Project description:Matched high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma samples collected from the ovary (ov), omental metastasis (om-met), and non-omental intraperitoneal metastasis (met) from 10 patients at the time of primary debulking surgery were analyzed for RNA expression by RNA sequencing.
Project description:Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) has the highest mortality among gynecological carcinomas. The lack of specific markers for prognostic determination of EOC progression hinders the search for novel effective therapies. The aim of the present study was (i) to explore differences in expressions of ATP-binding cassette and solute carrier transporter genes, genes associated with drug metabolism and cell cycle regulation between control ovarian tissues, primary epithelial ovarian carcinomas (EOC) and intraperitoneal EOC metastases; (ii) to investigate associations of gene expression level with prognosis of patients with intraperitoneal metastases.
Project description:<p>BRCA1 mutations are a hallmark of hereditary ovarian cancer, strongly linked to deficiencies in homologous recombination (HR) DNA repair and impaired DNA replication fork protection. However, its roles in cancer progression beyond maintaining genomic integrity remain poorly understood. Through metabolomics approaches, we found BRCA1-deficiency strikingly increased choline metabolism. Loss of BRCA1 promotes choline uptake through upregulating choline transporter-like protein 4 (CTL4). BRCA1 directly binds and recruits EZH2-mediated H3K27Me3 deposition to CTL4 promoter. CTL4 was therefore overexpressed in ovarian cancer tissues with BRCA1 mutations. Furthermore, BRCA1-deficiency significantly promotes ovarian cancer invasion, while inhibition of CTL4 reverses the high metastatic potential of BRCA1-deficient ovarian cancer cells, suggesting the functionality and specificity of CTL4 as a therapeutic target. Additionally, we discovered that phosphocholine, the choline metabolite increased by CTL4 overexpression, interacted with and stabilized the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition inducer FAM3C in BRCA1-deficient ovarian cancer cells. Importantly, we identified a potent CTL4 inhibitor, DT-13, which significantly reduces choline metabolism and effectively suppresses metastasis in BRCA1-deficient ovarian cancers. Therefore, our study uncovers a mechanism underlying metastasis in BRCA1-deficient cancers and identifies CTL4 as a therapeutic target for metastatic ovarian cancer patients with BRCA1 mutations.</p>
Project description:High-grade serous carcinoma has a poor prognosis, owing primarily to its early dissemination throughout the abdominal cavity. Genomic and proteomic approaches have provided snapshots of the proteogenomics of ovarian cancer, but a systematic examination of both the tumour and stromal compartments is critical in understanding ovarian cancer metastasis. We developed a label- free proteomic workflow to analyse as few as 5,000 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cells microdissected from each compartment. The tumour proteome was stable during progression from in situ lesions to metastatic disease; however, the metastasis-associated stroma was characterized by a highly conserved proteomic signature, prominently including the methyltransferase nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) and several of the proteins that it regulates. Stromal NNMT expression was necessary and sufficient for functional aspects of the cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype, including the expression of CAF markers and the secretion of cytokines and oncogenic extracellular matrix. Stromal NNMT expression supported ovarian cancer migration, proliferation and in vivo growth and metastasis. Expression of NNMT in CAFs led to depletion of S-adenosyl methionine and reduction in histone methylation associated with widespread gene- expression changes in the tumour stroma. This work supports the use of ultra-low-input proteomics to identify candidate drivers of disease phenotypes. NNMT is a central, metabolic regulator of CAF differentiation and cancer progression in the stroma that may be therapeutically targeted.
Project description:We found gene expression profiling of spheroid-forming cell (cancer stem-like cell) by cDNA microarray and validated the genes as prognostic markers of ovarian serous carcinoma.
Project description:The poor prognosis of head and neck cancer (HNC) is associated with metastasis within the lymph nodes (LNs). Herein, the proteome of 140 multisite samples from a 59-HNC patient cohort, including primary and matched LN-negative or -positive tissues, saliva, and blood cells, reveals insights into the biology and potential metastasis biomarkers that may assist in clinical decision-making. Protein profiles are strictly associated with immune modulation across datasets, and this provides the basis for investigating immune markers associated with metastasis. The proteome of LN metastatic cells recapitulates the proteome of the primary tumor sites. Conversely, the LN microenvironment proteome highlights the candidate prognostic markers. By integrating prioritized peptide, protein, and transcript levels with machine learning models, we identified nodal metastasis signatures in blood and saliva. We present a proteomic characterization wiring multiple sites in HNC, thus providing a promising basis for understanding tumoral biology and identifying metastasis-associated signatures.
Project description:High grade serous carcinoma (HGSC) arising from either the fallopian tube or ovary has a poor prognosis primarily due to its early dissemination throughout the abdominal cavity. Genomic and proteomic approaches have provided snapshots of the proteogenomics of ovarian cancer (OvCa)1,2, but a systematic examination of both the tumor and stromal compartments is critical to understanding OvCa metastasis. We developed a label-free proteomic workflow to analyze as few as 5,000 formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded cells microdissected from each compartment. The tumor proteome was comparatively stable during progression from in situ lesions to metastatic disease; however, the metastasis-associated stroma was characterized by a highly conserved proteomic signature, prominently including the methyltransferase nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) and the proteins it regulates. Stromal NNMT expression was necessary and sufficient for several functional aspects of the cancer associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype, including the expression of CAF markers and the secretion of cytokines and oncogenic extracellular matrix. Stromal NNMT supported OvCa migration, proliferation, and in vivo growth and metastasis. Expression of NNMT in CAFs led to a depletion of S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) and a reduction in histone methylation associated with extensive gene expression changes in the tumor stroma. This work supports the use of ultra-low input proteomics to identify candidate drivers of disease phenotypes and reveals that NNMT is a central, metabolic regulator of CAF differentiation and cancer progression in the stroma and a novel treatment target.
Project description:High grade serous carcinoma (HGSC) arising from either the fallopian tube or ovary has a poor prognosis primarily due to its early dissemination throughout the abdominal cavity. Genomic and proteomic approaches have provided snapshots of the proteogenomics of ovarian cancer (OvCa)1,2, but a systematic examination of both the tumor and stromal compartments is critical to understanding OvCa metastasis. We developed a label-free proteomic workflow to analyze as few as 5,000 formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded cells microdissected from each compartment. The tumor proteome was comparatively stable during progression from in situ lesions to metastatic disease; however, the metastasis-associated stroma was characterized by a highly conserved proteomic signature, prominently including the methyltransferase nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) and the proteins it regulates. Stromal NNMT expression was necessary and sufficient for several functional aspects of the cancer associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype, including the expression of CAF markers and the secretion of cytokines and oncogenic extracellular matrix. Stromal NNMT supported OvCa migration, proliferation, and in vivo growth and metastasis. Expression of NNMT in CAFs led to a depletion of S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) and a reduction in histone methylation associated with extensive gene expression changes in the tumor stroma. This work supports the use of ultra-low input proteomics to identify candidate drivers of disease phenotypes and reveals that NNMT is a central, metabolic regulator of CAF differentiation and cancer progression in the stroma and a novel treatment target.
Project description:Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of gynecological cancer related death. The overall 5 year survival rate is only 29%. Over 85% of ovarian cancer patients present with advanced stage III or IV disease characterized by intraperitoneal metastasis when diagnosed. However, the process and mechanism of ovarian tumor metastasis remain poorly understood partially because of the lack of a mouse model which could recapitulate the development of metastatic lesion in an appropriate timeframe. In order to generate a convenient ovarian cancer model with accelerated peritoneal metastasis, we performed an in vivo selection study using ID8 ovarian cancer cells to establish a rapid metastasizing mouse ovarian cancer cell line, designated ID8-M. Syngeneic mice with intraperitoneal inoculation of ID8-M cells showed measurable ascites average 35 days after the inoculation and survived only an average of 52 days, while those inoculated with parental ID8 cells showed measurable ascites after 67 days and survived over 81 days. Further analysis showed that, compared with ID8 tumors, ID8-M tumors resulted in more macrophages in the ascites; and compared to ID8 cells, ID8-M cells were more potent to promote macrophages to acquire a M2 phenotype. A microarray analysis provided information to explain the accelerated metastatic phenotype of ID8-M cells.