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Xu Z, Wang Y, Xiao ZG, Zou C, Zhang X, Wang Z, Wu D, Yu S, Chan FL. Nuclear receptor ERRα and transcription factor ERG form a reciprocal loop in the regulation of TMPRSS2:ERG fusion gene in prostate cancer. Oncogene 2018; 37:6259-6274. [PMID: 30042415 PMCID: PMC6265259 DOI: 10.1038/s41388-018-0409-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2017] [Revised: 05/17/2018] [Accepted: 06/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The TMPRSS2:ERG (T:E) fusion gene is generally believed to be mainly regulated by the activated androgen receptor (AR) signaling in androgen-dependent prostate cancer. However, its persistent expression in castration-resistant and neuroendocrine prostate cancers implies that other transcription factors might also regulate its expression. Here, we showed that up-regulation of nuclear receptor estrogen-related receptor alpha (ERRα) was closely associated with the oncogenic transcription factor ERG expression in prostate cancer, and their increased coexpression patterns were closely associated with high Gleason scores and metastasis in patients. Both ERRα and ERG exhibited a positive expression correlation in a castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) xenograft model VCaP-CRPC. We showed that ERRα could directly transactivate T:E fusion gene in both AR-positive and -negative prostate cancer cells via both ERR-binding element- and AR-binding element-dependent manners. Ectopic T:E expression under ERRα regulation could promote both in vitro invasion and in vivo metastasis capacities of AR-negative prostatic cells. Intriguingly, ERG expressed by the T:E fusion could also transactivate the ERRα (ESRRA) gene. Hereby, ERRα and ERG can synergistically regulate each other and form a reciprocal regulatory loop to promote the advanced growth of prostate cancer. Inhibition of ERRα activity by ERRα inverse agonist could suppress T:E expression in prostate cancer cells, implicating that targeting ERRα could be a potential therapeutic strategy for treating the aggressive T:E-positive prostate cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenyu Xu
- Department of Pharmacy, Yijishan Affiliated Hospital, Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, Anhui, China
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Yuliang Wang
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Zhan Gang Xiao
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Department of Pharmacology, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, China
| | - Chang Zou
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Clinical Medical Research Center, Shenzhen People's Hospital, Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xian Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, Yijishan Affiliated Hospital, Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Zhu Wang
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Dinglan Wu
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Shan Yu
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
| | - Franky Leung Chan
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
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