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Wang DY, Gendoo DMA, Ben-David Y, Woodgett JR, Zacksenhaus E. A subgroup of microRNAs defines PTEN-deficient, triple-negative breast cancer patients with poorest prognosis and alterations in RB1, MYC, and Wnt signaling. Breast Cancer Res 2019; 21:18. [PMID: 30704524 PMCID: PMC6357448 DOI: 10.1186/s13058-019-1098-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2018] [Accepted: 01/10/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) represents a heterogeneous group of ER- and HER2-negative tumors with poor clinical outcome. We recently reported that Pten-loss cooperates with low expression of microRNA-145 to induce aggressive TNBC-like lesions in mice. To systematically identify microRNAs that cooperate with PTEN-loss to induce aggressive human BC, we screened for miRNAs whose expression correlated with PTEN mRNA levels and determined the prognostic power of each PTEN-miRNA pair alone and in combination with other miRs. METHODS Publically available data sets with mRNA, microRNA, genomics, and clinical outcome were interrogated to identify miRs that correlate with PTEN expression and predict poor clinical outcome. Alterations in genomic landscape and signaling pathways were identified in most aggressive TNBC subgroups. Connectivity mapping was used to predict response to therapy. RESULTS In TNBC, PTEN loss cooperated with reduced expression of hsa-miR-4324, hsa-miR-125b, hsa-miR-381, hsa-miR-145, and has-miR136, all previously implicated in metastasis, to predict poor prognosis. A subgroup of TNBC patients with PTEN-low and reduced expression of four or five of these miRs exhibited the worst clinical outcome relative to other TNBCs (hazard ratio (HR) = 3.91; P < 0.0001), and this was validated on an independent cohort (HR = 4.42; P = 0.0003). The PTEN-low/miR-low subgroup showed distinct oncogenic alterations as well as TP53 mutation, high RB1-loss signature and high MYC, PI3K, and β-catenin signaling. This lethal subgroup almost completely overlapped with TNBC patients selected on the basis of Pten-low and RB1 signature loss or β-catenin signaling-high. Connectivity mapping predicted response to inhibitors of the PI3K pathway. CONCLUSIONS This analysis identified microRNAs that define a subclass of highly lethal TNBCs that should be prioritized for aggressive therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong-Yu Wang
- Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, 67 College Street, Rm. 407, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2M1 Canada
| | - Deena M. A. Gendoo
- Centre for Computational Biology, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Yaacov Ben-David
- The Key laboratory of Chemistry for Natural Products of Guizhou Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, 550014 Guizhou China
- State Key Laboratory for Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, 550025 China
| | - James R. Woodgett
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health System, 600 University Avenue, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Eldad Zacksenhaus
- Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, 67 College Street, Rm. 407, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2M1 Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario Canada
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2
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Castiello L, Sestili P, Schiavoni G, Dattilo R, Monque DM, Ciaffoni F, Iezzi M, Lamolinara A, Sistigu A, Moschella F, Pacca AM, Macchia D, Ferrantini M, Zeuner A, Biffoni M, Proietti E, Belardelli F, Aricò E. Disruption of IFN-I Signaling Promotes HER2/Neu Tumor Progression and Breast Cancer Stem Cells. Cancer Immunol Res 2018; 6:658-670. [PMID: 29622580 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-17-0675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2017] [Revised: 02/13/2018] [Accepted: 03/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Type I interferon (IFN-I) is a class of antiviral immunomodulatory cytokines involved in many stages of tumor initiation and progression. IFN-I acts directly on tumor cells to inhibit cell growth and indirectly by activating immune cells to mount antitumor responses. To understand the role of endogenous IFN-I in spontaneous, oncogene-driven carcinogenesis, we characterized tumors arising in HER2/neu transgenic (neuT) mice carrying a nonfunctional mutation in the IFNI receptor (IFNAR1). Such mice are unresponsive to this family of cytokines. Compared with parental neu+/- mice (neuT mice), IFNAR1-/- neu+/- mice (IFNAR-neuT mice) showed earlier onset and increased tumor multiplicity with marked vascularization. IFNAR-neuT tumors exhibited deregulation of genes having adverse prognostic value in breast cancer patients, including the breast cancer stem cell (BCSC) marker aldehyde dehydrogenase-1A1 (ALDH1A1). An increased number of BCSCs were observed in IFNAR-neuT tumors, as assessed by ALDH1A1 enzymatic activity, clonogenic assay, and tumorigenic capacity. In vitro exposure of neuT+ mammospheres and cell lines to antibodies to IFN-I resulted in increased frequency of ALDH+ cells, suggesting that IFN-I controls stemness in tumor cells. Altogether, these results reveal a role of IFN-I in neuT-driven spontaneous carcinogenesis through intrinsic control of BCSCs. Cancer Immunol Res; 6(6); 658-70. ©2018 AACR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luciano Castiello
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Sestili
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanna Schiavoni
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Rosanna Dattilo
- Unit of Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy, Department of Research, Advanced Diagnostics and Technological Innovation Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome, Italy
| | - Domenica M Monque
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fiorella Ciaffoni
- Department of Cell Biology and Neurosciences, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Manuela Iezzi
- Department of Medicine and Aging Science, Center of Excellence on Aging and Translational Medicine (CeSi-Met), G. D'Annunzio University, Chieti-Pescara, Italy
| | - Alessia Lamolinara
- Department of Medicine and Aging Science, Center of Excellence on Aging and Translational Medicine (CeSi-Met), G. D'Annunzio University, Chieti-Pescara, Italy
| | - Antonella Sistigu
- Unit of Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy, Department of Research, Advanced Diagnostics and Technological Innovation Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome, Italy.,Department of General Pathology and Physiopathology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Federica Moschella
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Anna Maria Pacca
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Daniele Macchia
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Ferrantini
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Ann Zeuner
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Mauro Biffoni
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Enrico Proietti
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Filippo Belardelli
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | - Eleonora Aricò
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
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3
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Liu JC, Zacksenhouse M, Eisen A, Nofech-Mozes S, Zacksenhaus E. Identification of cell proliferation, immune response and cell migration as critical pathways in a prognostic signature for HER2+:ERα- breast cancer. PLoS One 2017. [PMID: 28632792 PMCID: PMC5478114 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Multi-gene prognostic signatures derived from primary tumor biopsies can guide clinicians in designing an appropriate course of treatment. Identifying genes and pathways most essential to a signature performance may facilitate clinical application, provide insights into cancer progression, and uncover potentially new therapeutic targets. We previously developed a 17-gene prognostic signature (HTICS) for HER2+:ERα- breast cancer patients, using genes that are differentially expressed in tumor initiating cells (TICs) versus non-TICs from MMTV-Her2/neu mammary tumors. Here we probed the pathways and genes that underlie the prognostic power of HTICS. Methods We used Leave-One Out, Data Combination Test, Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA), Correlation and Substitution analyses together with Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis to identify critical biological pathways within HTICS. Publically available cohorts with gene expression and clinical outcome were used to assess prognosis. NanoString technology was used to detect gene expression in formalin-fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissues. Results We show that three major biological pathways: cell proliferation, immune response, and cell migration, drive the prognostic power of HTICS, which is further tuned by Homeostatic and Glycan metabolic signalling. A 6-gene minimal Core that retained a significant prognostic power, albeit less than HTICS, also comprised the proliferation/immune/migration pathways. Finally, we developed NanoString probes that could detect expression of HTICS genes and their substitutions in FFPE samples. Conclusion Our results demonstrate that the prognostic power of a signature is driven by the biological processes it monitors, identify cell proliferation, immune response and cell migration as critical pathways for HER2+:ERα- cancer progression, and defines substitutes and Core genes that should facilitate clinical application of HTICS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey C. Liu
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute—University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- * E-mail: (JCL); (EZ)
| | - Miriam Zacksenhouse
- Brain-computer Interfaces for Rehabilitation Laboratory, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa, Israel
| | - Andrea Eisen
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto; Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sharon Nofech-Mozes
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto; Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Eldad Zacksenhaus
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute—University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- * E-mail: (JCL); (EZ)
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4
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Liu JC, Wang DY, Egan SE, Zacksenhaus E. Common and distinct features of mammary tumors driven by Pten-deletion or activating Pik3ca mutation. Oncotarget 2016; 7:9060-8. [PMID: 26814435 PMCID: PMC4891026 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.6985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2015] [Accepted: 01/18/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
PTEN loss and PIK3CA activation both promote the accumulation of phosphatidylinositol (3, 4, 5)-trisphosphate (PIP3). While these proteins also have distinct biochemical functions, beyond the regulation of PIP3, little is known about the consequences of these differences in vivo. Here, we directly compared cancer signalling in mammary tumors from MMTV-Cre:Ptenf/f and MMTV-Cre:Pik3caLSL-H1047R mice. Using unsupervised hierarchical clustering we found that whereas MMTV-Cre:Pik3caLSL-H1047R-derived tumors fall into two separate groups, designated squamous-likeEx and class14Ex, MMTV-Cre:Ptenf/f tumors cluster as one group together with PIK3CAH1047R class14Ex, exhibiting a ‘luminal’ expression profile. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) of PtenΔ and PIK3CAH1047R class14Ex tumors revealed very similar profiles of signalling pathways as well as some interesting differences. Analysis of 18 signalling signatures revealed that PI3K signalling is significantly induced whereas EGFR signalling is significantly reduced in PtenΔ versus PIK3CAH1047R tumors. Thus, PtenΔ and PIK3CAH1047R tumors exhibit discernable differences that may impact tumorigenesis and response to therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeff C Liu
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Dong-Yu Wang
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sean E Egan
- Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Eldad Zacksenhaus
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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5
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Fry EA, Taneja P, Inoue K. Clinical applications of mouse models for breast cancer engaging HER2/neu. INTEGRATIVE CANCER SCIENCE AND THERAPEUTICS 2016; 3:593-603. [PMID: 28133539 PMCID: PMC5267336 DOI: 10.15761/icst.1000210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Human c-ErbB2 (HER2) has long been used as a marker of breast cancer (BC) for sub-categorization for the prediction of prognosis, and determination of therapeutic strategies. HER2 overexpressing BCs are more invasive/metastatic; but patients respond to monoclonal antibody therapy with trastuzumab or tyrosine kinase inhibitors, at least at early stages. To date, numerous mouse models that faithfully reproduce HER2(+) BCs have been created in mice. We recently reviewed different mouse models of BC overexpressing wild type or mutant neu driven by MMTV, neu, or doxycycline-inducible promoters. These mice have been used to demonstrate the histopathology, oncogenic signaling pathways initiated by aberrant overexpression of HER2 in the mammary epithelium, and interaction between oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes at molecular levels. In this review, we focus on their clinical applications. They can be used to test the efficacy of HER(2) inhibitors before starting clinical trials, characterize the tumor-initiating cells that could be the cause of relapse after therapy as well as to analyze the molecular mechanisms of therapeutic resistance targeting HER2. MMTV-human ErbB2 (HER2) mouse models have recently been established since the monoclonal antibody to HER2 (trastuzumab; Herceptin®) does not recognize the rat neu protein. It has been reported that early intervention with HER2 monoclonal antibody would be beneficial for preventing mammary carcinogenesis. MDA-7/IL-24 as well as naturally-occurring chemicals have also been tested using MMTV-neu models. Recent studies have shown that MMTV-neu models are useful to develop vaccines to HER2 for immunotherapy. The mouse models employing HER2/neu will be essential for future antibody or drug screenings to overcome resistance to trastuzumab or HER(2)-specific tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A. Fry
- The Department of Pathology, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157 USA
| | - Pankaj Taneja
- Department of Biotechnology, Sharda University, Knowledge Park III, Greater Noida 201306, India
| | - Kazushi Inoue
- The Department of Pathology, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157 USA
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6
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Boidot R, Branders S, Helleputte T, Rubio LI, Dupont P, Feron O. A generic cycling hypoxia-derived prognostic gene signature: application to breast cancer profiling. Oncotarget 2015; 5:6947-63. [PMID: 25216520 PMCID: PMC4196175 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.2285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Temporal and local fluctuations in O2 in tumors require adaptive mechanisms to support cancer cell survival and proliferation. The transcriptome associated with cycling hypoxia (CycHyp) could thus represent a prognostic biomarker of cancer progression. Methods We exposed 20 tumor cell lines to repeated periods of hypoxia/reoxygenation to determine a transcriptomic CycHyp signature and used clinical data sets from 2,150 breast cancer patients to estimate a prognostic Cox proportional hazard model to assess its prognostic performance. Results The CycHyp prognostic potential was validated in patients independently of the receptor status of the tumors. The discriminating capacity of the CycHyp signature was further increased in the ER+ HER2- patient populations including those with a node negative status under treatment (HR=3.16) or not (HR=5.54). The CycHyp prognostic signature outperformed a signature derived from continuous hypoxia and major prognostic metagenes (P<0.001). The CycHyp signature could also identify ER+HER2 node-negative breast cancer patients at high risk based on clinicopathologic criteria but who could have been spared from chemotherapy and inversely those patients classified at low risk based but who presented a negative outcome. Conclusions The CycHyp signature is prognostic of breast cancer and offers a unique decision making tool to complement anatomopathologic evaluation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romain Boidot
- Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique (IREC), Pole of Pharmacology and Therapeutics (FATH), Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium. These authors contribued equally to this work
| | - Samuel Branders
- Machine Learning Group, Institute of Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics (ICTEAM), Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. These authors contribued equally to this work
| | - Thibault Helleputte
- Machine Learning Group, Institute of Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics (ICTEAM), Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Laila Illan Rubio
- Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique (IREC), Pole of Pharmacology and Therapeutics (FATH), Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Pierre Dupont
- Machine Learning Group, Institute of Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics (ICTEAM), Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Olivier Feron
- Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique (IREC), Pole of Pharmacology and Therapeutics (FATH), Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium
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7
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Sivasubramaniyan K, Harichandan A, Schilbach K, Mack AF, Bedke J, Stenzl A, Kanz L, Niederfellner G, Bühring HJ. Expression of stage-specific embryonic antigen-4 (SSEA-4) defines spontaneous loss of epithelial phenotype in human solid tumor cells. Glycobiology 2015; 25:902-17. [PMID: 25978997 DOI: 10.1093/glycob/cwv032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2014] [Accepted: 05/11/2015] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Stage-specific embryonic antigen-4 (SSEA-4) is a glycosphingolipid, which is overexpressed in some cancers and has been linked to disease progression. However, little is known about the functions of SSEA-4 and the characteristics of SSEA-4 expressing tumor cells. Our studies identified SSEA-4 expression on a subpopulation of cells in many solid tumor cell lines but not in leukemic cell lines. Fluorescence-activated cell sorting-sorted SSEA-4(+) prostate cancer cells formed fibroblast-like colonies with limited cell-cell contacts, whereas SSEA-4(-) cells formed cobblestone-like epithelial colonies. Only colonies derived from SSEA-4(+) cells were enriched for pluripotent embryonic stem cell markers. Moreover, major epithelial cell-associated markers Claudin-7, E-cadherin, ESRP1 and GRHL2 were down-regulated in the SSEA-4(+) fraction of DU145 and HCT-116 cells. Similar to cell lines, SSEA-4(+) primary prostate tumor cells also showed down-regulation of epithelial cell-associated markers. In addition, they showed up-regulation of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition as well as mesenchymal markers. Furthermore, SSEA-4(+) cells escape from adhesive colonies spontaneously and form invadopodia-like migratory structures, in which SSEA-4, cortactin as well as active pPI3K, pAkt and pSrc are enriched and colocalized. Finally, SSEA-4(+) cells displayed strong tumorigenic ability and stable knockdown of SSEA-4 synthesis resulted in decreased cellular adhesion to different extracellular matrices. In conclusion, we introduce SSEA-4 as a novel marker to identify heterogeneous, invasive subpopulations of tumor cells. Moreover, increased cell-surface SSEA-4 expression is associated with the loss of cell-cell interactions and the gain of a migratory phenotype, suggesting an important role of SSEA-4 in cancer invasion by influencing cellular adhesion to the extracellular matrix.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kavitha Sivasubramaniyan
- Department of Internal Medicine II, Division of Hematology, Immunology, Oncology, Rheumatology and Pulmonology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Abhishek Harichandan
- Department of Internal Medicine II, Division of Hematology, Immunology, Oncology, Rheumatology and Pulmonology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany Department of Urology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Karin Schilbach
- Department of Pediatric Stem Cell Transplantation, University Children's Hospital, Tübingen 72076, Germany
| | - Andreas F Mack
- Institute of Clinical Anatomy and Cell Analysis, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jens Bedke
- Department of Urology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Arnulf Stenzl
- Department of Urology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Lothar Kanz
- Department of Internal Medicine II, Division of Hematology, Immunology, Oncology, Rheumatology and Pulmonology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Gerhard Niederfellner
- Discovery Oncology, Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Diagnostics GmbH, Penzberg, Germany
| | - Hans-Jörg Bühring
- Department of Internal Medicine II, Division of Hematology, Immunology, Oncology, Rheumatology and Pulmonology, University Clinic of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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8
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Liu JC, Voisin V, Wang S, Wang DY, Jones RA, Datti A, Uehling D, Al-awar R, Egan SE, Bader GD, Tsao M, Mak TW, Zacksenhaus E. Combined deletion of Pten and p53 in mammary epithelium accelerates triple-negative breast cancer with dependency on eEF2K. EMBO Mol Med 2014; 6:1542-60. [PMID: 25330770 PMCID: PMC4287974 DOI: 10.15252/emmm.201404402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2014] [Revised: 09/23/2014] [Accepted: 09/25/2014] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The tumor suppressors Pten and p53 are frequently lost in breast cancer, yet the consequences of their combined inactivation are poorly understood. Here, we show that mammary-specific deletion of Pten via WAP-Cre, which targets alveolar progenitors, induced tumors with shortened latency compared to those induced by MMTV-Cre, which targets basal/luminal progenitors. Combined Pten-p53 mutations accelerated formation of claudin-low, triple-negative-like breast cancer (TNBC) that exhibited hyper-activated AKT signaling and more mesenchymal features relative to Pten or p53 single-mutant tumors. Twenty-four genes that were significantly and differentially expressed between WAP-Cre:Pten/p53 and MMTV-Cre:Pten/p53 tumors predicted poor survival for claudin-low patients. Kinome screens identified eukaryotic elongation factor-2 kinase (eEF2K) inhibitors as more potent than PI3K/AKT/mTOR inhibitors on both mouse and human Pten/p53-deficient TNBC cells. Sensitivity to eEF2K inhibition correlated with AKT pathway activity. eEF2K monotherapy suppressed growth of Pten/p53-deficient TNBC xenografts in vivo and cooperated with doxorubicin to efficiently kill tumor cells in vitro. Our results identify a prognostic signature for claudin-low patients and provide a rationale for using eEF2K inhibitors for treatment of TNBC with elevated AKT signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeff C Liu
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Sharon Wang
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Dong-Yu Wang
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, Toronto, ON, Canada Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Robert A Jones
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Alessandro Datti
- SMART Laboratory for High-Throughput Screening Programs, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - David Uehling
- Drug Discovery Program, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Rima Al-awar
- Drug Discovery Program, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sean E Egan
- Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Gary D Bader
- The Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Ming Tsao
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Medical Biophysics, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Tak W Mak
- Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada SMART Laboratory for High-Throughput Screening Programs, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Medical Biophysics, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Eldad Zacksenhaus
- Division of Advanced Diagnostics, Toronto General Research Institute - University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Medical Biophysics, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
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