MicroRNA-133a inhibits the proliferation of non-small cell lung cancer by targeting YES1

Circular RNA in Non-small Cell Lung Carcinoma: Identification of Targets and New Treatment Modalities

Despite availability of several treatment options for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, targeted therapy and immunotherapy, the survival rate of patients for five years is in the range of 22%. Therefore, identification of new targets and treatment modalities for this disease is an important issue. In this context, we screened the PubMed database for up-regulated circular RNAs (circRNAs) which promote growth of NSCLC in preclinical models in vitro as well as in vivo xenograft models in immuno-compromised mice. This approach led to potential targets for further validation and inhibition with small molecules or antibody-derived entities. In case of preclinical validation, the corresponding circRNAs can be inhibited with small interfering RNAs (siRNA) or short hairpin RNAs (shRNA). The identified circRNAs act by sponging microRNAs (miRs) preventing cleavage of the mRNA of the corresponding targets. We identified nine circRNAs up-regulating transmembrane receptors, five circRNAs increasing expression of secreted proteins, nine circRNAs promoting expression of components of signaling pathways, six circRNAs involved in regulation of splicing and RNA processing, six circRNAs up-regulating actin-related and RNA processing components, seven circRNAs increasing the steady-state levels of transcription factors, two circRNAs increasing high-mobility group proteins, four circRNAs increasing components of the epigenetic modification system and three circRNAs up-regulating protein components of additional systems.

A renaissance for YES in cancer

Most of our understanding regarding the involvement of SRC-family tyrosine kinases in cancer has stemmed from studies focused on the prototypical SRC oncogene. However, emerging research has shed light on the important role of YES signaling in oncogenic transformation, tumor growth, metastatic progression, and resistance to various cancer therapies. Clinical evidence indicates that dysregulated expression or activity of YES is a frequent occurrence in human cancers and is associated with unfavorable outcomes. These findings provide a compelling rationale for specifically targeting YES in certain cancer subtypes. Here, we review the crucial role of YES in cancer and discuss the challenges associated with translating preclinical observations into effective YES-targeted therapies.

CRISPR/Cas9 application in cancer therapy: a pioneering genome editing tool

The progress of genetic engineering in the 1970s brought about a paradigm shift in genome editing technology. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) system is a flexible means to target and modify particular DNA sequences in the genome. Several applications of CRISPR/Cas9 are presently being studied in cancer biology and oncology to provide vigorous site-specific gene editing to enhance its biological and clinical uses. CRISPR's flexibility and ease of use have enabled the prompt achievement of almost any preferred alteration with greater efficiency and lower cost than preceding modalities. Also, CRISPR/Cas9 technology has recently been applied to improve the safety and efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapies and defeat tumor cell resistance to conventional treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The current review summarizes the application of CRISPR/Cas9 in cancer therapy. We also discuss the present obstacles and contemplate future possibilities in this context.

miR-133a targets YES1 to reduce cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer by regulating cell autophagy

Background

Accumulating evidence has revealed that aberrant microRNA (miRNA) expression can affect the development of chemotherapy drug resistance by modulating the expression of relevant target proteins. Emerging evidence has demonstrated that miR-133a participates in the tumorigenesis of various cancers. However, whether miR-133a is associated with cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer remains unclear.

Objective

To investigate the role of miR-133a in the development of cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer.

Methods

MiR-133a expression in cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cell lines was assessed by reverse-transcription quantitative PCR (RT–qPCR). A cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was used to evaluate the viability of tumour cells treated with cisplatin in the presence or absence of miR-133a. A luciferase reporter assay was used to analyse the binding of miR-133a with the 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) of YES proto-oncogene 1 (YES1). The YES1 expression level was analysed using a dataset from the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and assessed by RT–qPCR and western blotting in vitro. The roles and mechanisms of YES1 in cell functions were further probed via gain- and loss-of-function analysis.

Results

The expression of miR-133a was significantly decreased in cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cell lines (A2780-DDP and SKOV3-DDP), and the overexpression of the miR-133a mimic reduced cisplatin resistance in A2780-DDP and SKOV3-DDP cells. Treatment with the miR-133a inhibitor increased cisplatin sensitivity in normal A2780 and SKOV3 cells. MiR-133a binds the 3’UTR of YES1 and downregulates its expression. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that YES1 expression was upregulated in recurrent cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer tissue, and in vitro experiments also verified its upregulation in cisplatin-resistant cell lines. Furthermore, we discovered that miR-133a downregulated the expression of YES1 and thus inhibited cell autophagy to reduce cisplatin resistance. Yes1 knockdown significantly suppressed the cisplatin resistance of ovarian cancer cells by inhibiting autophagy in vitro. Xenograft tumour implantation further demonstrated that Yes1 overexpression promoted ovarian tumour development and cisplatin resistance.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that the miR-133a/YES1 axis plays a critical role in cisplatin resistance in human ovarian cancer by regulating cell autophagy, which might serve as a promising therapeutic target for ovarian cancer chemotherapy treatment in the future.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12935-021-02412-x.

Matrine Regulates Proliferation, Apoptosis, Cell Cycle, Migration, and Invasion of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells Through the circFUT8/miR-944/YES1 Axis

Background

Non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) is the major histological subtype of cancer cases. In the present study, we investigated the association between Matrine, an active component of Chinese medicine, and circFUT8 in NSCLC cells.

Methods

The proliferation ability of NSCLC cells was assessed by MTT and colony-forming assays. Flow cytometry assay was performed to show the apoptosis and cell cycle distribution in NSCLC cells. The protein expression levels of Bcl-2, Cleaved Caspase-3 (C-Caspase3), and YES proto-oncogene 1 (YES1) were measured by Western blot assay. Migration and invasion of NSCLC cells were determined by transwell assay. The expression levels of circFUT8, miR-944 and YES1 were quantified by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) assay. The interaction relationship between miR-944 and circFUT8 or YES1 was confirmed by dual-luciferase reporter assay. The anti-tumor role of Matrine in vivo was explored by a xenograft experiment.

Results

Matrine functioned as a carcinoma inhibitor by repressing proliferation, cell cycle process, migration, and invasion while inducing apoptosis in NSCLC cells. Importantly, overexpression of circFUT8 counteracted Matrine-induced effects on NSCLC cells. MiR-944, interacted with YES1, was a target of circFUT8. Under Matrine condition, overexpression of circFUT8 increased proliferation, migration, and invasion while inhibited apoptosis, which was abolished by the upregulation of miR-944. Whereas the silencing of YES1 counteracted miR-944 inhibitor-induced effects on NSCLC cells. Eventually, we also confirmed that Matrine impeded NSCLC tumor growth in vivo.

Conclusion

Matrine regulated proliferation, apoptosis, cell cycle, migration, and invasion of NSCLC cells through the circFUT8/miR-944/YES1 axis, which provided novel information for Matrine in NSCLC.

Use of signals of positive and negative selection to distinguish cancer genes and passenger genes

A major goal of cancer genomics is to identify all genes that play critical roles in carcinogenesis. Most approaches focused on genes positively selected for mutations that drive carcinogenesis and neglected the role of negative selection. Some studies have actually concluded that negative selection has no role in cancer evolution. We have re-examined the role of negative selection in tumor evolution through the analysis of the patterns of somatic mutations affecting the coding sequences of human genes. Our analyses have confirmed that tumor suppressor genes are positively selected for inactivating mutations, oncogenes, however, were found to display signals of both negative selection for inactivating mutations and positive selection for activating mutations. Significantly, we have identified numerous human genes that show signs of strong negative selection during tumor evolution, suggesting that their functional integrity is essential for the growth and survival of tumor cells.

Emerging roles of MiR-133a in human cancers

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) can post-transcriptionally regulate the expression of cancer-relevant genes via binding to the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) of the target mRNAs. MiR-133a, as a miRNA, participate in tumorigenesis, progression, autophagy and drug-resistance in various malignancies. Based on the recent insights, we discuss the functions of miR-133a in physiological and pathological processes and its potential effects on cancer diagnosis, prognosis and therapy.

YES1 amplification confers trastuzumab-emtansine (T-DM1) resistance in HER2-positive cancer

BACKGROUND

Trastuzumab-emtansine (T-DM1), one of the most potent HER2-targeted drugs, shows impressive efficacy in patients with HER2-positive breast cancers. However, resistance inevitably occurs and becomes a critical clinical problem.

METHODS

We modelled the development of acquired resistance by exposing HER2-positive cells to escalating concentrations of T-DM1. Signalling pathways activation was detected by western blotting, gene expression was analysed by qRT-PCR and gene copy numbers were determined by qPCR. The role of Yes on resistance was confirmed by siRNA-mediated knockdown and stable transfection-mediated overexpression. The in vivo effects were tested in xenograft model.

RESULTS

We found that Yes is overexpressed in T-DM1-resistant cells owing to amplification of chromosome region 18p11.32, where the YES1 gene resides. Yes activated multiple proliferation-related signalling pathways, including EGFR, PI3K and MAPK, and led to cross-resistance to all types of HER2-targeted drugs, including antibody-drug conjugate, antibody and small molecule inhibitor. The outcome of this cross-resistance may be a clinically incurable condition. Importantly, we found that inhibiting Yes with dasatinib sensitised resistant cells in vitro and in vivo.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study revealed that YES1 amplification conferred resistance to HER2-targeted drugs and suggested the potential application of the strategy of combining HER2 and Yes inhibition in the clinic.

Overexpression of miR-331 Indicates Poor Prognosis and Promotes Progression of Breast Cancer

BACKGROUND

With the increasing number of cases of breast cancer every year, the exploration of novel biomarkers has drawn attention. miR-331 has been demonstrated to play a role in various cancers, but its role in breast cancer is still unknown.

METHODS

In this study, we included 121 patients with breast cancer treated at Affiliated Hospital of Weifang Medical University. Breast cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues were collected during the surgery. The expression of miR-331 in breast cancer tissues and cell lines was detected by qRT-PCR assay. Then, with the help of Kaplan-Meier survival and Cox regression analyses, the role of miR-331 in the prognosis of breast cancer was analyzed. Finally, the effect of miR-331 on cell proliferation, migration, and invasion was investigated with CCK-8 assay and transwell assay.

RESULTS

miR-331 was significantly upregulated in breast cancer tissues compared with normal tissues. The overexpression of miR-331 was associated with lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, and poor prognosis. From the results of Cox regression analyses, it was found that miR-331 served as an independent indicator in the prognosis of breast cancer. In addition, miR-331 was also found to be upregulated in breast cancer cells, which promoted cell proliferation, migration, and invasion of breast cancer.

CONCLUSION

As shown from our data, miR-331 may be a potential prognostic biomarker in breast cancer. Moreover, the development and progression of breast cancer may involve miR-331. These findings suggest a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of breast cancer.

MicroRNA-374b-5p Functions as a Tumor Suppressor in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer by Targeting FOXP1 and Predicts Prognosis of Cancer Patients

Background

Lung cancer remains the most frequent malignancy worldwide with increasing morbidity and mortality. This study aimed to assess the expression of microRNA-374b-5p (miR-374b-5p) in tissues and cell lines of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to evaluate the prognostic value of miR-374b-5p as well as its biological function in tumor progression.

Materials and Methods

Expression of miR-374b-5p in NSCLC patients and cells was estimated using quantitative real-time PCR. The prognostic value of miR-374b-5p was evaluated using Kaplan–Meier method and Cox regression analysis. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function cell experiments were performed to examine the effects of miR-374b-5p on NSCLC cell proliferation, migration and invasion. A luciferase activity assay was used to confirm the target gene of miR-374b-5p.

Results

miR-374b-5p expression levels were decreased in tumorous tissues and cell lines compared with the normal tissues or cells (P < 0.05). The expression of miR-374b-5p was associated with the patients’ tumor size, lymph node metastasis and TNM stage (all P < 0.05). Patients with low miR-374b-5p expression have a shorter survival time (log-rank P = 0.001), and the downregulated expression of miR-374b-5p was determined to be an independent prognostic indicator of NSCLC. In NSCLC cells, the overexpression of miR-374b-5p could inhibit NSCLC cell proliferation, migration and invasion and could directly target FOXP1.

Conclusion

This study found that the decreased miR-374b-5p predicts poor prognosis of NSCLC, and the upregulation of miR-374b-5p can inhibit NSCLC cell proliferation, migration and invasion. The data obtained from this study provide a novel candidate prognostic biomarker and a potential therapeutic target for NSCLC.