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Nettersheim D, Schorle H. The plasticity of germ cell cancers and its dependence on the cellular microenvironment. J Cell Mol Med 2017; 21:1463-1467. [PMID: 28244655 PMCID: PMC5543455 DOI: 10.1111/jcmm.13082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2016] [Accepted: 12/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
So far, the understanding of germ cell cancer (GCC) pathogenesis is based on a model, where seminomas and non‐seminomas represent distinct entities although originating from a common precursor termed germ cell neoplasia in situ (GCNIS). Embryonal carcinomas (ECs), the stem cell population of the non‐seminomas, is pluri‐ to totipotent and able to differentiate into cells of all three germ layers, giving rise to teratomas or tumours mimicking extraembryonic tissues (yolk sac tumours, choriocarcinomas). With regard to gene expression, (epi)genetics and histology, seminomas are highly similar to GCNIS and primordial germ cells, but limited in development. It remains elusive, whether this block in differentiation is controlled by cell intrinsic mechanisms or by signals from the surrounding microenvironment. Here, we reviewed the recent literature emphasizing the plasticity of GCCs, especially of seminomas. We propose that this plasticity is controlled by the microenvironment, allowing seminomas to transit into an EC or mixed non‐seminoma and vice versa. We discuss several mechanisms and routes of reprogramming that might be responsible for this change in the cell fate. We finally integrate this plasticity into a new model of GCC pathogenesis, allowing for an alternative view on the dynamics of GCC development and progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Nettersheim
- Department of Developmental Pathology, Institute of Pathology, University Medical School, Bonn, Germany
| | - Hubert Schorle
- Department of Developmental Pathology, Institute of Pathology, University Medical School, Bonn, Germany
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2
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GAN YU, YANG JIANFU, WANG YONG, TAN ZHENGYU, JIANG XIANZHEN, TANG YUXIN. In vitro study on shRNA-mediated reduction of testis developmental related gene 1 expression and its effects on the proliferation, invasion and apoptosis of NTERA-2 cells. Oncol Lett 2015; 10:61-66. [PMID: 26170977 PMCID: PMC4486812 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2015.3219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2014] [Accepted: 03/16/2015] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Testis developmental related gene 1 (TDRG1) is a novel human testis-specific gene. TDRG1 is differentially expressed in cancerous tissue compared with normal testicular tissue and demonstrates a unique expression pattern in normal testes; therefore, this gene may be involved in the occurrence and development of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCT). In the present study, the expression level of TDRG1 was downregulated in human TGCT NTERA-2 cells by RNA interference (RNAi) in order to investigate the association between TDRG1 and TGCT. The TDRG1 mRNA and protein expression levels in NTERA-2 cells were significantly inhibited following transfection with specific RNAi plasmids. The ability to proliferate (inhibited by 15.4% at day 3 and 26.1% at day 5; P<0.001) and invade (reduced by 49.1%; P=0.01) in vitro was suppressed in cells in which the expression level of TDRG1 was reduced, and a corresponding increase in the apoptotic potential was observed (the early apoptotic potential and total apoptotic potential were increased by 75%; P=0.019 and 54.8%; P=0.009, respectively). The results of the present study indicated that the biological behavior of NTERA-2 cells is associated with TDRG1 expression levels, and that this gene may be a novel target candidate in the treatment of TGCT.
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Affiliation(s)
- YU GAN
- Department of Urology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, P.R. China
| | - JIANFU YANG
- Department of Urology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, P.R. China
| | - YONG WANG
- Department of Urology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, P.R. China
| | - ZHENGYU TAN
- Department of Urology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, P.R. China
| | - XIANZHEN JIANG
- Department of Urology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, P.R. China
| | - YUXIN TANG
- Department of Urology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, P.R. China
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Jørgensen A, Young J, Nielsen JE, Joensen UN, Toft BG, Rajpert-De Meyts E, Loveland KL. Hanging drop cultures of human testis and testis cancer samples: a model used to investigate activin treatment effects in a preserved niche. Br J Cancer 2014; 110:2604-14. [PMID: 24781282 PMCID: PMC4021512 DOI: 10.1038/bjc.2014.160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2013] [Revised: 02/10/2014] [Accepted: 03/04/2014] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Testicular germ cell tumours of young adults, seminoma or non-seminomas, are preceded by a pre-invasive precursor, carcinoma in situ (CIS), understood to arise through differentiation arrest of embryonic germ cells. Knowledge about the malignant transformation of germ cells is currently limited by the lack of experimental models. The aim of this study was to establish an experimental tissue culture model to maintain normal and malignant germ cells within their niche and allow investigation of treatment effects. Methods: Human testis and testis cancer specimens from orchidectomies were cultured in ‘hanging drops' and effects of activin A and follistatin treatment were investigated in seminoma cultures. Results: Testis fragments with normal spermatogenesis or CIS cells were cultured for 14 days with sustained proliferation of germ cells and CIS cells and without increased apoptosis. Seminoma cultures survived 7 days, with proliferating cells detectable during the first 5 days. Activin A treatment significantly reduced KIT transcript and protein levels in seminoma cultures, thereby demonstrating a specific treatment response. Conclusions: Hanging drop cultures of human testis and testis cancer samples can be employed to delineate mechanisms governing growth of normal, CIS and tumorigenic germ cells retained within their niche.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Jørgensen
- University Department of Growth and Reproduction, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - J Young
- 1] Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University, Melbourne, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia [2] Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Monash University, Melbourne, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
| | - J E Nielsen
- University Department of Growth and Reproduction, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - U N Joensen
- Department of Urology, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - B G Toft
- Department of Pathology, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - E Rajpert-De Meyts
- University Department of Growth and Reproduction, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - K L Loveland
- 1] Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University, Melbourne, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia [2] Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Monash University, Melbourne, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
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4
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Testicular cancer: germ-cell tumors (GCTs). Mol Oncol 2013. [DOI: 10.1017/cbo9781139046947.056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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5
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Russell SM, Lechner MG, Mokashi A, Megiel C, Jang JK, Taylor CR, Looijenga LHJ, French CA, Epstein AL. Establishment and characterization of a new human extragonadal germ cell line, SEM-1, and its comparison with TCam-2 and JKT-1. Urology 2013; 81:464.e1-9. [PMID: 23374840 DOI: 10.1016/j.urology.2012.09.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2011] [Revised: 08/27/2012] [Accepted: 09/19/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To describe the establishment and characterization of a human cell line, SEM-1, from a patient diagnosed with a mediastinal seminoma. METHODS A small percentage of germ cell tumors develop as primary lesions in extragonadal sites, and the etiology of these tumors is poorly understood. Currently, only 2 cell lines from seminoma patients have been reported, JKT-1 and TCam-2, both derived from the testis. The cell line was characterized by heterotransplantation in Nude mice, cytogenetic studies, immunohistochemical and flow cytometry staining for germ cell tumor biomarkers, quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction for cancer testis antigen expression, and BRAF mutation screening with quantitative polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS Characterization studies confirmed the human extragonadal seminoma origin of SEM-1 and demonstrated that it had more features in common with TCam-2 than JKT-1. Specifically, SEM-1 was positive for Sal-like protein 4 (SALL-4), activator protein-2γ (AP-2γ), and cytokeratin CAM5.2, and demonstrated heterogeneous expression of stem cell markers octamer-binding transcription factor 3/4, NANOG, c-KIT, SOX17, and SOX2. Cytogenetic analysis revealed a hypotriploid chromosome number, with multiple copies of 12p, but isochromosome 12p and the BRAF mutation V600E were not identified. The cell lines also did not contain the BRD4/NUT gene rearrangement [t(15,19)] seen in midline carcinomas nor did they contain overexpressed nuclear protein in testis (NUT) genes. CONCLUSION SEM-1 is the first cell line derived from an extragonadal germ cell tumor showing intermediate characteristics between seminoma and nonseminoma, and as such, is an important model to study the molecular pathogenesis of this malignancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah M Russell
- Department of Pathology, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
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Nettersheim D, Westernströer B, Haas N, Leinhaas A, Brüstle O, Schlatt S, Schorle H. Establishment of a versatile seminoma model indicates cellular plasticity of germ cell tumor cells. Genes Chromosomes Cancer 2012; 51:717-26. [PMID: 22489004 DOI: 10.1002/gcc.21958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2012] [Revised: 03/01/2012] [Accepted: 03/02/2012] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
In western countries, 60% of all malignancies diagnosed in men between 17-45 years of age are germ cell tumors (GCT). GCT arise from the common precursor lesion carcinoma in situ, which transforms within an average of 9 years into invasive Type-II GCTs. Seminomas are considered to be the default developmental pathway of carcinoma in situ cells and the seminoma-like cell line TCam-2 has been used to study seminoma biology in vitro. However, the generation of an animal model, which would allow for the in vivo analysis of seminoma formation, remained elusive. We applied transplantation approaches using TCam-2 cell transfer into ectopic (skin, brain) and orthopic (testis) sites of immunodeficient mice. We demonstrate that a transplantation into the seminiferous tubules results in formation of a carcinoma in situ/seminoma. In contrast, TCam-2 cells adopt an embryonal carcinoma-like fate when grafted to the flank or corpus striatum and display downregulation of the seminoma marker SOX17 and upregulation of the embryonal carcinoma markers SOX2 and CD30. Grafted TCam-2 cells reduce AKT-, ERK-, EphA3-, and Tie2/TEK-signaling to levels comparable to embryonal carcinoma cells. Hence, TCam-2 cell transplantation into the testis generated a carcinoma in situ/seminoma mouse model, which enables addressing the biology of these tumors in vivo. The fact that TCam-2 cells give rise to a carcinoma in situ/seminoma or embryonal carcinoma in a transplantation site specific manner implies that conversion of carcinoma in situ/seminoma to an embryonal carcinoma does not require additional genetic aberrations but relies on signals from the tumor-microenvironment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Nettersheim
- Department of Developmental Pathology, Institute of Pathology, University of Bonn, Medical School, Bonn, Germany
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Díez-Torre A, Silván U, Moreno P, Gumucio J, Aréchaga J. Peritubular myoid cell-derived factors and its potential role in the progression of testicular germ cell tumours. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011; 34:e252-64; discussion e264-5. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2605.2011.01168.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
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Bouskine A, Vega A, Nebout M, Benahmed M, Fénichel P. Expression of embryonic stem cell markers in cultured JKT-1, a cell line derived from a human seminoma. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2009; 33:54-63. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2605.2009.00950.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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9
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de Jong J, Stoop H, Gillis AJM, Hersmus R, van Gurp RJHLM, van de Geijn GJM, van Drunen E, Beverloo HB, Schneider DT, Sherlock JK, Baeten J, Kitazawa S, van Zoelen EJ, van Roozendaal K, Oosterhuis JW, Looijenga LHJ. Further characterization of the first seminoma cell line TCam-2. Genes Chromosomes Cancer 2008; 47:185-96. [DOI: 10.1002/gcc.20520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
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10
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de Jong J, Stoop H, Gillis AJM, van Gurp RJHLM, van Drunen E, Beverloo HB, Lau YFC, Schneider DT, Sherlock JK, Baeten J, Hatakeyama S, Ohyama C, Oosterhuis JW, Looijenga LHJ. JKT-1 is not a human seminoma cell line. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007; 30:350-65. [PMID: 17705808 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2605.2007.00802.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The JKT-1 cell line has been used in multiple independent studies as a representative model of human testicular seminoma. However, no cell line for this specific tumour type has been independently confirmed previously; and therefore, the seminomatous origin of JKT-1 must be proven. The genetic constitution of the JKT-1 cells was determined using flow cytometry and spectral karyotyping, as well as array comparative genomic hybridization and fluorescent in situ hybridization. Marker profiling, predominantly based on differentially expressed proteins during normal germ cell development, was performed by immunohistochemistry and Western blot analyses. Moreover, genome wide affymetrix mRNA expression and profiling of 157 microRNAs was performed, and the status of genomic imprinting was determined. A germ cell origin of the JKT-1 cells was in line with genomic imprinting status and marker profile (including positive staining for several cancer-testis antigens). However, the supposed primary tumour, from which the cell line was derived, being indeed a classical seminoma, was molecularly proven not to be the origin of the cell line. The characteristic chromosomal anomalies of seminoma, e.g. gain of the short arm of chromosome 12, as well as the informative marker profile (positive staining for OCT3/4, NANOG, among others) were absent in the various JKT-1 cell lines investigated, irrespective of where the cells were cultured. All results indicate that the JKT-1 cell line is not representative of human seminoma. Although it can originate from an early germ cell, a non-germ cell derivation cannot be excluded.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeroen de Jong
- Department of Pathology, Erasmus MC-University Medical Center Rotterdam, Josephine Nefkens Institute, Daniel den Hoed Cancer Center
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11
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Stein WD, Litman T, Fojo T, Bates SE. Differential expression of cell adhesion genes: Implications for drug resistance. Int J Cancer 2004; 113:861-5. [PMID: 15514970 DOI: 10.1002/ijc.20671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
It is well known that tumors arising from tissues such as kidney, pancreas, liver and stomach are particularly refractory to treatment. Searching for new anticancer drugs using cells in culture has yielded some effective therapies, but these refractory tumors remain intractable. Studies that compare cells grown in suspension to similar cells grown attached to one another as aggregates have suggested that it is adhesion to the extracellular matrix of the basal membrane that confers resistance to apoptosis and, hence, resistance to cytotoxins. The genes whose expression correlates with poor survival might, therefore, act through such a matrix-to-cell suppression of apoptosis. Indeed, correlative mining of gene expression and patient survival databases suggests that poor survival in patients with metastatic cancer correlates highly with tumor expression of a common theme: the genes involved in cell adhesion and the cytoskeleton. If the proteins involved in tethering cells to the extracellular matrix are important in conferring drug resistance, it may be possible to improve chemotherapy by designing drugs that target these proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wilfred D Stein
- Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
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12
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Abstract
Most metastatic cancers are fatal. More than 80% of patients with metastatic testicular germ-cell tumours (TGCTs), however, can be cured using cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy. Why are TGCTs more sensitive to chemotherapeutics than most other tumour types? Answers to this question could lead to new treatments for metastatic cancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- John R W Masters
- The Prostate Cancer Research Centre, Institute of Urology, University College London, 3rd Floor, 67 Riding House Street, London W1W 7EJ, UK.
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13
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Rørth M, Rajpert-De Meyts E, Andersson L, Dieckmann KP, Fosså SD, Grigor KM, Hendry WF, Herr HW, Looijenga LH, Oosterhuis JW, Skakkebaek NE. Carcinoma in situ in the testis. SCANDINAVIAN JOURNAL OF UROLOGY AND NEPHROLOGY. SUPPLEMENTUM 2001:166-86. [PMID: 11144894 DOI: 10.1080/00365590050509896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 140] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Carcinoma in situ (CIS) of the testis is a common precursor of germ-cell tumours in adults and adolescents, with the exception of spermatocytic seminoma. This article reviews existing knowledge on the pathobiology, genetic aspects and epidemiology of CIS, discusses current hypotheses concerning pathogenesis and invasive progression of germ-cell neoplasms and provides guidelines for diagnosis and clinical management of CIS.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Rørth
- Department of Oncology, Copenhagen University Hospital (Rigshospitalet), Copenhagen, Denmark.
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Roelofs H, Mostert MC, Pompe K, Zafarana G, van Oorschot M, van Gurp RJ, Gillis AJ, Stoop H, Beverloo B, Oosterhuis JW, Bokemeyer C, Looijenga LH. Restricted 12p amplification and RAS mutation in human germ cell tumors of the adult testis. THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY 2000; 157:1155-66. [PMID: 11021820 PMCID: PMC1850173 DOI: 10.1016/s0002-9440(10)64631-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Human testicular germ-cell tumors of young adults (TGCTs), both seminomas and nonseminomas, are characterized by 12p overrepresentation, mostly as isochromosomes, of which the biological and clinical significance is still unclear. A limited number of TGCTs has been identified with an additional high-level amplification of a restricted region of 12p including the K-RAS proto-oncogene. Here we show that the incidence of these restricted 12p amplifications is approximately 8% in primary TGCTs. Within a single cell formation of i(12p) and restricted 12p amplification is mutually exclusive. The borders of the amplicons cluster in short regions, and the amplicon was never found in the adjacent carcinoma in situ cells. Seminomas with the restricted 12p amplification virtually lacked apoptosis and the tumor cells showed prolonged in vitro survival like seminoma cells with a mutated RAS gene. However, no differences in proliferation index between these different groups of seminomas were found. Although patients with a seminoma containing a homogeneous restricted 12p amplification presented at a significantly younger age than those lacking it, the presence of a restricted 12p amplification/RAS mutation did not predict the stage of the disease at clinical presentation and the treatment response of primary seminomas. In 55 primary and metastatic tumors from 44 different patients who failed cisplatinum-based chemotherapy, the restricted 12p amplification and RAS mutations had the same incidence as in the consecutive series of responding patients. These data support the model that gain of 12p in TGCTs is related to invasive growth. It allows tumor cells, in particular those showing characteristics of early germ cells (ie, the seminoma cells), to survive outside their specific microenvironment. Overexpression of certain genes on 12p probably inhibits apoptosis in these tumor cells. However, the copy numbers of the restricted amplification of 12p and K-RAS mutations do not predict response to therapy and survival of the patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Roelofs
- Pathology/Laboratory for Experimental Patho-Oncology, University Hospital Rotterdam/Daniel, Josephine Nefkens Institute, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
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Abstract
Human germ cell tumors comprise a heterogeneous group of neoplasms. Those of the adult testis, known as TGCTs, originate from carcinoma in situ (CIS), which are initiated during intra-uterine development. We present here a molecular model for the development of TGCTs, including various parameters, such as apoptosis, chromosomal constitution, as well as genomic imprinting. We assume that TGCTs originate from a pluripotent, erased embryonic germ cell, of which aneuploidization is one of the early events. Subsequently, net loss and gain of specific chromosomal regions result in the consistent pattern of chromosomal aberrations that are observed in these tumors, including gain of 12p-sequences. By means of analysis of a relatively small region of the short arm of chromosome 12, we are in the process of identifying the relevant genes. Possibly, this gene(s) suppresses apoptosis outside the specific micro-environment of the seminiferous tubule.
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Affiliation(s)
- L H Looijenga
- Pathology Laboratory for Experimental Patho-Oncology, Josephine Nefkens Institute, Daniel den Hoed Cancer Center, Academic Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
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Kulig E, Jin L, Qian X, Horvath E, Kovacs K, Stefaneanu L, Scheithauer BW, Lloyd RV. Apoptosis in nontumorous and neoplastic human pituitaries: expression of the Bcl-2 family of proteins. THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY 1999; 154:767-74. [PMID: 10079254 PMCID: PMC1866431 DOI: 10.1016/s0002-9440(10)65323-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Analyses of apoptosis and of the apoptosis regulatory proteins Bcl-2, Bax, Bcl-X, and Bad were done in 95 nontumorous and neoplastic pituitary tissues by terminal deoxynucleotide transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL), immunohistochemistry, and Western blotting. The apoptotic index was relatively low in all groups but was at least fourfold higher in pituitary carcinomas compared with any other groups. Pituitaries from pregnant and postpartum women had a fivefold higher apoptotic index compared with matched controls from nonpregnant females. Preoperative treatment of adenomas with octreotide or dopamine agonists did not change the apoptotic index significantly. The lowest levels of Bcl-2, Bax, and Bcl-X expression were in pituitary carcinomas as detected by immunostaining. An immortalized human pituitary adenoma cell line, HP75, developed in our laboratory using a replication-defective recombinant human adenovirus with an early large T-antigen, had a much higher level of apoptosis than nontumorous and neoplastic pituitaries. Treatment with transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 and protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitors increased apoptosis in this cell line. Analysis of the Bcl-2 family of proteins after treatment with TGF-beta1 and PKC inhibitors showed a 20% to 30% decrease in Bcl-X in the treated groups compared with controls. These results, which represent the first study of apoptosis in pituitaries from pregnant and postpartum cases and in pituitary carcinomas, indicate that 1) the apoptotic rate is low in nontumorous and neoplastic pituitary tissues but is relatively higher in pituitary carcinomas, 2) there are alterations in the expression of the Bcl-2 family of proteins in pituitary neoplasms with a decrease in Bcl-2 expression in pituitary carcinomas that may contribute to pituitary tumor pathogenesis and/or proliferation, and 3) cultured pituitary tumor cells respond to TGF-beta1 and PKC inhibitors by undergoing apoptotic cell death.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Kulig
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA
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Rajpert-De Meyts E, Lauke H, Skakkebaek NE. In vitro survival of human neoplastic germ cells. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 1999; 444:59-65; discussion 65-6. [PMID: 10026934 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4899-0089-0_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- E Rajpert-De Meyts
- Dept. of Growth & Reproduction, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet
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18
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Abstract
Participants at the 4th Copenhagen Workshop on Carcinoma in situ and Cancer of the Testis, representing cell biologists and tumour biologists, met together to discuss the similarities and differences between primordial germ cells (PGCs) of the embryo, and the carcinoma in situ (CIS) stem cell of human testicular germ cell tumours (GCTs). Much has been discovered about PGCs in the last 10 years and we still do not know the exact nature of CIS cells. Knowledge of PGCs comes mainly from mouse experiments and knowledge of CIS comes from the study of human tumours. A mouse model of human GCT would help to investigate the nature of CIS cells. Grafting mouse male genital ridges into mouse fetal testes results in the development of testicular tissue and the formation of teratomatous tumour components. Amplification of PGCs in culture is possible but this results in their transformation into embryonic germ (EG) cells. CIS cells die by apoptosis if they are isolated, and short-term culture is only possible if the CIS cells are cultured in their normal environment within seminiferous tubules. It may be possible for CIS cells to differentiate in culture although they cannot be maintained in culture as isolated cells. Human CIS cells are likely to be formed as a result of in utero factors rather than agents acting on normal adult testicular germ cells. EG cells stimulate feeder cells by paracrine factors but it is not known if these cells produce autocrine factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- K M Grigor
- Department of Pathology, University of Edinburgh, UK
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