Xiaoming Ju

A cyclin D1/microRNA 17/20 regulatory feedback loop in control of breast cancer cell proliferation

Decreased expression of specific microRNAs (miRNAs) occurs in human tumors, which suggests a function for miRNAs in tumor suppression. Herein, levels of the miR-17-5p/miR-20a miRNA cluster were inversely correlated to cyclin D1 abundance in human breast tumors and cell lines. MiR-17/20 suppressed breast cancer cell proliferation and tumor colony formation by negatively regulating cyclin D1 translation via a conserved 3′ untranslated region miRNA-binding site, thereby inhibiting serum-induced S phase entry. The cell cycle effect of miR-17/20 was abrogated by cyclin D1 siRNA and in cyclin D1–deficient breast cancer cells. Mammary epithelial cell–targeted cyclin D1 expression induced miR-17-5p and miR-20a expression in vivo, and cyclin D1 bound the miR-17/20 cluster promoter regulatory region. In summary, these studies identify a novel cyclin D1/miR-17/20 regulatory feedback loop through which cyclin D1 induces miR-17-5p/miR-20a. In turn, miR-17/20 limits the proliferative function of cyclin D1, thus linking expression of a specific miRNA cluster to the regulation of oncogenesis.

Akt1 governs breast cancer progression in vivo

The serine threonine kinase Akt1 has been implicated in the control of cellular metabolism, survival and growth. Here, disruption of the ubiquitously expressed member of the Akt family of genes, Akt1, in the mouse demonstrates a requirement for Akt1 in ErbB2-induced mammary tumorigenesis. Akt1 deficiency delayed tumor growth and reduced lung metastases, correlating with a reduction in phosphorylation of the Akt1 target, tuberous sclerosis 2 (TSC2) at Ser-939. Akt1-deficient mammary epithelial tumor cells (MEC) were reduced in size and proliferative capacity, with reduced cyclin D1 and p27KIP1 abundance. Akt1 deficiency abrogated the oncogene-induced changes in polarization of MEC in three-dimensional culture and reverted oncogene-induced relocalization of the phosphorylated ezrin–radixin–moesin proteins. Akt1 increased MEC migration across an endothelial cell barrier, enhancing the persistence of migratory directionality. An unbiased proteomic analysis demonstrated Akt1 mediated MEC migration through paracrine signaling via induction of expression and secretion of CXCL16 and MIP1γ. Akt1 governs MEC polarity, migratory directionality and breast cancer onset induced by ErbB2 in vivo.

The Canonical NF-κB Pathway Governs Mammary Tumorigenesis in Transgenic Mice and Tumor Stem Cell Expansion

The role of mammary epithelial cell (MEC) NF-κB in tumor progression in vivo is unknown, as murine NF-κB components and kinases either are required for murine survival or interfere with normal mammary gland development. As NF-κB inhibitors block both tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) and MEC NF-κB, the importance of MEC NF-κB to tumor progression in vivo remained to be determined. Herein, an MEC-targeted inducible transgenic inhibitor of NF-κB (IκBαSR) was developed in ErbB2 mammary oncomice. Inducible suppression of NF-κB in the adult mammary epithelium delayed the onset and number of new tumors. Within similar sized breast tumors, TAM and tumor neoangiogenesis was reduced. Coculture experiments demonstrated MEC NF-κB enhanced TAM recruitment. Genome-wide expression and proteomic analysis showed that IκBαSR inhibited tumor stem cell pathways. IκBαSR inhibited breast tumor stem cell markers in transgenic tumors, reduced stem cell expansion in vitro, and repressed expression of Nanog and Sox2 in vivo and in vitro. MEC NF-κB contributes to mammary tumorigenesis. As we show that NF-κB contributes to expansion of breast tumor stem cells and heterotypic signals that enhance TAM and vasculogenesis, these processes may contribute to NF-κB-dependent mammary tumorigenesis.

p21CIP1 attenuates Ras- and c-Myc-dependent breast tumor epithelial mesenchymal transition and cancer stem cell-like gene expression in vivo

p21CIP1/WAF1 is a downstream effector of tumor suppressors and functions as a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor to block cellular proliferation. Breast tumors may derive from self-renewing tumor-initiating cells (BT-ICs), which contribute to tumor progression, recurrence, and therapy resistance. The role of p21CIP1 in regulating features of tumor stem cells in vivo is unknown. Herein, deletion of p21CIP1, which enhanced the rate of tumorigenesis induced by mammary-targeted Ha-Ras or c-Myc, enhanced gene expression profiles and immunohistochemical features of epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) and putative cancer stem cells in vivo. Silencing of p21CIP1 enhanced, and expression of p21CIP1 repressed, features of EMT in transformed immortal human MEC lines. p21CIP1 attenuated oncogene-induced BT-IC and mammosphere formation. Thus, the in vitro cell culture assays reflect the changes observed in vivo in transgenic mice. These findings establish a link between the loss of p21CIP1 and the acquisition of breast cancer EMT and stem cell properties in vivo.

Cyclin D1 Determines Mitochondrial Function In Vivo

ABSTRACT The cyclin D1 gene encodes a regulatory subunit of the holoenzyme that phosphorylates and inactivates the pRb tumor suppressor to promote nuclear DNA synthesis. cyclin D1 is overexpressed in human breast cancers and is sufficient for the development of murine mammary tumors. Herein, cyclin D1 is shown to perform a novel function, inhibiting mitochondrial function and size. Mitochondrial activity was enhanced by genetic deletion or antisense or small interfering RNA to cyclin D1. Global gene expression profiling and functional analysis of mammary epithelial cell-targeted cyclin D1 antisense transgenics demonstrated that cyclin D1 inhibits mitochondrial activity and aerobic glycolysis in vivo. Reciprocal regulation of these genes was observed in cyclin D1-induced mammary tumors. Cyclin D1 thus integrates nuclear DNA synthesis and mitochondrial function.

Cyclin D1 Regulates Cellular Migration through the Inhibition of Thrombospondin 1 and ROCK Signaling

ABSTRACT Cyclin D1 is overexpressed in human tumors, correlating with cellular metastasis, and is induced by activating Rho GTPases. Herein, cyclin D1-deficient mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs) exhibited increased adhesion and decreased motility compared with wild-type MEFs. Retroviral transduction of cyclin D1 reversed these phenotypes. Mutational analysis of cyclin D1 demonstrated that its effects on cellular adhesion and migration were independent of the pRb and p160 coactivator binding domains. Genomewide expression arrays identified a subset of genes regulated by cyclin D1, including Rho-activated kinase II (ROCKII) and thrombospondin 1 (TSP-1). cyclin D1−/− cells showed increased Rho GTP and ROCKII activity and signaling, with increased phosphorylation of LIM kinase, cofilin (Ser3), and myosin light chain 2 (Thr18/Ser19). Cyclin D1 repressed ROCKII and TSP-1 expression, and the migratory defect of cyclin D1−/− cells was reversed by ROCK inhibition or TSP-1 immunoneutralizing antibodies. cyclin E knockin to the cyclin D1−/− MEFs rescued the DNA synthesis defect of cyclin D1−/− MEFs but did not rescue either the migration defect or the abundance of ROCKII. Cyclin D1 promotes cellular motility through inhibiting ROCK signaling and repressing the metastasis suppressor TSP-1.

Cyclin D1 Induction of Cellular Migration Requires p27KIP1

The cyclin D1 gene is amplified and overexpressed in human breast cancer, functioning as a collaborative oncogene. As the regulatory subunit of a holoenzyme phosphorylating Rb, cyclin D1 promotes cell cycle progression and a noncatalytic function has been described to sequester the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor protein p27. Cyclin D1 overexpression correlates with tumor metastasis and cyclin D1-deficient fibroblasts are defective in migration. The genetic mechanism by which cyclin D1 promotes migration and movement is poorly understood. Herein, cyclin D1 promoted cellular migration and cytokinesis of mammary epithelial cells. Cyclin D1 enhanced cellular migratory velocity. The induction of migration by cyclin D1 was abolished by mutation of K112 or deletion of NH(2)-terminal residues 46 to 90. These mutations of cyclin D1 abrogated physical interaction with p27(KIP1). Cyclin D1(-/-) cells were p27(KIP1) deficient and the defect in migration was rescued by p27(KIP1) reintroduction. Conversely, the cyclin D1 rescue of cyclin D1(-/-) cellular migration was reversed by p27(KIP1) small interfering RNA. Cyclin D1 regulated p27(KIP1) abundance at the posttranslational level, inhibiting the Skp2 promoter, Skp2 abundance, and induced p27(KIP1) phosphorylation at Ser(10). Together, these studies show cyclin D1 promotes mammary epithelial cell migration. p27(KIP1) is required for cyclin D1-mediated cellular migration.

Dachshund inhibits oncogene-induced breast cancer cellular migration and invasion through suppression of interleukin-8

Oncogene-mediated signaling to the host environment induces a subset of cytokines and chemokines. The Drosophila Dac gene promotes migration of the morphogenetic furrow during eye development. Expression of the cell-fate determination factor Dachshund (DACH1) was lost in poor prognosis invasive breast cancer. Mouse embryo fibroblasts derived from Dach1−/− mice demonstrated endogenous Dach1 constitutively represses cellular migration. DACH1 inhibited cellular migration and invasion of oncogene (Ras, Myc, ErbB2, c-Raf)-transformed human breast epithelial cells. An unbiased proteomic analysis identified and immunoneutralizing antibody and reconstitution experiments demonstrated IL-8 is a critical target of DACH1 mediating breast cancer cellular migration and metastasis in vivo. DACH1 bound the endogenous IL-8 promoter in ChIP assays and repressed the IL-8 promoter through the AP-1 and NF-κB binding sites. Collectively, our data identify a pathway by which an endogenous cell-fate determination factor blocks oncogene-dependent tumor metastasis via a key heterotypic mediator.

Nuclear Factor-κB Enhances ErbB2-Induced Mammary Tumorigenesis and Neoangiogenesis in Vivo

The (HER2/Neu) ErbB2 oncogene is commonly overexpressed in human breast cancer and is sufficient for mammary tumorigenesis in transgenic mice. Nuclear factor (NF)-kappaB activity is increased in both human and murine breast tumors. The immune response to mammary tumorigenesis may regulate tumor progression. The role of endogenous mammary epithelial cell NF-kappaB had not previously been determined in immune-competent animals. Furthermore, the role of the NF-kappaB components, p50 and p65, in tumor growth was not known. Herein, the expression of a stabilized form of the NF-kappaB-inhibiting IkappaBalpha protein (IkappaBalphaSR) in breast tumor cell lines that express oncogenic ErbB2 inhibited DNA synthesis and growth in both two- and three-dimensional cultures. Either NF-kappaB inhibition or selective silencing of p50 or p65 led to a loss of contact-independent tumor growth in vitro. IkappaBalphaSR reversed the features of the oncogene-induced phenotype under three-dimensional growth conditions. The NF-kappaB blockade inhibited ErbB2-induced mammary tumor growth in both immune-competent and immune-deficient mice. These findings were associated with both reduced tumor microvascular density and a reduction in the amount of vascular endothelial growth factor. The expression of IkappaBalphaSR in breast cancer tumors inhibited angiogenesis. Thus, mammary epithelial cell NF-kappaB activity enhances ErbB2-mediated mammary tumorigenesis in vivo by promoting both growth and survival signaling via the promotion of tumor vasculogenesis.

Cyclin D1 induction of Dicer governs microRNA processing and expression in breast cancer

Cyclin D1 encodes the regulatory subunit of a holoenzyme that phosphorylates the pRB protein and promotes G1/S cell cycle progression and oncogenesis. Dicer is a central regulator of miRNA maturation, encoding an enzyme that cleaves double strand RNA or stem-loop-stem RNA into 20–25 nucleotide long small RNA, governing sequence specific gene silencing and heterochromatin methylation. The mechanism by which the cell cycle directly controls the non-coding genome is poorly understood. Here we show that cyclin D1−/− cells are defective in pre-miRNA processing which is restored by cyclin D1a rescue. Cyclin D1 induces Dicer expression in vitro and in vivo. Dicer is transcriptionally targeted by cyclin D1, via a cdk-independent mechanism. Cyclin D1 and Dicer expression significantly correlates in luminal A and basal-like subtypes of human breast cancer. Cyclin D1 and Dicer maintain heterochromatic histone modification (Tri-m-H3K9). Cyclin D1-mediated cellular proliferation and migration is Dicer-dependent. We conclude that cyclin D1 induction of Dicer coordinates microRNA biogenesis.