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Li Y, Pan X, Luo W, Gamalla Y, Ma Z, Zhou P, Dai C, Han D. TMErisk score: A tumor microenvironment-based model for predicting prognosis and immunotherapy in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Heliyon 2024; 10:e31877. [PMID: 38845978 PMCID: PMC11152963 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e31877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Revised: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/23/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Tumor microenvironment (TME) is closely associated with the progression and prognosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). To investigate potential biomarkers for predicting therapeutic outcomes in HNSCC, we analyzed the immune and stromal status of HNSCC based on the genes associated with TME using the ESTIMATE algorithm. Immune and stromal genes were identified with differential gene expression and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). From these genes, 118 were initially selected through Cox univariate regression and then further input into least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis. As a result, 11 genes were screened out for the TME-related risk (TMErisk) score model which presented promising overall survival predictive potential. The TMErisk score was negatively associated with immune and stromal scores but positively associated with tumor purity. Individuals with high TMErisk scores exhibited decreased expression of most immune checkpoints and all human leukocyte antigen family genes, and reduced abundance of infiltrating immune cells. Divergent genes were mutated in HNSCC. In both high and low TMErisk score groups, the tumor protein P53 exhibited the highest mutation frequency. A higher TMErisk score was found to be associated with reduced overall survival probability and worse outcomes of immunotherapy. Therefore, the TMErisk score could serve as a valuable model for the outcome prediction of HNSCC in clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Li
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Children's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- Institute of Pediatric Infection, Immunity, and Critical Care Medicine, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- College of Health Science and Technology, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- Department of Otolaryngology, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510000, China
- Department of the Otology and Skull Base Surgery, Eye Ear Nose and Throat Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Xiaozhou Pan
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Children's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- Institute of Pediatric Infection, Immunity, and Critical Care Medicine, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- College of Health Science and Technology, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
| | - Wenwei Luo
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guang-dong Academy of Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Yaser Gamalla
- Laboratory of Medical Systems Biology, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510623, China
- Department of Oncology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Zhan Ma
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Children's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- Institute of Pediatric Infection, Immunity, and Critical Care Medicine, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- College of Health Science and Technology, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
| | - Pei Zhou
- Laboratory of Medical Systems Biology, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510623, China
| | - Chunfu Dai
- Department of the Otology and Skull Base Surgery, Eye Ear Nose and Throat Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Dingding Han
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Children's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- Institute of Pediatric Infection, Immunity, and Critical Care Medicine, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- College of Health Science and Technology, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200062, China
- Laboratory of Medical Systems Biology, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510623, China
- Medical School, Guangxi University, Nanning, 530004, China
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2
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Yang Z, Zhou D, Huang J. Identifying Explainable Machine Learning Models and a Novel SFRP2 + Fibroblast Signature as Predictors for Precision Medicine in Ovarian Cancer. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:16942. [PMID: 38069266 PMCID: PMC10706905 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242316942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Ovarian cancer (OC) is a type of malignant tumor with a consistently high mortality rate. The diagnosis of early-stage OC and identification of functional subsets in the tumor microenvironment are essential to the development of patient management strategies. However, the development of robust models remains unsatisfactory. We aimed to utilize artificial intelligence and single-cell analysis to address this issue. Two independent datasets were screened from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and processed to obtain overlapping differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in stage II-IV vs. stage I diseases. Three explainable machine learning algorithms were integrated to construct models that could determine the tumor stage and extract important characteristic genes as diagnostic biomarkers. Correlations between cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) infiltration and characteristic gene expression were analyzed using TIMER2.0 and their relationship with survival rates was comprehensively explored via the Kaplan-Meier plotter (KM-plotter) online database. The specific expression of characteristic genes in fibroblast subsets was investigated through single-cell analysis. A novel fibroblast subset signature was explored to predict immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) response and oncogene mutation through Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) and artificial neural network algorithms, respectively. We found that Support Vector Machine-Shapley Additive Explanations (SVM-SHAP), Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), and Random Forest (RF) successfully diagnosed early-stage OC (stage I). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs) of these models exceeded 0.990. Their overlapping characteristic gene, secreted frizzled-related protein 2 (SFRP2), was a risk factor that affected the overall survival of OC patients with stage II-IV disease (log-rank test: p < 0.01) and was specifically expressed in a fibroblast subset. Finally, the SFRP2+ fibroblast signature served as a novel predictor in evaluating ICI response and exploring pan-cancer tumor protein P53 (TP53) mutation (AUC = 0.853, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.829-0.877). In conclusion, the models based on SVM-SHAP, XGBoost, and RF enabled the early detection of OC for clinical decision making, and SFRP2+ fibroblast signature used in diagnostic models can inform OC treatment selection and offer pan-cancer TP53 mutation detection.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jun Huang
- School of Life Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China
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3
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Al-Zahrani MH, Assidi M, Pushparaj PN, Al-Maghrabi J, Zari A, Abusanad A, Buhmeida A, Abu-Elmagd M. Expression pattern, prognostic value and potential microRNA silencing of FZD8 in breast cancer. Oncol Lett 2023; 26:477. [PMID: 37809047 PMCID: PMC10551865 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2023.14065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer (BC) is one of the most widespread types of cancer affecting females, and therefore, early diagnosis is critical. BC is a complex heterogeneous disease affected by several key pathways. Among these, WNT proteins and their frizzled receptors (FZD) have been demonstrated to be crucial in regulating a number of cellular and molecular events in BC tumorigenesis. The role of the WNT receptor, FZD8, in BC has received minimal attention; for that reason, the present study examined the prognostic value of its protein expression pattern in a BC cohort. FZD8 cytoplasmic expression pattern analysis revealed that ~38% of the primary samples presented with a high expression profile, whereas ~63% of the samples had a low expression profile. Overall, ~46% of the malignant tissues in the lymph node-positive samples exhibited an increased FZD8 cytoplasmic expression, whereas 54% exhibited low expression levels. An increased expression of FZD8 was associated with several clinicopathological characteristics of the patients, including a low survival rate, tumor vascular invasion, tumor size and grade, and molecular subtypes. Affymetrix microarray triple-negative BC datasets were analyzed and compared with healthy breast tissues in order to predict the potential interfering microRNAs (miRNAs) in the WNT/FZD8 signaling pathway. A total of 29 miRNAs with the potential to interact with the WNT/FZD8 signaling pathway were identified, eight of which exhibited a significant prediction score. The target genes for each predicted miRNA were identified. On the whole, the findings of the present study suggest that FZD8 is a potential prognostic marker for BC, shedding some light onto the silencing mechanisms involved in the complex BC signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maryam H. Al-Zahrani
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mourad Assidi
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Peter Natesan Pushparaj
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
- Center for Transdisciplinary Research, Department of Pharmacology, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Chennai 600077, India
| | - Jaudah Al-Maghrabi
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University Hospital, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
- Department of Pathology, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ali Zari
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Atlal Abusanad
- Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University Hospital, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdelbaset Buhmeida
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Muhammad Abu-Elmagd
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
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4
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Lautert-Dutra W, Melo CM, Chaves LP, Souza FC, Crozier C, Sundby AE, Woroszchuk E, Saggioro FP, Avante FS, dos Reis RB, Squire JA, Bayani J. Identification of tumor-agnostic biomarkers for predicting prostate cancer progression and biochemical recurrence. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1280943. [PMID: 37965470 PMCID: PMC10641020 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1280943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The diverse clinical outcomes of prostate cancer have led to the development of gene signature assays predicting disease progression. Improved prostate cancer progression biomarkers are needed as current RNA biomarker tests have varying success for intermediate prostate cancer. Interest grows in universal gene signatures for invasive carcinoma progression. Early breast and prostate cancers share characteristics, including hormone dependence and BRCA1/2 mutations. Given the similarities in the pathobiology of breast and prostate cancer, we utilized the NanoString BC360 panel, comprising the validated PAM50 classifier and pathway-specific signatures associated with general tumor progression as well as breast cancer-specific classifiers. This retrospective cohort of primary prostate cancers (n=53) was stratified according to biochemical recurrence (BCR) status and the CAPRA-S to identify genes related to high-risk disease. Two public cohort (TCGA-PRAD and GSE54460) were used to validate the results. Expression profiling of our cohort uncovered associations between PIP and INHBA with BCR and high CAPRA-S score, as well as associations between VCAN, SFRP2, and THBS4 and BCR. Despite low levels of the ESR1 gene compared to AR, we found strong expression of the ER signaling signature, suggesting that BCR may be driven by ER-mediated pathways. Kaplan-Meier and univariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis indicated the expression of ESR1, PGR, VCAN, and SFRP2 could predict the occurrence of relapse events. This is in keeping with the pathways represented by these genes which contribute to angiogenesis and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition. It is likely that VCAN works by activating the stroma and remodeling the tumor microenvironment. Additionally, SFRP2 overexpression has been associated with increased tumor size and reduced survival rates in breast cancer and among prostate cancer patients who experienced BCR. ESR1 influences disease progression by activating stroma, stimulating stem/progenitor prostate cancer, and inducing TGF-β. Estrogen signaling may therefore serve as a surrogate to AR signaling during progression and in hormone-refractory disease, particularly in prostate cancer patients with stromal-rich tumors. Collectively, the use of agnostic biomarkers developed for breast cancer stratification has facilitated a precise clinical classification of patients undergoing radical prostatectomy and highlighted the therapeutic potential of targeting estrogen signaling in prostate cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- William Lautert-Dutra
- Department of Genetics, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Camila M. Melo
- Department of Genetics, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Luiz P. Chaves
- Department of Genetics, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Francisco C. Souza
- Division of Urology, Department of Surgery and Anatomy, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Cheryl Crozier
- Diagnostic Development, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Adam E. Sundby
- Diagnostic Development, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Elizabeth Woroszchuk
- Diagnostic Development, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Fabiano P. Saggioro
- Department of Pathology, Ribeirao Preto Medical School, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Filipe S. Avante
- Division of Urology, Department of Surgery and Anatomy, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Rodolfo B. dos Reis
- Division of Urology, Department of Surgery and Anatomy, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
| | - Jeremy A. Squire
- Department of Genetics, Medical School of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada
| | - Jane Bayani
- Diagnostic Development, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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5
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Angarola BL, Sharma S, Katiyar N, Gu Kang H, Nehar-Belaid D, Park S, Gott R, Eryilmaz GN, LaBarge MA, Palucka K, Chuang JH, Korstanje R, Ucar D, Anczukow O. Comprehensive single cell aging atlas of mammary tissues reveals shared epigenomic and transcriptomic signatures of aging and cancer. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.20.563147. [PMID: 37961129 PMCID: PMC10634680 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.20.563147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Aging is the greatest risk factor for breast cancer; however, how age-related cellular and molecular events impact cancer initiation is unknown. We investigate how aging rewires transcriptomic and epigenomic programs of mouse mammary glands at single cell resolution, yielding a comprehensive resource for aging and cancer biology. Aged epithelial cells exhibit epigenetic and transcriptional changes in metabolic, pro-inflammatory, or cancer-associated genes. Aged stromal cells downregulate fibroblast marker genes and upregulate markers of senescence and cancer-associated fibroblasts. Among immune cells, distinct T cell subsets (Gzmk+, memory CD4+, γδ) and M2-like macrophages expand with age. Spatial transcriptomics reveal co-localization of aged immune and epithelial cells in situ. Lastly, transcriptional signatures of aging mammary cells are found in human breast tumors, suggesting mechanistic links between aging and cancer. Together, these data uncover that epithelial, immune, and stromal cells shift in proportions and cell identity, potentially impacting cell plasticity, aged microenvironment, and neoplasia risk.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Neerja Katiyar
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Hyeon Gu Kang
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
| | | | - SungHee Park
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
| | | | - Giray N Eryilmaz
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Mark A LaBarge
- Beckman Research Institute at City of Hope, Duarte, CA, USA
| | - Karolina Palucka
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Jeffrey H Chuang
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
| | | | - Duygu Ucar
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Institute for Systems Genomics, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Olga Anczukow
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Institute for Systems Genomics, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
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6
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Puttock EH, Tyler EJ, Manni M, Maniati E, Butterworth C, Burger Ramos M, Peerani E, Hirani P, Gauthier V, Liu Y, Maniscalco G, Rajeeve V, Cutillas P, Trevisan C, Pozzobon M, Lockley M, Rastrick J, Läubli H, White A, Pearce OMT. Extracellular matrix educates an immunoregulatory tumor macrophage phenotype found in ovarian cancer metastasis. Nat Commun 2023; 14:2514. [PMID: 37188691 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38093-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies have shown that the tumor extracellular matrix (ECM) associates with immunosuppression, and that targeting the ECM can improve immune infiltration and responsiveness to immunotherapy. A question that remains unresolved is whether the ECM directly educates the immune phenotypes seen in tumors. Here, we identify a tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) population associated with poor prognosis, interruption of the cancer immunity cycle, and tumor ECM composition. To investigate whether the ECM was capable of generating this TAM phenotype, we developed a decellularized tissue model that retains the native ECM architecture and composition. Macrophages cultured on decellularized ovarian metastasis shared transcriptional profiles with the TAMs found in human tissue. ECM-educated macrophages have a tissue-remodeling and immunoregulatory phenotype, inducing altered T cell marker expression and proliferation. We conclude that the tumor ECM directly educates this macrophage population found in cancer tissues. Therefore, current and emerging cancer therapies that target the tumor ECM may be tailored to improve macrophage phenotype and their downstream regulation of immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- E H Puttock
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - E J Tyler
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - M Manni
- Department of Biomedicine and Division of Medical Oncology, University Hospital Basel, Hebelstrasse 20, 4031, Basel, Switzerland
| | - E Maniati
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - C Butterworth
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - M Burger Ramos
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - E Peerani
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - P Hirani
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - V Gauthier
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - Y Liu
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - G Maniscalco
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - V Rajeeve
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - P Cutillas
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - C Trevisan
- Department of Women and Children Health, University of Padova and Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127, Padova, Italy
| | - M Pozzobon
- Department of Women and Children Health, University of Padova and Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127, Padova, Italy
| | - M Lockley
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK
| | - J Rastrick
- UCB Pharma Ltd, 208 Bath Road, Slough, Berkshire, SL1 3WE, UK
| | - H Läubli
- Department of Biomedicine and Division of Medical Oncology, University Hospital Basel, Hebelstrasse 20, 4031, Basel, Switzerland
| | - A White
- UCB Pharma Ltd, 208 Bath Road, Slough, Berkshire, SL1 3WE, UK
| | - O M T Pearce
- Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute, John Vane Science Centre, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK.
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7
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Cellular Transcriptomics of Carboplatin Resistance in a Metastatic Canine Osteosarcoma Cell Line. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:genes14030558. [PMID: 36980828 PMCID: PMC10048144 DOI: 10.3390/genes14030558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Revised: 02/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Osteosarcoma prognosis has remained unchanged for the past three decades. In both humans and canines, treatment is limited to excision, radiation, and chemotherapy. Chemoresistance is the primary cause of treatment failure, and the trajectory of tumor evolution while under selective pressure from treatment is thought to be the major contributing factor in both species. We sought to understand the nature of platinum-based chemotherapy resistance by investigating cells that were subjected to repeated treatment and recovery cycles with increased carboplatin concentrations. Three HMPOS-derived cell lines, two resistant and one naïve, underwent single-cell RNA sequencing to examine transcriptomic perturbation and identify pathways leading to resistance and phenotypic changes. We identified the mechanisms of acquired chemoresistance and inferred the induced cellular trajectory that evolved with repeated exposure. The gene expression patterns indicated that acquired chemoresistance was strongly associated with a process similar to epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), a phenomenon associated with the acquisition of migratory and invasive properties associated with metastatic disease. We conclude that the observed trajectory of tumor adaptability is directly correlated with chemoresistance and the phase of the EMT-like phenotype is directly affected by the level of chemoresistance. We infer that the EMT-like phenotype is a critical component of tumor evolution under treatment pressure and is vital to understanding the mechanisms of chemoresistance and to improving osteosarcoma prognosis.
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8
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Akova Ölken E, Aszodi A, Taipaleenmäki H, Saito H, Schönitzer V, Chaloupka M, Apfelbeck M, Böcker W, Saller MM. SFRP2 Overexpression Induces an Osteoblast-like Phenotype in Prostate Cancer Cells. Cells 2022; 11:cells11244081. [PMID: 36552843 PMCID: PMC9777425 DOI: 10.3390/cells11244081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Prostate cancer bone metastasis is still one of the most fatal cancer diagnoses for men. Survival of the circulating prostate tumor cells and their adaptation strategy to survive in the bone niche is the key point to determining metastasis in early cancer stages. The promoter of SFRP2 gene, encoding a WNT signaling modulator, is hypermethylated in many cancer types including prostate cancer. Moreover, SFRP2 can positively regulate osteogenic differentiation in vitro and in vivo. Here, we showed SFRP2 overexpression in the prostate cancer cell line PC3 induces an epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT), increases the attachment, and modifies the transcriptome towards an osteoblast-like phenotype (osteomimicry) in a collagen 1-dependent manner. Our data reflect a novel molecular mechanism concerning how metastasizing prostate cancer cells might increase their chance to survive within bone tissue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elif Akova Ölken
- Department of Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery, Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Attila Aszodi
- Department of Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery, Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Hanna Taipaleenmäki
- Institute of Musculoskeletal Medicine (IMM), Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), LMU Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Hiroaki Saito
- Institute of Musculoskeletal Medicine (IMM), Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), LMU Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Veronika Schönitzer
- Department of Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery, Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Michael Chaloupka
- Urologischen Klinik und Poliklinik, LMU Hospital, Marchioninistr 15, 81377 München, Germany
| | - Maria Apfelbeck
- Urologischen Klinik und Poliklinik, LMU Hospital, Marchioninistr 15, 81377 München, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Böcker
- Department of Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery, Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Maximilian Michael Saller
- Department of Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery, Musculoskeletal University Center Munich (MUM), Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Hospital, Fraunhoferstraße 20, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +49-89-4400-55486
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9
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Abstract
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is second most commonly diagnosed cancer with high morbidity and mortality. The heterogeneity of CRC makes clinical treatment tremendously challenging. Here, we aimed to comprehensively analyze the prognosis of CRC patients based on ANOIKIS- and immune-related genes. ANOIKIS-related genes were identified by differentially analysis of high anoikis score group (ANOIKIS_high group) and low anoikis score group (ANOIKIS_low group) divided by the cutoff value of anoikis score. Immune-related genes were screened by differentially analysis of high immune score group (ImmuneScore_high group) and low immune score group (ImmuneScore_low group) classified by the cutoff value of ImmuneScore. Prognostic ANOIKIS- and immune-related genes were identified by univariate Cox regression analysis. Multivariate Cox regression analysis were used for prognostic model construction. Ferroptosis expression profiles, the infiltration of immune cells, and the somatic mutation status were analyzed and compared. Univariate and multivariate Cox-regression analyses were performed to identify independent prognostic factors for CRC patient. Nomogram that contained the independent prognostic factors was established to predict 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS probability of CRC patients. Three ANOIKIS- and immune-related signatures were applied to construct a prognostic model, which divided the CRC patients into high-risk and low-risk groups. The patients with high-risk scores had obviously shorter OSs than those with low-risk scores. The time dependent ROC curve indicated that the risk score model had a stable performance to predict survival rates. Notably, the age, pathologic T, and risk score could be used independent indicators for CRC prognosis prediction. A nomogram containing the independent prognostic factors showed that the nomogram accurately predicted 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates of CRC patients. In our research, a novel prognostic model was developed based on ANOIKIS- and immune-related genes in CRC, which could be used for prognostic prediction of CRC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiqiang Cai
- Department of Radiation and Medical Oncology, Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Biological Behaviors, Hubei Clinical Cancer Study Center, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Fuxiang Zhou
- Department of Radiation and Medical Oncology, Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Biological Behaviors, Hubei Clinical Cancer Study Center, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
- * Correspondence: Fuxiang Zhou, Department of Radiation and Medical Oncology, Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Biological Behaviors, Hubei Clinical Cancer Study Center, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, No. 169 Donghu Road, Wuchang District, Wuhan 430071, China (e-mail: )
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10
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Liu W, Gajendran B, Sample KM, Wang C, Hu A, Chen B, Li Y, Zacksenhaus E, Ben-David Y. A critical ETV4/Twist1/Vimentin axis in Ha-RAS-induced aggressive breast cancer. Cancer Gene Ther 2022; 29:1590-1599. [PMID: 35477769 DOI: 10.1038/s41417-022-00471-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2021] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
RAS oncogenes are major drivers of diverse types of cancer. However, they are largely not druggable, and therefore targeting critical downstream pathways and dependencies is an attractive approach. We have isolated a tumorigenic cell line (FE1.2), which exhibits mesenchymal characteristics, after inoculating Ha-Ras-expressing retrovirus into mammary glands of rats, and subsequently isolated a non-aggressive revertant cell line (FC5). This revertant has lost the rat Ha-Ras driver and showed a more epithelial morphology, slower proliferation in culture, and reduced tumorigenicity in vivo. Re-expression of human Ha-RAS in these cells (FC5-RAS) reinduced mesenchymal morphology, higher proliferation rate, and tumorigenicity that was still significantly milder than parental FE1.2 cells. RNA-seq analysis of FC5-RAS vs FC5-Vector cells identified multiple genes whose expressions were regulated by Ha-RAS. This analysis also identified many genes including those controlling cell growth whose expression was altered by loss of HA-Ras in FC5 cells but remained unchanged upon reintroduction of Ha-RAS. These results suggest that targeting the Ha-Ras driver oncogene induces partial tumor regression, but it still denotes strong efficacy for cancer therapy. Among the RAS-responsive genes, we identified Twist1 as a critical mediator of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition through the direct transcriptional regulation of vimentin. Mechanistically, we show that Twist1 is induced by the ETS gene, ETV4, downstream of Ha-RAS, and that inhibition of ETV4 suppressed the growth of breast cancer cells driven by the Ha-RAS pathway. Targeting the ETV4/Twist1/Vimentin axis may therefore offer a therapeutic modality for breast tumors driven by the Ha-RAS pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wuling Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Babu Gajendran
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Klarke M Sample
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Chunlin Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Anling Hu
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Beiling Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Yanmei Li
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China
| | - Eldad Zacksenhaus
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute-University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yaacov Ben-David
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants/College of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, China. .,The Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academic of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou, China.
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11
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Lai HY, Chiu CC, Kuo YH, Tsai HH, Wu LC, Tseng WH, Liu CL, Hsing CH, Huang SK, Li CF. High Stromal SFRP2 Expression in Urothelial Carcinoma Confers an Unfavorable Prognosis. Front Oncol 2022; 12:834249. [PMID: 35372028 PMCID: PMC8965759 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.834249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Urothelial carcinoma (UC) patients often bear clinical and genetic heterogeneity, which may differ in management and prognosis. Especially, patients with advanced/metastatic UC generally have a poor prognosis and survive for only few months. The Wnt/β-catenin signaling is found to be highly activated in several cancers, including UC. However, accumulated evidence has shown discordance between the Wnt/β-catenin signaling and UC carcinogenesis. Accordingly, we aim to get a better understanding of the molecular characterization of UC, focusing on the Wnt signaling, which may add value to guiding management more precisely. Patients and Methods Clinical data and pathological features were retrospectively surveyed. The correlations of secreted Frizzled-related protein 2 (SFRP2) immunoexpression with clinicopathological features were analyzed by Pearson's chi-square test. The Kaplan-Meier method with a log-rank test was employed to plot survival curves. All significant features from the univariate analysis were incorporated into the Cox regression model for multivariate analysis. Results Following data mining on a transcriptome dataset (GSE31684), we identified that 8 transcripts in relation to the Wnt signaling pathway (GO: 0016055) were significantly upregulated in advanced/metastatic bladder tumors. Among these transcripts, the SFRP2 level showed the most significant upregulation. Additionally, as SFRP2 is a putative Wnt inhibitor and may be expressed by stroma, we were interested in examining the immunoexpression and clinical relevance of stromal and tumoral SFRP2 in our urothelial carcinoma cohorts containing 295 urinary bladder UC (UBUC) and 340 upper urinary tract UC (UTUC) patients. We observed that high SFRP2 expression in stroma but not in tumors is significantly linked to aggressive UC features, including high tumor stage and histological grade, positive nodal metastasis, the presence of vascular and perineural invasion, and high mitotic activity in UBUC and UTUC. Moreover, high stromal SFRP2 expression significantly and independently predicted worse clinical outcomes in UBUC and UTUC. Utilizing bioinformatic analysis, we further noticed that stromal SFRP2 may link epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) to UC progression. Conclusion Collectively, these results imply that stromal SFRP2 may exert oncogenic function beyond its Wnt antagonistic ability, and stromal SFRP2 expression can provide prognostic and therapeutic implications for UC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong-Yue Lai
- Center for Precision Medicine, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Medical Research, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | | | - Yu-Hsuan Kuo
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Hwa Tsai
- Center for Precision Medicine, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Medical Research, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Li-Ching Wu
- Center for Precision Medicine, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Wen-Hsin Tseng
- Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Chien-Liang Liu
- Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Division of Uro-Oncology, Department of Surgery, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Chung-Hsi Hsing
- Department of Medical Research, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Anesthesiology, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Steven K. Huang
- Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Medical Science Industries, College of Health Sciences, Chang Jung Christian University, Tainan, Taiwan,*Correspondence: Chien-Feng Li, ; Steven K. Huang,
| | - Chien-Feng Li
- Center for Precision Medicine, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Medical Research, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,Department of Clinical Pathology, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan,National Institute of Cancer Research, National Health Research Institutes, Tainan, Taiwan,Institute of Precision Medicine, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan,Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan,*Correspondence: Chien-Feng Li, ; Steven K. Huang,
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12
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Papukashvili D, Rcheulishvili N, Liu C, Xie F, Tyagi D, He Y, Wang PG. Perspectives on miRNAs Targeting DKK1 for Developing Hair Regeneration Therapy. Cells 2021; 10:2957. [PMID: 34831180 PMCID: PMC8616136 DOI: 10.3390/cells10112957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2021] [Revised: 10/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) remains an unsolved problem for the well-being of humankind, although multiple important involvements in hair growth have been discovered. Up until now, there is no ideal therapy in clinical practice in terms of efficacy and safety. Ultimately, there is a strong need for developing a feasible remedy for preventing and treating AGA. The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is critical in hair restoration. Thus, AGA treatment via modulating this pathway is rational, although challenging. Dickkopf-related protein 1 (DKK1) is distinctly identified as an inhibitor of canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Thus, in order to stimulate the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, inhibition of DKK1 is greatly demanding. Studying DKK1-targeting microRNAs (miRNAs) involved in the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway may lay the groundwork for the promotion of hair growth. Bearing in mind that DKK1 inhibition in the balding scalp of AGA certainly makes sense, this review sheds light on the perspectives of miRNA-mediated hair growth for treating AGA via regulating DKK1 and, eventually, modulating Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Consequently, certain miRNAs regulating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway via DKK1 inhibition might represent attractive candidates for further studies focusing on promoting hair growth and AGA therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Yunjiao He
- School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518000, China; (D.P.); (N.R.); (C.L.); (F.X.); (D.T.)
| | - Peng George Wang
- School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518000, China; (D.P.); (N.R.); (C.L.); (F.X.); (D.T.)
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13
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Smith S, Stone A, Oswalt H, Vaughan L, Ferdous F, Scott T, Dunn HW. Evaluation of early post-natal pig mammary gland development and human breast cancer gene expression. Dev Biol 2021; 481:95-103. [PMID: 34662538 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2021.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2020] [Revised: 10/01/2021] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death in women after lung cancer, and only 5% of patients with metastatic breast cancer survive beyond ten years of diagnosis. Considering the heterogeneous subclasses of breast cancer, current cancer models have shortfalls due to copy number variants, and genetic differences of humans and immunocompromised animal models. Preclinical studies indicate stem cell activity in early post-natal mammary development may be reactivated in the human adult as a trigger to initiate cell proliferation leading to breast cancer. The goal of the work reported herein was to compare genetic expression of early development, post-natal pig mammary glands to the literature reported genes implicated in different subclasses of human breast cancer. Differentially expressed genes associated with breast cancer and present in early developing pig samples include NUCB2, ANGPTL4 and ACE. Histological staining confirmed E-cadherin, Vimentin, N-cadherin, and Claudin-1, which are all implicated in malignant cancer. Due to the homology of gene expression patterns in the developing pig mammary gland and reported genes in human breast cancer profiles, this research is worthy of further study to address a potential model using mammary development cues to unravel breast cancer biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shelby Smith
- School of Medicine, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Amber Stone
- Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA
| | - Hannah Oswalt
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Lewis Vaughan
- University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Farzana Ferdous
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, NC, USA
| | - Tom Scott
- Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA
| | - Heather W Dunn
- Department of Bioengineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA.
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14
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Nasarre P, Garcia DI, Siegel JB, Bonilla IV, Mukherjee R, Hilliard E, Chakraborty P, Nasarre C, Yustein JT, Lang M, Jaffa AA, Mehrotra S, Klauber-DeMore N. Overcoming PD-1 Inhibitor Resistance with a Monoclonal Antibody to Secreted Frizzled-Related Protein 2 in Metastatic Osteosarcoma. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:cancers13112696. [PMID: 34070758 PMCID: PMC8199140 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13112696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Revised: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Secreted frizzled-related protein 2 (SFRP2) promotes the migration/invasion of metastatic osteosarcoma (OS) cells and tube formation by endothelial cells. However, its function on T-cells is unknown. We hypothesized that blocking SFRP2 with a humanized monoclonal antibody (hSFRP2 mAb) can restore immunity by reducing CD38 and PD-1 levels, ultimately overcoming resistance to PD-1 inhibitors. Treating two metastatic murine OS cell lines in vivo, RF420 and RF577, with hSFRP2 mAb alone led to a significant reduction in the number of lung metastases, compared to IgG1 control treatment. While PD-1 mAb alone had minimal effect, hSFRP2 mAb combination with PD-1 mAb had an additive antimetastatic effect. This effect was accompanied by lower SFRP2 levels in serum, lower CD38 levels in tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and T-cells, and lower PD-1 levels in T-cells. In vitro data confirmed that SFRP2 promotes NFATc3, CD38 and PD-1 expression in T-cells, while hSFRP2 mAb treatment counteracts these effects and increases NAD+ levels. hSFRP2 mAb treatment further rescued the suppression of T-cell proliferation by tumor cells in a co-culture model. Finally, hSFRP2 mAb induced apoptosis in RF420 and RF577 OS cells but not in T-cells. Thus, hSFRP2 mAb therapy could potentially overcome PD-1 inhibitor resistance in metastatic osteosarcoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Nasarre
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Denise I. Garcia
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Julie B. Siegel
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Ingrid V. Bonilla
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Rupak Mukherjee
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Eleanor Hilliard
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Paramita Chakraborty
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Cécile Nasarre
- Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA;
| | - Jason T. Yustein
- Department of Pediatrics, The Faris D. Virani Ewing Sarcoma Center at the Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA;
| | - Margaret Lang
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Aneese A. Jaffa
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Shikhar Mehrotra
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
| | - Nancy Klauber-DeMore
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; (P.N.); (D.I.G.); (J.B.S.); (I.V.B.); (R.M.); (E.H.); (P.C.); (M.L.); (A.A.J.); (S.M.)
- Correspondence:
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15
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van Loon K, Huijbers EJM, Griffioen AW. Secreted frizzled-related protein 2: a key player in noncanonical Wnt signaling and tumor angiogenesis. Cancer Metastasis Rev 2020; 40:191-203. [PMID: 33140138 PMCID: PMC7897195 DOI: 10.1007/s10555-020-09941-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 10/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Secreted frizzled-related proteins (SFRP) are glycoproteins containing a so-called frizzled-like cysteine-rich domain. This domain enables them to bind to Wnt ligands or frizzled (FzD) receptors, making potent regulators of Wnt signaling. As Wnt signaling is often altered in cancer, it is not surprising that Wnt regulators such as SFRP proteins are often differentially expressed in the tumor microenvironment, both in a metastatic and non-metastatic setting. Indeed, SFRP2 is shown to be specifically upregulated in the tumor vasculature of several types of cancer. Several studies investigated the functional role of SFRP2 in the tumor vasculature, showing that SFRP2 binds to FzD receptors on the surface of tumor endothelial cells. This activates downstream Wnt signaling and which is, thereby, stimulating angiogenesis. Interestingly, not the well-known canonical Wnt signaling pathway, but the noncanonical Wnt/Ca2+ pathway seems to be a key player in this event. In tumor models, the pro-angiogenic effect of SFRP2 could be counteracted by antibodies targeting SFRP2, without the occurrence of toxicity. Since tumor angiogenesis is an important process in tumorigenesis and metastasis formation, specific tumor endothelial markers such as SFRP2 show great promise as targets for anti-cancer therapies. This review discusses the role of SFRP2 in noncanonical Wnt signaling and tumor angiogenesis, and highlights its potential as anti-angiogenic therapeutic target in cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karlijn van Loon
- Angiogenesis Laboratory, Cancer Center Amsterdam, Department of Medical Oncology, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Elisabeth J M Huijbers
- Angiogenesis Laboratory, Cancer Center Amsterdam, Department of Medical Oncology, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Arjan W Griffioen
- Angiogenesis Laboratory, Cancer Center Amsterdam, Department of Medical Oncology, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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16
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van Schie EH, van Amerongen R. Aberrant WNT/CTNNB1 Signaling as a Therapeutic Target in Human Breast Cancer: Weighing the Evidence. Front Cell Dev Biol 2020; 8:25. [PMID: 32083079 PMCID: PMC7005411 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2020.00025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
WNT signaling is crucial for tissue morphogenesis during development in all multicellular animals. After birth, WNT/CTNNB1 responsive stem cells are responsible for tissue homeostasis in various organs and hyperactive WNT/CTNNB1 signaling is observed in many different human cancers. The first link between WNT signaling and breast cancer was established almost 40 years ago, when Wnt1 was identified as a proto-oncogene capable of driving mammary tumor formation in mice. Since that discovery, there has been a dedicated search for aberrant WNT signaling in human breast cancer. However, much debate and controversy persist regarding the importance of WNT signaling for the initiation, progression or maintenance of different breast cancer subtypes. As the first drugs designed to block functional WNT signaling have entered clinical trials, many questions about the role of aberrant WNT signaling in human breast cancer remain. Here, we discuss three major research gaps in this area. First, we still lack a basic understanding of the function of WNT signaling in normal human breast development and physiology. Second, the overall extent and precise effect of (epi)genetic changes affecting the WNT pathway in different breast cancer subtypes are still unknown. Which underlying molecular and cell biological mechanisms are disrupted as a result also awaits further scrutiny. Third, we survey the current status of targeted therapeutics that are aimed at interfering with the WNT pathway in breast cancer patients and highlight the importance and complexity of selecting the subset of patients that may benefit from treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Renée van Amerongen
- Section of Molecular Cytology and van Leeuwenhoek Centre for Advanced Microscopy, Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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