Project description:PTEN loss or PI3K/AKT signaling pathway activation correlates with human prostate cancer progression and metastasis. However, in preclinical murine models, deletion of Pten alone fails to mimic the significant metastatic burden that frequently accompanies the end stage of human disease. To identify additional pathway alterations that cooperate with PTEN loss in prostate cancer progression, we surveyed human prostate cancer tissue microarrays and found that the RAS/MAPK pathway is significantly elevated both in primary and metastatic lesions. In an attempt to model this event, we crossed conditional activatable K-rasG12D/WT mice with the prostate conditional Pten deletion model we previously generated. Although RAS activation alone cannot initiate prostate cancer development, it significantly accelerated progression caused by PTEN loss, accompanied by epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and macrometastasis with 100% penitence. A novel stem/progenitor subpopulation with mesenchymal characteristics was isolated from the compound mutant prostates, which was highly metastatic upon orthotopic transplantation. Importantly, inhibition of RAS/MAPK signaling by PD325901, a MEK inhibitor, significantly reduced the metastatic progression initiated from transplanted stem/progenitor cells. Collectively, these data indicate that activation of RAS/MAPK signaling serves as a potentiating second hit to alteration of the PTEN/PI3K/AKT axis and co-targeting both pathways is highly effective in preventing the development of metastatic prostate cancers. Murine mutants with prostate specific loss of Pten and K-ras activation (K-rasG12D) under regulation of the probasin promoter developed high grade, invasive prostate cancer. RNA was extracted from dissected prostate lobes from individual mutants with pathology thought to closely mimic human disease. Prostate tissue was subject to RNA extraction and hybridization on Affymetrix cDNA microarrays.
Project description:PTEN loss or PI3K/AKT signaling pathway activation correlates with human prostate cancer progression and metastasis. However, in preclinical murine models, deletion of Pten alone fails to mimic the significant metastatic burden that frequently accompanies the end stage of human disease. To identify additional pathway alterations that cooperate with PTEN loss in prostate cancer progression, we surveyed human prostate cancer tissue microarrays and found that the RAS/MAPK pathway is significantly elevated both in primary and metastatic lesions. In an attempt to model this event, we crossed conditional activatable K-rasG12D/WT mice with the prostate conditional Pten deletion model we previously generated. Although RAS activation alone cannot initiate prostate cancer development, it significantly accelerated progression caused by PTEN loss, accompanied by epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and macrometastasis with 100% penitence. A novel stem/progenitor subpopulation with mesenchymal characteristics was isolated from the compound mutant prostates, which was highly metastatic upon orthotopic transplantation. Importantly, inhibition of RAS/MAPK signaling by PD325901, a MEK inhibitor, significantly reduced the metastatic progression initiated from transplanted stem/progenitor cells. Collectively, these data indicate that activation of RAS/MAPK signaling serves as a potentiating second hit to alteration of the PTEN/PI3K/AKT axis and co-targeting both pathways is highly effective in preventing the development of metastatic prostate cancers.
Project description:The distinct frequency of activation of the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway in human cancers suggests a context-dependent cellular state of vulnerability to RAS transformation. While uncommon in breast cancers, oncogenic activation of this pathway is frequent in claudin-low (CL) tumors, a subtype of breast malignancies enriched in features of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), suggesting an interplay between RAS activation and EMT. Using inducible models of human mammary epithelial cells, we show that RAS-mediated transformation relies upon cellular reprogramming governed by the EMT-inducing transcription factor ZEB1. The path to ZEB1 induction involves a paracrine process: cells entering a senescent state following RAS induction release proinflammatory cytokines, notably IL-6 and IL1 which promote ZEB1 expression and activity in neighboring cells, thereby fostering their malignant transformation. Collectively, our findings unveil a previously unprecedented role for senescence in bridging RAS activation and EMT over the course of malignant transformation of human mammary epithelial cells.
Project description:Malignant melanoma is characterized by frequent metastasis, however specific changes that regulate this process have not been clearly delineated. Although it is well known that Wnt signaling is frequently dysregulated in melanoma, the functional implications of this observation are unclear. By modulating beta-catenin levels in a mouse model of melanoma that is based on melanocyte-specific Pten loss and BrafV600E mutation, we demonstrate that beta-catenin is a central mediator of melanoma metastasis to lymph node and lung. In addition to altering metastasis, beta-catenin levels control tumor differentiation and regulate both MAPK/Erk and PI3K/Akt signaling. Highly metastatic tumors with beta-catenin stabilization are very similar to a subset of human melanomas; together these findings establish Wnt signaling as a metastasis regulator in melanoma. MoGene-1_0-st-v1: Four samples total. Two biological replicates of uncultured Pten/Braf murine melanomas and two biological replicates of uncultured Pten/Braf/Bcat-STA murine melanomas. MoEx-1_0-st-v1: Two samples total. Dissociated tumor and FACS-enriched Pten/Braf and Pten/Braf/Bcat-STA murine melanoma.
Project description:PTEN is frequently mutated in a wide range of malignancies. Beyond suppressing tumorigenesis, PTEN is involved in multiple biological processes, and the complexity of PTEN function is partially attributed to PTEN family members including PTENα and PTENβ. Here, we report the identification of PTENε (also named as PTEN5), a novel N-terminal-extended PTEN isoform that suppresses tumor invasion and metastasis. We show that the translation of PTENε is initiated from the CUG816 codon within the 5’UTR region of PTEN mRNA. PTENε mainly localizes in the cell membrane, and physically associates with and dephosphorylates VASP and ACTR2, which govern filopodia formation and cell motility. We found that endogenous depletion of PTENε promotes filopodia formation and enhances the metastasis capacity of tumor cells. Overall, we identify a new isoform of PTEN with distinct localization and function compared to the known members of the PTEN family. These findings enrich the PTEN family constitution and advance our current understanding of the importance and diversity of PTEN functions.
Project description:PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase)/AKT and RAS/MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) pathway coactivation in the prostate epithelium promotes both epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), which is currently incurable. To study the dynamic regulation of the EMT process, we developed novel genetically defined cellular and in vivo model systems from which epithelial, EMT and mesenchymal-like tumor cells with Pten deletion and Kras activation can be isolated. When cultured individually, each population has the capacity to regenerate all three tumor cell populations, indicative of epithelial–mesenchymal plasticity. Despite harboring the same genetic alterations, mesenchymal-like tumor cells are resistant to PI3K and MAPK pathway inhibitors, suggesting that epigenetic mechanisms may regulate the EMT process, as well as dictate the heterogeneous responses of cancer cells to therapy. Among differentially expressed epigenetic regulators, the chromatin remodeling protein HMGA2 is significantly upregulated in EMT and mesenchymal-like tumors cells, as well as in human mCRPC. Knockdown of HMGA2, or suppressing HMGA2 expression with the histone deacetylase inhibitor LBH589, inhibits epithelial–mesenchymal plasticity and stemness activities in vitro and markedly reduces tumor growth and metastasis in vivo through successful targeting of EMT and mesenchymal-like tumor cells. Importantly, LBH589 treatment in combination with castration prevents mCRPC development and significantly prolongs survival following castration by enhancing p53 and androgen receptor acetylation and in turn sensitizing castration-resistant mesenchymal-like tumor cells to androgen deprivation therapy. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that cellular plasticity is regulated epigenetically, and that mesenchymal-like tumor cell populations in mCRPC that are resistant to conventional and targeted therapies can be effectively treated with the epigenetic inhibitor LBH589.
Project description:PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase)/AKT and RAS/MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) pathway coactivation in the prostate epithelium promotes both epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), which is currently incurable. To study the dynamic regulation of the EMT process, we developed novel genetically defined cellular and in vivo model systems from which epithelial, EMT and mesenchymal-like tumor cells with Pten deletion and Kras activation can be isolated. When cultured individually, each population has the capacity to regenerate all three tumor cell populations, indicative of epithelial–mesenchymal plasticity. Despite harboring the same genetic alterations, mesenchymal-like tumor cells are resistant to PI3K and MAPK pathway inhibitors, suggesting that epigenetic mechanisms may regulate the EMT process, as well as dictate the heterogeneous responses of cancer cells to therapy. Among differentially expressed epigenetic regulators, the chromatin remodeling protein HMGA2 is significantly upregulated in EMT and mesenchymal-like tumors cells, as well as in human mCRPC. Knockdown of HMGA2, or suppressing HMGA2 expression with the histone deacetylase inhibitor LBH589, inhibits epithelial–mesenchymal plasticity and stemness activities in vitro and markedly reduces tumor growth and metastasis in vivo through successful targeting of EMT and mesenchymal-like tumor cells. Importantly, LBH589 treatment in combination with castration prevents mCRPC development and significantly prolongs survival following castration by enhancing p53 and androgen receptor acetylation and in turn sensitizing castration-resistant mesenchymal-like tumor cells to androgen deprivation therapy. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that cellular plasticity is regulated epigenetically, and that mesenchymal-like tumor cell populations in mCRPC that are resistant to conventional and targeted therapies can be effectively treated with the epigenetic inhibitor LBH589.
Project description:The tumor suppressor PTEN is frequently inactivated in breast and other cancers; yet, germ-line mutations in this gene induce non-malignant hamartomas, indicating dependency on additional cooperating events. Here we show that most tumors derived from conditional deletion of mouse Pten in mammary epithelium are highly differentiated and lack transplantable tumor initiating cells (TICs) capable of seeding new tumors following orthotopic injection of FACS-sorted or tumorsphere cells. A rare group of poorly differentiated tumors did harbour transplantable TICs. These transplantable tumors exhibited distinct molecular classification, signaling pathways, chromosomal aberrations and mutational landscape, as well as reduced expression of microRNA-143/145. Stable knockdown of miR-143/145 conferred tumorigenic potential upon poorly transplantable Pten-deficient tumor cells through a mechanism involving induction of RAS signaling, leading to increased sensitivity to MEK inhibition. In humans, miR145-deficiency significantly correlated with elevated RAS pathway activity in basal-like breast cancer, and patients with combined PTEN/miR-145 loss or PTEN-loss/RAS pathway activation exhibited poor clinical outcome. These results underscore a selective pressure for combined PTEN loss together with miR-145 loss or high RAS-pathway activity in aggressive forms of breast cancer, and a need to identify and prioritize these tumors for aggressive therapy. Array CGH data comparing 2 types of Pten-deficient tumors (well and poorly differentiated) with other modles of mouse mammary tumors
Project description:The tumor suppressor PTEN is frequently inactivated in breast and other cancers; yet, germ-line mutations in this gene induce non-malignant hamartomas, indicating dependency on additional cooperating events. Here we show that most tumors derived from conditional deletion of mouse Pten in mammary epithelium are highly differentiated and lack transplantable tumor initiating cells (TICs) capable of seeding new tumors following orthotopic injection of FACS-sorted or tumorsphere cells. A rare group of poorly differentiated tumors did harbour transplantable TICs. These transplantable tumors exhibited distinct molecular classification, signaling pathways, chromosomal aberrations and mutational landscape, as well as reduced expression of microRNA-143/145. Stable knockdown of miR-143/145 conferred tumorigenic potential upon poorly transplantable Pten-deficient tumor cells through a mechanism involving induction of RAS signaling, leading to increased sensitivity to MEK inhibition. In humans, miR145-deficiency significantly correlated with elevated RAS pathway activity in basal-like breast cancer, and patients with combined PTEN/miR-145 loss or PTEN-loss/RAS pathway activation exhibited poor clinical outcome. These results underscore a selective pressure for combined PTEN loss together with miR-145 loss or high RAS-pathway activity in aggressive forms of breast cancer, and a need to identify and prioritize these tumors for aggressive therapy. Expression data comparing 2 types of Pten-deficient tumors (spindle and poorly differentiated) with other models of mouse mammary tumors
Project description:The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is an embryonic transdiffrentiation program which consists of the conversion of polarized epithelial cells into a motile mesenchymal phenotype. EMT is aberrantly reactivated during tumor progression, promoting metastatic dissemination. Herein, we demonstrate that EMT permissive conditions also favor tumor initiation by minimizing the number of events required for neoplastic transformation. We further demonstrated that even partial commitment of human mammary epithelial cells into an EMT program is sufficient to confer malignant properties, suggesting that the reactivation of embryonic EMT inducers participate to the primary tumor growth long before the initiation of the invasion-metastasis cascade. Human mammary epithelial cells (HMEC) were sequentially depleted in p53 through RNA interference (shp53), transduced with H-RasG12V and immortalized by hTert. Two different Tert/shp53/Ras cell population emerge that display either an epithelial (Epi) or a mesenchymal (Mes) phenotype. Gene expression profiles of the Tert/shp53 control cells and of tert/shp53/Ras/Epi and Tert/shp53/Ras/Mes were analyzed.