The clinical significance of transforming acidic coiled-coil protein 3 expression in non-small cell lung cancer

Potential biomarkers of primary resistance to first- and second-generation EGFR-TKIs in non-small-cell lung cancer: a real-world study

Background

Epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) significantly improve the prognosis of EGFR-sensitive mutant non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the mechanisms underlying primary resistance to EGFR-TKIs remain unclear.

Objective

This study aimed to explore the biomarkers associated with primary resistance to first- and second-generation EGFR-TKIs. Primary resistance to EGFR-TKIs was defined as disease progression within 90 days (3 months) of treatment in patients with EGFR-sensitive mutant adenocarcinoma without any evidence of objective response.

Design

Retrospective, single-center study.

Methods

This study retrospectively screened patients with NSCLC who received EGFR-TKIs at Hunan Cancer Hospital from January 2018 to December 2022. According to pre-determined clinical outcomes, we divided the patients into primary resistance and sensitivity groups. Only patients with sufficient samples that passed quality control were included in this study. Tumor tissue and paired peripheral blood samples collected from patients before treatment were subjected to next-generation sequencing using an 825-gene panel. In addition, tumor tissue samples were analyzed for programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression.

Results

A total of 70 patients were enrolled in this study, with 35 in each of the primary resistant and sensitive groups. Patients with exon 4 mutations in the TP53 gene had significantly shorter progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) compared to those without the mutation. PTPRD and TACC3 mutation frequencies were substantially higher in the primary resistant group and were associated with shorter PFS and OS. Furthermore, patients in the primary resistant group exhibited substantially higher levels of PD-L1 expression.

Conclusion

The potential mechanisms of primary resistance to EGFR-TKIs are highly heterogeneous. Combining some somatic variants affecting tumor function and high PD-L1 expression may contribute to this resistance.

Development and validation of a radiomic prediction model for TACC3 expression and prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer using contrast-enhanced CT imaging

BACKGROUNDS

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) prognosis remains poor despite treatment advances, and classical prognostic indicators often fall short in precision medicine. Transforming acidic coiled-coil protein-3 (TACC3) has been identified as a critical factor in tumor progression and immune infiltration across cancers, including NSCLC. Predicting TACC3 expression through radiomic features may provide valuable insights into tumor biology and aid clinical decision-making. However, its predictive value in NSCLC remains unexplored. Therefore, we aimed to construct and validate a radiomic model to predict TACC3 levels and prognosis in patients with NSCLC.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Genomic data and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) images were sourced from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, and The Cancer Imaging Archive (TCIA). A total of 320 cases of lung adenocarcinoma from TCGA and 122 cases of NSCLC from GEO were used for prognostic analysis. Sixty-three cases from TCIA and GEO were included for radiomics feature extraction and model development. The radiomics model was constructed using logistic regression (LR) and support vector machine (SVM) algorithms. We predicted TACC3 expression and evaluated its correlation with NSCLC prognosis using contrast-enhanced CT-based radiomics.

RESULTS

TACC3 expression significantly influenced NSCLC prognosis. High TACC3 levels were associated with reduced overall survival, potentially mediated by immune microenvironment and tumor progression regulation. LR and SVM algorithms achieved AUC of 0.719 and 0.724, respectively, which remained at 0.701 and 0.717 after five-fold cross-validation.

CONCLUSION

Contrast-enhanced CT-based radiomics can non-invasively predict TACC3 expression and provide valuable prognostic information, contributing to personalized treatment strategies.

Cellular senescence gene TACC3 associated with colorectal cancer risk via genetic and DNA methylated alteration

Cell senescence genes play a vital role in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer, a process that may involve the triggering of genetic variations and reversible phenotypes caused by epigenetic modifications. However, the specific regulatory mechanisms remain unclear. Using CellAge and The Cancer Genome Atlas databases and in-house RNA-seq data, DNA methylation-modified cellular senescence genes (DMCSGs) were validated by Support Vector Machine and correlation analyses. In 1150 cases and 1342 controls, we identified colorectal cancer risk variants in DMCSGs. The regulatory effects of gene, variant, and DNA methylation were explored through dual-luciferase and 5-azacytidine treatment experiments, complemented by multiple database analyses. Biological functions of key gene were evaluated via cell proliferation assays, SA-β-gal staining, senescence marker detection, and immune infiltration analyses. The genetic variant rs4558926 in the downstream of TACC3 was significantly associated with colorectal cancer risk (OR = 1.35, P = 3.22 × 10-4). TACC3 mRNA expression increased due to rs4558926 C > G and decreased DNA methylation levels. The CpG sites in the TACC3 promoter region were regulated by rs4558926. TACC3 knockdown decreased proliferation and senescence in colorectal cancer cells. In addition, subjects with high-TACC3 expression presented an immunosuppressive microenvironment. These findings provide insights into the involvement of genetic variants of cellular senescence genes in the development and progression of colorectal cancer.

TACC3: a multi-functional protein promoting cancer cell survival and aggressiveness

TACC3 is the most oncogenic member of the transforming acidic coiled-coil domain-containing protein (TACC) family. It is one of the major recruitment factors of distinct multi-protein complexes. TACC3 is localized to spindles, centrosomes, and nucleus, and regulates key oncogenic processes, including cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and stemness. Recently, TACC3 inhibition has been identified as a vulnerability in highly aggressive cancers, such as cancers with centrosome amplification (CA). TACC3 has spatiotemporal functions throughout the cell cycle; therefore, targeting TACC3 causes cell death in mitosis and interphase in cancer cells with CA. In the clinics, TACC3 is highly expressed and associated with worse survival in multiple cancers. Furthermore, TACC3 is a part of one of the most common fusions of FGFR, FGFR3-TACC3 and is important for the oncogenicity of the fusion. A detailed understanding of the regulation of TACC3 expression, its key partners, and molecular functions in cancer cells is vital for uncovering the most vulnerable tumors and maximizing the therapeutic potential of targeting this highly oncogenic protein. In this review, we summarize the established and emerging interactors and spatiotemporal functions of TACC3 in cancer cells, discuss the potential of TACC3 as a biomarker in cancer, and therapeutic potential of its inhibition.

The roles of epigenetic regulation in cholangiocarcinogenesis

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), a heterogeneous malignancy of bile duct epithelial cells, is characterized by aggressiveness, difficult diagnosis, and poor prognosis due to limited understanding and lack of effective therapeutic strategies. Genetic and epigenetic alterations accumulated in CCA cells can cause the aberrant regulation of oncogenes and tumor suppressors. Epigenetic alterations with histone modification, DNA methylation, and noncoding RNA modulation are associated with the carcinogenesis of CCA. Mutation or silencing of genes by various mechanisms can be a frequent event during CCA development. Alterations in histone acetylation/deacetylation at the posttranslational level, DNA methylation at promoters, and noncoding RNA regulation contribute to the heterogeneity of CCA and drive tumor development. In this review article, we mainly focus on the roles of epigenetic regulation in cholangiocarcinogenesis. Alterations in epigenetic modification can be potential targets for the therapeutic management of CCA, and epigenetic targets may become diagnostic biomarkers of CCA.

Expression of genes regulating cell division in porcine follicular granulosa cells

BACKGROUND

Cell cycle regulation influences the proliferation of granulosa cells and affects many processes related to ovarian folliclular growth and ovulation. Abnormal regulation of the cell cycle can lead to many diseases within the ovary. The aim of this study was to describe the expression profile of genes within granulosa cells, which are related to the formation of the cytoskeleton, organization of cell organelles inside the cell, and regulation of cell division. Established in vitro primary cultures from porcine ovarian follicle granulosa cells were maintained for 48, 96, 144 h and evaluated via microarray expression analysis.

RESULTS

Analyzed genes were assigned to 12 gene ontology groups "actin cytoskeleton organization", "actin filament organization", "actin filament-based process", "cell-matrix adhesion", "cell-substrate adhesion", "chromosome segregation", "chromosome separation", "cytoskeleton organization", "DNA integrity checkpoint", "DNA replication initiation", "organelle fision", "organelle organization". Among the genes with significantly changed expression, those whose role in processes within the ovary are selected for consideration. Genes with increased expression include (ITGA11, CNN1, CCl2, TPM2, ACTN1, VCAM-1, COL3A1, GSN, FRMD6, PLK2). Genes with reduced expression inlcude (KIF14, TACC3, ESPL1, CDC45, TTK, CDC20, CDK1, FBXO5, NEK2-NIMA, CCNE2). For the results obtained by microarray expressions, quantitative validation by RT-qPCR was performed.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicated expression profile of genes, which can be considered as new molecular markers of cellular processes involved in signaling, cell structure organization. The expression profile of selected genes brings new insight into regulation of physiological processes in porcine follicular granulosa cells during primary in vitro culture.

Targeting TACC3 represents a novel vulnerability in highly aggressive breast cancers with centrosome amplification

Centrosome amplification (CA) is a hallmark of cancer that is strongly associated with highly aggressive disease and worse clinical outcome. Clustering extra centrosomes is a major coping mechanism required for faithful mitosis of cancer cells with CA that would otherwise undergo mitotic catastrophe and cell death. However, its underlying molecular mechanisms have not been fully described. Furthermore, little is known about the processes and players triggering aggressiveness of cells with CA beyond mitosis. Here, we identified Transforming Acidic Coiled-Coil Containing Protein 3 (TACC3) to be overexpressed in tumors with CA, and its high expression is associated with dramatically worse clinical outcome. We demonstrated, for the first time, that TACC3 forms distinct functional interactomes regulating different processes in mitosis and interphase to ensure proliferation and survival of cancer cells with CA. Mitotic TACC3 interacts with the Kinesin Family Member C1 (KIFC1) to cluster extra centrosomes for mitotic progression, and inhibition of this interaction leads to mitotic cell death via multipolar spindle formation. Interphase TACC3 interacts with the nucleosome remodeling and deacetylase (NuRD) complex (HDAC2 and MBD2) in nucleus to inhibit the expression of key tumor suppressors (e.g., p21, p16 and APAF1) driving G1/S progression, and its inhibition blocks these interactions and causes p53-independent G1 arrest and apoptosis. Notably, inducing CA by p53 loss/mutation increases the expression of TACC3 and KIFC1 via FOXM1 and renders cancer cells highly sensitive to TACC3 inhibition. Targeting TACC3 by guide RNAs or small molecule inhibitors strongly inhibits growth of organoids and breast cancer cell line- and patient-derived xenografts with CA by induction of multipolar spindles, mitotic and G1 arrest. Altogether, our results show that TACC3 is a multifunctional driver of highly aggressive breast tumors with CA and that targeting TACC3 is a promising approach to tackle this disease.

High Expression of TACC3 Is Associated with the Poor Prognosis and Immune Infiltration in Lung Adenocarcinoma Patients

Background

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) has been recognized as one of the commonest aggressive malignant tumors occurring in humans. The transforming acidic coiled-coil-containing protein 3 (TACC3) seems to be a probable prognostic marker and treatment target for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Nevertheless, there exist no reports on the association between TACC3 and immunotherapy or other therapeutic interventions in LUAD.

Methods

Premised on the data accessed from The Cancer Genome Atlas- (TCGA-) LUAD, we carried out bioinformatics analysis. The TACC3 expression in LUAD was analyzed utilizing the GEPIA. A survival module was constructed to evaluate the effect of TACC3 on the survival of patients with LUAD. Logistic regression was undertaken to examine the relationship between TACC3 expression and clinical factors. Protein-protein interaction analysis was performed in the GeneMANIA database, and enrichment analysis and identification of predicted signaling pathways were performed using Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes. Additionally, the Cox regression was used to assess the clinicopathologic features linked to the overall survival in TCGA patients. Lastly, we investigated the link between TACC3 and tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TIICs) through CIBERSORT and the “Correlation” module of GEPIA. The association between TACC3 gene expression and drug response was analyzed using the CellMiner database to predict drug sensitivity.

Results

The outcomes illustrated that TACC3 was upregulated and considerably correlated with dismal prognosis in LUAD patients. Moreover, the multivariate Cox regression analysis depicted TACC3 as an independent prognostic marker in LUAD patients. It was also revealed that the expression of TACC3 was related to clinical stage (P = 0.014), age (P = 0.002), and T classification (P ≤ 0.018). Moreover, we discovered that the expression of TACC3 was considerably linked to a wide range of TIICs, especially the T cells and NK cells. Single-cell results found that TACC3 was mainly expressed in the immune cells (especially tprolif cells) and malignant cells. TACC3 gene expression was positively correlated with TMB and MSI, and TACC3 may provide a prediction of the efficacy of immunotherapy. Moreover, the correlation analysis between TACC3 gene expression and immune checkpoint gene expression revealed that TACC3 may coordinate the activities of these ICP genes in different signal transduction pathways. TACC3 is related to biological progress (BP), cellular component (CC), and molecular function (MF). The pathways involved in the interaction network involving TACC3 include nonhomologous end-joining, RNA transport, pantothenate and CoA biosynthesis, homologous recombination, and nucleotide excision repair. Furthermore, we investigated the association between the expression of TACC3 and the use of antitumor drugs, and TACC3 was positively correlated with response to most drugs.

Conclusion

The findings from this research offer robust proof that the expression of TACC3 could be a prognostic marker correlated with TIICs in LUAD. TACC3 can also provide new ideas for immunotherapy as a potential therapeutic target.

Comprehensive Analysis Uncovers Prognostic and Immunogenic Characteristics of Cellular Senescence for Lung Adenocarcinoma

Cellular senescence plays a crucial role in tumorigenesis, development and immune modulation in cancers. However, to date, a robust and reliable cellular senescence-related signature and its value in clinical outcomes and immunotherapy response remain unexplored in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients. Through exploring the expression profiles of 278 cellular senescence-related genes in 936 LUAD patients, a cellular senescence-related signature (SRS) was constructed and validated as an independent prognostic predictor for LUAD patients. Notably, patients with high SRS scores exhibited upregulation of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) and an immunosuppressive phenotype. Further analysis showed that SRS combined with immune checkpoint expression or TMB served as a good predictor for patients’ clinical outcomes, and patients with low SRS scores might benefit from immunotherapy. Collectively, our findings demonstrated that SRS involved in the regulation of the tumor immune microenvironment through SASP was a robust biomarker for the immunotherapeutic response and prognosis in LUAD.

Primary Cilia, Ciliogenesis and the Actin Cytoskeleton: A Little Less Resorption, A Little More Actin Please

Primary cilia are microtubule-based organelles that extend from the apical surface of most mammalian cells, forming when the basal body (derived from the mother centriole) docks at the apical cell membrane. They act as universal cellular "antennae" in vertebrates that receive and integrate mechanical and chemical signals from the extracellular environment, serving diverse roles in chemo-, mechano- and photo-sensation that control developmental signaling, cell polarity and cell proliferation. Mutations in ciliary genes cause a major group of inherited developmental disorders called ciliopathies. There are very few preventative treatments or new therapeutic interventions that modify disease progression or the long-term outlook of patients with these conditions. Recent work has identified at least four distinct but interrelated cellular processes that regulate cilia formation and maintenance, comprising the cell cycle, cellular proteostasis, signaling pathways and structural influences of the actin cytoskeleton. The actin cytoskeleton is composed of microfilaments that are formed from filamentous (F) polymers of globular G-actin subunits. Actin filaments are organized into bundles and networks, and are attached to the cell membrane, by diverse cross-linking proteins. During cell migration, actin filament bundles form either radially at the leading edge or as axial stress fibers. Early studies demonstrated that loss-of-function mutations in ciliopathy genes increased stress fiber formation and impaired ciliogenesis whereas pharmacological inhibition of actin polymerization promoted ciliogenesis. These studies suggest that polymerization of the actin cytoskeleton, F-actin branching and the formation of stress fibers all inhibit primary cilium formation, whereas depolymerization or depletion of actin enhance ciliogenesis. Here, we review the mechanistic basis for these effects on ciliogenesis, which comprise several cellular processes acting in concert at different timescales. Actin polymerization is both a physical barrier to both cilia-targeted vesicle transport and to the membrane remodeling required for ciliogenesis. In contrast, actin may cause cilia loss by localizing disassembly factors at the ciliary base, and F-actin branching may itself activate the YAP/TAZ pathway to promote cilia disassembly. The fundamental role of actin polymerization in the control of ciliogenesis may present potential new targets for disease-modifying therapeutic approaches in treating ciliopathies.

TACC3 promotes prostate cancer cell proliferation and restrains primary cilium formation

Although primary cilia abnormalities have been frequently observed in multiple cancers, including prostate cancer (PCa), the molecular mechanisms underlying primary ciliogenesis repression in PCa cells remain unclear. Transforming acidic coiled-coil protein-3 (TACC3), whose deregulation has been implicated in the pathogenesis of several types of cancer, is a key centrosomal protein that plays a crucial role in centrosome/microtubule dynamics, potentially impacting primary cilium generation. Here, we showed that TACC3 was markedly upregulated in PCa and that knockdown of TACC3 restrained tumorigenesis and tumor growth in vitro and in vivo. Additionally, we found that TACC3 interacts with filamin A, and elevated levels of TACC3 disrupted the interaction between filamin A and meckelin, thereby restraining primary cilium formation in PCa cells.

Downregulation of TACC3 inhibits tumor growth and migration in osteosarcoma cells through regulation of the NF-κB signaling pathway

TACC3, a member of the transforming acidic coiled-coil protein (TACC) family, is a multifunctional protein that is involved in various biological functions, including proliferation and differentiation of tumor cells, cancer progression and metastasis. The aims of the present study were to examine whether TACC3 expression is associated with the proliferation and migration of osteosarcoma (OS) cells and to investigate the potential underlying molecular mechanisms of TACC3 in OS. First, the levels of mRNA and protein expression in OS cell lines by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blotting, respectively were examined. Second, the effects of TACC3 knockdown and overexpression on the proliferative, migratory and invasive capacities of OS cells were investigated. Finally, western blot analysis was employed to detect the potential mechanism of TACC3 in osteosarcoma. TACC3 expression was significantly increased in osteosarcoma tissues and cell lines, compared to matched controls. The knockdown of TACC3 was able to significantly inhibit the proliferation, migration and invasion of osteosarcoma cells, whereas the overexpression of TACC3 was able to promote cell proliferation and migration. Mechanistically, TACC3 may promote the migration and invasion of osteosarcoma cells via through nuclear factor-κB signaling. These data suggest that TACC3 has an important part in the progression of osteosarcoma and may serve as a potential target for gene therapy.

Clinicopathological and prognostic value of transforming acidic coiled-coil-containing protein 3 (TACC3) expression in soft tissue sarcomas

Transforming acidic coiled-coil-containing protein 3 (TACC3), a microtubule regulator, is associated with various cancers. However, the relationship between TACC3 and soft tissue sarcomas (STS) remains unclear. We investigated the expression of TACC3 in 136 STS patient samples using immunohistochemical (IHC) staining, and the statistical associations between TACC3 expression and clinicopathological characteristics were evaluated. Additionally, the expression levels of the tumor suppressor p53 and of the cell proliferation marker Ki-67 were also assessed by IHC. High TACC3 expression was detected in 94/136 of STS cases (69.1%), and significantly correlated with higher grade according to the French Fédération Nationale des Centres de Lutte Contre le Cancer system (P<0.0001), poorer tumor differentiation (P<0.0001), increased mitotic counts (P<0.0001), advanced stage per American Joint Committee on Cancer guidelines (P<0.0001), higher p53 expression (P = 0.0487), higher Ki-67 expression (P<0.0001), and undergoing postoperative therapy (P = 0.0001). Disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) of patients with high TACC3 expression were significantly shorter (P<0.0001 and P<0.0001, respectively). On multivariate analyses, high TACC3 expression was an independent negative prognostic factor for both DFS and OS (hazard ratio [HR]: 3.074; P = 0.0235 and HR: 8.521; P = 0.0415, respectively). Our results suggest that TACC3 is an independent prognostic factor and may be a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of STS.

TACC3 as an independent prognostic marker for solid tumors: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Recent studies have showed that the transforming acidic coiled coil 3 (TACC3), was aberrantly up-regulated in various solid tumors and was reported to be correlated with unfavorable prognosis in cancer patients. This study aimed to examine the relationship between TACC3 and relevant clinical outcomes. Pubmed, Web of Science, Embase and Cochrane Library were systematically searched to obtain all eligible articles. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to evaluate the influence of TACC3 expression on overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) in solid tumors patients. A total of 1943 patients from 11 articles were included. The result indicated that a significantly shorter OS was observed in patients with high expression level of TACC3 (HR=1.90, 95% CI=1.63-2.23). In the subgroup analysis, the association was also observed in patients with cancers of digestive system (HR=1.85, 95% CI=1.53-2.24). Statistical significance was also observed in subgroup meta-analysis stratified by the cancer type, analysis type and sample size. Furthermore, poorer DFS was observed in patients with high expression level of TACC3 (HR=2.67, 95% CI=2.10-3.40). Additionally, the pooled odds ratios (ORs) showed that increased TACC3 expression was also related to positive lymph node metastasis (OR=1.68, 95% CI=1.26-2.25), tumor differentiation (OR=1.90, 95% CI=1.25-2.88) and TNM stage (OR=1.66, 95% CI=1.25-2.20). In conclusion, the increased expression level of TACC3 was associated with unfavorable prognosis, suggesting that it was a valuable prognosis biomarker or a promising therapeutic target of solid tumors. Further studies should be conducted to confirm the clinical utility of TACC3 in human solid tumors.

The role of TACC3 in mitotic spindle organization

TACC3 regulates spindle organization during mitosis and also regulates centrosome-mediated microtubule nucleation by affecting γ-Tubulin ring complexes. In addition, it interacts with different proteins (such as ch-TOG, clathrin and Aurora-A) to function in mitotic spindle assembly and stability. By forming the TACC3/ch-TOG complex, TACC3 acts as a plus end-tracking protein to promote microtubule elongation. The TACC3/ch-TOG/clathrin complex is formed to stabilize kinetochore fibers by crosslinking adjacent microtubules. Furthermore, the phosphorylation of TACC3 by Aurora-A is important for the formation of TACC3/ch-TOG/clathrin and its recruitment to kinetochore fibers. Recently, the aberrant expression of TACC3 in a variety of human cancers has been linked with mitotic defects. Thus, in this review, we will discuss our current understanding of the biological roles of TACC3 in mitotic spindle organization.

Systematic Identification of Oncogenic EGFR Interaction Partners

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a receptor tyrosine kinase (TK) that—once activated upon ligand binding—leads to receptor dimerization, recruitment of protein complexes, and activation of multiple signaling cascades. The EGFR is frequently overexpressed or mutated in various cancers leading to aberrant signaling and tumor growth. Hence, identification of interaction partners that bind to mutated EGFR can help identify novel targets for drug discovery.

Here, we used a systematic approach to identify novel proteins that are involved in cancerous EGFR signaling. Using a combination of high-content imaging and a mammalian membrane two-hybrid protein–protein interaction method, we identified eight novel interaction partners of EGFR, of which half strongly interacted with oncogenic, hyperactive EGFR variants. One of these, transforming acidic coiled-coil proteins (TACC) 3, stabilizes EGFR on the cell surface, which results in an increase in downstream signaling via the mitogen-activated protein kinase and AKT pathway. Depletion of TACC3 from cells using small hairpin RNA (shRNA) knockdown or small-molecule targeting reduced mitogenic signaling in non-small cell lung cancer cell lines, suggesting that targeting TACC3 has potential as a new therapeutic approach for non-small cell lung cancer.

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A combined screening approach involving an image-based green fluorescent protein-Grb2 translocation assay and a mammalian membrane two-hybrid protein–protein interaction assay identified 11 novel interactors of EGFR.

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Eight of those were further confirmed by co-immunoprecipitation.

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TACC3 was identified as a novel EGFR interactor, which specifically binds to oncogenic EGFR variants.

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TACC3 directly modulates EGFR stability at the cell surface and hence promotes mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling.

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Targeting TACC3 in non-small cell lung cancer cells partially resensitizes TK-resistant cells to TK inhibitors.

TACC3 overexpression in cholangiocarcinoma correlates with poor prognosis and is a potential anti-cancer molecular drug target for HDAC inhibitors

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) have been implicated in multiple malignant tumors, and HDAC inhibitors (HDACIs) exert anti-cancer effects. However, the expression of HDACs and the anti-tumor mechanism of HDACIs in cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) have not yet been elucidated. In this study, we found that expression of HDACs 2, 3, and 8 were up-regulated in CCA tissues and those patients with high expression of HDAC2 and/or HDAC3 had a worse prognosis. In CCA cells, two HDACIs, trichostatin (TSA) and vorinostat (SAHA), suppressed proliferation and induced apoptosis and G2/M cycle arrest. Microarray analysis revealed that TACC3 mRNA was down-regulated in CCA cells treated with TSA. TACC3 was highly expressed in CCA tissues and predicted a poor prognosis in CCA patients. TACC3 knockdown induced G2/M cycle arrest and suppressed the invasion, metastasis, and proliferation of CCA cells, both in vitro and in vivo. TACC3 overexpression reversed the effects of its knockdown. These findings suggest TACC3 may be a useful prognostic biomarker for CCA and is a potential therapeutic target for HDACIs.