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Yang SY, Liao L, Hu SY, Deng L, Andriani L, Zhang TM, Zhang YL, Ma XY, Zhang FL, Liu YY, Li DQ. ETHE1 Accelerates Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Metastasis by Activating GCN2/eIF2α/ATF4 Signaling. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:14566. [PMID: 37834012 PMCID: PMC10572406 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241914566] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Revised: 09/10/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most fatal subtype of breast cancer; however, effective treatment strategies for TNBC are lacking. Therefore, it is important to explore the mechanism of TNBC metastasis and identify its therapeutic targets. Dysregulation of ETHE1 leads to ethylmalonic encephalopathy in humans; however, the role of ETHE1 in TNBC remains elusive. Stable cell lines with ETHE1 overexpression or knockdown were constructed to explore the biological functions of ETHE1 during TNBC progression in vitro and in vivo. Mass spectrometry was used to analyze the molecular mechanism through which ETHE1 functions in TNBC progression. ETHE1 had no impact on TNBC cell proliferation and xenograft tumor growth but promoted TNBC cell migration and invasion in vitro and lung metastasis in vivo. The effect of ETHE1 on TNBC cell migratory potential was independent of its enzymatic activity. Mechanistic investigations revealed that ETHE1 interacted with eIF2α and enhanced its phosphorylation by promoting the interaction between eIF2α and GCN2. Phosphorylated eIF2α in turn upregulated the expression of ATF4, a transcriptional activator of genes involved in cell migration and tumor metastasis. Notably, inhibition of eIF2α phosphorylation through ISRIB or ATF4 knockdown partially abolished the tumor-promoting effect of ETHE1 overexpression. ETHE1 has a functional and mechanistic role in TNBC metastasis and offers a new therapeutic strategy for targeting ETHE1-propelled TNBC using ISRIB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shao-Ying Yang
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (S.-Y.Y.); (L.L.); (S.-Y.H.); (L.D.); (T.-M.Z.)
- Cancer Institute, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (Y.-L.Z.); (F.-L.Z.)
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Li Liao
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (S.-Y.Y.); (L.L.); (S.-Y.H.); (L.D.); (T.-M.Z.)
- Cancer Institute, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (Y.-L.Z.); (F.-L.Z.)
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Shu-Yuan Hu
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (S.-Y.Y.); (L.L.); (S.-Y.H.); (L.D.); (T.-M.Z.)
| | - Ling Deng
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (S.-Y.Y.); (L.L.); (S.-Y.H.); (L.D.); (T.-M.Z.)
| | - Lisa Andriani
- Department of Breast Surgery, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (L.A.); (X.-Y.M.)
| | - Tai-Mei Zhang
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (S.-Y.Y.); (L.L.); (S.-Y.H.); (L.D.); (T.-M.Z.)
| | - Yin-Ling Zhang
- Cancer Institute, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (Y.-L.Z.); (F.-L.Z.)
| | - Xiao-Yan Ma
- Department of Breast Surgery, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (L.A.); (X.-Y.M.)
| | - Fang-Lin Zhang
- Cancer Institute, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (Y.-L.Z.); (F.-L.Z.)
| | - Ying-Ying Liu
- Department of Breast Surgery, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (L.A.); (X.-Y.M.)
| | - Da-Qiang Li
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (S.-Y.Y.); (L.L.); (S.-Y.H.); (L.D.); (T.-M.Z.)
- Cancer Institute, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (Y.-L.Z.); (F.-L.Z.)
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
- Department of Breast Surgery, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China; (L.A.); (X.-Y.M.)
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Breast Cancer, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
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Chen E, Mo Y, Yi J, Liu J, Luo T, Li Z, Lin Z, Hu Y, Zou Z, Liu J. A novel hepatocellular carcinoma-specific mTORC1-related signature for anticipating prognosis and immunotherapy. Aging (Albany NY) 2023; 15:7933-7955. [PMID: 37589508 PMCID: PMC10497017 DOI: 10.18632/aging.204862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023]
Abstract
Tumor oncogenesis, cancer metastasis, and immune evasion were substantially impacted by the mammalian target of the rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) pathway. However, in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), no mTORC1 signaling-based gene signature has ever been published. mTORC1 scores were computed employing a single sample gene set enrichment analysis based on databases including the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). The PAG1, LHFPL2, and FABP5 expression levels were obtained to construct a mTORC1 pathway-related model. In two databases, the overall survival (OS) rate was shorter for high-mTORC1 score patients compared to those with low scores. The activation of TFs in the group with high risk was enhanced, such as the HIF-1 pathway. Additionally, it was discovered that a high mTORC1 score was linked to an immune exclusion phenotype and enhanced immunosuppressive cell infiltration. Notably, it was discovered that high-mTORC1 scores patients had poorer immunotherapeutic results and might not gain benefit from immunotherapy. When compared to the low HCC metastatic cell lines, the high HCC metastatic cell lines have overexpressed levels of PAG1, LHFPL2, and FABP5 expression. The expression of PAG1, LHFPL2, and FABP5 was inhibited by the MAPK and mTORC1 pathway inhibitors. Our study identified mTORC1 score signature can aid in the development of individualized immunotherapy protocols and predict the HCC patients' prognoses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erbao Chen
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Yuqian Mo
- School of Public Health, Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, China
| | - Jing Yi
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Jie Liu
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Ting Luo
- Operating Room, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Zheng Li
- Department of Ophthalmology, Affiliated Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zewei Lin
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Yibing Hu
- Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhilin Zou
- Department of Ophthalmology, Affiliated Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jikui Liu
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
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Wang Y, Huang S, Zhang Y, Cheng Y, Dai L, Gao W, Feng Z, Tao J, Zhang Y. Construction and validation of a prognostic model based on autophagy-related genes for hepatocellular carcinoma in the Asian population. BMC Genomics 2023; 24:357. [PMID: 37370041 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-023-09367-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which has a complex pathogenesis and poor prognosis, is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. Hepatitis virus B infection is the most common cause of HCC in Asian patients. Autophagy is the process of digestion and degradation, and studies have shown that autophagy-associated effects are closely related to the development of HCC. In this study, we aimed to construct a prognostic model based on autophagy-related genes (ARGs) for the Asian HCC population to provide new ideas for the clinical management of HCC in the Asian population. METHODS The clinical information and transcriptome data of Asian patients with HCC were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and 206 ARGs were downloaded from the human autophagy database (HADB). We performed differential and Cox regression analyses to construct a risk score model. The accuracy of the model was validated by using the Kaplan-Meier (K-M) survival curve, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, and univariate and multivariate Cox independent prognostic analyses. The results Thirteen ARGs that were significantly associated with prognosis were finally identified by univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses. The K-M survival curves showed that the survival rate of the low-risk group was significantly higher than that of the high-risk group (p < 0.001), and the multi-indicator ROC curves further demonstrated the predictive ability of the model (AUC = 0.877). CONCLUSION The risk score model based on ARGs was effective in predicting the prognosis of Asian patients with HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanjie Wang
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Sijia Huang
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Yingtian Zhang
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Yaping Cheng
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Liya Dai
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Wenwen Gao
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhengyang Feng
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China
| | - Jialong Tao
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China.
| | - Yusong Zhang
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, San Xiang Road No.1055, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, 215004, People's Republic of China.
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Hung YW, Ouyang C, Ping X, Qi Y, Wang YC, Kung HJ, Ann DK. Extracellular arginine availability modulates eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation and heme oxygenase 1 translation for cellular homeostasis. J Biomed Sci 2023; 30:32. [PMID: 37217939 PMCID: PMC10201738 DOI: 10.1186/s12929-023-00924-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Nutrient limitations often lead to metabolic stress during cancer initiation and progression. To combat this stress, the enzyme heme oxygenase 1 (HMOX1, commonly known as HO-1) is thought to play a key role as an antioxidant. However, there is a discrepancy between the level of HO-1 mRNA and its protein, particularly in cells under stress. O-linked β-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) modification of proteins (O-GlcNAcylation) is a recently discovered cellular signaling mechanism that rivals phosphorylation in many proteins, including eukaryote translation initiation factors (eIFs). The mechanism by which eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation regulates translation of HO-1 during extracellular arginine shortage (ArgS) remains unclear. METHODS We used mass spectrometry to study the relationship between O-GlcNAcylation and Arg availability in breast cancer BT-549 cells. We validated eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation through site-specific mutagenesis and azido sugar N-azidoacetylglucosamine-tetraacylated labeling. We then evaluated the effect of eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation on cell recovery, migration, accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and metabolic labeling during protein synthesis under different Arg conditions. RESULTS Our research identified eIF2α, eIF2β, and eIF2γ, as key O-GlcNAcylation targets in the absence of Arg. We found that O-GlcNAcylation of eIF2α plays a crucial role in regulating antioxidant defense by suppressing the translation of the enzyme HO-1 during Arg limitation. Our study showed that O-GlcNAcylation of eIF2α at specific sites suppresses HO-1 translation despite high levels of HMOX1 transcription. We also found that eliminating eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation through site-specific mutagenesis improves cell recovery, migration, and reduces ROS accumulation by restoring HO-1 translation. However, the level of the metabolic stress effector ATF4 is not affected by eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation under these conditions. CONCLUSIONS Overall, this study provides new insights into how ArgS fine-tunes the control of translation initiation and antioxidant defense through eIF2α O-GlcNAcylation, which has potential biological and clinical implications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Wen Hung
- Department of Diabetes Complications and Metabolism, Arthur Riggs Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA, 91010-3000, USA
- Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | - Ching Ouyang
- Department of Computational and Quantitative Medicine, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | - Xiaoli Ping
- Department of Diabetes Complications and Metabolism, Arthur Riggs Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA, 91010-3000, USA
| | - Yue Qi
- Department of Diabetes Complications and Metabolism, Arthur Riggs Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA, 91010-3000, USA
| | - Yi-Chang Wang
- Department of Diabetes Complications and Metabolism, Arthur Riggs Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA, 91010-3000, USA
| | - Hsing-Jien Kung
- Cancer Center, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, 95817, USA
| | - David K Ann
- Department of Diabetes Complications and Metabolism, Arthur Riggs Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA, 91010-3000, USA.
- Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA.
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Zhou Q, Chen L, Yang L, Zhou H, Chen Y, Guo Y. Integrated systemic analysis of FAM72A to identify its clinical relevance, biological function, and relationship to drug sensitivity in hepatocellular carcinoma. Front Oncol 2022; 12:1046473. [DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1046473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BackgroundThe family with sequence similarity 72 member A (FAM72A) protein has been identified as an effector of multiple pathological processes in many cancers. The value of FAM72A in HCC remains largely unknown.MethodsData from TCGA-LIHC, ICGC-LIRI-JP, IMvigor210, cBioPortal, GeneMANIA, and TIMER were processed and visualized to explore the association between FAM72A and the prognosis, stemness phenotype, mutational burden, immune cell infiltration, and drug sensitivity in HCC patients. Potential pathways were also revealed. Furthermore, we experimentally verified the results in vivo and in vitro using immunohistochemistry, western blotting, and CCK-8 assays.ResultsFirst, FAM72A mRNA expression was significantly upregulated in HCC. High FAM72A expression was independently associated with a poor prognosis. Experimental validation confirmed that FAM72A was remarkably overexpressed in HCC patients and mice. Moreover, FAM72A knockdown suppressed HCC cell proliferation. In addition, the frequency of TP53 mutations was significantly higher in the high FAM72A expression group. Subsequently, the enrichment analysis revealed that FAM72A was closely related to immune processes and mTOR pathways. Silencing FAM72A increased the expression levels of mTOR in HCC cell lines. The FAM72A-mTOR pathway was strongly associated with a poor prognosis for patients with HCC. Patients with high FAM72A expression levels might be more resistant to sorafenib. Furthermore, the expression of FAM72A and mTOR was significantly associated with the abundance of some tumor-infiltrating immune cells, especially CD4+ T cells. Finally, patients with high levels of FAM72A and mTOR were more sensitive to immunotherapy.ConclusionsFAM72A, a member of the FAM72 family, might be a prognostic and immunotherapeutic target for HCC patients.
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Integrin α2 and β1 Cross-Communication with mTOR/AKT and the CDK-Cyclin Axis in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14102430. [PMID: 35626034 PMCID: PMC9139686 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14102430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression depends on two major processes, tumor growth and invasion. The present study investigated how these events are linked. A panel of HCC cell lines were stimulated with insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1) and the biological behavior was evaluated. IGF1 activated the proliferation and invasion cascade by altering the expression level of integrin α subtypes, which were associated with the AKT-mTOR pathway and the CDK-Cyclin axis. We assume that HCC progression is controlled by a fine-tuned network between IGF1 driven integrin signaling, the Akt-mTOR pathway, and the CDK-Cyclin axis. Concerted targeting of these pathways may, therefore, become an innovative option to prevent cancer dissemination. Abstract Integrin receptors contribute to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) invasion, while AKT-mTOR signaling controls mitosis. The present study was designed to explore the links between integrins and the AKT-mTOR pathway and the CDK-Cyclin axis. HCC cell lines (HepG2, Huh7, Hep3B) were stimulated with soluble collagen or Matrigel to activate integrins, or with insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) to activate AKT-mTOR. HCC growth, proliferation, adhesion, and chemotaxis were evaluated. AKT/mTOR-related proteins, proteins of the CDK-Cyclin axis, focal adhesion kinase (FAK), and integrin-linked kinase (ILK) were determined following IGF1-stimulation or integrin knockdown. Stimulation with collagen or Matrigel increased tumor cell growth and proliferation. This was associated with significant alteration of the integrins α2, αV, and β1. Blockade of these integrins led to cell cycle arrest in G2/M and diminished the number of tumor cell clones. Knocking down the integrins α2 or β1 suppressed ILK, reduced FAK-phosphorylation and diminished AKT/mTOR, as well as the proteins of the CDK-Cyclin axis. Activating the cells with IGF1 enhanced the expression of the integrins α2, αV, β1, activated FAK, and increased tumor cell adhesion and chemotaxis. Blocking the AKT pathway canceled the enhancing effect of IGF on the integrins α2 and β1. These findings reveal that HCC growth, proliferation, and invasion are controlled by a fine-tuned network between α2/β1-FAK signaling, the AKT-mTOR pathway, and the CDK–Cyclin axis. Concerted blockade of the integrin α2/β1 complex along with AKT-mTOR signaling could, therefore, provide an option to prevent progressive dissemination of HCC.
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