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Dong G, Ma G, Wu R, Liu J, Liu M, Gao A, Li X, A J, Liu X, Zhang Z, Zhang B, Fu L, Dong JT. ZFHX3 Promotes the Proliferation and Tumor Growth of ER-Positive Breast Cancer Cells Likely by Enhancing Stem-Like Features and MYC and TBX3 Transcription. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:cancers12113415. [PMID: 33217982 PMCID: PMC7698617 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12113415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Revised: 11/10/2020] [Accepted: 11/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Breast cancer is a common malignancy, but the understanding of its cellular and molecular mechanisms is limited. The ZFHX3 transcription factor regulates mammary epithelial cells’ proliferation and differentiation by interacting with estrogen and progesterone receptors. Both these receptors play crucial roles in breast cancer development, but whether ZFHX3 also impacts breast cancer is unknown. In this study, the authors aim to determine if ZFHX3 promotes breast cancer cells’ proliferation and tumor growth and explore the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms. Higher ZFHX3 expression is associated with worse patient survival in breast cancer, ZFHX3 promotes the proliferation and tumor growth of breast cancer cells, and several breast cancer stem cell factors appear to be involved in the role of ZFHX3 in breast cancer growth. The findings suggest that ZFHX3 is a novel oncogenic molecule promoting breast cancer development. Such a molecule could provide novel opportunities for the treatment of breast cancer. Abstract Breast cancer is a common malignancy, but the understanding of its cellular and molecular mechanisms is limited. ZFHX3, a transcription factor with many homeodomains and zinc fingers, suppresses prostatic carcinogenesis but promotes tumor growth of liver cancer cells. ZFHX3 regulates mammary epithelial cells’ proliferation and differentiation by interacting with estrogen and progesterone receptors, potent breast cancer regulators. However, whether ZFHX3 plays a role in breast carcinogenesis is unknown. Here, we found that ZFHX3 promoted the proliferation and tumor growth of breast cancer cells in culture and nude mice; and higher expression of ZFHX3 in human breast cancer specimens was associated with poorer prognosis. The knockdown of ZFHX3 in ZFHX3-high MCF-7 cells decreased, and ZFHX3 overexpression in ZFHX3-low T-47D cells increased the proportion of breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) defined by mammosphere formation and the expression of CD44, CD24, and/or aldehyde dehydrogenase 1. Among several transcription factors that have been implicated in BCSCs, MYC and TBX3 were transcriptionally activated by ZFHX3 via promoter binding, as demonstrated by luciferase-reporter and ChIP assays. These findings suggest that ZFHX3 promotes breast cancer cells’ proliferation and tumor growth likely by enhancing BCSC features and upregulating MYC, TBX3, and others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ge Dong
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
| | - Gui Ma
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
| | - Rui Wu
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
| | - Jinming Liu
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
| | - Mingcheng Liu
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
| | - Ang Gao
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
| | - Xiawei Li
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
| | - Jun A
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
| | - Xiaoyu Liu
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
| | - Zhiqian Zhang
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
| | - Baotong Zhang
- Emory Winship Cancer Institute, Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, 1365-C Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA;
| | - Liya Fu
- Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, 94 Weijin Road, Tianjin 300071, China; (G.D.); (G.M.); (J.L.); (M.L.); (A.G.); (X.L.); (J.A.); (L.F.)
| | - Jin-Tang Dong
- Department of Human Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd, Shenzhen 518055, China; (R.W.); (X.L.); (Z.Z.)
- Correspondence:
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Xu D, Aka JA, Wang R, Lin SX. 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 5 is negatively correlated to apoptosis inhibitor GRP78 and tumor-secreted protein PGK1, and modulates breast cancer cell viability and proliferation. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2017; 171:270-280. [PMID: 28457968 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.04.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2016] [Revised: 04/15/2017] [Accepted: 04/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 5 (17β-HSD5) is an important enzyme associated with sex steroid metabolism in hormone-dependent cancer. However, reports on its expression and its prognostic value in breast cancer are inconsistent. Here, we demonstrate the impact of 17β-HSD5 expression modulation on the proteome of estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer cells. RNA interference technique (siRNA) was used to knock down 17β-HSD5 gene expression in the ER+ breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and the proteome of the 17β-HSD5-knockdown cells was compared to that of MCF-7 cells using two-dimensional (2-D) gel electrophoresis followed by mass spectrometry analysis. Ingenuity pathway analysis (IPA) was additionally used to assess functional enrichment analyses of the proteomic dataset, including protein network and canonical pathways. Our proteomic analysis revealed only four differentially expressed protein spots (fold change > 2, p<0.05) between the two cell lines. The four spots were up-regulated in 17β-HSD5-knockdown MCF-7 cells, and comprised 21 proteins involved in two networks and in functions that include apoptosis inhibition, regulation of cell growth and differentiation, signal transduction and tumor metastasis. Among the proteins are nucleoside diphosphate kinase A (NME1), 78kDa glucose-regulated protein (GRP78) and phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1). We also showed that expression of 17β-HSD5 and that of the apoptosis inhibitor GRP78 are strongly but negatively correlated. Consistent with their opposite regulation, GRP78 knockdown decreased MCF-7 cell viability whereas 17β-HSD5 knockdown or inhibition increased cell viability and proliferation. Besides, IPA analysis revealed that ubiquitination pathway is significantly affected by 17β-HSD5 knockdown. Furthermore, IPA predicted the proto-oncogene c-Myc as an upstream regulator linked to the tumor-secreted protein PGK1. The latter is over-expressed in invasive ductal breast carcinoma as compared with normal breast tissue and its expression increased following 17β-HSD5 knockdown. Our present results indicate a 17β-HSD5 role in down-regulating breast cancer development. We thus propose that 17β-HSD5 may not be a potent target for breast cancer treatment but its low expression could represent a poor prognosis factor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan Xu
- Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology and Oncology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec Research Centre (CHUQ, CHUL) and Department of Molecular Medicine, Laval University, 2705 Boulevard Laurier, Quebec City, Québec G1V 4G2, Canada
| | - Juliette A Aka
- Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology and Oncology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec Research Centre (CHUQ, CHUL) and Department of Molecular Medicine, Laval University, 2705 Boulevard Laurier, Quebec City, Québec G1V 4G2, Canada
| | - Ruixuan Wang
- Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology and Oncology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec Research Centre (CHUQ, CHUL) and Department of Molecular Medicine, Laval University, 2705 Boulevard Laurier, Quebec City, Québec G1V 4G2, Canada
| | - Sheng-Xiang Lin
- Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology and Oncology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec Research Centre (CHUQ, CHUL) and Department of Molecular Medicine, Laval University, 2705 Boulevard Laurier, Quebec City, Québec G1V 4G2, Canada.
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Dueck AC, Reinholz MM, Geiger XJ, Tenner K, Ballman K, Jenkins RB, Riehle D, Chen B, McCullough AE, Davidson NE, Martino S, Sledge GW, Kaufman PA, Kutteh LA, Gralow J, Harris LN, Ingle JN, Lingle WL, Perez EA. Impact of c-MYC protein expression on outcome of patients with early-stage HER2+ breast cancer treated with adjuvant trastuzumab NCCTG (alliance) N9831. Clin Cancer Res 2013; 19:5798-807. [PMID: 23965903 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-13-0558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE This study investigated the association between tumor MYC protein expression and disease-free survival (DFS) of patients randomized to receive chemotherapy alone (Arm A) or chemotherapy with sequential (Arm B) or concurrent trastuzumab (Arm C) in the N9831 (Alliance) adjuvant HER2(+) trastuzumab breast cancer trial. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN This analysis included 1,736 patients randomized to Arms A, B, and C on N9831. Nuclear MYC protein expression was determined in tissue microarray sections containing three biopsies per patient or whole tissue sections using standard immunohistochemistry (clone 9E10). A tumor was considered positive for MYC protein overexpression (MYC(+)) if the nuclear 3+ staining percentage was more than 30%. RESULTS Five hundred and seventy-four (33%) tumors were MYC(+). MYC(+) was associated with hormone receptor positivity (χ(2), P = 0.006), tumors 2 cm or more (χ(2), P = 0.02), and a higher rate of nodal positivity (χ(2), P < 0.001). HRs for DFS (median follow-up: 6.1 years) for Arm C versus A were 0.52 (P = 0.006) and 0.65 (P = 0.006) for patients with MYC(+) and MYC(-) tumors, respectively (P(interaction) = 0.40). For Arm B versus A, HRs for patients with MYC(+) and MYC(-) tumors were 0.79 (P = 0.21) and 0.74 (P = 0.04), respectively (P(interaction) = 0.71). For Arm C versus B, HRs for patients with MYC(+) and MYC(-) tumors were 0.56 (P = 0.02) and 0.89 (P = 0.49), respectively (P(interaction) = 0.17). CONCLUSIONS Our data do not support an impact of tumor MYC protein expression on differential benefit from adjuvant trastuzumab.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amylou C Dueck
- Authors' Affiliations: Section of Biostatistics; Division of Anatomic Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, Arizona; Division of Experimental Pathology, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology; Division of Biomedical Statistics and Informatics and Medical Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota; Division of Anatomic Pathology and Hematology/Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida; Division of Hematology/Oncology, University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and UPMC Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute, Santa Monica, California; Indiana University Medical Center Cancer Pavilion, Indianapolis, Indiana; Division of Hematology/Oncology, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, New Hampshire; Oncology Associates of Cedar Rapids, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle, Washington; and Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
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Hori M, Inagawa S, Shimazaki J, Itabashi M, Hori M. Overexpression of mitogen-activated protein kinase superfamily proteins unrelated to Ras and AF-1 of estrogen receptor alpha mutation in advanced stage human breast cancer. Pathol Res Pract 2001; 196:817-26. [PMID: 11156322 DOI: 10.1016/s0344-0338(00)80081-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Transactivation of the activation function-1 (AF-1) region of the estrogen receptor alpha (ER-alpha) gene is regulated by pathway "cross-talk" from Ras mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). An analysis of this system is important for solving the problem of resistance to anti-estrogen agents used in the treatment of human breast cancer. We investigated the ER-alpha and Ras gene mutations and the MAPK-related protein status in 103 cases of breast carcinoma. None of the cases showed mutations in the AF-1 region of the ER-alpha gene. Despite the extremely low frequency of K- and H-Ras mutations in codon 12 (2/103 and 0/103), Ras p21 overexpression was identified in 29.1% (30/103), suggesting that the Ras activation in almost all cases we studied was not caused by point mutations but by enhanced expression. Our immunohistochemical analysis showed that the cases with overexpression of Ras and MAPK proteins (Ras p21, ERK-1, JNK-1, and p38) had a progressive tendency towards invasive growth, advanced-stage cancer, and decreased levels of ER-alpha protein. These results suggest that enhanced MAPK activity could be one of the characteristics of advanced breast cancer and that it could be involved in the transformation into estrogen-independent growth.
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MESH Headings
- Breast Neoplasms/chemistry
- Breast Neoplasms/genetics
- Breast Neoplasms/metabolism
- Breast Neoplasms/pathology
- Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/chemistry
- Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/genetics
- Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/metabolism
- Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/pathology
- Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21
- Cyclins/metabolism
- DNA Primers/chemistry
- DNA, Neoplasm/analysis
- Estrogen Receptor alpha
- Female
- Genes, ras
- Humans
- Immunohistochemistry
- Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases/metabolism
- Mutation
- Neoplasm Staging
- Polymerase Chain Reaction
- Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length
- Receptors, Estrogen/genetics
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Affiliation(s)
- M Hori
- Department of Pathology, Ibaraki Prefectural Central Hospital and Cancer Center, Nishi-ibaraki, Japan.
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Dhingra K, Vogel V, Sneige N, Sahin A, Aldaz CM, Hortobagyi GN, Hittelman W. Strategies for the application of biomarkers for risk assessment and efficacy in breast cancer chemoprevention trials. JOURNAL OF CELLULAR BIOCHEMISTRY. SUPPLEMENT 1993; 17G:37-43. [PMID: 8007707 DOI: 10.1002/jcb.240531106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Current chemoprevention trial designs based on epidemiological risk assessment and occurrence of cancer as an endpoint are inefficient and expensive. Novel biomarkers are needed to facilitate the development of chemopreventive interventions. The following four categories of biomarkers may be useful in prevention trials: histologic and morphometric markers; phenotypic markers of dysregulated proliferation, differentiation, and cell loss; specific oncogenes and growth regulators which are qualitatively or quantitatively altered in breast cancers; and markers of genetic and epigenetic instability. Some of these markers will be generally useful regardless of the chemopreventive approach used, whereas others may be uniquely useful in trials of specific chemopreventive agents [e.g., upregulation of progesterone receptor (PR) expression in response to tamoxifen]. The development of these markers requires three phases of study: "Phase I": assessing the prevalence of the putative marker in malignant and premalignant tissue from individuals who have developed breast cancer; "Phase II": assessing in vivo modulation of the biomarker by the proposed chemopreventive agent; and "Phase III": applying the proposed biomarker in larger-scale trials of chemopreventive agent in high-risk populations, either before or after the development of a primary breast malignancy. The use of these biomarkers may also allow identification of novel targets for chemoprevention.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Dhingra
- University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Department of Breast and Gynecologic Medical Oncology, Houston 77030
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