1
|
Richbourg NR, Irakoze N, Kim H, Peyton SR. Outlook and opportunities for engineered environments of breast cancer dormancy. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadl0165. [PMID: 38457510 PMCID: PMC10923521 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl0165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/10/2024]
Abstract
Dormant, disseminated breast cancer cells resist treatment and may relapse into malignant metastases after decades of quiescence. Identifying how and why these dormant breast cancer cells are triggered into outgrowth is a key unsolved step in treating latent, metastatic breast cancer. However, our understanding of breast cancer dormancy in vivo is limited by technical challenges and ethical concerns with triggering the activation of dormant breast cancer. In vitro models avoid many of these challenges by simulating breast cancer dormancy and activation in well-controlled, bench-top conditions, creating opportunities for fundamental insights into breast cancer biology that complement what can be achieved through animal and clinical studies. In this review, we address clinical and preclinical approaches to treating breast cancer dormancy, how precisely controlled artificial environments reveal key interactions that regulate breast cancer dormancy, and how future generations of biomaterials could answer further questions about breast cancer dormancy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nathan R. Richbourg
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Ninette Irakoze
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Hyuna Kim
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Shelly R. Peyton
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Cooper TT, Postovit LM. Wounding the stroma: Docetaxel's role in dormant breast cancer escape. PLoS Biol 2023; 21:e3002297. [PMID: 37703292 PMCID: PMC10499231 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The mechanistic underpinnings of breast cancer recurrence following periods of dormancy are largely undetermined. A new study in PLOS Biology reveals that docetaxel-induced injury of tumour stromal cells stimulates the release of cytokines that support dormancy escape of breast cancer cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tyler T. Cooper
- Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada
| | | |
Collapse
|
3
|
Martino F, Lupi M, Giraudo E, Lanzetti L. Breast cancers as ecosystems: a metabolic perspective. Cell Mol Life Sci 2023; 80:244. [PMID: 37561190 PMCID: PMC10415483 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-023-04902-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Revised: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
Breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and one of the major causes of cancer death. Despite enormous progress in its management, both from the therapeutic and early diagnosis viewpoints, still around 700,000 patients succumb to the disease each year, worldwide. Late recurrency is the major problem in BC, with many patients developing distant metastases several years after the successful eradication of the primary tumor. This is linked to the phenomenon of metastatic dormancy, a still mysterious trait of the natural history of BC, and of several other types of cancer, by which metastatic cells remain dormant for long periods of time before becoming reactivated to initiate the clinical metastatic disease. In recent years, it has become clear that cancers are best understood if studied as ecosystems in which the impact of non-cancer-cell-autonomous events-dependent on complex interaction between the cancer and its environment, both local and systemic-plays a paramount role, probably as significant as the cell-autonomous alterations occurring in the cancer cell. In adopting this perspective, a metabolic vision of the cancer ecosystem is bound to improve our understanding of the natural history of cancer, across space and time. In BC, many metabolic pathways are coopted into the cancer ecosystem, to serve the anabolic and energy demands of the cancer. Their study is shedding new light on the most critical aspect of BC management, of metastatic dissemination, and that of the related phenomenon of dormancy and fostering the application of the knowledge to the development of metabolic therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Flavia Martino
- Department of Oncology, University of Torino Medical School, Turin, Italy
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, Candiolo, Turin, Italy
| | - Mariadomenica Lupi
- Department of Oncology, University of Torino Medical School, Turin, Italy
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, Candiolo, Turin, Italy
| | - Enrico Giraudo
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, Candiolo, Turin, Italy
- Department of Science and Drug Technology, University of Torino, Turin, Italy
| | - Letizia Lanzetti
- Department of Oncology, University of Torino Medical School, Turin, Italy.
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, Candiolo, Turin, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Jingyuan L, Yu L, Hong J, Tao W, Kan L, Xiaomei L, Guiqing L, Yujie L. Matrix stiffness induces an invasive-dormant subpopulation via cGAS-STING axis in oral cancer. Transl Oncol 2023; 33:101681. [PMID: 37137218 PMCID: PMC10165441 DOI: 10.1016/j.tranon.2023.101681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 03/25/2023] [Accepted: 04/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/05/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Dormancy is a crucial machinery for cancer cells to survive hostile microenvironment. It is considered as the major cause of post-treatment relapse and metastases. However, its regulatory mechanism in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) remains unclear. Here we sought to decipher the impacts of matrix stiffness on OSCC-cell dormancy. MATERIALS AND METHODS Clinicopathological relevance of matrix stiffness in OSCC was analyzed in a 127 patients' cohort. Impacts of stiffness-related mechanical stress (MS) on OSCC-cell behaviors were investigated in vitro and in vivo. Transcriptomic profiling of MS induced dormant cells were performed, following by mechanistic investigations on MS-induced dormancy. The functional relevance of cGAS in OSCC were analyzed through a bioinformatic approach. RESULTS Stiffened matrix correlated with poor survival and post-surgical recurrence in OSCC. Stiffness-related MS induces a dormant subpopulation in OSCC cells, which showed increased drug resistance, enhanced tumor repopulating ability, and an unexpected upregulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and invasiveness. Mechanistically, MS caused DNA damage, resulted in activation of cGAS-STING signaling. Either blocking of cGAS or STING dramatically impeded the MS-induced production of this invasive-dormant subpopulation. Moreover, cGAS was found being central to the cell-cycle regulation and correlated with poor prognosis in OSCC. DISCUSSION We revealed a previously unsuspected role of cGAS-STING axis in mediating the induction of an invasive-dormant subpopulation in response to mechanical cues. Our findings indicated an adaptive machinery whereby tumor cells survive and escape from harsh microenvironment. Targeting this machinery may be a potential strategy for preventing post-therapeutic recurrence and lymphatic metastasis in OSCC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Li Jingyuan
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Liu Yu
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiang Hong
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Wang Tao
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Li Kan
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Lao Xiaomei
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Liao Guiqing
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
| | - Liang Yujie
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
In vivo metabolic imaging identifies lipid vulnerability in a preclinical model of Her2+/Neu breast cancer residual disease and recurrence. NPJ Breast Cancer 2022; 8:111. [PMID: 36163365 PMCID: PMC9512922 DOI: 10.1038/s41523-022-00481-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Recurrent cancer cells that evade therapy is a leading cause of death in breast cancer patients. This risk is high for women showing an overexpression of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (Her2). Cells that persist can rely on different substrates for energy production relative to their primary tumor counterpart. Here, we characterize metabolic reprogramming related to tumor dormancy and recurrence in a doxycycline-induced Her2+/Neu model of breast cancer with varying times to recurrence using longitudinal fluorescence microscopy. Glucose uptake (2-NBDG) and mitochondrial membrane potential (TMRE) imaging metabolically phenotype mammary tumors as they transition to regression, dormancy, and recurrence. “Fast-recurrence” tumors (time to recurrence ~55 days), transition from glycolysis to mitochondrial metabolism during regression and this persists upon recurrence. “Slow-recurrence” tumors (time to recurrence ~100 days) rely on both glycolysis and mitochondrial metabolism during recurrence. The increase in mitochondrial activity in fast-recurrence tumors is attributed to a switch from glucose to fatty acids as the primary energy source for mitochondrial metabolism. Consequently, when fast-recurrence tumors receive treatment with a fatty acid inhibitor, Etomoxir, tumors report an increase in glucose uptake and lipid synthesis during regression. Treatment with Etomoxir ultimately prolongs survival. We show that metabolic reprogramming reports on tumor recurrence characteristics, particularly at time points that are essential for actionable targets. The temporal characteristics of metabolic reprogramming will be critical in determining the use of an appropriate timing for potential therapies; namely, the notion that metabolic-targeted inhibition during regression reports long-term therapeutic benefit.
Collapse
|
6
|
SP and KLF Transcription Factors in Cancer Metabolism. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23179956. [PMID: 36077352 PMCID: PMC9456310 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23179956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Tumor development and progression depend on reprogramming of signaling pathways that regulate cell metabolism. Alterations to various metabolic pathways such as glycolysis, oxidative phosphorylation, lipid metabolism, and hexosamine biosynthesis pathway are crucial to sustain increased redox, bioenergetic, and biosynthesis demands of a tumor cell. Transcription factors (oncogenes and tumor suppressors) play crucial roles in modulating these alterations, and their functions are tethered to major metabolic pathways under homeostatic conditions and disease initiation and advancement. Specificity proteins (SPs) and Krüppel-like factors (KLFs) are closely related transcription factors characterized by three highly conserved zinc fingers domains that interact with DNA. Studies have demonstrated that SP and KLF transcription factors are expressed in various tissues and regulate diverse processes such as proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, inflammation, and tumorigenesis. This review highlights the role of SP and KLF transcription factors in the metabolism of various cancers and their impact on tumorigenesis. A better understanding of the role and underlying mechanisms governing the metabolic changes during tumorigenesis could provide new therapeutic opportunities for cancer treatment.
Collapse
|