Pub Date : 2023-09-16DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00490-2
Maa Mamun, Ying Liu, Yin-Ping Geng, Yi-Chao Zheng, Ya Gao, Jian-Gang Sun, Long-Fei Zhao, Li-Juan Zhao, Hong-Min Liu
Neddylation is the writing of monomers or polymers of neural precursor cells expressed developmentally down-regulated 8 (NEDD8) to substrate. For neddylation to occur, three enzymes are required: activators (E1), conjugators (E2), and ligators (E3). However, the central role is played by the ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes E2M (UBE2M) and E2F (UBE2F), which are part of the E2 enzyme family. Recent understanding of the structure and mechanism of these two proteins provides insight into their physiological effects on apoptosis, cell cycle arrest and genome stability. To treat cancer, it is therefore appealing to develop novel inhibitors against UBE2M or UBE2F interactions with either E1 or E3. In this evaluation, we summarized the existing understanding of E2 interaction with E1 and E3 and reviewed the prospective of using neddylation E2 as a pharmacological target for evolving new anti-cancer remedies.
{"title":"Discovery of neddylation E2s inhibitors with therapeutic activity.","authors":"Maa Mamun, Ying Liu, Yin-Ping Geng, Yi-Chao Zheng, Ya Gao, Jian-Gang Sun, Long-Fei Zhao, Li-Juan Zhao, Hong-Min Liu","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00490-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41389-023-00490-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Neddylation is the writing of monomers or polymers of neural precursor cells expressed developmentally down-regulated 8 (NEDD8) to substrate. For neddylation to occur, three enzymes are required: activators (E1), conjugators (E2), and ligators (E3). However, the central role is played by the ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes E2M (UBE2M) and E2F (UBE2F), which are part of the E2 enzyme family. Recent understanding of the structure and mechanism of these two proteins provides insight into their physiological effects on apoptosis, cell cycle arrest and genome stability. To treat cancer, it is therefore appealing to develop novel inhibitors against UBE2M or UBE2F interactions with either E1 or E3. In this evaluation, we summarized the existing understanding of E2 interaction with E1 and E3 and reviewed the prospective of using neddylation E2 as a pharmacological target for evolving new anti-cancer remedies.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"45"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10505188/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10670972","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-04DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00489-9
Bhavisha Doshi, Sarah R Athans, Anna Woloszynska
Sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer have long been a subject of interest to the cancer research community, wherein men have a 4 times higher incidence rate than women, and female patients often present with higher-grade disease and experience worse outcomes. Despite the known differences in disease incidence and clinical outcomes between male and female bladder cancer patients, clinical management remains the same. In this review, we critically analyze studies that report on the biological differences between men and women and evaluate how these differences contribute to sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer. Distinct characteristics of the male and female immune systems, differences in circulating hormone levels and hormone receptor expression, and different genetic and epigenetic alterations are major biological factors that all likely contribute to disparate incidence rates and outcomes for male and female bladder cancer patients. Future preclinical and clinical studies in this area should employ experimental approaches that account for and consider sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer, thereby facilitating the development of precision medicine for the effective treatment of bladder cancer in all patients.
{"title":"Biological differences underlying sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer: current synopsis and future directions.","authors":"Bhavisha Doshi, Sarah R Athans, Anna Woloszynska","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00489-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41389-023-00489-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer have long been a subject of interest to the cancer research community, wherein men have a 4 times higher incidence rate than women, and female patients often present with higher-grade disease and experience worse outcomes. Despite the known differences in disease incidence and clinical outcomes between male and female bladder cancer patients, clinical management remains the same. In this review, we critically analyze studies that report on the biological differences between men and women and evaluate how these differences contribute to sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer. Distinct characteristics of the male and female immune systems, differences in circulating hormone levels and hormone receptor expression, and different genetic and epigenetic alterations are major biological factors that all likely contribute to disparate incidence rates and outcomes for male and female bladder cancer patients. Future preclinical and clinical studies in this area should employ experimental approaches that account for and consider sex and gender disparities in bladder cancer, thereby facilitating the development of precision medicine for the effective treatment of bladder cancer in all patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"44"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10477245/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10171203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-12DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00485-z
Verneri Virtanen, Kreetta Paunu, Antti Kukkula, Saana Niva, Ylva Junila, Mervi Toriseva, Terhi Jokilehto, Sari Mäkelä, Riikka Huhtaniemi, Matti Poutanen, Ilkka Paatero, Maria Sundvall
Lethal prostate cancer (PCa) is characterized by the presence of metastases and development of resistance to therapies. Metastases form in a multi-step process enabled by dynamic cytoskeleton remodeling. An actin cytoskeleton regulating gene, CALD1, encodes a protein caldesmon (CaD). Its isoform, low-molecular-weight CaD (l-CaD), operates in non-muscle cells, supporting the function of filaments involved in force production and mechanosensing. Several factors, including glucocorticoid receptor (GR), have been identified as regulators of l-CaD in different cell types, but the regulation of l-CaD in PCa has not been defined. PCa develops resistance in response to therapeutic inhibition of androgen signaling by multiple strategies. Known strategies include androgen receptor (AR) alterations, modified steroid synthesis, and bypassing AR signaling, for example, by GR upregulation. Here, we report that in vitro downregulation of l-CaD promotes epithelial phenotype and reduces spheroid growth in 3D, which is reflected in vivo in reduced formation of metastases in zebrafish PCa xenografts. In accordance, CALD1 mRNA expression correlates with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) transcripts in PCa patients. We also show that CALD1 is highly co-expressed with GR in multiple PCa data sets, and GR activation upregulates l-CaD in vitro. Moreover, GR upregulation associates with increased l-CaD expression after the development of resistance to antiandrogen therapy in PCa xenograft mouse models. In summary, GR-regulated l-CaD plays a role in forming PCa metastases, being clinically relevant when antiandrogen resistance is attained by the means of bypassing AR signaling by GR upregulation.
{"title":"Glucocorticoid receptor-induced non-muscle caldesmon regulates metastasis in castration-resistant prostate cancer.","authors":"Verneri Virtanen, Kreetta Paunu, Antti Kukkula, Saana Niva, Ylva Junila, Mervi Toriseva, Terhi Jokilehto, Sari Mäkelä, Riikka Huhtaniemi, Matti Poutanen, Ilkka Paatero, Maria Sundvall","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00485-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41389-023-00485-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Lethal prostate cancer (PCa) is characterized by the presence of metastases and development of resistance to therapies. Metastases form in a multi-step process enabled by dynamic cytoskeleton remodeling. An actin cytoskeleton regulating gene, CALD1, encodes a protein caldesmon (CaD). Its isoform, low-molecular-weight CaD (l-CaD), operates in non-muscle cells, supporting the function of filaments involved in force production and mechanosensing. Several factors, including glucocorticoid receptor (GR), have been identified as regulators of l-CaD in different cell types, but the regulation of l-CaD in PCa has not been defined. PCa develops resistance in response to therapeutic inhibition of androgen signaling by multiple strategies. Known strategies include androgen receptor (AR) alterations, modified steroid synthesis, and bypassing AR signaling, for example, by GR upregulation. Here, we report that in vitro downregulation of l-CaD promotes epithelial phenotype and reduces spheroid growth in 3D, which is reflected in vivo in reduced formation of metastases in zebrafish PCa xenografts. In accordance, CALD1 mRNA expression correlates with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) transcripts in PCa patients. We also show that CALD1 is highly co-expressed with GR in multiple PCa data sets, and GR activation upregulates l-CaD in vitro. Moreover, GR upregulation associates with increased l-CaD expression after the development of resistance to antiandrogen therapy in PCa xenograft mouse models. In summary, GR-regulated l-CaD plays a role in forming PCa metastases, being clinically relevant when antiandrogen resistance is attained by the means of bypassing AR signaling by GR upregulation.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"42"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10423232/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9988903","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-12DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00488-w
Chunlin Lin, Penghang Lin, Huayan Lin, Hengxin Yao, Songyi Liu, Ruofan He, Hui Chen, Zuhong Teng, Robert M Hoffman, Jianxin Ye, Guangwei Zhu
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a formidable disease due to the intricate mechanisms that drive its proliferation and metastasis. Despite significant progress in cancer research, the integration of these mechanisms that influence cancer cell behavior remains elusive. Therefore, it is imperative to comprehensively elucidate the underlying mechanisms driving CRC proliferation and metastasis. In this study, we reported a novel role of SLC26A3 in suppressing CRC progression. We found that SLC26A3 expression was downregulated in CRC, which was proportionally correlated with survival. Our in vivo and in vitro experiments demonstrated that up-regulation of SLC26A3 inhibited CRC proliferation and metastasis, while down-regulation of SLC26A3 promoted CRC progression by modulating the expression level of IκB. Furthermore, we identified NHERF2 as a novel interacting protein of SLC26A3 responsible for stabilizing the IκB protein and removing ubiquitination modification. Mechanistically, SLC26A3 augmented the interaction between NHERF2 and IκB, subsequently reducing its degradation. This process inhibited the dissociation of p65 from the IκB/p65/p50 complex and reduced the translocation of p65 from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. Moreover, our investigation revealed that NF-κB/p65 directly bound to the promoter of SLC26A3, leading to a decline in its mRNA expression. Thus, SLC26A3 impeded the nuclear translocation of NF-κB/p65, enhancing the transcription of SLC26A3 and establishing a positive regulatory feedback loop in CRC cells. Collectively, these results suggest that a SLC26A3/NHERF2-IκB/NF-κB/p65 signaling loop suppresses proliferation and metastasis in CRC cells. These findings propose a novel SLC26A3-driven signaling loop that regulates proliferation and metastasis in CRC, providing promising therapeutic interventions and prognostic targets for the management of CRC.
{"title":"SLC26A3/NHERF2-IκB/NFκB/p65 feedback loop suppresses tumorigenesis and metastasis in colorectal cancer.","authors":"Chunlin Lin, Penghang Lin, Huayan Lin, Hengxin Yao, Songyi Liu, Ruofan He, Hui Chen, Zuhong Teng, Robert M Hoffman, Jianxin Ye, Guangwei Zhu","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00488-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41389-023-00488-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a formidable disease due to the intricate mechanisms that drive its proliferation and metastasis. Despite significant progress in cancer research, the integration of these mechanisms that influence cancer cell behavior remains elusive. Therefore, it is imperative to comprehensively elucidate the underlying mechanisms driving CRC proliferation and metastasis. In this study, we reported a novel role of SLC26A3 in suppressing CRC progression. We found that SLC26A3 expression was downregulated in CRC, which was proportionally correlated with survival. Our in vivo and in vitro experiments demonstrated that up-regulation of SLC26A3 inhibited CRC proliferation and metastasis, while down-regulation of SLC26A3 promoted CRC progression by modulating the expression level of IκB. Furthermore, we identified NHERF2 as a novel interacting protein of SLC26A3 responsible for stabilizing the IκB protein and removing ubiquitination modification. Mechanistically, SLC26A3 augmented the interaction between NHERF2 and IκB, subsequently reducing its degradation. This process inhibited the dissociation of p65 from the IκB/p65/p50 complex and reduced the translocation of p65 from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. Moreover, our investigation revealed that NF-κB/p65 directly bound to the promoter of SLC26A3, leading to a decline in its mRNA expression. Thus, SLC26A3 impeded the nuclear translocation of NF-κB/p65, enhancing the transcription of SLC26A3 and establishing a positive regulatory feedback loop in CRC cells. Collectively, these results suggest that a SLC26A3/NHERF2-IκB/NF-κB/p65 signaling loop suppresses proliferation and metastasis in CRC cells. These findings propose a novel SLC26A3-driven signaling loop that regulates proliferation and metastasis in CRC, providing promising therapeutic interventions and prognostic targets for the management of CRC.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"41"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10423209/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10000486","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-05DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00486-y
Anna S Nikonova, Alexander Y Deneka, Flaviane N Silva, Shabnam Pirestani, Rossella Tricarico, Anna A Kiseleva, Yan Zhou, Emmanuelle Nicolas, Douglas B Flieder, Sergei I Grivennikov, Erica A Golemis
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers, with an annual incidence of ~135,000 in the US, associated with ~50,000 deaths. Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), associated with mutations disabling the PKD1 gene, affects as many as 1 in 1000. Intriguingly, some studies have suggested that individuals with germline mutations in PKD1 have reduced incidence of CRC, suggesting a genetic modifier function. Using mouse models, we here establish that loss of Pkd1 greatly reduces CRC incidence and tumor growth induced by loss of the tumor suppressor Apc. Growth of Pkd1-/-;Apc-/- organoids was reduced relative to Apc-/- organoids, indicating a cancer cell-intrinsic activity, even though Pkd1 loss enhanced activity of pro-oncogenic signaling pathways. Notably, Pkd1 loss increased colon barrier function, with Pkd1-deficient animals resistant to DSS-induced colitis, associated with upregulation of claudins that decrease permeability, and reduced T cell infiltration. Notably, Pkd1 loss caused greater sensitivity to activation of CFTR, a tumor suppressor in CRC, paralleling signaling relations in ADPKD. Overall, these data and other data suggest germline and somatic mutations in PKD1 may influence incidence, presentation, and treatment response in human CRC and other pathologies involving the colon.
{"title":"Loss of Pkd1 limits susceptibility to colitis and colorectal cancer.","authors":"Anna S Nikonova, Alexander Y Deneka, Flaviane N Silva, Shabnam Pirestani, Rossella Tricarico, Anna A Kiseleva, Yan Zhou, Emmanuelle Nicolas, Douglas B Flieder, Sergei I Grivennikov, Erica A Golemis","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00486-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41389-023-00486-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers, with an annual incidence of ~135,000 in the US, associated with ~50,000 deaths. Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), associated with mutations disabling the PKD1 gene, affects as many as 1 in 1000. Intriguingly, some studies have suggested that individuals with germline mutations in PKD1 have reduced incidence of CRC, suggesting a genetic modifier function. Using mouse models, we here establish that loss of Pkd1 greatly reduces CRC incidence and tumor growth induced by loss of the tumor suppressor Apc. Growth of Pkd1<sup>-/-</sup>;Apc<sup>-/-</sup> organoids was reduced relative to Apc<sup>-/-</sup> organoids, indicating a cancer cell-intrinsic activity, even though Pkd1 loss enhanced activity of pro-oncogenic signaling pathways. Notably, Pkd1 loss increased colon barrier function, with Pkd1-deficient animals resistant to DSS-induced colitis, associated with upregulation of claudins that decrease permeability, and reduced T cell infiltration. Notably, Pkd1 loss caused greater sensitivity to activation of CFTR, a tumor suppressor in CRC, paralleling signaling relations in ADPKD. Overall, these data and other data suggest germline and somatic mutations in PKD1 may influence incidence, presentation, and treatment response in human CRC and other pathologies involving the colon.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"40"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10403611/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9946275","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-11DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00482-2
Zicheng Zhang, Hongyan Chen, Dongxue Yan, Lu Chen, Jie Sun, Meng Zhou
Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies have brought unprecedented advances in cancer treatment, but responses are limited to a fraction of patients. Therefore, sustained and substantial efforts are required to advance clinical and translational investigation on managing patients receiving ICB. In this study, we investigated the dynamic changes in molecular profiles of T-cell exhaustion (TEX) during ICB treatment using single-cell and bulk transcriptome analysis, and demonstrated distinct exhaustion molecular profiles associated with ICB response. By applying an ensemble deep-learning computational framework, we identified an ICB-associated transcriptional signature consisting of 16 TEX-related genes, termed ITGs. Incorporating 16 ITGs into a machine-learning model called MLTIP achieved reliable predictive power for clinical ICB response with an average AUC of 0.778, and overall survival (pooled HR = 0.093, 95% CI, 0.031-0.28, P < 0.001) across multiple ICB-treated cohorts. Furthermore, the MLTIP consistently demonstrated superior predictive performance compared to other well-established markers and signatures, with an average increase in AUC of 21.5%. In summary, our results highlight the potential of this TEX-dependent transcriptional signature as a tool for precise patient stratification and personalized immunotherapy, with clinical translation in precision medicine.
免疫检查点阻断(ICB)疗法在癌症治疗方面取得了前所未有的进展,但反应仅限于一小部分患者。因此,需要持续和大量的努力来推进临床和转化研究,以管理接受ICB的患者。在这项研究中,我们利用单细胞和大量转录组分析研究了ICB治疗期间t细胞衰竭(TEX)分子谱的动态变化,并证明了与ICB反应相关的不同的衰竭分子谱。通过应用集成深度学习计算框架,我们确定了由16个texg相关基因组成的icb相关转录特征,称为ITGs。将16个ITGs纳入名为MLTIP的机器学习模型中,获得了临床ICB反应的可靠预测能力,平均AUC为0.778,总生存期(合并HR = 0.093, 95% CI, 0.031-0.28, P
{"title":"Deep learning identifies a T-cell exhaustion-dependent transcriptional signature for predicting clinical outcomes and response to immune checkpoint blockade.","authors":"Zicheng Zhang, Hongyan Chen, Dongxue Yan, Lu Chen, Jie Sun, Meng Zhou","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00482-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41389-023-00482-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies have brought unprecedented advances in cancer treatment, but responses are limited to a fraction of patients. Therefore, sustained and substantial efforts are required to advance clinical and translational investigation on managing patients receiving ICB. In this study, we investigated the dynamic changes in molecular profiles of T-cell exhaustion (TEX) during ICB treatment using single-cell and bulk transcriptome analysis, and demonstrated distinct exhaustion molecular profiles associated with ICB response. By applying an ensemble deep-learning computational framework, we identified an ICB-associated transcriptional signature consisting of 16 TEX-related genes, termed ITGs. Incorporating 16 ITGs into a machine-learning model called MLTIP achieved reliable predictive power for clinical ICB response with an average AUC of 0.778, and overall survival (pooled HR = 0.093, 95% CI, 0.031-0.28, P < 0.001) across multiple ICB-treated cohorts. Furthermore, the MLTIP consistently demonstrated superior predictive performance compared to other well-established markers and signatures, with an average increase in AUC of 21.5%. In summary, our results highlight the potential of this TEX-dependent transcriptional signature as a tool for precise patient stratification and personalized immunotherapy, with clinical translation in precision medicine.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"37"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10336094/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9815245","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-05DOI: 10.1038/s41389-023-00478-y
Alvin Ho-Kwan Cheung, Kit-Yee Wong, Xiaoli Liu, Fenfen Ji, Chris Ho-Lam Hui, Yihan Zhang, Johnny Sheung-Him Kwan, Bonan Chen, Yujuan Dong, Raymond Wai-Ming Lung, Jun Yu, Kwok Wai Lo, Chi Chun Wong, Wei Kang, Ka-Fai To
MLK4, a member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAP3K) family, has been implicated in cancer progression. However, its role in lung adenocarcinoma has not been characterized. Here, we showed that MLK4 was overexpressed in a significant subset of lung adenocarcinoma, associated with a worse prognosis, and exerted an oncogenic function in vitro and in vivo. Bioinformatics analyses of clinical datasets identified phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PCK1) as a novel target of MLK4. We validated that MLK4 regulated PCK1 expression at transcriptional level, by phosphorylating the transcription factor CREB, which in turn mediated PCK1 expression. We further demonstrated that PCK1 is an oncogenic factor in lung adenocarcinoma. Given the importance of PCK1 in the regulation of cellular metabolism, we next deciphered the metabolic effects of MLK4. Metabolic and mass spectrometry analyses showed that MLK4 knockdown led to significant reduction of glycolysis and decreased levels of glycolytic pathway metabolites including phosphoenolpyruvate and lactate. Finally, the promoter analysis of MLK4 unravelled a binding site of transcription factor KLF5, which in turn, positively regulated MLK4 expression in lung adenocarcinoma. In summary, we have revealed a KLF5-MLK4-PCK1 signalling pathway involved in lung tumorigenesis and established an unusual link between MAP3K signalling and cancer metabolism.
{"title":"MLK4 promotes glucose metabolism in lung adenocarcinoma through CREB-mediated activation of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase and is regulated by KLF5.","authors":"Alvin Ho-Kwan Cheung, Kit-Yee Wong, Xiaoli Liu, Fenfen Ji, Chris Ho-Lam Hui, Yihan Zhang, Johnny Sheung-Him Kwan, Bonan Chen, Yujuan Dong, Raymond Wai-Ming Lung, Jun Yu, Kwok Wai Lo, Chi Chun Wong, Wei Kang, Ka-Fai To","doi":"10.1038/s41389-023-00478-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41389-023-00478-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>MLK4, a member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAP3K) family, has been implicated in cancer progression. However, its role in lung adenocarcinoma has not been characterized. Here, we showed that MLK4 was overexpressed in a significant subset of lung adenocarcinoma, associated with a worse prognosis, and exerted an oncogenic function in vitro and in vivo. Bioinformatics analyses of clinical datasets identified phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PCK1) as a novel target of MLK4. We validated that MLK4 regulated PCK1 expression at transcriptional level, by phosphorylating the transcription factor CREB, which in turn mediated PCK1 expression. We further demonstrated that PCK1 is an oncogenic factor in lung adenocarcinoma. Given the importance of PCK1 in the regulation of cellular metabolism, we next deciphered the metabolic effects of MLK4. Metabolic and mass spectrometry analyses showed that MLK4 knockdown led to significant reduction of glycolysis and decreased levels of glycolytic pathway metabolites including phosphoenolpyruvate and lactate. Finally, the promoter analysis of MLK4 unravelled a binding site of transcription factor KLF5, which in turn, positively regulated MLK4 expression in lung adenocarcinoma. In summary, we have revealed a KLF5-MLK4-PCK1 signalling pathway involved in lung tumorigenesis and established an unusual link between MAP3K signalling and cancer metabolism.</p>","PeriodicalId":19489,"journal":{"name":"Oncogenesis","volume":"12 1","pages":"35"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2023-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10323122/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10161099","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}