Carcinogenesis

About: Carcinogenesis is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 60368 publications have been published within this topic receiving 3192599 citations. The topic is also known as: oncogenesis & tumorigenesis.

c-MET Mutational Analysis in Small Cell Lung Cancer Novel Juxtamembrane Domain Mutations Regulating Cytoskeletal Functions

Abstract: Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is an aggressive cancer, and most patients present with cancer already spread beyond the lung. The receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) c-MET has been implicated in various solid tumors, including SCLC, and is involved in mediating tumorigenesis, cell motility, scattering, invasion and metastasis. Mutations of c-Met have been described in renal papillary carcinoma and gastrointestinal cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma. The sequence of c-MET was examined for possible mutations in the 10 SCLC cell lines and 32 paired-SCLC/normal tissues. Novel c-MET alterations were identified among 3 of 10 separate SCLC cell lines and in 4 of 32 SCLC tumor tissue samples. These include two different c-MET missense mutations in the juxtamembrane (JM) domain (R988C found in NCI-H69 and H249 cell lines; and T1010I in SCLC tumor sample T31). Also, there are one Sema domain missense mutation (E168D in SCLC tumor sample T5), two-base-pair insertional mutations (IVS13- (52–53)insCT in both SCLC tumor samples T26 and T27) within the pre-JM intron 13, as well as an alternative transcript involving exon 10 (H128 cell line). c-MET receptors are expressed at various levels among the 10 SCLC cell lines studied (high expression: H69, H345, H510, and H526; medium-expression: H128 and H146; and low/no-expression: H82, H209, H249, and H446). The level of c-MET expression does not have any apparent correlation with presence or absence of mutations of c-MET in the cell lines. We show that the two identified JM mutations (R988C and T1010I), when introduced into the interleukin-3 (IL-3)-dependent BaF3 cell line, regulated cell proliferation resulting in a small but significant growth factor independence. When introduced into a SCLC cell line (H446, with minimal endogenous wild-type c-MET expression), the JM mutations also regulated cell morphology and adhesion, as well as causing enhanced tumorigenicity by both increases in focus-formation and soft-agar colony-formation assays. Both of the JM mutations also increased cell motility and migration evident in wound healing assay and time-lapse video-microscopy speed analysis. The JM mutations also altered the c-MET RTK signaling, resulting in preferentially increased constitutive tyrosine phosphorylation of various cellular proteins, including the key focal adhesion protein paxillin on tyrosine residue Y31 (first CRKL-binding site), correlating with increased motility. These results suggest a novel and unique role of the JM domain in c-MET signaling in SCLC with significant implications in cytoskeletal functions and metastatic potential. The novel JM gain-of-function somatic mutations described are the first to be reported in SCLC, and may be associated with a more aggressive phenotype. It would now be useful to study the inhibition of c-MET as a therapeutic target against SCLC.

Prostaglandin H synthase 2 is expressed abnormally in human colon cancer: evidence for a transcriptional effect

Abstract: Evidence from epidemiological studies, clinical trials, and animal experiments indicates that inhibitors of prostaglandin synthesis lower the risk of colon cancer. We tested the hypothesis that abnormal expression of prostaglandin H synthase 2 (PHS-2), which can be induced by oncogenes and tumor promoters, occurs during colon carcinogenesis by examining its level in colon tumors. Human colon cancers were found to have an increased expression of PHS-2 mRNA compared with normal colon specimens from the same patient (n = 5). In situ hybridization showed that the neoplastic colonocytes had increased expression of PHS-2 (n = 4). Additionally, five colon cancer cell lines were shown to express high levels of PHS-2 mRNA even in the absence of a known inducer of PHS-2. To study the basis for this increased gene expression, we transfected a colon cancer cell line, HCT-116, with a reporter gene containing 2.0 kb of the 5' regulatory sequence of the PHS-2 gene. Constitutive transcription of the reporter gene was observed, whereas normal control cell lines transcribed the reporter only in response to an exogenous agonist. We conclude that PHS-2 is transcribed abnormally in human colon cancers and that this may be one mechanism by which prostaglandins or related compounds that support carcinogenesis are generated.

A SUMOylation-defective MITF germline mutation predisposes to melanoma and renal carcinoma

Abstract: So far, no common environmental and/or phenotypic factor has been associated with melanoma and renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The known risk factors for melanoma include sun exposure, pigmentation and nevus phenotypes; risk factors associated with RCC include smoking, obesity and hypertension. A recent study of coexisting melanoma and RCC in the same patients supports a genetic predisposition underlying the association between these two cancers. The microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) has been proposed to act as a melanoma oncogene; it also stimulates the transcription of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF1A), the pathway of which is targeted by kidney cancer susceptibility genes. We therefore proposed that MITF might have a role in conferring a genetic predisposition to co-occurring melanoma and RCC. Here we identify a germline missense substitution in MITF (Mi-E318K) that occurred at a significantly higher frequency in genetically enriched patients affected with melanoma, RCC or both cancers, when compared with controls. Overall, Mi-E318K carriers had a higher than fivefold increased risk of developing melanoma, RCC or both cancers. Codon 318 is located in a small-ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) consensus site (ΨKXE) and Mi-E318K severely impaired SUMOylation of MITF. Mi-E318K enhanced MITF protein binding to the HIF1A promoter and increased its transcriptional activity compared to wild-type MITF. Further, we observed a global increase in Mi-E318K-occupied loci. In an RCC cell line, gene expression profiling identified a Mi-E318K signature related to cell growth, proliferation and inflammation. Lastly, the mutant protein enhanced melanocytic and renal cell clonogenicity, migration and invasion, consistent with a gain-of-function role in tumorigenesis. Our data provide insights into the link between SUMOylation, transcription and cancer.

A role for TAZ in migration, invasion, and tumorigenesis of breast cancer cells.

Abstract: TAZ (WWTR1), identified as a 14-3-3 binding protein with a PDZ binding motif, modulates mesenchymal stem cell differentiation. We now show that TAZ plays a critical role in the migration, invasion, and tumorigenesis of breast cancer cells. TAZ is conspicuously expressed in human breast cancer cell lines in which its expression levels generally correlate with the invasiveness of cancer cells. Overexpression of TAZ in low-expressing MCF10A cells causes morphologic changes characteristic of cell transformation and promotes cell migration and invasion. Conversely, RNA interference-mediated knockdown of TAZ expression in MCF7 and Hs578T cells reduces cell migration and invasion. TAZ knockdown in MCF7 cells also retards anchorage-independent growth in soft agar and tumorigenesis in nude mice. Significantly, TAZ is overexpressed in approximately 20% of breast cancer samples. These results indicate that TAZ plays a role in the migration, invasion, and tumorigenesis of breast cancer cells and thus presents a novel target for the detection and treatment of breast cancer.