1
|
Roldán DB, Grimmler M, Hartmann C, Hubich-Rau S, Beißert T, Paret C, Cagna G, Rohde C, Wöll S, Koslowski M, Türeci Ö, Sahin U. PLAC1 is essential for FGF7/FGFRIIIb-induced Akt-mediated cancer cell proliferation. Oncotarget 2020; 11:1862-1875. [PMID: 32499871 PMCID: PMC7244013 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.27582] [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] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2019] [Accepted: 03/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
PLAC1 (placenta enriched 1) is a mammalian trophoblast-specific protein. Aberrant expression of PLAC1 is observed in various human cancers, where it is involved in the motility, migration, and invasion of tumor cells, which are associated with the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT pathway. We previously demonstrated that AKT activation mediates the downstream effects of PLAC1; however, the molecular mechanisms of PLAC1-induced AKT-mediated tumor-related processes are unclear. We studied human choriocarcinoma and breast cancer cell lines to explore the localization and receptor-ligand interactions, as well as the downstream effects of PLAC1. We show secretion and adherence of PLAC1 to the extracellular matrix, where it forms a trimeric complex with fibroblast growth factor 7 (FGF7) and its receptor, FGF receptor 2 IIIb (FGFR2IIIb). We further show that PLAC1 signaling via FGFR2IIIb activates AKT phosphorylation in cancer cell lines. As the FGF pathway is of major interest in anticancer therapeutic strategies, these data further promote PLAC1 as a promising anticancer drug target.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Diana Barea Roldán
- TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Matthias Grimmler
- Formerly of TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Current address: DiaSys Diagnostic Systems GmbH, Holzheim, Germany.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Christoph Hartmann
- Formerly of TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Current address: Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Stefanie Hubich-Rau
- TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Tim Beißert
- TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Claudia Paret
- Formerly of TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Giuseppe Cagna
- Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG, Mainz, Germany.,Current address: Lonza Pharma & Biotech, Cologne, Germany
| | - Christoph Rohde
- Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG, Mainz, Germany.,Current address: Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Stefan Wöll
- Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG, Mainz, Germany.,Biopharmaceutical New Technologies (BioNTech) Corporation, Mainz, Germany
| | - Michael Koslowski
- Formerly of TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG, Mainz, Germany.,Formerly of University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Current address: GammaDelta Therapeutics, London, United Kingdom
| | - Özlem Türeci
- Formerly of TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG, Mainz, Germany.,Biopharmaceutical New Technologies (BioNTech) Corporation, Mainz, Germany.,Ci3 Cluster for Individualized Immune Intervention, Mainz, Germany
| | - Ugur Sahin
- TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Biopharmaceutical New Technologies (BioNTech) Corporation, Mainz, Germany.,University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Roldan DB, Hartmann C, Hubich-Rau S, Beissert T, Paret C, Cagna G, Rohde C, Wöll S, Sahin U, Tureci O. Abstract 763: PLAC1 interacts with FGF7 and promotes phosphorylation of FGFR2 and AKT. Cancer Res 2018. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2018-763] [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
Background PLAC1 is a protein predominantly expressed in the placenta with no substantial presence in other human tissues; however, PLAC1 is aberrantly expressed in various human cancers (eg, breast cancer), and is functionally involved in the motility, migration, and invasion of cancer cells. While these functions have been linked to the PI3K/AKT pathway, the role of PLAC1 in this signaling pathway is unclear. AKT mediates cell proliferation induced by fibroblast growth factor 7 (FGF7), a specific mitogen for epithelial cells which has a significant expression in estradiol receptor-positive breast cancer. The objectives of these nonclinical studies were to investigate if/how PLAC1 is linked to the FGF7/fibroblast growth factor receptor 2IIIb (FGF2IIIb) axis, evaluate the possible role of PLAC1 in PLAC1-expressing tumor cells, and to assess the potential of PLAC1 as a therapeutic target.
Methods PLAC1 protein expression and localization, as well as its interactions with FGF7 and FGFR2, were studied in human cancer cell lines by immunohistochemistry, Western blotting, and co-immunoprecipitation. To compare cell proliferation and protein phosphorylation in PLAC1-expressing versus non-expressing cells, PLAC1 expression was knocked down in the choriocarcinoma cell line, BeWo, as well as the breast cancer cell lines, SkBr3 and T47D.
Results Consistent with a previous report by Massabbal et al (2005), PLAC1 was found to be coexpressed with FGF7 and FGFR2 in placenta. Increased PLAC1 expression was noted in cell lines of trophoblastic, breast, and pancreatic lineage compared with adenocarcinoma cell lines. PLAC1 localized on the cell surface and was released into the extracellular matrix where it exhibited a strong affinity for heparin, which binds to FGFs and FGF receptors facilitating FGF-receptor binding and activation of the FGFR tyrosine kinase. In cultured cells, PLAC1, FGF7, and the FGFR2 isoform FGFR2IIIb formed a trimeric complex; only FGF7, but not other FGFs, was able to interact with PLAC1, suggesting a highly specific interaction. PLAC1 knockdown models showed substantially reduced cell proliferation and phosphorylation of AKT and FGFR2 after stimulation with FGF7 compared with control cells, indicating the involvement of PLAC1 in the FGF7-induced AKT signal transduction pathway that leads to cell proliferation.
Conclusions PLAC1 may play a role in tumorigenesis through the FGF7-induced pathway of cell proliferation by promoting phosphorylation of FGFR2 and AKT through interactions with FGF7, FGFR2, and heparin. Because of this function and its cancer-selective, cell-surface expression in adult human tissue, PLAC1 may be an attractive target candidate for therapeutic anticancer antibodies.
Citation Format: Diana Barea Roldan, Christoph Hartmann, Stefanie Hubich-Rau, Tim Beissert, Claudia Paret, Giuseppe Cagna, Christoph Rohde, Stefan Wöll, Ugur Sahin, Ozlem Tureci. PLAC1 interacts with FGF7 and promotes phosphorylation of FGFR2 and AKT [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 763.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Diana Barea Roldan
- 1TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany, Mainz, Germany
| | - Christoph Hartmann
- 2Formerly of TRON – Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Stefanie Hubich-Rau
- 1TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany, Mainz, Germany
| | - Tim Beissert
- 1TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany, Mainz, Germany
| | - Claudia Paret
- 3University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Giuseppe Cagna
- 4Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals GmbH, Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Stefan Wöll
- 4Formerly of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals GmbH, Mainz, Germany
| | - Ugur Sahin
- 1TRON-Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany, Mainz, Germany
| | - Ozlem Tureci
- 5CI3 – Cluster of Individualized Immune Intervention, Mainz, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Paret C, Simon P, Vormbrock K, Bender C, Kölsch A, Breitkreuz A, Yildiz Ö, Omokoko T, Hubich-Rau S, Hartmann C, Häcker S, Wagner M, Roldan DB, Selmi A, Türeci Ö, Sahin U. CXorf61 is a target for T cell based immunotherapy of triple-negative breast cancer. Oncotarget 2016; 6:25356-67. [PMID: 26327325 PMCID: PMC4694836 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.4516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [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] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2015] [Accepted: 07/15/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a high medical need disease with limited treatment options. CD8+ T cell-mediated immunotherapy may represent an attractive approach to address TNBC. The objectives of this study were to assess the expression of CXorf61 in TNBCs and healthy tissues and to evaluate its capability to induce T cell responses. We show by transcriptional profiling of a broad comprehensive set of normal human tissue that CXorf61 expression is strictly restricted to testis. 53% of TNBC patients express this antigen in at least 30% of their tumor cells. In CXorf61-negative breast cancer cell lines CXorf61 expression is activated by treatment with the hypomethylating agent 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine. By vaccination of HLA-A*02-transgenic mice with CXorf61 encoding RNA we obtained high frequencies of CXorf61-specific T cells. Cloning and characterization of T cell receptors (TCRs) from responding T cells resulted in the identification of the two HLA-A*0201-restricted T cell epitopes CXorf6166–74 and CXorf6179–87. Furthermore, by in vitro priming of human CD8+ T cells derived from a healthy donor recognizing CXorf6166–74 we were able to induce a strong antigen-specific immune response and clone a human TCR recognizing this epitope. In summary, our data confirms this antigen as promising target for T cell based therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Paret
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Petra Simon
- BioNTech Cell & Gene Therapies, An der Goldgrube 12, Mainz, Germany
| | - Kirsten Vormbrock
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Christian Bender
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Anne Kölsch
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Özlem Yildiz
- BioNTech Cell & Gene Therapies, An der Goldgrube 12, Mainz, Germany
| | - Tana Omokoko
- BioNTech Cell & Gene Therapies, An der Goldgrube 12, Mainz, Germany
| | - Stefanie Hubich-Rau
- Experimental Oncology, Department of Medicine III, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Christoph Hartmann
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany.,Experimental Oncology, Department of Medicine III, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Sabine Häcker
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Meike Wagner
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany.,Experimental Oncology, Department of Medicine III, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Diana Barea Roldan
- Experimental Oncology, Department of Medicine III, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Abderaouf Selmi
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Özlem Türeci
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Ugur Sahin
- TRON gGmbH, Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany.,BioNTech Cell & Gene Therapies, An der Goldgrube 12, Mainz, Germany.,Experimental Oncology, Department of Medicine III, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| |
Collapse
|