Science Signaling

Interferon with ovarian cancer

Interferon-ε has antitumor activity and activates antitumor immunity in ovarian cancer in mice.

The transcription factor PAX8 promotes angiogenesis in ovarian cancer through interaction with SOX17

PAX8 is a master transcription factor that is essential during embryogenesis and promotes neoplastic growth. It is expressed by the secretory cells lining the female reproductive tract, and its deletion during development results in atresia of reproductive tract organs. Nearly all ovarian carcinomas express PAX8, and its knockdown results in apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells. To explore the role of PAX8 in these tissues, we purified the PAX8 protein complex from nonmalignant fallopian tube cells and high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma cell lines. We found that PAX8 was a member of a large chromatin remodeling complex and preferentially interacted with SOX17, another developmental transcription factor. Depleting either PAX8 or SOX17 from cancer cells altered the expression of factors involved in angiogenesis and functionally disrupted tubule and capillary formation in cell culture and mouse models. PAX8 and SOX17 in ovarian cancer cells promoted the secretion of angiogenic factors by suppressing the expression of SERPINE1 , which encodes a proteinase inhibitor with anti a ngiogenic effects. The findings reveal a non–cell-autonomous function of these transcription factors in regulating angiogenesis in ovarian cancer.

p16 expression confers sensitivity to CDK2 inhibitors in cyclin E1–driven ovarian cancers

Blocking the cell cycle is a promising avenue for cancer therapy, with cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (CDK2) emerging as a key target. However, in multiple cell types, the activities of CDK4 and CDK6 (CDK4/6) compensate for CDK2 inhibition and sustain tumor cell proliferation, enabling CDK2 reactivation. Thus, we hypothesized that sensitivity to CDK2 inhibition is linked to the absence of this CDK4/6-mediated compensatory mechanism. We found that cyclin E1–driven ovarian cancers often coexpressed the tumor suppressor p16, which inhibited CDK4/6 signaling. Single-cell time-lapse imaging showed that high abundance of p16 conferred increased sensitivity to CDK2 inhibitors, whereas depletion of p16 rendered cells more resistant to CDK2 inhibition through CDK4/6-dependent compensation. Concordantly, acquired resistance to CDK2 inhibitors correlated with reduced p16 and increased cyclin D1 protein abundance. Multiplexed immunofluorescence of 225 ovarian tumors from patients revealed that 18% of the tumors had high cyclin E1 and p16 expression. Thus, p16 may be a useful biomarker for identifying patients most likely to benefit from CDK2 inhibitors.

Repurposing colforsin daropate to treat MYC-driven high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas

High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) is one of the deadliest cancers for women, with a low survival rate, no early detection biomarkers, a high rate of recurrence, and few therapeutic options. Forskolin, an activator of cyclic AMP signaling, has several anticancer activities, including against HGSOC, but has limited use in vivo. Its water-soluble derivative, colforsin daropate, has the same mechanism of action as forskolin and is used to treat acute heart failure. Here, we investigated the potential of colforsin daropate as a treatment for HGSOC. We found that colforsin daropate induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in cultured HGSOC cells and spheroids but had negligible cytotoxicity in immortalized, nontumorigenic fallopian tube secretory cells and ovarian surface epithelial cells. Colforsin daropate also prevented HGSOC cells from invading ovarian surface epithelial cell layers in culture. In vivo, colforsin daropate reduced tumor growth, synergized with cisplatin (a standard chemotherapy in ovarian cancer care), and improved host survival in subcutaneous and intraperitoneal xenograft models. These antitumor effects of colforsin daropate were mediated in part by its reduction in the abundance and transcriptional activity of the oncoprotein c-MYC, which is often increased in HGSOC. Our findings demonstrate that colforsin daropate may be a promising therapeutic that could be combined with conventional therapies to treat HGSOC.

Constitutive expression of progesterone receptor isoforms promotes the development of hormone-dependent ovarian neoplasms

Altering the relative abundance of progesterone receptor isoforms drives ovarian neoplasia in mice.

Degradation of 5hmC-marked stalled replication forks by APE1 causes genomic instability

Loss of DNA demethylase TET2 protects stalled replication forks from degradation and confers chemoresistance.

Functional proteomics interrogation of the kinome identifies MRCKA as a therapeutic target in high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma

Kinome profiling of ovarian tumors reveals a way to treat patients and get a step ahead of drug resistance.