Project description:We report the generation and characterization of tumor organoids and PDOX derived from needle biopsies of metastatic lesions from neuroendocrine prostate cancer patients.
Project description:Potent therapeutic inhibition of the androgen receptor (AR) in prostate adenocarcinoma can lead to the emergence of neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC), a phenomenon associated with enhanced cell plasticity. Here, we show that microRNA-194 (miR-194) is a regulator of epithelial-neuroendocrine transdifferentiation. In clinical prostate cancer samples, miR-194 expression and activity were elevated in NEPC and inversely correlated with AR signalling. Over-expression of miR-194 facilitated the emergence of neuroendocrine features in prostate cancer cells, a process mediated by its ability to directly target a suite of genes involved in cell plasticity. One such target gene was FOXA1, which encodes a transcription factor with a vital role in maintaining the prostate epithelial lineage. Importantly, a miR-194 inhibitor blocked epithelial-neuroendocrine transdifferentiation and inhibited the growth of cell lines and patient-derived organoids possessing neuroendocrine features. Overall, our study reveals a post-transcriptional mechanism regulating the plasticity of prostate cancer cells and provides a rationale for targeting miR-194 in NEPC.
Project description:Potent therapeutic inhibition of the androgen receptor (AR) in prostate adenocarcinoma can lead to the emergence of neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC), a phenomenon associated with enhanced cell plasticity. Here, we show that microRNA-194 (miR-194) is a regulator of epithelial-neuroendocrine transdifferentiation. In clinical prostate cancer samples, miR-194 expression and activity were elevated in NEPC and inversely correlated with AR signalling. Over-expression of miR-194 facilitated the emergence of neuroendocrine features in prostate cancer cells, a process mediated by its ability to directly target a suite of genes involved in cell plasticity. One such target gene was FOXA1, which encodes a transcription factor with a vital role in maintaining the prostate epithelial lineage. Importantly, a miR-194 inhibitor blocked epithelial-neuroendocrine transdifferentiation and inhibited the growth of cell lines and patient-derived organoids possessing neuroendocrine features. Overall, our study reveals a post-transcriptional mechanism regulating the plasticity of prostate cancer cells and provides a rationale for targeting miR-194 in NEPC.
Project description:Potent therapeutic inhibition of the androgen receptor (AR) in prostate adenocarcinoma can lead to the emergence of neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC), a phenomenon associated with enhanced cell plasticity. Here, we show that microRNA-194 (miR-194) is a regulator of epithelial-neuroendocrine transdifferentiation. In clinical prostate cancer samples, miR-194 expression and activity were elevated in NEPC and inversely correlated with AR signalling. Over-expression of miR-194 facilitated the emergence of neuroendocrine features in prostate cancer cells, a process mediated by its ability to directly target a suite of genes involved in cell plasticity. One such target gene was FOXA1, which encodes a transcription factor with a vital role in maintaining the prostate epithelial lineage. Importantly, a miR-194 inhibitor blocked epithelial-neuroendocrine transdifferentiation and inhibited the growth of cell lines and patient-derived organoids possessing neuroendocrine features. Overall, our study reveals a post-transcriptional mechanism regulating the plasticity of prostate cancer cells and provides a rationale for targeting miR-194 in NEPC.
Project description:Advanced prostate cancer initially responds to hormonal treatment, but ultimately becomes resistant and requires more potent therapies. One mechanism of resistance seen in 10% of these patients is through lineage plasticity, which manifests in a partial or complete small cell or neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC) phenotype. Here, we investigate the role of the mammalian SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex in NEPC. Using large patient datasets, patient-derived organoids and cancer cell lines, we identify SWI/SNF subunits that are deregulated in NEPC, demonstrate that SMARCA4 (BRG1) overexpression is associated with aggressive disease and that SMARCA4 depletion impairs prostate cancer cell growth. We also show that SWI/SNF complexes interact with different lineage-specific factors in prostate adenocarcinoma and in NEPC cells, and that induction of lineage plasticity through depletion of REST is accompanied by changes in SWI/SNF genome occupancy. These data suggest a specific role for mSWI/SNF complexes in therapy-related lineage plasticity, which may be relevant for other solid tumors.
Project description:BRCA1 is biallelically deleted or mutated in at least 1.9% of prostate tumors, but whether BRCA1 deficiency influences resistance to androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and prostate cancer development remains elusive. Here we surprisingly find that in human, BRCA1 heterozygous deletion is observed in approximately 13% of human prostate cancers, is more prevalent in neuroendocrine prostate tumors and predicts worse survival than BRCA1 homozygous deletion. In mice, we show that Brca1 heterozygosity (HET) but not Brca1 full inactivation (KO) accelerates early tumor development, invasion and resistance to ADT in Pten-null prostate tumors. Furthermore, pre-malignant tumors and organoids derived from Brca1 HET mice undergo neuroendocrine differentiation and exhibit elevated levels of the unfolded protein response potentially as a pro-survival mechanism, but not those of Brca1 KO. Our findings thus provide important insights into clinical management of prostate cancer patients, suggesting that patients heterozygous for Brca1 are prone to developing resistance to ADT and should be treated differently from patients with complete Brca1 loss.
Project description:Treatment-induced neuroendocrine prostate cancer (t-NEPC) is a lethal subtype of castration-resistant prostate cancer resistant to androgen receptor (AR) inhibitors. Our study unveils that AR suppresses neuronal development protein dihydropyrimidinase-related protein 5 (DPYSL5), providing a mechanism for neuroendocrine transformation under androgen deprivation therapy. Our unique CRPC-NEPC cohort with 157 patient samples, including 55 t-NEPC patient samples, shows a high expression of DPYSL5 in t-NEPC patients, and that DPYSL5 correlates with neuroendocrine markers and inversely with AR and PSA. DPYSL5 overexpression in prostate cancer cells induces neuron like phenotype, enhances invasion, proliferation, and upregulates stemness and neuroendocrine related markers. Mechanistically, DPYSL5 promotes prostate cancer cell plasticity via EZH2-mediated PRC2 activation. Depletion of DPYSL5 halts proliferation, induces G1 phase cell cycle arrest, reverses neuroendocrine phenotype and upregulates luminal genes. In conclusion, DPYSL5 plays a critical role in regulating prostate cancer cell plasticity, and we propose the AR/DPYSL5/EZH2/PRC2 axis as a novel driver of t-NEPC progression.
Project description:Transcriptional regulator REST plays a key role in repressing neuronal specific genes in prostate cancer and other non-neuronal tissues. Moreover, loss of REST is observed in neuroendocrine prostate tumors. Here, we use ChIP-seq analysis to study genome–wide REST occupied regions in the prostate cancer cell line, LNCaP. REST occupied regions were then correlated to gene expression changes occurring between prostate adenocarcinoma and neuroendocrine prostate tumors in vivo.