Manjula Nakka

Target Gene-Specific Regulation of Androgen Receptor Activity by p42/p44 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase

Evidence that the androgen receptor (AR) is not only important in androgen-dependent prostate cancer, but also continues to play a role in tumors that become resistant to androgen deprivation therapies, highlights the need to find alternate means to block AR activity. AR, a hormone-activated transcription factor, and its coactivators are phosphoproteins. Thus, we sought to determine whether inhibition of specific cell signaling pathways would reduce AR function. We found that short-term inhibition of p42/p44 MAPK activity either by a MAPK kinase inhibitor, U0126, or by depletion of kinase with small interfering RNA caused target gene-specific reductions in AR activity. AR enhances histone H3 acetylation of target genes that are sensitive to U0126 including prostate-specific antigen and TMPRSS2, but does not increase histone H3 acetylation of the U0126-resistant PMEPA1 gene. Thus, although AR induces transcription of many target genes, the molecular changes induced by AR at the chromatin level are target gene specific. Long-term treatment (24-48 h) with U0126 causes a G1 cell cycle arrest and reduces AR expression both through a decrease in AR mRNA and a reduction in AR protein stability. Thus, treatments that reduce p42/p44 MAPK activity in prostate cancer have the potential to reduce AR activity through a reduction in expression levels as well as by target gene-selective inhibition of AR function.

Androgen receptor and its splice variant, AR-V7, differentially regulate FOXA1 sensitive genes in LNCaP prostate cancer cells.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is an androgen-dependent disease, and tumors that are resistant to androgen ablation therapy often remain androgen receptor (AR) dependent. Among the contributors to castration-resistant PCa are AR splice variants that lack the ligand-binding domain (LBD). Instead, they have small amounts of unique sequence derived from cryptic exons or from out of frame translation. The AR-V7 (or AR3) variant is constitutively active and is expressed under conditions consistent with CRPC. AR-V7 is reported to regulate a transcriptional program that is similar but not identical to that of AR. However, it is unknown whether these differences are due to the unique sequence in AR-V7, or simply to loss of the LBD. To examine transcriptional regulation by AR-V7, we have used lentiviruses encoding AR-V7 (amino acids 1-627 of AR with the 16 amino acids unique to the variant) to prepare a derivative of the androgen-dependent LNCaP cells with inducible expression of AR-V7. An additional cell line was generated with regulated expression of AR-NTD (amino acids 1-660 of AR); this mutant lacks the LBD but does not have the AR-V7 specific sequence. We find that AR and AR-V7 have distinct activities on target genes that are co-regulated by FOXA1. Transcripts regulated by AR-V7 were similarly regulated by AR-NTD, indicating that loss of the LBD is sufficient for the observed differences. Differential regulation of target genes correlates with preferential recruitment of AR or AR-V7 to specific cis-regulatory DNA sequences providing an explanation for some of the observed differences in target gene regulation.

Targeted disruption of the p160 coactivator interface of androgen receptor (AR) selectively inhibits AR activity in both androgen-dependent and castration-resistant AR-expressing prostate cancer cells

The evidence that androgen blockade-resistant prostate cancer, termed castration resistant, remains androgen receptor (AR) dependent is compelling. AR is re-activated through multiple mechanisms including expression of constitutively active splice variants that lack hormone binding domains (HBDs). This highlights the need to develop therapies that target regions other than the HBD. Because the p160 coactivators interact most strongly with the amino-terminus of AR, we examined the consequences of disrupting this interaction. We identified two overlapping SRC-1 peptides that interact with AR, but not with progesterone receptor. These peptides reduce AR and AR variant AR-V7 dependent induction of an AR responsive reporter. Using mammalian two hybrid assays, we found that the peptides interrupt the AR/SRC-1, AR/SRC-2 and AR N/C interactions, but not SRC-1/CARM-1 interactions. Consistent with the SRC-1 dependence of induced, but not repressed genes, in LNCaP cells, the peptides inhibited hormone dependent induction of endogenous target genes including PSA and TMPRSS2, but did not block AR dependent repression of UGT2B17 or inhibit vitamin D receptor activity. Simultaneous detection of SRC-1 peptides and PSA by double immunofluorescence in transfected LNCaP cells clearly demonstrated a strong reduction in PSA levels in cells expressing the peptides. The peptides also inhibited the AR dependent expression of PSA in castration resistant C4-2 cells. Moreover they inhibited androgen dependent proliferation of LNCaP cells and proliferation of C4-2 cells in androgen depleted medium without affecting AR negative PC-3 cells. Thus, the p160 coactivator binding site is a novel potential therapeutic target to inhibit AR activity.

p27 is a Candidate Prognostic Biomarker and Metastatic Promoter in Osteosarcoma

Metastatic progression is the major cause of death in osteosarcoma, the most common bone malignancy in children and young adults. However, prognostic biomarkers and efficacious targeted treatments for metastatic disease remain lacking. Using an immunoproteomic approach, we discovered that autoantibodies against the cell-cycle kinase inhibitor p27 (KIP1, CDKN1B) were elevated in plasma of high-risk osteosarcoma patients. Using a large cohort of serum samples from osteosarcoma patients (n = 233), we validated that a higher level of the p27 autoantibody significantly correlated with poor overall and event-free survival (P < 0.05). Immunohistochemical analysis also showed that p27 was mislocalized to the cytoplasm in the majority of osteosarcoma cases and in highly metastatic osteosarcoma cell lines. We demonstrated that ectopic expression of cytoplasmic p27 promoted migration and invasion of osteosarcoma cells, whereas shRNA-mediated gene silencing suppressed these effects. In addition, mutations at the p27 phosphorylation sites S10 or T198, but not T157, abolished the migratory and invasive phenotypes. Furthermore, the development of pulmonary metastases increased in mice injected with cells expressing cytoplasmic p27 compared with an empty vector control. Collectively, our findings support further investigation of p27 as a potential prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in osteosarcoma cases exhibiting aberrant p27 subcellular localization. Cancer Res; 76(13); 4002-11. ©2016 AACR.

A novel prognostic model for osteosarcoma using circulating CXCL10 and FLT3LG.

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common malignant pediatric bone tumor. The identification of novel biomarkers for early prognostication will facilitate risk‐based stratification and therapy. This study investigated the significance of circulating cytokines/chemokines for predicting the prognosis at the initial diagnosis.

Biomarker significance of plasma and tumor miR-21, miR-221, and miR-106a in osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant bone tumor in children and young adults. Despite the use of surgery and multi-agent chemotherapy, osteosarcoma patients who have a poor response to chemotherapy or develop relapses have a dismal outcome. Identification of biomarkers for active disease may help to monitor tumor burden, detect early relapses, and predict prognosis in these patients. In this study, we examined whether circulating miRNAs can be used as biomarkers in osteosarcoma patients. We performed genome-wide miRNA profiling on a discovery cohort of osteosarcoma and control plasma samples. A total of 56 miRNAs were upregulated and 164 miRNAs were downregulated in osteosarcoma samples when compared to control plasma samples. miR-21, miR-221 and miR-106a were selected for further validation based on their known biological importance. We showed that all three circulating miRNAs were expressed significantly higher in osteosarcoma samples than normal samples in an independent cohort obtained from the Children’s Oncology Group. Furthermore, we demonstrated that miR-21 was expressed significantly higher in osteosarcoma tumors compared with normal bone controls. More importantly, lower expressions of miR-21 and miR-221, but not miR-106a, significantly correlated with a poor outcome. In conclusion, our results indicate that miR-21, miR-221 and miR-106a were elevated in the circulation of osteosarcoma patients, whereas tumor expressions of miR-21 and miR-221 are prognostically significant. Further investigation of these miRNAs may lead to a better prognostic method and potential miRNA therapeutics for osteosarcoma.Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant bone tumor in children and young adults. Despite the use of surgery and multi-agent chemotherapy, osteosarcoma patients who have a poor response to chemotherapy or develop relapses have a dismal outcome. Identification of biomarkers for active disease may help to monitor tumor burden, detect early relapses, and predict prognosis in these patients. In this study, we examined whether circulating miRNAs can be used as biomarkers in osteosarcoma patients. We performed genome-wide miRNA profiling on a discovery cohort of osteosarcoma and control plasma samples. A total of 56 miRNAs were upregulated and 164 miRNAs were downregulated in osteosarcoma samples when compared to control plasma samples. miR-21, miR-221 and miR-106a were selected for further validation based on their known biological importance. We showed that all three circulating miRNAs were expressed significantly higher in osteosarcoma samples than normal samples in an independent cohort obtained from the Childrens Oncology Group. Furthermore, we demonstrated that miR-21 was expressed significantly higher in osteosarcoma tumors compared with normal bone controls. More importantly, lower expressions of miR-21 and miR-221, but not miR-106a, significantly correlated with a poor outcome. In conclusion, our results indicate that miR-21, miR-221 and miR-106a were elevated in the circulation of osteosarcoma patients, whereas tumor expressions of miR-21 and miR-221 are prognostically significant. Further investigation of these miRNAs may lead to a better prognostic method and potential miRNA therapeutics for osteosarcoma.

Abstract 2445: Cytoplasmic mislocalization of p27 promotes metastasis and its autoantibody correlates with prognosis in osteosarcoma

Development of metastasis is the major cause of death in osteosarcoma, which is the most common malignant bone tumor in children and young adults. However, detection of metastasis relies solely on imaging techniques and targeted treatments of metastatic patients are still not available to improve the dismal outcome. Using an immunoproteomic approach, we identified that p27 autoantibody was significantly elevated in the plasma of high-risk osteosarcoma patients. Results of immunohistochemistry showed that cytoplasmic mislocalization of p27 occurred in a majority of osteosarcoma cases and in highly metastatic osteosarcoma cell lines. We demonstrated that ectopic expression of cytoplasmic p27 and shRNA-mediated gene silencing promoted and inhibited, respectively, the migration and invasion of osteosarcoma cells. Additionally, a mutation in S10 or T198, but not T157, phosphosite abolished the pro-migration and invasion phenotypes of cytoplasmic p27, possibly through a RhoA-related mechanism. Furthermore, mice injected with cells carrying cytoplasmic p27 increased the development of pulmonary metastasis when compared to an empty vector control. Lastly, using a large cohort of serum samples (n = 233), we showed that a higher level of the p27 autoantibody significantly correlated with poor overall and event-free survival of osteosarcoma (p Citation Format: Manjula Nakka, Yiting Li, Aaron J. Kelly, Ching C. Lau, Mark Krailo, Donald A. Barkauskas, John Hicks, Tsz-Kwong Man. Cytoplasmic mislocalization of p27 promotes metastasis and its autoantibody correlates with prognosis in osteosarcoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 2445.

Abstract 5163: A high level of circulating CXCL10 at initial diagnosis is associated with poor prognosis of osteosarcoma patients

Proceedings: AACR 106th Annual Meeting 2015; April 18-22, 2015; Philadelphia, PA Background: Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common malignant bone tumor in children and adolescents. Although survival rates have reached 70% over the past few decades, the prognosis of patients with metastatic disease remains very dismal. Identification of prognostic biomarkers besides clinically detectable metastasis will facilitate risk-stratification, and identify the most appropriate treatment option to improve their outcomes. Our group has previously devised a systems biology approach and identified that chemokines pathway are associated with metastasis in OS cell line models. Additionally, we reported that the plasma levels of a group of CXC chemokines were associated with a poorer patient outcome. CXC chemokines has been identified as source of potential therapeutic targets such as the CXCL12/CXCR4 and the CXCL10/CXCR3 ligand/receptor axes, which have been targeted successfully to inhibit lung metastasis in OS mouse models. Therefore, we decided to expand our findings by employing a Luminex platform to characterize circulating levels of cytokines/chemokines in OS patients, as these represent potential prognostic biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets. Materials and Methods: In this study, we employed a Luminex platform to analyze 39 chemokines/cytokines in two cohorts comprised of totally 290 OS patients. A regressive partitioning method was used to binarize the variables in the training cohort (40 samples) and the cutoff points were examined in the validation cohort (250 samples) for significance. Results: Twenty-two of the candidate biomarkers were significant with respect to overall survival and were tested in the validation cohort (250 samples). After Benjamini-Hochberg correction, CXCL10 significantly correlated with overall survival (p = 0.047) and remained significant after correcting for initial metastasis (CXCL10: p = 0.0037, Metastasis: p = 0.00012), indicating that CXCL10 is an independent prognostic factor. Therefore, we combined both prognostic factors to stratify the patients. Using this approach we identified three risk groups and the 5-year overall survival rate for the high-risk (high CXCL10 with initial metastasis), intermediate-risk (high CXCL10 with localized disease, or low CXCL10 with initial metastasis), and low-risk (low CXCL10 with localized disease) groups were 31%, 54%, and 71% respectively. Further, in patients with localized disease at diagnosis, which is conventionally considered to be low risk, a higher level of CXCL10 predicted a poorer outcome (p = 0.019). Additionally, we found that the receptor for the CXCL10 ligand, CXCR3, is expressed in OS tumors and is potentially targetable. In summary, our results suggest that circulating CXCL10 can be used as non-invasive biomarker to better prognosticate osteosarcoma patients before the treatment initiation and may lead to CXCR3-targeted therapy in selected patients in future clinical trials. Citation Format: Ricardo J. Flores, Aaron J. Kelly, Yiting Li, Manjula Nakka, Ching C. Lau, John Hicks, Tsz-Kwong Man. A high level of circulating CXCL10 at initial diagnosis is associated with poor prognosis of osteosarcoma patients. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 5163. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-5163

Abstract 5228: Characterization of miR-21 as a potential circulating biomarker for osteosarcoma

Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small noncoding RNAs that are implicated in various important biological processes by regulation of gene expression. Aberrant miRNA expression is suggested to be associated with various human disorders including cancer. In this study, we studied if miRNAs can be used as biomarkers in osteosarcoma (OS). OS is the most common malignant bone tumor in children and young adults. Despite the use of surgery and multi-agent chemotherapy, OS patients who respond poorly towards chemotherapy or develop relapses have a dismal outcome. Thus, it is of clinical significance if a biomarker approach can be developed to monitor tumor burden and detect early relapses in the patients, so that they can be treated as early as possible to improve the survival. To achieve this goal, we performed miRNA profiling on a cohort of OS plasma samples collected from the Texas Childrens Hospital. miR-21 and other miRNAs were identified to be elevated in OS patients relative to a group of healthy controls. Circulating miR-21 has been detected in other types of cancer and in the tumor it is known to negatively regulate tumor suppressor genes involved in proliferation, apoptosis and invasion; however, its role in OS is still unclear. Hence, we first validated that miR-21 was elevated in a set of independent osteosarcoma plasma samples but not in the control samples. Using serial plasma samples from a group of patients, we found that the circulating miR-21 level was lower in the posttreatment plasma samples than in the pretreatment samples. These results suggest that circulating miR-21 may correlate with tumor burden of the patients. In addition, miR-21 was expressed in many OS tumors as detected by in situ hybridization on an OS tissue microarray. When tested on two OS cell lines, miR-21was significantly increased in the culture media between 24 and 48 hours after plating in a cell number dependent manner, suggesting that miR-21 could be released from the tumor cells. Taken together, our results suggest that miR-21 is expressed in OS and its level in plasma may reflect tumor burden in OS patients. Citation Format: Manjula Nakka, Yiting Li, Colin McGee, Ching Lau, Tsz Kwong Man. Characterization of miR-21 as a potential circulating biomarker for osteosarcoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 5228. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-5228