1
|
Tong K, Bandari M, Carrick JN, Zenkevich A, Kothari OA, Shamshad E, Stefanik K, Haro KS, Perekatt AO, Verzi MP. In Vitro Organoid-Based Assays Reveal SMAD4 Tumor-Suppressive Mechanisms for Serrated Colorectal Cancer Invasion. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:5820. [PMID: 38136364 PMCID: PMC10742020 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15245820] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Colon cancer is the third most prominent cancer and second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Up to 20% of colon cancers follow the serrated tumor pathway driven by mutations in the MAPK pathway. Loss of SMAD4 function occurs in the majority of late-stage colon cancers and is associated with aggressive cancer progression. Therefore, it is important to develop technology to accurately model and better understand the genetic mechanisms behind cancer invasion. Organoids derived from tumors found in the Smad4KO BRAFV600E/+ mouse model present multiple phenotypes characteristic of invasion both in ex vivo and in vivo systems. Smad4KO BRAFV600E/+ tumor organoids can migrate through 3D culture and infiltrate through transwell membranes. This invasive behavior can be suppressed when SMAD4 is re-expressed in the tumor organoids. RNA-Seq analysis reveals that SMAD4 expression in organoids rapidly regulates transcripts associated with extracellular matrix and secreted proteins, suggesting that the mechanisms employed by SMAD4 to inhibit invasion are associated with regulation of extracellular matrix and secretory pathways. These findings indicate new models to study SMAD4 regulation of tumor invasion and an additional layer of complexity in the tumor-suppressive function of the SMAD4/Tgfβ pathway.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Tong
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
- Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
- Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
- Hackensack Meridian Health Center for Discovery and Innovation, Nutley, NJ 07110, USA
- Department of Medical Sciences, Hackensack Meridian Health School of Medicine, Nutley, NJ 07110, USA
| | - Manisha Bandari
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
| | - Jillian N. Carrick
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
- Hackensack Meridian Health Center for Discovery and Innovation, Nutley, NJ 07110, USA
| | - Anastasia Zenkevich
- Hackensack Meridian Health Center for Discovery and Innovation, Nutley, NJ 07110, USA
| | - Om A. Kothari
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
| | - Eman Shamshad
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
| | - Katarina Stefanik
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
- Department of Biology, The College of New Jersey, Ewing Township, NJ 08618, USA
| | - Katherine S. Haro
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
| | - Ansu O. Perekatt
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ 07030, USA
| | - Michael P. Verzi
- Department of Genetics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (A.O.P.)
- Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
- Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
- Rutgers Center for Lipid Research, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Tong K, Kothari OA, Haro KS, Panda A, Bandari MM, Carrick JN, Hur JJ, Zhang L, Chan CS, Xing J, Gatza ML, Ganesan S, Verzi MP. SMAD4 is critical in suppression of BRAF-V600E serrated tumorigenesis. Oncogene 2021; 40:6034-6048. [PMID: 34453124 PMCID: PMC8559887 DOI: 10.1038/s41388-021-01997-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [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: 04/01/2021] [Revised: 08/04/2021] [Accepted: 08/17/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BRAF-driven colorectal cancer is among the poorest prognosis subtypes of colon cancer. Previous studies suggest that BRAF-mutant serrated cancers frequently exhibit Microsatellite Instability (MSI) and elevated levels of WNT signaling. The loss of tumor-suppressor Smad4 in oncogenic BRAF-V600E mouse models promotes rapid serrated tumor development and progression, and SMAD4 mutations co-occur in human patient tumors with BRAF-V600E mutations. This study assesses the role of SMAD4 in early-stage serrated tumorigenesis. SMAD4 loss promotes microsatellite stable (MSS) serrated tumors in an oncogenic BRAF-V600E context, providing a model for MSS serrated cancers. Inactivation of Msh2 in these mice accelerated tumor formation, and whole-exome sequencing of both MSS and MSI serrated tumors derived from these mouse models revealed that all serrated tumors developed oncogenic WNT mutations, predominantly in the WNT-effector gene Ctnnb1 (β-catenin). Mouse models mimicking the oncogenic β-catenin mutation show that the combination of three oncogenic mutations (Ctnnb1, Braf, and Smad4) are critical to drive rapid serrated dysplasia formation. Re-analysis of human tumor data reveals BRAF-V600E mutations co-occur with oncogenic mutations in both WNT and SMAD4/TGFβ pathways. These findings identify SMAD4 as a critical factor in early-stage serrated cancers and helps broaden the knowledge of this rare but aggressive subset of colorectal cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Tong
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Om A. Kothari
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Katherine S. Haro
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Anshuman Panda
- Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ), 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA
| | - Manisha M. Bandari
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Jillian N. Carrick
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Joseph J. Hur
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Lanjing Zhang
- Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ), 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA,Department of Pathology, Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center, Plainsboro, NJ, USA
| | - Chang S. Chan
- Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - Jinchuan Xing
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Michael L. Gatza
- Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ), 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA,Department of Radiation Oncology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - Shridar Ganesan
- Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ), 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA
| | - Michael P. Verzi
- Department of Genetics, Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ), Rutgers University, 145 Bevier Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA,Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ), 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA,Corresponding Author: Michael P. Verzi,
| |
Collapse
|