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McCrudden CM, Bennie L, Chambers P, Wilson J, Kerr M, Ziminska M, Douglas H, Kuhn S, Carroll E, O'Brien G, Buckley N, Dunne NJ, McCarthy HO. Peptide delivery of a multivalent mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. J Control Release 2023; 362:536-547. [PMID: 37648082 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.08.053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2023] [Revised: 08/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Lipid nanoparticles (LNP) have been instrumental in the success of mRNA vaccines and have opened up the field to a new wave of therapeutics. However, what is ahead beyond the LNP? The approach herein used a nanoparticle containing a blend of Spike, Membrane and Envelope antigens complexed for the first time with the RALA peptide (RALA-SME). The physicochemical characteristics and functionality of RALA-SME were assessed. With >99% encapsulation, RALA-SME was administered via intradermal injection in vivo, and all three antigen-specific IgG antibodies were highly significant. The IgG2a:IgG1 ratio were all >1.2, indicating a robust TH1 response, and this was further confirmed with the T-Cell response in mice. A complete safety panel of markers from mice were all within normal range, supported by safety data in hamsters. Vaccination of Syrian Golden hamsters with RALA-SME derivatives produced functional antibodies capable of neutralising SARS-CoV-2 from both Wuhan-Hu-1 and Omicron BA.1 lineages after two doses. Antibody levels increased over the study period and provided protection from disease-specific weight loss, with inhibition of viral migration down the respiratory tract. This peptide technology enables the flexibility to interchange and add antigens as required, which is essential for the next generation of adaptable mRNA vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Lindsey Bennie
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Philip Chambers
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Jordan Wilson
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Megan Kerr
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Monika Ziminska
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Hayley Douglas
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Sarah Kuhn
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Emma Carroll
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Garrett O'Brien
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
| | - Niamh Buckley
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Nicholas J Dunne
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK; School of Chemical Sciences, Dublin City University, Collins Avenue, Dublin 9, Ireland; School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Collins Avenue, Dublin 9, Ireland; Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (I-Form), School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland; Advanced Materials and Bioengineering Research Centre (AMBER), Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Biodesign Europe, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; pHion Therapeutics, Catalyst Concourse Building 2, 20 Queens Road, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK; School of Chemical Sciences, Dublin City University, Collins Avenue, Dublin 9, Ireland; Biodesign Europe, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland.
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Yuen HF, McCrudden CM, Huang YH, Tham JM, Zhang X, Zeng Q, Zhang SD, Hong W. Correction: TAZ Expression as a Prognostic Indicator in Colorectal Cancer. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0250187. [PMID: 33831107 PMCID: PMC8031417 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0250187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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McErlean EM, McCrudden CM, McBride JW, Cole G, Kett VL, Robson T, Dunne NJ, McCarthy HO. Rational design and characterisation of an amphipathic cell penetrating peptide for non-viral gene delivery. Int J Pharm 2021; 596:120223. [PMID: 33508341 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2021.120223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2020] [Revised: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
RALA is a cationic amphipathic peptide which has shown great promise as an efficient, multifunctional delivery system for the delivery of nucleic acids. Rational peptide design was utilised in this study to understand the essential amino acids required for delivery and if any improvements to the RALA peptide could be made. Six amphipathic peptides were synthesised with strategic sequences and amino acid substitutions to reduce peptide sequence, while maintaining the functional characteristics of RALA including amphipathicity, alpha-helicity and pH responsiveness for endosomal escape. Data demonstrated that all six peptides complexed pEGFP-N1 to produce cationic nanoparticles <200 nm in diameter, but not all peptides resulted in successful transfection; indicating the influence of peptide design for cellular uptake and endosomal escape. Pep2, produced nanoparticles with similar characteristics and transfection efficiency to the parent peptide, RALA. However, Pep2 had issues with toxicity and a lack of pH-responsive alpha-helcity. Therefore, RALA remains the superior sequence for non-toxic gene delivery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma M McErlean
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - John W McBride
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Grace Cole
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Vicky L Kett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Tracy Robson
- School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, Royal College of Surgeons Ireland, 111 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, UK
| | - Nicholas J Dunne
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland, UK; Centre for Medical Engineering Research, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland, UK; Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland, UK; Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (I-Form), School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Ireland; Advanced Materials and Bioengineering Research Centre (AMBER), Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland, UK; Advanced Processing Technology Research Centre, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland, UK; Trinity Centre for Biomedical Engineering, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland, UK
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; School of Chemical Sciences, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland, UK
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4
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McErlean EM, Ziminska M, McCrudden CM, McBride JW, Loughran SP, Cole G, Mulholland EJ, Kett V, Buckley NE, Robson T, Dunne NJ, McCarthy HO. Rational design and characterisation of a linear cell penetrating peptide for non-viral gene delivery. J Control Release 2020; 330:1288-1299. [PMID: 33227336 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2020.11.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2020] [Revised: 11/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
The design of a non-viral gene delivery system that can release a functional nucleic acid at the intracellular destination site is an exciting but also challenging proposition. The ideal gene delivery vector must be non-toxic, non-immunogenic, overcome extra- and intra-cellular barriers, protect the nucleic acid cargo from degradation with stability over a range of temperatures. A new 15 amino acid linear peptide termed CHAT was designed in this study with the goal of delivering DNA with high efficiency into cells in vitro and tissues in vivo. Rational design involved incorporation of key amino acids including arginine for nucleic acid complexation and cellular uptake, tryptophan to enhance hydrophobic interaction with cell membranes, histidine to facilitate endosomal escape and cysteine for stability and controlled cargo release. Six linear peptides were synthesised with strategic sequences and amino acid substitutions. Data demonstrated that all six peptides complexed pDNA to produce cationic nanoparticles less than 200 nm in diameter, but not all peptides resulted in successful transfection; indicating the influence of peptide design for endosomal escape. Peptide 4, now termed CHAT, was non-cytotoxic, traversed the plasma membrane of breast and prostate cancer cell lines, and elicited reporter-gene expression following intra-tumoural and intravenous delivery in vivo. CHAT presents an exciting new peptide for the delivery of nucleic acid therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma M McErlean
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Monika Ziminska
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - John W McBride
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Stephen P Loughran
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Grace Cole
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Eoghan J Mulholland
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Vicky Kett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Niamh E Buckley
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Tracy Robson
- School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, Royal College of Surgeons Ireland, 111 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Nicholas J Dunne
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland; Centre for Medical Engineering Research, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland; Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (I-Form), School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Ireland; Advanced Materials and Bioengineering Research Centre (AMBER), Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland; Advanced Materials and Bioengineering Research Centre (AMBER), Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity Centre for Biomedical Engineering, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; School of Chemical Sciences, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland.
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O'Neill KM, Campbell DC, Edgar KS, Gill EK, Moez A, McLoughlin KJ, O'Neill CL, Dellett M, Hargey CJ, Abudalo RA, O'Hare M, Doyle P, Toh T, Khoo J, Wong J, McCrudden CM, Meloni M, Brunssen C, Morawietz H, Yoder MC, McDonald DM, Watson CJ, Stitt AW, Margariti A, Medina RJ, Grieve DJ. NOX4 is a major regulator of cord blood-derived endothelial colony-forming cells which promotes post-ischaemic revascularization. Cardiovasc Res 2020; 116:393-405. [PMID: 30937452 DOI: 10.1093/cvr/cvz090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2018] [Revised: 02/19/2019] [Accepted: 03/29/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
AIMS Cord blood-derived endothelial colony-forming cells (CB-ECFCs) are a defined progenitor population with established roles in vascular homeostasis and angiogenesis, which possess low immunogenicity and high potential for allogeneic therapy and are highly sensitive to regulation by reactive oxygen species (ROS). The aim of this study was to define the precise role of the major ROS-producing enzyme, NOX4 NADPH oxidase, in CB-ECFC vasoreparative function. METHODS AND RESULTS In vitro CB-ECFC migration (scratch-wound assay) and tubulogenesis (tube length, branch number) was enhanced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-induced superoxide in a NOX-dependent manner. CB-ECFCs highly-expressed NOX4, which was further induced by PMA, whilst NOX4 siRNA and plasmid overexpression reduced and potentiated in vitro function, respectively. Increased ROS generation in NOX4-overexpressing CB-ECFCs (DCF fluorescence, flow cytometry) was specifically reduced by superoxide dismutase, highlighting induction of ROS-specific signalling. Laser Doppler imaging of mouse ischaemic hindlimbs at 7 days indicated that NOX4-knockdown CB-ECFCs inhibited blood flow recovery, which was enhanced by NOX4-overexpressing CB-ECFCs. Tissue analysis at 14 days revealed consistent alterations in vascular density (lectin expression) and eNOS protein despite clearance of injected CB-ECFCs, suggesting NOX4-mediated modulation of host tissue. Indeed, proteome array analysis indicated that NOX4-knockdown CB-ECFCs largely suppressed tissue angiogenesis, whilst NOX4-overexpressing CB-ECFCs up-regulated a number of pro-angiogenic factors specifically-linked with eNOS signalling, in parallel with equivalent modulation of NOX-dependent ROS generation, suggesting that CB-ECFC NOX4 signalling may promote host vascular repair. CONCLUSION Taken together, these findings indicate a key role for NOX4 in CB-ECFCs, thereby highlighting its potential as a target for enhancing their reparative function through therapeutic priming to support creation of a pro-reparative microenvironment and effective post-ischaemic revascularization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karla M O'Neill
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - David C Campbell
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Kevin S Edgar
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Eleanor K Gill
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Arya Moez
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Kiran J McLoughlin
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Christina L O'Neill
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Margaret Dellett
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Ciarán J Hargey
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Rawan A Abudalo
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Michael O'Hare
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Philip Doyle
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Tinrui Toh
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Joshua Khoo
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - June Wong
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | | | - Coy Brunssen
- Division of Vascular Endothelium and Microcirculation, Department of Medicine III, Medical Faculty and University Clinics Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, D-01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Henning Morawietz
- Division of Vascular Endothelium and Microcirculation, Department of Medicine III, Medical Faculty and University Clinics Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, D-01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Mervin C Yoder
- Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA
| | - Denise M McDonald
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Chris J Watson
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Alan W Stitt
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Andriana Margariti
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Reinhold J Medina
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - David J Grieve
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, Wellcome-Wolfson Institute, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
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Schiroli D, Gómara MJ, Maurizi E, Atkinson SD, Mairs L, Christie KA, Cobice DF, McCrudden CM, Nesbit MA, Haro I, Moore T. Effective In Vivo Topical Delivery of siRNA and Gene Silencing in Intact Corneal Epithelium Using a Modified Cell-Penetrating Peptide. Mol Ther Nucleic Acids 2019; 17:891-906. [PMID: 31476668 PMCID: PMC6723413 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2019.07.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2019] [Revised: 07/18/2019] [Accepted: 07/19/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Autosomal dominantly inherited genetic disorders such as corneal dystrophies are amenable to allele-specific gene silencing with small interfering RNA (siRNA). siRNA delivered to the cornea by injection, although effective, is not suitable for a frequent long-term treatment regimen, whereas topical delivery of siRNA to the cornea is hampered by the eye surface's protective mechanisms. Herein we describe an attractive and innovative alternative for topical application using cell-penetrating peptide derivatives capable of complexing siRNA non-covalently and delivering them into the cornea. Through a rational design approach, we modified derivatives of a cell-penetrating peptide, peptide for ocular delivery (POD), already proved to diffuse into the corneal layers. These POD derivatives were able to form siRNA-peptide complexes (polyplexes) of size and ζ-potential similar to those reported able to undergo cellular internalization. Successful cytoplasmic release and gene silencing in vitro was obtained when an endosomal disruptor, chloroquine, was added. A palmitoylated-POD, displaying the best delivery properties, was covalently functionalized with trifluoromethylquinoline, an analog of chloroquine. This modified POD, named trifluoromethylquinoline-palmitoyl-POD (QN-Palm-POD), when complexed with siRNA and topically applied to the eye in vivo, resulted in up to 30% knockdown of luciferase reporter gene expression in the corneal epithelium. The methods developed within represent a valid standardized approach that is ideal for screening of a range of delivery formulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Schiroli
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland
| | - María J Gómara
- Unit of Synthesis and Biomedical Applications of Peptides, Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (IQAC-CSIC), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Eleonora Maurizi
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland
| | - Sarah D Atkinson
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland; Northern Ireland Centre for Stratified Medicine, University of Ulster, Londonderry BT47 6SB, UK
| | - Laura Mairs
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland
| | - Kathleen A Christie
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland
| | - Diego F Cobice
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - M Andrew Nesbit
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland
| | - Isabel Haro
- Unit of Synthesis and Biomedical Applications of Peptides, Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (IQAC-CSIC), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Tara Moore
- Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland.
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Dakir EH, Pickard A, Srivastava K, McCrudden CM, Gross SR, Lloyd S, Zhang SD, Margariti A, Morgan R, Rudland PS, El-Tanani M. The anti-psychotic drug pimozide is a novel chemotherapeutic for breast cancer. Oncotarget 2018; 9:34889-34910. [PMID: 30405882 PMCID: PMC6201850 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.26175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2018] [Accepted: 09/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Pimozide, an antipsychotic drug of the diphenylbutylpiperidine class, has been shown to suppress cell growth of breast cancer cells in vitro. In this study we further explore the inhibitory effects of this molecule in cancer cells. We found that Pimozide inhibited cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells and A549 lung cancer cells. Furthermore, we found that Pimozide also promoted apoptosis as demonstrated by cell cycle arrest and induction of double-strand DNA breaks but did not result in any effect in the non-transformed MCF10A breast cell line. In order to shed new lights into the molecular pathways affected by Pimozide, we show that Pimozide downregulated RAN GTPase and AKT at both protein and mRNA levels and inhibited the AKT signaling pathway in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Pimozide also inhibited the epithelial mesenchymal transition and cell migration and downregulated the expression of MMPs. Administration of Pimozide showed a potent in vivo antitumor activity in MDA-MB-231 xenograft animal model and reduced the number of lung metastases by blocking vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2. Furthermore, Pimozide inhibited myofibroblast formation as evaluated by the reduction in α-smooth muscle actin containing cells. Thus, Pimozide might inhibit tumor development by suppressing angiogenesis and by paracrine stimulation provided by host reactive stromal cells. These results demonstrate a novel in vitro and in vivo antitumor activity of Pimozide against breast and lung cancer cells and provide the proof of concept for a putative Pimozide as a novel approach for cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- El-Habib Dakir
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University, Belfast, UK.,Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular del Cáncer, Centro de Investigación del Cáncer, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain.,Institute of Cancer Therapeutics, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK
| | - Adam Pickard
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University, Belfast, UK
| | - Kirtiman Srivastava
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University, Belfast, UK
| | | | - Stephane R Gross
- School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham, UK
| | - Stephen Lloyd
- School of Medicine, Animal Facility, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK
| | - Shu-Dong Zhang
- Northern Ireland Centre for Stratified Medicine, Biomedical Sciences, University of Ulster, UK
| | - Andriana Margariti
- Center of Experimental Medicine, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK
| | - Richard Morgan
- Institute of Cancer Therapeutics, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK
| | - Philip S Rudland
- Institute of integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Mohamed El-Tanani
- Institute of Cancer Therapeutics, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK
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Cole G, Ali AA, McCrudden CM, McBride JW, McCaffrey J, Robson T, Kett VL, Dunne NJ, Donnelly RF, McCarthy HO. DNA vaccination for cervical cancer: Strategic optimisation of RALA mediated gene delivery from a biodegradable microneedle system. Eur J Pharm Biopharm 2018; 127:288-297. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpb.2018.02.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2017] [Revised: 02/20/2018] [Accepted: 02/20/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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McCrudden CM, McBride JW, McCaffrey J, McErlean EM, Dunne NJ, Kett VL, Coulter JA, Robson T, McCarthy HO. Gene therapy with RALA/iNOS composite nanoparticles significantly enhances survival in a model of metastatic prostate cancer. Cancer Nanotechnol 2018; 9:5. [PMID: 29899810 PMCID: PMC5982451 DOI: 10.1186/s12645-018-0040-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2017] [Accepted: 05/19/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent approvals of gene therapies by the FDA and the EMA for treatment of inherited disorders have further opened the door for assessment of nucleic acid pharmaceuticals for clinical usage. Arising from the presence of damaged or inappropriate DNA, cancer is a condition particularly suitable for genetic intervention. The RALA peptide has been shown to be a potent non-viral delivery platform for nucleic acids. This study examines the use of RALA to deliver a plasmid encoding inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) as an anti-cancer treatment. METHODS The physiochemical properties of the RALA/DNA nanoparticles were characterized via dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy. The nanoparticles were labelled with fluorophores and tracked over time using confocal microscopy with orthogonal sections to determine cellular location. In vitro studies were employed to determine functionality of the nanoparticles both for pEGFP-N1 and CMV-iNOS. Nanoparticles were injected intravenously into C57/BL6 mice with blood and serum samples analysed for immune response. PC3-luc2M cells were injected into the left ventricle of SCID mice followed by treatment with RALA/CMV-iNOS nanoparticles to evaluate the tumour response in a metastatic model of prostate cancer. RESULTS Functional cationic nanoparticles were produced with gene expression in PC-3 prostate cancer cells. Furthermore, repeated administrations of RALA/DNA nanoparticles into immunocompetent mice did not produce any immunological response: neutralization of the vector or release of inflammatory mediators. RALA/CMV-iNOS reduced the clonogenicity of PC-3 cells in vitro, and in an in vivo model of prostate cancer metastasis, systemically delivered RALA/CMV-iNOS significantly improved the survival of mice. CONCLUSION These studies further validate RALA as a genetic cargo delivery vehicle and iNOS as a potent therapy for the treatment of cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cian M. McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
| | - John W. McBride
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Joanne McCaffrey
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Emma M. McErlean
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Nicholas J. Dunne
- School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Vicky L. Kett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Jonathan A. Coulter
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Tracy Robson
- Molecular and Cellular Therapeutics, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, 123 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Helen O. McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL Northern Ireland, UK
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10
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Chan KK, Matchett KB, Coulter JA, Yuen HF, McCrudden CM, Zhang SD, Irwin GW, Davidson MA, Rülicke T, Schober S, Hengst L, Jaekel H, Platt-Higgins A, Rudland PS, Mills KI, Maxwell P, El-Tanani M, Lappin TR. Erythropoietin drives breast cancer progression by activation of its receptor EPOR. Oncotarget 2018; 8:38251-38263. [PMID: 28418910 PMCID: PMC5503530 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.16368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2017] [Accepted: 02/27/2017] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths. Anemia is common in breast cancer patients and can be treated with blood transfusions or with recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) to stimulate red blood cell production. Clinical studies have indicated decreased survival in some groups of cancer patients treated with EPO. Numerous tumor cells express the EPO receptor (EPOR), posing a risk that EPO treatment would enhance tumor growth, but the mechanisms involved in breast tumor progression are poorly understood. Here, we have examined the functional role of the EPO-EPOR axis in pre-clinical models of breast cancer. EPO induced the activation of PI3K/AKT and MAPK pathways in human breast cancer cell lines. EPOR knockdown abrogated human tumor cell growth, induced apoptosis through Bim, reduced invasiveness, and caused downregulation of MYC expression. EPO-induced MYC expression is mediated through the PI3K/AKT and MAPK pathways, and overexpression of MYC partially rescued loss of cell proliferation caused by EPOR downregulation. In a xenotransplantation model, designed to simulate recombinant EPO therapy in breast cancer patients, knockdown of EPOR markedly reduced tumor growth. Thus, our experiments in vitro and in vivo demonstrate that functional EPOR signaling is essential for the tumor-promoting effects of EPO and underline the importance of the EPO-EPOR axis in breast tumor progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ka Kui Chan
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK.,Department of Pathology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region 999077
| | - Kyle B Matchett
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | | | - Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Shu-Dong Zhang
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK.,Northern Ireland Centre for Stratified Medicine, Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, Ulster University, Londonderry, BT47 6SB, UK
| | - Gareth W Irwin
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Matthew A Davidson
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Thomas Rülicke
- Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna A-1210, Austria
| | - Sophie Schober
- Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna A-1210, Austria
| | - Ludger Hengst
- Division of Medical Biochemistry, Biocenter, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck A-6020, Austria
| | - Heidelinde Jaekel
- Division of Medical Biochemistry, Biocenter, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck A-6020, Austria
| | - Angela Platt-Higgins
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK
| | - Philip S Rudland
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK
| | - Ken I Mills
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Perry Maxwell
- Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Belfast Health & Social Care Trust, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
| | - Mohamed El-Tanani
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK.,Institute of Cancer Therapeutics, University of Bradford, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD7 1DP, UK
| | - Terence R Lappin
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7AE, UK
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11
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Li B, McCrudden CM, Yuen HF, Xi X, Lyu P, Chan KW, Zhang SD, Kwok HF. CD133 in brain tumor: the prognostic factor. Oncotarget 2017; 8:11144-11159. [PMID: 28055976 PMCID: PMC5355253 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.14406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2016] [Accepted: 12/26/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
CD133 has been shown to be an important stem cell factor that promotes glioma progression. However, the mechanism for CD133-mediated glioma progression has yet to be fully elucidated. In this study, we found that CD133 mRNA expression was a prognostic marker in three independent glioma patient cohorts, corroborating a putative role for CD133 in glioma progression. Importantly, we found that CD133 expression in glioma was highly correlated with the expression of HOX gene stem cell factors (HOXA5, HOXA7, HOXA10, HOXC4 and HOXC6). The expression of these HOX genes individually was significantly associated with survival. Interestingly, the prognostic significance of CD133 was dependent on the expression level of HOX genes, and vice versa. CD133 (p = 0.021) and HOXA7 (p = 0.001) were independent prognostic markers when the three glioma patient cohorts were combined (n = 231). Our results suggest that HOX genes may play a more important role in progression of glioma when CD133 expression is low. Furthermore, we showed that low-level expression of LIM2 in CD133-high glioma was associated with poorer survival, suggesting that LIM2 could be a therapeutic target for glioma expressing a high level of CD133. Connectivity mapping identified vinblastine and vincristine as agents that could reverse the CD133/HOX genes/LIM2-signature, and we confirmed this by in vitro analysis in glioma cell lines, demonstrating that CD133 and HOX genes were co-expressed and could be downregulated by vincristine. In conclusion, our data show that CD133 and HOX genes are important prognostic markers in glioma and shed light on possible treatment strategies for glioma expressing a high level of CD133.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Li
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Hiu Fung Yuen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, A*STAR, Singapore
| | - Xinping Xi
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR
| | - Peng Lyu
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR
| | - Kwok Wah Chan
- Department of Pathology, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Shu Dong Zhang
- Northern Ireland Centre for Stratified Medicine, Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Londonderry, United Kingdom
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR
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12
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Udhayakumar VK, De Beuckelaer A, McCaffrey J, McCrudden CM, Kirschman JL, Vanover D, Van Hoecke L, Roose K, Deswarte K, De Geest BG, Lienenklaus S, Santangelo PJ, Grooten J, McCarthy HO, De Koker S. Arginine-Rich Peptide-Based mRNA Nanocomplexes Efficiently Instigate Cytotoxic T Cell Immunity Dependent on the Amphipathic Organization of the Peptide. Adv Healthc Mater 2017; 6. [PMID: 28436620 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.201601412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2016] [Revised: 03/02/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
To date, the mRNA delivery field has been heavily dominated by lipid-based systems. Reports on the use of nonlipid carriers for mRNA delivery in contrast are rare in the context of mRNA vaccination. This paper describes the potential of a cell-penetrating peptide containing the amphipathic RALA motif to deliver antigen-encoding mRNA to the immune system. RALA condenses mRNA into nanocomplexes that display acidic pH-dependent membrane disruptive properties. RALA mRNA nanocomplexes enable mRNA escape from endosomes and thereby allow expression of mRNA inside the dendritic cell cytosol. Strikingly, RALA mRNA nanocomplexes containing pseudouridine and 5-methylcytidine modified mRNA elicit potent cytolytic T cell responses against the antigenic mRNA cargo and show superior efficacy in doing so when compared to RALA mRNA nanocomplexes containing unmodified mRNA. RALA's unique sequence and structural organization are vital to act as mRNA vaccine vehicle, as arginine-rich peptide variants that lack the RALA motif show reduced mRNA complexation, impaired cellular uptake and lose the ability to transfect dendritic cells in vitro and to evoke T cell immunity in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ans De Beuckelaer
- Department of Biomedical Molecular Biology Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
| | - Joanne McCaffrey
- School of Pharmacy Queen's University Belfast BT7 1NN Belfast Northern Ireland
| | - Cian M. McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy Queen's University Belfast BT7 1NN Belfast Northern Ireland
| | - Jonathan L. Kirschman
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University Georgia Institute of Technology GA 30332 Atlanta USA
| | - Daryll Vanover
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University Georgia Institute of Technology GA 30332 Atlanta USA
| | - Lien Van Hoecke
- Department of Biomedical Molecular Biology Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
- Medical Biotechnology Center VIB Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
| | - Kenny Roose
- Department of Biomedical Molecular Biology Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
- Medical Biotechnology Center VIB Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
| | - Kim Deswarte
- Inflammation Research Center VIB Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
- Department of Respiratory Medicine University Hospital Ghent 9052 Ghent Belgium
| | - Bruno G. De Geest
- Biopharmaceutical Technology Unit Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
| | - Stefan Lienenklaus
- Department of Molecular Immunology Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research 38124 Braunschweig Germany
| | - Philip J. Santangelo
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University Georgia Institute of Technology GA 30332 Atlanta USA
| | - Johan Grooten
- Department of Biomedical Molecular Biology Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
| | - Helen O. McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy Queen's University Belfast BT7 1NN Belfast Northern Ireland
| | - Stefaan De Koker
- Department of Biomedical Molecular Biology Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
- Medical Biotechnology Center VIB Ghent University 9052 Ghent Belgium
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13
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Kennedy J, Larrañeta E, McCrudden MTC, McCrudden CM, Brady AJ, Fallows SJ, McCarthy HO, Kissenpfennig A, Donnelly RF. In vivo studies investigating biodistribution of nanoparticle-encapsulated rhodamine B delivered via dissolving microneedles. J Control Release 2017; 265:57-65. [PMID: 28428065 PMCID: PMC5736098 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2017.04.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2016] [Revised: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 04/15/2017] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Nanoparticles (NPs) have undergone extensive investigation as drug delivery and targeting vehicles. NP delivery is often via the parenteral route, reliant on administration using hypodermic needles, which can be associated with patient compliance issues and safety concerns. In the recent past, the intradermal delivery of NPs, via novel dissolving microneedle (MN) arrays has garnered interest in the pharmaceutical community. However, published studies using this combinatorial approach have been limited, in that they have focussed on the use of in vitro and ex vivo models only. The current study was designed to answer the fundamental question of how such NPs are distributed in an in vivo murine model, following MN-mediated delivery. Rhodamine B (RhB) was employed as a model tracer dye to facilitate study of biodistribution. Following MN application, RhB was detected in the livers, kidneys, spleens and superficial parotid lymph nodes of the mice. Uptake into the lymphatics was of particular note, as it points towards the potential for utilisation of a minimally-invasive MN delivery strategy in controlled targeting of active drug substances and vaccines to the lymphatics. The use of such a delivery system could, following further development, have far-reaching benefits in enhancement of immunomodulatory and anti-cancer therapies. As a consequence, further investigation of MN/NP combinatorial delivery strategies is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joakim Kennedy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Eneko Larrañeta
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | | | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Aaron J Brady
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Steven J Fallows
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Adrien Kissenpfennig
- Centre for Experimental Medicine, School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, University Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Ryan F Donnelly
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK.
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14
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Ali AA, McCrudden CM, McCaffrey J, McBride JW, Cole G, Dunne NJ, Robson T, Kissenpfennig A, Donnelly RF, McCarthy HO. DNA vaccination for cervical cancer; a novel technology platform of RALA mediated gene delivery via polymeric microneedles. Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine 2017; 13:921-932. [DOI: 10.1016/j.nano.2016.11.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2016] [Revised: 10/11/2016] [Accepted: 11/30/2016] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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15
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McCrudden CM, McBride JW, McCaffrey J, Ali AA, Dunne NJ, Kett VL, Coulter JA, Robson T, McCarthy HO. Systemic RALA/iNOS Nanoparticles: A Potent Gene Therapy for Metastatic Breast Cancer Coupled as a Biomarker of Treatment. Mol Ther Nucleic Acids 2017; 6:249-258. [PMID: 28325291 PMCID: PMC5363505 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2016.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2016] [Revised: 12/08/2016] [Accepted: 12/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
This study aimed to determine the therapeutic benefit of a nanoparticular formulation for the delivery of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) gene therapy in a model of breast cancer metastasis. Nanoparticles comprising a cationic peptide vector, RALA, and plasmid DNA were formulated and characterized using a range of physiochemical analyses. Nanoparticles complexed using iNOS plasmids and RALA approximated 60 nm in diameter with a charge of 25 mV. A vector neutralization assay, performed to determine the immunogenicity of nanoparticles in immunocompetent C57BL/6 mice, revealed that no vector neutralization was evident. Nanoparticles harboring iNOS plasmids (constitutively active cytomegalovirus [CMV]-driven or transcriptionally regulated human osteocalcin [hOC]-driven) evoked iNOS protein expression and nitrite accumulation and impaired clonogenicity in the highly aggressive MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer model. Micrometastases of MDA-MB-231-luc-D3H1 cells were established in female BALB/c SCID mice by intracardiac delivery. Nanoparticulate RALA/CMV-iNOS or RALA/hOC-iNOS increased median survival in mice bearing micrometastases by 27% compared with controls and also provoked elevated blood nitrite levels. Additionally, iNOS gene therapy sensitized MDA-MB-231-luc-D3H1 tumors to docetaxel treatment. Studies demonstrated that systemically delivered RALA-iNOS nanoparticles have therapeutic potential for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Furthermore, detection of nitrite levels in the blood serves as a reliable biomarker of treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - John W McBride
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Joanne McCaffrey
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University College Cork, Cork T12 YN60, Ireland
| | - Ahlam A Ali
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Nicholas J Dunne
- School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland
| | - Vicky L Kett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Jonathan A Coulter
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Tracy Robson
- Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, 123 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland.
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16
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Cole G, McCaffrey J, Ali AA, McBride JW, McCrudden CM, Vincente-Perez EM, Donnelly RF, McCarthy HO. Dissolving microneedles for DNA vaccination: Improving functionality via polymer characterization and RALA complexation. Hum Vaccin Immunother 2016; 13:50-62. [PMID: 27846370 DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2016.1248008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
DNA vaccination holds the potential to treat or prevent nearly any immunogenic disease, including cancer. To date, these vaccines have demonstrated limited immunogenicity in vivo due to the absence of a suitable delivery system which can protect DNA from degradation and improve transfection efficiencies in vivo. Recently, microneedles have been described as a novel physical delivery technology to enhance DNA vaccine immunogenicity. Of these devices, dissolvable microneedles promise a safe, pain-free delivery system which may simultaneously improve DNA stability within a solid matrix and increase DNA delivery compared to solid arrays. However, to date little work has directly compared the suitability of different dissolvable matrices for formulation of DNA-loaded microneedles. Therefore, the current study examined the ability of 4 polymers to formulate mechanically robust, functional DNA loaded dissolvable microneedles. Additionally, complexation of DNA to a cationic delivery peptide, RALA, prior to incorporation into the dissolvable matrix was explored as a means to improve transfection efficacies following release from the polymer matrix. Our data demonstrates that DNA is degraded following incorporation into PVP, but not PVA matrices. The complexation of DNA to RALA prior to incorporation into polymers resulted in higher recovery from dissolvable matrices, and increased transfection efficiencies in vitro. Additionally, RALA/DNA nanoparticles released from dissolvable PVA matrices demonstrated up to 10-fold higher transfection efficiencies than the corresponding complexes released from PVP matrices, indicating that PVA is a superior polymer for this microneedle application.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace Cole
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - Joanne McCaffrey
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - Ahlam A Ali
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - John W McBride
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - Eva M Vincente-Perez
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - Ryan F Donnelly
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- a School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast , Belfast , Northern Ireland , UK
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Abstract
The therapeutic potential of cancer gene therapy has been limited by the difficulty of delivering genetic material to target sites. Various biological and molecular barriers exist which need to be overcome before effective nonviral delivery systems can be applied successfully in oncology. Herein, various barriers are described and strategies to circumvent such obstacles are discussed, considering both the extracellular and intracellular setting. Development of multifunctional delivery systems holds much promise for the progression of gene delivery, and a growing body of evidence supports this approach involving rational design of vectors, with a unique molecular architecture. In addition, the potential application of composite gene delivery platforms is highlighted which may provide an alternative delivery strategy to traditional systemic administration.
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18
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Massey AS, Pentlavalli S, Cunningham R, McCrudden CM, McErlean EM, Redpath P, Ali AA, Annett S, McBride JW, McCaffrey J, Robson T, Migaud ME, McCarthy HO. Potentiating the Anticancer Properties of Bisphosphonates by Nanocomplexation with the Cationic Amphipathic Peptide, RALA. Mol Pharm 2016; 13:1217-28. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.5b00670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Ashley S. Massey
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Sreekanth Pentlavalli
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Richard Cunningham
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Cian M. McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Emma M. McErlean
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Philip Redpath
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Ahlam A. Ali
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Stephanie Annett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - John W. McBride
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Joanne McCaffrey
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Tracy Robson
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Marie E. Migaud
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
| | - Helen O. McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland
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19
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McBride JW, Massey AS, McCaffrey J, McCrudden CM, Coulter JA, Dunne NJ, Robson T, McCarthy HO. Development of TMTP-1 targeted designer biopolymers for gene delivery to prostate cancer. Int J Pharm 2016; 500:144-53. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2016.01.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2015] [Revised: 01/13/2016] [Accepted: 01/14/2016] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
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20
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McCaffrey J, McCrudden CM, Ali AA, Massey AS, McBride JW, McCrudden MT, Vicente-Perez EM, Coulter JA, Robson T, Donnelly RF, McCarthy HO. Transcending epithelial and intracellular biological barriers; a prototype DNA delivery device. J Control Release 2016; 226:238-47. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2016.02.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2015] [Revised: 02/10/2016] [Accepted: 02/11/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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Zhang SD, McCrudden CM, Yuen HF, Leung KL, Hong WJ, Kwok HF. Association between the expression levels of TAZ, AXL and CTGF and clinicopathological parameters in patients with colon cancer. Oncol Lett 2015; 11:1223-1229. [PMID: 26893723 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2015.3999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2014] [Accepted: 10/09/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Colon cancer accounts for a large proportion of all the cancer-associated morbidities worldwide. Genetic analysis and stratification of patients based on survival may identify genetic signatures potentially useful for prognostic or treatment planning purposes. Previous studies have reported that the messenger (m)RNA expression levels of tafazzin (TAZ), AXL receptor tyrosine kinase (AXL) and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) were able to predict the survival of patients with colon cancer in two independent colon cancer datasets. However, limited clinicopathological data were available from these two datasets. By contrast, a large colon cancer dataset comprising 566 patients has been recently published in the Gene Expression Omnibus database, which contains data regarding tumor stage and location, and genetic status of mismatch repair (MMR), Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS), B-Raf proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase (BRAF) and tumor protein p53 (TP53). In the present study, the mRNA expression levels of TAZ, AXL and CTGF were evaluated, and the TAZ-AXL-CTGF signature was correlated with the available pathological parameters and survival data. Overexpression of TAZ, AXL and CTGF was observed to be associated with severe pathological stage, deficiency in MMR, colon cancer subtype C4 and mutations in the BRAF gene. In addition, overexpression of TAZ-AXL-CTGF was associated with short overall survival in patients with mutations in the TP53 gene, colon cancer subtype C6, proficient MMR and wild-type status of the KRAS and BRAF genes. Furthermore, the prognostic value of TAZ-AXL-CTGF overexpression was observed to be independent of all the clinicopathological parameters and mutational statuses analyzed. The results of the present study confirm the previously reported findings, and suggest that the TAZ-AXL-CTGF mRNA signature is a potential prognostic indicator in colon cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Dong Zhang
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, SAR, P.R. China; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Proteos, Singapore 138673, Republic of Singapore
| | - Ka Lai Leung
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, SAR, P.R. China; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Wan-Jin Hong
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Proteos, Singapore 138673, Republic of Singapore
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, SAR, P.R. China; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; Department of Oncology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0XZ, UK
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22
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Bennett R, Yakkundi A, McKeen HD, McClements L, McKeogh TJ, McCrudden CM, Arthur K, Robson T, McCarthy HO. RALA-mediated delivery of FKBPL nucleic acid therapeutics. Nanomedicine (Lond) 2015; 10:2989-3001. [PMID: 26419658 DOI: 10.2217/nnm.15.115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
AIMS RALA is a novel 30 mer bioinspired amphipathic peptide that is showing promise for gene delivery. Here, we used RALA to deliver the FK506-binding protein like - FKBPL gene (pFKBPL) - a novel member of the immunophilin protein family. FKBPL is a secreted protein, with overexpression shown to inhibit angiogenesis, tumor growth and stemness, through a variety of intra- and extracellular signaling mechanisms. We also elucidated proangiogenic activity and stemness after utilizing RALA to deliver siRNA (siFKBPL). MATERIALS & METHODS The RALA/pFKBPL and RALA/siFKBPL nanoparticles were characterized in terms of size, charge, stability and toxicity. Overexpression and knockdown of FKBPL was assessed in vitro and in vivo. RESULTS RALA delivered both pFKBPL and siFKBPL with less cytotoxicity than commercially available counterparts. In vivo, RALA/pFKBPL delivery retarded tumor growth, and prolonged survival with an associated decrease in angiogenesis, while RALA/siFKBPL had no effect on tumor growth rate or survival, but resulted in an increase in angiogenesis and stemness. CONCLUSION RALA is an effective delivery system for both FKBPL DNA and RNAi and highlights an alternative therapeutic approach to harnessing FKBPL's antiangiogenic and antistemness activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Bennett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Anita Yakkundi
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Hayley D McKeen
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Lana McClements
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Thomas J McKeogh
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Kenneth Arthur
- Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Tracy Robson
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
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23
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Zhang SD, Leung KL, McCrudden CM, Kwok HF. The Prognostic Significance of Combining VEGFA, FLT1 and KDR mRNA Expressions in Brain Tumors. J Cancer 2015; 6:812-8. [PMID: 26284131 PMCID: PMC4532977 DOI: 10.7150/jca.11975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2015] [Accepted: 06/12/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Tumor cells require angiogenesis to deliver nutrients and oxygen to support their fast growth and metabolism. The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway plays an important role in promoting angiogenesis, including tumor-induced angiogenesis. Recent clinical trials have demonstrated the benefit of targeting VEGF in the treatment of glioblastoma. However, the prognostic significance of the expression of VEGFA and its receptors VEGFR1 (FLT1) and VEGFR2 (KDR) are still largely elusive. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the prognostic significance of these three factors, alone or in combination, in glioma patients. Gene mRNA expression was extracted from three independent brain tumor cohorts totaling 242 patients and the association between gene expression and survival was tested. We found that when VEGFA, FLT1 and KDR expressions were considered alone, only VEGFA demonstrated a significant association with patient survival. Patients with high expression of both VEGFA and either receptor had significantly worse survival than patients expressing both factors at a low level. Importantly, we found that those patients whose tumors overexpressed all three genes had a significantly shorter survival compared to those patients with a low level expression of these genes. Our results suggest that a high level expression of VEGFA and its receptors, both FLT1 and KDR, may be required for brain tumor progression, and that these three factors should be considered together as a prognostic indicator for brain tumor patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Dong Zhang
- 2. Center for Cancer Research & Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, BT9 7BL, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Ka Lai Leung
- 1. Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Macau SAR ; 2. Center for Cancer Research & Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, BT9 7BL, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- 2. Center for Cancer Research & Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, BT9 7BL, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- 1. Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Macau SAR ; 2. Center for Cancer Research & Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, BT9 7BL, Belfast, United Kingdom ; 3. Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 0RE, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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24
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Zhao D, Guo L, Neves H, Yuen HF, Zhang SD, McCrudden CM, Wen Q, Zhang J, Zeng Q, Kwok HF, Lin Y. The prognostic significance of protein tyrosine phosphatase 4A2 in breast cancer. Onco Targets Ther 2015. [PMID: 26203261 PMCID: PMC4508076 DOI: 10.2147/ott.s85899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Although PTP4A3 has been shown to be a very important factor in promoting cancer progression, the role of its close family member PTP4A2 is still largely unknown. Recent reports have shown contradicting results on the role of PTP4A2 in breast cancer progression. Considering this, we aimed to investigate the prognostic value of PTP4A2 in five independent breast cancer data sets (minimum 198 patients per cohort, totaling 1,124 patients) in the Gene Expression Omnibus Database. We found that high expression of PTP4A2 was a favorable prognostic marker in all five independent breast cancer data sets, as well as in the combined cohort, with a hazard ratio of 0.68 (95% confidence interval =0.56–0.83; P<0.001). Low PTP4A2 expression was associated with estrogen receptor-negative tumors and tumors with higher histological grading; furthermore, low expression was inversely correlated with the expression of genes involved in proliferation, including MKI67 and the MCM gene family encoding the minichromosome maintenance proteins. These findings suggest that PTP4A2 may play a role in breast cancer progression by dysregulating cell proliferation. PTP4A2 expression was positively correlated with ESR1, the gene encoding estrogen receptor-alpha, and inversely correlated with EGFR expression, suggesting that PTP4A2 may be involved in these two important oncogenic pathways. Together, our results suggest that expression of PTP4A2 is a favorable prognostic marker in breast cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duanzheng Zhao
- College of Continuing Education, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Libin Guo
- College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China
| | - Henrique Neves
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau Special Administrative Region, People's Republic of China
| | - Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Biopolis Drive, Proteos, Singapore
| | - Shu-Dong Zhang
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, UK
| | | | - Qing Wen
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, UK
| | - Jin Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China
| | - Qi Zeng
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Biopolis Drive, Proteos, Singapore
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Taipa, Macau Special Administrative Region, People's Republic of China ; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, UK ; School of Pharmacy, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, UK
| | - Yao Lin
- College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China
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25
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Zhang SD, McCrudden CM, Kwok HF. Prognostic significance of combining VEGFA, FLT1 and KDR mRNA expression in lung cancer. Oncol Lett 2015; 10:1893-1901. [PMID: 26622771 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2015.3415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2014] [Accepted: 05/26/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Angiogenesis is important in cancer progression. Promising results in clinical trials have indicated that targeting vascular epidermal growth factor (VEGF) signaling may prolong lung cancer patient survival. In particular, various studies have implicated VEGFA as a potential prognostic marker in lung cancer, although prognostication using the expression of VEGF receptors (VEGFRs), such as fms-related tyrosine kinase 1 (FLT1; also known as VEGFR1) and kinase insert domain receptor (KDR; also known as VEGFR2), has produced varied results in different lung cancer studies. The present study aimed to investigate the prognostic significance of these three factors, alone or in combination. mRNA expression data were extracted from four independent lung cancer cohorts totaling 583 patients, and the association between mRNA expression and survival was investigated by performing statistical analyses. When VEGFA, FLT1 and KDR expression were considered alone, only VEGFA demonstrated a significant association with patient survival consistently across all four datasets (P<0.05). Patients with a high expression of VEGFA and one of the two receptors were associated with significantly worse survival than patients expressing low levels of VEGFA and the particular receptor (P<0.05). Notably, patients with a high level expression of all three genes in their tumor specimens were associated with a significantly shorter survival time compared with patients exhibiting a low level expression of one, two or all three genes (P<0.05). The results indicate that a high level of VEGFA expression and its receptors may be required for cancer progression. Therefore, these three factors should be considered together as a prognostic indicator for lung cancer patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Dong Zhang
- Faculty of Health Sciences (E12), University of Macau, Macau SAR, P.R. China ; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- Faculty of Health Sciences (E12), University of Macau, Macau SAR, P.R. China ; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology and School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK ; Department of Oncology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0XZ, UK
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26
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Zhang SD, McCrudden CM, Meng C, Lin Y, Kwok HF. The significance of combining VEGFA, FLT1, and KDR expressions in colon cancer patient prognosis and predicting response to bevacizumab. Onco Targets Ther 2015; 8:835-43. [PMID: 25926745 PMCID: PMC4403689 DOI: 10.2147/ott.s80518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Targeting angiogenesis through inhibition of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway has been successful in the treatment of late stage colorectal cancer. However, not all patients benefit from inhibition of VEGF. Ras status is a powerful biomarker for response to anti-epidermal growth factor receptor therapy; however, an appropriate biomarker for response to anti-VEGF therapy is yet to be identified. VEGF and its receptors, FLT1 and KDR, play a crucial role in colon cancer progression; individually, these factors have been shown to be prognostic in colon cancer; however, expression of none of these factors alone was predictive of tumor response to anti-VEGF therapy. In the present study, we analyzed the expression levels of VEGFA, FLT1, and KDR in two independent colon cancer datasets and found that high expression levels of all three factors afforded a very poor prognosis. The observation was further confirmed in another independent colon cancer dataset, wherein high levels of expression of this three-gene signature was predictive of poor prognosis in patients with proficient mismatch repair a wild-type KRas status, or mutant p53 status. Most importantly, this signature also predicted tumor response to bevacizumab, an antibody targeting VEGFA, in a cohort of bevacizumab-treated patients. Since bevacizumab has been proven to be an important drug in the treatment of advanced stage colon cancer, our results suggest that the three-gene signature approach is valuable in terms of its prognostic value, and that it should be further evaluated in a prospective clinical trial to investigate its predictive value to anti-VEGF treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Dong Zhang
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Macau, Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ; Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom
| | | | - Chen Meng
- College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fujian, People's Republic of China
| | - Yao Lin
- College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fujian, People's Republic of China
| | - Hang Fai Kwok
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de Universidade, Macau, Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ; School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom
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27
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Yakkundi A, Bennett R, Hernández-Negrete I, Delalande JM, Hanna M, Lyubomska O, Arthur K, Short A, McKeen H, Nelson L, McCrudden CM, McNally R, McClements L, McCarthy HO, Burns AJ, Bicknell R, Kissenpfennig A, Robson T. FKBPL is a critical antiangiogenic regulator of developmental and pathological angiogenesis. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 2015; 35:845-54. [PMID: 25767277 PMCID: PMC4415967 DOI: 10.1161/atvbaha.114.304539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The antitumor effects of FK506-binding protein like (FKBPL) and its extracellular role in angiogenesis are well characterized; however, its role in physiological/developmental angiogenesis and the effect of FKBPL ablation has not been evaluated. This is important as effects of some angiogenic proteins are dosage dependent. Here we evaluate the regulation of FKBPL secretion under angiogenic stimuli, as well as the effect of FKBPL ablation in angiogenesis using mouse and zebrafish models. APPROACH AND RESULTS FKBPL is secreted maximally by human microvascular endothelial cells and fibroblasts, and this was specifically downregulated by proangiogenic hypoxic signals, but not by the angiogenic cytokines, VEGF or IL8. FKBPL's critical role in angiogenesis was supported by our inability to generate an Fkbpl knockout mouse, with embryonic lethality occurring before E8.5. However, whilst Fkbpl heterozygotic embryos showed some vasculature irregularities, the mice developed normally. In murine angiogenesis models, including the ex vivo aortic ring assay, in vivo sponge assay, and tumor growth assay, Fkbpl(+/-) mice exhibited increased sprouting, enhanced vessel recruitment, and faster tumor growth, respectively, supporting the antiangiogenic function of FKBPL. In zebrafish, knockdown of zFkbpl using morpholinos disrupted the vasculature, and the phenotype was rescued with hFKBPL. Interestingly, this vessel disruption was ineffective when zcd44 was knocked-down, supporting the dependency of zFkbpl on zCd44 in zebrafish. CONCLUSIONS FKBPL is an important regulator of angiogenesis, having an essential role in murine and zebrafish blood vessel development. Mouse models of angiogenesis demonstrated a proangiogenic phenotype in Fkbpl heterozygotes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anita Yakkundi
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Rachel Bennett
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Ivette Hernández-Negrete
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Jean-Marie Delalande
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Mary Hanna
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Oksana Lyubomska
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Kenneth Arthur
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Amy Short
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Hayley McKeen
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Laura Nelson
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Ross McNally
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Lana McClements
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Alan J Burns
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Roy Bicknell
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Adrien Kissenpfennig
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.)
| | - Tracy Robson
- From the McClay Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy (A.Y., R.B., M.H., O.L., A.S., H.M., L.N., C.M.M., R.M., L.M., H.O.M., T.R.), Centre for Infection and Immunity (M.H., O.L., A.K.), and Northern Ireland Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (K.A.), School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; School of Immunity and Infection and Cancer Studies, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK (I.H.-N., R.B.); Centre for Digestive Diseases, Queen Mary, University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK (J.-M.D.); and Birth Defects Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK (J.-M.D., A.J.B.).
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McCrudden CM, O’Rourke MG, Cherry KE, Yuen HF, O’Rourke D, Babur M, Telfer BA, Thomas HD, Keane P, Nambirajan T, Hagan C, O’Sullivan JM, Shaw C, Williams KJ, Curtin NJ, Hirst DG, Robson T. Vasoactivity of rucaparib, a PARP-1 inhibitor, is a complex process that involves myosin light chain kinase, P2 receptors, and PARP itself. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0118187. [PMID: 25689628 PMCID: PMC4331495 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0118187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2014] [Accepted: 01/05/2015] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Therapeutic inhibition of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), as monotherapy or to supplement the potencies of other agents, is a promising strategy in cancer treatment. We previously reported that the first PARP inhibitor to enter clinical trial, rucaparib (AG014699), induced vasodilation in vivo in xenografts, potentiating response to temozolomide. We now report that rucaparib inhibits the activity of the muscle contraction mediator myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) 10-fold more potently than its commercially available inhibitor ML-9. Moreover, rucaparib produces additive relaxation above the maximal degree achievable with ML-9, suggesting that MLCK inhibition is not solely responsible for dilation. Inhibition of nitric oxide synthesis using L-NMMA also failed to impact rucaparib’s activity. Rucaparib contains the nicotinamide pharmacophore, suggesting it may inhibit other NAD+-dependent processes. NAD+ exerts P2 purinergic receptor-dependent inhibition of smooth muscle contraction. Indiscriminate blockade of the P2 purinergic receptors with suramin abrogated rucaparib-induced vasodilation in rat arterial tissue without affecting ML-9-evoked dilation, although the specific receptor subtypes responsible have not been unequivocally identified. Furthermore, dorsal window chamber and real time tumor vessel perfusion analyses in PARP-1-/- mice indicate a potential role for PARP in dilation of tumor-recruited vessels. Finally, rucaparib provoked relaxation in 70% of patient-derived tumor-associated vessels. These data provide tantalising evidence of the complexity of the mechanism underlying rucaparib-mediated vasodilation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cian M. McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | | | - Kim E. Cherry
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Declan O’Rourke
- Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Muhammad Babur
- Manchester Pharmacy School, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Brian A. Telfer
- Manchester Pharmacy School, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Huw D. Thomas
- Northern Institute for Cancer Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - Patrick Keane
- Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | | | - Chris Hagan
- Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Joe M. O’Sullivan
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
- Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Chris Shaw
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Kaye J. Williams
- Manchester Pharmacy School, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Nicola J. Curtin
- Northern Institute for Cancer Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - David G. Hirst
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Tracy Robson
- School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
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29
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Kwok HF, Zhang SD, McCrudden CM, Yuen HF, Ting KP, Wen Q, Khoo US, Chan KYK. Prognostic significance of minichromosome maintenance proteins in breast cancer. Am J Cancer Res 2014; 5:52-71. [PMID: 25628920 PMCID: PMC4300722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2014] [Accepted: 11/15/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023] Open
Abstract
A role for the minichromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins in cancer initiation and progression is slowly emerging. Functioning as a complex to ensure a single chromosomal replication per cell cycle, the six family members have been implicated in several neoplastic disease states, including breast cancer. Our study aim to investigate the prognostic significance of these proteins in breast cancer. We studied the expression of MCMs in various datasets and the associations of the expression with clinicopathological parameters. When considered alone, high level MCM4 overexpression was only weakly associated with shorter survival in the combined breast cancer patient cohort (n = 1441, Hazard Ratio = 1.31; 95% Confidence Interval = 1.11-1.55; p = 0.001). On the other hand, when we studied all six components of the MCM complex, we found that overexpression of all MCMs was strongly associated with shorter survival in the same cohort (n = 1441, Hazard Ratio = 1.75; 95% Confidence Interval = 1.31-2.34; p < 0.001), suggesting these MCM proteins may cooperate to promote breast cancer progression. Indeed, their expressions were significantly correlated with each other in these cohorts. In addition, we found that increasing number of overexpressed MCMs was associated with negative ER status as well as treatment response. Together, our findings are reproducible in seven independent breast cancer cohorts, with 1441 patients, and suggest that MCM profiling could potentially be used to predict response to treatment and prognosis in breast cancer patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hang Fai Kwok
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Avenida de UniversidadeMacau, China
- CRUK Cambridge Institute, University of CambridgeUnited Kingdom CB2 0RE
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (CCRCB) and School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University BelfastUnited Kingdom BT9 7BL
| | - Shu-Dong Zhang
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (CCRCB) and School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University BelfastUnited Kingdom BT9 7BL
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (CCRCB) and School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University BelfastUnited Kingdom BT9 7BL
| | - Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, A*STARSingapore
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (CCRCB) and School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University BelfastUnited Kingdom BT9 7BL
| | - Kam-Po Ting
- Department of Pathology and Obsterics & Gyneecology, University of Hong KongHong Kong, China
| | - Qing Wen
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (CCRCB) and School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University BelfastUnited Kingdom BT9 7BL
| | - Ui-Soon Khoo
- Department of Pathology and Obsterics & Gyneecology, University of Hong KongHong Kong, China
| | - Kelvin Yuen-Kwong Chan
- Department of Pathology and Obsterics & Gyneecology, University of Hong KongHong Kong, China
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30
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McCrudden MTC, Alkilani AZ, Courtenay AJ, McCrudden CM, McCloskey B, Walker C, Alshraiedeh N, Lutton REM, Gilmore BF, Woolfson AD, Donnelly RF. Considerations in the sterile manufacture of polymeric microneedle arrays. Drug Deliv Transl Res 2014; 5:3-14. [DOI: 10.1007/s13346-014-0211-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Abstract
Breast cancer is characterized by a series of genetic mutations and is therefore ideally placed for gene therapy intervention. The aim of gene therapy is to deliver a nucleic acid-based drug to either correct or destroy the cells harboring the genetic aberration. More recently, cancer gene therapy has evolved to also encompass delivery of RNA interference technologies, as well as cancer DNA vaccines. However, the bottleneck in creating such nucleic acid pharmaceuticals lies in the delivery. Deliverability of DNA is limited as it is prone to circulating nucleases; therefore, numerous strategies have been employed to aid with biological transport. This review will discuss some of the viral and nonviral approaches to breast cancer gene therapy, and present the findings of clinical trials of these therapies in breast cancer patients. Also detailed are some of the most recent developments in nonviral approaches to targeting in breast cancer gene therapy, including transcriptional control, and the development of recombinant, multifunctional bio-inspired systems. Lastly, DNA vaccines for breast cancer are documented, with comment on requirements for successful pharmaceutical product development.
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32
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Huang YH, Al-Aidaroos AQO, Yuen HF, Zhang SD, Shen HM, Rozycka E, McCrudden CM, Tergaonkar V, Gupta A, Lin YB, Thiery JP, Murray JT, Zeng Q. A role of autophagy in PTP4A3-driven cancer progression. Autophagy 2014; 10:1787-800. [PMID: 25136802 DOI: 10.4161/auto.29989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Autophagy, a "self-eating" cellular process, has dual roles in promoting and suppressing tumor growth, depending on cellular context. PTP4A3/PRL-3, a plasma membrane and endosomal phosphatase, promotes multiple oncogenic processes including cell proliferation, invasion, and cancer metastasis. In this study, we demonstrate that PTP4A3 accumulates in autophagosomes upon inhibition of autophagic degradation. Expression of PTP4A3 enhances PIK3C3-BECN1-dependent autophagosome formation and accelerates LC3-I to LC3-II conversion in an ATG5-dependent manner. PTP4A3 overexpression also enhances the degradation of SQSTM1, a key autophagy substrate. These functions of PTP4A3 are dependent on its catalytic activity and prenylation-dependent membrane association. These results suggest that PTP4A3 functions to promote canonical autophagy flux. Unexpectedly, following autophagy activation, PTP4A3 serves as a novel autophagic substrate, thereby establishing a negative feedback-loop that may be required to fine-tune autophagy activity. Functionally, PTP4A3 utilizes the autophagy pathway to promote cell growth, concomitant with the activation of AKT. Clinically, from the largest ovarian cancer data set (GSE 9899, n = 285) available in GEO, high levels of expression of both PTP4A3 and autophagy genes significantly predict poor prognosis of ovarian cancer patients. These studies reveal a critical role of autophagy in PTP4A3-driven cancer progression, suggesting that autophagy could be a potential Achilles heel to block PTP4A3-mediated tumor progression in stratified patients with high expression of both PTP4A3 and autophagy genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Han Huang
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore; NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering; National University of Singapore; Singapore
| | - Abdul Qader O Al-Aidaroos
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore
| | - Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore
| | - Shu-Dong Zhang
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology; Queen's University Belfast; Belfast UK
| | - Han-Ming Shen
- Department of Epidemiology and Public Health; National University of Singapore; Singapore
| | - Ewelina Rozycka
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology; Queen's University Belfast; Belfast UK; Current affiliation: School of Biochemistry and Immunology; Trinity College; Dublin, Ireland
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology; Queen's University Belfast; Belfast UK
| | - Vinay Tergaonkar
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore
| | - Abhishek Gupta
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore
| | - You Bin Lin
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore
| | - Jean Paul Thiery
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore; Department of Biochemistry; Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine; National University of Singapore; Singapore
| | - James T Murray
- Current affiliation: School of Biochemistry and Immunology; Trinity College; Dublin, Ireland
| | - Qi Zeng
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology; A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research); Singapore; Department of Biochemistry; Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine; National University of Singapore; Singapore
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33
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McCarthy HO, McCaffrey J, McCrudden CM, Zholobenko A, Ali AA, McBride JW, Massey AS, Pentlavalli S, Chen KH, Cole G, Loughran SP, Dunne NJ, Donnelly RF, Kett VL, Robson T. Development and characterization of self-assembling nanoparticles using a bio-inspired amphipathic peptide for gene delivery. J Control Release 2014; 189:141-9. [PMID: 24995949 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2014.06.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 133] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2014] [Revised: 06/21/2014] [Accepted: 06/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The design of a non-viral gene delivery vehicle capable of delivering and releasing a functional nucleic acid cargo intracellularly remains a formidable challenge. For systemic gene therapy to be successful a delivery vehicle is required that protects the nucleic acid cargo from enzymatic degradation, extravasates from the vasculature, traverses the cell membrane, disrupts the endosomal vesicles and unloads the cargo at its destination site, namely the nucleus for the purposes of gene delivery. This manuscript reports the extensive investigation of a novel amphipathic peptide composed of repeating RALA units capable of overcoming the biological barriers to gene delivery both in vitro and in vivo. Our data demonstrates the spontaneous self-assembly of cationic DNA-loaded nanoparticles when the peptide is complexed with pDNA. Nanoparticles were <100nm, were stable in the presence of serum and were fusogenic in nature, with increased peptide α-helicity at a lower pH. Nanoparticles proved to be non-cytotoxic, readily traversed the plasma membrane of both cancer and fibroblast cell lines and elicited reporter-gene expression following intravenous delivery in vivo. The results of this study indicate that RALA presents an exciting delivery platform for the systemic delivery of nucleic acid therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen O McCarthy
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK.
| | - Joanne McCaffrey
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Aleksey Zholobenko
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Ahlam A Ali
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - John W McBride
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Ashley S Massey
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Sreekanth Pentlavalli
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Kun-Hung Chen
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Grace Cole
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Stephen P Loughran
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Nicholas J Dunne
- School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Queen's University Belfast, 123 Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5AH, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Ryan F Donnelly
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Victoria L Kett
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Tracy Robson
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, Northern Ireland, UK
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McCrudden MTC, Torrisi BM, Al-Zahrani S, McCrudden CM, Zaric M, Scott CJ, Kissenpfennig A, McCarthy HO, Donnelly RF. Laser-engineered dissolving microneedle arrays for protein delivery: potential for enhanced intradermal vaccination. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 67:409-25. [PMID: 24673568 DOI: 10.1111/jphp.12248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2013] [Accepted: 02/23/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES We aimed to highlight the utility of novel dissolving microneedle (MN)-based delivery systems for enhanced transdermal protein delivery. Vaccination remains the most accepted and effective approach in offering protection from infectious diseases. In recent years, much interest has focused on the possibility of using minimally invasive MN technologies to replace conventional hypodermic vaccine injections. METHODS The focus of this study was exploitation of dissolving MN array devices fabricated from 20% w/w poly(methyl vinyl ether/maleic acid) using a micromoulding technique, for the facilitated delivery of a model antigen, ovalbumin (OVA). KEY FINDINGS A series of in-vitro and in-vivo experiments were designed to demonstrate that MN arrays loaded with OVA penetrated the stratum corneum and delivered their payload systemically. The latter was evidenced by the activation of both humoral and cellular inflammatory responses in mice, indicated by the production of immunoglobulins (IgG, IgG1, IgG2a) and inflammatory cytokines, specifically interferon-gamma and interleukin-4. Importantly, the structural integrity of the OVA following incorporation into the MN arrays was maintained. CONCLUSION While enhanced manufacturing strategies are required to improve delivery efficiency and reduce waste, dissolving MN are a promising candidate for 'reduced-risk' vaccination and protein delivery strategies.
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35
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McCrudden MTC, Alkilani AZ, McCrudden CM, McAlister E, McCarthy HO, Woolfson AD, Donnelly RF. Design and physicochemical characterisation of novel dissolving polymeric microneedle arrays for transdermal delivery of high dose, low molecular weight drugs. J Control Release 2014; 180:71-80. [PMID: 24556420 PMCID: PMC4034161 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2014.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 153] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2013] [Revised: 02/06/2014] [Accepted: 02/09/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
We describe formulation and evaluation of novel dissolving polymeric microneedle (MN) arrays for the facilitated delivery of low molecular weight, high dose drugs. Ibuprofen sodium was used as the model here and was successfully formulated at approximately 50% w/w in the dry state using the copolymer poly(methylvinylether/maleic acid). These MNs were robust and effectively penetrated skin in vitro, dissolving rapidly to deliver the incorporated drug. The delivery of 1.5mg ibuprofen sodium, the theoretical mass of ibuprofen sodium contained within the dry MN alone, was vastly exceeded, indicating extensive delivery of the drug loaded into the baseplates. Indeed in in vitro transdermal delivery studies, approximately 33mg (90%) of the drug initially loaded into the arrays was delivered over 24h. Iontophoresis produced no meaningful increase in delivery. Biocompatibility studies and in vivo rat skin tolerance experiments raised no concerns. The blood plasma ibuprofen sodium concentrations achieved in rats (263μgml(-1) at the 24h time point) were approximately 20 times greater than the human therapeutic plasma level. By simplistic extrapolation of average weights from rats to humans, a MN patch design of no greater than 10cm(2) could cautiously be estimated to deliver therapeutically-relevant concentrations of ibuprofen sodium in humans. This work, therefore, represents a significant progression in exploitation of MN for successful transdermal delivery of a much wider range of drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ahlam Zaid Alkilani
- Queen's University, Belfast School of Pharmacy, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK; School of Pharmacy, Zarqa University, Zarqa 132222, Jordan
| | - Cian M McCrudden
- Queen's University, Belfast School of Pharmacy, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Emma McAlister
- Queen's University, Belfast School of Pharmacy, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Helen O McCarthy
- Queen's University, Belfast School of Pharmacy, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - A David Woolfson
- Queen's University, Belfast School of Pharmacy, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
| | - Ryan F Donnelly
- Queen's University, Belfast School of Pharmacy, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK.
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36
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Yuen HF, McCrudden CM, Huang YH, Tham JM, Zhang X, Zeng Q, Zhang SD, Hong W. TAZ expression as a prognostic indicator in colorectal cancer. PLoS One 2013; 8:e54211. [PMID: 23372686 PMCID: PMC3553150 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2012] [Accepted: 12/10/2012] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The Hippo pathway restricts the activity of transcriptional coactivators TAZ (WWTR1) and YAP. TAZ and YAP are reported to be overexpressed in various cancers, however, their prognostic significance in colorectal cancers remains unstudied. The expression levels of TAZ and YAP, and their downstream transcriptional targets, AXL and CTGF, were extracted from two independent colon cancer patient datasets available in the Gene Expression Omnibus database, totaling 522 patients. We found that mRNA expressions of both TAZ and YAP were positively correlated with those of AXL and CTGF (p<0.05). High level mRNA expression of TAZ, AXL or CTGF significantly correlated with shorter survival. Importantly, patients co-overexpressing all 3 genes had a significantly shorter survival time, and combinatorial expression of these 3 genes was an independent predictor for survival. The downstream target genes for TAZ-AXL-CTGF overexpression were identified by Java application MyStats. Interestingly, genes that are associated with colon cancer progression (ANTXR1, EFEMP2, SULF1, TAGLN, VCAN, ZEB1 and ZEB2) were upregulated in patients co-overexpressing TAZ-AXL-CTGF. This TAZ-AXL-CTGF gene expression signature (GES) was then applied to Connectivity Map to identify small molecules that could potentially be utilized to reverse this GES. Of the top 20 small molecules identified by connectivity map, amiloride (a potassium sparing diuretic,) and tretinoin (all-trans retinoic acid) have shown therapeutic promise in inhibition of colon cancer cell growth. Using MyStats, we found that low level expression of either ANO1 or SQLE were associated with a better prognosis in patients who co-overexpressed TAZ-AXL-CTGF, and that ANO1 was an independent predictor of survival together with TAZ-AXL-CTGF. Finally, we confirmed that TAZ regulates Axl, and plays an important role in clonogenicity and non-adherent growth in vitro and tumor formation in vivo. These data suggest that TAZ could be a therapeutic target for the treatment of colon cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (ASTAR), Singapore, Singapore
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Donnelly RF, Singh TRR, Garland MJ, Migalska K, Majithiya R, McCrudden CM, Kole PL, Mahmood TMT, McCarthy HO, Woolfson AD. Hydrogel-Forming Microneedle Arrays for Enhanced Transdermal Drug Delivery. Adv Funct Mater 2012; 22:4879-4890. [PMID: 23606824 PMCID: PMC3627464 DOI: 10.1002/adfm.201200864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 355] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2012] [Revised: 06/06/2012] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Unique microneedle arrays prepared from crosslinked polymers, which contain no drug themselves, are described. They rapidly take up skin interstitial fluid upon skin insertion to form continuous, unblockable, hydrogel conduits from attached patch-type drug reservoirs to the dermal microcirculation. Importantly, such microneedles, which can be fabricated in a wide range of patch sizes and microneedle geometries, can be easily sterilized, resist hole closure while in place, and are removed completely intact from the skin. Delivery of macromolecules is no longer limited to what can be loaded into the microneedles themselves and transdermal drug delivery is now controlled by the crosslink density of the hydrogel system rather than the stratum corneum, while electrically modulated delivery is also a unique feature. This technology has the potential to overcome the limitations of conventional microneedle designs and greatly increase the range of the type of drug that is deliverable transdermally, with ensuing benefits for industry, healthcare providers and, ultimately, patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan F Donnelly
- School of Pharmacy, Queens University Belfast 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
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Yuen HF, McCrudden CM, Grills C, Zhang SD, Huang YH, Chan KK, Chan YP, Wong MLY, Law S, Srivastava G, Fennell DA, Dickson G, El-Tanani M, Chan KW. Combinatorial use of bone morphogenetic protein 6, noggin and SOST significantly predicts cancer progression. Cancer Sci 2012; 103:1145-54. [PMID: 22364398 PMCID: PMC7685053 DOI: 10.1111/j.1349-7006.2012.02252.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2011] [Revised: 02/17/2012] [Accepted: 02/20/2012] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Emerging evidence has indicated a role of the bone morphogenetic proteins (BMP) in the pathogenesis of certain cancers. The signaling of BMP family members is tightly regulated by their antagonists, including noggin and SOST, which are, in turn, positively regulated by BMP, thereby forming a negative feedback loop. Consequently, the expression of these antagonists should be taken into account in studies on the prognostic significance of BMP. In the present paper, we correlated protein and mRNA expression levels of BMP6, noggin and SOST, alone or in combination, with patient survival in various types of cancer. We found that BMP6 alone was not significantly correlated with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patient survival. Instead, a high level of inhibitor of differentiation 1, a downstream factor of BMP6, was associated with shorter survival in patients whose tumors stained strongly for BMP6. Knockdown of noggin in esophageal cancer cell line EC109, which expresses BMP6 strongly and SOST weakly, enhanced the non-adherent growth of the cells. Noggin and SOST expression levels, when analyzed alone, were not significantly correlated with patient survival. However, high BMP6 activity, defined by strong BMP6 expression coupled with weak noggin or SOST expression, was significantly associated with shorter survival in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients. We further confirmed that BMP6 activity could be used as a prognostic indicator in prostate, bladder and colorectal cancers, using publicly available data on BMP6, noggin and SOST mRNA expression and patient survival. Our results strongly suggest that BMP6, noggin and SOST could be used in combination as a prognostic indicator in cancer progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK.
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Yuen HF, Zhang SD, Wong ASY, McCrudden CM, Huang YH, Chan KYK, El-Tanani M, Khoo US. Regarding "Co-expression of SNAIL and TWIST determines prognosis in estrogen receptor-positive early breast cancer patients". Breast Cancer Res Treat 2011; 131:351-2. [PMID: 22037786 DOI: 10.1007/s10549-011-1831-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2011] [Accepted: 10/10/2011] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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40
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Senra JM, Telfer BA, Cherry KE, McCrudden CM, Hirst DG, O'Connor MJ, Wedge SR, Stratford IJ. Inhibition of PARP-1 by olaparib (AZD2281) increases the radiosensitivity of a lung tumor xenograft. Mol Cancer Ther 2011; 10:1949-58. [PMID: 21825006 DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.mct-11-0278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 140] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
PARP-1 is a critical enzyme in the repair of DNA strand breaks. Inhibition of PARP-1 increases the effectiveness of radiation in killing tumor cells. However, although the mechanism(s) are well understood for these radiosensitizing effects in vitro, the underlying mechanism(s) in vivo are less clear. Nicotinamide, a drug structurally related to the first generation PARP-1 inhibitor, 3-aminobenzamide, reduces tumor hypoxia by preventing transient cessations in tumor blood flow, thus improving tumor oxygenation and sensitivity to radiotherapy. Here, we investigate whether olaparib, a potent PARP-1 inhibitor, enhances radiotherapy, not only by inhibiting DNA repair but also by changing tumor vascular hemodynamics in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). In irradiated Calu-6 and A549 cells, olaparib enhanced the cytotoxic effects of radiation (sensitizer enhancement ratio at 10% survival = 1.5 and 1.3) and DNA double-strand breaks persisted for at least 24 hours after treatment. Combination treatment of Calu-6 xenografts with olaparib and fractionated radiotherapy caused significant tumor regression (P = 0.007) relative to radiotherapy alone. To determine whether this radiosensitization was solely due to effects on DNA repair, we used a dorsal window chamber model to establish the drug/radiation effects on vessel dynamics. Olaparib alone, when given as single or multiple daily doses, or in combination with fractionated radiotherapy, increased the perfusion of tumor blood vessels. Furthermore, an ex vivo assay in phenylephrine preconstricted arteries confirmed olaparib to have higher vasodilatory properties than nicotinamide. This study suggests that olaparib warrants consideration for further development in combination with radiotherapy in clinical oncology settings such as NSCLC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana M Senra
- Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Manchester Cancer Research Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PT, UK
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Yuen HF, McCrudden CM, Chan KK, Chan YP, Wong MLY, Chan KYK, Khoo US, Law S, Srivastava G, Lappin TR, Chan KW, El-Tanani M. The role of Pea3 group transcription factors in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Am J Pathol 2011; 179:992-1003. [PMID: 21689625 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajpath.2011.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2010] [Revised: 03/11/2011] [Accepted: 04/05/2011] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
The transcription factors Pea3, Erm, and Er81 can promote cancer initiation and progression in various types of solid tumors. However, their role in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) has not been elucidated. In this study, we found that the expression levels of Pea3 and Erm, but not that of Er81, were significantly higher in ESCC compared with nontumor esophageal epithelium. A high level of Pea3 expression was significantly correlated with a shorter overall survival in a cohort of 81 patients with ESCC and the subgroup with N1 stage tumor (Wilcoxon-Gehan test, P = 0.016 and P = 0.001, respectively). Pea3 was overexpressed in seven ESCC cell lines compared with two immortalized esophageal cell lines. Pea3 knockdown reduced cell proliferation and suppressed nonadherent growth, migration, and invasion in ESCC cells in vitro. In addition, Pea3 knockdown in ESCC cells resulted in a down-regulation of phospho-Akt and matrix metalloproteinase 13, whereas a significant positive correlation in the expression levels was observed between Pea3 and phospho-Akt (r = 0.281, P < 0.013) and between Pea3 and matrix metalloproteinase 13 in the human specimens (r = 0.462, P < 0.001). Moreover, Pea3 modulated the sensitivity of EC109 cells to doxorubicin, probably via reduced activity of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-Akt-mammalian target of Rapamycin complex 1 pathway on Pea3 knockdown. In conclusion, our results suggest that Pea3 plays an important role in the progression of ESCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Center for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
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Yuen HF, Chan YK, Grills C, McCrudden CM, Gunasekharan V, Shi Z, Wong ASY, Lappin TR, Chan KW, Fennell DA, Khoo US, Johnston PG, El-Tanani M. Polyomavirus enhancer activator 3 protein promotes breast cancer metastatic progression through Snail-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition. J Pathol 2011; 224:78-89. [PMID: 21404275 DOI: 10.1002/path.2859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2010] [Revised: 12/06/2010] [Accepted: 01/09/2011] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Polyomavirus enhancer activator 3 protein (Pea3), also known as ETV4, is a member of the Ets-transcription factor family, which promotes metastatic progression in various types of solid cancer. Pea3-driven epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been described in lung and ovarian cancers. The mechanisms of Pea3-induced EMT, however, are largely unknown. Here we show that Pea3 overexpression promotes EMT in human breast epithelial cells through transactivation of Snail (SNAI1), an activator of EMT. Pea3 binds to the human Snail promoter through the two proximal Pea3 binding sites and enhances Snail expression. In addition, knockdown of Pea3 in invasive breast cancer cells results in down-regulation of Snail, partial reversal of EMT, and reduced invasiveness in vitro. Moreover, knockdown of Snail partially rescues the phenotype induced by Pea3 overexpression, suggesting that Snail is one of the mediators bridging Pea3 and EMT, and thereby metastatic progression of the cancer cells. In four breast cancer patient cohorts whose microarray and survival data were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database, Pea3 and Snail expression are significantly correlated with each other and with overall survival of breast cancer patients. We further demonstrate that nuclear localization of Pea3 is associated with Snail expression in breast cancer cell lines and is an independent predictor of overall survival in a Chinese breast cancer patient cohort. In conclusion, our results suggest that Pea3 may be an important prognostic marker and a therapeutic target for metastatic progression of human breast cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiu-Fung Yuen
- Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queen's University of Belfast, UK
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