Project description:Estrogens have been shown to elicit anti-cancer effects against estrogen receptor alpha (ER)-positive breast cancer. We sought to determine the underlying mechanism of therapeutic response. Response to 17b-estradiol was assessed in ER+ breast cancer models with resistance to estrogen deprivation: WHIM16 patient-derived xenografts, C7-2-HI and C4-HI murine mammary adenocarcinomas, and long-term estrogen-deprived MCF-7 cells. As another means to reactivate ER, the anti-estrogen fulvestrant was withdrawn from fulvestrant-resistant MCF-7 cells. Transcriptional, growth, apoptosis, and molecular alterations in response to ER reactivation were measured. 17b-estradiol treatment and fulvestrant withdrawal induced transcriptional activation of ER, and cells adapted to estrogen deprivation or fulvestrant were hypersensitive to 17b-estradiol. ER transcriptional response was followed by an unfolded protein response and apoptosis. Such apoptosis was dependent upon the unfolded protein response, p53, and JNK signaling. Anti-cancer effects were most evident in models exhibiting genomic amplification of the gene encoding ER (ESR1), suggesting that engagement of ER at high levels is cytotoxic. These data indicate that long-term adaptation to estrogen deprivation or ER inhibition alters sensitivity to ER reactivation. In such adapted cells, 17b-estradiol treatment and anti-estrogen withdrawal hyperactivate ER, which drives an unfolded protein response activation and subsequent growth inhibition and apoptosis. 17b-estradiol treatment should be considered as an alternative therapy for anti-estrogen-resistant disease, particularly in patients with tumors harboring ESR1 amplification or overexpression. Furthermore, therapeutic strategies that enhance an unfolded protein response may enhance the therapeutic effects of ER reactivation.
Project description:Estrogens have been shown to elicit anti-cancer effects against estrogen receptor alpha (ER)-positive breast cancer. We sought to determine the underlying mechanism of therapeutic response. Response to 17b-estradiol was assessed in ER+ breast cancer models with resistance to estrogen deprivation: WHIM16 patient-derived xenografts, C7-2-HI and C4-HI murine mammary adenocarcinomas, and long-term estrogen-deprived MCF-7 cells. As another means to reactivate ER, the anti-estrogen fulvestrant was withdrawn from fulvestrant-resistant MCF-7 cells. Transcriptional, growth, apoptosis, and molecular alterations in response to ER reactivation were measured. 17b-estradiol treatment and fulvestrant withdrawal induced transcriptional activation of ER, and cells adapted to estrogen deprivation or fulvestrant were hypersensitive to 17b-estradiol. ER transcriptional response was followed by an unfolded protein response and apoptosis. Such apoptosis was dependent upon the unfolded protein response, p53, and JNK signaling. Anti-cancer effects were most evident in models exhibiting genomic amplification of the gene encoding ER (ESR1), suggesting that engagement of ER at high levels is cytotoxic. These data indicate that long-term adaptation to estrogen deprivation or ER inhibition alters sensitivity to ER reactivation. In such adapted cells, 17b-estradiol treatment and anti-estrogen withdrawal hyperactivate ER, which drives an unfolded protein response activation and subsequent growth inhibition and apoptosis. 17b-estradiol treatment should be considered as an alternative therapy for anti-estrogen-resistant disease, particularly in patients with tumors harboring ESR1 amplification or overexpression. Furthermore, therapeutic strategies that enhance an unfolded protein response may enhance the therapeutic effects of ER reactivation.
Project description:Full title: Expression data from antisense miRNA-221/222 (si221/222) and control inhibitor (GFP) treated fulvestrant-resistant breast cancer cells The expression of miR-221/222 were found to be upregulated in fulvestrant resistant breast cancer cells MCF7-FR compared to its drug-sensitive counterpart MCF7. To investigate the role of miR-221/222 in acquired resistance to fulvestrant, we lowered the level of miR-221/222 in MCF7-FR cells using miRNA inhibitors (antagomirs), and compared gene expression profiles before and after treatment. Fulvestrant-resistant breast cancer cells MCF7-FR (originated from drug-sentitive breast cancer model cell line MCF7) were transient-transfected by antigomirs targeting miR221 or miR222 (i.e. si221, si222). All three cell lines, MCF7-FR, siR221, siRNA222 were subjected to gene expression profiling.
Project description:Full title: Expression data from antisense miRNA-221/222 (si221/222) and control inhibitor (GFP) treated fulvestrant-resistant breast cancer cells The expression of miR-221/222 were found to be upregulated in fulvestrant resistant breast cancer cells MCF7-FR compared to its drug-sensitive counterpart MCF7. To investigate the role of miR-221/222 in acquired resistance to fulvestrant, we lowered the level of miR-221/222 in MCF7-FR cells using miRNA inhibitors (antagomirs), and compared gene expression profiles before and after treatment.
Project description:Multiple gene expression studies have demonstrated that breast cancer biological diversity is associated with distinct transcriptional programs. Transcription factors, because of their unique ability to coordinate the expression of multiple genes, are speculated to play a role in generating phenotypic plasticity associated with cancer progression including acquired drug resistance. Combinatorial libraries of artificial zinc-finger transcription factors (ZF-TFs) provide a robust means for inducing and understanding various functional components of the cancer phenotype. Herein, we utilized combinatorial ZF-TF library technology to better understand how breast cancer cells acquire resistance to a fulvestrant, a clinically important anti-endocrine therapeutic agent. We isolated six ZF-TF library members capable of inducing stable, long-term anti-endocrine drug-resistance in two independent estrogen receptor positive breast cancer cell lines. Comparative gene expression profile analysis of the ZF-TF-transduced breast cancer cell lines revealed a 72-gene cluster that constituted a common signature for the fulvestrant-resistance phenotype. Pathway enrichment-analysis of gene expression data revealed that the ZF-TF-induced fulvestrant resistance is associated with an estrogen receptor negative-like gene set and four unique myb-regulated gene sets. Furthermore, we identified a set of genes strongly expressed in the ZF-TF-induced fulvestrant-resistant cells that was correlated with a lower probability of distant metastasis-free or death-from-relapse-free survival of breast cancer patients. MCF7-R73 cells, a monoclonal MCF7 subline that is highly sensitive to fulvestrant-induced cytocidal activity, underwent retroviral transduction with the zinc finger transcription factor (ZF-TF) activator library or with a control plasmid encoding only the NF-kB p65 activation domain. Both populations of cells were enriched for transduced cells by selecting for growth in puromycin and for fulvestrant-resistant cells by selecting with 100 nM fulvestrant. After 6 weeks of continuous treatment with fulvestrant, hundreds of drug-resistant colonies emerged from the population of cells infected with the ZF-TF activator library. By contrast, as expected, the control MCF7cell line transduced by NF-kB p65-only underwent massive cell death resulting in the complete absence of resistant colonies. DNA encoding the zinc-finger arrays was rescued by PCR from genomic DNA of pooled fulvestrant-resistant cells. The sequences of the ZF-TFs were determined and 46 unique ZF-TF clones identified. These 46 unique ZF-TFs were re-cloned into the retroviral vector and converted into clonal virus stocks that were used to transduce MCF7-R73 cells. These 46 retrovirally transduced cell populations were then challenged with fulvestrant. As compared with the control MCF-238 cells, MCF7-R73 cells transduced with six unique ZF-TFs demonstrated survival and growth in the presence of 100nM fulvestrant.
Project description:To generate a dormancy state in vivo, ovariectomized female BALB/c athymic mice (simulating the post-menopausal state) with ER+MC cell (MCF7) derived xenografts were treated with Fulvestrant (FUL). Throughout the treatment period, no significant differences in the body weight of the FUL-treated groups (FD and FR) compared to the vehicle-treated groups (FC) were observed. Whereas xenografts in the vehicle-treated group (as control group: FC) continued to increase in volume, the xenograft volumes of the FUL-treated group regressed 20%-30% in the first week and then remained stable during the four-week administration of FUL. Thereafter, half of the xenografts in FUL-treated mice were resected at random and designated as a dormancy-like group (FD). For the remaining FUL treated xenografts, treatment was discontinued and xenograft volume was observed to gradually increase. This group was defined as the relapse group (FR) and would mimic relapses observed after discontinuation of anti-estrogen therapy in patients.
Project description:Emergence of antiestrogen-resistant cells in MCF-7 cells during suppression of estrogen signaling is a widely accepted model of acquired breast cancer resistance to endocrine therapy. To obtain insight into the genomic basis of endocrine therapy resistance, we characterized MCF-7 monoclonal sublines that survived 21-day exposure to tamoxifen (T-series sublines) or fulvestrant (F-series sublines) and sublines unselected by drugs (U-series). All T/F-sublines were resistant to the cytocidal effects of both tamoxifen and fulvestrant. However, their responses to the cytostatic effects of fulvestrant varied greatly, and their remarkably diversified morphology showed no correlation with drug resistance. mRNA expression profiles of the U-sublines differed significantly from those of the T/F-sublines, whose transcriptomal responsiveness to fulvestrant was largely lost. A set of genes strongly expressed in the U-sublines successfully predicted metastasis-free survival of breast cancer patients. Most T/F-sublines shared highly homogeneous genomic DNA aberration patterns that were distinct from those of the U-sublines. Genomic DNA of the U-sublines harbored many aberrations that were not found in the T/F-sublines. These results suggest that the T/F-sublines are derived from a common monoclonal progenitor that lost transcriptomal responsiveness to antiestrogens as a consequence of genetic abnormalities many population doublings ago, not from the antiestrogen-sensitive cells in the same culture during the exposure to antiestrogens. Thus, the apparent acquisition of antiestrogen resistance by MCF-7 cells reflects selection of preexisting drug-resistant subpopulations without involving changes in individual cells. Our results suggest the importance of clonal selection in endocrine therapy resistance of breast cancer.
Project description:The PI3K inhibitor (PI3Ki) alpelisib in combination with fulvestrant is currently FDA approved for the treatment of advanced ER+ breast cancer following progression on endocrine therapy. It is unclear which treatment strategy is beneficial following progression on the combination of PI3Ki and fulvestrant, and therefore, identification of novel therapeutic targets is needed. We used microarrays to detail the global programme of gene expression in cells resistant to the combination of PI3Ki and fulvestrant (MPiFR). The parental sensitive cell line, MCF-7, was used for comparison. The gene expression analysis revealed a significant number of genes altered in the MPiFR cells vs. MCF-7 cells. We found a significant upregulation of cell cycle-related genes, particularly CDK6, CDK2, and cyclin E1 and E2 in MPiFR vs. MCF-7 cells.
Project description:High levels of Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP1) are associated with poor prognosis, reduced response to chemotherapy, and, potentially, also poor response to endocrine therapy in breast cancer patients. Our objective was to further investigate the hypothesis that TIMP1 is associated with endocrine sensitivity. We established a panel of 11 MCF-7 subclones with a wide range of TIMP1 mRNA and protein expression levels. Cells with high expression of TIMP1 versus low TIMP1 displayed significantly reduced sensitivity to the antiestrogen fulvestrant (ICI 182,780, Faslodex®), while TIMP1 levels did not influence the sensitivity to 4-hydroxytamoxifen. An inverse correlation between expression of the progesterone receptor and TIMP1 was found, but TIMP1 levels did not correlate with estrogen receptor levels or growth-promoting effects of estrogen (estradiol, E2). Additionally, the effects of fulvestrant, 4-hydroxytamoxifen, or estrogen on estrogen receptor expression were not associated with TIMP1 levels. Gene expression analyses revealed associations between expression of TIMP1 and genes involved in metabolic pathways, epidermal growth factor receptor 1/cancer signaling pathways, and cell cycle. Gene and protein expression analyses showed no general defects in estrogen receptor signaling except from lack of progesterone receptor expression and estrogen inducibility in clones with high TIMP1. The present study suggests a relation between high expression level of TIMP1 and loss of progesterone receptor expression combined with fulvestrant resistance. Our findings in vitro may have clinical implications as the data suggest that high tumor levels of TIMP1 may be a predictive biomarker for reduced response to fulvestrant. Microarray analysis of total RNA from 10 subclones of MCF-7 breast cancer cells with various expression levels of TIMP1.