Extra-virgin olive oil contains a metabolo-epigenetic inhibitor of cancer stem cells.

Targeting tumor-initiating, drug-resistant populations of cancer stem cells (CSC) with phytochemicals is a novel paradigm for cancer prevention and treatment. We herein employed a phenotypic drug discovery approach coupled to mechanism-of-action profiling and target deconvolution to identify phenolic components of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) capable of suppressing the functional traits of CSC in breast cancer (BC). In vitro screening revealed that the secoiridoid decarboxymethyl oleuropein aglycone (DOA) could selectively target subpopulations of epithelial-like, aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH)-positive and mesenchymal-like, CD44+CD24-/low CSC. DOA could potently block the formation of multicellular tumorspheres generated from single-founder stem-like cells in a panel of genetically diverse BC models. Pretreatment of BC populations with noncytotoxic doses of DOA dramatically reduced subsequent tumor-forming capacity in vivo. Mice orthotopically injected with CSC-enriched BC-cell populations pretreated with DOA remained tumor-free for several months. Phenotype microarray-based screening pointed to a synergistic interaction of DOA with the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin and the DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) inhibitor 5-azacytidine. In silico computational studies indicated that DOA binds and inhibits the ATP-binding kinase domain site of mTOR and the S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM) cofactor-binding pocket of DNMTs. FRET-based Z-LYTE™ and AlphaScreen-based in vitro assays confirmed the ability of DOA to function as an ATP-competitive mTOR inhibitor and to block the SAM-dependent methylation activity of DNMTs. Our systematic in vitro, in vivo and in silico approaches establish the phenol-conjugated oleoside DOA as a dual mTOR/DNMT inhibitor naturally occurring in EVOO that functionally suppresses CSC-like states responsible for maintaining tumor-initiating cell properties within BC populations.

Mitophagy-driven mitochondrial rejuvenation regulates stem cell fate.

Our understanding on how selective mitochondrial autophagy, or mitophagy, can sustain the archetypal properties of stem cells is incomplete. PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 (PINK1) plays a key role in the maintenance of mitochondrial morphology and function and in the selective degradation of damaged mitochondria by mitophagy. Here, using embryonic fibroblasts fromPINK1 gene-knockout (KO) mice, we evaluated whether mitophagy is a causal mechanism for the control of cell-fate plasticity and maintenance of pluripotency. Loss of PINK1-dependent mitophagy was sufficient to dramatically decrease the speed and efficiency of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) reprogramming. Mitophagy-deficient iPSC colonies, which were characterized by a mixture of mature and immature mitochondria, seemed unstable, with a strong tendency to spontaneously differentiate and form heterogeneous populations of cells. Although mitophagy-deficient iPSC colonies normally expressed pluripotent markers, functional monitoring of cellular bioenergetics revealed an attenuated glycolysis in mitophagy-deficient iPSC cells. Targeted metabolomics showed a notable alteration in numerous glycolysis- and TCA-related metabolites in mitophagy-deficient iPSC cells, including a significant decrease in the intracellular levels of α-ketoglutarate -a key suppressor of the differentiation path in stem cells. Mitophagy-deficient iPSC colonies exhibited a notably reduced teratoma-initiating capacity, but fully retained their pluripotency and multi-germ layer differentiation capacity in vivo. PINK1-dependent mitophagy pathway is an important mitochondrial switch that determines the efficiency and quality of somatic reprogramming. Mitophagy-driven mitochondrial rejuvenation might contribute to the ability of iPSCs to suppress differentiation by directing bioenergetic transition and metabolome remodeling traits. These findings provide new insights into how mitophagy might influence the stem cell decisions to retain pluripotency or differentiate in tissue regeneration and aging, tumor growth, and regenerative medicine.

Oncobiguanides: Paracelsus' law and nonconventional routes for administering diabetobiguanides for cancer treatment.

"The dose makes the poison", the common motto of toxicology first expressed by Paracelsus more than 400 years ago, may effectively serve to guide potential applications for metformin and related biguanides in oncology. While Paracelsus' law for the dose-response effect has been commonly exploited for the use of some anti-cancer drugs at lower doses in non-neoplastic diseases (e.g., methotrexate), the opposite scenario also holds true; in other words, higher doses of non-oncology drugs, such as anti-diabetic biguanides, might exert direct anti-neoplastic effects. Here, we propose that, as for any drug, there is a dose range for biguanides that is without any effect, one corresponding to "diabetobiguanides" with a pharmacological effect (e.g., insulin sensitization in type 2 diabetes, prevention of insulin-dependent carcinogenesis, indirect inhibition of insulin and growth factor-dependent cancer growth) but with minimal toxicity and another corresponding to "oncobiguanides" with pharmacological (i.e., direct and strong anticancer activity against cancer cells) as well as toxic effects. Considering that biguanides demonstrate a better safety profile than most oncology drugs in current use, we should contemplate the possibility of administering biguanides through non-conventional routes (e.g., inhaled for carcinomas of the lung, topical for skin cancers, intravenous as an adjunctive therapy, rectal suppositories for rectal cancer) to unambiguously investigate the therapeutic value of high-dose transient biguanide exposure in cancer. Perhaps then, the oncobiguanides, as we call them here, could be viewed as a mechanistically different type of anti-cancer drugs employed at doses notably higher than those used chronically when functioning as diabetobiguanides.

Discovery and validation of an INflammatory PROtein-driven GAstric cancer Signature (INPROGAS) using antibody microarray-based oncoproteomics.

This study aimed to improve gastric cancer (GC) diagnosis by identifying and validating an INflammatory PROtein-driven GAstric cancer Signature (hereafter INPROGAS) using low-cost affinity proteomics. The detection of 120 cytokines, 43 angiogenic factors, 41 growth factors, 40 inflammatory factors and 10 metalloproteinases was performed using commercially available human antibody microarray-based arrays. We identified 21 inflammation-related proteins (INPROGAS) with significant differences in expression between GC tissues and normal gastric mucosa in a discovery cohort of matched pairs (n=10) of tumor/normal gastric tissues. Ingenuity pathway analysis confirmed the "inflammatory response", "cellular movement" and "immune cell trafficking" as the most overrepresented biofunctions within INPROGAS. Using an expanded independent validation cohort (n = 22), INPROGAS classified gastric samples as "GC" or "non-GC" with a sensitivity of 82% (95% CI 59-94) and a specificity of 73% (95% CI 49-89). The positive predictive value and negative predictive value in this validation cohort were 75% (95% CI 53-90) and 80% (95% CI 56-94), respectively. The positive predictive value and negative predictive value in this validation cohort were 75% (95% CI 53-90) and 80% (95% CI 56-94), respectively. Antibody microarray analyses of the GC-associated inflammatory proteome identified a 21-protein INPROGAS that accurately discriminated GC from noncancerous gastric mucosa.

Mammosphere formation in breast carcinoma cell lines depends upon expression of E-cadherin.

Tumors are heterogeneous at the cellular level where the ability to maintain tumor growth resides in discrete cell populations. Floating sphere-forming assays are broadly used to test stem cell activity in tissues, tumors and cell lines. Spheroids are originated from a small population of cells with stem cell features able to grow in suspension culture and behaving as tumorigenic in mice. We tested the ability of eleven common breast cancer cell lines representing the major breast cancer subtypes to grow as mammospheres, measuring the ability to maintain cell viability upon serial non-adherent passage. Only MCF7, T47D, BT474, MDA-MB-436 and JIMT1 were successfully propagated as long-term mammosphere cultures, measured as the increase in the number of viable cells upon serial non-adherent passages. Other cell lines tested (SKBR3, MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-468 and MDA-MB-435) formed cell clumps that can be disaggregated mechanically, but cell viability drops dramatically on their second passage. HCC1937 and HCC1569 cells formed typical mammospheres, although they could not be propagated as long-term mammosphere cultures. All the sphere forming lines but MDA-MB-436 express E-cadherin on their surface. Knock down of E-cadherin expression in MCF-7 cells abrogated its ability to grow as mammospheres, while re-expression of E-cadherin in SKBR3 cells allow them to form mammospheres. Therefore, the mammosphere assay is suitable to reveal stem like features in breast cancer cell lines that express E-cadherin.

Reprogramming of non-genomic estrogen signaling by the stemness factor SOX2 enhances the tumor-initiating capacity of breast cancer cells.

The restoration of pluripotency circuits by the reactivation of endogenous stemness factors, such as SOX2, may provide a new paradigm in cancer development. The tumoral stem cell reprogramming hypothesis, i.e., the ability of stemness factors to redirect normal and differentiated tumor cells toward a less-differentiated and stem-like state, adds new layers of complexity to cancer biology, because the effects of such reprogramming may remain dormant until engaged later in response to (epi)genetic and/or (micro)environmental events. To test this hypothesis, we utilized an in vitro model of a SOX2-overexpressing cancer stem cell (CSC)-like cellular state that was recently developed in our laboratory by employing Yamanaka's nuclear reprogramming technology in the estrogen receptor α (ERα)-positive MCF-7 breast cancer cell line. Despite the acquisition of distinct molecular features that were compatible with a breast CSC-like cellular state, such as strong aldehyde dehydrogenase activity, as detected by ALDEFLUOR, and overexpression of the SSEA-4 and CD44 breast CSC markers, the tumor growth-initiating ability of SOX2-overexpressing CSC-like MCF-7 cells solely occurred in female nude mice supplemented with estradiol when compared with MCF-7 parental cells. Ser118 phosphorylation of estrogen receptor α (ERα), which is a pivotal integrator of the genomic and nongenomic E 2/ERα signaling pathways, drastically accumulated in nuclear speckles in the interphase nuclei of SOX2-driven CSC-like cell populations. Moreover, SOX2-positive CSC-like cells accumulated significantly higher numbers of actively dividing cells, and the highest levels of phospho-Ser118-ERα occurred when chromosomes lined up on a metaphase plate. The previously unrecognized link between E 2/ERα signaling and SOX2-driven stem cell circuitry may significantly impact our current understanding of breast cancer initiation and progression, i.e., SOX2 can promote non-genomic E 2 signaling that leads to nuclear phospho-Ser118-ERα, which ultimately exacerbates genomic ER signaling in response to E 2. Because E 2 stimulation has been recently shown to enhance breast tumor-initiating cell survival by downregulating miR-140, which targets SOX2, the establishment of a bidirectional cross-talk interaction between the stem cell self-renewal regulator, SOX2, and the local and systemic ability of E 2 to increase breast CSC activity may have profound implications for the development of new CSC-directed strategies for breast cancer prevention and therapy.

IGF-1R/epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) crosstalk suppresses the erlotinib-sensitizing effect of EGFR exon 19 deletion mutations.

Using non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) cells harboring the erlotinib-sensitizing Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) exon 19 mutation delE746-A750, we developed erlotinib-refractory derivatives in which hyperactive Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 Receptor (IGF-1R) signaling associated with enrichment in epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related morphological and transcriptional features. We then explored whether an IGF-1R/EMT crosstalk was sufficient to promote erlotinib refractoriness in the absence of second-site EGFR mutations, MET and AXL hyperactivation. Transforming Growth Factor-beta1 (TGFß1)-induced mesenchymal trans-differentiation was sufficient to impede erlotinib functioning in the presence of drug-sensitive delE746-A750 EGFR mutation. Pharmacological blockade of IGF-1R fully prevented the TGFß1's ability to activate an EMT protein signature [E-cadherin low/vimentin high]. The sole presence of erlotinib was capable of rapidly activate an IGF-1R-dependent, vimentin-enriched mesenchymal-like phenotype in delE746-A750-mutated epithelial cells. Even if transient, NSCLC cells' intrinsic plasticity to undergo crosstalk between IGF-1R and EMT signaling pathways can sufficiently eliminate the erlotinib-sensitizing effect of highly prevalent EGFR mutations and suggests the urgent need for dual IGF-1R/EMT-targeting strategies to circumvent erlotinib resistance.

The anti-malarial chloroquine overcomes primary resistance and restores sensitivity to trastuzumab in HER2-positive breast cancer.

Autophagy may control the de novo refractoriness of HER2 gene-amplified breast carcinomas to the monoclonal antibody trastuzumab (Herceptin). Tumor cells originally obtained from a patient who rapidly progressed on trastuzumab ab initio display increased cellular levels of the LC3-II protein--a finding that correlates with increased numbers of autophagosomes--and decreased levels of the autophagy receptor p62/SQSTM1, a protein selectively degraded by autophagy. Trastuzumab-refractory cells are in a state of "autophagy addiction" because genetic ablation of autophagy-specific genes (ATG8, ATG5, ATG12) notably reduces intrinsic refractoriness to trastuzumab. When the anti-malarial lysosomotropic drug chloroquine impedes autophagic resolution of the accumulation of autophagolysosomes formed in the presence of trastuzumab, cells commit to die by apoptosis. Accordingly, combination treatment with trastuzumab and chloroquine radically suppresses tumor growth by > 90% in a tumor xenograft completely refractory to trastuzumab. Adding chloroquine to trastuzumab-based regimens may therefore improve outcomes among women with autophagy-addicted HER2-positive breast cancer.

Nuclear reprogramming of luminal-like breast cancer cells generates Sox2-overexpressing cancer stem-like cellular states harboring transcriptional activation of the mTOR pathway.

Energy metabolism plasticity enables stemness programs during the reprogramming of somatic cells to an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) state. This relationship may introduce a new era in the understanding of Warburg's theory on the metabolic origin of cancer at the level of cancer stem cells (CSCs). Here, we used Yamanaka's stem cell technology in an attempt to create stable CSC research lines in which to dissect the transcriptional control of mTOR--the master switch of cellular catabolism and anabolism--in CSC-like states. The rare colonies with iPSC-like morphology, obtained following the viral transduction of the Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc (OSKM) stemness factors into MCF-7 luminal-like breast cancer cells (MCF-7/Rep), demonstrated an intermediate state between cancer cells and bona fide iPSCs. MCF-7/Rep cells notably overexpressed SOX2 and stage-specific embryonic antigen (SSEA)-4 proteins; however, other stemness-related markers (OCT4, NANOG, SSEA-1, TRA-1-60, and TRA-1-81) were found at low to moderate levels. The transcriptional analyses of OSKM factors confirmed the strong but unique reactivation of the endogenous Sox2 stemness gene accompanied by the silencing of the exogenous Sox2 transgene in MCF-7/Rep cells. Some but not all MCF-7/Rep cells acquired strong alkaline phosphatase (AP) activity compared with MCF-7 parental cells. SOX2-overexpressing MCF-7/Rep cells contained drastically higher percentages of CD44(+) and ALDEFLUOR-stained ALDH(bright) cells than MCF-7 parental cells. The overlap between differentially expressed mTOR signaling-related genes in 3 different SOX2-overexpressing CSC-like cell lines revealed a notable downregulation of 3 genes, PRKAA1 (which codes for the catalytic α 1 subunit of AMPK), DDIT4/REDD1 (a stress response gene that operates as a negative regulator of mTOR), and DEPTOR (a naturally occurring endogenous inhibitor of mTOR activity). The insulin-receptor gene (INSR) was differentially upregulated in MCF-7/Rep cells. Consistent with the downregulation of AMPK expression, immunoblotting procedures confirmed upregulation of p70S6K and increased phosphorylation of mTOR in Sox2-overexpressing CSC-like cell populations. Using an in vitro model of the de novo generation of CSC-like states through the nuclear reprogramming of an established breast cancer cell line, we reveal that the transcriptional suppression of mTOR repressors is an intrinsic process occurring during the acquisition of CSC-like properties by differentiated populations of luminal-like breast cancer cells. This approach may provide a new path for obtaining information about preventing the appearance of CSCs through the modulation of the AMPK/mTOR pathway.

Dietary restriction-resistant human tumors harboring the PIK3CA-activating mutation H1047R are sensitive to metformin.

Cancer cells expressing constitutively active phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K) are proliferative regardless of the absence of insulin, and they form dietary restriction (DR)-resistant tumors in vivo. Because the binding of insulin to its receptors activates the PI3K/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling cascade, activating mutations in the PIK3CA oncogene may determine tumor response to DR-like pharmacological strategies targeting the insulin and mTOR pathways. The anti-diabetic drug metformin is a stereotypical DR mimetic that exerts its anti-cancer activity through a dual mechanism involving insulin-related (systemic) and mTOR-related (cell-autonomous) effects. However, it remains unclear whether PIK3CA-activating mutations might preclude the anti-cancer activity of metformin in vivo. To model the oncogenic PIK3CA-driven early stages of cancer, we used the clonal breast cancer cell line MCF10DCIS.com, which harbors the gain-of-function H1047R hot-spot mutation in the catalytic domain of the PI3KCA gene and has been shown to form DR-refractory xenotumors. To model PIK3CA-activating mutations in late stages of cancer, we took advantage of the isogenic conversion of a PIK3CA-wild-type tumor into a PIK3CA H1047R-mutated tumor using the highly metastatic colorectal cancer cell line SW48. MCF10DCIS.com xenotumors, although only modestly affected by treatment with oral metformin (approximately 40% tumor growth inhibition), were highly sensitive to the intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration of metformin, the anti-cancer activity of which increased in a time-dependent manner and reached >80% tumor growth inhibition by the end of the treatment. Metformin treatment via the i.p. route significantly reduced the proliferation factor mitotic activity index (MAI) and decreased tumor cellularity in MCF10DCIS.com cancer tissues. Whereas SW48-wild-type (PIK3CA+/+) cells rapidly formed metformin-refractory xenotumors in mice, ad libitum access to water containing metformin significantly reduced the growth of SW48-mutated (PIK3CAH1047R/+) xenotumors by approximately 50%. Thus, metformin can no longer be considered as a bona fide DR mimetic, at least in terms of anti-cancer activity, because tumors harboring the insulin-unresponsive, DR-resistant, PIK3CA-activating mutation H1047R remain sensitive to the anti-tumoral effects of the drug. Given the high prevalence of PIK3CA mutations in human carcinomas and the emerging role of PIK3CA mutation status in the treatment selection process, these findings might have a significant impact on the design of future trials evaluating the potential of combining metformin with targeted therapy.

Silibinin suppresses EMT-driven erlotinib resistance by reversing the high miR-21/low miR-200c signature in vivo.

The flavolignan silibinin was studied for its ability to restore drug sensitivity to EGFR-mutant NSCLC xenografts with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-driven resistance to erlotinib. As a single agent, silibinin significantly decreased the tumor volumes of erlotinib-refractory NSCLC xenografts by approximately 50%. Furthermore, the complete abrogation of tumor growth was observed with the co-treatment of erlotinib and silibinin. Silibinin fully reversed the EMT-related high miR-21/low miR-200c microRNA signature and repressed the mesenchymal markers SNAIL, ZEB, and N-cadherin observed in erlotinib-refractory tumors. Silibinin was sufficient to fully activate a reciprocal mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET) in erlotinib-refractory cells and prevent the highly migratogenic phenotype of erlotinib-resistant NSCLC cells. Given that the various mechanisms of resistance to erlotinib result from EMT, regardless of the EGFR mutation status, a water-soluble, silibinin-rich milk thistle extract might be a suitable candidate therapy for upcoming clinical trials aimed at preventing or reversing NSCLC progression following erlotinib treatment.

Silibinin meglumine, a water-soluble form of milk thistle silymarin, is an orally active anti-cancer agent that impedes the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in EGFR-mutant non-small-cell lung carcinoma cells.

Silibinin is the primary active constituent of a crude extract (silymarin) from milk thistle plant (Silybum marianum) seeds. We explored the ability of an oral milk thistle extract formulation that was enriched with a water-soluble form of silibinin complexed with the amino-sugar meglumine to inhibit the growth of non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) mouse xenografts. As a single agent, oral silibinin meglumine notably decreased the overall volumes of NSCLC tumors as efficiently as did the EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) gefitinib. Concurrent treatment with silibinin meglumine impeded the regrowth of gefitinib-unresponsive tumors, resulting in drastic tumor growth prevention. Because the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is required by a multiplicity of mechanisms of resistance to EGFR TKIs, we evaluated the ability of silibinin meglumine to impede the EMT in vitro and in vivo. Silibinin-meglumine efficiently prevented the loss of markers associated with a polarized epithelial phenotype as well as the de novo synthesis of proteins associated with the mesenchymal morphology of transitioning cells. Our current findings with this non-toxic, orally active, and water-soluble silibinin formulation might facilitate the design of clinical trials to test the administration of silibinin meglumine-containing injections, granules, or beverages in combination with EGFR TKIs in patients with EGFR-mutated NSCLC.

The Warburg effect version 2.0: metabolic reprogramming of cancer stem cells.

When fighting cancer, knowledge on metabolism has always been important. Today, it matters more than ever. The restricted cataloging of cancer genomes is quite unlikely to achieve the task of curing cancer, unless it is integrated into metabolic networks that respond to and influence the constantly evolving cancer stem cell (CSC) cellular states. Once the genomic era of carcinogenesis had pushed the 1920s Otto Warburg's metabolic cancer hypothesis into obscurity for decades, the most recent studies begin to support a new developing paradigm, in which the molecular logic behind the conversion of non-CSCs into CSCs can be better understood in terms of the "metabolic facilitators" and "metabolic impediments" that operate as proximate openings and roadblocks, respectively, for the transcriptional events and signal transduction programs that ultimately orchestrate the intrinsic and/or microenvironmental paths to CSC cellular states. Here we propose that a profound understanding of how human carcinomas install a proper "Warburg effect version 2.0" allowing them to "run" the CSCs' "software" programs should guide a new era of metabolo-genomic-personalized cancer medicine. By viewing metabolic reprogramming of CSCs as an essential characteristic that allows dynamic, multidimensional and evolving cancer populations to compete successfully for their expansion on the organism, we now argue that CSCs bioenergetics might be another cancer hallmark. A definitive understanding of metabolic reprogramming in CSCs may complement or to some extent replace, the 30-y-old paradigm of targeting oncogenes to treat human carcinomas, because it can be possible to metabolically create non-permissive or "hostile" metabotypes to prevent the occurrence of CSC cellular states with tumor- and metastasis-initiating capacity.

Xenohormetic and anti-aging activity of secoiridoid polyphenols present in extra virgin olive oil: a new family of gerosuppressant agents.

Aging can be viewed as a quasi-programmed phenomenon driven by the overactivation of the nutrient-sensing mTOR gerogene. mTOR-driven aging can be triggered or accelerated by a decline or loss of responsiveness to activation of the energy-sensing protein AMPK, a critical gerosuppressor of mTOR. The occurrence of age-related diseases, therefore, reflects the synergistic interaction between our evolutionary path to sedentarism, which chronically increases a number of mTOR activating gero-promoters (e.g., food, growth factors, cytokines and insulin) and the "defective design" of central metabolic integrators such as mTOR and AMPK. Our laboratories at the Bioactive Food Component Platform in Spain have initiated a systematic approach to molecularly elucidate and clinically explore whether the "xenohormesis hypothesis," which states that stress-induced synthesis of plant polyphenols and many other phytochemicals provides an environmental chemical signature that upregulates stress-resistance pathways in plant consumers, can be explained in terms of the reactivity of the AMPK/mTOR-axis to so-called xenohormetins. Here, we explore the AMPK/mTOR-xenohormetic nature of complex polyphenols naturally present in extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), a pivotal component of the Mediterranean style diet that has been repeatedly associated with a reduction in age-related morbid conditions and longer life expectancy. Using crude EVOO phenolic extracts highly enriched in the secoiridoids oleuropein aglycon and decarboxymethyl oleuropein aglycon, we show for the first time that (1) the anticancer activity of EVOO secoiridoids is related to the activation of anti-aging/cellular stress-like gene signatures, including endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and the unfolded protein response, spermidine and polyamine metabolism, sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) and NRF2 signaling; (2) EVOO secoiridoids activate AMPK and suppress crucial genes involved in the Warburg effect and the self-renewal capacity of "immortal" cancer stem cells; (3) EVOO secoiridoids prevent age-related changes in the cell size, morphological heterogeneity, arrayed cell arrangement and senescence-associated ß-galactosidase staining of normal diploid human fibroblasts at the end of their proliferative lifespans. EVOO secoiridoids, which provide an effective defense against plant attack by herbivores and pathogens, are bona fide xenohormetins that are able to activate the gerosuppressor AMPK and trigger numerous resveratrol-like anti-aging transcriptomic signatures. As such, EVOO secoiridoids constitute a new family of plant-produced gerosuppressant agents that molecularly "repair" the aimless (and harmful) AMPK/mTOR-driven quasi-program that leads to aging and aging-related diseases, including cancer.

The mitochondrial H(+)-ATP synthase and the lipogenic switch: new core components of metabolic reprogramming in induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells.

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells share some basic properties, such as self-renewal and pluripotency, with cancer cells, and they also appear to share several metabolic alterations that are commonly observed in human tumors. The cancer cells' glycolytic phenotype, first reported by Otto Warburg, is necessary for the optimal routing of somatic cells to pluripotency. However, how iPS cells establish a Warburg-like metabolic phenotype and whether the metabolic pathways that support the bioenergetics of iPS cells are produced by the same mechanisms that are selected during the tumorigenic process remain largely unexplored. We recently investigated whether the reprogramming-competent metabotype of iPS cells involves changes in the activation/expression status of the H(+)-ATPase, which is a core component of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation that is repressed at both the activity and protein levels in human carcinomas, and of the lipogenic switch, which refers to a marked overexpression and hyperactivity of the acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACACA) and fatty acid synthase (FASN) lipogenic enzymes that has been observed in nearly all examined cancer types. A comparison of a starting population of mouse embryonic fibroblasts and their iPS cell progeny revealed that somatic cell reprogramming involves a significant increase in the expression of ATPase inhibitor factor 1 (IF1), accompanied by extremely low expression levels of the catalytic ß-F1-ATPase subunit. The pharmacological inhibition of ACACA and FASN activities markedly decreases reprogramming efficiency, and ACACA and FASN expression are notably upregulated in iPS cells. Importantly, iPS cells exhibited a significant intracellular accumulation of neutral lipid bodies; however, these bodies may be a reflection of intense lysosomal/autophagocytic activity rather than bona fide lipid droplet formation in iPS cells, as they were largely unresponsive to pharmacological modulation of PPARgamma and FASN activities. The AMPK agonist metformin, which endows somatic cells with a bioenergetic infrastructure that is protected against reprogramming, was found to drastically elongate fibroblast mitochondria, fully reverse the high IF1/ß-F1-ATPase ratio and downregulate the ACACA/FASN lipogenic enzymes in iPS cells. The mitochondrial H(+)-ATP synthase and the ACACA/FASN-driven lipogenic switch are newly characterized as instrumental metabolic events that, by coupling the Warburg effect to anabolic metabolism, enable de-differentiation during the reprogramming of somatic cells to iPS cells.

Basal/HER2 breast carcinomas: integrating molecular taxonomy with cancer stem cell dynamics to predict primary resistance to trastuzumab (Herceptin).

High rates of inherent primary resistance to the humanized monoclonal antibody trastuzumab (Herceptin) are frequent among HER2 gene-amplified breast carcinomas in both metastatic and adjuvant settings. The clinical efficacy of trastuzumab is highly correlated with its ability to specifically and efficiently target HER2-driven populations of breast cancer stem cells (CSCs). Intriguingly, many of the possible mechanisms by which cancer cells escape trastuzumab involve many of the same biomarkers that have been implicated in the biology of CS-like tumor-initiating cells. In the traditional, one-way hierarchy of CSCs in which all cancer cells descend from special self-renewing CSCs, HER2-positive CSCs can occur solely by self-renewal. Therefore, by targeting CSC self-renewal and resistance, trastuzumab is expected to induce tumor shrinkage and further reduce breast cancer recurrence rates when used alongside traditional therapies. In a new, alternate model, more differentiated non-stem cancer cells can revert to trastuzumab-refractory, CS-like cells via the activation of intrinsic or microenvironmental paths-to-stemness, such as the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Alternatively, stochastic transitions of trastuzumab-responsive CSCs might also give rise to non-CSC cellular states that lack major attributes of CSCs and, therefore, can remain "hidden" from trastuzumab activity. Here, we hypothesize that a better understanding of the CSC/non-CSC social structure within HER2-overexpressing breast carcinomas is critical for trastuzumab-based treatment decisions in the clinic. First, we decipher the biological significance of CSC features and the EMT on the molecular effects and efficacy of trastuzumab in HER2-positive breast cancer cells. Second, we reinterpret the genetic heterogeneity that differentiates trastuzumab-responders from non-responders in terms of CSC cellular states. Finally, we propose that novel predictive approaches aimed at better forecasting early tumor responses to trastuzumab should identify biological determinants that causally underlie the intrinsic flexibility of HER2-positive CSCs to "enter" into or "exit" from trastuzumab-sensitive states. An accurate integration of CSC cellular states and EMT-related biomarkers with the currently available breast cancer molecular taxonomy may significantly improve our ability to make a priori decisions about whether patients belonging to HER2 subtypes differentially enriched with a "mesenchymal transition signature" (e.g., luminal/HER2 vs. basal/HER2) would distinctly benefit from trastuzumab-based therapy ab initio.

Metformin limits the tumourigenicity of iPS cells without affecting their pluripotency.

The antidiabetic drug metformin efficiently circumvents the dilemma that in reducing the tumourigenicity of stem cells, their essence, specifically their pluripotency, must also be sacrificed. Metformin prevents the occurrence or drastically reduces the size and weight of teratoma-like masses after the transplantation of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells into immunodeficient mice. Yet, iPS cells implanted into metformin-treated mice retain full pluripotency, as they produce the same number of distinct tissue types derived from the three embryonic germ layers that is observed in untreated mice. Mechanistically, metformin appears to suppress the Oct4-driven compartment of malignant stem cells responsible for teratocarcinoma growth while safeguarding an intact, Oct4-independent competency to generate terminally differentiated tissues. Metformin's ability to efficiently and specifically control the tumourigenic fate of teratoma-initiating iPS cells without interfering with their pluripotency not only has implications for the clinical use of iPS cells but also in stem cell biology, cancer and ageing.

Ser2481-autophosphorylated mTOR colocalizes with chromosomal passenger proteins during mammalian cell cytokinesis.

Energy- and nutrient-sensing proteins such as AMPK, mTOR and S6K1 are now recognized as novel regulators of mitotic completion in proliferating cells. We investigated the cellular distribution of the Ser2481 autophosphorylation of mTOR, which directly monitors mTORC-specific catalytic activity, during mammalian cell mitosis and cytokinesis. Automated immunofluorescence experiments in human carcinoma cell lines revealed that phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) exhibited profound spatial and temporal dynamics during cell division. Phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) was strikingly enriched in mitotic cells, and in prophase, bright phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) staining could be clearly observed among condensed chromosomes. Phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) then redistributes from diffuse cytosolic staining that partially colocalizes with the mitotic spindle during the early phases of mitosis to the furrow at the onset of cytokinesis. Like the bona fide chromosomal passenger proteins (CPPs) INCENP and Aurora B, phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) displayed noteworthy accumulation in the central spindle midzone and the midbody regions, which persisted during the furrowing process. Accordingly, double-staining experiments confirmed that phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) largely colocalized with CCPs in the midbodies. The CPP-like mitotic localization of phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) was fully prevented by the microtubule-depolymerizing drug nocodazole; mitotic traveling of phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) to the midbody during telophase and cytokinesis, where it appears to be integrated into the CPP-driven cytokinetic machinery, may therefore require dynamic microtubules. Although the Ser2448-phosphorylated form of mTOR was also found at high levels during M-phase in human cancer cells, we failed to observe a significant association of phospho-mTOR (Ser2448) with CCP-positive mitotic and cytokinetic structures. Our findings add phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) to the growing list of phospho-active forms of proteins belonging to the AMPK/mTOR/S6K1 signaling axis that reside at the mitotic and cytokinetic apparatus. Future studies should elucidate how the specific ability of phospho-mTOR (Ser2481) to spatially and temporally couple to the cleavage furrow and midbody region as a CPP-like protein can signal to or from adjacent signaling complexes and/or with the basic machinery of cell abscission.

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) confers primary resistance to trastuzumab (Herceptin).

The rate of inherent resistance to single-agent trastuzumab in HER2-overexpressing metastatic breast carcinomas is impressive at above 70%. Unfortunately, little is known regarding the distinctive genetic signatures that could predict trastuzumab refractoriness ab initio. The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) molecular features, HER2 expression status and primary responses to trastuzumab were explored in the public Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL) Breast Cancer Collection. Lentivirus-delivered small hairpin RNAs were employed to reduce specifically and stably the expression of EMT transcription factors in trastuzumab-refractory basal/HER2+ cells. Cell proliferation assays and pre-clinical nude mice xenograft-based studies were performed to assess the contribution of specific EMT transcription factors to inherent trastuzumab resistance. Primary sensitivity to trastuzumab was restricted to the SLUG/SNAIL2-negative subset of luminal/HER2+ cell lines, whereas all of the SLUG/SNAIL2-positive basal/HER2+ cell lines exhibited an inherent resistance to trastuzumab. The specific knockdown of SLUG/SNAIL2 suppressed the stem-related CD44+CD24(-/low) mesenchymal immunophenotype by transcriptionally upregulating the luminal epithelial marker CD24 in basal/HER2+ cells. Basal/HER2+ cells gained sensitivity to the growth-inhibitory effects of trastuzumab following SLUG/SNAIL2 gene depletion, which induced the expression of the mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET) genes involved in promoting an epithelial phenotype. The isolation of CD44+CD24(-/low) mesenchymal cells by magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS) confirmed their intrinsic unresponsiveness to trastuzumab. A reduction in tumor growth and dramatic gain in sensitivity to trastuzumab in vivo were confirmed when the SLUG/SNAIL2 knockdown basal/HER2+ cells were injected into nude mice. HER2 overexpression in a basal, rather than in a luminal molecular background, results in a basal/HER2+ breast cancer subtype that is intrinsically resistant to trastuzumab. EMT transcription factors might induce an enhanced phenotypic plasticity that would allow basal/HER2+ breast cancer cells to "enter" into and "exit" dynamically from trastuzumab-responsive stem cell-like states. The systematic determination of SLUG/SNAIL2 as a stem/CD44+CD24(-/low) cell-associated protein may improve the therapeutic management of HER2+ breast carcinomas.