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Brachyury, a driver of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, is overexpressed in human lung tumors: an opportunity for novel interventions against lung cancer.

ABSTRACT: PURPOSE:The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is emerging as a critical factor for the progression and metastasis of carcinomas, as well as drug resistance. The T-box transcription factor Brachyury has been recently characterized as a driver of EMT in human carcinoma cells. The purpose of this study was to characterize Brachyury as a potential target for lung cancer therapy. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN:The expression of Brachyury was evaluated by PCR and by immunohistochemistry in human lung tumors and adult normal tissues. Brachyury gene copy number and promoter methylation status were analyzed in tumor tissues with various levels of Brachyury expression. Lung carcinoma cells' susceptibility to T-cell lysis and EGF receptor (EGFR) kinase inhibition were also evaluated relative to the levels of Brachyury. RESULTS:Our results showed Brachyury protein expression in 41% of primary lung carcinomas, including 48% of adenocarcinomas and 25% of squamous cell carcinomas. With the exception of normal testis and some thyroid tissues, the majority of normal tissues evaluated in this study were negative for the expression of Brachyury protein. Brachyury-specific T cells could lyse Brachyury-positive tumors and the level of Brachyury corresponded to resistance of tumor cells to EGFR kinase inhibition. CONCLUSION:We hypothesize that the elimination of Brachyury-positive tumor cells may be able to prevent and/or diminish tumor dissemination and the establishment of metastases. The ability of Brachyury-specific T-cell lines to lyse Brachyury-positive tumor cells, in vitro, supports the development of Brachyury-based immunotherapeutic approaches for the treatment of lung cancer.

SUBMITTER: Roselli M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3472640 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Brachyury, a driver of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, is overexpressed in human lung tumors: an opportunity for novel interventions against lung cancer.

Roselli Mario M Fernando Romaine I RI Guadagni Fiorella F Spila Antonella A Alessandroni Jhessica J Palmirotta Raffaele R Costarelli Leopoldo L Litzinger Mary M Hamilton Duane D Huang Bruce B Tucker Joanne J Tsang Kwong-Yok KY Schlom Jeffrey J Palena Claudia C

Clinical cancer research : an official journal of the American Association for Cancer Research 20120518 14

<h4>Purpose</h4>The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is emerging as a critical factor for the progression and metastasis of carcinomas, as well as drug resistance. The T-box transcription factor Brachyury has been recently characterized as a driver of EMT in human carcinoma cells. The purpose of this study was to characterize Brachyury as a potential target for lung cancer therapy.<h4>Experimental design</h4>The expression of Brachyury was evaluated by PCR and by immunohistochemistry in h ...[more]

PMID: 22611028

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Project description:BACKGROUND: Several stromal cell subtypes including macrophages contribute to tumor progression by inducing epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) at the invasive front, a mechanism also linked to metastasis. Tumor associated macrophages (TAM) reside mainly at the invasive front but they also infiltrate tumors and in this process they mainly assume a tumor promoting phenotype. In this study, we asked if TAMs also regulate EMT intratumorally. We found that TAMs through TGF-? signaling and activation of the ?-catenin pathway can induce EMT in intratumoral cancer cells. METHODS: We depleted macrophages in F9-teratocarcinoma bearing mice using clodronate-liposomes and analyzed the tumors for correlations between gene and protein expression of EMT-associated and macrophage markers. The functional relationship between TAMs and EMT was characterized in vitro in the murine F9 and mammary gland NMuMG cells, using a conditioned medium culture approach. The clinical relevance of our findings was evaluated on a tissue microarray cohort representing 491 patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). RESULTS: Gene expression analysis of F9-teratocarcinomas revealed a positive correlation between TAM-densities and mesenchymal marker expression. Moreover, immunohistochemistry showed that TAMs cluster with EMT phenotype cells in the tumors. In vitro, long term exposure of F9-and NMuMG-cells to macrophage-conditioned medium led to decreased expression of the epithelial adhesion protein E-cadherin, activation of the EMT-mediating ?-catenin pathway, increased expression of mesenchymal markers and an invasive phenotype. In a candidate based screen, macrophage-derived TGF-? was identified as the main inducer of this EMT-associated phenotype. Lastly, immunohistochemical analysis of NSCLC patient samples identified a positive correlation between intratumoral macrophage densities, EMT markers, intraepithelial TGF-? levels and tumor grade. CONCLUSIONS: Data presented here identify a novel role for macrophages in EMT-promoted tumor progression. The observation that TAMs cluster with intra-epithelial fibroblastoid cells suggests that the role of macrophages in tumor-EMT extends beyond the invasive front. As macrophage infiltration and pronounced EMT tumor phenotype correlate with increased grade in NSCLC patients, we propose that TAMs also promote tumor progression by inducing EMT locally in tumors.

Project description:BackgroundLung cancer is the most common and lethal malignancy worldwide. TCTP is highly expressed in various cancers including lung cancer. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) could increase cancer cell invasion. Whether TCTP's expression is associated with EMT in lung adenocarcinoma is largely unknown.MethodsSeveral Gene Expression Omnibus datasets were used to analyze the correlation between TCTP expression and overall survival of lung adenocarcinoma patients by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Then, 24 surgically removed fresh lung adenocarcinoma tissue samples and paired paracancer tissue samples were used to analyze the correlation between TCTP expression and tumor stage by immunohistochemical analysis. Furthermore, stable cell lines were generated using lentiviral transduction systems to knock down or overexpress TCTP in A549 cells. Cell migration and invasion were measured by scratch and transwell assays, and EMT marker proteins such as α-SMA, ZEB1, and E-cadherin were quantitated by Western blot. The expression levels of miR-200a, miR-141, and miR-429 were determined by real-time quantitative PCR, and their target genes were predicted by an online database miRTarBase. The interaction between TCTP and these genes was analyzed by String database and visualized by Cytoscape.ResultsTCTP was highly expressed in tumor tissues compared to paracancer tissues. The expression of TCTP was associated with shorter overall survival. TCTP knockdown experiment in A549 cells suggested that TCTP knockdown could decrease the migration and invasion of lung cancer cells, and the expression level of ZEB1 and α-SMA, but increase the expression of E-cadherin and p53. Vice versa, overexpression of TCTP could increase the migration and invasion of cancer cells, and the expression level of ZEB1 and α-SMA, but decrease the expression of E-cadherin and p53. Furthermore, we found the expression of miR-200a, miR-141, and miR-429 was associated with TCTP expression.ConclusionTCTP promotes EMT in lung adenocarcinoma, and this effect may be associated with miR-200 family members like miR-200a, miR-141, and miR-429.

Dataset Information

Brachyury, a driver of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, is overexpressed in human lung tumors: an opportunity for novel interventions against lung cancer.

Publications

Brachyury, a driver of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, is overexpressed in human lung tumors: an opportunity for novel interventions against lung cancer.

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