Project description:RNA-seq was used to define the role of mutant COL11A1 in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) by comparing human cSCC organoids edited to introduce the COL11A1 G598A substitution to organoids edited with an A to T substitution that preserves the native glycine residue while controlling for non-specific editing effects.
Project description:Collagen type XI alpha 1 (COL11A1) is a novel biomarker associated with cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer. However, the mechanisms underlying how COL11A1 confers cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer are poorly understood. We identified that fatty acid β-oxidation (FAO) is upregulated by COL11A1 in ovarian cancer cells and that COL11A1-driven cisplatin resistance can be abrogated by inhibition of FAO. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that COL11A1 also enhances the expression of proteins involved in fatty acid synthesis. Interestingly, COL11A1-induced upregulation of fatty acid synthesis and FAO is modulated by the same signaling molecules. We identified that binding of COL11A1 to its receptors, α1β1 integrin and discoidin domain receptor 2 (DDR2), activates Src-Akt-AMPK signaling to increase the expression of both fatty acid synthesis and oxidation enzymes, although DDR2 seems to be the predominant receptor. Inhibition of fatty acid synthesis downregulates FAO despite the presence of COL11A1, suggesting that fatty acid synthesis might be a driver of FAO in ovarian cancer cells. Taken together, our results suggest that COL11A1 upregulates fatty acid metabolism in ovarian cancer cells in a DDR2-Src-Akt-AMPK dependent manner. Therefore, we propose that blocking FAO might serve as a promising therapeutic target to treat ovarian cancer, particularly cisplatin-resistant recurrent ovarian cancers which typically express high levels of COL11A1.
Project description:Collagen type XI alpha 1 (COL11A1) is identified as one of the most upregulated genes in cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer and recurrent ovarian cancer. However, the exact functions of COL11A1 in cisplatin resistance are unknown. The goal of this study is to determine molecular mechanisms by which COL11A1 confers cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer cells. We overexpressed COL11A1 in A2780 and OVCAR3 ovarian cancer cells, which express very low endogenous levels of COL11A1. We then compared the mRNA expression levels of various genes between COL11A1-overexpressing ovarian cancer cells and control ovarian cancer cells by RNA-Seq. Our RNA-Seq data show that COL11A1 overexpression did not consistently change the expression levels of genes involved in cisplatin efflux, glutathione metabolism, and DNA repair pathways, which are known to contribute to cisplatin resistance. This result implies that COL11A1 might confer cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer cells through other mechanisms.
Project description:Biomarkers that predict disease progression might assist the development of better therapeutic strategies for aggressive cancers, such as ovarian cancer. Here, we investigated the role of collagen type XI alpha 1 (COL11A1) in cell invasiveness and tumor formation and the prognostic impact of COL11A1 expression in ovarian cancer. Microarray analysis suggested that COL11A1 is a disease progression-associated gene that is linked to ovarian cancer recurrence and poor survival.