Novel Approach for Pancreas Transcriptomics Reveals the Cellular Landscape in Homeostasis and Acute Pancreatitis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Acinar cells produce digestive enzymes that impede transcriptomic characterization of the exocrine pancreas. Thus, single-cell RNA-sequencing studies of the pancreas underrepresent acinar cells relative to histological expectations, and a robust approach to capture pancreatic cell responses in disease states is needed. We sought to innovate a method that overcomes these challenges to accelerate study of the pancreas in health and disease. METHODS: We leverage FixNCut, a single-cell RNA-sequencing approach in which tissue is reversibly fixed with dithiobis(succinimidyl propionate) before dissociation and single-cell preparation. We apply FixNCut to an established mouse model of acute pancreatitis, validate findings using GeoMx whole transcriptome atlas profiling, and integrate our data with prior studies to compare our method in both mouse and human pancreas datasets. RESULTS: FixNCut achieves unprecedented definition of challenging pancreatic cells, including acinar and immune populations in homeostasis and acute pancreatitis, and identifies changes in all major cell types during injury and recovery. We define the acinar transcriptome during homeostasis and acinar-to-ductal metaplasia and establish a unique gene set to measure deviation from normal acinar identity. We characterize pancreatic immune cells, and analysis of T-cell subsets reveals a polarization of the homeostatic pancreas toward type-2 immunity. We report immune responses during acute pancreatitis and recovery, including early neutrophil infiltration, expansion of dendritic cell subsets, and a substantial shift in the transcriptome of macrophages due to both resident macrophage activation and monocyte infiltration. CONCLUSIONS: FixNCut preserves pancreatic transcriptomes to uncover novel cell states during homeostasis and following pancreatitis, establishing a broadly applicable approach and reference atlas for study of pancreas biology and disease.

ß-Catenin-RAS interaction serves as a molecular switch for RAS degradation via GSK3ß.

RAS proteins play critical roles in various cellular processes, including growth and transformation. RAS proteins are subjected to protein stability regulation via the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, and glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK3ß) is a key player for the phosphorylation-dependent RAS degradation through proteasomes. GSK3ß-mediated RAS degradation does not occur in cells that express a nondegradable mutant (MT) ß-catenin. Here, we show that ß-catenin directly interacts with RAS at the α-interface region that contains the GSK3ß phosphorylation sites, threonine 144 and threonine 148 residues. Exposure of these sites by prior ß-catenin degradation is required for RAS degradation. The introduction of a peptide that blocks the ß-catenin-RAS interaction by binding to ß-catenin rescues the GSK3ß-mediated RAS degradation in colorectal cancer (CRC) cells that express MT ß-catenin. The coregulation of ß-catenin and RAS stabilities by the modulation of their interaction provides a mechanism for Wnt/ß-catenin and RAS-ERK pathway cross-talk and the synergistic transformation of CRC by both APC and KRAS mutations.

WDR76 degrades RAS and suppresses cancer stem cell activation in colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Stabilization of RAS is a key event for the hyper-activation of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling and activation of cancer stem cell (CSC) in colorectal cancer (CRC). WD Repeat protein 76 (WDR76) mediates the polyubiquitination-dependent degradation of RAS in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We investigated whether WDR76 destabilizes RAS and acts as a tumor suppressor inhibiting CSC activation in CRC. METHODS: We generated mice with deletion of Wdr76 (Wdr76-/-) and crosses of Wdr76-/- with ApcMin/+ (Wdr76-/-; ApcMin/+) and compared them with wildtype mice (Wdr76+/+) and ApcMin/+ mice (Wdr76+/+; ApcMin/+), respectively. Intestinal crypt lengthening, tumorigenesis and CSC activation were analyzed by histology, immunohistochemistry, and immunoblotting. CRC cell line was engineered to stably express or knockdown WDR76 or control vector and was analyzed after spheroid culture. RESULTS: Wdr76-/- mice, with increased Ras level, displayed crypt elongation and hyper-proliferation. Wdr76-/-; ApcMin/+ mice developed more tumors with bigger sizes than ApcMin/+ mice and their tumors showed increased proliferation and CSC activation with elevated RAS and ß-catenin levels. In CRC cells, overexpression or knockdown of WDR76 decreased or increased the numbers and sizes of CRC spheroids with inhibition or activation of CSC markers, respectively. In human CRC, lower level of WDR76 was associated with poor patient survival. CONCLUSIONS: In analyses of mice with deletion of Wdr76 and CRC spheroids, we found that RAS stability plays important roles in tumorigenesis by affecting proliferation and CSC activation. Our results suggest that destabilization of RAS by WDR76 is a potential strategy for targeting malignant CRC involving CSC activation.

Retinoic-acid-mediated HRas stabilization induces neuronal differentiation of neural stem cells during brain development.

Ras signaling is tightly regulated during neural stem cell (NSC) differentiation, and defects in this pathway result in aberrant brain development. However, the mechanism regulating Ras signaling during NSC differentiation was unknown. Here, we show that stabilized HRas specifically induces neuronal differentiation of NSCs. Lentivirus-mediated HRas overexpression and knockdown resulted in stimulation and inhibition, respectively, of NSC differentiation into neuron in the ex vivo embryo. Retinoic acid, an active metabolite of vitamin A, promoted neuronal differentiation of NSCs by stabilizing HRas, and HRas knockdown blocked the retinoic acid effect. Vitamin-A-deficient mice displayed abnormal brain development with reduced HRas levels and a reduced thickness of the postmitotic region containing differentiated neurons. All of these abnormal phenotypes were rescued with the restoration of HRas protein levels achieved upon feeding with a retinoic-acid-supplemented diet. In summary, this study shows that retinoic acid stabilizes HRas protein during neurogenesis, and that this is required for NSC differentiation into neurons and murine brain development.

Small-molecule binding of the axin RGS domain promotes ß-catenin and Ras degradation.

Both the Wnt/ß-catenin and Ras pathways are aberrantly activated in most human colorectal cancers (CRCs) and interact cooperatively in tumor promotion. Inhibition of these signaling may therefore be an ideal strategy for treating CRC. We identified KY1220, a compound that destabilizes both ß-catenin and Ras, via targeting the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, and synthesized its derivative KYA1797K. KYA1797K bound directly to the regulators of G-protein signaling domain of axin, initiating ß-catenin and Ras degradation through enhancement of the ß-catenin destruction complex activating GSK3ß. KYA1797K effectively suppressed the growth of CRCs harboring APC and KRAS mutations, as shown by various in vitro studies and by in vivo studies using xenograft and transgenic mouse models of tumors induced by APC and KRAS mutations. Destabilization of both ß-catenin and Ras via targeting axin is a potential therapeutic strategy for treatment of CRC and other type cancers activated Wnt/ß-catenin and Ras pathways.

Chronic metabolic stress drives developmental programs and loss of tissue functions in non-transformed liver that mirror tumor states and stratify survival.

Under chronic stress, cells must balance competing demands between cellular survival and tissue function. In metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD, formerly NAFLD/NASH), hepatocytes cooperate with structural and immune cells to perform crucial metabolic, synthetic, and detoxification functions despite nutrient imbalances. While prior work has emphasized stress-induced drivers of cell death, the dynamic adaptations of surviving cells and their functional repercussions remain unclear. Namely, we do not know which pathways and programs define cellular responses, what regulatory factors mediate (mal)adaptations, and how this aberrant activity connects to tissue-scale dysfunction and long-term disease outcomes. Here, by applying longitudinal single-cell multi -omics to a mouse model of chronic metabolic stress and extending to human cohorts, we show that stress drives survival-linked tradeoffs and metabolic rewiring, manifesting as shifts towards development-associated states in non-transformed hepatocytes with accompanying decreases in their professional functionality. Diet-induced adaptations occur significantly prior to tumorigenesis but parallel tumorigenesis-induced phenotypes and predict worsened human cancer survival. Through the development of a multi -omic computational gene regulatory inference framework and human in vitro and mouse in vivo genetic perturbations, we validate transcriptional (RELB, SOX4) and metabolic (HMGCS2) mediators that co-regulate and couple the balance between developmental state and hepatocyte functional identity programming. Our work defines cellular features of liver adaptation to chronic stress as well as their links to long-term disease outcomes and cancer hallmarks, unifying diverse axes of cellular dysfunction around core causal mechanisms.

WDR76 mediates obesity and hepatic steatosis via HRas destabilization.

Ras/MAPK (mitogen active protein kinase) signaling plays contradictory roles in adipocyte differentiation and is tightly regulated during adipogenesis. However, mechanisms regulating adipocyte differentiation involving Ras protein stability regulation are unknown. Here, we show that WD40 repeat protein 76 (WDR76), a novel Ras regulating E3 linker protein, controls 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation through HRas stability regulation. The roles of WDR76 in obesity and metabolic regulation were characterized using a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity model using Wdr76-/- mice and liver-specific Wdr76 transgenic mice (Wdr76Li-TG). Wdr76-/- mice are resistant to HFD-induced obesity, insulin resistance and hyperlipidemia with an increment of HRas levels. In contrast, Wdr76Li-TG mice showed increased HFD-induced obesity, insulin resistance with reduced HRas levels. Our findings suggest that WDR76 controls HFD-induced obesity and hepatic steatosis via HRas destabilization. These data provide insights into the links between WDR76, HRas, and obesity.

WDR76 is a RAS binding protein that functions as a tumor suppressor via RAS degradation.

Stability regulation of RAS that can affect its activity, in addition to the oncogenic mutations, occurs in human cancer. However, the mechanisms for stability regulation of RAS involved in their activity and its roles in tumorigenesis are poorly explored. Here, we identify WD40-repeat protein 76 (WDR76) as one of the HRAS binding proteins using proteomic analyses of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) tissue. WDR76 plays a role as an E3 linker protein and mediates the polyubiquitination-dependent degradation of RAS. WDR76-mediated RAS destabilization results in the inhibition of proliferation, transformation, and invasion of liver cancer cells. WDR76-/- mice are more susceptible to diethylnitrosamine-induced liver carcinogenesis. Liver-specific WDR76 induction destabilizes Ras and markedly reduces tumorigenesis in HRasG12V mouse livers. The clinical relevance of RAS regulation by WDR76 is indicated by the inverse correlation of their expressions in HCC tissues. Our study demonstrates that WDR76 functions as a tumor suppressor via RAS degradation.

Interaction between Wnt/ß-catenin and RAS-ERK pathways and an anti-cancer strategy via degradations of ß-catenin and RAS by targeting the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway.

Aberrant activation of the Wnt/ß-catenin and RAS-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathways play important roles in the tumorigenesis of many different types of cancer, most notably colorectal cancer (CRC). Genes for these two pathways, such as adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) and KRAS are frequently mutated in human CRC, and involved in the initiation and progression of the tumorigenesis, respectively. Moreover, recent studies revealed interaction of APC and KRAS mutations in the various stages of colorectal tumorigenesis and even in metastasis accompanying activation of the cancer stem cells (CSCs). A key event in the synergistic cooperation between Wnt/ß-catenin and RAS-ERK pathways is a stabilization of both ß-catenin and RAS especially mutant KRAS by APC loss, and pathological significance of this was indicated by correlation of increased ß-catenin and RAS levels in human CRC where APC mutations occur as high as 90% of CRC patients. Together with the notion of the protein activity reduction by lowering its level, inhibition of both ß-catenin and RAS especially by degradation could be a new ideal strategy for development of anti-cancer drugs for CRC. In this review, we will discuss interaction between the Wnt/ß-catenin and RAS-ERK pathways in the colorectal tumorigenesis by providing the mechanism of RAS stabilization by aberrant activation of Wnt/ß-catenin. We will also discuss our small molecular anti-cancer approach controlling CRC by induction of specific degradations of both ß-catenin and RAS via targeting Wnt/ß-catenin pathway especially for the KYA1797K, a small molecule specifically binding at the regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS)-domain of Axin.

A small molecule approach to degrade RAS with EGFR repression is a potential therapy for KRAS mutation-driven colorectal cancer resistance to cetuximab.

Drugs targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), such as cetuximab and panitumumab, have been prescribed for metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC), but patients harboring KRAS mutations are insensitive to them and do not have an alternative drug to overcome the problem. The levels of ß-catenin, EGFR, and RAS, especially mutant KRAS, are increased in CRC patient tissues due to mutations of adenomatous polyposis coli (APC), which occur in 90% of human CRCs. The increases in these proteins by APC loss synergistically promote tumorigenesis. Therefore, we tested KYA1797K, a recently identified small molecule that degrades both ß-catenin and Ras via GSK3ß activation, and its capability to suppress the cetuximab resistance of KRAS-mutated CRC cells. KYA1797K suppressed the growth of tumor xenografts induced by CRC cells as well as tumor organoids derived from CRC patients having both APC and KRAS mutations. Lowering the levels of both ß-catenin and RAS as well as EGFR via targeting the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway is a therapeutic strategy for controlling CRC and other types of cancer with aberrantly activated the Wnt/ß-catenin and EGFR-RAS pathways, including those with resistance to EGFR-targeting drugs attributed to KRAS mutations.

Akt is involved in the inhibition of cell proliferation by EGF.

Axin is a negative regulator of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway and is involved in the regulation of axis formation and proliferation. Involvement of Axin in the regulation of other signaling pathways is poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the involvement of Akt in growth regulation by Axin in L929 fibroblasts stimulated by EGF. Akt activity was increased by EGF treatment and Ras activation, respectively. Both the EGF- and Ras-induced Akt activations were abolished by Axin induction, as revealed by both Western blot and immunocytochemical analyses. The proliferation and Akt activation induced by EGF were decreased by Axin induction, and the effects of EGF were abolished by treatment of an Akt-specific inhibitor. Therefore, Axin inhibits EGF-induced proliferation of L929 fibroblasts by blocking Akt activation.

Stabilization of Sur8 via PKCα/δ degradation promotes transformation and migration of colorectal cancer cells.

Scaffold proteins of the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway recruit protein kinase cascades to confer context-specificity to cellular signaling. Varying concentrations of scaffold proteins determine different aspects of signaling outputs. However, regulatory mechanisms of scaffold proteins are poorly understood. Sur8, a scaffold protein in the Ras-MAPK pathway, is known to be involved in cell transformation and migration, and is increased in human colorectal cancer (CRC) patient tissue. Here we determine that regulation of Sur8 stability mediates transformation and migration of CRC cells. Fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2) is identified as an external regulator that stabilizes Sur8. Protein kinase C-alpha and -delta (PKCα/δ) are also identified as specific mediators of FGF2 regulation of Sur8 stability. PKCα/δ phosphorylate Sur8 at Thr-71 and Ser-297, respectively. This phosphorylation is essential for polyubiquitin-dependent degradation of Sur8. Sur8 mutations, which mimic phosphorylation by PKCα/δ and destabilized Sur8, suppress the FGF2-induced transformation and migration of CRC cells. The clinical relevance of Sur8 regulation by PKCα/δ is indicated by the inverse relationship between PKCα/δ and Sur8 expression in human CRC patient tissues. Overall, our findings demonstrate for the first time a regulatory mechanism of Sur8 stability involving cellular transformation and migration in CRC.

Sur8 mediates tumorigenesis and metastasis in colorectal cancer.

Sur8, a scaffold protein of the Ras pathway, interacts with Ras and Raf and modulates the Ras-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. Here we show that Sur8 is overexpressed in established human colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines and CRC patient tissues. Moreover, Sur8 expression is increased during liver metastasis in CRC patients. Sur8 knockdown decreases ERK and Akt activities in CRC cell lines, regardless of their K-Ras, B-Raf or PI3K mutation status. Overexpression or knockdown of Sur8 increases or decreases, respectively, the proliferation or transformation of CRC cell lines. Sur8 knockdown attenuates the migration and invasion of HCT116 CRC cells. Subcutaneous or orthotopic injection of HCT116 cells harboring a doxycycline (Dox)-mediated Sur8 knockdown system in nude mice resulted in decreased tumorigenic potential and inhibited the liver metastatic potential of HCT116 cells. Taken together, our data support the role of Sur8 as a promoter of tumorigenesis and liver metastasis in CRC through its modulation of the Ras-ERK and PI3K-Akt signaling pathways.

Sur8/Shoc2 promotes cell motility and metastasis through activation of Ras-PI3K signaling.

Sur8 (also known as Shoc2) is a Ras-Raf scaffold protein that modulates signaling through extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. Although Sur8 has been shown to be a scaffold protein of the Ras-ERK pathway, its interaction with other signaling pathways and its involvement in tumor malignancy has not been reported. We identified that Sur8 interacts with the p110α subunit of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), as well as with Ras and Raf, and these interactions are increased in an epidermal growth factor (EGF)- and oncogenic Ras-dependent manner. Sur8 regulates cell migration and invasion via activation of Rac and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Interestingly, using inhibitors of MEK and PI3K we found Sur8 mediates these cellular behaviors predominantly through PI3K pathway. We further found that human metastatic melanoma tissues had higher Sur8 content followed by activations of Akt, ERK, and Rac. Lentivirus-mediated Sur8-knockdown attenuated metastatic potential of highly invasive B16-F10 melanoma cells indicating the role of Sur8 in melanoma metastasis. This is the first report to identify the role of scaffold protein Sur8 in regulating cell motility, invasion, and metastasis through activation of both ERK and PI3K pathways.

K-Ras stabilization by estrogen via PKCδ is involved in endometrial tumorigenesis.

Estrogens are considered as a major risk factor of endometrial cancer. In this study, we identified a mechanism of tumorigenesis in which K-Ras protein is stabilized via estrogen signaling through the ER-α36 receptor. PKCδ was shown to stabilize K-Ras specifically via estrogen signaling. Estrogens stabilize K-Ras via inhibition of polyubiquitylation-dependent proteasomal degradation. Estrogen-induced cellular transformation was abolished by either K-Ras or PKCδ knockdown. The role of PKCδ in estrogen-induced tumorigenesis was confirmed in a mouse xenograft model by reduction of tumors after treatment with rottlerin, a PKCδ inhibitor. Finally, levels of PKCδ correlated with that of Ras in human endometrial tumor tissues. Stabilization of K-Ras by estrogen signaling involving PKCδ up-regulation provides a potential therapeutic approach for treatment of endometrial cancer.

Strategies to overcome resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor monoclonal antibody therapy in metastatic colorectal cancer.

Administration of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) such as cetuximab and panitumumab in combination with conventional chemotherapy substantially prolongs survival of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). However, the efficacy of these mAbs is limited due to genetic variation among patients, in particular K-ras mutations. The discovery of K-ras mutation as a predictor of non-responsiveness to EGFR mAb therapy has caused a major change in the treatment of mCRC. Drugs that inhibit transformation caused by oncogenic alterations of Ras and its downstream components such as BRAF, MEK and AKT seem to be promising cancer therapeutics as single agents or when given with EGFR inhibitors. Although multiple therapeutic strategies to overcome EGFR mAb-resistance are under investigation, our understanding of their mode of action is limited. Rational drug development based on stringent preclinical data, biomarker validation, and proper selection of patients is of paramount importance in the treatment of mCRC. In this review, we will discuss diverse approaches to overcome the problem of resistance to existing anti-EGFR therapies and potential future directions for cancer therapies related to the mutational status of genes associated with EGFR-Ras-ERK and PI3K signalings.

Role of oncogenic K-Ras in cancer stem cell activation by aberrant Wnt/ß-catenin signaling.

BACKGROUND: Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) loss-of-function mutations and K-Ras gain-of-function mutations are common abnormalities that occur during the initiation and intermediate adenoma stages of colorectal tumorigenesis, respectively. However, little is known about the role these mutations play in cancer stem cells (CSCs) associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) tumorigenesis. METHODS: We analyzed tissue from CRC patients (n = 49) to determine whether K-Ras mutations contributed to CSC activation during colorectal tumorigenesis. DLD-1-K-Ras-WT and DLD-1-K-Ras-MT cells were cultured and evaluated for their ability to differentiate, form spheroids in vitro, and form tumors in vivo. Interaction between APC and K-Ras mutations in colorectal tumorigenesis was evaluated using APC (Min/+)/K-Ras (LA2) mice and DLD-1-K-Ras-WT and DLD-1-K-Ras-MT cell xenografts. (n = 4) Group differences were determined by Student t test. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS: The sphere-forming capability of DLD-1-K-Ras-MT cells was statistically significantly higher than that of DLD-1-K-Ras-WT cells (DLD-1-K-Ras-MT mean = 86.661 pixel, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 81.701 to 91.621 pixel; DLD-1-K-Ras-WT mean = 42.367 pixel, 95% CI = 36.467 to 48.267 pixel; P = .003). Moreover, both the size and weight of tumors from DLD-1-K-Ras-MT xenografts were markedly increased compared with tumors from DLD-1-K-Ras-WT cells. Expression of the CSC markers CD44, CD133, and CD166 was induced in intestinal tumors from APC (Min/+)/K-Ras (LA2)mice, but not K-Ras (LA2) mice, indicating that APC mutation is required for CSC activation by oncogenic K-Ras mutation. CONCLUSIONS: K-Ras mutation activates CSCs, contributing to colorectal tumorigenesis and metastasis in CRC cells harboring APC mutations. Initial activation of ß-catenin by APC loss and further enhancement through K-Ras mutation induces CD44, CD133, and CD166 expression.

Ras stabilization through aberrant activation of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling promotes intestinal tumorigenesis.

Although the guanosine triphosphate/guanosine diphosphate loading switch is a major regulatory mechanism that controls the activity of the guanosine triphosphatase Ras, we report a distinct mechanism for regulating Ras activity through phosphorylation-mediated degradation and describe the role of this second regulatory mechanism in the suppression of cellular transformation and tumors induced by Ras mutations. We found that negative regulators of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling contributed to the polyubiquitin-dependent degradation of Ras after its phosphorylation by glycogen synthase kinase 3ß (GSK3ß) and the subsequent recruitment of ß-TrCP-E3 ligase. We found a positive association between tumorigenesis and Ras stabilization resulting from the aberrant activation of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling in adenomas from two mouse models of colon cancer, human colonic tumors from various stages, and colon polyps of patients with familial adenomatous polyposis. Our results indicated that GSK3ß plays an essential role in Ras degradation and that inhibition of this degradation pathway by aberrant Wnt/ß-catenin signaling may contribute to Ras-induced transformation in colorectal tumorigenesis.

NM23H2 inhibits EGF- and Ras-induced proliferation of NIH3T3 cells by blocking the ERK pathway.

The NM23 family proteins are involved in a variety of biological processes including tumor metastasis, development, and differentiation; however, their functions in the regulation of cellular proliferation are poorly understood. We have investigated the role of one NM23 family protein, NM23H2, in the regulation of cellular proliferation directed by the extracellular signal regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. The activity of ERKs was enhanced by knockdown of endogenous NM23H2 and blocked by overexpression of NM23H2 in both NIH3T3 and HEK293 cells. Additionally, the epidermal growth factor (EGF)- and oncogenic Ras(G12R)-induced proliferation of both HEK293 and NIH3T3 cells was reduced by NM23H2 overexpression. Furthermore, activation of Raf-1, MEK and the ERKs by either EGF or Ras(G12R) was inhibited by NM23H2 overexpression. Together, our data indicate that NM23H2 is a negative regulator of cellular proliferation stimulated by EGF- and Ras-mediated activation of the ERK pathway.