Project description:We report the role of TGFI and EGFR signaling in inducing a trailblazer state in C3-TAg tumor derived organoid line. We extracted whole RNA for sequencing from C3-TAg organoids treated with a combination of growth factors and receptor inhibitor. Data was aligned to GRCm38.
Project description:Hepsin, a type II transmembrane serine protease, is commonly overexpressed in prostate and breast cancer. The hepsin protein is stabilized by the Ras-MAPK pathway, and downstream, this protease regulates the degradation of extracellular matrix components and activates growth factor pathways, such as hepatocyte growth factor and transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) pathway. However, how exactly active hepsin promotes cell proliferation machinery to sustain tumor growth is not fully understood. Here, we show that genetic deletion of Hpn in a WAP-Myc model of aggressive MYC-driven breast cancer inhibits tumor growth in the primary syngrafted sites and the growth of disseminated tumors in the lungs. The suppression of tumor growth upon loss of hepsin was accompanied by downregulation of TGFβ and EGFR signaling together with a reduction in EGFR protein levels. We further demonstrate in 3D cultures of patient-derived breast cancer explants that neutralizing antibodies and small-molecule inhibitors of hepsin can be used to mitigate the hepsin-induced TGFβ signaling and reduce EGFR protein levels.The study demonstrates a role for hepsin as a regulator of cell proliferation and tumor growth through TGFβ and EGFR pathways, warranting consideration of hepsin as a potential indirect upstream target for therapeutic inhibition of TGFβ and EGFR pathways in cancer.
Project description:Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) induces pro-inflammatory monocytes following infection and we have evidence that EGFR is a key mediator in this early activation. To begin to address how this signalling pathway is responsible for the rapid activation of infected monocytes, we examined the role this pathway played in the transcriptome of infected monocytes. Global transcriptional profiling using cDNA microarrays revealed a significant number of genes, including inflammatory genes, were regulated in a EGFR-dependent manner, identifying this pathway as a key cellular control point in the conversion of monocytes to an activated pro-inflammatory state following HCMV infection. Keywords: Disease state To begin to globally define how EGFR is involved in the HCMV-induced changes in monocyte function, we performed a transcriptome analysis in the presence of inhibitors to the EGFR signalling pathway. Specifically, a cDNA microarray containing 12,625 unique probe sets was utilized to assess the modulation of the monocyte transcriptome at 24 hours post infection in the presence of blocking anti-EGFR antibody and pharmacological agent AG1478 (AG; an EGFR inhibitor). A total of 4 replicates from mock-infected, HCMV-infected, anti-EGFR antibody-pretreated infected and AG-pretreated infected monocytes were analyzed in this study.
Project description:TGFβ activates a signal transduction cascade that results in the microRNAs and genes transcription. The objective of this study is to identify miRNAs which are regulated through TGFB signaling pathway Cultured NHLF cells at 30-50% confluence were treated with 5 ng/mL TGFB1 or DMSO.
Project description:Oncogenic PIK3CA mutations activate phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and are among the commonest somatic mutations in cancer and mosaic, developmental overgrowth disorders. We recently demonstrated that the ‘hotspot’ variant PIK3CAH1047R exerts striking allele dose-dependent effects on stemness in human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and moreover demonstrated multiple oncogenic PIK3CA copies in a substantial subset of human cancers. To identify the molecular mechanism underpinning PIK3CAH1047R allele dose-dependent stemness, we profiled isogenic wild-type, PIK3CAWT/H1047R and PIK3CAH1047R/H1047R iPSCs by high-depth transcriptomics, proteomics and reverse-phase protein arrays (RPPA). PIK3CAH1047R/H1047R iPSCs exhibited altered expression of 5644 genes and 248 proteins, whereas heterozygous hPSCs showed 492 and 54 differentially-expressed genes and proteins, respectively, confirming a nearly deterministic phenotypic effect of homozygosity for PIK3CAH1047R. Pathway and network-based analyses predicted a strong association between self-sustained TGFb/NODAL signaling and the ‘locked’ stemness phenotype induced by homozygosity for PIK3CAH1047R. This stemness gene signature was maintained without exogenous NODAL in PIK3CAH1047R/H1047R iPSCs and was reversed by pharmacological inhibition of TGFb/NODAL signaling but not by PIK3CA-specific inhibition. Analysis of PIK3CA-associated human breast cancers revealed increased expression of the stemness markers NODAL and POU5F1 as a function of disease stage and PIK3CAH1047R allele dosage. Together with emerging realization of the link between NODAL re-expression and aggressive cancer behavior, our data suggest that TGFb/NODAL inhibitors warrant testing in advanced breast tumors with multiple oncogenic PIK3CA copies.
Project description:TGFb plays many roles during tumor progression. It inhibits epithelial cell proliferation in the early stage but promotes tumor invasion by inducing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in the late stage. Coupled with the strong EMT effect, TGFb exerts an overwhelming influence on modifying the extracellular matrix (ECM), which is generally thought to favor the adhesion and migration of tumor cells [4]. However, the regulation and function of ECM deposited in the tumor microenvironment by TGFb signaling have not been elucidated. Here, we performed a transcriptomic analysis using the human prostate cancer PC3U cell line and the human A549 lung carcinoma cell line. The top-upregulated genes in PC3U cells and A549 cells upon TGFb stimulation were identified to analyze the main regulatory function elicited by TGFb signaling. The GO enrichment analysis showed that extracellular matrix organization and the positive regulation of cell migration were the top regulatory functions.
Project description:Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) induces pro-inflammatory monocytes following infection and we have evidence that EGFR is a key mediator in this early activation. To begin to address how this signalling pathway is responsible for the rapid activation of infected monocytes, we examined the role this pathway played in the transcriptome of infected monocytes. Global transcriptional profiling using cDNA microarrays revealed a significant number of genes, including inflammatory genes, were regulated in a EGFR-dependent manner, identifying this pathway as a key cellular control point in the conversion of monocytes to an activated pro-inflammatory state following HCMV infection. Keywords: Disease state
Project description:We describe a distinct macrophage population, whose presence in the liver during homoeostasis depends on recruitment signals mediated by the chemokine receptor CCR2. The identified polarization state of this population closely resembles that induced in co-culture experiments, where hepatocytes are reducing the availability of TGFb to macrophages. Accordingly, disruption of TGFb signal transduction in macrophages phenocopies the influence of hepatocytes on macrophage polarization.