeev AV, Tevyashova AN, Vorobyov AP, Gromova ES. The Effect of Antitumor Antibiotic Olivomycin A and Its New Semi-synthetic Derivative Olivamide on the Activity of Murine DNA Methyltransferase Dnmt3a. BIOCHEMISTRY (MOSCOW) 2019; 84:62-70. [PMID: 30927527 DOI: 10.1134/s0006297919010085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Olivomycin A is a highly active antitumor drug that belongs to the family of aureolic acid antibiotics. The antitumor effect of olivomycin A is related to its ability to bind to the DNA minor groove in GC-rich regions as Mg2+-coordinated complexes. Characterization of cellular targets of olivomycin A and its mechanism of action is crucial for the successful application of this antibiotic in clinical practice and development of semi-synthetic derivatives with improved pharmacological properties. Previously, we have shown that minor groove ligands are able to disrupt the key epigenetic process of DNA methylation. In this paper, we have studied the impact of olivomycin A and its improved semi-synthetic analogue N,N-dimethylaminoethylamide of 1'-des-(2,3-dihydroxy-n-butyroyl)-1'-carboxy-olivomycin A (olivamide) on the functioning of de novo DNA methyltransferase Dnmt3a (enzyme that carries out methylation of cytosine residues in the DNA CG-sites in eukaryotic cells) using an in vitro system consisting of the murine Dnmt3a catalytic domain and a 30-mer DNA duplex containing four consecutive GC pairs. We have shown that olivomycin A and olivamide inhibit Dnmt3a with IC50 of 6 ± 1 and 7.1 ± 0.7 μM, respectively. Neither olivomycin A nor olivamide interfered with the formation of the specific enzyme-substrate complex; however, olivomycin A prevented formation of the covalent DNA-Dnmt3a intermediate that is necessary for the methylation reaction to proceed. The inhibitory effects of olivomycin A and olivamide can be explained by the disruption of the enzyme catalytic loop movement through the DNA minor groove (the reaction stage that precedes the covalent bond formation between DNA and the enzyme). The results of this work indicate the epigenetic contribution to the antitumor effect of aureolic acid group antibiotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- A V Sergeev
- Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Chemistry, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
| | - A N Tevyashova
- Gause Institute of New Antibiotics, Moscow, 119021, Russia.,D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia, Moscow, 125047, Russia
| | - A P Vorobyov
- Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Chemistry, Moscow, 119991, Russia
| | - E S Gromova
- Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Chemistry, Moscow, 119991, Russia
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5
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Parker MJ, Weigele PR, Saleh L. Insights into the Biochemistry, Evolution, and Biotechnological Applications of the Ten-Eleven Translocation (TET) Enzymes. Biochemistry 2019; 58:450-467. [PMID: 30571101 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.8b01185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
A tight link exists between patterns of DNA methylation at carbon 5 of cytosine and differential gene expression in mammalian tissues. Indeed, aberrant DNA methylation results in various human diseases, including neurologic and immune disorders, and contributes to the initiation and progression of various cancers. Proper DNA methylation depends on the fidelity and control of the underlying mechanisms that write, maintain, and erase these epigenetic marks. In this Perspective, we address one of the key players in active demethylation: the ten-eleven translocation enzymes or TETs. These enzymes belong to the Fe2+/α-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase superfamily and iteratively oxidize 5-methylcytosine (5mC) in DNA to produce 5-hydroxymethylcytosine, 5-formylcytosine, and 5-carboxycytosine. The latter three bases may convey additional layers of epigenetic information in addition to being intermediates in active demethylation. Despite the intense interest in understanding the physiological roles TETs play in active demethylation and cell regulation, less has been done, in comparison, to illuminate details of the chemistry and factors involved in regulating the three-step oxidation mechanism. Herein, we focus on what is known about the biochemical features of TETs and explore questions whose answers will lead to a more detailed understanding of the in vivo modus operandi of these enzymes. We also summarize the membership and evolutionary history of the TET/JBP family and highlight the prokaryotic homologues as a reservoir of potentially diverse functionalities awaiting discovery. Finally, we spotlight sequencing methods that utilize TETs for mapping 5mC and its oxidation products in genomic DNA and comment on possible improvements in these approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mackenzie J Parker
- Research Department , New England Biolabs, Inc. , 240 County Road , Ipswich , Massachusetts 01938 , United States
| | - Peter R Weigele
- Research Department , New England Biolabs, Inc. , 240 County Road , Ipswich , Massachusetts 01938 , United States
| | - Lana Saleh
- Research Department , New England Biolabs, Inc. , 240 County Road , Ipswich , Massachusetts 01938 , United States
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Liang Z, Hu J, Yan W, Jiang H, Hu G, Luo C. Deciphering the role of dimer interface in intrinsic dynamics and allosteric pathways underlying the functional transformation of DNMT3A. Biochim Biophys Acta Gen Subj 2018; 1862:1667-1679. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbagen.2018.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2017] [Revised: 04/03/2018] [Accepted: 04/13/2018] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
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7
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Ravichandran M, Jurkowska RZ, Jurkowski TP. Target specificity of mammalian DNA methylation and demethylation machinery. Org Biomol Chem 2018; 16:1419-1435. [DOI: 10.1039/c7ob02574b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
We review here the molecular mechanisms employed by DNMTs and TET enzymes that are responsible for shaping the DNA methylation pattern of a mammalian cell.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - T. P. Jurkowski
- Universität Stuttgart
- Abteilung Biochemie
- Institute für Biochemie und Technische Biochemie
- Stuttgart D-70569
- Germany
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8
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Jeltsch A, Jurkowska RZ. Allosteric control of mammalian DNA methyltransferases - a new regulatory paradigm. Nucleic Acids Res 2016; 44:8556-8575. [PMID: 27521372 PMCID: PMC5062992 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkw723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 131] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2016] [Accepted: 08/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
In mammals, DNA methylation is introduced by the DNMT1, DNMT3A and DNMT3B methyltransferases, which are all large multi-domain proteins containing a catalytic C-terminal domain and an N-terminal part with regulatory functions. Recently, two novel regulatory principles of DNMTs were uncovered. It was shown that their catalytic activity is under allosteric control of N-terminal domains with autoinhibitory function, the RFT and CXXC domains in DNMT1 and the ADD domain in DNMT3. Moreover, targeting and activity of DNMTs were found to be regulated in a concerted manner by interactors and posttranslational modifications (PTMs). In this review, we describe the structures and domain composition of the DNMT1 and DNMT3 enzymes, their DNA binding, catalytic mechanism, multimerization and the processes controlling their stability in cells with a focus on their regulation and chromatin targeting by PTMs, interactors and chromatin modifications. We propose that the allosteric regulation of DNMTs by autoinhibitory domains acts as a general switch for the modulation of the function of DNMTs, providing numerous possibilities for interacting proteins, nucleic acids or PTMs to regulate DNMT activity and targeting. The combined regulation of DNMT targeting and catalytic activity contributes to the precise spatiotemporal control of DNMT function and genome methylation in cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Albert Jeltsch
- Institute of Biochemistry, Pfaffenwaldring 55, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Stuttgart, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Renata Z Jurkowska
- BioMed X Innovation Center, Im Neuenheimer Feld 583, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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9
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Jurkowska RZ, Jeltsch A. Enzymology of Mammalian DNA Methyltransferases. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2016; 945:87-122. [PMID: 27826836 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-43624-1_5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
DNA methylation is currently one of the hottest topics in basic and biomedical research. Despite tremendous progress in understanding the structures and biochemical properties of the mammalian DNA nucleotide methyltransferases (DNMTs), principles of their regulation in cells have only begun to be uncovered. In mammals, DNA methylation is introduced by the DNMT1, DNMT3A, and DNMT3B enzymes, which are all large multi-domain proteins. These enzymes contain a catalytic C-terminal domain with a characteristic cytosine-C5 methyltransferase fold and an N-terminal part with different domains that interacts with other proteins and chromatin and is involved in targeting and regulation of the DNMTs. The subnuclear localization of the DNMT enzymes plays an important role in their biological function: DNMT1 is localized to replicating DNA via interaction with PCNA and UHRF1. DNMT3 enzymes bind to heterochromatin via protein multimerization and are targeted to chromatin by their ADD and PWWP domains. Recently, a novel regulatory mechanism has been discovered in DNMTs, as latest structural and functional data demonstrated that the catalytic activities of all three enzymes are under tight allosteric control of their N-terminal domains having autoinhibitory functions. This mechanism provides numerous possibilities for the precise regulation of the methyltransferases via controlling the binding and release of autoinhibitory domains by protein factors, noncoding RNAs, or by posttranslational modifications of the DNMTs. In this chapter, we summarize key enzymatic properties of DNMTs, including their specificity and processivity, and afterward we focus on the regulation of their activity and targeting via allosteric processes, protein interactors, and posttranslational modifications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renata Z Jurkowska
- BioMed X Innovation Center, Im Neuenheimer Feld 583, Heidelberg, D-69120, Germany.
| | - Albert Jeltsch
- Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 55, Stuttgart, D-70569, Germany.
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10
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Jurkowski TP, Ravichandran M, Stepper P. Synthetic epigenetics-towards intelligent control of epigenetic states and cell identity. Clin Epigenetics 2015; 7:18. [PMID: 25741388 PMCID: PMC4347971 DOI: 10.1186/s13148-015-0044-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2014] [Accepted: 01/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Epigenetics is currently one of the hottest topics in basic and biomedical research. However, to date, most of the studies have been descriptive in nature, designed to investigate static distribution of various epigenetic modifications in cells. Even though tremendous amount of information has been collected, we are still far from the complete understanding of epigenetic processes, their dynamics or even their direct effects on local chromatin and we still do not comprehend whether these epigenetic states are the cause or the consequence of the transcriptional profile of the cell. In this review, we try to define the concept of synthetic epigenetics and outline the available genome targeting technologies, which are used for locus-specific editing of epigenetic signals. We report early success stories and the lessons we have learned from them, and provide a guide for their application. Finally, we discuss existing limitations of the available technologies and indicate possible areas for further development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz P Jurkowski
- Laboratory of Molecular Epigenetics, Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 55, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Mirunalini Ravichandran
- Laboratory of Molecular Epigenetics, Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 55, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Peter Stepper
- Laboratory of Molecular Epigenetics, Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 55, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany
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11
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Jeltsch A, Jurkowska RZ. New concepts in DNA methylation. Trends Biochem Sci 2014; 39:310-8. [PMID: 24947342 DOI: 10.1016/j.tibs.2014.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 291] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2014] [Revised: 05/15/2014] [Accepted: 05/18/2014] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
The widely-cited model of maintenance of DNA methylation at CpG sites implies that DNA methylation is introduced by the Dnmt3 de novo DNA methyltransferases during early development, and methylation at hemimethylated CpG sites is specifically maintained by the Dnmt1 maintenance methyltransferase. However, substantial experimental evidence from the past decade indicates that this simple model needs to be revised. DNA methylation can be described by a dynamic stochastic model, in which DNA methylation at each site is determined by the local activity of DNA methyltransferases (Dnmts), DNA demethylases, and the DNA replication rate. Through the targeting and regulation of these enzymes, DNA methylation is controlled by the network of chromatin marks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Albert Jeltsch
- Institute of Biochemistry, Stuttgart University, Pfaffenwaldring 55, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
| | - Renata Z Jurkowska
- Institute of Biochemistry, Stuttgart University, Pfaffenwaldring 55, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany
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