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Vellky JE, Kirkpatrick BJ, Gutgesell LC, Morales M, Brown RM, Wu Y, Maienschein-Cline M, Notardonato LD, Weinfeld MS, Nguyen RH, Brister E, Sverdlov M, Liu L, Xu Z, Kregel S, Nonn L, Vander Griend DJ, Reizine NM. ERBB3 Overexpression is Enriched in Diverse Patient Populations with Castration-sensitive Prostate Cancer and is Associated with a Unique AR Activity Signature. Clin Cancer Res 2024; 30:1530-1543. [PMID: 38306015 PMCID: PMC11016893 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-23-2161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2023] [Revised: 09/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
PURPOSE Despite successful clinical management of castration-sensitive prostate cancer (CSPC), the 5-year survival rate for men with castration-resistant prostate cancer is only 32%. Combination treatment strategies to prevent disease recurrence are increasing, albeit in biomarker-unselected patients. Identifying a biomarker in CSPC to stratify patients who will progress on standard-of-care therapy could guide therapeutic strategies. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Targeted deep sequencing was performed for the University of Illinois (UI) cohort (n = 30), and immunostaining was performed on a patient tissue microarray (n = 149). Bioinformatic analyses identified pathways associated with biomarker overexpression (OE) in the UI cohort, consolidated RNA sequencing samples accessed from Database of Genotypes and Phenotypes (n = 664), and GSE209954 (n = 68). Neutralizing antibody patritumab and ectopic HER3 OE were utilized for functional mechanistic experiments. RESULTS We identified ERBB3 OE in diverse patient populations with CSPC, where it was associated with advanced disease at diagnosis. Bioinformatic analyses showed a positive correlation between ERBB3 expression and the androgen response pathway despite low dihydrotestosterone and stable expression of androgen receptor (AR) transcript in Black/African American men. At the protein level, HER3 expression was negatively correlated with intraprostatic androgen in Black/African American men. Mechanistically, HER3 promoted enzalutamide resistance in prostate cancer cell line models and HER3-targeted therapy resensitized therapy-resistant prostate cancer cell lines to enzalutamide. CONCLUSIONS In diverse patient populations with CSPC, ERBB3 OE was associated with high AR signaling despite low intraprostatic androgen. Mechanistic studies demonstrated a direct link between HER3 and enzalutamide resistance. ERBB3 OE as a biomarker could thus stratify patients for intensification of therapy in castration-sensitive disease, including targeting HER3 directly to improve sensitivity to AR-targeted therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan E. Vellky
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- The University of Illinois Cancer Center, Chicago, Illinois
| | | | - Lisa C. Gutgesell
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Mathias Morales
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Ryan M. Brown
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Yaqi Wu
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Mark Maienschein-Cline
- Research Informatics Core, Research Resources Center, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Lucia D. Notardonato
- UI Health Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Michael S. Weinfeld
- UI Health Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Ryan H. Nguyen
- UI Health Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Eileen Brister
- Research Tissue Imaging Core, Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Maria Sverdlov
- Research Histology Core, Research Resource Center, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Li Liu
- The University of Illinois Cancer Center, Chicago, Illinois
- Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Ziqiao Xu
- The University of Illinois Cancer Center, Chicago, Illinois
- Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Steven Kregel
- Department of Cancer Biology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Larisa Nonn
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- The University of Illinois Cancer Center, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Donald J. Vander Griend
- Department of Pathology, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- The University of Illinois Cancer Center, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Natalie M. Reizine
- The University of Illinois Cancer Center, Chicago, Illinois
- UI Health Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
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Co-Targeting ErbB Receptors and the PI3K/AKT Axis in Androgen-Independent Taxane-Sensitive and Taxane-Resistant Human Prostate Cancer Cells. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14194626. [PMID: 36230550 PMCID: PMC9561990 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14194626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2022] [Revised: 09/17/2022] [Accepted: 09/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Advanced prostate cancer that has progressed after standard therapies such as hormone therapy and taxane-based chemotherapies is an invariably lethal disease state with limited treatment options. There remains an important need to continue to identify new treatment approaches for such patients. We used two cell culture models of prostate cancer that are resistant to hormonal therapy and chemotherapy, and which also manifest some characteristics that are often associated with advanced prostate cancer, such as neuroendocrine differentiation, to evaluate the potential anti-cancer effects of targeting the key molecules, ErbB receptors and AKT. Using several complementary approaches, we found that the concurrent targeting of ErbB receptors and AKT with specific inhibitors was more effective than targeting each of them individually, independent of the underlying molecular characteristics or relative degrees of resistance to the taxanes that defined the prostate cancer models that were studied. Enhanced anti-tumor responses occurred both in vitro and in vivo with dual targeting, with the consistent inhibition particularly of AKT occurring in both settings. These studies provide a framework to evaluate the role of signal pathway modulation as a potential therapeutic strategy in treatment-refractory prostate cancer. Abstract Using two representative models of androgen-independent prostate cancer (PCa), PC3 and DU145, and their respective paclitaxel- and docetaxel-resistant derivatives, we explored the anti-tumor activity of targeting the ErbB receptors and AKT using small-molecule kinase inhibitors. These cells manifest varying degrees of neuroendocrine differentiation characteristics and differ in their expression of functional PTEN. Although the specific downstream signaling events post the ErbB receptor and AKT co-targeting varied between the PC3- and DU145-lineage cells, synergistic anti-proliferative and enhanced pro-apoptotic responses occurred across the wild-type and the taxane-resistant cells, independent of their basal AKT activation state, their degree of paclitaxel- or docetaxel-resistance, or whether this resistance was mediated by the ATP Binding Cassette transport proteins. Dual targeting also led to enhanced anti-tumor responses in vivo, although there was pharmacodynamic discordance between the PCa cells in culture versus the tumor xenografts in terms of the relative activation and inhibition states of AKT and ERK under basal conditions and upon AKT and/or ErbB targeting. The consistent inhibition, particularly of AKT, occurred both in vitro and in vivo, independent of the underlying PTEN status. Thus, co-targeting AKT with ErbB, and possibly other partners, may be a useful strategy to explore further for potential therapeutic effect in advanced PCa.
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Liang Y, Chiu PKF, Zhu Y, Wong CYP, Xiong Q, Wang L, Teoh JYC, Cao Q, Wei Y, Ye DW, Tsui SKW, Ng CF. Whole-exome sequencing reveals a comprehensive germline mutation landscape and identifies twelve novel predisposition genes in Chinese prostate cancer patients. PLoS Genet 2022; 18:e1010373. [PMID: 36095024 PMCID: PMC9499300 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Prostate cancer is the most inheritable cancer with approximately 42% of disease risk attributed to inherited factors by studies of twins, indicating the importance of additional genetic screening to identify predisposition variants. However, only DNA damage repair (DDR) genes have been investigated thoroughly in prostate cancer. To determine the comprehensive germline mutation landscape in Chinese prostate cancer patients, we performed whole exome sequencing in 100 Han Chinese patients with prostate cancer in Hong Kong and identified deleterious germline mutations. A total of 36 deleterious germline variants in 25 genes were identified in 29% patients. Variants were found in eight pathways, including DNA methylation, DDR, and tyrosine-protein kinase. These findings were validated in an independent Chinese cohort of 167 patients with prostate cancer in Shanghai. Seven common deleterious-variant-containing genes were found in discovery cohort (7/25, 28%) and validation cohort (7/28, 25%) with three genes not described before (LDLR, MYH7 and SUGCT) and four genes previously reported (FANCI, ITGA6, PABPC1 and RAD54B). When comparing with that of a cohort of East Asian healthy individuals, 12 non-DDR novel potential predisposition genes (ADGRG1, CHD4, DNMT3A, ERBB3, GRHL1, HMBS, LDLR, MYH7, MYO6, NT5C2, NUP98 and SUGCT) were identified using the discovery and validation cohorts, which have not been previously reported in prostate cancer patients in all ethnic groups. Taken together, this study reveals a comprehensive germline mutation landscape in Chinese prostate cancer patients and discovers 12 novel non-DDR predisposition genes to lay the groundwork for the optimization of genetic screening. Prostate cancer is the most inheritable cancer with about 42% of disease risk attributed to inherited factors, indicating the importance of additional genetic screening to identify predisposition variants. However, only DNA damage repair (DDR) genes have been studied thoroughly in prostate cancer. To determine the comprehensive germline mutation landscape in Chinese prostate cancer patients, we performed whole exome sequencing in 100 Han Chinese patients with prostate cancer in Hong Kong and identified deleterious germline mutations. A total of 36 deleterious germline variants in 25 genes were identified in 29% patients. Variants were found in eight pathways, including DNA methylation, DDR, and tyrosine-protein kinase. These findings were validated in an independent Chinese cohort of 167 patients with prostate cancer in Shanghai. Seven common deleterious-variant-containing genes were found in discovery cohort and validation cohort with three genes not described before (LDLR, MYH7 and SUGCT) and four genes previously reported. When comparing with that of a cohort of East Asian healthy individuals, 12 non-DDR novel potential predisposition genes were identified using the discovery and validation cohorts, which have not been previously reported in prostate cancer patients in all ethnic groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yonghao Liang
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Peter Ka-Fung Chiu
- S.H. Ho Urology Centre, Department of Surgery, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Yao Zhu
- Department of Urology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, China
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Christine Yim-Ping Wong
- S.H. Ho Urology Centre, Department of Surgery, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Qing Xiong
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Hong Kong Bioinformatics Centre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Lin Wang
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Jeremy Yuen-Chun Teoh
- S.H. Ho Urology Centre, Department of Surgery, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Qin Cao
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Hong Kong Bioinformatics Centre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Yu Wei
- Department of Urology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, China
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ding-Wei Ye
- Department of Urology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, China
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Stephen Kwok-Wing Tsui
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Hong Kong Bioinformatics Centre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- * E-mail: (SK-WT); (C-FN)
| | - Chi-Fai Ng
- S.H. Ho Urology Centre, Department of Surgery, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- * E-mail: (SK-WT); (C-FN)
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Transcriptomic Signature and Growth Factor Regulation of Castration-Tolerant Prostate Luminal Progenitor Cells. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14153775. [PMID: 35954439 PMCID: PMC9367377 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14153775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/28/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: The molecular and cellular mechanisms that drive castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) remain poorly understood. LSCmed cells defines an FACS-enriched population of castration-tolerant luminal progenitor cells that has been proposed to promote tumorigenesis and CRPC in Pten-deficient mice. The goals of this study were to assess the relevance of LSCmed cells through the analysis of their molecular proximity with luminal progenitor-like cell clusters identified by single-cell (sc)RNA-seq analyses of mouse and human prostates, and to investigate their regulation by in silico-predicted growth factors present in the prostatic microenvironment. Methods: Several bioinformatic pipelines were used for pan-transcriptomic analyses. LSCmed cells isolated by cell sorting from healthy and malignant mouse prostates were characterized using RT-qPCR, immunofluorescence and organoid assays. Results: LSCmed cells match (i) mouse luminal progenitor cell clusters identified in scRNA-seq analyses for which we provide a common 15-gene signature including the previously identified LSCmed marker Krt4, and (ii) Club/Hillock cells of the human prostate. This transcriptional overlap was maintained in cancer contexts. EGFR/ERBB4, IGF-1R and MET pathways were identified as autocrine/paracrine regulators of progenitor, proliferation and differentiation properties of LSCmed cells. The functional redundancy of these signaling pathways allows them to bypass the effect of receptor-targeted pharmacological inhibitors. Conclusions: Based on transcriptomic profile and pharmacological resistance to monotherapies that failed in CRPC patients, this study supports LSCmed cells as a relevant model to investigate the role of castration-tolerant progenitor cells in human prostate cancer progression.
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High Keratin-7 Expression in Benign Peri-Tumoral Prostatic Glands Is Predictive of Bone Metastasis Onset and Prostate Cancer-Specific Mortality. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14071623. [PMID: 35406395 PMCID: PMC8997075 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14071623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND New predictive biomarkers are needed to accurately predict metastasis-free survival (MFS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) in localized prostate cancer (PC). Keratin-7 (KRT7) overexpression has been associated with poor prognosis in several cancers and is described as a novel prostate progenitor marker in the mouse prostate. METHODS KRT7 expression was evaluated in prostatic cell lines and in human tissue by immunohistochemistry (IHC, on advanced PC, n = 91) and immunofluorescence (IF, on localized PC, n = 285). The KRT7 mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) was quantified in different compartments by digital analysis and correlated to clinical endpoints in the localized PC cohort. RESULTS KRT7 is expressed in prostatic cell lines and found in the basal and supra-basal compartment from healthy prostatic glands and benign peri-tumoral glands from localized PC. The KRT7 staining is lost in luminal cells from localized tumors and found as an aberrant sporadic staining (2.2%) in advanced PC. In the localized PC cohort, high KRT7 MFI above the 80th percentile in the basal compartment was significantly and independently correlated with MFS and CSS, and with hypertrophic basal cell phenotype. CONCLUSION High KRT7 expression in benign glands is an independent biomarker of MFS and CSS, and its expression is lost in tumoral cells. These results require further validation on larger cohorts.
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Yan Y, Yeon SY, Qian C, You S, Yang W. On the Road to Accurate Protein Biomarkers in Prostate Cancer Diagnosis and Prognosis: Current Status and Future Advances. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:13537. [PMID: 34948334 PMCID: PMC8703658 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222413537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Prostate cancer (PC) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among men worldwide. Molecular biomarkers work in conjunction with existing clinicopathologic tools to help physicians decide who to biopsy, re-biopsy, treat, or re-treat. The past decade has witnessed the commercialization of multiple PC protein biomarkers with improved performance, remarkable progress in proteomic technologies for global discovery and targeted validation of novel protein biomarkers from clinical specimens, and the emergence of novel, promising PC protein biomarkers. In this review, we summarize these advances and discuss the challenges and potential solutions for identifying and validating clinically useful protein biomarkers in PC diagnosis and prognosis. The identification of multi-protein biomarkers with high sensitivity and specificity, as well as their integration with clinicopathologic parameters, imaging, and other molecular biomarkers, bodes well for optimal personalized management of PC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiwu Yan
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; (Y.Y.); (S.Y.Y.); (C.Q.); (S.Y.)
| | - Su Yeon Yeon
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; (Y.Y.); (S.Y.Y.); (C.Q.); (S.Y.)
| | - Chen Qian
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; (Y.Y.); (S.Y.Y.); (C.Q.); (S.Y.)
| | - Sungyong You
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; (Y.Y.); (S.Y.Y.); (C.Q.); (S.Y.)
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Wei Yang
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; (Y.Y.); (S.Y.Y.); (C.Q.); (S.Y.)
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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