RESUMEN
Estradiol (E2) regulates several cellular functions through the interaction with estrogen receptor subtypes, ERα and ERß, which present different functional and regulation properties. ER subtypes have been identified in human astrocytomas, the most common and aggressive primary brain tumors. We studied the role of ER subtypes in cell growth of two human astrocytoma cell lines derived from tumors of different evolution grades: U373 and D54 (grades III and IV, respectively). E2 significantly increased the number of cells in both lines and the co-administration with an ER antagonist (ICI 182, 780) significantly blocked E2 effects. ERα was the predominant subtype in both cell lines. E2 and ICI 182, 780 down-regulated ERα expression. The number of U373 and D54 cells significantly increased after PPT (ERα agonist) treatment but not after DPN (ERß agonist) one. To determine the role of SRC-1 and SRC-3 coactivators in ERα induced cell growth, we silenced them with RNA interference. Coactivator silencing blocked the increase in cell number induced by PPT. The content of proteins involved in proliferation and metastasis was also determined after PPT treatment. Western blot analysis showed that in U373 cells the content of PR isoforms (PR-A and PR-B), EGFR, VEGF and cyclin D1 increased after PPT treatment while in D54 cells only the content of EGFR was increased. Our results demonstrate that E2 induces cell growth of human astrocytoma cell lines through ERα and its interaction with SRC-1 and SRC-3 and also suggest differential roles of ERα on cell growth depending on astrocytoma grade.
Asunto(s)
Astrocitoma/fisiopatología , Neoplasias Encefálicas/fisiopatología , Línea Celular Tumoral , Estradiol/farmacología , Receptor alfa de Estrógeno/metabolismo , Coactivador 1 de Receptor Nuclear/metabolismo , Coactivador 3 de Receptor Nuclear/metabolismo , Astrocitoma/patología , Neoplasias Encefálicas/patología , Línea Celular Tumoral/efectos de los fármacos , Línea Celular Tumoral/fisiología , Ciclina D1/genética , Ciclina D1/metabolismo , Receptores ErbB/genética , Receptores ErbB/metabolismo , Receptor alfa de Estrógeno/genética , Humanos , Coactivador 1 de Receptor Nuclear/genética , Coactivador 3 de Receptor Nuclear/genética , Isoformas de Proteínas/genética , Isoformas de Proteínas/metabolismo , Interferencia de ARN , Receptores de Progesterona/genética , Receptores de Progesterona/metabolismo , Receptores de Factores de Crecimiento Endotelial Vascular/genética , Receptores de Factores de Crecimiento Endotelial Vascular/metabolismoRESUMEN
Astrocytomas are the most common primary brain tumors in humans. It has been reported that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), cyclin D1 and progesterone receptor (PR) expression levels are elevated in patients with high-grade astrocytomas. Progesterone (P) regulates astrocytomas growth through its interaction with PR, which recruits coregulatory proteins such as steroid receptor coactivator-1 (SRC-1) that are required for efficient transcriptional activation. The regulation of VEGF, EGFR and cyclin D1 expression by P in human astrocytoma cells is not known. We studied the role of PR and SRC-1 in the expression of VEGF, EGFR and cyclin D1 mediated by P in human astrocytoma cell lines grade III (U373) and IV (D54). P significantly increased VEGF and EGFR mRNA expression after 12h of treatment in D54 cells that was reflected at protein level 24h after treatment. This effect was blocked by the PR antagonist, RU 486. In U373 cells cyclin D1 mRNA and protein expression was induced by P after 6 and 8h of treatment, respectively, and this effect was blocked with RU 486. Transfection with short hairpin RNA targeting coactivator SRC-1 significantly reduced VEGF expression after 24h of treatment. Collectively, our results indicate that P regulates VEGF and EGFR expression in D54 cells and cyclin D1 expression in U373 through PR, and that SRC-1 participates in the regulation of VEGF expression.