Matthias Dedobbeleer

Adult mouse subventricular zones stimulate glioblastoma stem cells specific invasion through CXCL12/CXCR4 signaling

BACKGROUND Patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) have an overall median survival of 15 months. This catastrophic survival rate is the consequence of systematic relapses that could arise from remaining glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) left behind after surgery. We previously demonstrated that GSCs are able to escape the tumor mass and specifically colonize the adult subventricular zones (SVZs) after transplantation. This specific localization, away from the initial injection site, therefore represents a high-quality model of a clinical obstacle to therapy and relapses because GSCs notably retain the ability to form secondary tumors. METHOD In this work, we questioned the role of the CXCL12/CXCR4 signaling in the GSC-specific invasion of the SVZs. RESULTS We demonstrated that both receptor and ligand are respectively expressed by different GBM cell populations and by the SVZ itself. In vitro migration bio-assays highlighted that human U87MG GSCs isolated from the SVZs (U87MG-SVZ) display stronger migratory abilities in response to recombinant CXCL12 and/or SVZ-conditioned medium (SVZ-CM) compared with cancer cells isolated from the tumor mass (U87MG-TM). Moreover, in vitro inhibition of the CXCR4 signaling significantly decreased the U87MG-SVZ cell migration in response to the SVZ-CM. Very interestingly, treating U87MG-xenografted mice with daily doses of AMD3100, a specific CXCR4 antagonist, prevented the specific invasion of the SVZ. Another in vivo experiment, using CXCR4-invalidated GBM cells, displayed similar results. CONCLUSION Taken together, these data demonstrate the significant role of the CXCL12/CXCR4 signaling in this original model of brain cancer invasion.

CXCL12 mediates glioblastoma resistance to radiotherapy in the subventricular zone

Background. Patients with glioblastoma (GBM) have an overall median survival of 15 months despite multimodal therapy. These catastrophic survival rates are to be correlated to systematic relapses that might arise from remaining glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) left behind after surgery. In this line, it has recently been demonstrated that GSCs are able to escape the tumor mass and preferentially colonize the adult subventricular zone (SVZ). At a distance from the initial tumor site, these GSCs might therefore represent a high-quality model of clinical resilience to therapy and cancer relapses as they specifically retain tumor-initiating abilities. Method. While relying on recent findings that have validated the existence of GSCs in the human SVZ, we questioned the role of the SVZ niche as a potential GSC reservoir involved in therapeutic failure. Results. Our results demonstrate that (i) GSCs located in the SVZ are specifically resistant to radiation in vivo, (ii) these cells display enhanced mesenchymal roots that are known to be associated with cancer radioresistance, (iii) these mesenchymal traits are specifically upregulated by CXCL12 (stromal cell-derived factor-1) both in vitro and in the SVZ environment, (iv) the amount of SVZ-released CXCL12 mediates GBM resistance to radiation in vitro, and (v) interferes with the CXCL12/CXCR4 signalling system, allowing weakening of the tumor mesenchymal roots and radiosensitizing SVZ-nested GBM cells. Conclusion. Together, these data provide evidence on how the adult SVZ environment, through the release of CXCL12, supports GBM therapeutic failure and potential tumor relapse.

Aurora A plays a dual role in migration and survival of human glioblastoma cells according to the CXCL12 concentration

Primary glioblastoma is the most frequent human brain tumor in adults and is generally fatal due to tumor recurrence. We previously demonstrated that glioblastoma-initiating cells invade the subventricular zones and promote their radio-resistance in response to the local release of the CXCL12 chemokine. In this work, we show that the mitotic Aurora A kinase (AurA) is activated through the CXCL12–CXCR4 pathway in an ERK1/2-dependent manner. Moreover, the CXCL12–ERK1/2 signaling induces the expression of Ajuba, the main cofactor of AurA, which allows the auto-phosphorylation of AurA.We show that AurA contributes to glioblastoma cell survival, radio-resistance, self-renewal, and proliferation regardless of the exogenous stimulation with CXCL12. On the other hand, AurA triggers the CXCL12-mediated migration of glioblastoma cells in vitro as well as the invasion of the subventricular zone in xenograft experiments. Moreover, AurA regulates cytoskeletal proteins (i.e., Actin and Vimentin) and favors the pro-migratory activity of the Rho-GTPase CDC42 in response to CXCL12. Altogether, these results show that AurA, a well-known kinase of the mitotic machinery, may play alternative roles in human glioblastoma according to the CXCL12 concentration.

The functional diversity of Aurora kinases: a comprehensive review

Aurora kinases are serine/threonine kinases essential for the onset and progression of mitosis. Aurora members share a similar protein structure and kinase activity, but exhibit distinct cellular and subcellular localization. AurA favors the G2/M transition by promoting centrosome maturation and mitotic spindle assembly. AurB and AurC are chromosome-passenger complex proteins, crucial for chromosome binding to kinetochores and segregation of chromosomes. Cellular distribution of AurB is ubiquitous, while AurC expression is mainly restricted to meiotically-active germ cells. In human tumors, all Aurora kinase members play oncogenic roles related to their mitotic activity and promote cancer cell survival and proliferation. Furthermore, AurA plays tumor-promoting roles unrelated to mitosis, including tumor stemness, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and invasion. In this review, we aim to understand the functional interplay of Aurora kinases in various types of human cells, including tumor cells. The understanding of the functional diversity of Aurora kinases could help to evaluate their relevance as potential therapeutic targets in cancer.

Phosphatases and solid tumors: focus on glioblastoma initiation, progression and recurrences

Phosphatases and cancer have been related for many years now, as these enzymes regulate key cellular functions, including cell survival, migration, differentiation and proliferation. Dysfunctions or mutations affecting these enzymes have been demonstrated to be key factors for oncogenesis. The aim of this review is to shed light on the role of four different phosphatases (PTEN, PP2A, CDC25 and DUSP1) in five different solid tumors (breast cancer, lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer and ovarian cancer), in order to better understand the most frequent and aggressive primary cancer of the central nervous system, glioblastoma.