FoxM1 affects adhesive, migratory, and invasive abilities of human retinoblastoma Y-79 cells by targeting matrix metalloproteinase 2

FOXM1 Participates in Trophoblast Migration and Early Trophoblast Invasion: Potential Role in Blastocyst Implantation

Successful implantation requires coordinated migration and invasion of trophoblast cells into a receptive endometrium. Reduced forkhead box M1 (FOXM1) expression limits trophoblast migration and angiogenesis in choriocarcinoma cell lines, and in a rat model, placental FOXM1 protein expression was significantly upregulated in the early stages of pregnancy compared to term pregnancy. However, the precise role of FOXM1 in implantation events remains unknown. By analyzing mice blastocysts at embryonic day (E3.5), we have demonstrated that FOXM1 is expressed as early as the blastocyst stage, and it is expressed in the trophectoderm of the blastocyst. Since controlled oxygen tension is determinant for achieving normal implantation and placentation and a chronic hypoxic environment leads to shallow trophoblast invasion, we evaluated if FOXM1 expression changes in response to different oxygen tensions in the HTR-8/SVneo first trimester human trophoblast cell line and observed that FOXM1 expression was significantly higher when trophoblast cells were cultured at 3% O2, which coincides with oxygen concentrations in the uteroplacental interface at the time of implantation. Conversely, FOXM1 expression diminished in response to 1% O2 that resembles a hypoxic environment in utero. Migration and angiogenesis were assessed following FOXM1 knockdown and overexpression at 3% O2 and 1% O2, respectively, in HTR-8/SVneo cells. FOXM1 overexpression increased transmigration ability and tubule formation. Using a 3D trophoblast invasion model with trophospheres from HTR-8/SVneo cells cultured on a layer of MATRIGEL and of mesenchymal stem cells isolated from menstrual fluid, we observed that trophospheres obtained from 3D trophoblast invasion displayed higher FOXM1 expression compared with pre-invasion trophospheres. Moreover, we have also observed that FOXM1-overexpressing trophospheres increased trophoblast invasion compared with controls. HTR-8/SVneo-FOXM1-depleted cells led to a downregulation of PLK4, VEGF, and MMP2 mRNA expression. Our current findings suggest that FOXM1 participates in embryo implantation by contributing to trophoblast migration and early trophoblast invasion, by inducing transcription activation of genes involved in these processes. Maternal-fetal communication is crucial for trophoblast invasion, and maternal stromal cells may induce higher levels of FOXM1 in trophoblast cells.

A narrative review of research progress on FoxM1 in breast cancer carcinogenesis and therapeutics

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this review is to clarify the potential roles of forkhead box transcription factor M1 (FoxM1) in the occurrence and progression of breast cancer, as well as the predictive value of FoxM1 as a prognostic biomarker and potential therapeutic target for breast cancer.

BACKGROUND

Breast cancer, well-known as a molecularly heterogeneous cancer, is still one of the most frequently diagnosed malignant tumors among females worldwide. Tumor recurrence and metastasis are the central causes of high mortality in breast cancer patients. Many factors contribute to the occurrence and progression of breast cancer, including FoxM1. FoxM1, widely regarded as a classic proliferation-related transcription factor, plays pivotal roles in the occurrence, proliferation, invasion, migration, drug resistance, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) processes of multiple human tumors including breast cancer.

METHODS

The PubMed database was searched for articles published in English from February 2008 to May 2021 using related keywords such as "forkhead box transcription factor M1", "human breast cancer", "FoxM1", and "human tumor". About 90 research papers and reports written in English were identified, most of which were published after 2015. These papers mainly concentrated on the functions of FoxM1 in the occurrence, development, drug resistance, and treatment of human breast cancer.

CONCLUSIONS

Considering that the abnormal expression of FoxM1 plays a significant role in the proliferation, invasion, metastasis, and chemotherapy drug resistance of breast cancer, and its overexpression is closely correlated with the unfavorable clinicopathological characteristics of breast tumor patients, it is considerably important to comprehend the regulatory mechanism of FoxM1 in breast cancer. This will provide strong evidence for FoxM1 as a potential biomarker for the targeted treatment and prognostic evaluation of breast cancer patients.

Piperlongumine promotes death of retinoblastoma cancer cells

Retinoblastoma is the most common pediatric intraocular malignant tumor. While retinoblastoma initiation is triggered by the inactivation of both alleles of the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor gene (RB1) in the developing retina, tumor progression requires additional epigenetic changes, retinoblastoma genomes being quite stable. Although the management of RB has recently improved, new therapeutic agents are necessary to improve the treatment of advanced forms of retinoblastoma.

In this report, we analyzed the pro-death effect of piperlongumine (PL), a natural compound isolated from Piper longum L., on two human retinoblastoma cell lines, WERI-Rb and Y79. The effects of PL on cell proliferation, cell death and cell cycle were investigated. PL effectively inhibited cell growth, impacted the cell cycle by decreasing the level of cyclins and CDK1 and increasing CDKN1A and triggered a caspase-3 independant cell death process in which reactive oxygen species (ROS) production is a major player. Indeed, PL toxicity in retinoblastoma cell lines was inhibited by a ROS scavenger N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC) treatment. These findings suggest that PL reduces tumor growth and induces cell death by regulating the cell cycle.