Muriel Busson

Potential Role of Estrogen Receptor Beta as a Tumor Suppressor of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is the gynecological cancer exhibiting the highest morbidity and improvement of treatments is still required. Previous studies have shown that Estrogen-receptor beta (ERβ) levels decreased along with ovarian carcinogenesis. Here, we present evidence that reintroduction of ERβ in BG-1 epithelial ovarian cancer cells, which express ERα, leads in vitro to a decrease of basal and estradiol-promoted cell proliferation. ERβ reduced the frequency of cells in S phase and increased the one of cells in G2/M phase. At the molecular level, we found that ERβ downregulated total retinoblastoma (Rb), phosphorylated Rb and phospho-AKT cellular content as well as cyclins D1 and A2. In addition, ERβ had a direct effect on ERα, by strongly inhibiting its expression and activity, which could explain part of the anti-proliferative action of ERβ. By developing a novel preclinical model of ovarian cancer based on a luminescent orthotopic xenograft in athymic Nude mice, we further revealed that ERβ expression reduces tumor growth and the presence of tumor cells in sites of metastasis, hence resulting in improved survival of mice. Altogether, these findings unveil a potential tumor-suppressor role of ERβ in ovarian carcinogenesis, which could be of potential clinical relevance for the selection of the most appropriate treatment for patients.

Preclinical validation of AXL receptor as a target for antibody-based pancreatic cancer immunotherapy

AXL receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) is implicated in proliferation and invasion of many cancers, particularly in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), for which new therapeutic options are urgently required. We investigated whether inhibition of AXL activity by specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) is efficient in limiting proliferation and migration of pancreatic cancer cells. Expression of AXL was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in 42 PDAC. The AXL role in oncogenesis was studied using the short hairpin RNA approach in a pancreatic carcinoma cell line. We further generated antihuman AXL mAbs and evaluated their inhibitory effects and the AXL downstream signaling pathways first in vitro, in a panel of pancreatic cancer cell lines and then in vivo, using subcutaneous or orthotopic pancreatic tumor xenografts. AXL receptor was found expressed in 76% (32/42) of PDAC and was predominantly present in invasive cells. The AXL-knockdown Panc-1 cells decreased in vitro cell migration, survival and proliferation, and reduced in vivo tumor growth. Two selected anti-AXL mAbs (D9 and E8), which inhibited phosphorylation of AXL and of its downstream target AKT without affecting growth arrest-specific factor 6 (GAS6) binding, induced downexpression of AXL by internalization, leading to an inhibition of proliferation and migration in the four pancreatic cancer cell lines studied. In vivo, treatment by anti-AXL mAbs significantly reduced growth of both subcutaneous and orthotopic pancreatic tumor xenografts independently of their KRAS mutation status. Our in vitro and preclinical in vivo data demonstrate that anti-human AXL mAbs could represent a new approach to the pancreatic cancer immunotherapy.

Negative Regulation of Estrogen Signaling by ERβ and RIP140 in Ovarian Cancer Cells

In hormone-dependent tissues such as breast and ovary, tumorigenesis is associated with an altered expression ratio between the two estrogen receptor (ER) subtypes. In this study, we investigated the effects of ERβ ectopic expression on 17β-estradiol (E2)-induced transactivation and cell proliferation in ERα-positive BG1 ovarian cancer cells. As expected, ERβ expression strongly decreased the mitogenic effect of E2, significantly reduced E2-dependent transcriptional responses (both on a stably integrated estrogen response element [ERE] reporter gene and on E2-induced mRNAs), and strongly enhanced the formation of ER heterodimers as evidenced by chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis. Inhibition by the ERα-selective ligand propyl pyrazole triol was less marked than with the pan-agonist (E2) or the ERβ-selective (8β-vinyl-estradiol) ligands, indicating that ERβ activation reinforced the inhibitory effects of ERβ. Interestingly, in E2-stimulated BG1 cells, ERβ was more efficient than ERα to regulate the expression of receptor-interacting protein 140 (RIP140), a major ERα transcriptional corepressor. In addition, we found that the RIP140 protein interacted better with ERβ than with ERα (both in vitro and in intact cells by fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy). Moreover, RIP140 recruitment on the stably integrated reporter ERE was increased upon ERβ overexpression, and ERβ activity was more sensitive to repression by RIP140. Finally, small interfering RNA-mediated knockdown of RIP140 expression abolished the repressive effect exerted by activated ERβ on the regulation of ERE-controlled transcription by estrogens. Altogether, these data demonstrate the inhibitory effects of ERβ on estrogen signaling in ovarian cancer cells and the key role that RIP140 plays in this phenomenon.

Comparison between Internalizing Anti-HER2 mAbs and Non-Internalizing Anti-CEA mAbs in Alpha-Radioimmunotherapy of Small Volume Peritoneal Carcinomatosis Using 212Pb

Background and Purpose We assessed the contribution of antibody internalization in the efficacy and toxicity of intraperitoneal α-radioimmunotherapy (RIT) of small volume carcinomatosis using 212Pb-labeled monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that target HER2 (internalizing) or CEA (non-internalizing) receptors. Materials and Methods Athymic nude mice bearing 2–3 mm intraperitoneal tumor xenografts were intraperitoneally injected with similar activities (370, 740 and 1480 kBq; 37 MBq/mg) of 212Pb-labeled 35A7 (anti-CEA), trastuzumab (anti-HER2) or PX (non-specific) mAbs, or with equivalent amounts of unlabeled mAbs, or with NaCl. Tumor volume was monitored by bioluminescence and survival was reported. Hematologic toxicity and body weight were assessed. Biodistribution of 212Pb-labeled mAbs and absorbed dose-effect relationships using MIRD formalism were established. Results Transient hematological toxicity, as revealed by white blood cells and platelets numbering, was reported in mice treated with the highest activities of 212Pb-labeled mAbs. The median survival (MS) was significantly higher in mice injected with 1.48 MBq of 212Pb-35A7 (non-internalizing mAbs) (MSu200a=u200a94 days) than in animals treated with the same activity of 212Pb-PX mAbs or with NaCl (MSu200a=u200a18 days). MS was even not reached after 130 days when follow-up was discontinued in mice treated with 1.48 MBq of 212Pb-trastuzumab. The later efficacy was unexpected since final absorbed dose resulting from injection of 1.48 MBq, was higher for 212Pb-35A7 (35.5 Gy) than for 212Pb-trastuzumab (27.6 Gy). These results also highlight the lack of absorbed dose-effect relationship when mean absorbed dose was calculated using MIRD formalism and the requirement to perform small-scale dosimetry. Conclusions These data indicate that it might be an advantage of using internalizing anti-HER2 compared with non-internalizing anti-CEA 212Pb-labeled mAbs in the therapy of small volume xenograft tumors. They support clinical investigations of 212Pb-mAbs RIT as an adjuvant treatment after cytoreductive surgery in patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis.

Brief Intraperitoneal Radioimmunotherapy of Small Peritoneal Carcinomatosis Using High Activities of Noninternalizing 125I-Labeled Monoclonal Antibodies

We assessed the efficiency and toxicity of brief intraperitoneal radioimmunotherapy using high activities of 125I-labeled monoclonal antibody (mAb) in the treatment of small-volume peritoneal carcinomatosis. Methods: Brief intraperitoneal radioimmunotherapy consisted of a 185-MBq (740 MBq/mg) intraperitoneal injection of 125I-35A7 (an anti–carcinoembryonic antigen mAb) into athymic nude mice 4 d after peritoneal tumor xenografting and, after 1 h, abundant washing of the peritoneal cavity with saline solution to remove unbound radioactivity. Another group of mice received this treatment plus a 37-MBq intravenous injection of 125I-35A7 on day 7 or 11 after grafting. Control groups received a brief treatment followed by an additional intravenous injection on day 7 of either saline solution or irrelevant 125I-PX. Tumor growth was monitored by bioluminescence imaging and SPECT/CT, and hematologic toxicity was evaluated by complete blood counts. Survival time was reported, and the mice were sacrificed when the bioluminescence signal reached 4.5 × 107 photons/s. The biodistribution of 125I-35A7 mAb after intravenous or brief treatment was assessed, and the mean absorbed irradiation dose by organs and tumors was calculated using the MIRD formalism. Results: Mild, transient hematologic toxicity was observed after the brief treatment plus intravenous 125I-mAb, with no weight loss. Median survival increased from 32 d in the control groups, to 46 d in the brief treatment group, to 66 d in the group additionally receiving intravenous treatment on day 11, to 73 d in the group additionally receiving intravenous treatment on day 7. The brief treatment alone resulted in a 3-fold higher tumor-to-blood uptake ratio than did the standard intravenous treatment, and the mean absorbed irradiation doses by tumors were 11.6 Gy for the brief treatment and 16.7 Gy for the additional intravenous treatment. For healthy tissues other than blood, the mean absorbed irradiation dose did not exceed 1 Gy after brief treatment and 4.2 Gy after intravenous treatment. Conclusion: The efficiency, low toxicity, and high tumor–to–healthy tissue uptake ratio associated with brief intraperitoneal 125I-35A7 radioimmunotherapy suggest that this method can be used in combination with radiation-synergistic drugs in the therapy of small-volume peritoneal carcinomatosis after cytoreductive surgery.

Long-term treatment with the pure anti-estrogen fulvestrant durably remodels estrogen signaling in BG-1 ovarian cancer cells

Most ovarian cancers are estrogen-positive and hormonal treatments using anti-estrogens or aromatase inhibitors are under investigation for treating the tumors that are resistant to conventional therapies. In this study, the long-term effects of two anti-estrogens, namely 4-hydroxytamoxifen and fulvestrant (or ICI182,780), were investigated in ERα-positive BG1 epithelial ovarian cancer cells. To this aim, cells were grown in the presence of anti-estrogen concentrations that were sufficient to saturate the estrogen receptors, but were neither cytotoxic nor cytostatic as indicated by the absence of inhibition of cell proliferation. In these conditions and despite the lack of cytostatic effect of the drugs, long-term treatment (3 months) with the pure anti-estrogen fulvestrant induced a specific, reproducible and irreversible inhibition of ERα expression. This inhibition was accompanied by loss of estrogen-induced cell proliferation and gene expression as indicated by the analysis of several estrogen-responsive genes. ERα down-regulation was not linked to deregulated expression of transcription factors which drive ERα transcription and did not involve DNA methylation or histone deacetylation. Altogether, these results demonstrate that non-cytotoxic concentrations of pure anti-estrogens affect estrogen signaling and might be relevant for the treatment for ovarian cancers.

201Tl-labeled Prussian blue and Au@Prussian blue nanoprobes for SPEC-CT imaging: influence of the size, shape and coating on the biodistribution

201Tl-labeled Prussian blue and Au core@Prussian blue shell nanoparticles were synthesised and investigated in vivo as nanoprobes by using SPECT-CT scintigraphy. We demonstrate that the size, morphology and nanoparticle coating affect the kinetics of the nanoparticle biodistribution.