scholarly journals Functional Characterization of Cholinergic Receptors in Melanoma Cells

Cancers ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 3141
Author(s):  
Anna Maria Lucianò ◽  
Ada Maria Tata
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Physiological Role ◽  
Melanoma Cells ◽  
Cholinergic Receptors ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Relevant Role

In the last two decades, the scientific community has come to terms with the importance of non-neural acetylcholine in light of its multiple biological and pathological functions within and outside the nervous system. Apart from its well-known physiological role both in the central and peripheral nervous systems, in the autonomic nervous system, and in the neuromuscular junction, the expression of the acetylcholine receptors has been detected in different peripheral organs. This evidence has contributed to highlight new roles for acetylcholine in various biological processes, (e.g., cell viability, proliferation, differentiation, migration, secretion). In addition, growing evidence in recent years has also demonstrated new roles for acetylcholine and its receptors in cancer, where they are involved in the modulation of cell proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, and epithelial mesenchymal transition. In this review, we describe the functional characterization of acetylcholine receptors in different tumor types, placing attention on melanoma. The latest set of data accessible through literature, albeit limited, highlights how cholinergic receptors both of muscarinic and nicotinic type can play a relevant role in the migratory processes of melanoma cells, suggesting their possible involvement in invasion and metastasis.

scholarly journals Hybrid E/M Phenotype(s) and Stemness: A Mechanistic Connection Embedded in Network Topology

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Satwik Pasani ◽  
Sarthak Sahoo ◽  
Mohit Kumar Jolly
Keyword(s):  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
In Vivo Studies ◽  
Tumor Initiation ◽  
Modeling Framework ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Network Modules

Metastasis remains an unsolved clinical challenge. Two crucial features of metastasizing cancer cells are (a) their ability to dynamically move along the epithelial–hybrid–mesenchymal spectrum and (b) their tumor initiation potential or stemness. With increasing functional characterization of hybrid epithelial/mesenchymal (E/M) phenotypes along the spectrum, recent in vitro and in vivo studies have suggested an increasing association of hybrid E/M phenotypes with stemness. However, the mechanistic underpinnings enabling this association remain unclear. Here, we develop a mechanism-based mathematical modeling framework that interrogates the emergent nonlinear dynamics of the coupled network modules regulating E/M plasticity (miR-200/ZEB) and stemness (LIN28/let-7). Simulating the dynamics of this coupled network across a large ensemble of parameter sets, we observe that hybrid E/M phenotype(s) are more likely to acquire stemness relative to “pure” epithelial or mesenchymal states. We also integrate multiple “phenotypic stability factors” (PSFs) that have been shown to stabilize hybrid E/M phenotypes both in silico and in vitro—such as OVOL1/2, GRHL2, and NRF2—with this network, and demonstrate that the enrichment of hybrid E/M phenotype(s) with stemness is largely conserved in the presence of these PSFs. Thus, our results offer mechanistic insights into recent experimental observations of hybrid E/M phenotype(s) that are essential for tumor initiation and highlight how this feature is embedded in the underlying topology of interconnected EMT (Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition) and stemness networks.

scholarly journals Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomic Characterization of Cutaneous Melanoma Ectosomes Reveals the Presence of Cancer-Related Molecules

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
pp. 2934 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Surman ◽  
Sylwia Kędracka-Krok ◽  
Dorota Hoja-Łukowicz ◽  
Urszula Jankowska ◽  
Anna Drożdż ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Proliferation ◽  
Protein Content ◽  
Cell Lines ◽  
Cutaneous Melanoma ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Novel Biomarkers

Cutaneous melanoma (CM) is an aggressive type of skin cancer for which effective biomarkers are still needed. Recently, the protein content of extracellular vesicles (ectosomes and exosomes) became increasingly investigated in terms of its functional role in CM and as a source of novel biomarkers; however, the data concerning the proteome of CM-derived ectosomes is very limited. We used the shotgun nanoLC–MS/MS approach to the profile protein content of ectosomes from primary (WM115, WM793) and metastatic (WM266-4, WM1205Lu) CM cell lines. Additionally, the effect exerted by CM ectosomes on recipient cells was assessed in terms of cell proliferation (Alamar Blue assay) and migratory properties (wound healing assay). All cell lines secreted heterogeneous populations of ectosomes enriched in the common set of proteins. A total of 1507 unique proteins were identified, with many of them involved in cancer cell proliferation, migration, escape from apoptosis, epithelial–mesenchymal transition and angiogenesis. Isolated ectosomes increased proliferation and motility of recipient cells, likely due to the ectosomal transfer of different cancer-promoting molecules. Taken together, these results confirm the significant role of ectosomes in several biological processes leading to CM development and progression, and might be used as a starting point for further studies exploring their diagnostic and prognostic potential.

scholarly journals Functional Characterization of a Novel Class of Morantel-Sensitive Acetylcholine Receptors in Nematodes

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. e1005267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elise Courtot ◽  
Claude L. Charvet ◽  
Robin N. Beech ◽  
Abdallah Harmache ◽  
Adrian J. Wolstenholme ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Functional Characterization

scholarly journals THE ROLE AND MECHANISMS OF EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION IN THE PROGRESSION OF MELANOMA

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 8-17
Author(s):  
S. V. Chulkova ◽  
D. A. Ryabchikov ◽  
I. A. Dudina ◽  
I. V. Savchenko ◽  
A. V. Egorova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Causes Of Death ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
Metastatic Potential ◽  
Melanoma Cells ◽  
Modern Medicine ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Melanoma Progression ◽  
Leading Role ◽  
Developing Area

Despite the achievements of modern medicine in the diagnosis and treatment of oncological diseases, skin melanoma remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide: every third case of melanoma ends in death. As you know, one of the main causes of death is the high incidence of melanoma progression. It is important to note that the mechanisms of melanoma progression are diverse and the rapidly developing area of drug therapy for tumors requires a deep understanding of their characteristics. This is primarily due to the fact that these processes lead to the formation of special, minor tumor clones with stem properties. They are highly resistant to therapy. The latter is the mainobstacle to effective treatment of melanoma patients. The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays a leading role in the acquisition of metastatic potential by melanoma cells. An important distinguishing feature of EMT is a change in the level of expression of transmembrane glycoproteins involved in cell adhesion. With EMT, both a decrease in the level of E-cadherin and an increase in the expression of N-cadherin are observed. Such a switch in different classes of adhesion molecules leads to the fact that melanoma cells lose contact with neighboring keratinocytes and begin to interact with fibroblasts and endothelial cells. The key regulator in EMT induction in melanoma is the Notch1 signaling pathway, which accelerates N-cadherin expression when activated. In addition, EMT also regulates many other pathways – RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, Wnt/β-catenin, the dysregulation of which is associated with the development of drug resistance in melanoma. The analysis was carried out in the article of modern literature data on the importance of EMT in carcinogenesis and prognosis of melanoma. The modern mechanisms of EMT, currently known prognostic factors, as well as potential therapeutic targets that affect EMT and, accordingly, inhibit the process of metastasis, are described in detail.

scholarly journals An Autocrine Wnt5a Loop Promotes NF-κB Pathway Activation and Cytokine/Chemokine Secretion in Melanoma

Cells ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 1060 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gastón Barbero ◽  
María Victoria Castro ◽  
María Belén Villanueva ◽  
María Josefina Quezada ◽  
Natalia Brenda Fernández ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Translocation ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Inflammatory Responses ◽  
Inflammatory Diseases ◽  
Melanoma Cells ◽  
Dominant Negative ◽  
Migration And Invasion ◽  
Soluble Receptor ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Cytokines And Chemokines

Wnt5a signaling has been implicated in the progression of cancer by regulating multiple cellular processes, largely migration and invasion, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and metastasis. Since Wnt5a signaling has also been involved in inflammatory processes in infectious and inflammatory diseases, we addressed the role of Wnt5a in regulating NF-κB, a pivotal mediator of inflammatory responses, in the context of cancer. The treatment of melanoma cells with Wnt5a induced phosphorylation of the NF-κB subunit p65 as well as IKK phosphorylation and IκB degradation. By using cDNA overexpression, RNA interference, and dominant negative mutants we determined that ROR1, Dvl2, and Akt (from the Wnt5a pathway) and TRAF2 and RIP (from the NF-κB pathway) are required for the Wnt5a/NF-κB crosstalk. Wnt5a also induced p65 nuclear translocation and increased NF-κB activity as evidenced by reporter assays and a NF-κB-specific upregulation of RelB, Bcl-2, and Cyclin D1. Further, stimulation of melanoma cells with Wnt5a increased the secretion of cytokines and chemokines, including IL-6, IL-8, IL-11, and IL-6 soluble receptor, MCP-1, and TNF soluble receptor I. The inhibition of endogenous Wnt5a demonstrated that an autocrine Wnt5a loop is a major regulator of the NF-κB pathway in melanoma. Taken together, these results indicate that Wnt5a activates the NF-κB pathway and has an immunomodulatory effect on melanoma through the secretion of cytokines and chemokines.

scholarly journals αM-Conotoxin MIIIJ Blocks Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors at Neuromuscular Junctions of Frog and Fish

Toxins ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 197
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Rybin ◽  
Henrik O’Brien ◽  
Iris Bea L. Ramiro ◽  
Layla Azam ◽  
J. Michael McIntosh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Neuromuscular Junctions ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Cone Snail ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
New Class ◽  
Goldfish Carassius Auratus ◽  
Snake Neurotoxin

We report the discovery and functional characterization of αM-Conotoxin MIIIJ, a peptide from the venom of the fish-hunting cone snail Conus magus. Injections of αM-MIIIJ induced paralysis in goldfish (Carassius auratus) but not mice. Intracellular recording from skeletal muscles of fish (C. auratus) and frog (Xenopus laevis) revealed that αM-MIIIJ inhibited postsynaptic nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) with an IC50 of ~0.1 μM. With comparable potency, αM-MIIIJ reversibly blocked ACh-gated currents (IACh) of voltage-clamped X. laevis oocytes exogenously expressing nAChRs cloned from zebrafish (Danio rerio) muscle. αM-MIIIJ also protected against slowly-reversible block of IACh by α-bungarotoxin (α-BgTX, a snake neurotoxin) and α-conotoxin EI (α-EI, from Conus ermineus another fish hunter) that competitively block nAChRs at the ACh binding site. Furthermore, assessment by fluorescence microscopy showed that αM-MIIIJ inhibited the binding of fluorescently-tagged α-BgTX at neuromuscular junctions of X. laevis, C. auratus, and D. rerio. (Note, we observed that αM-MIIIJ can block adult mouse and human muscle nAChRs exogenously expressed in X. laevis oocytes, but with IC50s ~100-times higher than those of zebrafish nAChRs.) Taken together, these results indicate that αM-MIIIJ inhibits muscle nAChRs and furthermore apparently does so by interfering with the binding of ACh to its receptor. Comparative alignments with homologous sequences identified in other fish hunters revealed that αM-MIIIJ defines a new class of muscle nAChR inhibitors from cone snails.

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