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Fan G, Yu B, Tang L, Zhu R, Chen J, Zhu Y, Huang H, Zhou L, Liu J, Wang W, Tao Z, Zhang F, Yu S, Lu X, Cao Y, Du S, Li H, Li J, Zhang J, Ren H, Gires O, Liu H, Wang X, Qin J, Wang H. TSPAN8 + myofibroblastic cancer-associated fibroblasts promote chemoresistance in patients with breast cancer. Sci Transl Med 2024; 16:eadj5705. [PMID: 38569015 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adj5705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are abundant stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment that promote cancer progression and relapse. However, the heterogeneity and regulatory roles of CAFs underlying chemoresistance remain largely unclear. Here, we performed a single-cell analysis using high-dimensional flow cytometry analysis and identified a distinct senescence-like tetraspanin-8 (TSPAN8)+ myofibroblastic CAF (myCAF) subset, which is correlated with therapeutic resistance and poor survival in multiple cohorts of patients with breast cancer (BC). TSPAN8+ myCAFs potentiate the stemness of the surrounding BC cells through secretion of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP)-related factors IL-6 and IL-8 to counteract chemotherapy. NAD-dependent protein deacetylase sirtuin 6 (SIRT6) reduction was responsible for the senescence-like phenotype and tumor-promoting role of TSPAN8+ myCAFs. Mechanistically, TSPAN8 promoted the phosphorylation of ubiquitin E3 ligase retinoblastoma binding protein 6 (RBBP6) at Ser772 by recruiting MAPK11, thereby inducing SIRT6 protein destruction. In turn, SIRT6 down-regulation up-regulated GLS1 and PYCR1, which caused TSPAN8+ myCAFs to secrete aspartate and proline, and therefore proved a nutritional niche to support BC outgrowth. By demonstrating that TSPAN8+SIRT6low myCAFs were tightly associated with unfavorable disease outcomes, we proposed that the combined regimen of anti-TSPAN8 antibody and SIRT6 activator MDL-800 is a promising approach to overcome chemoresistance. These findings highlight that senescence contributes to CAF heterogeneity and chemoresistance and suggest that targeting TSPAN8+ myCAFs is a promising approach to circumvent chemoresistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangjian Fan
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Bo Yu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center; Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Lei Tang
- Department of Oncology, Suzhou Kowloon Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Suzhou 215000, China
| | - Rongxuan Zhu
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Jianhua Chen
- Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center; Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Ying Zhu
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - He Huang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Metabolic Remodeling and Health, Institute of Metabolism and Integrative Biology, Fudan University, Shanghai 200243, China
| | - Liying Zhou
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Metabolic Remodeling and Health, Institute of Metabolism and Integrative Biology, Fudan University, Shanghai 200243, China
| | - Jun Liu
- Department of Breast-thyroid Surgery, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Breast-thyroid Surgery, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Zhonghua Tao
- Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center; Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Fengchun Zhang
- Department of Oncology, Suzhou Kowloon Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Suzhou 215000, China
| | - Siwei Yu
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Xiaoqing Lu
- Shanxi Province Cancer Hospital/Shanxi Hospital Affiliated to Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences/Cancer Hospital Affiliated to Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030013, China
| | - Yuan Cao
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Shaoqian Du
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Huihui Li
- Department of Breast Medical Oncology, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong Province 271016, China
| | - Junjian Li
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Jian Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Cell Differentiation and Apoptosis, Ministry of Education, Department of Pathophysiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao-Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 342500, China
| | - He Ren
- Center for GI Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment, Tumor Immunology and Cytotherapy, Medical Research Center, Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao 266000, China
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU, Munich 80336, Germany
| | - Haikun Liu
- Division of Molecular Neurogenetics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg 69120, Germany
| | - Xin Wang
- Department of Surgery, Chinese University of Hong Kong Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Jun Qin
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tissue Microenvironment and Tumor, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Hongxia Wang
- Precision Research Center for Refractory Diseases, Institute for Clinical Research, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
- Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center; Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
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Broghammer F, Korovina I, Gouda M, Celotti M, van Es J, Lange I, Brunner C, Mircetic J, Coppes RP, Gires O, Dahl A, Seifert M, Cordes N. Resistance of HNSCC cell models to pan-FGFR inhibition depends on the EMT phenotype associating with clinical outcome. Mol Cancer 2024; 23:39. [PMID: 38378518 PMCID: PMC10880239 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-024-01954-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Focal adhesion signaling involving receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK) and integrins co-controls cancer cell survival and therapy resistance. However, co-dependencies between these receptors and therapeutically exploitable vulnerabilities remain largely elusive in HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). METHODS The cytotoxic and radiochemosensitizing potential of targeting 10 RTK and β1 integrin was determined in up to 20 3D matrix-grown HNSCC cell models followed by drug screening and patient-derived organoid validation. RNA sequencing and protein-based biochemical assays were performed for molecular characterization. Bioinformatically identified transcriptomic signatures were applied to patient cohorts. RESULTS Fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR 1-4) targeting exhibited the strongest cytotoxic and radiosensitizing effects as monotherapy and combined with β1 integrin inhibition, exceeding the efficacy of the other RTK studied. Pharmacological pan-FGFR inhibition elicited responses ranging from cytotoxicity/radiochemosensitization to resistance/radiation protection. RNA sequence analysis revealed a mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET) in sensitive cell models, whereas resistant cell models exhibited a partial epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Accordingly, inhibition of EMT-associated kinases such as EGFR caused reduced adaptive resistance and enhanced (radio)sensitization to FGFR inhibition cell model- and organoid-dependently. Transferring the EMT-associated transcriptomic profiles to HNSCC patient cohorts not only demonstrated their prognostic value but also provided a conclusive validation of the presence of EGFR-related vulnerabilities that can be strategically exploited for therapeutic interventions. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates that pan-FGFR inhibition elicits a beneficial radiochemosensitizing and a detrimental radioprotective potential in HNSCC cell models. Adaptive EMT-associated resistance appears to be of clinical importance, and we provide effective molecular approaches to exploit this therapeutically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Broghammer
- OncoRay - National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany
| | - Irina Korovina
- OncoRay - National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany
- Institute of Radiooncology - OncoRay, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), 01328, Dresden, Germany
| | - Mahesh Gouda
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwigs-Maximilians-University University Hospital, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Martina Celotti
- Hubrecht Institute, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and University Medical Center Utrecht, 3584 CT, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Johan van Es
- Hubrecht Institute, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and University Medical Center Utrecht, 3584 CT, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Inga Lange
- OncoRay - National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany
| | - Cornelia Brunner
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ulm University Medical Center, 89075, Ulm, Germany
| | - Jovan Mircetic
- German Cancer Consortium, Partner Site Dresden: German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Mildred Scheel Early Career Center (MSNZ) P2, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany
| | - Robert P Coppes
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, Section of Molecular Cell Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, 9713, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, 9713, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Olivier Gires
- Institute of Radiooncology - OncoRay, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), 01328, Dresden, Germany
| | - Andreas Dahl
- DRESDEN-Concept Genome Center, Center for Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany
| | - Michael Seifert
- Institute for Medical Informatics and Biometry (IMB), Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany
- National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Partner Site Dresden, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69192, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Nils Cordes
- OncoRay - National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
- Institute of Radiooncology - OncoRay, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), 01328, Dresden, Germany.
- German Cancer Consortium, Partner Site Dresden: German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.
- National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Partner Site Dresden, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69192, Heidelberg, Germany.
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
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Stocker M, Blancke Soares A, Liebsch G, Meier RJ, Canis M, Gires O, Haubner F. Quantification of oxygen consumption in head and neck cancer using fluorescent sensor foil technology. Front Oncol 2024; 14:1002798. [PMID: 38390268 PMCID: PMC10882065 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1002798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients suffer from frequent local recurrences that negatively impact on prognosis. Hence, distinguishing tumor and normal tissue is of clinical importance as it may improve the detection of residual tumor tissue in surgical resection margins and during imaging-based surgery planning. Differences in O2 consumption (OC) can be used to this aim, as they provide options for improved surgical, image-guided approaches. Methods In the present study, the potential of a fluorescent sensor foil-based technology to quantify OC in HNSCC was evaluated in an in vitro 3D model and in situ in patients. Results In vitro measurements of OC using hypopharyngeal and esophageal cell lines allowed a specific detection of tumor cell spheroids embedded together with cancer-associated fibroblasts in type I collagen extracellular matrix down to a diameter of 440 µm. Pre-surgery in situ measurements were conducted with a handheld recording device and sensor foils with an oxygen permeable membrane and immobilized O2-reactive fluorescent dyes. Lateral tongue carcinoma and carcinoma of the floor of the mouth were chosen for analysis owing to their facilitated accessibility. OC was evaluated over a time span of 60 seconds and was significantly higher in tumor tissue compared to healthy mucosa in the vicinity of the tumor. Discussion Hence, OC quantification using fluorescent sensor foil-based technology is a relevant parameter for the differentiation of tumor tissue of the head and neck region and may support surgery planning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Stocker
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Alexandra Blancke Soares
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Gregor Liebsch
- PreSens Precision Sensing GmbH, Imaging Solutions, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Robert J Meier
- PreSens Precision Sensing GmbH, Imaging Solutions, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Frank Haubner
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
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Wang Y, Zhang L, Tan J, Zhang Z, Liu Y, Hu X, Lu B, Gao Y, Tong L, Liu Z, Zhang H, Lin PP, Li B, Gires O, Zhang T. Longitudinal detection of subcategorized CD44v6 + CTCs and circulating tumor endothelial cells (CTECs) enables novel clinical stratification and improves prognostic prediction of small cell lung cancer: A prospective, multi-center study. Cancer Lett 2023; 571:216337. [PMID: 37553013 DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2023.216337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/10/2023]
Abstract
Current management of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) remains challenging. Effective biomarkers are needed to subdivide patients presenting distinct treatment response and clinical outcomes. An understanding of heterogeneous phenotypes of aneuploid CD31- circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and CD31+ circulating tumor endothelial cells (CTECs) may provide novel insights in the clinical management of SCLC. In the present translational and prospective study, increased cancer metastasis-related cell proliferation and motility, accompanied with up-regulated mesenchymal marker vimentin but down-regulated epithelial marker E-cadherin, were observed in both lentivirus infected SCLC and NSCLC cells overexpressing the stemness marker CD44v6. Aneuploid CTCs and CTECs expressing CD44v6 were longitudinally detected by SE-iFISH in 120 SCLC patients. Positive detection of baseline CD44v6+ CTCs and CD44v6+ CTECs was significantly associated with enhanced hepatic metastasis. Karyotype analysis revealed that chromosome 8 (Chr8) in CD44v6+ CTCs shifted from trisomy 8 towards multiploidy in post-therapeutic patients compared to pre-treatment subjects. Furthermore, the burden of baseline CD44v6+ CTCs (t0) or amid the therapy (t1-2), the ratio of baseline CD31+ CTEC/CD31- CTC (t0), and CTC-WBC clusters (t0) were correlated with treatment response and distant metastases, particularly brain metastasis, in subjects with limited disease (LD-SCLC) but not in those with extensive disease (ED-SCLC). Multivariate survival analysis validated that longitudinally detected CD44v6+/CD31- CTCs was an independent prognostic factor for inferior survival in SCLC patients. Our study provides evidence for the first time that comprehensive analyses of CTCs, CTECs, and their respective CD44v6+ subtypes enable clinical stratification and improve prognostic prediction of SCLC, particularly for potentially curable LD-SCLC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Wang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Lina Zhang
- Department of Cancer Research Center, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Jinjing Tan
- Department of Cancer Research Center, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Zhiyun Zhang
- Department of Cancer Research Center, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Yanxia Liu
- Department of Cancer Research Center, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Xingsheng Hu
- Department of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China
| | - Baohua Lu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Yuan Gao
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Li Tong
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Zan Liu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Hongxia Zhang
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Beijing Luhe Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | | | - Baolan Li
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU, Munich, Germany.
| | - Tongmei Zhang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic, Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China.
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Shi E, Wu Z, Karaoglan BS, Schwenk-Zieger S, Kranz G, Abdul Razak N, Reichel CA, Canis M, Baumeister P, Zeidler R, Gires O. 5'-Ectonucleotidase CD73/NT5E supports EGFR-mediated invasion of HPV-negative head and neck carcinoma cells. J Biomed Sci 2023; 30:72. [PMID: 37620936 PMCID: PMC10463398 DOI: 10.1186/s12929-023-00968-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of malignant cells is a driving force of disease progression in human papillomavirus-negative (HPV-negative) head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC). Sustained hyper-activation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) induces an invasion-promoting subtype of EMT (EGFR-EMT) characterized by a gene signature ("'EGFR-EMT_Signature'") comprising 5´-ectonucleotidase CD73. Generally, CD73 promotes immune evasion via adenosine (ADO) formation and associates with EMT and metastases. However, CD73 regulation through EGFR signaling remains under-explored and targeting options are amiss. METHODS CD73 functions in EGFR-mediated tumor cell dissemination were addressed in 2D and 3D cellular models of migration and invasion. The novel antagonizing antibody 22E6 and therapeutic antibody Cetuximab served as inhibitors of CD73 and EGFR, respectively, in combinatorial treatment. Specificity for CD73 and its role as effector or regulator of EGFR-EMT were assessed upon CD73 knock-down and over-expression. CD73 correlation to tumor budding was studied in an in-house primary HNSCC cohort. Expression correlations, and prognostic and predictive values were analyzed using machine learning-based algorithms and Kaplan-Meier survival curves in single cell and bulk RNA sequencing datasets. RESULTS CD73/NT5E is induced by the EGF/EGFR-EMT-axis and blocked by Cetuximab and MEK inhibitor. Inhibition of CD73 with the novel antagonizing antibody 22E6 specifically repressed EGFR-dependent migration and invasion of HNSCC cells in 2D. Cetuximab and 22E6 alone reduced local invasion in a 3D-model. Interestingly, combining inefficient low-dose concentrations of Cetuximab and 22E6 revealed highly potent in invasion inhibition, substantially reducing the functional IC50 of Cetuximab regarding local invasion. A role for CD73 as an effector of EGFR-EMT in local invasion was further supported by knock-down and over-expression experiments in vitro and by high expression in malignant cells budding from primary tumors. CD73 expression correlated with EGFR pathway activity, EMT, and partial EMT (p-EMT) in malignant single HNSCC cells and in large patient cohorts. Contrary to published data, CD73 was not a prognostic marker of overall survival (OS) in the TCGA-HNSCC cohort when patients were stratified for HPV-status. However, CD73 prognosticated OS of oral cavity carcinomas. Furthermore, CD73 expression levels correlated with response to Cetuximab in HPV-negative advanced, metastasized HNSCC patients. CONCLUSIONS In sum, CD73 is an effector of EGF/EGFR-mediated local invasion and a potential therapeutic target and candidate predictive marker for advanced HPV-negative HNSCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enxian Shi
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Zhengquan Wu
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Birnur Sinem Karaoglan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Sabina Schwenk-Zieger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Nilofer Abdul Razak
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph A Reichel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Reinhard Zeidler
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Institute of Structural Biology, Research Unit Therapeutic Antibodies, Helmholtz Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Str. 21, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
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He M, Gouda M, Gires O. EpCAM and EGFR crosstalk in the development of resistance towards Cetuximab treatment in head and neck cancer. Oral Oncol 2023; 143:106465. [PMID: 37348447 DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2023.106465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Revised: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 06/18/2023] [Indexed: 06/24/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Min He
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Mahesh Gouda
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany.
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Wu Z, Uhl B, Gires O, Reichel CA. A transcriptomic pan-cancer signature for survival prognostication and prediction of immunotherapy response based on endothelial senescence. J Biomed Sci 2023; 30:21. [PMID: 36978029 PMCID: PMC10045484 DOI: 10.1186/s12929-023-00915-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The microvascular endothelium inherently controls nutrient delivery, oxygen supply, and immune surveillance of malignant tumors, thus representing both biological prerequisite and therapeutic vulnerability in cancer. Recently, cellular senescence emerged as a fundamental characteristic of solid malignancies. In particular, tumor endothelial cells have been reported to acquire a senescence-associated secretory phenotype, which is characterized by a pro-inflammatory transcriptional program, eventually promoting tumor growth and formation of distant metastases. We therefore hypothesize that senescence of tumor endothelial cells (TEC) represents a promising target for survival prognostication and prediction of immunotherapy efficacy in precision oncology. METHODS Published single-cell RNA sequencing datasets of different cancer entities were analyzed for cell-specific senescence, before generating a pan-cancer endothelial senescence-related transcriptomic signature termed EC.SENESCENCE.SIG. Utilizing this signature, machine learning algorithms were employed to construct survival prognostication and immunotherapy response prediction models. Machine learning-based feature selection algorithms were applied to select key genes as prognostic biomarkers. RESULTS Our analyses in published transcriptomic datasets indicate that in a variety of cancers, endothelial cells exhibit the highest cellular senescence as compared to tumor cells or other cells in the vascular compartment of malignant tumors. Based on these findings, we developed a TEC-associated, senescence-related transcriptomic signature (EC.SENESCENCE.SIG) that positively correlates with pro-tumorigenic signaling, tumor-promoting dysbalance of immune cell responses, and impaired patient survival across multiple cancer entities. Combining clinical patient data with a risk score computed from EC.SENESCENCE.SIG, a nomogram model was constructed that enhanced the accuracy of clinical survival prognostication. Towards clinical application, we identified three genes as pan-cancer biomarkers for survival probability estimation. As therapeutic perspective, a machine learning model constructed on EC.SENESCENCE.SIG provided superior pan-cancer prediction for immunotherapy response than previously published transcriptomic models. CONCLUSIONS We here established a pan-cancer transcriptomic signature for survival prognostication and prediction of immunotherapy response based on endothelial senescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengquan Wu
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwigs-Maximilians-University Medical Centre, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Bernd Uhl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwigs-Maximilians-University Medical Centre, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Partner Site Munich and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwigs-Maximilians-University Medical Centre, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph A Reichel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwigs-Maximilians-University Medical Centre, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.
- Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
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Zhou J, Schwenk-Zieger S, Kranz G, Walz C, Klauschen F, Dhawan S, Canis M, Gires O, Haubner F, Baumeister P, Kohlbauer V. Isolation and characterization of head and neck cancer-derived peritumoral and cancer-associated fibroblasts. Front Oncol 2022; 12:984138. [PMID: 36544698 PMCID: PMC9760815 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.984138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) are characterized by strong cellular and molecular heterogeneity and treatment resistance entailing poor survival. Besides cell-intrinsic properties, carcinoma cells receive important cues from non-malignant cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are a major component of the TME that impact on the molecular make-up of malignant cells and have a decisive function in tumor progression. However, the potential functionality of fibroblasts within tumor-adjacent, macroscopically normal tissue remains poorly explored. Methods Here, we isolated primary peritumoral fibroblasts (PtFs) from macroscopically normal tissue in vicinity of primary human papillomavirus-negative and -positive oropharyngeal HNSCC and compared their phenotype and functionality with matched CAFs (n = 5 pairs) and with human oral fibroblasts (hOFs). Results Expression patterns of CD90, CD73, CD105, smooth muscle actin, Vimentin, and S100A4 were comparable in PtFs, CAFs, and hOFs. Cell proliferation and doubling times of CAFs and PtFs were heterogeneous across patients (n =2 PtF>CAF; n = 1 CAF>PtF; n = 2 CAF=PtF) and reflected inferior growth than hOFs. Furthermore, PtFs displayed an reduced heterogeneity in cell size compared to matched CAFs, which were characterized by the presence of single large cells. Overall, conditioned supernatants from CAFs had more frequently growth-promoting effects on a panel of carcinoma cell lines of the upper aerodigestive tract carcinoma cell lines (Cal27, Cal33, FaDu, and Kyse30), whereas significant differences in migration-inducing effects demonstrated a higher potential of PtFs. Except for Kyse30, CAFs were significantly superior to hOFs in promoting proliferation, while PtFs induced stronger migration than hOFs in all carcinoma lines tested. Analysis of soluble factors demonstrated significantly increased VEGF-A production in CAFs (except in pat.8), and significantly increased PDGF-BB production in PtFs of two patients. Tube formation assays confirmed a significantly enhanced angiogenic potential of conditioned supernatants from CAFs compared to hOFs on human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs) in vitro. Discussion Hence, matched CAFs and PtFs present in HNSCC patients are heterogeneous in their proliferation-, migration-, and angiogenesis-promoting capacity. Despite this heterogeneity, CAFs induced stronger carcinoma cell proliferation and HUVEC tube formation overall, whereas PtFs promoted migration of tumor cells more strongly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiefu Zhou
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany
| | - Sabina Schwenk-Zieger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph Walz
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Frederik Klauschen
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Sharduli Dhawan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany,Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer”, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany,Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer”, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Frank Haubner
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany,Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer”, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Vera Kohlbauer
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU), Munich, Germany,*Correspondence: Vera Kohlbauer,
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9
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Schinke H, Shi E, Lin Z, Quadt T, Kranz G, Zhou J, Wang H, Hess J, Heuer S, Belka C, Zitzelsberger H, Schumacher U, Genduso S, Riecken K, Gao Y, Wu Z, Reichel CA, Walz C, Canis M, Unger K, Baumeister P, Pan M, Gires O. A transcriptomic map of EGFR-induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition identifies prognostic and therapeutic targets for head and neck cancer. Mol Cancer 2022; 21:178. [PMID: 36076232 PMCID: PMC9454230 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-022-01646-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is both a driver oncogene and a therapeutic target in advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). However, response to EGFR treatment is inconsistent and lacks markers for treatment prediction. This study investigated EGFR-induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) as a central parameter in tumor progression and identified novel prognostic and therapeutic targets, and a candidate predictive marker for EGFR therapy response. Methods Transcriptomic profiles were analyzed by RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) following EGFR-mediated EMT in responsive human HNSCC cell lines. Exclusive genes were extracted via differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and a risk score was determined through forward feature selection and Cox regression models in HNSCC cohorts. Functional characterization of selected prognostic genes was conducted in 2D and 3D cellular models, and findings were validated by immunohistochemistry in primary HNSCC. Results An EGFR-mediated EMT gene signature composed of n = 171 genes was identified in responsive cell lines and transferred to the TCGA-HNSCC cohort. A 5-gene risk score comprising DDIT4, FADD, ITGB4, NCEH1, and TIMP1 prognosticated overall survival (OS) in TCGA and was confirmed in independent HNSCC cohorts. The EGFR-mediated EMT signature was distinct from EMT hallmark and partial EMT (pEMT) meta-programs with a differing enrichment pattern in single malignant cells. Molecular characterization showed that ITGB4 was upregulated in primary tumors and metastases compared to normal mucosa and correlated with EGFR/MAPK activity in tumor bulk and single malignant cells. Preferential localization of ITGB4 together with its ligand laminin 5 at tumor-stroma interfaces correlated with increased tumor budding in primary HNSCC tissue sections. In vitro, ITGB4 knock-down reduced EGFR-mediated migration and invasion and ITGB4-antagonizing antibody ASC8 impaired 2D and 3D invasion. Furthermore, a logistic regression model defined ITGB4 as a predictive marker of progression-free survival in response to Cetuximab in recurrent metastatic HNSCC patients. Conclusions EGFR-mediated EMT conveyed through MAPK activation contributes to HNSCC progression upon induction of migration and invasion. A 5-gene risk score based on a novel EGFR-mediated EMT signature prognosticated survival of HNSCC patients and determined ITGB4 as potential therapeutic and predictive target in patients with strong EGFR-mediated EMT. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12943-022-01646-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Enxian Shi
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Zhongyang Lin
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Tanja Quadt
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Jiefu Zhou
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Hongxia Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 100 Haining Road, Shanghai, China
| | - Julia Hess
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Steffen Heuer
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Claus Belka
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Horst Zitzelsberger
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Udo Schumacher
- Institute of Anatomy and Experimental Morphology, University Cancer Center Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Sandra Genduso
- Institute of Anatomy and Experimental Morphology, University Cancer Center Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Kristoffer Riecken
- Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Yujing Gao
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Zhengquan Wu
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph A Reichel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph Walz
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Kristian Unger
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Min Pan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany. .,Department of Otorhinolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Yuzhong District, Chongqing, China.
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany. .,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Germany.
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Flach S, Howarth K, Hackinger S, Pipinikas C, Ellis P, McLay K, Marsico G, Walz C, Käsmann L, Reichel C, Gires O, Canis M, Baumeister P. 684P Liquid biopsy for detection of molecular residual disease and recurrence in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Ann Oncol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.annonc.2022.07.808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
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11
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Flach S, Howarth K, Hackinger S, Pipinikas C, Ellis P, McLay K, Marsico G, Forshew T, Walz C, Reichel CA, Gires O, Canis M, Baumeister P. Liquid BIOpsy for MiNimal RESidual DiSease Detection in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (LIONESS)-a personalised circulating tumour DNA analysis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Br J Cancer 2022; 126:1186-1195. [PMID: 35132238 PMCID: PMC9023460 DOI: 10.1038/s41416-022-01716-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2021] [Revised: 12/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) remain a substantial burden to global health. Cell-free circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) is an emerging biomarker but has not been studied sufficiently in HNSCC. METHODS We conducted a single-centre prospective cohort study to investigate ctDNA in patients with p16-negative HNSCC who received curative-intent primary surgical treatment. Whole-exome sequencing was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumour tissue. We utilised RaDaRTM, a highly sensitive personalised assay using deep sequencing for tumour-specific variants, to analyse serial pre- and post-operative plasma samples for evidence of minimal residual disease and recurrence. RESULTS In 17 patients analysed, personalised panels were designed to detect 34 to 52 somatic variants. Data show ctDNA detection in baseline samples taken prior to surgery in 17 of 17 patients. In post-surgery samples, ctDNA could be detected at levels as low as 0.0006% variant allele frequency. In all cases with clinical recurrence to date, ctDNA was detected prior to progression, with lead times ranging from 108 to 253 days. CONCLUSIONS This study illustrates the potential of ctDNA as a biomarker for detecting minimal residual disease and recurrence in HNSCC and demonstrates the feasibility of personalised ctDNA assays for the detection of disease prior to clinical recurrence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanne Flach
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) of Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.
| | | | | | | | - Pete Ellis
- Inivata Ltd, Babraham Research Park, Cambridge, UK
| | | | | | - Tim Forshew
- Inivata Ltd, Babraham Research Park, Cambridge, UK
| | - Christoph Walz
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph A Reichel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) of Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) of Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalised Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", German Research Centre for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) of Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalised Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", German Research Centre for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) of Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalised Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", German Research Centre for Environmental Health GmbH, Neuherberg, Munich, Germany
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12
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Weber P, Künstner A, Hess J, Unger K, Marschner S, Idel C, Ribbat-Idel J, Baumeister P, Gires O, Walz C, Rietzler S, Valeanu L, Herkommer T, Kreutzer L, Klymenko O, Drexler G, Kirchner T, Maihöfer C, Ganswindt U, Walch A, Sterr M, Lickert H, Canis M, Rades D, Perner S, Berriel Diaz M, Herzig S, Lauber K, Wollenberg B, Busch H, Belka C, Zitzelsberger H. Therapy-related transcriptional subtypes in matched primary and recurrent head and neck cancer. Clin Cancer Res 2021; 28:1038-1052. [PMID: 34965946 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-21-2244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE The genetic relatedness between primary and recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) reflects the extent of heterogeneity and therapy-driven selection of tumor subpopulations. Yet, current treatment of recurrent HNSCC ignores the molecular characteristics of therapy-resistant tumor populations. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN From 150 tumors, 74 primary HNSCCs were RNA-sequenced and 38 matched primary/recurrent tumor pairs were both, whole-exome and RNA-sequenced. Transcriptome analysis determined the predominant classical (CL), basal (BA) and inflamed-mesenchymal (IMS) transcriptional subtypes according to an established classification. Genomic alterations and clonal compositions of tumors were evaluated from whole-exome data. RESULTS While CL and IMS subtypes were more common in primary HNSCC with low recurrence rates, the BA subtype was more prevalent and stable in recurrent tumors. The BA subtype was associated with a transcriptional signature of partial epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (p-emt) and early recurrence. In 44% of matched cases, the dominant subtype changed from primary to recurrent tumors, preferably from IMS to BA or CL. Gene set enrichment analysis identified upregulation of Hypoxia, p-emt and radiation resistance signatures and downregulation of tumor inflammation in recurrences compared to index tumors. A relevant subset of primary/recurrent tumor pairs presented no evidence for a common clonal origin. CONCLUSIONS Our study showed a high degree of genetic and transcriptional heterogeneity between primary/recurrent tumors, suggesting therapy-related selection of a transcriptional subtype with characteristics unfavorable for therapy. We conclude that therapy decisions should be based on genetic and transcriptional characteristics of recurrences rather than primary tumors to enable optimally tailored treatment strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Weber
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Axel Künstner
- Luebeck Institute of Experimental Dermatology and Institute for Cardiogenetics, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
- University Cancer Center Schleswig-Holstein, University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
| | - Julia Hess
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Kristian Unger
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Marschner
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Christian Idel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
| | - Julika Ribbat-Idel
- Institute of Pathology, University of Luebeck and University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Luebeck, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph Walz
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Sibylle Rietzler
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Laura Valeanu
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Timm Herkommer
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Lisa Kreutzer
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Olena Klymenko
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Guido Drexler
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Thomas Kirchner
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Cornelius Maihöfer
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Ute Ganswindt
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
- Department of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Axel Walch
- Research Unit Analytical Pathology, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Michael Sterr
- Institute of Diabetes and Regeneration Research, Helmholtz Diabetes Center, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Heiko Lickert
- Institute of Diabetes and Regeneration Research, Helmholtz Diabetes Center, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Neuherberg, Germany
- Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Dirk Rades
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
| | - Sven Perner
- Institute of Pathology, University of Luebeck and University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Luebeck, Germany
- Pathology, Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center, Borstel, Germany
| | - Mauricio Berriel Diaz
- Institute of Diabetes and Cancer, Helmholtz Diabetes Center, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Stefan Herzig
- Institute of Diabetes and Cancer, Helmholtz Diabetes Center, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Kirsten Lauber
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Barbara Wollenberg
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
- Clinic of Otorhinolaryngology, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Hauke Busch
- Luebeck Institute of Experimental Dermatology and Institute for Cardiogenetics, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
- University Cancer Center Schleswig-Holstein, University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany
| | - Claus Belka
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
| | - Horst Zitzelsberger
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer," Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, DKTK, Munich, Germany
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Mittmann LA, Haring F, Schaubächer JB, Hennel R, Smiljanov B, Zuchtriegel G, Canis M, Gires O, Krombach F, Holdt L, Brandau S, Vogl T, Lauber K, Uhl B, Reichel CA. Uncoupled biological and chronological aging of neutrophils in cancer promotes tumor progression. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 9:jitc-2021-003495. [PMID: 34876407 PMCID: PMC8655594 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2021-003495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Beyond their fundamental role in homeostasis and host defense, neutrophilic granulocytes (neutrophils) are increasingly recognized to contribute to the pathogenesis of malignant tumors. Recently, aging of mature neutrophils in the systemic circulation has been identified to be critical for these immune cells to properly unfold their homeostatic and anti-infectious functional properties. The role of neutrophil aging in cancer remains largely obscure. Methods Employing advanced in vivo microscopy techniques in different animal models of cancer as well as utilizing pulse-labeling and cell transfer approaches, various ex vivo/in vitro assays, and human data, we sought to define the functional relevance of neutrophil aging in cancer. Results Here, we show that signals released during early tumor growth accelerate biological aging of circulating neutrophils, hence uncoupling biological from chronological aging of these immune cells. This facilitates the accumulation of highly reactive neutrophils in malignant lesions and endows them with potent protumorigenic functions, thus promoting tumor progression. Counteracting uncoupled biological aging of circulating neutrophils by blocking the chemokine receptor CXCR2 effectively suppressed tumor growth. Conclusions Our data uncover a self-sustaining mechanism of malignant neoplasms in fostering protumorigenic phenotypic and functional changes in circulating neutrophils. Interference with this aberrant process might therefore provide a novel, already pharmacologically targetable strategy for cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura A Mittmann
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Florian Haring
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Johanna B Schaubächer
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Roman Hennel
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Bojan Smiljanov
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Gabriele Zuchtriegel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Fritz Krombach
- Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Lesca Holdt
- Institute for Laboratory Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Sven Brandau
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Thomas Vogl
- Institute for Immunology, University of Munster, Munster, Germany
| | - Kirsten Lauber
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Bernd Uhl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph A Reichel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, LMU München, Munich, Germany .,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, LMU München, Munich, Germany
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14
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Pan M, Kohlbauer V, Blancke Soares A, Schinke H, Huang Y, Kranz G, Quadt T, Hachmeister M, Gires O. Interactome analysis reveals endocytosis and membrane recycling of EpCAM during differentiation of embryonic stem cells and carcinoma cells. iScience 2021; 24:103179. [PMID: 34693227 PMCID: PMC8517208 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.103179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2021] [Revised: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Transmembrane epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) is expressed in epithelia, carcinoma, teratoma, and embryonic stem cells (ESCs). EpCAM displays spatiotemporal patterning during embryogenesis, tissue morphogenesis, cell differentiation, and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in carcinomas. Potential interactors of EpCAM were identified in murine F9 teratoma cells using a stable isotope labeling with amino acids in cell culture-based proteomic approach (n = 77, enrichment factor >3, p value ≤ 0.05). Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and gene ontology terms revealed interactions with regulators of endosomal trafficking and membrane recycling, which were further validated for Rab5, Rab7, and Rab11. Endocytosis and membrane recycling of EpCAM were confirmed in mF9 cells, E14TG2α ESC, and Kyse30 carcinoma cells. Reduction of EpCAM during mesodermal differentiation and TGFβ-induced EMT correlated with enhanced endocytosis and block or reduction of recycling in ESCs and esophageal carcinoma cells. Hence, endocytosis and membrane recycling are means of regulation of EpCAM protein levels during differentiation of ESC and EMT induction in carcinoma cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Pan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Yuzhong District, Chongqing, China
| | - Vera Kohlbauer
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Alexandra Blancke Soares
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Yuanchi Huang
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Tanja Quadt
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Matthias Hachmeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
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15
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Flach S, Howarth K, Hackinger S, Pipinikas C, McLay K, Marsico G, Walz C, Reichel C, Gires O, Canis M, Baumeister P. 884P Personalised circulating cell-free tumour DNA analysis for detection of minimal residual disease and recurrence in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Ann Oncol 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.annonc.2021.08.1294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022] Open
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16
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Zhang T, Zhang L, Gao Y, Wang Y, Liu Y, Zhang H, Wang Q, Hu F, Li J, Tan J, Wang DD, Gires O, Lin PP, Li B. Role of aneuploid circulating tumor cells and CD31 + circulating tumor endothelial cells in predicting and monitoring anti-angiogenic therapy efficacy in advanced NSCLC. Mol Oncol 2021; 15:2891-2909. [PMID: 34455700 PMCID: PMC8564645 DOI: 10.1002/1878-0261.13092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Prognosticating the efficacy of anti‐angiogenic therapy through longitudinal monitoring and early detection of treatment resistance in cancer patients remain highly challenging. In this study, co‐detection and comprehensive phenotypic and karyotypic molecular characterization of aneuploid circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and circulating tumor endothelial cells (CTECs) were conducted on non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving bevacizumab plus chemotherapy. Prognostic values of the cell‐based significant univariate risk factors identified by Cox regression analyses were progressively investigated. Subjects showing an increase in total post‐therapeutic platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule‐1 (CD31)– CTCs and CD31+ CTECs exhibited a significantly reduced median progression‐free survival (mPFS) and overall survival. Further stratification analyses indicated that pretherapeutic patients bearing vimentin (Vim)+ CTECs (mesenchymal M‐type) at baseline revealed a significantly shortened mPFS compared with patients with Vim– CTECs. Post‐therapeutic patients harboring epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM)+ CTCs and CTECs (epithelial E‐type), regardless of Vim expression or not, showed a significantly reduced mPFS. Post‐therapeutic patients possessing de novo EpCAM+/Vim+ (hybrid E/M‐type) CTECs displayed the shortest mPFS. Patients harboring either pre‐ or post‐therapeutic EpCAM–/Vim– null CTECs (N‐type) exhibited a better response to therapy compared to patients harboring EpCAM+ and/or Vim+ CTECs. The presented results support the notion that baseline Vim+ CTECs and post‐therapeutic EpCAM+ CTCs and CTECs are predictive biomarkers for longitudinal monitoring of response to anti‐angiogenesis combination regimens in NSCLC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tongmei Zhang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Lina Zhang
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Yuan Gao
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Ying Wang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Yanxia Liu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Hongmei Zhang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Qunhui Wang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Fanbin Hu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Jie Li
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Jinjing Tan
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
| | | | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | | | - Baolan Li
- Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing, China
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17
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Schinke H, Pan M, Akyol M, Zhou J, Shi E, Kranz G, Libl D, Quadt T, Simon F, Canis M, Baumeister P, Gires O. SLUG-related partial epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition is a transcriptomic prognosticator of head and neck cancer survival. Mol Oncol 2021; 16:347-367. [PMID: 34382739 PMCID: PMC8763659 DOI: 10.1002/1878-0261.13075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Partial epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition (pEMT) contributes to cellular heterogeneity that is associated with nodal metastases and unfavorable clinical parameters in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs). We developed a single‐cell RNA sequencing signature‐based pEMT quantification through cell type‐dependent deconvolution of bulk RNA sequencing and microarray data combined with single‐sample scoring of molecular phenotypes (Singscoring). Clinical pEMT‐Singscores served as molecular classifiers in multivariable Cox proportional hazard models and high scores prognosticated poor overall survival and reduced response to irradiation as independent parameters in large HNSCC cohorts [The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), MD Anderson Cancer Centre (MDACC), Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC)]. Differentially expressed genes confirmed enhanced cell motility and reduced oxidative phosphorylation and epithelial differentiation in pEMThigh patients. In patients and cell lines, the EMT transcription factor SLUG correlated most strongly with pEMT‐Singscores and promoted pEMT, enhanced invasion, and resistance to irradiation in vitro. SLUG protein levels in HNSCC predicted disease‐free survival, and its peripheral expression at the interphase to the tumor microenvironment was significantly increased in relapsing patients. Hence, pEMT‐Singscores represent a novel risk predictor for HNSCC stratification regarding clinical outcome and therapy response that is partly controlled by SLUG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Min Pan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, China
| | - Merve Akyol
- School of Medicine, Koç University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Jiefu Zhou
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Enxian Shi
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Darko Libl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Tanja Quadt
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Florian Simon
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group 'Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer', Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group 'Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer', Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group 'Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer', Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
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18
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Flach S, Howarth K, Hackinger S, Pipinikas C, McLay K, Marsico G, Walz C, Gires O, Canis M, Baumeister P. Abstract 553: Personalized circulating tumor DNA analysis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: Preliminary results of the Liquid BIOpsy for MiNimal RESidual DiSease Detection in Head and NeckSquamous Cell Carcinoma (LIONESS) study. Cancer Res 2021. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2021-553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Introduction
Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) remains a substantial burden to global health. Despite evolving therapies, 5-year survival is less than 50% and unlike other cancers, reliable biomarkers to monitor treatment response do not exist. Cell-free circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is an emerging biomarker but has not yet been studied sufficiently for HNSCC. The detection of ctDNA as a marker of minimal residual disease following curative-intent treatment holds promise for identifying patients at an increased risk of relapse, who may benefit from adjuvant radio(chemo)therapy or facilitate close monitoring with repeat resection if needed.
Methods
We conducted a single-center prospective experimental evidence-generating cohort study to assess ctDNA in 30 patients with p16-negative HNSCC (stages I-IVB) who received primary surgical treatment with curative intent at our institution. Whole exome sequencing (WES) was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor tissue to a median depth of 250x. For each patient, we selected up to 48 somatic variants for personalized ctDNA assay design. We used the RaDaRTM assay to analyze serial pre- and post-operative plasma samples (range 2-6) for evidence of minimal residual disease or recurrence.
Results
In a subset of patients analyzed to evaluate the performance of RaDaR, personalized panels were designed with between 34 and 48 somatic variants (median 48). Preliminary data shows 100% ctDNA detection in baseline samples taken prior to surgery at tumor fractions ranging from 312 ppm (equivalent to 0.03% AF) to 7579 ppm (equivalent to 0.76% AF). In post-surgery samples, ctDNA could be detected at levels as low as 26 ppm (equivalent to 0.0026% AF). Analysis of follow-up plasma samples will be presented along with data from the full patient cohort.
Conclusions
This study illustrates the potential of ctDNA as a biomarker in HNSCC and demonstrates the feasibility of personalized ctDNA assays for the detection of minimal residual disease post-treatment and for monitoring for early detection of relapse.
Citation Format: Susanne Flach, Karen Howarth, Sophie Hackinger, Christodoulos Pipinikas, Kirsten McLay, Giovanni Marsico, Christoph Walz, Olivier Gires, Martin Canis, Philipp Baumeister. Personalized circulating tumor DNA analysis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: Preliminary results of the Liquid BIOpsy for MiNimal RESidual DiSease Detection in Head and NeckSquamous Cell Carcinoma (LIONESS) study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 553.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanne Flach
- 1Hospital of the University of Munich, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Munich, Germany
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Christoph Walz
- 3Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- 1Hospital of the University of Munich, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- 1Hospital of the University of Munich, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- 1Hospital of the University of Munich, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Munich, Germany
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19
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Blancke Soares A, Meier R, Liebsch G, Schwenk-Zieger S, Kirmaier ME, Theurich S, Widmann M, Canis M, Gires O, Haubner F. High-resolution spatiotemporal pH e and pO 2 imaging in head and neck and oesophageal carcinoma cells. Cancer Metab 2021; 9:21. [PMID: 33947450 PMCID: PMC8097870 DOI: 10.1186/s40170-021-00257-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2020] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Background pO2 and pH are physiological parameters relevant for different processes in health and disease, including wound healing and cancer progression. Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) and oesophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCC) have a high rate of local recurrence that is partly related to treatment-resistant residual tumour cells. Hence, novel diagnostic tools are required to visualise potential residual tumour cells and thereby improve treatment outcome for HNSCC and ESCC patients. We developed a device to spatiotemporally measure oxygen consumption rates (OCR) and extracellular acidification rates (ECAR) to distinguish HNSCC and ESCC cells from healthy cells in vitro, exploiting general metabolic differences between cancer cells and healthy cells. Methods OCR and ECAR were measured via a newly developed device named STO2p-Q (SpatioTemporal O2 and pH Quantification) using the VisiSens technology based on ratiometric fluorescence imaging, facilitating spatiotemporal resolution. Results were confirmed using extracellular flux analyses (Seahorse technology). Results STO2p-Q is described and used to measure OCR and ECAR in HNSCC and ESCC cell lines and normal fibroblast and epithelial cells as components of the tumour microenvironment. OCR measurements showed differences amongst HNSCC and ESCC cell lines and between HNSCC/ESCC and normal cells, which on average had lower OCR than HNSCC/ESCC cells. Both OCR and ECAR measurements were independently verified using the Seahorse technology. Additionally, using STO2p-Q, HNSCC/ESCC, and normal cells could be spatially resolved with a resolution in the low millimetre range. Conclusions We developed a method to spatiotemporally measure OCR and ECAR of cells, which has many potential in vitro applications and lays the foundation for the development of novel diagnostic tools for the detection of cancerous tissue in HNSCC and ESCC patients in vivo. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40170-021-00257-6.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Blancke Soares
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Robert Meier
- PreSens Precision Sensing GmbH, Am Biopark 11, 93053, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Gregor Liebsch
- PreSens Precision Sensing GmbH, Am Biopark 11, 93053, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Sabina Schwenk-Zieger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin E Kirmaier
- Department of Medicine III, LMU University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Cancer and Immunometabolism Research Group, Gene Center LMU, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Theurich
- Department of Medicine III, LMU University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Cancer and Immunometabolism Research Group, Gene Center LMU, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Magdalena Widmann
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health GmbH, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Frank Haubner
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.
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20
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Liu Y, Wang H, Wang X, Liu J, Li J, Wang X, Zhang Y, Bai Z, Zhou Q, Wu Y, Shen Y, Weng X, Liu F, Guo J, Di L, Gires O, Zhang Z, Chen Y, Wang H. Prevalence and reclassification of BRCA1 and BRCA2 variants in a large, unselected Chinese Han breast cancer cohort. J Hematol Oncol 2021; 14:18. [PMID: 33461583 PMCID: PMC7814423 DOI: 10.1186/s13045-020-01010-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Accurate interpretation of BRCA1/2 variants is critical for risk assessment and precise treatment of breast cancer (BC). Hence, the establishment of an ethnicity-based BRCA1/2 variant database of the Chinese population is of paramount importance. In this study, panel-based sequencing served to detect BRCA1/2 variants in a Chinese multicenter cohort of 21,216 BC patients and 6434 healthy controls.
Overall, the percentage of subjects carrying pathogenic variants was 5.5% (1174/21,216) in BC patients and 1.1% (71/6434) in healthy controls. We identified 13 pathogenic variants as high-frequency variants that had a frequency of > 0.45‰ in BC patients (≥ 10 in 21,216 patients), none of which has been reported in Caucasians. Pathogenic BRCA1/2 variants correlated with younger onset age, higher frequencies of bilateral and triple-negative BC (TNBC), invasive carcinomas, high histological grades, and family history of BC and other cancers.
Furthermore, the percentage of the subjects carrying VUS was 9.8% (2071/21,216) in BC patients and 6.9% (446/6434) in healthy controls. Based on our cohort study, we unambiguously reclassified 7 out of the 858 VUS resulting in lower VUS ratio in patients (from 9.8 to 7.9%) as well as in healthy control (from 6.9 to 5.3%). We also re-analyzed the 100 variants in 13 exons (2–5 and 15–23) of the BRCA1 genes using a functional assay (saturation genome editing; SGE). 55 of the 59 VUS had distinct status in the SGE study: 24 (43.6%) were pathogenic, and 31 (56.4%) were benign. Strong ethnicity-specific occurrences of pathogenic BRCA1/2 variants were identified in the Chinese population. Hence, the findings provide rationale and sequencing information for the implementation of BRCA1/2 variants tailored to the Chinese population into clinical risk assessment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 100 Haining Road, Shanghai, China.,State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.,Department of Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | | | - Xin Wang
- Department of Breast Surgical Oncology, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China
| | - Jiaqi Liu
- Department of Breast Surgical Oncology, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China
| | - Junjian Li
- State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 100 Haining Road, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiang Wang
- Department of Breast Surgical Oncology, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China
| | - Yun Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, 95 Yong'an Road, Beijing, China.,Beijing Key Laboratory of Cancer Invasion and Metastasis Research and National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Beijing, China
| | - Zhigang Bai
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, 95 Yong'an Road, Beijing, China.,Beijing Key Laboratory of Cancer Invasion and Metastasis Research and National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Beijing, China
| | - Qinghua Zhou
- Department of Surgery, Luwan Branch of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Ying Wu
- Department of Surgery, Luwan Branch of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yi Shen
- Department of Surgery, Luwan Branch of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaoling Weng
- State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.,Department of Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fatao Liu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Biliary Tract Disease Research, Shanghai, China
| | - Jiancheng Guo
- Center for Precision Medicine, Zhengzhou University School of Medicine, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Lijun Di
- Cancer Center, Faculty of Health Science, University of Macau, Macau, China
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Zhongtao Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, 95 Yong'an Road, Beijing, China.
| | - Yiding Chen
- Department of Surgical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 88 Jiefang Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. .,The Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Intervention, China National Ministry of Education, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Hongxia Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 100 Haining Road, Shanghai, China.
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21
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Schinke H, Heider T, Herkommer T, Simon F, Blancke Soares A, Kranz G, Samaga D, Dajka L, Feuchtinger A, Walch A, Valeanu L, Walz C, Kirchner T, Canis M, Baumeister P, Belka C, Maihöfer C, Marschner S, Pflugradt U, Ganswindt U, Hess J, Zitzelsberger H, Gires O. Digital scoring of EpCAM and slug expression as prognostic markers in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. Mol Oncol 2020; 15:1040-1053. [PMID: 33340247 PMCID: PMC8024715 DOI: 10.1002/1878-0261.12886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Revised: 11/11/2020] [Accepted: 12/15/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) have poor clinical outcome owing to therapy resistance and frequent recurrences that are among others attributable to tumor cells in partial epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition (pEMT). We compared side‐by‐side software‐based and visual quantification of immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining of epithelial marker EpCAM and EMT regulator Slug in n = 102 primary HNSCC to assess optimal analysis protocols. IHC scores incorporated expression levels and percentages of positive cells. Digital and visual evaluation of membrane‐associated EpCAM yielded correlating scorings, whereas visual evaluation of nuclear Slug resulted in significantly higher overall scores. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard analysis defined the median EpCAM expression levels resulting from visual quantification as an independent prognostic factor of overall survival. Slug expression levels resulting from digital quantification were an independent prognostic factor of recurrence‐free survival, locoregional recurrence‐free survival, and disease‐specific survival. Hence, we propose to use visual assessment for the membrane‐associated EpCAM protein, whereas nuclear protein Slug assessment was more accurate following digital measurement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Theresa Heider
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Timm Herkommer
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Florian Simon
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Alexandra Blancke Soares
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Daniel Samaga
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Laura Dajka
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Annette Feuchtinger
- Research Unit Analytical Pathology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Axel Walch
- Research Unit Analytical Pathology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Laura Valeanu
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph Walz
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Thomas Kirchner
- Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Claus Belka
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Cornelius Maihöfer
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Marschner
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Ulrike Pflugradt
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | - Ute Ganswindt
- Department of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Julia Hess
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Horst Zitzelsberger
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
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Abstract
EpCAM (epithelial cell adhesion molecule) was discovered four decades ago as a tumor antigen on colorectal carcinomas. Owing to its frequent and high expression on carcinomas and their metastases, EpCAM serves as a prognostic marker, a therapeutic target, and an anchor molecule on circulating and disseminated tumor cells (CTCs/DTCs), which are considered the major source for metastatic cancer cells. Today, EpCAM is reckoned as a multi-functional transmembrane protein involved in the regulation of cell adhesion, proliferation, migration, stemness, and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of carcinoma cells. To fulfill these functions, EpCAM is instrumental in intra- and intercellular signaling as a full-length molecule and following regulated intramembrane proteolysis, generating functionally active extra- and intracellular fragments. Intact EpCAM and its proteolytic fragments interact with claudins, CD44, E-cadherin, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), and intracellular signaling components of the WNT and Ras/Raf pathways, respectively. This plethora of functions contributes to shaping intratumor heterogeneity and partial EMT, which are major determinants of the clinical outcome of carcinoma patients. EpCAM represents a marker for the epithelial status of primary and systemic tumor cells and emerges as a measure for the metastatic capacity of CTCs. Consequentially, EpCAM has reclaimed potential as a prognostic marker and target on primary and systemic tumor cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum, Neuherberg, Germany.
| | - Min Pan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, No. 1 Youyi Road, Yuzhong District, Chongqing, 400016, China
| | - Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Patrick A Baeuerle
- Institute for Immunology, LMU Munich, Grosshadernerstr. 9, 82152 Planegg, Martinsried, Germany
- MPM Capital, Cambridge MA, 450 Kendall Street, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
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23
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Bertlich M, Kashani F, Weiss BG, Wiebringhaus R, Ihler F, Freytag S, Gires O, Kühnel T, Haubner F. Safety and Efficacy of Blue Light Laser Treatment in Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia. Lasers Surg Med 2020; 53:309-315. [PMID: 32573010 DOI: 10.1002/lsm.23289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2020] [Revised: 06/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is a hereditary condition that is associated with arteriovenous malformations. A common site for these malformations is the nasal mucosa, which is associated with severe epistaxis and debilitation for affected patients. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of blue light laser technology in treating these endonasal manifestations in a retrospective chart analysis. Additionally, we compared blue light laser technology to bipolar coagulation in an animal model. STUDY DESIGN/MATERIALS AND METHODS We performed a retrospective chart analysis of all patients that were diagnosed with HHT and received endonasal blue light laser treatment between 10/2017 and 04/2019. In addition, we performed bipolar or blue light laser coagulation of all macroscopically visible vessels on thyroid gland lobes (n = 4) from Dunkin-Hartley Guinea Pigs. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was then used to visualize depth and area of coagulation surrounding these vessels. RESULTS One hundred and fifty-one treatments in 23 patients were analyzed. Under regular blue light laser treatment, quality of life (QOL), indicated on a visual analog scale from 1 to 10, gradually increased significantly from 5.6 ± 0.5 (before the first treatment) to 7.5 ± 0.9 (after the second treatment). Following this, QOL remained steady throughout additional treatments. Adverse effects were not recorded. HE staining showed that coagulation depth (162 ± 56 vs. 586 ± 192 µm) and area (74 ± 35 vs. 1015 ± 449 µm2 ) were significantly lower after laser treatment. CONCLUSION Blue light laser therapy is safe and efficient in treating HHT. Damage to the surrounding tissue is significantly lower compared with bipolar coagulation. © 2020 The Authors. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mattis Bertlich
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany
| | - Fatemeh Kashani
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany
| | - Bernhard G Weiss
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany
| | - Robert Wiebringhaus
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany
| | - Friedrich Ihler
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany
| | - Saskia Freytag
- Epigenetics and Genomics, The Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, 6 Verdun St, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer", Helmholtz Zentrum, Marchioninistr. 25, Munich, 81377, Germany
| | - Thomas Kühnel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Regensburg, Franz-Josef-Strauß-Allee 11, Regensburg, 93047, Germany
| | - Frank Haubner
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich, 81377, Germany
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24
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Simon F, Schwenk-Zieger S, Becker S, Unger K, Gires O, Baumeister P. Cigarette Smoke Reduces the Efficacy of Cisplatin in Head and Neck Cancer Cells - Role of ABCG2. Anticancer Res 2020; 40:1277-1284. [PMID: 32132024 DOI: 10.21873/anticanres.14069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Revised: 02/11/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIM We evaluated the influence of smoking on head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC), which are in their majority tobacco-driven. Tobacco smoke is expected to influence the expression of ABCG2-transporters involved in multidrug resistance. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of cigarette smoke condensate (CSC) on ABCG2 expression on HNSCC cells, to demonstrate the adverse effects of cigarette smoke during anticancer treatment in vitro and to assess the prevalence of ABCG2 expression in HNSCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS HNSCC cell lines were treated with CSC and basal and induced ABCG2 expression was examined. The impact of CSC on cellular viability/proliferation during cytotoxic drug treatment was also evaluated. ABCG2 expression levels in HNSCC were correlated with the smoking history of patients. RESULTS HNSCC cells showed low basal ABCG2 expression. CSC treatment resulted in a threefold increase in the expression of ABCG2 and in resistance to cisplatin. Tumor samples of never smokers showed significantly higher ABCG2 expression compared to ever smokers. ABCG2 expression correlated with pack years of cigarette consumption. CONCLUSION Tobacco consumption is linked to an inducible and increased ABCG2 protein expression and has an impact on drug resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Simon
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Sabina Schwenk-Zieger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Sven Becker
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Kristian Unger
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Center, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer, Helmholtz Center, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer, Helmholtz Center, Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer, Helmholtz Center, Munich, Germany
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25
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Sharaf K, Kleinsasser A, Schwenk-Zieger S, Gires O, Schinke H, Kohlbauer V, Jakob M, Canis M, Haubner F. Molecular Characterization of Lipoaspirates Used in Regenerative Head and Neck Surgery. JAMA FACIAL PLAST SU 2020; 21:526-534. [PMID: 31556908 DOI: 10.1001/jamafacial.2019.0851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Importance Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) have been used commonly in regenerative medicine and increasingly for head and neck surgical procedures. Lipoaspiration with centrifugation is purported to be a mild method for the extraction of ASCs used for autologous transplants to restore tissue defects or induce wound healing. The content of ASCs, their paracrine potential, and cellular potential in wound healing have not been explored for this method to our knowledge. Objective To evaluate the characteristics of lipoaspirates used in reconstructive head and neck surgical procedures with respect to wound healing. Design, Setting, and Participants This case series study included 15 patients who received autologous fat injections in the head and neck during surgical procedures at a tertiary referral center. The study was performed from October 2017 to November 2018, and data were analyzed from October 2017 to February 2019. Main Outcomes and Measures Excessive material of lipoaspirates from subcutaneous abdominal fatty tissue was examined. Cellular composition was analyzed using immunohistochemistry (IHC) and flow cytometry, and functionality was assessed through adipose, osteous, and chondral differentiation in vitro. Supernatants were tested for paracrine ASC functions in fibroblast wound-healing assays. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay measurement of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), stromal-derived factor 1α (SDF-1α), and transforming growth factor β3 (TGF-β3) was performed. Results Among the 15 study patients (8 [53.3%] male; mean [SD] age at the time of surgery, 63.0 [2.8] years), the stromal vascular fraction (mean [SE], 53.3% [4.2%]) represented the largest fraction within the native lipoaspirates. The cultivated cells were positive for CD73 (mean [SE], 99.90% [0.07%]), CD90 (99.40% [0.32%]), and CD105 (88.54% [2.74%]); negative for CD34 (2.70% [0.45%]) and CD45 (1.74% [0.28%]) in flow cytometry; and negative for CD14 (10.56 [2.81] per 300 IHC score) and HLA-DR (6.89 [2.97] per 300 IHC score) in IHC staining; they differentiated into osteoblasts, adipocytes, and chondrocytes. The cultivated cells showed high expression of CD44 (mean [SE], 99.78% [0.08%]) and CD273 (82.56% [5.83%]). The supernatants were negative for TNF (not detectable) and SDF-1α (not detectable) and were positive for VEGF (mean [SE], 526.74 [149.84] pg/mL for explant supernatants; 528.26 [131.79] pg/106 per day for cell culture supernatants) and TGF-β3 (mean [SE], 22.79 [3.49] pg/mL for explant supernatants; 7.97 [3.15] pg/106 per day for cell culture supernatants). Compared with control (25% or 50% mesenchymal stem cell medium), fibroblasts treated with ASC supernatant healed the scratch-induced wound faster (mean [SE]: control, 1.000 [0.160]; explant supernatant, 1.369 [0.070]; and passage 6 supernatant, 1.492 [0.094]). Conclusions and Relevance The cells fulfilled the international accepted criteria for mesenchymal stem cells. The lipoaspirates contained ASCs that had the potential to multidifferentiate with proliferative and immune-modulating properties. The cytokine profile of the isolated ASCs had wound healing-promoting features. Lipoaspirates may have a regenerative potential and an application in head and neck surgery. Level of Evidence NA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kariem Sharaf
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Antonia Kleinsasser
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Sabina Schwenk-Zieger
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Vera Kohlbauer
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Mark Jakob
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Frank Haubner
- Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
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26
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Wang HX, Gires O. Tumor-derived extracellular vesicles in breast cancer: From bench to bedside. Cancer Lett 2019; 460:54-64. [DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2019.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2019] [Revised: 06/12/2019] [Accepted: 06/18/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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Liu X, Li J, Cadilha BL, Markota A, Voigt C, Huang Z, Lin PP, Wang DD, Dai J, Kranz G, Krandick A, Libl D, Zitzelsberger H, Zagorski I, Braselmann H, Pan M, Zhu S, Huang Y, Niedermeyer S, Reichel CA, Uhl B, Briukhovetska D, Suárez J, Kobold S, Gires O, Wang H. Epithelial-type systemic breast carcinoma cells with a restricted mesenchymal transition are a major source of metastasis. Sci Adv 2019; 5:eaav4275. [PMID: 31223646 PMCID: PMC6584608 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aav4275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 05/15/2019] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Carcinoma cells undergo epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT); however, contributions of EMT heterogeneity to disease progression remain a matter of debate. Here, we addressed the EMT status of ex vivo cultured circulating and disseminated tumor cells (CTCs/DTCs) in a syngeneic mouse model of metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Epithelial-type CTCs with a restricted mesenchymal transition had the strongest lung metastases formation ability, whereas mesenchymal-type CTCs showed limited metastatic ability. EpCAM expression served as a surrogate marker to evaluate the EMT heterogeneity of clinical samples from MBC, including metastases, CTCs, and DTCs. The proportion of epithelial-type CTCs, and especially DTCs, correlated with distant metastases and poorer outcome of patients with MBC. This study fosters our understanding of EMT in metastasis and underpins heterogeneous EMT phenotypes as important parameters for tumor prognosis and treatment. We further suggest that EpCAM-dependent CTC isolation systems will underestimate CTC numbers but will quantify clinically relevant metastatic cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Liu
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Junjian Li
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
| | - Bruno Loureiro Cadilha
- Center of Integrated Protein Science Munich and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Lindwurmstrasse 2a, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Anamarija Markota
- Center of Integrated Protein Science Munich and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Lindwurmstrasse 2a, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Cornelia Voigt
- Center of Integrated Protein Science Munich and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Lindwurmstrasse 2a, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Zhe Huang
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | | | | | - Juncheng Dai
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 211166, China
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Krandick
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Darko Libl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Horst Zitzelsberger
- Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Isabella Zagorski
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Herbert Braselmann
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Min Pan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Sibo Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Yuanchi Huang
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Niedermeyer
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph A. Reichel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Bernd Uhl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Daria Briukhovetska
- Center of Integrated Protein Science Munich and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Lindwurmstrasse 2a, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Javier Suárez
- Center of Integrated Protein Science Munich and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Lindwurmstrasse 2a, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Kobold
- Center of Integrated Protein Science Munich and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Lindwurmstrasse 2a, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
- Corresponding author. (O.G.); (H.W.)
| | - Hongxia Wang
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China
- Corresponding author. (O.G.); (H.W.)
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28
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Wimmer E, Ihrler S, Gires O, Streit S, Issing W, Bergmann C. Fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 single nucleotide polymorphism Gly388Arg in head and neck carcinomas. World J Clin Oncol 2019; 10:136-148. [PMID: 30949443 PMCID: PMC6441662 DOI: 10.5306/wjco.v10.i3.136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2018] [Revised: 01/16/2019] [Accepted: 01/30/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is considered to be a progressive disease resulting from alterations in multiple genes regulating cell proliferation and differentiation like receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) and members of the fibroblast growth factor receptors (FGFR)-family. Single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) Arg388 of the FGFR4 is associated with a reduced overall survival in patients with cancers of various types. We speculate that FGFR4 expression and SNP is associated with worse survival in patients with HSNCC.
AIM To investigate the potential clinical significance of FGFR4 Arg388 in the context of tumors arising in HNSCC, a comprehensive analysis of FGFR4 receptor expression and genotype in tumor tissues and correlated results with patients’ clinical data in a large cohort of patients with HNSCC was conducted.
METHODS Surgical specimens from 284 patients with HNSCC were retrieved from the Institute of Pathology at the Ludwig-Maximilian-University in Germany. Specimens were analyzed using immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). The expression of FGFR4 was analyzed in 284 surgical specimens of HNSCC using immunohistochemstry. FGFR4 polymorphism was detected by PCR-RFLP. Patients’ clinical data with a minimum follow-up of 5 years were statistically evaluated with a special emphasis on survival analysis employing Kaplan-Meier estimator and Cox regression analysis.
RESULTS Concerning the invasive tumor areas the intensity of the FGFR4 expression was evaluated in a four-grade system: no expression, low expression, intermediate and high expression. FGFR4 expression was scored as “high” (+++) in 74 (26%), “intermediate” (++) in 103 (36.3%), and “low” (+) in 107 (36.7%) cases. Analyzing the FGFR4 mutation it was found in 96 tumors (33.8%), 84 of them (29.6%) having a heterozygous and 12 (4.2%) homozygous mutated Arg388 allele. The overall frequency concerning the mutant alleles demonstrated 65% vs 34% mutated alleles in general. FGFR4 Arg388 was significantly associated with advanced tumor stage (P < 0.004), local metastasis (P < 0.0001) and reduced disease-free survival (P < 0.01). Furthermore, increased expression of FGFR4 correlated significantly with worse overall survival (P < 0.003).
CONCLUSION In conclusion, the FGFR4 Arg388 genotype and protein expression of FGFR4 impacts tumor progression in patients with HNSCC and may present a useful target within a multimodal therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Wimmer
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich 81377, Germany
| | - Stephan Ihrler
- Institute of Pathology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich 80337, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich 81377, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Neuherberg 71083, Germany
| | - Sylvia Streit
- Department of Molecular Biology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biochemistry, Planegg 82152, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Issing
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich 81377, Germany
- ENT Department, Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE7 7DN, United Kingdom
| | - Christoph Bergmann
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich 81377, Germany
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen 45147, Germany
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29
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Huang Y, Chanou A, Kranz G, Pan M, Kohlbauer V, Ettinger A, Gires O. Membrane-associated epithelial cell adhesion molecule is slowly cleaved by γ-secretase prior to efficient proteasomal degradation of its intracellular domain. J Biol Chem 2018; 294:3051-3064. [PMID: 30598504 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.005874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Revised: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Regulated intramembrane proteolysis (RIP) is a key mechanism for activating transmembrane proteins such as epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) for cellular signaling and degradation. EpCAM is highly expressed in carcinomas and progenitor and embryonic stem cells and is involved in the regulation of cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. Strictly sequential cleavage of EpCAM through RIP involves initial shedding of the extracellular domain by α-secretase (ADAM) and β-secretase (BACE) sheddases, generating a membrane-tethered C-terminal fragment EpCTF. Subsequently, the rate-limiting γ-secretase complex catalyzes intramembrane cleavage of EpCTF, generating an extracellular EpCAM-Aβ-like fragment and an intracellular EpICD fragment involved in nuclear signaling. Here, we have combined biochemical approaches with live-cell imaging of fluorescent protein tags to investigate the kinetics of γ-secretase-mediated intramembrane cleavage of EpCTF. We demonstrate that γ-secretase-mediated proteolysis of exogenously and endogenously expressed EpCTF is a slow process with a 50% protein turnover in cells ranging from 45 min to 5.5 h. The slow cleavage was dictated by γ-secretase activity and not by EpCTF species, as indicated by cross-species swapping experiments. Furthermore, both human and murine EpICDs generated from EpCTF by γ-secretase were degraded efficiently (94-99%) by the proteasome. Hence, proteolytic cleavage of EpCTF is a comparably slow process, and EpICD generation does not appear to be suited for rapidly transducing extracellular cues into nuclear signaling, but appears to provide steady signals that can be further controlled through efficient proteasomal degradation. Our approach provides an unbiased bioassay to investigate proteolytic processing of EpCTF in single living cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanchi Huang
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany, .,the Department of Spinal Surgery, Honghui Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710054, China
| | - Anna Chanou
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Min Pan
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Vera Kohlbauer
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Andreas Ettinger
- the Institute of Epigenetics and Stem Cells, Marchioninistrasse 25, 81377 München, Germany, and
| | - Olivier Gires
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany, .,the Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
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Pan M, Schinke H, Luxenburger E, Kranz G, Shakhtour J, Libl D, Huang Y, Gaber A, Pavšič M, Lenarčič B, Kitz J, Jakob M, Schwenk-Zieger S, Canis M, Hess J, Unger K, Baumeister P, Gires O. EpCAM ectodomain EpEX is a ligand of EGFR that counteracts EGF-mediated epithelial-mesenchymal transition through modulation of phospho-ERK1/2 in head and neck cancers. PLoS Biol 2018; 16:e2006624. [PMID: 30261040 PMCID: PMC6177200 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2006624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2018] [Revised: 10/09/2018] [Accepted: 09/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) are characterized by outstanding molecular heterogeneity that results in severe therapy resistance and poor clinical outcome. Inter- and intratumoral heterogeneity in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) was recently revealed as a major parameter of poor clinical outcome. Here, we addressed the expression and function of the therapeutic target epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and of the major determinant of epithelial differentiation epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) in clinical samples and in vitro models of HNSCCs. We describe improved survival of EGFRlow/EpCAMhigh HNSCC patients (n = 180) and provide a molecular basis for the observed disparities in clinical outcome. EGF/EGFR have concentration-dependent dual capacities as inducers of proliferation and EMT through differential activation of the central molecular switch phosphorylated extracellular signal–regulated kinase 1/2 (pERK1/2) and EMT transcription factors (EMT-TFs) Snail, zinc finger E-box-binding homeobox 1 (Zeb1), and Slug. Furthermore, soluble ectodomain of EpCAM (EpEX) was identified as a ligand of EGFR that activates pERK1/2 and phosphorylated AKT (pAKT) and induces EGFR-dependent proliferation but represses EGF-mediated EMT, Snail, Zeb1, and Slug activation and cell migration. EMT repression by EpEX is realized through competitive modulation of pERK1/2 activation strength and inhibition of EMT-TFs, which is reflected in levels of pERK1/2 and its target Slug in clinical samples. Accordingly, high expression of pERK1/2 and/or Slug predicted poor outcome of HNSCCs. Hence, EpEX is a ligand of EGFR that induces proliferation but counteracts EMT mediated by the EGF/EGFR/pERK1/2 axis. Therefore, the emerging EGFR/EpCAM molecular cross talk represents a promising target to improve patient-tailored adjuvant treatment of HNSCCs. Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) display poor survival, with death rates above 55%. Major factors affecting survival are metastases’ formation and therapy resistance. Phenotypic changes during partial epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) provide tumor cells with increased migration, invasion, and therapy resistance. Understanding molecular mechanisms of EMT, as a central process of the metastatic cascade and the development of therapy resistance, is therefore important. In the present work, we identified molecular cross talk between epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) as a novel determinant of clinical outcome in HNSCCs. Low levels of EGFR but high levels of EpCAM (EGFRlow/EpCAMhigh) were associated with favorable prognosis, with survival rates above 90%, whereas EGFRhigh/EpCAMlow correlated with poor survival, below 10%. EGFR was shown to have a concentration-dependent capacity to induce proliferation and EMT. Proteolytic cleavage of the extracellular domain of EpCAM (EpEX) produces a ligand of EGFR that induces EGFR-dependent proliferation but counteracts EGF-induced EMT. We delineate an EGFR/extracellular signal–regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2)/EpCAM signaling axis that may be a promising therapeutic target for HNSCCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Pan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Henrik Schinke
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Elke Luxenburger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Gisela Kranz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Julius Shakhtour
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Darko Libl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Yuanchi Huang
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Aljaž Gaber
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Miha Pavšič
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Brigita Lenarčič
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular and Structural Biology, Institute Jožef Stefan, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Julia Kitz
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Mark Jakob
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Sabina Schwenk-Zieger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Julia Hess
- Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer“, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Kristian Unger
- Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer“, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- Research Unit Radiation Cytogenetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer“, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group “Personalized Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer“, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Neuherberg, Germany
- * E-mail:
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31
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Lin PP, Li J, Wang D, Gires O, Wang H. Abstract 1059: EpCAM differentially expressed on circulating and disseminated tumor cells promotes tumor metastasis in breast cancer patients. Cancer Res 2018. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2018-1059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
To investigate the role of EpCAM expressed on both circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in peripheral blood and disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) in bone marrow with respect to tumor metastases, the integrated subtraction enrichment and immunostaining-FISH (SE-iFISH) was performed to quantify, phenotypically and karyotypically characterize cytogenetically abnormal CTCs and DTCs expressing EpCAM in breast cancer patients. In a cohort of 34 recruited late stage patients, consisting of 32 metastatic and 2 non-metastatic subjects, the average number of detected CTCs in metastatic vs non-metastatic patients was 25 and 18 cells, respectively. Among those CTCs in metastatic subjects, 23.4% of them showed EpCAM+, whereas none of EpCAM+ CTCs was detected in non-metastatic patients. There were total of 49 CTC clusters detected in metastatic patients, and 33% of those clusters were EpCAM+, however, only 3 CTC clusters were found in non-metastatic patients, and none of them was EpCAM+. In the case of DTCs, the average number of 2224 and 364 DTCs per subject was detected in metastatic vs non-metastatic subjects, with EpCAM+ ratio of 66.53% in metastatic and 8% in non-metastatic patients. Analysis of DTC clusters indicated that the average of 226 and 21 DTC clusters/subject were identified in metastatic and non-metastatic patients, respectively, and metastatic subjects showed 62% of DTC clusters EpCAM+, whereas 37% of clusters were EpCAM+ in non-metastatic patients. Comparing to the breast cancer serum biomarker CA15-3 detected in 32 metastatic cancer patients, showing positivity (≥28 ng/ml) of only 41% (13 out of 32), both CTCs (≥5) and DTCs (≥5) had a positivity rate of 81 (26 out of 32) and 97% (31 out of 32), respectively. Obtained results indicated that EpCAM+ CTCs and DTCs are reliable markers in terms of evaluating therapeutic efficacy and predicting cancer patients' prognosis.
Citation Format: Peter P. Lin, Junjian Li, Daisy Wang, Olivier Gires, Hongxia Wang. EpCAM differentially expressed on circulating and disseminated tumor cells promotes tumor metastasis in breast cancer patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 1059.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Junjian Li
- 2Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai, China
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32
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Tretter JY, Schorpp K, Luxenburger E, Trambauer J, Steiner H, Hadian K, Gires O, Niessing D. A high-content screen for small-molecule regulators of epithelial cell-adhesion molecule (EpCAM) cleavage yields a robust inhibitor. J Biol Chem 2018; 293:8994-9005. [PMID: 29700109 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.002776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2018] [Revised: 04/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Epithelial cell-adhesion molecule (EpCAM) is a transmembrane protein that regulates cell cycle progression and differentiation and is overexpressed in many carcinomas. The EpCAM-induced mitogenic cascade is activated via regulated intramembrane proteolysis (RIP) of EpCAM by ADAM and γ-secretases, generating the signaling-active intracellular domain EpICD. Because of its expression pattern and molecular function, EpCAM is a valuable target in prognostic and therapeutic approaches for various carcinomas. So far, several immunotherapeutic strategies have targeted the extracellular domain of EpCAM. However, targeting the intracellular signaling cascade of EpCAM holds promise for specifically interfering with EpCAM's proliferation-stimulating signaling cascade. Here, using a yellow fluorescence protein-tagged version of the C-terminal fragment of EpCAM, we established a high-content screening (HCS) of a small-molecule compound library (n = 27,280) and characterized validated hits that target EpCAM signaling. In total, 128 potential inhibitors were initially identified, of which one compound with robust inhibitory effects on RIP of EpCAM was analyzed in greater detail. In summary, our study demonstrates that the development of an HCS for small-molecule inhibitors of the EpCAM signaling pathway is feasible. We propose that this approach may also be useful for identifying chemical compounds targeting other disorders involving membrane cleavage-dependent signaling pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kenji Schorpp
- the Assay Development and Screening Platform, Institute for Molecular Toxicology and Pharmacology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Elke Luxenburger
- the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center and
| | - Johannes Trambauer
- the Biomedical Center, Metabolic Biochemistry, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 80539 Munich, Germany
| | - Harald Steiner
- the Biomedical Center, Metabolic Biochemistry, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 80539 Munich, Germany.,the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, 81377 Munich, Germany, and
| | - Kamyar Hadian
- the Assay Development and Screening Platform, Institute for Molecular Toxicology and Pharmacology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center and
| | - Dierk Niessing
- From the Institute of Structural Biology and .,the Institute of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
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33
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Wang H, Stoecklein NH, Lin PP, Gires O. Circulating and disseminated tumor cells: diagnostic tools and therapeutic targets in motion. Oncotarget 2018; 8:1884-1912. [PMID: 27683128 PMCID: PMC5352105 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.12242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2016] [Accepted: 09/20/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Enumeration of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in peripheral blood with the gold standard CellSearchTM has proven prognostic value for tumor recurrence and progression of metastatic disease. Therefore, the further molecular characterization of isolated CTCs might have clinical relevance as liquid biopsy for therapeutic decision-making and to monitor disease progression. The direct analysis of systemic cancer appears particularly important in view of the known disparity in expression of therapeutic targets as well as epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-based heterogeneity between primary and systemic tumor cells, which all substantially complicate monitoring and therapeutic targeting at present. Since CTCs are the potential precursor cells of metastasis, their in-depth molecular profiling should also provide a useful resource for target discovery. The present review will discuss the use of systemically spread cancer cells as liquid biopsy and focus on potential target antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongxia Wang
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, P.R. China
| | - Nikolas H Stoecklein
- Department of General, Visceral and Pediatric Surgery, Medical Faculty, University Hospital of the Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | | | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Munich, Germany.,Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Helmholtz, Germany
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34
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Englhard AS, Palaras A, Volgger V, Stepp H, Mack B, Libl D, Gires O, Betz CS. Confocal laser endomicroscopy in head and neck malignancies using FITC-labelled EpCAM- and EGF-R-antibodies in cell lines and tumor biopsies. J Biophotonics 2017; 10:1365-1376. [PMID: 28106950 DOI: 10.1002/jbio.201600238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2016] [Revised: 11/23/2016] [Accepted: 12/23/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Intraoperative detection of residual malignant cells at tumor margins following excision of primary tumors could help improving surgery and thus patients' outcome. The feasibility of the tumor antigens epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) and epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) for antibody-dependent confocal laser scanning endomicroscopy (CLE)-mediated visualization of malignant cells was addressed. Both tumor antigens are highly and frequently expressed in the majority of carcinomas, including head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC), and represent prognostic and therapeutic tumor target molecules. FITC-conjugated EGF-R- and EpCAM-specific antibodies served as molecular tools for the detection of antigen-positive cells using the CLE technology. Specificity of both antibodies and their ability to discriminate tumor from non-tumor cells were assessed in vitro with human fibroblasts and PCI-1 HNSCC cell lines, and ex vivo on primary HNSCC samples (n = 11) and healthy mucosa (n = 5). Antigen specificity of the used EpCAM-specific antibody was superior to that of the EGF-R-specific antibody both in vitro and ex vivo (100% vs. 31.25%), and allowed visualization of cellular structures in CLE measurements. These results hold promise for possible future applications in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna S Englhard
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Alexander Palaras
- Laser-Forschungslabor, LIFE-Zentrum, Klinikum der Universität München, Feodor-Lynen-Str. 19, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Veronika Volgger
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Herbert Stepp
- Laser-Forschungslabor, LIFE-Zentrum, Klinikum der Universität München, Feodor-Lynen-Str. 19, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Department of Urology, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Brigitte Mack
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Darko Libl
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Clinical Cooperation Group "Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors", Helmholtz Zentrum, München, Germany
| | - Christian S Betz
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum der Universität München, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany
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35
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Munich, Germany. .,Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Helmholtz Zentrum, Munich, Germany
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36
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Ebinger S, Özdemir EZ, Ziegenhain C, Tiedt S, Castro Alves C, Grunert M, Dworzak M, Lutz C, Turati VA, Enver T, Horny HP, Sotlar K, Parekh S, Spiekermann K, Hiddemann W, Schepers A, Polzer B, Kirsch S, Hoffmann M, Knapp B, Hasenauer J, Pfeifer H, Panzer-Grümayer R, Enard W, Gires O, Jeremias I. Characterization of Rare, Dormant, and Therapy-Resistant Cells in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancer Cell 2016; 30:849-862. [PMID: 27916615 PMCID: PMC5156313 DOI: 10.1016/j.ccell.2016.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 164] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2015] [Revised: 06/11/2016] [Accepted: 10/31/2016] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Tumor relapse is associated with dismal prognosis, but responsible biological principles remain incompletely understood. To isolate and characterize relapse-inducing cells, we used genetic engineering and proliferation-sensitive dyes in patient-derived xenografts of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). We identified a rare subpopulation that resembled relapse-inducing cells with combined properties of long-term dormancy, treatment resistance, and stemness. Single-cell and bulk expression profiling revealed their similarity to primary ALL cells isolated from pediatric and adult patients at minimal residual disease (MRD). Therapeutically adverse characteristics were reversible, as resistant, dormant cells became sensitive to treatment and started proliferating when dissociated from the in vivo environment. Our data suggest that ALL patients might profit from therapeutic strategies that release MRD cells from the niche.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Ebinger
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Erbey Ziya Özdemir
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Christoph Ziegenhain
- Anthropology and Human Genomics, Department Biology II, Faculty of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Sebastian Tiedt
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Catarina Castro Alves
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Michaela Grunert
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Michael Dworzak
- Children's Cancer Research Institute and St. Anna Kinderspital, Department of Pediatrics, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Christoph Lutz
- Department of Medicine V, University of Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Tariq Enver
- University College London Cancer Institute, London WC1E, UK
| | - Hans-Peter Horny
- Institute of Pathology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Karl Sotlar
- Institute of Pathology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80337 Munich, Germany
| | - Swati Parekh
- Anthropology and Human Genomics, Department Biology II, Faculty of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Karsten Spiekermann
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany; German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), Partnering Site, Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Hiddemann
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany; German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), Partnering Site, Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Aloys Schepers
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Bernhard Polzer
- Project Group Personalized Tumor Therapy, Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM, 93053 Regensburg, Germany
| | - Stefan Kirsch
- Project Group Personalized Tumor Therapy, Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM, 93053 Regensburg, Germany
| | - Martin Hoffmann
- Project Group Personalized Tumor Therapy, Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM, 93053 Regensburg, Germany
| | - Bettina Knapp
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Jan Hasenauer
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 85764 Neuherberg, Germany; Department of Mathematics, Technische Universität München (TUM), 85748 Munich, Germany
| | - Heike Pfeifer
- Department of Medicine, Hematology and Oncology, Goethe University, 60590 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Renate Panzer-Grümayer
- Children's Cancer Research Institute and St. Anna Kinderspital, Department of Pediatrics, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Wolfgang Enard
- Anthropology and Human Genomics, Department Biology II, Faculty of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Irmela Jeremias
- Department of Gene Vectors, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Center for Environmental Health (HMGU), 81377 Munich, Germany; German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), Partnering Site, Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany; Department of Pediatrics, Dr. von Hauner Children's Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University München, 80337 Munich, Germany.
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Tsaktanis T, Kremling H, Pavšič M, von Stackelberg R, Mack B, Fukumori A, Steiner H, Vielmuth F, Spindler V, Huang Z, Jakubowski J, Stoecklein NH, Luxenburger E, Lauber K, Lenarčič B, Gires O. Cleavage and cell adhesion properties of human epithelial cell adhesion molecule (HEPCAM). J Biol Chem 2016; 291:425. [PMID: 26724312 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.a115.662700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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Tsaktanis T, Kremling H, Pavšič M, von Stackelberg R, Mack B, Fukumori A, Steiner H, Vielmuth F, Spindler V, Huang Z, Jakubowski J, Stoecklein NH, Luxenburger E, Lauber K, Lenarčič B, Gires O. Cleavage and cell adhesion properties of human epithelial cell adhesion molecule (HEPCAM). J Biol Chem 2015; 290:24574-91. [PMID: 26292218 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m115.662700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2015] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Human epithelial cell adhesion molecule (HEPCAM) is a tumor-associated antigen frequently expressed in carcinomas, which promotes proliferation after regulated intramembrane proteolysis. Here, we describe extracellular shedding of HEPCAM at two α-sites through a disintegrin and metalloprotease (ADAM) and at one β-site through BACE1. Transmembrane cleavage by γ-secretase occurs at three γ-sites to generate extracellular Aβ-like fragments and at two ϵ-sites to release human EPCAM intracellular domain HEPICD, which is efficiently degraded by the proteasome. Mapping of cleavage sites onto three-dimensional structures of HEPEX cis-dimer predicted conditional availability of α- and β-sites. Endocytosis of HEPCAM warrants acidification in cytoplasmic vesicles to dissociate protein cis-dimers required for cleavage by BACE1 at low pH values. Intramembrane cleavage sites are accessible and not part of the structurally important transmembrane helix dimer crossing region. Surprisingly, neither chemical inhibition of cleavage nor cellular knock-out of HEPCAM using CRISPR-Cas9 technology impacted the adhesion of carcinoma cell lines. Hence, a direct function of HEPCAM as an adhesion molecule in carcinoma cells is not supported and appears to be questionable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thanos Tsaktanis
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center
| | - Heidi Kremling
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center
| | - Miha Pavšič
- the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Večna Pot 113, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Ricarda von Stackelberg
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center
| | - Brigitte Mack
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center
| | - Akio Fukumori
- the DZNE-German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Feodor-Lynen-Strasse 17, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Harald Steiner
- the DZNE-German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Feodor-Lynen-Strasse 17, 81377 Munich, Germany, Biomedical Center, Biochemistry
| | | | | | - Zhe Huang
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center
| | - Jasmine Jakubowski
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, the Munich Center for Neurosciences, LMU Biocenter, AMGEN Scholars Programme, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Grosshaderner Strasse 2, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany, and
| | - Nikolas H Stoecklein
- the Department for General, Visceral, and Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital and Medical Faculty of the Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstrasse 5, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Elke Luxenburger
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center
| | - Kirsten Lauber
- Clinic for Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, and the Clinical Cooperation Group Personalized Radiotherapy of Head and Neck Tumors, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Brigita Lenarčič
- the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Večna Pot 113, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Olivier Gires
- From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center,
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Kämmerer U, Gires O, Pfetzer N, Wiegering A, Klement RJ, Otto C. TKTL1 expression in human malign and benign cell lines. BMC Cancer 2015; 15:2. [PMID: 26187043 PMCID: PMC4506423 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2407-15-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2014] [Accepted: 11/27/2014] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Overexpression of transketolase-like 1 protein TKTL1 in cancer cells has been reported to correlate with enhanced glycolysis and lactic acid production. Furthermore, enhanced TKTL1 expression was put into context with resistance to chemotherapy and ionizing radiation. Here, a panel of human malign and benign cells, which cover a broad range of chemotherapy and radiation resistance as well as reliance on glucose metabolism, was analyzed in vitro for TKTL1 expression. Methods 17 malign and three benign cell lines were characterized according to their expression of TKTL1 on the protein level with three commercially available anti-TKTL1 antibodies utilizing immunohistochemistry and Western blot, as well as on mRNA level with three published primer pairs for RT-qPCR. Furthermore, sensitivities to paclitaxel, cisplatin and ionizing radiation were assessed in cell survival assays. Glucose consumption and lactate production were quantified as surrogates for the “Warburg effect”. Results Considerable amounts of tktl1 mRNA and TKTL1 protein were detected only upon stable transfection of the human embryonic kidney cell line HEK293 with an expression plasmid for human TKTL1. Beyond that, weak expression of endogenous tktl1 mRNA was measured in the cell lines JAR and U251. Western blot analysis of JAR and U251 cells did not detect TKTL1 at the expected size of 65 kDa with all three antibodies specific for TKTL1 protein and immunohistochemical staining was observed with antibody JFC12T10 only. All other cell lines tested here revealed expression of tktl1 mRNA below detection limits and were negative for TKTL1 protein. However, in all cell lines including TKTL1-negative HEK293-control cells, antibody JFC12T10 detected multiple proteins with different molecular weights. Importantly, JAR and U251 did neither demonstrate an outstanding production of lactic acid nor increased resistance against chemotherapeutics or to ionizing radiation, respectively. Conclusion Using RT-qPCR and three different antibodies we observed only exceptional occurrence of TKTL1 in a panel of malignant human cell lines in vitro. The presence of TKTL1 was unrelated to either the rate of glucose consumption/lactic acid production or resistance against chemo- and radiotherapy. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2407-15-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrike Kämmerer
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Würzburg Hospital, Josef-Schneider-Str. 4, D-97080, Würzburg, Germany.
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Marchioninistr. 15, D-81377, Munich, Germany.
| | - Nadja Pfetzer
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Würzburg Hospital, Josef-Schneider-Str. 4, D-97080, Würzburg, Germany. .,Apoptosis and Tumour Metabolism Lab, CRUK Beatson Institute, Garscube Estate, Switchback Road, Glasgow, G61 1BD, United Kingdom.
| | - Armin Wiegering
- Department of General, Visceral, Vascular and Paediatric Surgery, University Hospital of Würzburg, Oberdürrbacher Str. 6, D-97080, Würzburg, Germany.
| | - Rainer Johannes Klement
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, Leopoldina Hospital Schweinfurt, Gustav-Adolf-Straße 8, D-97422, Schweinfurt, Germany.
| | - Christoph Otto
- Experimental Surgery, Experimental Transplantation Immunology, Department of General, Visceral, Vascular and Paediatric Surgery, University Hospital of Würzburg, Oberdürrbacher Str. 6, D-97080, Würzburg, Germany.
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Paprottka PM, Roßpunt S, Ingrisch M, Cyran CC, Nikolaou K, Reiser MF, Mack B, Gires O, Clevert DA, Zengel P. Reducing tumor growth and angiogenesis using a triple therapy measured with Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS). BMC Cancer 2015; 15:373. [PMID: 25947947 PMCID: PMC4435644 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-015-1333-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2014] [Accepted: 04/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background To evaluate the in vivo response by detecting the anti-angiogenic and invasion-inhibiting effects of a triple-combination-therapy in an experimental-small-animal-squamous-cell-carcinoma-model using the “flash-replenishment” (FR) method to assess tissue hemodynamics via contrast-enhanced-ultrasound (CEUS). Methods Human hypopharynx-carcinoma-cells were subcutaneously injected into the left flank of 22-female-athymic-nude-rats. After seven days of subcutaneous tumor growth, FR-measurements were performed on each rat. Treatment-group and control-group were treated every day for a period of one week, with the treatment-group receiving solvents containing a triple therapy of Upamostat®, Celecoxib® and Ilomastat® and the control-group solvents only. On day seven, follow-up measurements were performed using the same measurement protocol to assess the effects of the triple therapy. VueBox® was used to quantify the kinetic parameters and additional immunohistochemistry analyses were performed for comparison with and validation of the CEUS results against established methods (Proliferation/Ki-67, vascularization/CD31, apoptosis/caspase3). Results Compared to the control-group, the treatment-group that received the triple-therapy resulted in a reduction of tumor growth by 48.6% in size. Likewise, the immunohistochemistry results showed significant decreases in tumor proliferation and vascularization in the treatment-group in comparison to the control-group of 26%(p≤0.05) and 32.2%(p≤0.05) respectively. Correspondingly, between the baseline and follow-up measurements, the therapy-group was associated with a significant(p ≤ 0.01) decrease in the relative-Blood-Volume(rBV) in both the whole tumor(wt) and hypervascular tumor(ht) areas (p≤0.01), while the control-group was associated with a significant (p≤0.01) increase of the rBV in the wt area and a non-significant increase (p≤0.16) in the ht area. The mean-transit-time (mTT) of the wt and the ht areas showed a significant increase (p≤0.01) in the follow-up measurements in the therapy group. Conclusion The triple-therapy is feasible and effective in reducing both tumor growth and vascularization. In particular, compared with the placebo-group, the triple-therapy-group resulted in a reduction in tumor growth of 48.6% in size when assessed by CEUS and a significant reduction in the number of vessels in the tumor of 32% as assessed by immunohistochemistry. As the immunohistochemistry supports the CEUS findings, CEUS using the “flash replenishment”(FR) method appears to provide a useful assessment of the anti-angiogenic and invasion-inhibiting effects of a triple combination therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Svenja Roßpunt
- Institute for Ear, Nose and Throat Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Michael Ingrisch
- Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Clemens C Cyran
- Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Konstantin Nikolaou
- Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Maximilian F Reiser
- Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Brigitte Mack
- Institute for Ear, Nose and Throat Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Olivier Gires
- Institute for Ear, Nose and Throat Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Dirk A Clevert
- Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
| | - Pamela Zengel
- Institute for Ear, Nose and Throat Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
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Eder K, Dietzel S, Harreus U, Mack B, Guhlich M, Eggert C, Berghaus A, Gires O, Canis M. An Intravital Multiphoton Microscopy Model for visualization of tumor cell dissemination and lymphatic vasculature. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015. [DOI: 10.17980/2015.200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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Abstract
Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) is a transmembrane glycoprotein, which is frequently and highly expressed on carcinomas, tumor-initiating cells, selected tissue progenitors, and embryonic and adult stem cells. During liver development, EpCAM demonstrates a dynamic expression, since it can be detected in fetal liver, including cells of the parenchyma, whereas mature hepatocytes are devoid of EpCAM. Liver regeneration is associated with a population of EpCAM-positive cells within ductular reactions, which gradually lose the expression of EpCAM along with maturation into hepatocytes. EpCAM can be switched on and off through a wide panel of strategies to fine-tune EpCAM-dependent functional and differentiative traits. EpCAM-associated functions relate to cell-cell adhesion, proliferation, maintenance of a pluripotent state, regulation of differentiation, migration, and invasion. These functions can be conferred by the full-length protein and/or EpCAM-derived fragments, which are generated upon regulated intramembrane proteolysis. Control by EpCAM therefore not only depends on the presence of full-length EpCAM at cellular membranes but also on varying rates of the formation of EpCAM-derived fragments that have their own regulatory properties and on changes in the association of EpCAM with interaction partners. Thus spatiotemporal localization of EpCAM in immature liver progenitors, transit-amplifying cells, and mature liver cells will decisively impact the regulation of EpCAM functions and might be one of the triggers that contributes to the adaptive processes in stem/progenitor cell lineages. This review will summarize EpCAM-related molecular events and how they relate to hepatobiliary differentiation and regeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurent Dollé
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Liver Cell Biology Lab, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium;
| | - Neil D. Theise
- 2Departments of Pathology and Medicine, Beth Israel Medical Center of Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, New York;
| | - Eva Schmelzer
- 3McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;
| | - Luke Boulter
- 4Medical Research Council Human Genetics Unit, Institute for Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Edinburgh, Scotland; and
| | - Olivier Gires
- 5Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Leo A. van Grunsven
- 1Department of Biomedical Sciences, Liver Cell Biology Lab, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium;
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Gires O, Stoecklein NH. Dynamic EpCAM expression on circulating and disseminating tumor cells: causes and consequences. Cell Mol Life Sci 2014; 71:4393-402. [PMID: 25103341 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-014-1693-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 79] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2014] [Revised: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 07/24/2014] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Formation of metastasis is the most important and lethal step in cancer progression. Circulating and disseminated cancer cells (CTCs/DTCs) in blood and bone marrow are considered as potential metastases-inducing cells. Their detection and characterization has, therefore, become a field of major interest in translational and clinical research in oncology. The main strategy to detect these cells relies thus far on the epithelial characteristics of carcinoma cells and epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) represents the most commonly used epithelial marker to capture CTCs/DTCs. Recent data, however, demonstrated a dynamic expression of EpCAM associated with a loss during epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. The present review summarizes the potential mechanisms and reasons for a dynamic expression of EpCAM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany,
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Li S, Lamarche F, Charton R, Delphin C, Gires O, Hubstenberger A, Schlattner U, Rousseau D. Expression analysis of ATAD3 isoforms in rodent and human cell lines and tissues. Gene 2014; 535:60-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2013.10.062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2013] [Revised: 10/28/2013] [Accepted: 10/31/2013] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Hachmeister M, Bobowski KD, Hogl S, Dislich B, Fukumori A, Eggert C, Mack B, Kremling H, Sarrach S, Coscia F, Zimmermann W, Steiner H, Lichtenthaler SF, Gires O. Regulated intramembrane proteolysis and degradation of murine epithelial cell adhesion molecule mEpCAM. PLoS One 2013; 8:e71836. [PMID: 24009667 PMCID: PMC3756971 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0071836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2013] [Accepted: 07/03/2013] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Epithelial cell adhesion molecule EpCAM is a transmembrane glycoprotein, which is highly and frequently expressed in carcinomas and (cancer-)stem cells, and which plays an important role in the regulation of stem cell pluripotency. We show here that murine EpCAM (mEpCAM) is subject to regulated intramembrane proteolysis in various cells including embryonic stem cells and teratocarcinomas. As shown with ectopically expressed EpCAM variants, cleavages occur at α-, β-, γ-, and ε-sites to generate soluble ectodomains, soluble Aβ-like-, and intracellular fragments termed mEpEX, mEp-β, and mEpICD, respectively. Proteolytic sites in the extracellular part of mEpCAM were mapped using mass spectrometry and represent cleavages at the α- and β-sites by metalloproteases and the b-secretase BACE1, respectively. Resulting C-terminal fragments (CTF) are further processed to soluble Aβ-like fragments mEp-β and cytoplasmic mEpICD variants by the g-secretase complex. Noteworthy, cytoplasmic mEpICD fragments were subject to efficient degradation in a proteasome-dependent manner. In addition the γ-secretase complex dependent cleavage of EpCAM CTF liberates different EpICDs with different stabilities towards proteasomal degradation. Generation of CTF and EpICD fragments and the degradation of hEpICD via the proteasome were similarly demonstrated for the human EpCAM ortholog. Additional EpCAM orthologs have been unequivocally identified in silico in 52 species. Sequence comparisons across species disclosed highest homology of BACE1 cleavage sites and in presenilin-dependent γ-cleavage sites, whereas strongest heterogeneity was observed in metalloprotease cleavage sites. In summary, EpCAM is a highly conserved protein present in fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, marsupials, and placental mammals, and is subject to shedding, γ-secretase-dependent regulated intramembrane proteolysis, and proteasome-mediated degradation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Hachmeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Karolina D. Bobowski
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Hogl
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
| | - Bastian Dislich
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
- Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Akio Fukumori
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
| | - Carola Eggert
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Brigitte Mack
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Heidi Kremling
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Sannia Sarrach
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Fabian Coscia
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Zimmermann
- Tumor Immunology Laboratory, LIFE Center, Klinikum Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Harald Steiner
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
- Adolf Butenandt Institute, Biochemistry, Ludwig Maximilians University, Munich, Germany
| | - Stefan F. Lichtenthaler
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
- Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Munich Center for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich, Germany
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
- * E-mail:
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Kroepil F, Dulian A, Vallböhmer D, Geddert H, Krieg A, Vay C, Topp SA, am Esch JS, Baldus SE, Gires O, Knoefel WT, Stoecklein NH. High EpCAM expression is linked to proliferation and lauren classification in gastric cancer. BMC Res Notes 2013; 6:253. [PMID: 23830302 PMCID: PMC3724596 DOI: 10.1186/1756-0500-6-253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2012] [Accepted: 06/21/2013] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The association of EpCAM expression with the progression of gastric cancer remains unclear. Here, we investigated the expression of EpCAM in gastric cancer subtypes and correlated the data to tumor cell proliferation and clinicopathologic factors. METHODS The intratumoral expression of EpCAM was assessed in 163 primary gastric cancers (61 diffuse-, 62 intestinal-, 32 mixed-type and 8 unclassified tumors) by immunohistochemistry, using the monoclonal antibody Ber-EP4. Intensity of staining was classified according the HercepTest-score using a standardized scoring system. Ki-67 was used to examine the proliferation in tumor tissue. RESULTS Strong EpCAM expression was observed in 77% of the tumors and in 85% of the corresponding lymph nodes. Of the primary tumors, 58% (n=74) presented a homogeneous intratumoral EpCAM expression while 42% were characterised by a heterogenous expression pattern. Tumors with high EpCAM expression at the invasive front were associated with significantly (p=0.03) higher proportion of lymph node metastases and lower median overall survival (p=0.001). Diffuse type tumors presented a significantly higher EpCAM expression at the invasion front compared with the tumor centre (p=0.036). Multivariate survival analysis identified high EpCAM expression at the invasive front as an independent prognostic factor.We observed a significant (p=0.001) correlation between high EpCAM expression and higher tumor cell proliferation. CONCLUSION High EpCAM expression associates with proliferation and progression of gastric cancer, especially in the diffuse type. Considering the discontenting results of the current adjuvant concepts for gastric cancer patients, EpCAM might be target in the adjuvant therapy of this malignant disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feride Kroepil
- Department of Surgery (A), Heinrich-Heine-University and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Moorenstrasse 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
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Canis M, Lechner A, Mack B, Zengel P, Laubender RP, Koehler U, Heissmeyer V, Gires O. CD133 is a predictor of poor survival in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. Cancer Biomark 2013; 12:97-105. [PMID: 23396254 DOI: 10.3233/cbm-130297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The pentaspan protein CD133 (Prominin-1) is a predictive marker and part of the signature of tumour-initiating cells (TICs) for various cancer entities. METHODS The correlation of CD133 expression with clinical parameters was assessed in primary samples of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (n=98) and normal mucosas (n=24). RESULTS A gradual and inversely proportional correlation between CD133 expression in primary tumours and decreased overall survival was observed, along with a positive correlation with the presence of lymph node metastases. CONCLUSIONS CD133 has the potential of being a novel clinically relevant prognostic marker for head and neck malignancies, which is possibly involved in regulation of tumourigenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Canis
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
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Mack B, Eggert C, Eder K, Imrich S, Baumeister P, Harréus U, Gires O. Rapid and non-enzymatic in vitro retrieval of tumour cells from surgical specimens. PLoS One 2013; 8:e55540. [PMID: 23383219 PMCID: PMC3561176 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0055540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2012] [Accepted: 12/28/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The study of tumourigenesis commonly involves the use of established cell lines or single cell suspensions of primary tumours. Standard methods for the generation of short-term tumour cell cultures include the disintegration of tissue based on enzymatic and mechanical stress. Here, we describe a simple and rapid method for the preparation of single cells from primary carcinomas, which is independent of enzymatic treatment and feeder cells. Tumour biopsies are processed to 1 mm(3) cubes termed explants, which are cultured 1-3 days on agarose-coated well plates in specified medium. Through incisions generated in the explants, single cells are retrieved and collected from the culture supernatant and can be used for further analysis including in vitro and in vivo studies. Collected cells retain tumour-forming capacity in xenotransplantation assays, mimic the phenotype of the primary tumour, and facilitate the generation of cell lines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brigitte Mack
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Carola Eggert
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Katharina Eder
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Sannia Imrich
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Baumeister
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
| | - Ulrich Harréus
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
- * E-mail: (UH); (OG)
| | - Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Clinic, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
- * E-mail: (UH); (OG)
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Denzel S, Mack B, Eggert C, Massoner P, Stöcklein N, Kemming D, Harréus U, Gires O. MMP7 is a target of the tumour-associated antigen EpCAM. Int J Exp Pathol 2012; 93:341-53. [PMID: 22974215 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2613.2012.00826.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) is a single-transmembrane protein, which is involved in numerous cellular processes including cell adhesion, proliferation, maintenance of stemness of embryonic cells and progenitors, migration and invasion. Activation of signal transduction by EpCAM is warranted by regulated intramembrane proteolysis and nuclear translocation of the intracellular domain EpICD. Here, we describe matrix metalloproteinase 7 (MMP7) as a target gene of EpCAM signalling viaEpICD nuclear translocation. EpCAM and MMP7 expression pattern and levels positively correlated in vitro and in vivo, and were strongly elevated in primary carcinomas of the head and neck area. Hence, MMP7 is a novel target of EpCAM signalling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabine Denzel
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Munich, Germany
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Gires O. Lessons from common markers of tumor-initiating cells in solid cancers. Cell Mol Life Sci 2011; 68:4009-22. [PMID: 21786143 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-011-0772-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2011] [Revised: 07/04/2011] [Accepted: 07/07/2011] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Tumor-initiating cells (TICs) have emerged as the driving force of carcinomas, which appear as hierarchically structured. TICs as opposed to the tumor bulk display tumor forming potential, which is linked to a certain degree of self-renewal and differentiation, both major features of stem cells. Markers such as CD44, CD133, CD24, EpCAM, CD166, Lgr5, CD47, and ALDH have been described, which allow for the prospective enrichment of TICs. It is conspicuous that the same markers allow for an enrichment of TICs in various entities and, on the other hand, that different combinations of these markers were independently reported for the same tumor entity. Potential functions of these markers in the regulation of TIC phenotypes remained somewhat neglected although they might give insights in common molecular themes of TICs. The present review discusses major TIC markers with respect to their function and potential contributions to the tumorigenic phenotype of TICs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Gires
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany.
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