Transcriptional regulation of the p73 gene, a member of the p53 family, by early growth response-1 (Egr-1)

p53/p73 Protein Network in Colorectal Cancer and Other Human Malignancies

Simple Summary

The p53 family of proteins comprises p53, p63, and p73, which share high structural and functional similarity. The two distinct promoters of each locus, the alternative splicing, and the alternative translation initiation sites enable the generation of numerous isoforms with different protein-interacting domains and distinct activities. The co-expressed p53/p73 isoforms have significant but distinct roles in carcinogenesis. Their activity is frequently impaired in human tumors including colorectal carcinoma due to dysregulated expression and a dominant-negative effect accomplished by some isoforms and p53 mutants. The interactions between isoforms are particularly important to understand the onset of tumor formation, progression, and therapeutic response. The understanding of the p53/p73 network can contribute to the development of new targeted therapies.

Abstract

The p53 tumor suppressor protein is crucial for cell growth control and the maintenance of genomic stability. Later discovered, p63 and p73 share structural and functional similarity with p53. To understand the p53 pathways more profoundly, all family members should be considered. Each family member possesses two promoters and alternative translation initiation sites, and they undergo alternative splicing, generating multiple isoforms. The resulting isoforms have important roles in carcinogenesis, while their expression is dysregulated in several human tumors including colorectal carcinoma, which makes them potential targets in cancer treatment. Their activities arise, at least in part, from the ability to form tetramers that bind to specific DNA sequences and activate the transcription of target genes. In this review, we summarize the current understanding of the biological activities and regulation of the p53/p73 isoforms, highlighting their role in colorectal tumorigenesis. The analysis of the expression patterns of the p53/p73 isoforms in human cancers provides an important step in the improvement of cancer therapy. Furthermore, the interactions among the p53 family members which could modulate normal functions of the canonical p53 in tumor tissue are described. Lastly, we emphasize the importance of clinical studies to assess the significance of combining the deregulation of different members of the p53 family to define the outcome of the disease.

BRCA1-associated epigenetic regulation of p73 mediates an effector pathway for chemosensitivity in ovarian carcinoma

The majority of tumors arising in BRCA1 mutation carriers exhibit inactivation of p53, a key effector of cell death after DNA damage. Despite the loss of p53, BRCA1-deficient tumor cells exhibit increased sensitivity to cisplatin, and patients with BRCA1-associated ovarian carcinomas experience improved outcomes with platinum-based chemotherapy compared with sporadic cases. Although it is known that chemosensitivity in BRCA1-associated cancers is associated with unrepaired DNA damage, the specific effector pathway mediating the cellular response to platinum-induced damage in these tumors is poorly understood. Here, we show that the p53-related gene p73, encoding a proapoptotic protein that is linked to chemosensitivity in many settings, is upregulated through a novel epigenetic mechanism in both human and murine models of BRCA1-associated ovarian carcinoma. BRCA1-deficient ovarian carcinoma cells exhibit hypermethylation within a p73 regulatory region, which includes the binding site for the p73 transcriptional repressor ZEB1, leading to the abrogation of ZEB1 binding and increased expression of transactivating p73 isoforms (TAp73). Cisplatin chemotherapy induces TAp73 target genes specifically in BRCA1-deficient cells, and knockdown of TAp73 in these cells causes chemoresistance while having little or no effect on BRCA1-expressing tumor cells. In primary ovarian carcinomas, ZEB1 binding site methylation and TAp73 expression correlate with BRCA1 status and with clinical response. Together, these findings uncover a novel regulatory mechanism that supports the contribution of TAp73 as an important mediator of the response to platinum chemotherapy in a subset of ovarian carcinomas. TAp73 might represent a response predictor and potential therapeutic target for enhancing chemosensitivity in this disease.

Early growth response-1 suppresses epidermal growth factor receptor-mediated airway hyperresponsiveness and lung remodeling in mice

Transforming growth factor (TGF)-alpha and its receptor, the epidermal growth factor receptor, are induced after lung injury and are associated with remodeling in chronic pulmonary diseases, such as pulmonary fibrosis and asthma. Expression of TGF-alpha in the lungs of adult mice causes fibrosis, pleural thickening, and pulmonary hypertension, in addition to increased expression of a transcription factor, early growth response-1 (Egr-1). Egr-1 was increased in airway smooth muscle (ASM) and the vascular adventitia in the lungs of mice conditionally expressing TGF-alpha in airway epithelium (Clara cell secretory protein-rtTA(+/-)/[tetO](7)-TGF-alpha(+/-)). The goal of this study was to determine the role of Egr-1 in TGF-alpha-induced lung disease. To accomplish this, TGF-alpha-transgenic mice were crossed to Egr-1 knockout (Egr-1(ko/ko)) mice. The lack of Egr-1 markedly increased the severity of TGF-alpha-induced pulmonary disease, dramatically enhancing airway muscularization, increasing pulmonary fibrosis, and causing greater airway hyperresponsiveness to methacholine. Smooth muscle hyperplasia, not hypertrophy, caused the ASM thickening in the absence of Egr-1. No detectable increases in pulmonary inflammation were found. In addition to the airway remodeling disease, vascular remodeling and pulmonary hypertension were also more severe in Egr-1(ko/ko) mice. Thus, Egr-1 acts to suppress epidermal growth factor receptor-mediated airway and vascular muscularization, fibrosis, and airway hyperresponsiveness in the absence of inflammation. This provides a unique model to study the processes causing pulmonary fibrosis and ASM thickening without the complicating effects of inflammation.