Targeting the KDM4B-AR-c-Myc axis promotes sensitivity to androgen receptor-targeted therapy in advanced prostate cancer.

The histone demethylase KDM4B functions as a key co-activator for the androgen receptor (AR) and plays a vital in multiple cancers through controlling gene expression by epigenetic regulation of H3K9 methylation marks. Constitutively active androgen receptor confers anti-androgen resistance in advanced prostate cancer. However, the role of KDM4B in resistance to next-generation anti-androgens and the mechanisms of KDM4B regulation are poorly defined. Here we found that KDM4B is overexpressed in enzalutamide-resistant prostate cancer cells. Overexpression of KDM4B promoted recruitment of AR to the c-Myc (MYC) gene enhancer and induced H3K9 demethylation, increasing AR-dependent transcription of c-Myc mRNA, which regulates the sensitivity to next-generation AR-targeted therapy. Inhibition of KDM4B significantly inhibited prostate tumor cell growth in xenografts, and improved enzalutamide treatments through suppression of c-Myc. Clinically, KDM4B expression was found upregulated and to correlate with prostate cancer progression and poor prognosis. Our results revealed a novel mechanism of anti-androgen resistance via histone demethylase alteration which could be targeted through inhibition of KDM4B to reduce AR-dependent c-Myc expression and overcome resistance to AR-targeted therapies. © 2020 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The ubiquitinase ZFP91 promotes tumor cell survival and confers chemoresistance through FOXA1 destabilization.

The forkhead box A1 (FOXA1), one of the forkhead class of DNA-binding proteins, functions as a transcription factor and plays a vital role in cellular control of embryonic development and cancer progression. Downregulation of FOXA1 has reported in several types of cancer, which contributes to cancer cell survival and chemoresistance. However, the mechanism for FOXA1 downregulation in cancer remains unclear. Here, we report that the ubiquitination enzyme zinc finger protein 91 (ZFP91) ubiquitinates and destabilizes FOXA1, which promotes cancer cell growth. High level of ZFP91 expression correlates with low level of FOXA1 protein in human gastric cancer (GC) cell lines and patient samples. Furthermore, ZFP91 knockdown reduces FOXA1 polyubiquitination, which decreases FOXA1 turnover and enhances cellular sensitivity to chemotherapy. Taken together, our findings reveal ZFP91-FOXA1 axis plays an important role in promoting GC progression and provides us a potential therapeutic intervention in the treatment of GC.

Targeting USP1-dependent KDM4A protein stability as a potential prostate cancer therapy.

The histone demethylase lysine-specific demethylase 4A (KDM4A) is reported to be overexpressed and plays a vital in multiple cancers through controlling gene expression by epigenetic regulation of H3K9 or H3K36 methylation marks. However, the biological role and mechanism of KDM4A in prostate cancer (PC) remain unclear. Herein, we reported KDM4A expression was upregulation in phosphatase and tensin homolog knockout mouse prostate tissue. Depletion of KDM4A in PC cells inhibited their proliferation and survival in vivo and vitro. Further studies reveal that USP1 is a deubiquitinase that regulates KDM4A K48-linked deubiquitin and stability. Interestingly, we found c-Myc was a key downstream effector of the USP1-KDM4A/androgen receptor axis in driving PC cell proliferation. Notably, upregulation of KDM4A expression with high USP1 expression was observed in most prostate tumors and inhibition of USP1 promotes PC cells response to therapeutic agent enzalutamide. Our studies propose USP1 could be an anticancer therapeutic target in PC.

STUB1 suppresseses tumorigenesis and chemoresistance through antagonizing YAP1 signaling.

Yes-associated protein (YAP) is a component of the canonical Hippo signaling pathway that is known to play essential roles in modulating organ size, development, and tumorigenesis. Activation or upregulation of YAP1, which contributes to cancer cell survival and chemoresistance, has been verified in different types of human cancers. However, the molecular mechanism of YAP1 upregulation in cancer is still unclear. Here we report that the E3 ubiquitin ligase STUB1 ubiquitinates and destabilizes YAP1, thereby inhibiting cancer cell survival. Low levels of STUB1 expression were correlated with increased protein levels of YAP1 in human gastric cancer cell lines and patient samples. Moreover, we revealed that STUB1 ubiquitinates YAP1 at the K280 site by K48-linked polyubiquitination, which in turn increases YAP1 turnover and promotes cellular chemosensitivity. Overall, our study establishes YAP1 ubiquitination and degradation mediated by the E3 ligase STUB1 as an important regulatory mechanism in gastric cancer, and provides a rationale for potential therapeutic interventions.

Down-regulation of TRPS1 stimulates epithelial-mesenchymal transition and metastasis through repression of FOXA1.

The tricho-rhino-phalangeal syndrome 1 gene (TRPS1), which was initially found to be associated with tricho-rhino-phalangeal syndrome, is critical for the development and differentiation of bone, hair follicles and kidney. However, its role in cancer progression is largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that down-regulation of TRPS1 correlated with distant metastasis, tumour recurrence and poor survival rate in cancer patients. TRPS1 was frequently down-regulated in high-metastatic cancer cell lines from the breast, colon and nasopharynx. Silencing of TRPS1 stimulated epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), migration and invasion in vitro and metastasis in vivo, while TRPS1 over-expression exhibited the opposite effects. Using quantitative proteomics, FOXA1, a negative regulator of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), was shown to be down-regulated by TRPS1 knockdown. Ectopic expression of FOXA1 blocked the enhancement of EMT, migration and invasion induced by TRPS1 silencing. Mechanistically, TRPS1, acting as a transcription activator, directly induced FOXA1 transcription by binding to the FOXA1 promoter. We further showed that down-regulation of TRPS1 was induced by miR-373 binding to the 3' UTR of TRPS1. Over-expression of TRPS1, but not TRPS1 3' UTR, blocked the enhancement of migration and invasion induced by miR-373. Taken together, we consider that down-regulation of TRPS1 by miR-373, acting as a transcriptional activator, promotes EMT and metastasis by repressing FOXA1 transcription, expanding upon its previously reported role as a transcription repressor. Copyright © 2016 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

ACK1 promotes gastric cancer epithelial-mesenchymal transition and metastasis through AKT-POU2F1-ECD signalling.

Amplification of the activated Cdc42-associated kinase 1 (ACK1) gene is frequent in gastric cancer (GC). However, little is known about the clinical roles and molecular mechanisms of ACK1 abnormalities in GC. Here, we found that the ACK1 protein level and ACK1 phosphorylation at Tyr 284 were frequently elevated in GC and associated with poor patient survival. Ectopic ACK1 expression in GC cells induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and promoted migration and invasion in vitro, and metastasis in vivo; the depletion of ACK1 induced the opposite effects. We utilized SILAC quantitative proteomics to discover that the level of the cell cycle-related protein ecdysoneless homologue (ECD) was markedly altered by ACK1. Overexpression of ECD promoted EMT, migration, and invasion in GC, similar to the effects of ACK1 overexpression. Silencing of ECD completely blocked the augmentation of ACK1 overexpression-induced EMT, migration, and invasion. Mechanistically, ACK1 phosphorylated AKT at Thr 308 and Ser 473 and activated the AKT pathway to up-regulate the transcription factor POU2F1, which directly bound to the promoter region of its novel target gene ECD and thus regulated ECD expression in GC cells. Furthermore, the phosphorylation levels of AKT at Thr 308 and Ser 473 and POU2F1 and ECD levels were positively associated with ACK1 levels in clinical GC specimens. Collectively, we have demonstrated that ACK1 promotes EMT, migration, and invasion by activating AKT-POU2F1-ECD signalling in GC cells. ACK1 may be employed as a new prognostic factor and therapeutic target for GC.

Proteomics characterization of gastrokine 1-induced growth inhibition of gastric cancer cells.

We previously used proteomics technology to globally identify gastric cancer-associated proteins and found that gastrokine 1 (GKN1) was dramatically underexpressed in gastric cancer tissues. Here, we further showed that GKN1 could inhibit cell growth and induce cell cycle arrest in gastric cancer cells. The activity of protein kinase PKCδ/θ was inhibited by GKN1, whereas the activity of ERK1/2 and JNK1/2 was increased by GKN1, suggesting that GKN1 induced growth inhibition of gastric cancer cells by synergistically regulating the activity of these protein kinases. Seventy-four proteins were found to be regulated by GKN1 by proteomics analysis, including α-enolase (ENO1) and Cathepsin D. Interestingly, ENO1 is an important hub in the protein-protein interaction network of the 74 differential proteins. Silencing of ENO1 resulted in growth inhibition and cell cycle arrest of gastric cancer cells, similar to the effect of GKN1 overexpression in cells, whereas ENO1 overexpression blocked GKN1-induced growth inhibition and cell cycle arrest. These observations suggested that ENO1 downregulation played an important role in GKN1-induced growth inhibition of gastric cancer cells.

Global identification of miR-373-regulated genes in breast cancer by quantitative proteomics.

Although microRNAs (miRNAs) have been reported to play an important role in carcinogenesis, their molecular mechanism remains largely unknown because of our limited understanding of miRNA target genes. miR-373 was found to be capable of promoting breast cancer invasion and metastasis, but only a target gene was experimentally identified on the basis of mRNA expression analysis. In this study, we used SILAC-based quantitative proteomics to globally identify the genes regulated by miR-373. Totally, 3666 proteins were identified, and 335 proteins were found to be regulated by miR-373. Among the 192 proteins that were downregulated by miR-373, 27 (14.1%) were predicted to have at least one potential match site at their 3'-UTR for miR-373 seed sequence. However, miR-373 did not affect the mRNA level of the five selected candidate targets, TXNIP, TRPS1, RABEP1, GRHL2 and HIP1, suggesting that the protein expressions were regulated by miR-373 via translational inhibition instead of mRNA degradation. Luciferase and mutation assays validated that TXNIP and RABEP1 were the direct target genes of miR-373. More than 30 proteins reported to be involved in cancer invasion and metastasis were found to be regulated by miR-373 in breast cancer for the first time.

Histone Demethylase JMJD1A Promotes Tumor Progression via Activating Snail in Prostate Cancer.

The histone demethylase JMJD1A plays a key functional role in spermatogenesis, sex determination, stem cell renewal, and cancer via removing mono- and di-methyl groups from H3K9 to epigenetically control gene expression. However, its role in prostate cancer progression remains unclear. Here, we found JMJD1A was significantly elevated in prostate cancer tissue compared with matched normal tissue. Ectopic JMJD1A expression in prostate cancer cells promoted proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro, and tumorigenesis in vivo; JMJD1A knockdown exhibited the opposite effects. Mechanically, we revealed that JMJD1A directly interacted with the Snail gene promoter and regulated its transcriptional activity, promoting prostate cancer progression both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, we found that JMJD1A transcriptionally activated Snail expression via H3K9me1 and H3K9me2 demethylation at its special promoter region. In summary, our studies reveal JMJD1A plays an important role in regulating proliferation and progression of prostate cancer cells though Snail, and thus highlight JMJD1A as potential therapeutic target for advanced prostate cancer. IMPLICATIONS: Our studies identify that JMJD1A promotes the proliferation and progression of prostate cancer cells through enabling Snail transcriptional activation, and thus highlight JMJD1A as potential therapeutic target for advanced prostate cancer.

ECD promotes gastric cancer metastasis by blocking E3 ligase ZFP91-mediated hnRNP F ubiquitination and degradation.

The human ortholog of the Drosophila ecdysoneless gene (ECD) is required for embryonic development and cell-cycle progression; however, its role in cancer progression and metastasis remains unclear. Here, we found that ECD is frequently overexpressed in gastric cancer (GC), especially in metastatic GC, and is correlated with poor clinical outcomes in GC patients. Silencing ECD inhibited GC migration and invasion in vitro and metastasis in vivo, while ECD overexpression promoted GC migration and invasion. ECD promoted GC invasion and metastasis by protecting hnRNP F from ubiquitination and degradation. We identified ZFP91 as the E3 ubiquitin ligase that is responsible for hnRNP F ubiquitination at Lys 185 and proteasomal degradation. ECD competitively bound to hnRNP F via the N-terminal STG1 domain (13-383aa), preventing hnRNP F from interacting with ZFP91, thus preventing ZFP91-mediated hnRNP F ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation. Collectively, our findings indicate that ECD promotes cancer invasion and metastasis by preventing E3 ligase ZFP91-mediated hnRNP F ubiquitination and degradation, suggesting that ECD may be a marker for poor prognosis and a potential therapeutic target for GC patients.

Amplification of ACK1 promotes gastric tumorigenesis via ECD-dependent p53 ubiquitination degradation.

Amplification or over-expression of an activated Cdc42-associated kinase 1 (ACK1) gene is common in breast, lung and ovarian cancers. However, little is known about the role of ACK1 in gastric tumorigenesis. Here, we found that DNA copy numbers of the ACK1 gene and its mRNA expression levels were significantly increased in gastric cancer (GC) compared to normal gastric tissues. Additionally, silencing ACK1 inhibited GC cell proliferation and colony formation, induced G2/M arrest and cellular apoptosis in vitro, and suppressed tumor growth in vivo. Gene Ontology annotation revealed that 147 differential proteins regulated by ACK1 knockdown were closely related with cellular survival. A cell cycle regulator, ecdysoneless homolog (ECD), was found to be significantly down-regulated by ACK1 knockdown. Silencing of ECD inhibited colony formation and induced G2/M arrest and cell apoptosis, which is similar to the effects of ACK1 knockdown. Silencing of ECD did not further enhance the effects of ACK1 knockdown on G2/M arrest and apoptosis, while silencing of ECD blocked the enhancement of colony formation by ACK1 over-expression. Over-expression of ACK or ECD promoted the ubiquitination of tumor suppressor p53 protein and decreased p53 levels, while silencing of ACK1 or ECD decreased the p53 ubiquitination level and increased p53 levels. Silencing of ECD attenuated the ubiquitination enhancement of p53 induced by ACK1 over-expression. Collectively, we demonstrate that amplification of ACK1 promotes gastric tumorigenesis by inducing an ECD-dependent ubiquitination degradation of p53.

Epigenetic silencing of ITGA2 by MiR-373 promotes cell migration in breast cancer.

The loss of ITGA2 plays an important role in cancer metastasis in several solid cancers. However, the molecular mechanism of ITGA2 loss in primary cancers remains unclear. In this study, we found that a lower ITGA2 protein level was observed in breast cancers compared to adjacent non-cancerous breast tissues. Interestingly, the reduction degree of ITGA2 at the protein level was far more than that at the mRNA level. We further showed that the translation of ITGA2 mRNA was directly inhibited by miR-373 through binding to ITGA2-3'UTR. Silencing of ITGA2 detached cell-cell interactions, induced the deploymerization of stress fiber F-actin and stimulated cancer cell migration, similar to the effect of miR-373 over-expression. The co-expression of ITGA2, not ITGA2-3'UTR, could abrogate miR-373-induced cancer cell migration because that the expression of ITGA2-3'UTR was inhibited by co-transfected miR-373. ITGA2 protein level was inversely associated with miR-373 level in breast cancers (r = -0.663, P<0.001). 73.33% of breast cancer patients with high miR-373 and low ITGA2 expression exhibited the lymph node-positive metastases. Together, our results show that epigenetic silencing of ITGA2 by miR-373 stimulates breast cancer migration, and miR-373high/ITGA2low may be as a prognosis biomarker for breast cancer patients.

Characterization of phosphoproteins in gastric cancer secretome.

Phosphorylation dysregulation has been implicated in various diseases including cancer. The phosphorylation change of proteins in secretome may be a novel source for the discovery of biomarkers and drug targets. In this study, the phosphoproteins in cancer secretome (phosphosecretome) were globally analyzed for the first time by phosphoproteomics. One hundred forty-two phosphorylation sites on 62 unique phosphopeptides representing 49 nonredundant proteins were identified, several of which are known as secreted proteins involved in carcinogenesis, invasion, and metastasis. Most of them were first found as secreted proteins with no previously known function. Protein sublocation analysis showed that 33 proteins were found to be secreted as phosphoproteins, in which 27 (81.81%) were secreted by a nonclassic, ER/Golgi-independent pathway, suggesting that the phosphorylation modification of these proteins might play an important role in their nonconventional secretion processes. Their protein kinases and regulatory phosphosites involved in the secretion regulation of these phosphoproteins, such as stanniocalcin 2, annexin A2, and HSP90 alpha, were first identified. The phosphosecretome data enriched the secretome database and phosphoproteome database, and will help us to discover cancer biomarkers and drug targets, illustrating the mystery of the nonclassic protein secretion pathway.

Identification of novel signaling components in genistein-regulated signaling pathways by quantitative phosphoproteomics.

Isolated from soybeans, genistein is an isoflavonoid that exhibits anti-carcinogenic effects. Genistein could induce G2/M arrest and apoptosis of various cancer cells in vivo and in vitro. Although ERK1/2, AKT, p90RSK and NFκB were previously found to be regulated by genistein, most of signaling components in genistein-inhibited signaling pathways were still unknown. Here, we used SILAC quantitative phosphoproteomics to globally identify the phosphoproteins and their regulatory sites in signaling pathways mediated by genistein. We detected 1177 phosphorylation sites on 635 unique proteins; among them, 320 phosphorylation sites on 222 unique phosphopeptides representing 215 non-redundant proteins were modulated at least 1.5-folds by genistein. Apart from ERK1/2, PI3K, p90RSK, Bad and topoisomerase that are known genistein-regulated effectors, many novel phosphoproteins were identified for the first time to be involved in genistein-regulated signal transduction networks. They mainly include 9 receptors, 5 signal adaptors, 13 protein kinases, 2 protein phosphatase regulatory subunits, and 14 transcription regulators. Several of these phosphoproteins have been proven to be involved in G2/M arrest or apoptosis such as GPCRs, DCC, NCK1, TNK2, BTK, TP53BP1, BCLAF, MAX and MAG. This dataset provides valuable insights into the cancer-related phosphorylation signaling pathways regulated by genistein.