Novel mechanisms of MITF regulation and melanoma predisposition identified in a mouse suppressor screen.

MITF, a basic-Helix-Loop-Helix Zipper (bHLHZip) transcription factor, plays vital roles in melanocyte development and functions as an oncogene. To explore MITF regulation and its role in melanoma, we conducted a genetic screen for suppressors of the Mitf-associated pigmentation phenotype. An intragenic Mitf mutation was identified, leading to termination of MITF at the K316 SUMOylation site and loss of the C-end intrinsically disordered region (IDR). The resulting protein is more nuclear but less stable than wild-type MITF and retains DNA-binding ability. Interestingly, as a dimer, it can translocate wild-type and mutant MITF partners into the nucleus, improving its own stability and ensuring an active nuclear MITF supply. Interactions between K316 SUMOylation and S409 phosphorylation sites across monomers largely explain the observed effects. Notably, the recurrent melanoma-associated E318K mutation in MITF, which affects K316 SUMOylation, also alters protein regulation in concert with S409, unraveling a novel regulatory mechanism with unexpected disease insights.

Vaccination-based immunotherapy to target profibrotic cells in liver and lung.

Fibrosis is the final path of nearly every form of chronic disease, regardless of the pathogenesis. Upon chronic injury, activated, fibrogenic fibroblasts deposit excess extracellular matrix, and severe tissue fibrosis can occur in virtually any organ. However, antifibrotic therapies that target fibrogenic cells, while sparing homeostatic fibroblasts in healthy tissues, are limited. We tested whether specific immunization against endogenous proteins, strongly expressed in fibrogenic cells but highly restricted in quiescent fibroblasts, can elicit an antigen-specific cytotoxic T cell response to ameliorate organ fibrosis. In silico epitope prediction revealed that activation of the genes Adam12 and Gli1 in profibrotic cells and the resulting "self-peptides" can be exploited for T cell vaccines to ablate fibrogenic cells. We demonstrate the efficacy of a vaccination approach to mount CD8+ T cell responses that reduce fibroblasts and fibrosis in the liver and lungs in mice. These results provide proof of principle for vaccination-based immunotherapies to treat fibrosis.

NK cells in hypoxic skin mediate a trade-off between wound healing and antibacterial defence.

During skin injury, immune response and repair mechanisms have to be coordinated for rapid skin regeneration and the prevention of microbial infections. Natural Killer (NK) cells infiltrate hypoxic skin lesions and Hypoxia-inducible transcription factors (HIFs) mediate adaptation to low oxygen. We demonstrate that mice lacking the Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α isoform in NK cells show impaired release of the cytokines Interferon (IFN)-γ and Granulocyte Macrophage - Colony Stimulating Factor (GM-CSF) as part of a blunted immune response. This accelerates skin angiogenesis and wound healing. Despite rapid wound closure, bactericidal activity and the ability to restrict systemic bacterial infection are impaired. Conversely, forced activation of the HIF pathway supports cytokine release and NK cell-mediated antibacterial defence including direct killing of bacteria by NK cells despite delayed wound closure. Our results identify, HIF-1α in NK cells as a nexus that balances antimicrobial defence versus global repair in the skin.

EZH2-Mediated Primary Cilium Deconstruction Drives Metastatic Melanoma Formation.

Human melanomas frequently harbor amplifications of EZH2. However, the contribution of EZH2 to melanoma formation has remained elusive. Taking advantage of murine melanoma models, we show that EZH2 drives tumorigenesis from benign BrafV600E- or NrasQ61K-expressing melanocytes by silencing of genes relevant for the integrity of the primary cilium, a signaling organelle projecting from the surface of vertebrate cells. Consequently, gain of EZH2 promotes loss of primary cilia in benign melanocytic lesions. In contrast, blockade of EZH2 activity evokes ciliogenesis and cilia-dependent growth inhibition in malignant melanoma. Finally, we demonstrate that loss of cilia enhances pro-tumorigenic WNT/ß-catenin signaling, and is itself sufficient to drive metastatic melanoma in benign cells. Thus, primary cilia deconstruction is a key process in EZH2-driven melanomagenesis.

Cre-driver lines used for genetic fate mapping of neural crest cells in the mouse: An overview.

The neural crest is one of the embryonic structures with the broadest developmental potential in vertebrates. Morphologically, neural crest cells emerge during neurulation in the dorsal folds of the neural tube before undergoing an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), delaminating from the neural tube, and migrating to multiple sites in the growing embryo. Neural crest cells generate cell types as diverse as peripheral neurons and glia, melanocytes, and so-called mesectodermal derivatives that include craniofacial bone and cartilage and smooth muscle cells in cardiovascular structures. In mice, the fate of neural crest cells has been determined mainly by means of transgenesis and genome editing technologies. The most frequently used method relies on the Cre-loxP system, in which expression of Cre-recombinase in neural crest cells or their derivatives genetically enables the expression of a Cre-reporter allele, thus permanently marking neural crest-derived cells. Here, we provide an overview of the Cre-driver lines used in the field and discuss to what extent these lines allow precise neural crest stage and lineage-specific fate mapping.

Injury-activated glial cells promote wound healing of the adult skin in mice.

Cutaneous wound healing is a complex process that aims to re-establish the original structure of the skin and its functions. Among other disorders, peripheral neuropathies are known to severely impair wound healing capabilities of the skin, revealing the importance of skin innervation for proper repair. Here, we report that peripheral glia are crucially involved in this process. Using a mouse model of wound healing, combined with in vivo fate mapping, we show that injury activates peripheral glia by promoting de-differentiation, cell-cycle re-entry and dissemination of the cells into the wound bed. Moreover, injury-activated glia upregulate the expression of many secreted factors previously associated with wound healing and promote myofibroblast differentiation by paracrine modulation of TGF-ß signalling. Accordingly, depletion of these cells impairs epithelial proliferation and wound closure through contraction, while their expansion promotes myofibroblast formation. Thus, injury-activated glia and/or their secretome might have therapeutic potential in human wound healing disorders.

Antagonistic cross-regulation between Sox9 and Sox10 controls an anti-tumorigenic program in melanoma.

Melanoma is the most fatal skin cancer, but the etiology of this devastating disease is still poorly understood. Recently, the transcription factor Sox10 has been shown to promote both melanoma initiation and progression. Reducing SOX10 expression levels in human melanoma cells and in a genetic melanoma mouse model, efficiently abolishes tumorigenesis by inducing cell cycle exit and apoptosis. Here, we show that this anti-tumorigenic effect functionally involves SOX9, a factor related to SOX10 and upregulated in melanoma cells upon loss of SOX10. Unlike SOX10, SOX9 is not required for normal melanocyte stem cell function, the formation of hyperplastic lesions, and melanoma initiation. To the contrary, SOX9 overexpression results in cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, and a gene expression profile shared by melanoma cells with reduced SOX10 expression. Moreover, SOX9 binds to the SOX10 promoter and induces downregulation of SOX10 expression, revealing a feedback loop reinforcing the SOX10 low/SOX9 high ant,m/ii-tumorigenic program. Finally, SOX9 is required in vitro and in vivo for the anti-tumorigenic effect achieved by reducing SOX10 expression. Thus, SOX10 and SOX9 are functionally antagonistic regulators of melanoma development.

The epigenetic modifier EZH2 controls melanoma growth and metastasis through silencing of distinct tumour suppressors.

Increased activity of the epigenetic modifier EZH2 has been associated with different cancers. However, evidence for a functional role of EZH2 in tumorigenesis in vivo remains poor, in particular in metastasizing solid cancers. Here we reveal central roles of EZH2 in promoting growth and metastasis of cutaneous melanoma. In a melanoma mouse model, conditional Ezh2 ablation as much as treatment with the preclinical EZH2 inhibitor GSK503 stabilizes the disease through inhibition of growth and virtually abolishes metastases formation without affecting normal melanocyte biology. Comparably, in human melanoma cells, EZH2 inactivation impairs proliferation and invasiveness, accompanied by re-expression of tumour suppressors connected to increased patient survival. These EZH2 target genes suppress either melanoma growth or metastasis in vivo, revealing the dual function of EZH2 in promoting tumour progression. Thus, EZH2-mediated epigenetic repression is highly relevant especially during advanced melanoma progression, which makes EZH2 a promising target for novel melanoma therapies.

In vivo role of alternative splicing and serine phosphorylation of the microphthalmia-associated transcription factor.

The microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) is a basic helix-loop-helix leucine zipper protein that plays major roles in the development and physiology of vertebrate melanocytes and melanoma cells. It is regulated by post-translational modifications, including phosphorylation at serine 73, which based on in vitro experiments imparts on MITF an increased transcriptional activity paired with a decreased stability. Serine 73 is encoded by the alternatively spliced exon 2B, which is preferentially skipped in mice carrying a targeted serine-73-to-alanine mutation. Here, we measured the relative abundance of exon 2B+ and exon 2B- RNAs in freshly isolated and FACS-sorted wild-type melanoblasts and melanocytes and generated a series of knock-in mice allowing forced incorporation of either alanine, aspartate, or wild-type serine at position 73. None of these knock-in alleles, however, creates a striking pigmentation phenotype on its own, but differences between them can be revealed either by a general reduction of Mitf transcript levels or in heteroallelic combinations with extant Mitf mutations. In fact, compared with straight serine-73 knock-in mice with their relative reduction of 2B+ Mitf, forced incorporation of alanine 73 leads to greater increases in MITF protein levels, melanoblast and melanocyte numbers, and extent of pigmentation in particular allelic combinations. These results underscore, in vivo, the importance of the link between alternative splicing and post-translational modifications and may bear on the recent observation that exon 2B skipping can be found in metastatic melanoma.

On the interplay of telomeres, nevi and the risk of melanoma.

The relationship between telomeres, nevi and melanoma is complex. Shorter telomeres have been found to be associated with many cancers and with number of nevi, a known risk factor for melanoma. However, shorter telomeres have also been found to decrease melanoma risk. We performed a systematic analysis of telomere-related genes and tagSNPs within these genes, in relation to the risk of melanoma, dysplastic nevi, and nevus count combining data from four studies conducted in Italy. In addition, we examined whether telomere length measured in peripheral blood leukocytes is related to the risk of melanoma, dysplastic nevi, number of nevi, or telomere-related SNPs. A total of 796 cases and 770 controls were genotyped for 517 SNPs in 39 telomere-related genes genotyped with a custom-made array. Replication of the top SNPs was conducted in two American populations consisting of 488 subjects from 53 melanoma-prone families and 1,086 cases and 1,024 controls from a case-control study. We estimated odds ratios for associations with SNPs and combined SNP P-values to compute gene region-specific, functional group-specific, and overall P-value using an adaptive rank-truncated product algorithm. In the Mediterranean population, we found suggestive evidence that RECQL4, a gene involved in genome stability, RTEL1, a gene regulating telomere elongation, and TERF2, a gene implicated in the protection of telomeres, were associated with melanoma, the presence of dysplastic nevi and number of nevi, respectively. However, these associations were not found in the American samples, suggesting variable melanoma susceptibility for these genes across populations or chance findings in our discovery sample. Larger studies across different populations are necessary to clarify these associations.

The basic-helix-loop-helix-leucine zipper gene Mitf: analysis of alternative promoter choice and splicing.

The activity of transcription factors is often regulated by Post-translational modifications. A precondition for such modifications is the presence, in the corresponding mRNAs, of the exons that either directly encode the modifiable residues in question, or encode protein domains that influence their modification indirectly. The inclusion or exclusion of coding exons is regulated predominantly by alternative splicing but can also depend on promoter choice and polyadenylation site selection. Information about exon inclusion and exclusion, both qualitatively and quantitatively, is particularly important for experiments designed to mutate endogenous codons because such mutations can alter splicing patterns. Therefore, we here describe methods employed to quantitate exon inclusion and exclusion, using as example a mouse transcription factor gene, Mitf.

Allele-specific genetic interactions between Mitf and Kit affect melanocyte development.

The tyrosine kinase receptor KIT and the transcription factor MITF, each required for melanocyte development, have been shown to interact functionally both in vitro and in vivo. In vitro, KIT signaling leads to MITF phosphorylation, affecting MITF activity and stability. In vivo, the presence of the Mitf (Mi-wh) allele exacerbates the spotting phenotype associated with heterozygosity for Kit mutations. Here, we show that among a series of other Mitf alleles, only the recessive Mitf (mi-bws) mimics the effect of Mitf (Mi-wh) on Kit. Intriguingly, Mitf (mi-bws) is characterized by a splice defect that leads to a reduction of RNAs containing MITF exon 2B which encodes serine-73, a serine phosphorylated upon KIT signaling. Nevertheless, other Mitf alleles that generally affect Mitf RNA levels, or carry a serine-73-to-alanine mutation that specifically reduces exon 2B-containing RNAs, do not show similar interactions with Kit in vivo. We conclude that the recessive Mitf (mi-bws) is a complex allele that can display a semi-dominant effect when present in a Kit-sensitized background. We suggest that human disease variability may equally be due to complex, allele-specific interactions between different genes.

ERK-regulated differential expression of the Mitf 6a/b splicing isoforms in melanoma.

The master regulator of the melanocyte lineage Mitf is intimately involved in development as well as melanoma, controlling cell survival, differentiation, proliferation and metastasis/migration. Consistent with its central role, Mitf expression and Mitf post-translational modifications are tightly regulated. An additional potential level of regulation is afforded by differential splicing of Mitf exon-6 leading to the generation of two isoforms that differ by the presence of six amino-acids in the Mitf (+) isoform and which have differential effects on cell cycle progression. However, whether the ratio of the two isoforms is regulated and whether their expression correlates with melanoma progression is not known. Here, we show that the differential expression of the Mitf 6a/b isoforms is dependent on the MAPKinase signalling, being linked to the activation of MEK1-ERK2, but not to N-RAS/B-RAF mutation status. In addition, quantification of Mitf 6a/b splicing forms in 86 melanoma samples revealed substantially increased levels of the Mitf (-) form in a subset of metastatic melanomas. The results suggest that differential expression of the Mitf 6a/b isoforms may represent an additional mechanism for regulating Mitf function and melanoma biology.

The role of MITF phosphorylation sites during coat color and eye development in mice analyzed by bacterial artificial chromosome transgene rescue.

The microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (Mitf) has emerged as an important model for gene regulation in eukaryotic organisms. In vertebrates, it regulates the development of several cell types including melanocytes and has also been shown to play an important role in melanoma. In vitro, the activity of MITF is regulated by multiple signaling pathways, including the KITL/KIT/B-Raf pathway, which results in phosphorylation of MITF on serine residues 73 and 409. However, the precise role of signaling to MITF in vivo remains largely unknown. Here, we use a BAC transgene rescue approach to introduce specific mutations in MITF to study the importance of specific phospho-acceptor sites and protein domains. We show that mice that carry a BAC transgene where single-amino-acid substitutions have been made in the Mitf gene rescue the phenotype of the loss-of-function mutations in Mitf. This may indicate that signaling from KIT to MITF affects other phospho-acceptor sites in MITF or that alternative sites can be phosphorylated when Ser73 and Ser409 have been mutated. Our results have implications for understanding signaling to transcription factors. Furthermore, as MITF and signaling mechanisms have been shown to play an important role in melanomas, our findings may lead to novel insights into this resilient disease.