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Bidany-Mizrahi T, Shweiki A, Maroun K, Abu-Tair L, Mali B, Aqeilan RI. Unveiling the relationship between WWOX and BRCA1 in mammary tumorigenicity and in DNA repair pathway selection. Cell Death Discov 2024; 10:145. [PMID: 38499540 PMCID: PMC10948869 DOI: 10.1038/s41420-024-01878-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Revised: 02/07/2024] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women worldwide, with the basal-like or triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) subtype being particularly aggressive and challenging to treat. Understanding the molecular mechanisms driving the development and progression of TNBC is essential. We previously showed that WW domain-containing oxidoreductase (WWOX) is commonly inactivated in TNBC and is implicated in the DNA damage response (DDR) through ATM and ATR activation. In this study, we investigated the interplay between WWOX and BRCA1, both frequently inactivated in TNBC, on mammary tumor development and on DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair choice. We generated and characterized a transgenic mouse model (K14-Cre;Brca1fl/fl;Wwoxfl/fl) and observed that mice lacking both WWOX and BRCA1 developed basal-like mammary tumors and exhibited a decrease in 53BP1 foci and an increase in RAD51 foci, suggesting impaired DSB repair. We examined human TNBC cell lines harboring wild-type and mutant BRCA1 and found that WWOX expression promoted NHEJ repair in cells with wild-type BRCA1. Our findings suggest that WWOX and BRCA1 play an important role in DSB repair pathway choice in mammary epithelial cells, underscoring their functional interaction and significance in breast carcinogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tirza Bidany-Mizrahi
- The Concern Foundation Laboratories, The Lautenberg Center for Immunology and Cancer Research, Department of Immunology and Cancer Research-IMRIC, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Aya Shweiki
- The Concern Foundation Laboratories, The Lautenberg Center for Immunology and Cancer Research, Department of Immunology and Cancer Research-IMRIC, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Kian Maroun
- The Concern Foundation Laboratories, The Lautenberg Center for Immunology and Cancer Research, Department of Immunology and Cancer Research-IMRIC, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Lina Abu-Tair
- The Concern Foundation Laboratories, The Lautenberg Center for Immunology and Cancer Research, Department of Immunology and Cancer Research-IMRIC, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Bella Mali
- Department of Pathology, Hadassah University Hospital, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Rami I Aqeilan
- The Concern Foundation Laboratories, The Lautenberg Center for Immunology and Cancer Research, Department of Immunology and Cancer Research-IMRIC, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
- Cyprus Cancer Research Institute (CCRI), Nicosia, Cyprus.
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Taouis K, Vacher S, Guirouilh-Barbat J, Camonis J, Formstecher E, Popova T, Hamy AS, Petitalot A, Lidereau R, Caputo SM, Zinn-Justin S, Bièche I, Driouch K, Lallemand F. WWOX binds MERIT40 and modulates its function in homologous recombination, implications in breast cancer. Cancer Gene Ther 2023; 30:1144-1155. [PMID: 37248434 PMCID: PMC10425285 DOI: 10.1038/s41417-023-00626-x] [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: 11/23/2022] [Revised: 04/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The tumor suppressor gene WWOX is localized in an unstable chromosomal region and its expression is decreased or absent in several types of cancer. A low expression of WWOX is associated with a poor prognosis in breast cancer (BC). It has recently been shown that WWOX contributes to genome stability through its role in the DNA damage response (DDR). In breast cancer cells, WWOX inhibits homologous recombination (HR), and thus promotes the repair of DNA double-stranded breaks (DSBs) by non-homologous end joining (NHEJ). The fine-tuning modulation of HR activity is crucial. Its under or overstimulation inducing genome alterations that can induce cancer. MERIT40 is a positive regulator of the DDR. This protein is indispensable for the function of the multi-protein complex BRCA1-A, which suppresses excessive HR activity. MERIT40 also recruits Tankyrase, a positive regulator of HR, to the DSBs to stimulate DNA repair. Here, we identified MERIT40 as a new molecular partner of WWOX. We demonstrated that WWOX inhibited excessive HR activity induced by overexpression of MERIT40. We showed that WWOX impaired the MERIT40-Tankyrase interaction preventing the role of the complex on DSBs. Furthermore, we found that MERIT40 is overexpressed in BC and that this overexpression is associated to a poor prognosis. These results strongly suggest that WWOX, through its interaction with MERIT40, prevents the deleterious impact of excessive HR on BC development by inhibiting MERIT40-Tankyrase association. This inhibitory effect of WWOX would oppose MERIT40-dependent BC development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karim Taouis
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
- Paris Sciences Lettres Research University, Paris, France
| | - Sophie Vacher
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
- Paris Sciences Lettres Research University, Paris, France
| | - Josée Guirouilh-Barbat
- Laboratoire Recombinaison-Réparation et Cancer UMR8200 Stabilité Génétique et Oncogenèse Institut Gustave Roussy, PR2, pièce 426114 Rue Edouard Vaillant, 94805, Villejuif, France
| | | | | | - Tatiana Popova
- Centre De Recherche, Institut Curie, Paris, F-75248, France
- INSERM U830, Paris, F-75248, France
| | - Anne-Sophie Hamy
- Residual Tumor & Response to Treatment Laboratory, RT2Lab, Translational Research Department, INSERM, U932 Immunity and Cancer, University Paris, Paris, France
- Department of Medical Oncology, Institut Curie, Paris, France
- University Paris, Paris, France
| | - Ambre Petitalot
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
| | - Rosette Lidereau
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
| | - Sandrine M Caputo
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
- Paris Sciences Lettres Research University, Paris, France
| | - Sophie Zinn-Justin
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell, CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Ivan Bièche
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
- INSERM U1016, Université Paris Descartes, 4 avenue de l'observatoire, Paris, France
| | - Keltouma Driouch
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France
- Paris Sciences Lettres Research University, Paris, France
| | - François Lallemand
- Service de génétique, unité de pharmacogénomique, Institut Curie, 26 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France.
- Paris Sciences Lettres Research University, Paris, France.
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Park D, Gharghabi M, Reczek CR, Plow R, Yungvirt C, Aldaz CM, Huebner K. Wwox Binding to the Murine Brca1-BRCT Domain Regulates Timing of Brip1 and CtIP Phospho-Protein Interactions with This Domain at DNA Double-Strand Breaks, and Repair Pathway Choice. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23073729. [PMID: 35409089 PMCID: PMC8999063 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23073729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Wwox-deficient human cells show elevated homologous recombination, leading to resistance to killing by double-strand break-inducing agents. Human Wwox binds to the Brca1 981-PPLF-984 Wwox-binding motif, likely blocking the pChk2 phosphorylation site at Brca1-S988. This phosphorylation site is conserved across mammalian species; the PPLF motif is conserved in primates but not in rodents. We now show that murine Wwox does not bind Brca1 near the conserved mouse Brca1 phospho-S971 site, leaving it open for Chk2 phosphorylation and Brca1 activation. Instead, murine Wwox binds to Brca1 through its BRCT domain, where pAbraxas, pBrip1, and pCtIP, of the A, B, and C binding complexes, interact to regulate double-strand break repair pathway response. In Wwox-deficient mouse cells, the Brca1-BRCT domain is thus accessible for immediate binding of these phospho-proteins. We confirm elevated homologous recombination in Wwox-silenced murine cells, as in human cells. Wwox-deficient murine cells showed increased ionizing radiation-induced Abraxas, Brca1, and CtIP foci and long resected single-strand DNA, early after ionizing radiation. Wwox deletion increased the basal level of Brca1-CtIP interaction and the expression level of the MRN-CtIP protein complex, key players in end-resection, and facilitated Brca1 release from foci. Inhibition of phospho-Chk2 phosphorylation of Brca1-S971 delays the end-resection; the delay of premature end-resection by combining Chk2 inhibition with ionizing radiation or carboplatin treatment restored ionizing radiation and platinum sensitivity in Wwox-deficient murine cells, as in human cells, supporting the use of murine in vitro and in vivo models in preclinical cancer treatment research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dongju Park
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, The Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (M.G.); (R.P.); (C.Y.)
- Correspondence: (D.P.); (K.H.); Tel.: +1-614-685-9124 (D.P.); +1-614-292-4850 (K.H.)
| | - Mehdi Gharghabi
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, The Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (M.G.); (R.P.); (C.Y.)
- Department of Outcomes and Translational Sciences, College of Pharmacy, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Colleen R. Reczek
- Department of Pathology & Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA;
| | - Rebecca Plow
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, The Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (M.G.); (R.P.); (C.Y.)
| | - Charles Yungvirt
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, The Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (M.G.); (R.P.); (C.Y.)
| | - C. Marcelo Aldaz
- Department of Epigenetics and Molecular Carcinogenesis, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1881 East Road, Houston, TX 77054, USA;
| | - Kay Huebner
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, The Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (M.G.); (R.P.); (C.Y.)
- Correspondence: (D.P.); (K.H.); Tel.: +1-614-685-9124 (D.P.); +1-614-292-4850 (K.H.)
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