Astrocytoma Tumorigenesis Research Articles

Polymorphisms in TPT1 Pathways in Pediatric Astrocytomas.

Central nervous system tumors, especially astrocytomas, are the solid neoplasms with the highest incidence and mortality rates in childhood. The diagnosis is based on histopathological characteristics, but molecular methods have been increasingly used. Translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) protein, encoded by the tumor protein, translationally controlled 1 (TPT1) gene, is a multifunctional protein with an important physiological role in the cell cycle. Expression of this protein has been associated with several neoplasms, including astrocytomas in adults. However, the role of this protein in pediatric astrocytomas is largely unknown. We aim to evaluate in cases of pediatric astrocytomas, the frequency of polymorphisms in the TPT1 gene and other genes associated with its molecular pathways, such as MTOR, MDM2, TP53, and CDKN1A, correlating it with protein expression and clinical variables, in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples. These samples were submitted to genotyping and immunohistochemistry analyses. The most revealing results refer to the MDM2 gene, rs117039649 [G/C], in which C polymorphic allele was observed only in the glioblastomas (p = .028). The CDKN1A gene, rs3176334 [T/C] presented a homozygous polymorphic genotype only in high-grade astrocytomas, when infiltrating tumors were compared (p = .039). The immunohistochemical expression of cytoplasmic MDM2 correlated with better survival rates in patients with glioblastoma (p = .018). The presence of polymorphisms in the MDM2 and CDKN1A genes, as well as a specific correlation between MDM2 expression, suggests a likely association with risk in pediatric astrocytomas. This study sought the probable role involved in the TCTP pathway, and associated proteins, in the tumorigenesis of pediatric astrocytomas, and some could have potential impact as prognostic markers in these patients.

DNA repair genes in astrocytoma tumorigenesis, progression and therapy resistance

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and malignant type of primary brain tumor, showing rapid development and resistance to therapies. On average, patients survive 14.6 months after diagnosis and less than 5% survive five years or more. Several pieces of evidence have suggested that the DNA damage signaling and repair activities are directly correlated with GBM phenotype and exhibit opposite functions in cancer establishment and progression. The functions of these pathways appear to present a dual role in tumorigenesis and cancer progression. Activation and/or overexpression of ATRX, ATM and RAD51 genes were extensively characterized as barriers for GBM initiation, but paradoxically the exacerbated activity of these genes was further associated with cancer progression to more aggressive stages. Excessive amounts of other DNA repair proteins, namely HJURP, EXO1, NEIL3, BRCA2, and BRIP, have also been connected to proliferative competence, resistance and poor prognosis. This scenario suggests that these networks help tumor cells to manage replicative stress and treatment-induced damage, diminishing genome instability and conferring therapy resistance. Finally, in this review we address promising new drugs and therapeutic approaches with potential to improve patient survival. However, despite all technological advances, the prognosis is still dismal and further research is needed to dissect such complex mechanisms.

CCNG2 Overexpression Mediated by AKT Inhibits Tumor Cell Proliferation in Human Astrocytoma Cells.

The cyclin family protein CCNG2 has an important inhibitory role in cancer initiation and progression, but the exact mechanism is still unknown. In this study, we examined the relationship between CCNG2 and the malignancy of astrocytomas and whether the AKT pathway, which is upregulated in astrocytomas, may inhibit CCNG2 expression. CCNG2 expression was found to be negatively associated with the pathological grade and proliferative activity of astrocytomas, as the highest expression was found in control brain tissue (N = 31), whereas the lowest expression was in high-grade glioma tissue (N = 31). Additionally, CCNG2 overexpression in glioma cell lines, T98G and U251 inhibited proliferation and arrested cells in the G0/G1 phase. Moreover, CCNG2 overexpression could increase glioma cells apoptosis. In contrast, AKT activity increased in glioma cells that had low CCNG2 expression. Expression of CCNG2 was higher in cells treated with the AKT kinase inhibitor MK-2206 indicating that the presence of phosphorylated AKT may inhibit the expression of CCNG2. Inhibition of AKT also led to decreased colony formation in T98G and U251 cells and knocked down of CCNG2 reversed the result. Finally, overexpression of CCNG2 in glioma cells reduced tumor volume in a murine model. To conclude, low expression of CCNG2 correlated with the severity astrocytoma and CCNG2 overexpression could induce apoptosis and inhibit proliferation. Inhibition of AKT activity increased the expression of CCNG2. The present study highlights the regulatory consequences of CCNG2 expression and AKT activity in astrocytoma tumorigenesis and the potential use of CCNG2 in anticancer treatment.

Abstract A77: Higher expression of lysyl oxidase family in GBM mesenchymal subtype and the clinical impact of LOXL3

Abstract Lysyl oxidade (LOX) is involved in cell motility, cell signaling, and gene regulation. We have previously described LOX increased expression and activity in diffusely infiltrative astrocytomas (da Silva et al., 2015), corroborating the role of LOX in migration, invasion, and angiogenesis of astrocytomas. Other members of lysyl oxidase family (LOXL1, LOXL2, LOXL3, and LOXL4) present similar structure and functions and, therefore, possible similar roles of LOX. For that reason, the purpose of our study was to characterize the expression levels of genes and proteins of lysyl oxidase family members in astrocytomas of different malignant grades. Additionally, gene expression levels were correlated with glioblastoma (GBM) molecular subtypes and the clinical endpoint of overall survival of GBM patients. Gene expression analysis were performed by quantitative real-time PCR in a series of 130 diffusely infiltrative astrocytomas and 22 samples of non-neoplastic brain. Gene expression data of our GBM cohort were analyzed according to molecular subtypes (classic, mesenchymal, and proneural) and were validated in TCGA cohorts (157 cases). Protein expressions coded by these genes were also analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Expression levels of all genes (LOXL1, LOXL2, LOXL3, and LOXL4) increased with the malignant grade of astrocytomas, GBM presenting the higher levels. LOXL1 and LOXL2 presented a higher expression in mesenchymal molecular GBM subtype, but with the statistical difference only for LOXL1 (p=0.0007, Kruskal-Wallis test) in our cohort. However, higher expression levels in mesenchymal subtype for all four genes (p=0.0003 for LOXL1, p<0.0001 for LOXL2 and LOXL3, and p=0.028 for LOXL4) were confirmed in the TCGA data. Positive correlations of expression levels among these four genes were observed in GBMs of mesenchymal subtype. When the expression levels were analyzed in relation to GBM patient outcome, only LOXL3 expression impacted in the overall survival. Patients with low expression presented longer survival time than those with higher LOXL3 expression. Protein expression levels of lysyl oxidase-like family members were also higher in glioblastoma samples, with both nuclear and cytoplasmic localization and endothelium staining. Altogether, higher expression of LOXL1-4 in GBM mesenchymal subtype and clinical impact of LOXL3 expression in GBMs overall survival indicate important roles of lysyl oxidase-like family in astrocytoma tumorigenesis. This work provides new insights for researchers aiming to design targeted therapies to control astrocytomas, especially GBM, which still presents poor prognosis nowadays, encouraging the search for new possible target therapies. Citation Format: Roseli Silva Soares, Talita Sousa Laurentino, Suely Kazue Nagahashi Marie, Sueli Mieko Oba-Shinjo. Higher expression of lysyl oxidase family in GBM mesenchymal subtype and the clinical impact of LOXL3 [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR International Conference held in cooperation with the Latin American Cooperative Oncology Group (LACOG) on Translational Cancer Medicine; May 4-6, 2017; São Paulo, Brazil. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2018;24(1_Suppl):Abstract nr A77.

The molecular classification of astrocytic tumors

AimThis study will explore the genetic and epigenetic alterations in astrocytomas, and identify the critical molecular signatures and signaling pathways for prognosis assessment by multiplatform comprehensive analysis.MethodWe performed integration analyses of incorporating DNA methylation, mRNA expression, microRNA expression, and long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) expression in 33 astrocytic tumor tissues and 9 non-tumor brain tissues.ResultWe observed that 11,795 DNA methylation sites, 3,627 genes, 136 microRNAs, and 3,334 lncRNAs were significantly differential between tumors and non-tumor brain tissues, and the filtered signatures through comprehensive analysis were significantly enriched in calcium signaling pathway. Furthermore, four signatures involved in calcium signaling pathway and age could contribute to predicting the patients’ overall survival. Additionally, we identified differentially expressed signatures between IDH-mutated and IDH wild-type astrocytic tumors, and complement and coagulation cascades pathway was the most significant pathway in functional enrichment analysis using multiplatform data. The IDH wild-type astrocytomas were divided into two subtypes by Cluster of Cluster (CoC) analysis, one of which was enriched for astrocytomas overexpressed in chemokine signaling pathway.ConclusionThe calcium signaling pathway played a key role in astrocytoma tumorigenesis and prognosis. IDH mutation was a vital biomarker, and resulted in the change of expression level in complement and coagulation cascades pathway. The chemokine signaling pathway could characterize subtypes of IDH wild-type astrocytomas.

Hypermethylation downregulates P2X7 receptor expression in astrocytoma.

The present study investigated the altered expression of p2X purinoceptor (P2X7R) in astrocytoma. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis were used to determine the P2X7R expression in glioblastoma (GBM) and surrounding normal brain tissue. DNA methylation levels of P2X7R gene promoter in GBM were analyzed using a Sequenom MassARRAY® System. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to detect the expression of P2X7R in astrocytoma at different malignancy grades, including diffuse astrocytoma, anaplastic astrocytoma and GBM. P2X7R mRNA and protein were significantly decreased in GBM compared with normal brain tissues. IHC results showed a negative correlation between P2X7R expression and tumor grade. The decreased P2X7R expression was mostly attributed to hypermethylation of its promoter. Therefore, P2X7R was found to perform an important role in tumorigenesis and progression of astrocytoma.

SIX3, a tumor suppressor, inhibits astrocytoma tumorigenesis by transcriptional repression of AURKA/B

BackgroundSIX homeobox 3 (SIX3) is a member of the sine oculis homeobox transcription factor family. It plays a vital role in the nervous system development. Our previous study showed that the SIX3 gene is hypermethylated, and its expression is decreased in astrocytoma, but the role of SIX3 remains unknown.MethodsChromatin-immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and luciferase reporter assay were used to confirm the binding of SIX3 to the promoter regions of aurora kinase A (AURKA) and aurora kinase B (AURKB). Confocal imaging and co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) were used to detect the interaction between AURKA and AURKB. Flow cytometry was performed to assess the effect of SIX3 on cell cycle distribution. Colony formation, EdU incorporation, transwell, and intracranial xenograft assays were performed to demonstrate the effect of SIX3 on the malignant phenotype of astrocytoma cells.ResultsSIX3 is identified as a novel negative transcriptional regulator of AURKA and AURKB, and it decreases the expression of AURKA and AURKB in a dose-dependent manner in astrocytoma cells. Importantly, interactions between AURKA and AURKB stabilize and protect AURKA/B from degradation, and overexpression of SIX3 does not affect these interactions; SIX3 also acts as a tumor suppressor, and it increases p53 activity and expression at the post-translational level by the negative regulation of AURKA or AURKB, reduces the events of numerical centrosomal aberrations and misaligned chromosomes, and significantly inhibits the proliferation, invasion, and tumorigenesis of astrocytoma in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, experiments using primary cultured astrocytoma cells indicate that astrocytoma patients with a low expression of SIX3 and mutant p53 are more sensitive to treatment with aurora kinase inhibitors.ConclusionSIX3 is a novel negative transcriptional regulator and acts as a tumor suppressor that directly represses the transcription of AURKA and AURKB in astrocytoma. For the first time, the functional interaction of AURKA and AURKB has been found, which aids in the protection of their stability, and partially explains their constant high expression and activity in cancers. SIX3 is a potential biomarker that could be used to predict the response of astrocytoma patients to aurora kinase inhibitors.

CASC2c as an unfavorable prognosis factor interacts with miR-101 to mediate astrocytoma tumorigenesis

miR-101 has been suggested as a tumor suppressor, but the promoter methylation and loss of heterozygosity didn’t contribute to its low expression in astrocytoma. We investigated the role of a new long non-coding RNA CASC2c binding with miR-101. High CASC2c was positively correlated with astrocytoma progression, and an unfavorable prognosis factor for patients. Knockdown CASC2c inhibited proliferation and tumorgenesis. Overexpression of CASC2c promotes the malignant characteristic of astrocytoma cells.CASC2c directly bound miR-101 and mediated pre-miR-101 processing into mature miR-101, and functions as a competitor of miR-101 target genes such as CPEB1. Patients who possessed both low CASC2c and high miR-101 had a longer survival than those of low CASC2c alone or high miR-101 alone. In summary, CASC2c plays the onco-RNA role in the tumorgenesis of astrocytoma by acting as a decoy miR-101 sponge. Combination of low expression of CASC2c and high expression of miR-101 has an important referential significance to evaluate the prognosis of patients.

Expression and clinical significance of ING4 and HIF-1 alpha in brain astrocytoma

To study the mRNA expression level of growth inhibition factor 4 (ING4) and hypoxia inducing factor 1 alpha (HIF-1 alpha), and their relationship with tumor malignant degree or the pathology classification in human brain astrocytoma. The mRNA expression levels of ING4 and HIF-1 alpha were detected by RT-PCR method in 45 cases of grade I-IV human brain astrocytoma and 11 cases of control brain tissues from January 2009 to June 2010 in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, and their correlation was also analyzed. In the non-tumor brain tissue, the expression level of ING4 mRNA was 1.19 ± 0.22, while they were 0.91 ± 0.19, 0.74 ± 0.28, 0.54 ± 0.33 and 0.22 ± 0.19 in I-IV grade astrocytoma, respectively. Compared with the non-tumor control, the mRNA expression level of ING4 gene decreased significantly in the astrocytoma (P<0.05). And the expression of ING4 gradually reduced with the increase of the pathological classification of the astrocytoma.In the non-tumor brain tissue, the expression level of HIF-1 alpha mRNA was 0.26 ± 0.16, and they were 0.34 ± 0.19, 0.50 ± 0.23, 0.96 ± 0.15 and 1.04 ± 0.15 in I-IV grade astrocytoma, respectively.For HIF-1 alpha gene, the mRNA expression level increased significantly in the astrocytoma. Meanwhile, the expression gradually increased with the increase of the pathological classification of the astrocytoma (P<0.05). The mRNA expression showed a negative correlation between ING4 and HIF-1 alpha with the increase of the tumor malignant degree. The ING4 and HIF-1 alpha genes play a role in the tumorigenesis and development of human brain astrocytoma, and closely associate with the malignant degree of astrocytoma.

LG-04 * NOTCH SIGNALING ACTIVATION IN PEDIATRIC LOW-GRADE ASTROCYTOMA

Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most common primary brain tumor in children, and various signaling pathways have been implicated in its biology. The Notch signaling pathway has been found to play a role in development, stem cell biology and the pathogenesis of several cancers but its role in PA has not been investigated. We studied alterations in Notch signaling components in clinical PA tumor tissue, to identify much needed therapeutic targets. In this study, we found Notch pathway members to be overexpressed at the mRNA (NOTCH1, NOTCH2, HEY1, HEY2) and protein (HES1) level in PA at various anatomical sites compared to non-neoplastic brain. The changes were not associated with specific BRAF alterations. Inhibiting the Notch pathway in pediatric low grade astrocytoma-derived cell lines (Res 186 and Res 259) using either RNA interference or a gamma secretase inhibitor resulted in a significant, but variable reduction in cell growth and migration. This study suggests a role for Notch signaling in the context of pediatric low grade astrocytoma tumorigenesis, and that Notch signaling is a viable pathway to target therapeutically.

MicroRNA-144 suppresses tumorigenesis and tumor progression of astrocytoma by targeting EZH2.

Our previous study demonstrated that enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) overexpression may be associated with aggressive tumor progression and poor prognosis in human astrocytoma. The aim of this study was to investigate the underlying mechanisms of EZH2 on astrocytoma tumorigenesis. An online program miRWalk (http://www.umm.uni-heidelberg.de/apps/zmf/mirwalk/) was used to predict possible microRNAs (miRNAs) that might target EZH2 messenger RNA (mRNA). Then the functions of the miRNA-EZH2 mRNA axis in astrocytoma cell proliferation, invasion, and migration were also assessed. We further evaluated the clinical value of the miRNA-EZH2 mRNA axis in astrocytomas. As a result, we identified EZH2 as a target gene of miR-144. In addition, forced expression of miR-144 suppressed astrocytoma cell proliferation, invasion, and migration by down-regulating EZH2. Moreover, miR-144 down-regulation and EZH2 mRNA up-regulation were both significantly associated with advanced World Health Organization grades and low Karnofsky performance status score of astrocytoma patients. Importantly, survival analysis identified the combined expression of miR-144 and EZH2 (miR-144/EZH2) as an independent prognostic factor for overall survival in astrocytoma patients. In conclusion, miR-144 may function as a tumor suppressor by regulating EZH2 expression, and miR-144/EZH2 expression may be a highly sensitive marker for the prognosis in astrocytoma patients.

Notch signaling activation in pediatric low-grade astrocytoma.

Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most common primary brain tumor in children; various signaling pathways have been implicated in its biology. The Notch signaling pathway has been found to play a role in the development, stem cell biology, and pathogenesis of several cancers, but its role in PA has not been investigated. We studied alterations in Notch signaling components in tumor tissue from 18 patients with PA and 4 with other low-grade astrocytomas to identify much needed therapeutic targets. We found that Notch pathway members were overexpressed at the mRNA (NOTCH1, NOTCH2, HEY1, HEY2) and protein (HES1) levels in PAs at various anatomic sites compared with non-neoplastic brain samples. These changes were not associated with specific BRAF alterations. Inhibiting the Notch pathway in the pediatric low-grade astrocytoma cell lines Res186 and Res259 using either RNA interference or a γ-secretase inhibitor resulted in variable, but significant, reduction in cell growth and migration. This study suggests a potential role for Notch signaling in pediatric low-grade astrocytoma tumorigenesis and that Notch signaling may be a viable pathway therapeutic target.

Inhibition of KIF14 Suppresses Tumor Cell Growth and Promotes Apoptosis in Human Glioblastoma

Background/Aims: The mitotic kinesin superfamily protein KIF14 is essential for cytokinesis and chromosome segregation, and increased KIF14 expression is related to a variety of human cancers. However, the role of KIF14 in the development and malignant progression of astrocytomas and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The present study examined the relation between KIF14 and the pathogenesis of malignant astrocytoma. Methods and Results: The role of KIF14 in astrocytoma development and progression was investigated by analyzing KIF14 expression using SYBR Green quantitative real-time RT-PCR, western blotting and immunohistochemistry in human astrocytoma and normal brain tissues. KIF14 expression was higher in astrocytoma samples, and was positively correlated with pathological grade and proliferative activity indicated by Ki-67 staining. SiRNA knockdown of KIF14 inhibited tumor growth in vitro and in vivo, attenuated anchorage-independent growth, and induced G2/M phase arrest, cytokinesis failure and apoptosis in glioblastoma cell lines in association with decreased AKT phosphorylation and activity. Conclusions: The upregulation of KIF14 in astrocytoma is associated with disease severity, and suppression of KIF14 inhibits cell proliferation and induces apoptosis through a mechanism involving the inactivation of AKT signaling, suggesting that KIF14 plays an important role in astrocytoma tumorigenesis and could be a promising molecular target for anticancer therapy.

ME-07 * INFLUENCE OF REGIONAL MICROENVIROMENT AND ASTROCYTE HETEROGENEITY ON ASTROCYTOMA DEVELOPMENT

The role of the local microenvironment during early astrocytoma development remains elusive. We previously showed that Rb and Pten inactivation and Kras activation (TRP) transforms Gfap+ astrocytes and induces low-grade astrocytoma tumorigenesis throughout the adult brain. To confirm that astrocytes are the cell of origin, we targeted them using an alternative astrocyte-specific promoter, Glast. In the absence of oncogenic mutations, genetic lineage tracing with Glast-CreER; floxed TdTomato mice produced recombination in 8-38% of Gfap/Blbp+ astrocytes in the cortex, diencephalon, brainstem, and olfactory bulb. EdU labeling showed 0.05). Both CreER driver and brain region significantly affected astrocyte growth rate (ANOVA P < 0.0003). In both models, transformed astrocytes maintained Gfap/Blbp expression, gained expression of the stem cell marker Nestin, and formed increasingly dense perineuronal satellites over time. Ki-67 labeling showed clonal expansion, as hypercellular foci with 11-fold higher proliferation relative to less-cellular areas of tumor developed by 16 weeks. Glast-, but not hGFAP-driven tumors contained dividing, but untransformed (TdTomato;T121−) BLBP+ astrocytes, IBA1+ microglia, and PDGFRα+ oligodendrocyte progenitors (OPC). Proliferating microglia (6-0%) and OPC (18-5%) decreased over time, while dividing, untransformed astrocytes increased (57-85%). These findings support the notion that regional microenvironment and astrocyte heterogeneity contribute to astrocytoma development. The Glast-TRP model may be useful in dissecting the role of regional microenvironment during astrocytoma tumorigenesis.

Abstract 4607: Stathmin is involved in the maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase pathway and impacts in the outcome of glioblastoma

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Maternal Embryonic Leucine Zipper Kinase (MELK) is a serine/threonine kinase involved in several cell processes, including the cell cycle, differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis. MELK has also shown multiple features consistent with the potential utility as an anticancer target, including in astrocytomas. However, the detailed downstream signaling pathway of MELK in cancer cells is still not fully understood and the putative role of MELK in astrocytomas remains unclear. The discovery of proteins involved in the MELK pathway might be important to develop additional small molecular compound to improve effectiveness. PURPOSE: This study aim to analyze proteins and/or genes involved in the MELK pathway in the tumorigenesis of gliomas. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Analysis of the expression profile of a panel of protein relevant to the process of tumorigenesis that MELK is involved was performed by Proteomic analysis by two dimensional electrophoresis and mass spectrometry for human glioma cell line U87MG transfected with siRNA for the MELK compared to U87MG transfected with non-target control (NTC) cells. Analysis and validation of gene expression was performed by Quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR) using SYBR Green method in a series of 153 astrocytomas of different malignant grade (23 AGI, 26 AGII, 18 AGIII and 86 AGIV or glioblastoma - GBM) and 22 non neoplastic (NN) brain samples. RESULTS: We identified Stathmin/oncoprotein 18 (STMN1) involved in the cell cycle, as one of twelve proteins differentially expressed, with lower expression when MELK was silenced. A significant higher expression of STMN1 in malignant diffusely infiltrative astrocytomas when compared to non-invasive pilocytic astrocytoma was found (p&amp;lt;0.0001). Strong correlation for MELK and STMN1 associated expression was observed (r=0.741, p&amp;lt;0.0001) in GBM. STMN1 hyperexpression alone impacted at GBM outcome with an overall survival of 5.4 months in contrast to 13.4 months when both genes were hypoexpressed (log rank=0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Thus, our results showed that STMN1 is downstream in the MELK pathway and might play an important role in astrocytoma tumorigenesis. Citation Format: Miyuki Uno, Sueli Mieko Oba-Shinjo, Roseli Silva, Marcela Gimenez, Jose Cesar Rosa, Suely Kazue Nagahashi Marie. Stathmin is involved in the maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase pathway and impacts in the outcome of glioblastoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 4607. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-4607

MiR-181 subunits enhance the chemosensitivity of temozolomide by Rap1B-mediated cytoskeleton remodeling in glioblastoma cells

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most malignant and frequent brain tumor, with an aggressive growth pattern and poor prognosis despite best treatment modalities. Although chemotherapy with temozolomide (TMZ) may restrain tumor growth for some months, TMZ resistance is also common and accounts for many treatment failures. Research into microRNA's role in GBM has shown that microRNAs play a key regulatory role in the GBM, making it a potential therapeutic target. In this study, we demonstrated that the lower expression of miR-181a/b/c/d subunits contributes to astrocytoma tumorigenesis, and their overexpression could inhibit the invasive proliferation of glioblastoma cells by targeting Rap1B-mediated cytoskeleton remodeling and related molecular (Cdc42, RhoA and N-cadherin) changes, suggesting that miR-181 was a critical regulator and might be an important target for glioblastoma treatment. TMZ as a standard chemotherapeutic agent for GBM inhibited the Rap1B expression and actin cytoskeleton remodeling to exert its cell killing by upregulating miR-181a/b/c/d subunits; conversely, each miR-181a/b/c/d subunit enhanced the chemosensitivity of TMZ in glioblastoma cells.

14-3-3β regulates the proliferation of glioma cells through the GSK3β/β-catenin signaling pathway

We previously demonstrated that 14-3-3β is overexpressed in astrocytomas; however, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Based on the reported multiple functions of 14-3-3β, we hypothesized that it interacts with glycogen synthase kinase 3 β (GSK3β), which regulates β-catenin-mediated oncogene expression and contributes to tumorigenesis and astrocytoma progression. To test these hypotheses, we used 14-3-3β overexpression vectors and small interfering RNA (siRNA) transfection in the human normal astrocyte cell line SVGp12 and the glioma cell line U87, respectively. The results showed that overexpression of 14-3-3β promoted the proliferation of SVGp12 cells, while knockdown of 14-3-3β inhibited the proliferation of U87 cells as analyzed by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) assays. In Flag-tagged 14-3-3β-overexpressing cells, GSK3β was co-immunoprecipitated with 14-3-3β using a Flag antibody. Knockdown of β-catenin by siRNA blocked cell proliferation induced by overexpression of 14-3-3β. Furthermore, overexpression of 14-3-3β suppressed the phosphorylation of β-catenin leading to its accumulation and nuclear translocation as revealed by western blot analysis. In addition, β-catenin nuclear translocation induced by overexpression of 14-3-3β activated the transcription of oncogenes including c-myc and cyclin D1. Collectively, these results revealed that 14-3-3β regulates the proliferation of astrocytes and glioma cells through the GSK3β/β-catenin signaling pathway. The delineated mechanism of 14-3-3β may be responsible for the tumorigenesis and progression of human astrocytomas. Thus, new therapeutic strategies or drugs aimed at 14-3-3β may have potential for the treatment of human astrocytomas.

Differential Expression of ID4 and Its Association with TP53 Mutation, SOX2, SOX4 and OCT-4 Expression Levels

Inhibitor of DNA Binding 4 (ID4) is a member of the helix-loop-helix ID family of transcription factors, mostly present in the central nervous system during embryonic development, that has been associated with TP53 mutation and activation of SOX2. Along with other transcription factors, ID4 has been implicated in the tumorigenic process of astrocytomas, contributing to cell dedifferentiation, proliferation and chemoresistance. In this study, we aimed to characterize the ID4 expression pattern in human diffusely infiltrative astrocytomas of World Health Organization (WHO) grades II to IV of malignancy (AGII-AGIV); to correlate its expression level to that of SOX2, SOX4, OCT-4 and NANOG, along with TP53 mutational status; and to correlate the results with the clinical end-point of overall survival among glioblastoma patients. Quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR) was performed in 130 samples of astrocytomas for relative expression, showing up-regulation of all transcription factors in tumor cases. Positive correlation was found when comparing ID4 relative expression of infiltrative astrocytomas with SOX2 (r = 0.50; p<0.005), SOX4 (r = 0.43; p<0.005) and OCT-4 (r = 0.39; p<0.05). The results from TP53 coding exon analysis allowed comparisons between wild-type and mutated status only in AGII cases, demonstrating significantly higher levels of ID4, SOX2 and SOX4 in mutated cases (p<0.05). This pattern was maintained in secondary GBM and further confirmed by immunohistochemistry, suggesting a role for ID4, SOX2 and SOX4 in early astrocytoma tumorigenesis. Combined hyperexpression of ID4, SOX4 and OCT-4 conferred a much lower (6 months) median survival than did hypoexpression (18 months). Because both ID4 alone and a complex of SOX4 and OCT-4 activate SOX2 transcription, it is possible that multiple activation of SOX2 impair the prognosis of GBM patients. These observational results of associated expression of ID4 with SOX4 and OCT-4 may be used as a predictive factor of prognosis upon further confirmation in a larger GBM series.

IDH1 mutations inhibit multiple α-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase activities in astroglioma

The mechanism of tumorigenesis associated with nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP(+))-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutations in gliomas is not fully understood. Loss of catalytic activity leading to a decrease in α-ketoglutarate (αKG) and gain of novel catalytic activity leading to production of D: -2-hydroxylglutarate (D: -2-HG) are both found in IDH1-mutated glioma cells. Both the decrease of αKG and accumulation of D: -2-HG inhibit the activity of multiple dioxygenases including prolyl hydroxylase domain-2 (PHD2), collagen prolyl-4-hydroxylase, histone demethylases, and the ten-eleven translocation (TET) family of 5-methylcytosine hydroxylases. Here we correlated the products of these dioxygenases after IDH1 gene mutations with tumorigenesis in human astroglioma samples. DNA sequencing was carried out for 253 astroglioma samples to identify IDH1 mutations. Immunohistochemistry analysis was employed to verify the levels of endostatin, dimethylated H3k79 (H3k79me2), and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) in these astroglioma samples. IDH1 mutations occurred frequently in low grades of astrocytoma. One case bearing both IDH1 and IDH2 mutations was identified. IDH1-mutated cases displayed more frontal lobe location and p53-positive immunostaining than wild-type cases. IDH1 mutations were associated with increased histone methylation and decreased 5hmC. By inhibiting endostatin expression, IDH1 mutations indirectly promoted angiogenesis in gliomas. All these changes were same in astroglioma at different malignancy grade. IDH1 mutations showed wide regulation of angiogenesis and genome-wide change of histone and DNA methylation, which were not suppressed as the malignancy level progressed, suggesting an early role of IDH1 mutations in astrocytoma tumorigenesis.

Grade-Specific Expression Profiles of miRNAs/mRNAs and Docking Study in Human Grade I–III Astrocytomas

Although several miRNAs have been identified to be involved in glioblastoma tumorigenesis, little is known about the global expression profiles of miRNAs and their functional targets in astrocytomas at earlier stages of malignancy. In this study the global expression of miRNAs and mRNAs in normal brain tissue samples and grade I-III astrocytomas were analyzed parallelly using microarrays, and the grade-specific expression profiles of them were obtained by unsupervised hierarchical clustering. It was also confirmed that miR-107, miR-124, miR-138, and miR-149 were downregulated significantly in grade I-IV astrocytomas, and overexpression of miR-124 and miR-149 inhibited glioblastoma cell proliferation and migration. Furthermore, grade-specific changes were discovered in the central biological processes, regulatory networks, and signaling pathways associated with dysregulated genes, and a regulatory network of putative functional miRNA-mRNA pairs was defined. In conclusion, our results may contribute to a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in astrocytoma tumorigenesis and malignant progression.