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Hussain S, Guo Y, Huo Y, Shi J, Hou Y. Regulation of cancer progression by CK2: an emerging therapeutic target. Med Oncol 2024; 41:94. [PMID: 38526625 DOI: 10.1007/s12032-024-02316-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
Casein kinase II (CK2) is an enzyme with pleiotropic kinase activity that catalyzes the phosphorylation of lots of substrates, including STAT3, p53, JAK2, PTEN, RELA, and AKT, leading to the regulation of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, angiogenesis, and tumor progression. CK2 is observed to have high expression in multiple types of cancer, which is associated with poor prognosis. CK2 holds significant importance in the intricate network of pathways involved in promoting cell proliferation, invasion, migration, apoptosis, and tumor growth by multiple pathways such as JAK2/STAT3, PI3K/AKT, ATF4/p21, and HSP90/Cdc37. In addition to the regulation of cancer progression, increasing evidence suggests that CK2 could regulate tumor immune responses by affecting immune cell activity in the tumor microenvironment resulting in the promotion of tumor immune escape. Therefore, inhibition of CK2 is initially proposed as a pivotal candidate for cancer treatment. In this review, we discussed the role of CK2 in cancer progression and tumor therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shakeel Hussain
- School of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Yilei Guo
- School of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Yu Huo
- School of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Juanjuan Shi
- School of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Yongzhong Hou
- School of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China.
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Gautam N, Wojciech L, Yap J, Chua YL, Ding EM, Sim DC, Tan AS, Ahl PJ, Prasad M, Tung DW, Connolly JE, Adriani G, Brzostek J, Gascoigne NR. Themis controls T cell activation, effector functions, and metabolism of peripheral CD8 + T cells. Life Sci Alliance 2023; 6:e202302156. [PMID: 37739454 PMCID: PMC10517225 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202302156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2023] [Revised: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Themis is important in regulating positive selection of thymocytes during T cell development, but its role in peripheral T cells is less understood. Here, we investigated T cell activation and its sequelae using a tamoxifen-mediated, acute Themis deletion mouse model. We find that proliferation, effector functions including anti-tumor killing, and up-regulation of energy metabolism are severely compromised. This study reveals the phenomenon of peripheral adaptation to loss of Themis, by demonstrating direct TCR-induced defects after acute deletion of Themis that were not evident in peripheral T cells chronically deprived of Themis in dLck-Cre deletion model. Peripheral adaptation to long-term loss was compared using chronic versus acute tamoxifen-mediated deletion and with the (chronic) dLck-Cre deletion model. We found that upon chronic tamoxifen-mediated Themis deletion, there was modulation in the gene expression profile for both TCR and cytokine signaling pathways. This profile overlapped with (chronic) dLck-Cre deletion model. Hence, we found that peripheral adaptation induced changes to both TCR and cytokine signaling modules. Our data highlight the importance of Themis in the activation of CD8+ T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Namrata Gautam
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Lukasz Wojciech
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Jiawei Yap
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Yen Leong Chua
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Eyan Mw Ding
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Don Cn Sim
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Alrina Sm Tan
- Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Patricia J Ahl
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Mukul Prasad
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Desmond Wh Tung
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - John E Connolly
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Giulia Adriani
- Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Joanna Brzostek
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Nicholas Rj Gascoigne
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Immunology Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- https://ror.org/01tgyzw49 Translational Cancer Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
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Ogata A, Yamada T, Hattori S, Ikenuma H, Abe J, Ichise M, Suzuki M, Ito K, Kato T, Amaike K, Hirota T, Itami K, Kimura Y. Development of a novel PET ligand, [11C]GO289 targeting CK2 expressed in the brain. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2023; 90:129327. [PMID: 37187253 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2023.129327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Positron emission tomography (PET) is a powerful imaging tool that enables early in vivo detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD). For this purpose, various PET ligands have been developed to image β-amyloid and tau protein aggregates characteristically found in the brain of AD patients. In this study, we initiated to develop another type of PET ligand that targets protein kinase CK2 (formerly termed as casein kinase II), because its expression level is known to be altered in postmortem AD brains. CK2 is a serine/threonine protein kinase, an important component of cellular signaling pathways that control cellular degeneration. In AD, the CK2 level in the brain is thought to be elevated by its involvement in both phosphorylation of proteins such as tau and neuroinflammation. Decreased CK2 activity and expression levels lead to β-amyloid accumulation. In addition, since CK2 also contributes to the phosphorylation of tau protein, the expression level and activity of CK2 is expected to undergo significant changes during the progression of AD pathology. Furthermore, CK2 could act as a potential target for modulating the inflammatory response in AD. Therefore, PET imaging targeting CK2 expressed in the brain could be a useful another imaging biomarker for AD. We synthesized and radiolabeled a CK2 inhibitor, [11C]GO289, in high yields from its precursor and [11C]methyl iodide under basic conditions. On autoradiography, [11C]GO289 specifically bound to CK2 in both rat and human brain sections. On baseline PET imaging, this ligand entered and rapidly washed out of the rat brain with its peak activity rather being small (SUV < 1.0). However, on blocking, there was no detectable CK2 specific binding signal. Thus, [11C]GO289 may be useful in vitro but not so in vivo in its current formulation. The lack of detectable specific binding signal in the latter may be due to a relatively high component of nonspecific binding signal in the overall rather weak PET signal, or it may also be related to the known fact that ATP can competitively binds to subunits of CK2, reducing its availability for this ligand. In the future, it will be necessary for PET imaging of CK2 to try out different non-ATP competitive formulations of CK2 inhibitor that can also provide significantly higher in vivo brain penetration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aya Ogata
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Gifu University of Medical Science (GUMS), Kani, Japan; Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Takashi Yamada
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Saori Hattori
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Ikenuma
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Junichiro Abe
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Masanori Ichise
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Masaaki Suzuki
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Kengo Ito
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Takashi Kato
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan
| | - Kazuma Amaike
- Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Hirota
- Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM) Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Kenichiro Itami
- Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan; Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM) Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Yasuyuki Kimura
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, Center for Development of Advanced Medicine for Dementia, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Obu, Japan.
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Chen L, Zhang S, Li Q, Li J, Deng H, Zhang S, Meng R. Emerging role of Protein Kinase CK2 in Tumor immunity. Front Oncol 2022; 12:1065027. [DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1065027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2022] [Accepted: 11/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein kinase CK2, a conserved serine/threonine-protein kinase, is ubiquitous in cells and regulates various intracellular processes, especially in tumor cells. As one of the earliest discovered protein kinases in humans, CK2 plays a crucial role in phosphorylating or associating with hundreds of substrates to modulate several signaling pathways. Excellent reviews have reported that the overexpression of CK2 could be observed in many cancers and was closely associated with tumor occurrence and development. The elevation of CK2 is also an indicator of a poor prognosis. Recently, increasing attention has been paid to the relationship between CK2 and tumor immunity. However, there is no comprehensive description of how CK2 regulates the immune cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME). Also, the underlying mechanisms are still not very clear. In this review, we systematically summarized the correlation between CK2 and tumor immunity, primarily the effects on various immune cells, both in innate and adaptive immunity in the TME. With the comprehensive development of immunotherapy and the mounting transformation research of CK2 inhibitors from the bench to the clinic, this review will provide vital information to find new treatment options for enhancing the efficacy of immunotherapy.
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