Enhanced expression of αVß3 integrin in villus and extravillous trophoblasts of placenta accreta.

BACKGROUND: Placenta accreta is one of the most serious complications in obstetrics and gynecology. Villous trophoblasts (VT) and extravillous trophoblasts (EVT) play a central role in normal placentation. Placenta accreta is characterized by abnormal invasion of EVT cells through the uterine layers, due to changes in several parameters, including adhesion proteins. Although αvß3 integrin is a central adhesion molecule, participating in multiple invasive pathological conditions including cancer, data on placenta accreta are lacking. OBJECTIVE: To study the expression pattern of αvß3 integrin in placenta accreta in comparison with normal placentas. STUDY DESIGN: We collected tissue samples from placentas defined as percreta, the most severe presentation of placenta accreta and from normal control placentas (n = 10 each). The samples underwent protein extractions for analyses of αvß3 expression by Western blots (WB) and a parallel tissue assessment by immunohistochemistry (IHC). RESULTS: WB results indicated significantly elevated αvß3 integrin expression in the percreta samples compared to normal placentas. These elevated levels were mainly contributed by EVT cells, as demonstrated by IHC. αvß3 integrin demonstrated a classical membranal expression in the VT cells, whereas a uniformly distributed expression was documented in the EVT cells. These patterns of the αvß3 integrin localization were similar in both accreta and normal placental samples. CONCLUSIONS: Enhanced αvß3 integrin expression, mainly in extra villous trophoblasts of placenta percreta, implies for a role of this adhesion molecule in pathological placentation.

The identification of nuclear αvß3 integrin in ovarian cancer: non-paradigmal localization with cancer promoting actions.

Nuclear translocation of transmembrane proteins was reported in high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC), a highly aggressive gynecological malignancy. Although the membrane receptor αvß3 integrin is amply expressed in HGSOC and involved in disease progression, its nuclear localization was never demonstrated. Nuclear αvß3 was explored in HGSOC cells (OVCAR3, KURAMOCHI, and JHOS4), nuclear localization signal (NLS) modified ß3 OVCAR3, Chinese hamster ovaries (CHO-K1) and human embryonic kidney (HEK293) before/after transfections with ß3/ß1 integrins. We used the ImageStream technology, Western blots (WB), co immunoprecipitations (Co-IP), confocal immunofluorescence (IF) microscopy, flow cytometry for cell counts and cell cycle, wound healing assays and proteomics analyses. Fresh/archived tumor tissues were collected from nine HGSOC patients and normal ovarian and fallopian tube (FT) tissues from eight nononcological patients and assessed for nuclear αvß3 by WB, confocal IF microscopy and immunohistochemistry (IHC). We identified nuclear αvß3 in HGSOC cells and tissues, but not in normal ovaries and FTs. The nuclear integrin was Tyr 759 phosphorylated and functionally active. Nuclear αvß3 enriched OVCAR3 cells demonstrated induced proliferation and oncogenic signaling, intact colony formation ability and inhibited migration. Proteomics analyses revealed a network of nuclear αvß3-bound proteins, many of which with key cancer-relevant activities. Identification of atypical nuclear localization of the αvß3 integrin in HGSOC challenges the prevalent conception that the setting in which this receptor exerts its pleiotropic actions is exclusively at the cell membrane. This discovery proposes αvß3 moonlighting functions and may improve our understanding of the molecular basis of ovarian cancer pathogenesis.