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1.
Mol Cancer ; 23(1): 105, 2024 May 16.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38755661

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: The main drawback of BRAF/MEK inhibitors (BRAF/MEKi)-based targeted therapy in the management of BRAF-mutated cutaneous metastatic melanoma (MM) is the development of therapeutic resistance. We aimed to assess in this context the role of mTORC2, a signaling complex defined by the presence of the essential RICTOR subunit, regarded as an oncogenic driver in several tumor types, including MM. METHODS: After analyzing The Cancer Genome Atlas MM patients' database to explore both overall survival and molecular signatures as a function of intra-tumor RICTOR levels, we investigated the effects of RICTOR downregulation in BRAFV600E MM cell lines on their response to BRAF/MEKi. We performed proteomic screening to identify proteins modulated by changes in RICTOR expression, and Seahorse analysis to evaluate the effects of RICTOR depletion on mitochondrial respiration. The combination of BRAFi with drugs targeting proteins and processes emerged in the proteomic screening was carried out on RICTOR-deficient cells in vitro and in a xenograft setting in vivo. RESULTS: Low RICTOR levels in BRAF-mutated MM correlate with a worse clinical outcome. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis of low-RICTOR tumors display gene signatures suggestive of activation of the mitochondrial Electron Transport Chain (ETC) energy production. RICTOR-deficient BRAFV600E cells are intrinsically tolerant to BRAF/MEKi and anticipate the onset of resistance to BRAFi upon prolonged drug exposure. Moreover, in drug-naïve cells we observed a decline in RICTOR expression shortly after BRAFi exposure. In RICTOR-depleted cells, both mitochondrial respiration and expression of nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT) are enhanced, and their pharmacological inhibition restores sensitivity to BRAFi. CONCLUSIONS: Our work unveils an unforeseen tumor-suppressing role for mTORC2 in the early adaptation phase of BRAFV600E melanoma cells to targeted therapy and identifies the NAMPT-ETC axis as a potential therapeutic vulnerability of low RICTOR tumors. Importantly, our findings indicate that the evaluation of intra-tumor RICTOR levels has a prognostic value in metastatic melanoma and may help to guide therapeutic strategies in a personalized manner.


Assuntos
Resistencia a Medicamentos Antineoplásicos , Alvo Mecanístico do Complexo 2 de Rapamicina , Melanoma , Inibidores de Proteínas Quinases , Proteínas Proto-Oncogênicas B-raf , Proteína Companheira de mTOR Insensível à Rapamicina , Animais , Humanos , Camundongos , Linhagem Celular Tumoral , Regulação para Baixo , Resistencia a Medicamentos Antineoplásicos/genética , Regulação Neoplásica da Expressão Gênica , Alvo Mecanístico do Complexo 2 de Rapamicina/metabolismo , Alvo Mecanístico do Complexo 2 de Rapamicina/genética , Melanoma/genética , Melanoma/tratamento farmacológico , Melanoma/metabolismo , Melanoma/patologia , Mutação , Inibidores de Proteínas Quinases/farmacologia , Inibidores de Proteínas Quinases/uso terapêutico , Proteômica/métodos , Proteínas Proto-Oncogênicas B-raf/antagonistas & inibidores , Proteínas Proto-Oncogênicas B-raf/genética , Proteína Companheira de mTOR Insensível à Rapamicina/metabolismo , Proteína Companheira de mTOR Insensível à Rapamicina/genética , Ensaios Antitumorais Modelo de Xenoenxerto , MAP Quinase Quinase Quinases/antagonistas & inibidores
2.
Biomolecules ; 14(2)2024 Jan 26.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38397386

RESUMO

Feline leukemia virus C receptor 1a (FLVCR1a), initially identified as a retroviral receptor and localized on the plasma membrane, has emerged as a crucial regulator of heme homeostasis. Functioning as a positive regulator of δ-aminolevulinic acid synthase 1 (ALAS1), the rate-limiting enzyme in the heme biosynthetic pathway, FLVCR1a influences TCA cycle cataplerosis, thus impacting TCA flux and interconnected metabolic pathways. This study reveals an unexplored link between FLVCR1a, heme synthesis, and cholesterol production in endothelial cells. Using cellular models with manipulated FLVCR1a expression and inducible endothelial-specific Flvcr1a-null mice, we demonstrate that FLVCR1a-mediated control of heme synthesis regulates citrate availability for cholesterol synthesis, thereby influencing cellular cholesterol levels. Moreover, alterations in FLVCR1a expression affect membrane cholesterol content and fluidity, supporting a role for FLVCR1a in the intricate regulation of processes crucial for vascular development and endothelial function. Our results underscore FLVCR1a as a positive regulator of heme synthesis, emphasizing its integration with metabolic pathways involved in cellular energy metabolism. Furthermore, this study suggests that the dysregulation of heme metabolism may have implications for modulating lipid metabolism. We discuss these findings in the context of FLVCR1a's potential heme-independent function as a choline importer, introducing additional complexity to the interplay between heme and lipid metabolism.


Assuntos
Ciclo do Ácido Cítrico , Células Endoteliais , Camundongos , Animais , Células Endoteliais/metabolismo , Proteínas de Membrana Transportadoras/metabolismo , Membrana Celular/metabolismo , Camundongos Knockout , Heme/metabolismo
3.
Eur J Hum Genet ; 2024 Aug 10.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-39127804

RESUMO

The genetic structure in Europe was mostly shaped by admixture between the Western Hunter-Gatherers, Early European Farmers and Steppe Bronze Age ancestral components. Such structure is regarded as a confounder in GWAS and follow-up studies, and gold-standard methods exist to correct for it. However, it is still poorly understood to which extent these ancestral components contribute to complex trait variation in present-day Europe. In this work we harness the UK Biobank to address this question. By extensive demographic simulations, exploiting data on siblings and incorporating previous results we obtained from the Estonian Biobank, we carefully evaluate the significance and scope of our findings. Heart rate, platelet count, bone mineral density and many other traits show stratification similar to height and pigmentation traits, likely targets of selection and divergence across ancestral groups. We show that the reported ancestry-trait associations are not driven by environmental confounders by confirming our results when using between-sibling differences in ancestry. The consistency of our results across biobanks further supports this and indicates that these genetic predispositions that derive from post-Neolithic admixture events act as a source of variability and as potential confounders in Europe as a whole.

4.
Eur Urol ; 85(5): 417-421, 2024 May.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38184414

RESUMO

Neoadjuvant pembrolizumab has been shown to be a valid treatment for patients affected by muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), as demonstrated in the PURE-01 clinical trial (NCT02736266). Among the tumor-extrinsic factors influencing immunotherapy efficacy, extensive data highlighted that the microbiome is a central player in immune-mediated anticancer activity. This report aimed to investigate the composition and role of stool microbiome in patients enrolled in the PURE-01 clinical trial. An orthotopic animal model of bladder cancer (MB49-Luc) was used to support some of the findings from human data. An analysis of stool microbiome before pembrolizumab was conducted for 42 patients, of whom 23 showed a pathologic response. The information in the preclinical model of orthotopic bladder cancer treated with anti-PD-1 antibody or control isotype was validated. Linear discriminant analysis effect size and linear models were used to identify the bacterial taxa enriched in either responders or nonresponders. The identified taxa were also tested for their association with event-free survival (EFS). Survival at 31 d after tumor instillation was used as the study endpoint in the preclinical model. Responders and nonresponders emerged to differ in terms of enrichment for 16 bacterial taxa. Of these, the genus Sutterella was enriched in responders, while the species Ruminococcus bromii was enriched in nonresponders. The negative impact of R. bromii on anti-PD-1 antibody activity was also observed in the preclinical model. EFS and survival of the preclinical model showed a negative role of R. bromii. We found different stool bacterial taxa associated with the response or lack of response to neoadjuvant pembrolizumab. Moreover, we provided experimental data about the negative role of R. bromii on immunotherapy response. Further studies are needed to externally validate our findings and provide mechanistic insights about the host-pathogen interactions in MIBC. PATIENT SUMMARY: Using prepembrolizumab stool samples collected from patients enrolled in the PURE-01 clinical trials, we identified some bacterial taxa that were enriched in patients who either responded or did not respond to immunotherapy. Using an animal model of bladder cancer, we gathered further evidence of the negative impact of the Ruminococcus bromii on immunotherapy efficacy. Further studies are needed to confirm the current findings and test the utility of these bacteria as predictive markers of immunotherapy response.


Assuntos
Anticorpos Monoclonais Humanizados , Terapia Neoadjuvante , Ruminococcus , Neoplasias da Bexiga Urinária , Animais , Humanos , Neoplasias da Bexiga Urinária/patologia , Músculos/patologia
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