Gemcitabine-induced heparanase promotes aggressiveness of pancreatic cancer cells via activating EGFR signaling

Heparanase promotes malignant phenotypes of human oral squamous carcinoma cells by regulating the epithelial-mesenchymal transition-related molecules and infiltrated levels of natural killer cells

OBJECTIVES

The aim of the present study was to explore the functional role of heparanase (HPSE) and investigate the effect of HPSE on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and Tumor-infiltrating activated natural killer cells in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

human oral squamous carcinoma (SCC-25) cells were transfected with HPSE-specific small interfering RNA. Cell Counting Kit-8 assay was performed to examine cell proliferation, while flow cytometry was performed to analyze the cell cycle. Scratch assay was conducted to analyze cell migration, followed by Transwell assay to determine cell invasion. Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction and Western-blot assays were performed to measure epithelial-mesenchymal transition protein expression. RNA Sequencing analysis and tumor-infiltrating immune cells estimation were performed to elucidate the effect of HPSE on OSCC.

RESULTS

Knockdown of HPSE expression decreased the proliferation rate of SCC-25 cells resulting in a significant elevation in cell percentage at the Gap phase 0/Gap phase 1 phase by suppressed cell migration and invasion. The E-cadherin messenger RNA and protein expression increased while Snail and Vimentin expression decreased. RNA Sequencing analysis performed between small interfering RNA and negative control groups identified 42 differentially expressed genes, such as syndecan binding protein, RAB11A, member RAS oncogene family, and DDB1 and CUL4 associated factor 15.

CONCLUSIONS

These results indicated that knockdown of HPSE suppressed SCC-25 cell proliferation, invasion, migration, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition, possibly via syndecan binding protein and RAB11A, member RAS oncogene family. Moreover, HPSE regulates the infiltrated levels of natural killer cells activated, possibly via DDB1 and CUL4 associated factor 15.

Potential roles of heparanase in cancer therapy: Current trends and future direction

Heparanase (HPSE; heparanase-1) is an endo-β-glucuronidase capable of degrading the carbohydrate moiety of heparan sulfate proteoglycans, thus modulating and facilitating the remodeling of the extracellular matrix and basement membrane. HPSE activity is strongly associated with major human pathological complications, including but not limited to tumor progress and angiogenesis. Several lines of literature have shown that overexpression of HPSE leads to enhanced tumor growth and metastatic transmission, as well as poor prognosis. Gene silencing of HPSE or treatment of tumor with compounds that block HPSE activity are shown to remarkably attenuate tumor progression. Therefore, targeting HPSE is considered as a potential therapeutical strategy for the treatment of cancer. Intriguingly, recent findings disclose that heparanase-2 (HPSE-2), a close homolog of HPSE but lacking enzymatic activity, can also regulate antitumor mechanisms. Given the pleiotropic roles of HPSE, further investigation is in demand to determine the precise mechanism of regulating action of HPSE in different cancer settings. In this review, we first summarize the current understanding of HPSE, such as its structure, subcellular localization, and tissue distribution. Furthermore, we systematically review the pro- and antitumorigenic roles and mechanisms of HPSE in cancer progress. In addition, we delineate HPSE inhibitors that have entered clinical trials and their therapeutic potential.

Heparanase, cell signaling, and viral infections

Heparanase (HPSE) is a multifunctional protein endowed with many non-enzymatic functions and a unique enzymatic activity as an endo-β-D-glucuronidase. The latter allows it to serve as a key modulator of extracellular matrix (ECM) via a well-regulated cleavage of heparan sulfate side chains of proteoglycans at cell surfaces. The cleavage and associated changes at the ECM cause release of multiple signaling molecules with important cellular and pathological functions. New and emerging data suggest that both enzymatic as well as non-enzymatic functions of HPSE are important for health and illnesses including viral infections and virally induced cancers. This review summarizes recent findings on the roles of HPSE in activation, inhibition, or bioavailability of key signaling molecules such as AKT, VEGF, MAPK-ERK, and EGFR, which are known regulators of common viral infections in immune and non-immune cell types. Altogether, our review provides a unique overview of HPSE in cell-survival signaling pathways and how they relate to viral infections.

Heparanase Promotes Tumor Growth and Liver Metastasis of Colorectal Cancer Cells by Activating the p38/MMP1 Axis

Heparanase (HPSE), the only known mammalian endoglycosidase responsible for heparan sulfate cleavage, is a multi-faceted protein affecting multiple malignant behaviors in cancer cells. In this study, we examined the expression of HPSE in different colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines. Gene manipulation was applied to reveal the effect of HPSE on proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of CRC. Knockdown of HPSE resulted in decreased cell proliferation in vitro, whereas overexpression of HPSE resulted in the opposite phenomenon. Consistently, in vivo data showed that knockdown of HPSE suppressed tumor growth of CRC. Furthermore, knockdown of HPSE inhibited invasion and liver metastasis in vitro and in vivo. RNA-sequencing analysis was performed upon knockdown of HPSE, and several pathways were identified that are closely associated with invasion and metastasis. In addition, HPSE is positively correlated with MMP1 expression in CRC, and HPSE regulates MMP1 expression via p38 MAPK signaling pathway. In conclusion, our data demonstrate that HPSE knockdown attenuated tumor growth and liver metastasis in CRC, implying that HPSE might serve as a potential therapeutic target in the treatment of CRC.