1
|
Takahashi Y, Sheridan P, Niida A, Sawada G, Uchi R, Mizuno H, Kurashige J, Sugimachi K, Sasaki S, Shimada Y, Hase K, Kusunoki M, Kudo S, Watanabe M, Yamada K, Sugihara K, Yamamoto H, Suzuki A, Doki Y, Miyano S, Mori M, Mimori K. The AURKA/TPX2 axis drives colon tumorigenesis cooperatively with MYC. Ann Oncol 2015; 26:935-942. [PMID: 25632068 DOI: 10.1093/annonc/mdv034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 01/15/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The MYC oncogene has long been established as a central driver in many types of human cancers including colorectal cancer. However, the realization of MYC-targeting therapies remains elusive; as a result, synthetic lethal therapeutic approaches are alternatively being explored. A synthetic lethal therapeutic approach aims to kill MYC-driven tumors by targeting a certain co-regulator on the MYC pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS We analyzed copy number and expression profiles from 130 colorectal cancer tumors together with publicly available datasets to identify co-regulators on the MYC pathway. Candidates were functionally tested by in vitro assays using colorectal cancer and normal fibroblast cell lines. Additionally, survival analyses were carried out on another 159 colorectal cancer patients and public datasets. RESULTS Our in silico screening identified two MYC co-regulator candidates, AURKA and TPX2, which are interacting mitotic regulators located on chromosome 20q. We found the two candidates showed frequent co-amplification with the MYC locus while expression levels of MYC and the two genes were positively correlated with those of MYC downstream target genes across multiple cancer types. In vitro, the aberrant expression of MYC, AURKA and TPX2 resulted in more aggressive anchorage-independent growth in normal fibroblast cells. Furthermore, knockdown of AURKA or TPX2, or treatment with an AURKA-specific inhibitor effectively suppressed the proliferation of MYC-expressing colorectal cancer cells. Additionally, combined high expression of MYC, AURKA and TPX2 proved to be a poor prognostic indicator of colorectal cancer patient survival. CONCLUSIONS Through bioinformatic analyses and experiments, we proposed TPX2 and AURKA as novel co-regulators on the MYC pathway. Inhibiting the AURKA/TPX2 axis would be a novel synthetic lethal therapeutic approach for MYC-driven cancers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Y Takahashi
- Department of Surgery, Kyushu University Beppu Hospital, Beppu; Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita
| | - P Sheridan
- Laboratory of DNA Information Analysis, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo
| | - A Niida
- Laboratory of DNA Information Analysis, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo
| | - G Sawada
- Department of Surgery, Kyushu University Beppu Hospital, Beppu; Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita
| | - R Uchi
- Department of Surgery, Kyushu University Beppu Hospital, Beppu
| | - H Mizuno
- Department of Discovery Research, Kamakura Research Laboratories, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Kamakura
| | - J Kurashige
- Department of Surgery, Kyushu University Beppu Hospital, Beppu
| | - K Sugimachi
- Department of Surgery, Kyushu University Beppu Hospital, Beppu
| | - S Sasaki
- Department of Surgery, Omori Red Cross Hospital, Tokyo
| | - Y Shimada
- Division of Gastrointestinal Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo
| | - K Hase
- Department of Surgery, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa
| | - M Kusunoki
- Department of Surgery, Mie University, Tsu
| | - S Kudo
- Digestive Disease Center, Showa University Northern Yokohama Hospital, Yokohama
| | - M Watanabe
- Department of Surgery, Kitasato University, Sagamihara
| | - K Yamada
- Department of Surgery, Takano Hospital, Kumamoto
| | - K Sugihara
- Department of Surgery, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo
| | - H Yamamoto
- Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita
| | - A Suzuki
- Division of Cancer Genetics, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Y Doki
- Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita
| | - S Miyano
- Laboratory of DNA Information Analysis, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo
| | - M Mori
- Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita
| | - K Mimori
- Department of Surgery, Kyushu University Beppu Hospital, Beppu.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Niida A, Imoto S, Yamaguchi R, Nagasaki M, Fujita A, Shimamura T, Miyano S. Model-free unsupervised gene set screening based on information enrichment in expression profiles. Bioinformatics 2010; 26:3090-7. [DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btq592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
|