scholarly journals PD-L1 Expression Promotes Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition in Human Esophageal Cancer

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. 2267-2280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lujun Chen ◽  
Yuqi Xiong ◽  
Jing Li ◽  
Xiao Zheng ◽  
Qi Zhou ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: PD-L1 (Programmed cell death 1 ligand 1, PD-L1), an essential immune checkpoint molecule in the tumor microenvironment, is an important target for cancer immunotherapy. We have previously reported that its expression in human gastric and esophageal cancer tissues is significantly associated with cancer progression and patients’ postoperative prognoses. Its expression in cancer cells is well known to inhibit the T cell-mediated anti-tumor response, and this mechanism of action has been targeted for cancer immunotherapy. As of now, the autonomous effect of PD-L1 on cancer cells is not well understood, thus our present study aimed to examine the role of PD-L1 intervention in cellular biological functions, especially epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), of the human esophageal cancer cell line, Eca-109 cells. Methods: Immunohistochemistry assay was used to investigate the correlation between expression of PD-L1 and EMT markers in human esophageal cancer tissues. Intervention of PD-L1 by using RNAi and over-expression methods were used to study the role of PD-L1 in regulation of biological behaviors and EMT in Eca-109 cells. Results: Our clinical and pathological data demonstrated that tumor samples in the EMT positive subgroup had higher PD-L1 expression than those in the EMT negative subgroup. By manipulating PD-L1 expression in Eca-109 cells either through ablation or overexpression of wild type and the cytoplasmic domain-truncated mutant, we demonstrated that PD-L1 expression significantly promoted the cell viability, migration and EMT phenotype. Furthermore, our study also indicated that PD-1 fusion protein mediated stimulation of PD-L1 and the cytoplasmic domain of PD-L1 played a critical role in promoting EMT phenotype of Eca-109 cells, thereby suggesting that PD-1 receptor usually by triggering the reverse signaling can effect PD-L1 mediated regulation of esophageal cancer cell response. Conclusion: Our present study reveals a tumor cell-autonomous role of PD-L1 signaling in promoting EMT in human esophageal cancer.

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (19) ◽  
pp. 5858
Author(s):  
Baris Kucukkaraduman ◽  
Ekin Gokce Cicek ◽  
Muhammad Waqas Akbar ◽  
Secil Demirkol Canli ◽  
Burcak Vural ◽  
...  

Numerous natural products exhibit antiproliferative activity against cancer cells by modulating various biological pathways. In this study, we investigated the potential use of eight natural compounds (apigenin, curcumin, epigallocatechin gallate, fisetin, forskolin, procyanidin B2, resveratrol, urolithin A) and two repurposed agents (fulvestrant and metformin) as chemotherapy enhancers and mesenchymal-to-epithelial (MET) inducers of cancer cells. Screening of these compounds in various colon, breast, and pancreatic cancer cell lines revealed anti-cancer activity for all compounds, with curcumin being the most effective among these in all cell lines. Although some of the natural products were able to induce MET in some cancer cell lines, the MET induction was not related to increased synergy with either 5-FU, irinotecan, gemcitabine, or gefitinib. When synergy was observed, for example with curcumin and irinotecan, this was unrelated to MET induction, as assessed by changes in E-cadherin and vimentin expression. Our results show that MET induction is compound and cell line specific, and that MET is not necessarily related to enhanced chemosensitivity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 153303382097967
Author(s):  
Jin Zhang ◽  
Nan Shao ◽  
Xiaoyu Yang ◽  
Chuanbo Xie ◽  
Yawei Shi ◽  
...  

The microRNA-200 (miR-200) family has been reported to be vital for the inhibition of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in tumor cells. The miR-200 family represents a complex multi-factorial regulatory network which has not been well described in breast cancer. This study aimed to clarify the underlying regulatory association between IL-8 and miR-200 family in the process of EMT in breast cancer cell. In estrogen-receptor (ER) positive breast cancer cell line MCF-7, IL-8 overexpression cells were performed by lentivirus transfection as endogenous regulation with additional exogenous IL-8 stimulation. Transient overexpressions of miR-200 family were performed after endogenous or exogenous IL-8 overexpression in MCF-7 cells. IL-8 knockdown cells were constructed via siRNA and shRNA transfection in triple negative breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231. N-cadherin, vimentin and ZEB2 were down-regulated and E-cadherin was up-regulated in IL-8 knockdown group compared with control group. On the other hand, N-cadherin, vimentin and ZEB2 were up-regulated and E-cadherin was down-regulated in IL-8 overexpression group compared with control group. This indicated IL-8 promotes EMT in breast cancer cells. Transwell assay showed that IL-8 increased the migration and invasiveness of tumor cells. Furthermore, we performed transient overexpression of miR-200 family after endogenous or exogenous IL-8 overexpression in MCF-7 cells, which showed that the miR-200 family could inhibit EMT induced by IL-8. IL-8 promoted EMT via downregulation of miR-200 family expression in breast cancer cells and increases tumor cell migration and invasion.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Franchi ◽  
Valentina Masola ◽  
Gloria Bellin ◽  
Maurizio Onisto ◽  
Konstantinos-Athanasios Karamanos ◽  
...  

: Interactions of cancer cells with matrix macromolecules of the surrounding tumor stroma are critical to mediate invasion and metastasis. In this study, we reproduced the collagen mechanical barriers in vitro (i.e., basement membrane, lamina propria under basement membrane, and deeper bundled collagen fibers with different array). These were used in 3D cell cultures to define their effects on morphology and behavior of breast cancer cells with different metastatic potential (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231) using scanning electron microscope (SEM). We demonstrated that breast cancer cells cultured in 2D and 3D cultures on different collagen substrates show different morphologies: i) a globular/spherical shape, ii) a flattened polygonal shape, and iii) elongated/fusiform and spindle-like shapes. The distribution of different cell shapes changed with the distinct collagen fiber/fibril physical array and size. Dense collagen fibers, parallel to the culture plane, do not allow the invasion of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells, which, however, show increases of microvilli and microvesicles, respectively. These novel data highlight the regulatory role of different fibrillar collagen arrays in modifying breast cancer cell shape, inducing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, changing matrix composition and modulating the production of extracellular vesicles. Further investigation utilizing this in vitro model will help to demonstrate the biological roles of matrix macromolecules in cancer cell invasion in vivo.


Author(s):  
Daisuke Kyuno ◽  
Akira Takasawa ◽  
Shin Kikuchi ◽  
Ichiro Takemasa ◽  
Makoto Osanai ◽  
...  

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document