Analysis of ETS gene expression patterns uncovers novel ETS mediated gene silencing pathways in prostate cancers

ABSTRACT: Deregulated expression of ETS transcription factors with oncogenic and tumor suppressor function occurs frequently in prostate cancer leading to profound alterations of the cancer transcriptome. By integrating genomic and functional studies we identified key targets of the aberrantly expressed ETS factors, ERG and ESE3. Altered expression of ETS factors led to the induction of the polycomb group protein EZH2 and silencing of the tumor suppressor Nkx3.1. Nkx3.1 was controlled by ERG and ESE3 both directly via binding to ETS binding sites in the gene promoter and indirectly via EZH2-induced histone H3K27 methylation. This may represent a general mechanism linking aberrantly expressed ETS with deregulation of epigenetic pathways and global reprogramming of the prostate epithelial cell transcriptome in prostate tumorigenesis. Keywords: prostate cancer, gene expression profiling, ETS genes In this study we show that deregulated expression of ETS factors with opposite functions is highly frequent in prostate cancer. Our study uncovers a previously unrecognized link between aberrant expression of ETS factors, deregulation of epigenetic pathways and silencing of tumor suppressor genes in prostate cancer and shows that partially distinct transcriptional programs are associated with different ETS gene expression patterns. The presence of distinct prostate cancer subgroups with different biological features may have important clinical implications and suggests that assessment of ETS expression levels might be useful to distinguish tumors with different clinical outcome.

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

SUBMITTER: Afua Mensah 

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-14206 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress