Disruptor of telomeric silencing 1-like promotes ovarian cancer tumor growth by stimulating pro-tumorigenic metabolic pathways and blocking apoptosis

ABSTRACTOvarian cancer is the leading cause of gynecological malignancy-related deaths. Current therapies for ovarian cancer do not provide meaningful and sustainable clinical benefits, highlighting the need for new therapies. We show that the histone H3K79 methyltransferase disruptor of telomeric silencing 1-like (DOT1L) is overexpressed in ovarian cancer and that a higher level of DOT1L expression correlates with shorter progression-free and overall survival (OS). Pharmacological inhibition of DOT1L (EPZ-5676, EPZ004777, and SGC0946) or genetic inhibition of DOT1L attenuates the growth of ovarian cancer cells in cell culture and in a mouse xenograft model of ovarian cancer. Transcriptome-wide mRNA expression profiling shows that DOT1L inhibition results in the downregulation of genes involved in cellular biosynthesis pathways and the upregulation of proapoptotic genes. Consistent with the results of transcriptome analysis, the unbiased large-scale metabolomic analysis showed reduced levels of several metabolites of the amino acid and nucleotide biosynthesis pathways after DOT1L inhibition. DOT1L inhibition also resulted in the upregulation of the NKG2D ligand ULBP1 and subsequent increase in natural killer (NK) cell-mediated ovarian cancer eradication. Collectively, our results demonstrate that DOT1L promotes ovarian cancer tumor growth by regulating apoptotic and metabolic pathways as well as NK cell-mediated eradication of ovarian cancer and identifies DOT1L as a new pharmacological target for ovarian cancer therapy.

Targeting the Histone Methyltransferase Disruptor of Telomeric Silencing 1-Like Restricts Avian Leukosis Virus Subgroup J Replication by Restoring the Innate Immune Response in Chicken Macrophages

Avian leukosis virus subgroup J (ALV-J), an oncogenic retrovirus, is known to cause immunosuppression and various types of cancer in chickens. Recent reports have shown that epigenetic changes in DNA and chromatin are widely implicated in the life cycle of diverse viruses, and reversal of these changes in host cells can lead to alterations in the propagation of viruses. In the present study, we found that disruptor of telomeric silencing 1-like (DOT1L), a histone H3 lysine79 (H3K79) methyltransferase, was upregulated during ALV-J infection in chicken macrophage HD11 cells. Subsequently, we show that targeting DOT1L with a specific inhibitor can significantly decrease the ALV-J replication and viral production. By generating of DOT1L-knockout (KO) HD11 cells using the CRISPR/Cas9 system, we show that deletion of the DOT1L led to an increase in the induction of IFNβ and interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) in HD11 cells in response to ALV-J infection. Importantly, we confirmed that ALV-J infection impaired the activation of the melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (MDA5)-mediated-IFN pathway by suppressing the MDA5 expression, and knockout DOT1L rescued the expression of MDA5 and signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1), both of which tightly control the antiviral innate immunity. Collectively, it can be deduced from the current data that blocking DOT1L activity or deletion of DOT1L can lead to ALV-J replication inhibition and restoration of the virally suppressed host innate immunity. Thus, we suggest that DOT1L might be a potential drug target for modulating host innate immune responses to combat ALV-J infection.

Silencing epigenetic writer DOT1L attenuates intimal hyperplasia

ObjectiveHistone methyltransferases are emerging targets for epigenetic therapy. DOT1L (disruptor of telomeric silencing 1-like) is the H3K79 methylation writer. We investigated its role in the development of intimal hyperplasia (IH).Approach and ResultsIH was induced via balloon angioplasty in rat carotid arteries. DOT1L and its catalytic products H3K79me2 and H3K79me3 (immunostaining) increased by 4.69 ±0.34, 2.38 ±0.052, and 3.07 ±0.27 fold, respectively, in injured (versus uninjured) carotid arteries at post-injury day 7. DOT1L silencing via shRNA-lentivirus infusion in injured arteries reduced DOT1L, H3K79me2, and IH at day 14 by 54.5%, 37.1%, and 76.5%, respectively. Moreover, perivascular administration of a DOT1L-selective inhibitor (EPZ5676) reduced H3K79me2, H3K79me3, and IH by 56.1%, 58.6%, and 39.9%, respectively.ConclusionsDOT1L inhibition mitigates the development of IH.

Functions for diverse metabolic activities in heterochromatin

Growing evidence demonstrates that metabolism and chromatin dynamics are not separate processes but that they functionally intersect in many ways. For example, the lysine biosynthetic enzyme homocitrate synthase was recently shown to have unexpected functions in DNA damage repair, raising the question of whether other amino acid metabolic enzymes participate in chromatin regulation. Using an in silico screen combined with reporter assays, we discovered that a diverse range of metabolic enzymes function in heterochromatin regulation. Extended analysis of the glutamate dehydrogenase 1 (Gdh1) revealed that it regulates silent information regulator complex recruitment to telomeres and ribosomal DNA. Enhanced N-terminal histone H3 proteolysis is observed in GDH1 mutants, consistent with telomeric silencing defects. A conserved catalytic Asp residue is required for Gdh1’s functions in telomeric silencing and H3 clipping. Genetic modulation of α-ketoglutarate levels demonstrates a key regulatory role for this metabolite in telomeric silencing. The metabolic activity of glutamate dehydrogenase thus has important and previously unsuspected roles in regulating chromatin-related processes.