Project description:Recent studies demonstrated that cancer stem cells (CSCs) have higher tumorigenesis properties than those of differentiated cancer cells and that transcriptional factor-SOX2 plays a vital role in maintaining the unique properties of CSCs; however, the function and underlying mechanism of SOX2 in carcinogenesis of lung cancer are still elusive. This study applied immunohistochemistry to analyze the expression of SOX2 in human lung tissues of normal individuals as well as patients with adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, large cell and small cell carcinoma and demonstrated specific overexpression of SOX2 in all types of lung cancer tissues. This finding supports the notion that SOX2 contributes to the tumorigenesis of lung cancer cells and can be used as a diagnostic probe. In addition, obviously higher expression of oncogenes c-MYC, WNT1, WNT2 and NOTCH1 was detected in side population (SP) cells than in none side population (NSP) cells of human lung adenocarcinoma cell line-A549, revealing a possible mechanism for the tenacious tumorigenic potential of CSCs. To further elucidate the function of SOX2 in tumorigenesis of cancer cells, A549 cells were established with expression of luciferase and doxycycline inducible shRNA targeting SOX2. We found silencing of SOX2 gene reduces the tumorigenic property of A549 cells with attenuated expression of c-MYC, WNT1, WNT2 and NOTCH1 in xenografted NOD/SCID mice. By RNA-Seq method, additional 246 target cancer genes of SOX2 were revealed. These results present evidence that SOX2 may regulate the expression of oncogenes in CSCs to promote the development of human lung cancer. Examination of mRNA profiles in A549 cells with SOX2 silencing
Project description:Recent studies demonstrated that cancer stem cells (CSCs) have higher tumorigenesis properties than those of differentiated cancer cells and that transcriptional factor-SOX2 plays a vital role in maintaining the unique properties of CSCs; however, the function and underlying mechanism of SOX2 in carcinogenesis of lung cancer are still elusive. This study applied immunohistochemistry to analyze the expression of SOX2 in human lung tissues of normal individuals as well as patients with adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, large cell and small cell carcinoma and demonstrated specific overexpression of SOX2 in all types of lung cancer tissues. This finding supports the notion that SOX2 contributes to the tumorigenesis of lung cancer cells and can be used as a diagnostic probe. In addition, obviously higher expression of oncogenes c-MYC, WNT1, WNT2 and NOTCH1 was detected in side population (SP) cells than in none side population (NSP) cells of human lung adenocarcinoma cell line-A549, revealing a possible mechanism for the tenacious tumorigenic potential of CSCs. To further elucidate the function of SOX2 in tumorigenesis of cancer cells, A549 cells were established with expression of luciferase and doxycycline inducible shRNA targeting SOX2. We found silencing of SOX2 gene reduces the tumorigenic property of A549 cells with attenuated expression of c-MYC, WNT1, WNT2 and NOTCH1 in xenografted NOD/SCID mice. By RNA-Seq method, additional 246 target cancer genes of SOX2 were revealed. These results present evidence that SOX2 may regulate the expression of oncogenes in CSCs to promote the development of human lung cancer.
Project description:Combining the results of a large scale proteomic analysis of human transcription factor interaction network with knowledge databases, we identified FOXR2 as one of the top-ranked candidate proto-oncogenes. Here, we show that FOXR2 forms a stable complex with MYC and MAX and subsequently regulates cell proliferation by promoting MYC’s transcriptional activities. We demonstrated that FOXR2 is highly expressed in several breast, lung, and liver cancer cell lines and related patient tumor samples, while reduction of FOXR2 expression in a xenograft model inhibits tumor growth. These results indicate that FOXR2 acts with MYC to promote cancer cell proliferation, which is a potential tumor-specific target for therapeutic intervention against MYC-driven cancers.
Project description:To explore how PKCδ regulates tumorigenesis, we performed mRNA expression analysis of four KRAS mutant NSCLC cell lines that stably express scrambled shRNA or PKCδ targeted shRNA Four human lung cancer cell lines (A549, H441, H460 and H2009) with scrambled and PKC-delta knock down (shRNA), in triplicate.
Project description:The IL6-GP130-STAT3 pathway facilitates lung cancer progression and resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Although glycosylation alters the stability of GP130, its effect on the ligand IL6 remains unclear. We herein found that N-glycosylated IL6, especially at Asn73, primarily stimulates JAK-STAT3 signaling and prolongs STAT3 phosphorylation, whereas N-glycosylation-defective IL6 (deNG-IL6) induces shortened STAT3 activation and alters the downstream signaling preference for the SRC-YAP-SOX2 axis. This signaling shift induced EMT and migration in vitro and metastasis in vivo, which were suppressed by targeted inhibitors and shRNAs against SRC, YAP, and SOX2. Osimertinib-resistant lung cancer cells secreted a large amount of deNG-IL6 through reduced N-glycosyltransferase gene expression, leading to clear SRC-YAP activation. deNG-IL6 contributes to drug resistance, as confirmed by in silico analysis of cellular and clinical transcriptomes and signal expression in patient specimens. Therefore, the N-glycosylation status of IL6 not only affects cell behaviors but also shows promise in monitoring the dynamics of lung cancer evolution.
Project description:Sox2 has been studied in several types of human solid tumors. The investigators found that Sox2 had higher expression level in colorectal cancer and metastatic tissues than normal tissues. So the investigators assumed that whether Sox2 plays an important role in the progression and migration of colon cancer.
Project description:<p>SOX2 is not only a pioneer transcription factor with critical roles in stem cell function and cell reprogramming but also a potent oncogene for a multitude of squamous cancers. How SOX2 exerts a potent oncogenic activity in squamous lineage is largely unknown. Here we uncovered SOX2 a potent role in promoting global histone acetylation and super-enhancer formation in esophageal squamous cancer cells. Metabolic analysis revealed a role of SOX2 in suppressing fatty acid synthesis. SOX2 promotes global histone acetylation by two distinct mechanisms: stimulating the expression of a panel of histone acetyltransferases and repressing the expression of ACSL5, which down-regulates fatty acid synthesis and thus channels acetyl-CoA toward histone acetylation. Notably, we found that SOX2 enhanced histone acetylation is required for the formation of most squamous lineage-specific super-enhancers. Our findings provide new explanation for why SOX2 is a powerful cell fate reprogrammer and potent oncogene for squamous lineage cancers.</p>
Project description:Neuroblastoma is a pediatric cancer of the sympathetic nervous system. MYCN amplification is a key indicator of poor prognosis for the disease, however, mechanisms by which MYCN promotes neuroblastoma tumorigenesis are not fully understood. In this study, we analyzed global miRNA and mRNA expression profiles of tissues at different stages of tumorigenesis from TH-MYCN transgenic mice, a model of MYCN-driven neuroblastoma. Based on a Bayesian learning network model in which we compared pre-tumor ganglia from TH-MYCN+/+ mice to age-matched wild-type controls, we devised a predicted miRNA-mRNA interaction network. Among the miRNA-mRNA interactions operating during human neuroblastoma tumorigenesis, we identified that miR-204 is a tumor suppressor miRNA that inhibits a subnetwork of oncogenes strongly associated with MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma and poor patient outcome. Accordingly, we found that MYCN was bound to the miR-204 promoter and repressed miR-204 transcription, while in contrast, miR-204 directly bound MYCN mRNA and repressed MYCN expression. In support of a tumor suppressor role, miR-204 overexpression significantly inhibited neuroblastoma cell proliferation in vitro and tumorigenesis in vivo. Together these findings identify novel tumorigenic miRNA gene networks and miR-204 as a tumor suppressor that regulates MYCN expression in neuroblastoma tumorigenesis.
Project description:Cancer cells frequently reprogram one-carbon metabolic pathways to fulfill their vigorous demands of biosynthesis and antioxidant defense for survival and proliferation. Dysfunction of oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes is critically involved in this process, but the precise mechanisms by which cancer cells actively trigger one-carbon metabolic alterations remain incompletely elucidated. Here, by using nontargeted metabolomic analysis, we identify the oncoprotein SET as a key regulator of one-carbon metabolism in cancer cells. SET physically interacts with mitochondrial SHMT2 and facilitates SHMT2 enzymatic activity. Loss of SET profoundly suppresses serine-derived one-carbon metabolic flux, while reexpression of ectopic SET leads to the opposite effect. Notably, although the presence of SHMT2 is critical for SET-mediated one-carbon metabolic alterations, the depletion of SHMT2 alone is insufficient to antagonize SET-induced tumor growth. Instead, pharmacological targeting of cellular SHMT activity results in dramatic suppression of SET-induced tumor growth. Moreover, by using a Kras/Lkb1 mutation-driven lung tumor mouse model, we demonstrate that loss of SET compromises both tumor formation and intratumoral SHMT2 enzymatic activity. Clinically, overexpression of SET and SHMT2 are observed in lung tumors, both of which correlate with poor prognosis. Our study reveals a SET-SHMT2 axis in regulating serine-derived one-carbon metabolism and uncovers one-carbon metabolic reprogramming as a critical mechanism for aberrant SET-driven tumorigenesis.