Prostate-specific loss of UXT promotes cancer progression

Regulation of epithelial cell differentiation by the Ubiquitous expressed transcript isoform 1 in ulcerative colitis

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Mucosal healing has emerged as a desirable treatment goal for patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Healing of mucosal wounds involves epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation, and Y-box transcription factor ZONAB has recently been identified as the key modulator of intestinal epithelial restitution.

METHODS

We studied the characteristics of UXT-V1 expression in UC patients using immunohistochemistry and qPCR. The functional role of UXT-V1 in the colonic epithelium was investigated using lentivirus-mediated shRNA in vitro and ex vivo. Through endogenous Co-immunoprecipitation and LC-MS/MS, we identified ZONAB as a UXT-V1-interactive protein.

RESULTS

Herein, we report that UXT-V1 promotes differentiation of intestinal epithelial cells by regulating the nuclear translocation of ZONAB. UXT-V1 was upregulated in the intestinal epithelia of UC patients compared with that of healthy controls. Knocking down UXT-V1 in NCM-460 cells led to the enrichment of pathways associated with proliferation and differentiation. Furthermore, the absence of UXT-V1 in cultured intestinal epithelial cells and colonic organoids inhibited differentiation to the goblet cell phenotype. Mechanistically, the loss of UXT-V1 in the intestinal epithelial cells allowed nuclear translocation of ZONAB, wherein it regulated the transcription of differentiation-related genes, including AML1 and KLF4.

CONCLUSION

Taken together, our study reveals a potential role of UXT-V1 in regulating epithelial cell differentiation, proving a molecular basis for mucosal healing in UC.

The role of UXT in tumors and prospects for its application in hepatocellular carcinoma

UXT is widely expressed in human and mouse tissues and aberrantly expressed in various tumor tissues. UXT may play a pro-cancer or tumor suppressor role in different tumor types and microenvironments with different mechanisms of action. Studies have shown that UXT can interact with related receptors to exert its functions and affect tumor proliferation and metastasis, leading to a poor prognosis when the biological functions of these tumors are changed. Interestingly, the signaling pathways and mechanism-related molecules that interact with UXT are closely related to the occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) during disease progression. This article reviews the research progress of UXT and prospects for its application in HCC, with the aim of providing possible scientific suggestions for the basic research, diagnosis and treatment of HCC.

A comprehensive analysis of prefoldins and their implication in cancer

Prefoldins (PFDNs) are evolutionary conserved co-chaperones, initially discovered in archaea but universally present in eukaryotes. PFDNs are prevalently organized into hetero-hexameric complexes. Although they have been overlooked since their discovery and their functions remain elusive, several reports indicate they act as co-chaperones escorting misfolded or non-native proteins to group II chaperonins. Unlike the eukaryotic PFDNs which interact with cytoskeletal components, the archaeal PFDNs can bind and stabilize a wide range of substrates, possibly due to their great structural diversity. The discovery of the unconventional RPB5 interactor (URI) PFDN-like complex (UPC) suggests that PFDNs have versatile functions and are required for different cellular processes, including an important role in cancer. Here, we summarize their functions across different species. Moreover, a comprehensive analysis of PFDNs genomic alterations across cancer types by using large-scale cancer genomic data indicates that PFDNs are a new class of non-mutated proteins significantly overexpressed in some cancer types.

HOXD9 transcriptionally induced UXT facilitate breast cancer progression via epigenetic modification of RND3

BACKGROUND

Ubiquitously expressed transcript (UXT) is a prefoldin-like protein. It was reported that UXT played vital role in several cancer types. However, functional role of UXT in breast cancer need further investigation.

METHODS

mRNA level or protein level of were determined by qRT-PCR or western blots. Proliferation of breast cancer cells was evaluated by CCK-8 assay and EdU assay. Migrative and invasive ability of cells were determined by wound healing assay and transwell assay. Transcriptional activation of UXT was determined by dual luciferase activity. The enrichment of H3K27me3 and EZH2 on the promoter of RND3 was evaluated by ChIP assay. The methylation of RND3 promoter was determined by MSP assay. In vivo function of UXT was evaluated by xenograft model.

RESULTS

Our results indicated that UXT was elevated in breast cancer and associated with poor prognosis. HOXD9 elevated expression of UXT via transcriptional activation. UXT knockdown impaired the proliferation, migration and invasion. Rescue experiments suggested that UXT promoted malignant phenotypes of breast cancer cells via epigenetically repressing RND3. Moreover, UXT promoted tumorigeneses and metastasis of breast cancer cell in vivo.

CONCLUSION

Inhibition of UXT impaired proliferation and metastasis of cancer cell via promoting RND3. Moreover, UXT epigenetically repressed the expression of RND3 via recruiting EZH2 in the promoter of RND3.

New prognostic markers revealed by RNA-Seq transcriptome analysis after MYC silencing in a metastatic gastric cancer cell line

MYC overexpression is considered a driver event in gastric cancer (GC), and is frequently correlated with poor prognosis and metastasis. In this study, we evaluated the prognostic value of genes upregulated by MYC in patients with GC. Metastatic GC cells (AGP01) characterized by MYC amplification, were transfected with siRNAs targeting MYC. RNA-seq was performed in silenced and non-silenced AGP01 cells. Among the differentially expressed genes, CIAPIN1, MTA2, and UXT were validated using qRT-PCR, western blot, and immunohistochemistry in gastric tissues of 213 patients with GC; and their expressions were correlated with clinicopathological and survival data. High mRNA and protein levels of CIAPIN1, MTA2, and UXT were strongly associated with advanced GC stages (P < 0.0001). However, only CIAPIN1 and UXT gene expressions were able to predict distant metastases in patients with early-stage GC (P < 0.0001), with high sensitivity (> 92%) and specificity (> 90%). Overall survival rate of patients with overexpressed CIAPIN1 or UXT was significantly lower (P < 0.0001). In conclusion, CIAPIN1 and UXT may serve as potential molecular markers for GC prognosis.