Enrichment of Collagen Fragments Using Dimeric Collagen Hybridizing Peptide for Urinary Collagenomics.

Collagen remodeling in normal and pathologic conditions releases numerous collagen fragments into biological fluids. Although a few collagen fragments have been tested as biomarkers for disease indication, most occur at trace levels, making them nearly impossible to detect even with modern analytical tools. Here we report a new way to enrich collagen fragments that allows complete peptidomic analysis of collagen fragments in urine. Enrichment is made possible by dimeric collagen hybridizing peptides (CHPs) that bind collagen fragments originating from the triple helical regions of all collagen types with minimal sequence bias. LC-MS/MS analysis of enriched mouse urine revealed an average of 383 collagenous peptide fragments per sample (compared to 34 for unenriched sample), which could be mapped to all types of mouse collagens in the SwissProt database including FACITs and MACITs. Hierarchical clustering of a selected panel of the detected fragments separated osteopenic mice from healthy mice. The results demonstrate dimeric CHP's ability to enrich collagen fragments from biological fluid and its potential to aid peptidomics-based disease detection and biomarker discovery.

Physiological COX-2 expression in breast epithelium associates with COX-2 levels in ductal carcinoma in situ and invasive breast cancer in young women.

Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) overexpression is implicated in increased risk and poorer outcomes in breast cancer in young women. We investigated COX-2 regulation in normal premenopausal breast tissue and its relationship to malignancy in young women. Quantitative COX-2 immunohistochemistry was performed on adjacent normal and breast cancer tissues from 96 premenopausal women with known clinical reproductive histories, and on rat mammary glands with distinct ovarian hormone exposures. COX-2 expression in the normal breast epithelium varied more than 40-fold between women and was associated with COX-2 expression levels in ductal carcinoma in situ and invasive cancer. Normal breast COX-2 expression was independent of known breast cancer prognostic indicators, including tumor stage and clinical subtype, indicating that factors regulating physiological COX-2 expression may be the primary drivers of COX-2 expression in breast cancer. Ovarian hormones, particularly at pregnancy levels, were identified as modulators of COX-2 in normal mammary epithelium. However, serial breast biopsy analysis in nonpregnant premenopausal women suggested relatively stable baseline levels of COX-2 expression, which persisted independent of menstrual cycling. These data provide impetus to investigate how baseline COX-2 expression is regulated in premenopausal breast tissue because COX-2 levels in normal breast epithelium may prove to be an indicator of breast cancer risk in young women, and predict the chemopreventive and therapeutic efficacy of COX-2 inhibitors in this population.

Mammary gland involution as an immunotherapeutic target for postpartum breast cancer.

Postpartum mammary gland involution has been identified as tumor-promotional and is proposed to contribute to the increased rates of metastasis and poor survival observed in postpartum breast cancer patients. In rodent models, the involuting mammary gland microenvironment is sufficient to induce enhanced tumor cell growth, local invasion, and metastasis. Postpartum involution shares many attributes with wound healing, including upregulation of genes involved in immune responsiveness and infiltration of tissue by immune cells. In rodent models, treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) ameliorates the tumor-promotional effects of involution, consistent with the immune milieu of the involuting gland contributing to tumor promotion. Currently, immunotherapy is being investigated as a means of breast cancer treatment with the purpose of identifying ways to enhance anti-tumor immune responses. Here we review evidence for postpartum mammary gland involution being a uniquely defined 'hot-spot' of pro-tumorigenic immune cell infiltration, and propose that immunotherapy should be explored for prevention and treatment of breast cancers that arise in this environment.

Altered liver metabolism post-wean abolishes efficacy of vitamin D for breast cancer prevention in a mouse model.

Young women have increased risk of vitamin D deficiency, which may increase breast cancer incidence. Here, we assessed the anti-cancer efficacy of vitamin D in mouse models of young-onset breast cancer. In never-pregnant mice, vitamin D supplementation increased serum 25(OH)D and hepatic 1,25(OH)2D3, reduced tumor size, and associated with anti-tumor immunity. These anti-tumor effects were not replicated in a mouse model of postpartum breast cancer, where hepatic metabolism of vitamin D was suppressed post-wean, which resulted in deficient serum 25(OH)D and reduced hepatic 1,25(OH)2D3. Treatment with active 1,25(OH)2D3 induced hypercalcemia exclusively in post-wean mice, highlighting metabolic imbalance post-wean. RNAseq revealed suppressed CYP450 expression postpartum. In sum, we provide evidence that vitamin D anti-tumor activity is mediated through immunomodulatory mechanisms and is ineffective in the post-wean window due to altered hepatic metabolism. These findings have implications for suppressed xenobiotic metabolism in postpartum women beyond vitamin D.

Current challenges in metastasis research and future innovation for clinical translation.

While immense strides have been made in understanding tumor biology and in developing effective treatments that have substantially improved the prognosis of cancer patients, metastasis remains the major cause of cancer-related death. Improvements in the detection and treatment of primary tumors are contributing to a growing, detailed understanding of the dynamics of metastatic progression. Yet challenges remain in detecting metastatic dissemination prior to the establishment of overt metastases and in predicting which patients are at the highest risk of developing metastatic disease. Further improvements in understanding the mechanisms governing metastasis have great potential to inform the adaptation of existing therapies and the development of novel approaches to more effectively control metastatic disease. This article presents a forward-looking perspective on the challenges that remain in the treatment of metastasis, and the exciting emerging approaches that promise to transform the treatment of metastasis in cancer patients.

An in-solution ultrasonication-assisted digestion method for improved extracellular matrix proteome coverage.

Epithelial cell behavior is coordinated by the composition of the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM); thus ECM protein identification is critical for understanding normal biology and disease states. Proteomic analyses of ECM proteins have been hindered by the insoluble and digestion-resistant nature of ECM. Here we explore the utility of combining rapid ultrasonication- and surfactant-assisted digestion for the detailed proteomics analysis of ECM samples. When compared with traditional overnight digestion, this optimized method dramatically improved the sequence coverage for collagen I, revealed the presence of hundreds of previously unidentified proteins in Matrigel, and identified a protein profile for ECM isolated from rat mammary glands that was substantially different from that found in Matrigel. In a three-dimensional culture assay to investigate epithelial cell-ECM interactions, mammary epithelial cells were found to undergo extensive branching morphogenesis when plated with mammary gland-derived matrix in comparison with Matrigel. Cumulatively these data highlight the tissue-specific nature of ECM composition and function and underscore the need for optimized techniques, such as those described here, for the proteomics characterization of ECM samples.

Isolation of mammary-specific extracellular matrix to assess acute cell-ECM interactions in 3D culture.

Studies of mammary epithelial cells (MECs) cultured with reconstituted basement membrane proteins derived from EHS tumors have contributed greatly to the understanding of both normal physiology and transformation. Only when plated on such biologically relevant substratum are MECs able to form morphologically correct, differentiated structures, highlighting a critical role for extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins in MEC organization and function. Here, we describe methods modified from the original EHS matrix protocol for isolating tissue-specific ECM from rat mammary glands, and for subsequent use in short-term 3D cell culture models designed to assess acute cell-ECM interactions. Using this protocol, the final matrix is enriched up to 58-fold for ECM proteins such as fibronectin and laminin, while cellular proteins such as GAPDH are reduced 98-fold. We have previously shown that MECs plated in mammary-specific ECM form more elaborate duct-like and alveolar-like structures compared to MECs plated in Matrigel™, demonstrating the biological relevance of tissue-specific ECM. Use of mammary-specific ECM in 3D cell culture models will further our ability to study the intricate interplay between a cell and its microenvironment, and permit identification of modifying factors.

Meeting report: Metastasis Research Society (MRS) 17th Biennial conference and associated Young Investigator Satellite Meeting (YISM) on cancer metastasis.

The Metastasis Research Society (MRS) 17th Biennial conference on metastasis was held on the 1st to the 5th of August 2018 at Princeton University, NJ, USA. The meeting was held around themes addressing notable aspects of the understanding and treatment of metastasis and metastatic disease covering basic, translational, and clinical research. Importantly, the meeting was largely supported by our patient advocate partners including Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Theresa's Research Foundation and METAvivor. There were a total of 85 presentations from invited and selected speakers spread across the main congress and presentations from the preceding Young Investigator Satellite Meeting. Presentations are summarized in this report by session topic.

Understanding the Bone in Cancer Metastasis.

The bone is the third most common site of metastasis for a wide range of solid tumors including lung, breast, prostate, colorectal, thyroid, gynecologic, and melanoma, with 70% of metastatic prostate and breast cancer patients harboring bone metastasis.1 Unfortunately, once cancer spreads to the bone, it is rarely cured and is associated with a wide range of morbidities including pain, increased risk of fracture, and hypercalcemia. This fact has driven experts in the fields of bone and cancer biology to study the bone, and has revealed that there is a great deal that each can teach the other. The complexity of the bone was first described in 1889 when Stephen Paget proposed that tumor cells have a proclivity for certain organs, where they "seed" into a friendly "soil" and eventually grow into metastatic lesions. Dr. Paget went on to argue that although many study the "seed" it would be paramount to understand the "soil." Since this original work, significant advances have been made not only in understanding the cell-autonomous mechanisms that drive metastasis, but also alterations which drive changes to the "soil" that allow a tumor cell to thrive. Indeed, it is now clear that the "soil" in different metastatic sites is unique, and thus the mechanisms that allow tumor cells to remain in a dormant or growing state are specific to the organ in question. In the bone, our knowledge of the components that contribute to this fertile "soil" continues to expand, but our understanding of how they impact tumor growth in the bone remains in its infancy. Indeed, we now appreciate that the endosteal niche likely contributes to tumor cell dormancy, and that osteoclasts, osteocytes, and adipocytes can impact tumor cell growth. Here, we discuss the bone microenvironment and how it impacts cancer cell seeding, dormancy, and growth. © 2018 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

RON kinase: A target for treatment of cancer-induced bone destruction and osteoporosis.

Bone destruction occurs in aging and numerous diseases, including osteoporosis and cancer. Many cancer patients have bone osteolysis that is refractory to state-of-the-art treatments, which block osteoclast activity with bisphosphonates or by inhibiting the receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand (RANKL) pathway. We previously showed that macrophage-stimulating protein (MSP) signaling, which is elevated in about 40% of breast cancers, promotes osteolytic bone metastasis by activation of the MSP signaling pathway in tumor cells or in the bone microenvironment. We show that MSP signals through its receptor, RON tyrosine kinase, expressed on host cells, to activate osteoclasts directly by a previously undescribed pathway that is complementary to RANKL signaling and converges on proto-oncogene, non-receptor tyrosine kinase SRC (SRC). Genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of RON kinase blocked cancer-mediated bone destruction and osteoporosis in several mouse models. Furthermore, the RON kinase inhibitor BMS-777607/ASLAN002 altered markers of bone turnover in a first-in-human clinical cancer study, indicating the inhibitor's potential for normalizing bone loss in patients. These findings uncover a new therapeutic target for pathogenic bone loss and provide a rationale for treatment of bone destruction in various diseases with RON inhibitors.