GNAI2

Gene Summary

Gene:GNAI2; G protein subunit alpha i2
Aliases: GIP, GNAI2B, H_LUCA15.1, H_LUCA16.1
Location:3p21.31
Summary:The protein encoded by this gene is an alpha subunit of guanine nucleotide binding proteins (G proteins). The encoded protein contains the guanine nucleotide binding site and is involved in the hormonal regulation of adenylate cyclase. Several transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Sep 2013]
Databases:OMIM, HGNC, Ensembl, GeneCard, Gene
Protein:guanine nucleotide-binding protein G(i) subunit alpha-2
Source:NCBIAccessed: 01 September, 2019

Ontology:

What does this gene/protein do?
Show (36)
Pathways:What pathways are this gene/protein implicaed in?
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Cancer Overview

Research Indicators

Publications Per Year (1994-2019)
Graph generated 02 September 2019 using data from PubMed using criteria.

Literature Analysis

Mouse over the terms for more detail; many indicate links which you can click for dedicated pages about the topic.

  • GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunits, Gi-Go
  • Single Nucleotide Polymorphism
  • GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunits, Gs
  • Chromosome 3
  • Signal Transduction
  • ras Proteins
  • Biomarkers, Tumor
  • Receptors, Oxytocin
  • Cancer DNA
  • TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases
  • Exons
  • Stromal Cells
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Tongue Neoplasms
  • Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis
  • GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunit, Gi2
  • Ovarian Cancer
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • VHL
  • Adolescents
  • Two-Hybrid System Techniques
  • GTP-Binding Proteins
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Virulence Factors, Bordetella
  • Receptors, Pituitary Hormone-Regulating Hormone
  • Pituitary Tumors
  • Oncogenes
  • Messenger RNA
  • Phosphorylation
  • Mutation
  • Transcriptome
  • Brain Tumours
  • Gene Expression Profiling
  • Transfection
  • RTPCR
  • SMAD4
  • MicroRNAs
  • Cancer Gene Expression Regulation
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins
  • Base Sequence
Tag cloud generated 01 September, 2019 using data from PubMed, MeSH and CancerIndex

Specific Cancers (4)

Data table showing topics related to specific cancers and associated disorders. Scope includes mutations and abnormal protein expression.

Note: list is not exhaustive. Number of papers are based on searches of PubMed (click on topic title for arbitrary criteria used).

Latest Publications: GNAI2 (cancer-related)

Keller M, Dubois F, Teulier S, et al.
NDR2 kinase contributes to cell invasion and cytokinesis defects induced by the inactivation of RASSF1A tumor-suppressor gene in lung cancer cells.
J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2019; 38(1):158 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
BACKGROUND: RASSF1A, a tumor suppressor gene, is frequently inactivated in lung cancer leading to a YAP-dependent epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Such effects are partly due to the inactivation of the anti-migratory RhoB GTPase via the inhibitory phosphorylation of GEF-H1, the GDP/GTP exchange factor for RhoB. However, the kinase responsible for RhoB/GEF-H1 inactivation in RASSF1A-depleted cells remained unknown.
METHODS: NDR1/2 inactivation by siRNA or shRNA effects on epithelial-mesenchymal transition, invasion, xenograft formation and growth in SCID-/- Beige mice, apoptosis, proliferation, cytokinesis, YAP/TAZ activation were investigated upon RASSF1A loss in human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC).
RESULTS: We demonstrate here that depletion of the YAP-kinases NDR1/2 reverts migration and metastatic properties upon RASSF1A loss in HBEC. We show that NDR2 interacts directly with GEF-H1 (which contains the NDR phosphorylation consensus motif HXRXXS/T), leading to GEF-H1 phosphorylation. We further report that the RASSF1A/NDR2/GEF-H1/RhoB/YAP axis is involved in proper cytokinesis in human bronchial cells, since chromosome proper segregation are NDR-dependent upon RASSF1A or GEF-H1 loss in HBEC.
CONCLUSION: To summarize, our data support a model in which, upon RASSF1A silencing, NDR2 gets activated, phosphorylates and inactivates GEF-H1, leading to RhoB inactivation. This cascade induced by RASSF1A loss in bronchial cells is responsible for metastasis properties, YAP activation and cytokinesis defects.

Yan C, Wang J, Wu FX
DWNN-RLS: regularized least squares method for predicting circRNA-disease associations.
BMC Bioinformatics. 2018; 19(Suppl 19):520 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
BACKGROUND: Many evidences have demonstrated that circRNAs (circular RNA) play important roles in controlling gene expression of human, mouse and nematode. More importantly, circRNAs are also involved in many diseases through fine tuning of post-transcriptional gene expression by sequestering the miRNAs which associate with diseases. Therefore, identifying the circRNA-disease associations is very appealing to comprehensively understand the mechanism, treatment and diagnose of diseases, yet challenging. As the complex mechanism between circRNAs and diseases, wet-lab experiments are expensive and time-consuming to discover novel circRNA-disease associations. Therefore, it is of dire need to employ the computational methods to discover novel circRNA-disease associations.
RESULT: In this study, we develop a method (DWNN-RLS) to predict circRNA-disease associations based on Regularized Least Squares of Kronecker product kernel. The similarity of circRNAs is computed from the Gaussian Interaction Profile(GIP) based on known circRNA-disease associations. In addition, the similarity of diseases is integrated by the mean of GIP similarity and sematic similarity which is computed by the direct acyclic graph (DAG) representation of diseases. The kernels of circRNA-disease pairs are constructed from the Kronecker product of the kernels of circRNAs and diseases. DWNN (decreasing weight k-nearest neighbor) method is adopted to calculate the initial relational score for new circRNAs and diseases. The Kronecker product kernel based regularised least squares approach is used to predict new circRNA-disease associations. We adopt 5-fold cross validation (5CV), 10-fold cross validation (10CV) and leave one out cross validation (LOOCV) to assess the prediction performance of our method, and compare it with other six competing methods (RLS-avg, RLS-Kron, NetLapRLS, KATZ, NBI, WP).
CONLUSION: The experiment results show that DWNN-RLS reaches the AUC values of 0.8854, 0.9205 and 0.9701 in 5CV, 10CV and LOOCV, respectively, which illustrates that DWNN-RLS is superior to the competing methods RLS-avg, RLS-Kron, NetLapRLS, KATZ, NBI, WP. In addition, case studies also show that DWNN-RLS is an effective method to predict new circRNA-disease associations.

Lei X, Fang Z, Chen L, Wu FX
PWCDA: Path Weighted Method for Predicting circRNA-Disease Associations.
Int J Mol Sci. 2018; 19(11) [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
CircRNAs have particular biological structure and have proven to play important roles in diseases. It is time-consuming and costly to identify circRNA-disease associations by biological experiments. Therefore, it is appealing to develop computational methods for predicting circRNA-disease associations. In this study, we propose a new computational path weighted method for predicting circRNA-disease associations. Firstly, we calculate the functional similarity scores of diseases based on disease-related gene annotations and the semantic similarity scores of circRNAs based on circRNA-related gene ontology, respectively. To address missing similarity scores of diseases and circRNAs, we calculate the Gaussian Interaction Profile (GIP) kernel similarity scores for diseases and circRNAs, respectively, based on the circRNA-disease associations downloaded from circR2Disease database (http://bioinfo.snnu.edu.cn/CircR2Disease/). Then, we integrate disease functional similarity scores and circRNA semantic similarity scores with their related GIP kernel similarity scores to construct a heterogeneous network made up of three sub-networks: disease similarity network, circRNA similarity network and circRNA-disease association network. Finally, we compute an association score for each circRNA-disease pair based on paths connecting them in the heterogeneous network to determine whether this circRNA-disease pair is associated. We adopt leave one out cross validation (LOOCV) and five-fold cross validations to evaluate the performance of our proposed method. In addition, three common diseases, Breast Cancer, Gastric Cancer and Colorectal Cancer, are used for case studies. Experimental results illustrate the reliability and usefulness of our computational method in terms of different validation measures, which indicates PWCDA can effectively predict potential circRNA-disease associations.

Betancur PA, Abraham BJ, Yiu YY, et al.
A CD47-associated super-enhancer links pro-inflammatory signalling to CD47 upregulation in breast cancer.
Nat Commun. 2017; 8:14802 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
CD47 is a cell surface molecule that inhibits phagocytosis of cells that express it by binding to its receptor, SIRPα, on macrophages and other immune cells. CD47 is expressed at different levels by neoplastic and normal cells. Here, to reveal mechanisms by which different neoplastic cells generate this dominant 'don't eat me' signal, we analyse the CD47 regulatory genomic landscape. We identify two distinct super-enhancers (SEs) associated with CD47 in certain cancer cell types. We show that a set of active constituent enhancers, located within the two CD47 SEs, regulate CD47 expression in different cancer cell types and that disruption of CD47 SEs reduces CD47 gene expression. Finally we report that the TNF-NFKB1 signalling pathway directly regulates CD47 by interacting with a constituent enhancer located within a CD47-associated SE specific to breast cancer. These results suggest that cancers can evolve SE to drive CD47 overexpression to escape immune surveillance.

Regazzo D, Losa M, Albiger NM, et al.
The GIP/GIPR axis is functionally linked to GH-secretion increase in a significant proportion of
Eur J Endocrinol. 2017; 176(5):543-553 [PubMed] Related Publications
OBJECTIVE: Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor (
DESIGN AND METHODS: This study was aimed at linking the GIP/GIPR pathway to GH secretion in 25 somatotropinomas-derived primary cultures and correlating molecular with clinical features in acromegalic patients. Given the impairment of the GIP/GIPR axis in acromegaly, an additional aim was to assess the effect of GH/IGF-1 stimulation on GIP expression in the enteroendocrine cell line STC-1.
RESULTS: Nearly 80% of
CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that

Fu X, Li Y, Alvero A, et al.
MicroRNA-222-3p/GNAI2/AKT axis inhibits epithelial ovarian cancer cell growth and associates with good overall survival.
Oncotarget. 2016; 7(49):80633-80654 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Ovarian carcinoma is the most lethal gynecologic tumor worldwide. Despite having developed molecular diagnostic tools and targeted therapies over the past few decades, patient survival is still quite poor. Numerous studies suggest that microRNAs are key regulators of many fundamental biological processes, including neoplasia and tumor progression. miR-222 is one of those miRNAs that has attracted much attention for its multiple roles in human diseases, especially cancer. The potential role of microRNAs in ovarian cancer has attracted much attention in recent years. Some of these microRNAs have been suggested as potential therapeutic targets for EOC patients. In this study, we sought to investigate the biologic functions of miR-222-3p in EOC carcinogenesis. Herein, we examined the expression of miR-222-3p in EOC patients, mouse models and cell lines, and found that higher expression of miR-222-3p was associated with better overall survival in EOC patients, and its level was negatively correlated with tumor growth in vivo. Furthermore, in-vitro experiments indicated that miR-222-3p inhibited EOC cell proliferation and migration, and decreased the phosphorylation of AKT. We identified GNAI2 as a target of miR-222-3p. We also found that GNAI2 promoted EOC cell proliferation, and is an activator of the PI3K/AKT pathway. We describe the characterization of a novel regulatory axis in ovarian cancer cells, miR-222-3p/GNAI2/AKT and its potential application as a therapeutic target for EOC patients.

Mouriaux F, Zaniolo K, Bergeron MA, et al.
Effects of Long-term Serial Passaging on the Characteristics and Properties of Cell Lines Derived From Uveal Melanoma Primary Tumors.
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2016; 57(13):5288-5301 [PubMed] Related Publications
Purpose: Development of liver metastasis remains the most common cause of mortality in uveal melanoma (UM). A few cell lines cultured from primary UM tumors have been used widely to investigate the pathobiology of UM. However, the translation of basic knowledge to the clinic for the treatment of the metastatic disease has remained incremental at best. In this study, we examined whether the properties of UM cell lines at various passages were similar to their corresponding primary tumors.
Methods: Gene expression profiling by microarray was performed on UM primary tumors and derived cell lines cultured at varying passages. Expression of UM protein markers was monitored by immunohistochemical analyses and Western blotting. The in vivo tumorigenic properties of UM cultures were evaluated using athymic nude mice.
Results: Cell passaging severely reduced the expression of genes encoding markers typical of UM, including those of the prognostic gene signature. Marked differences between gene expression profiles of primary tumors and cell lines could be linked to the infiltrating immune and stromal cells in situ. In addition, the tumorigenic properties of UM cell lines also increased with cell passaging in culture as evaluated by their subcutaneous injection into athymic mice.
Conclusions: Together, these findings demonstrate that the short-term UM primary cultures exhibit molecular features that resemble the respective surgical material and, thus, represent the best model for in vitro-assessed cancer treatments.

Nairismägi ML, Tan J, Lim JQ, et al.
JAK-STAT and G-protein-coupled receptor signaling pathways are frequently altered in epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma.
Leukemia. 2016; 30(6):1311-9 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma (EITL, also known as type II enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma) is an aggressive intestinal disease with poor prognosis and its molecular alterations have not been comprehensively characterized. We aimed to identify actionable easy-to-screen alterations that would allow better diagnostics and/or treatment of this deadly disease. By performing whole-exome sequencing of four EITL tumor-normal pairs, followed by amplicon deep sequencing of 42 tumor samples, frequent alterations of the JAK-STAT and G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling pathways were discovered in a large portion of samples. Specifically, STAT5B was mutated in a remarkable 63% of cases, JAK3 in 35% and GNAI2 in 24%, with the majority occurring at known activating hotspots in key functional domains. Moreover, STAT5B locus carried copy-neutral loss of heterozygosity resulting in the duplication of the mutant copy, suggesting the importance of mutant STAT5B dosage for the development of EITL. Dysregulation of the JAK-STAT and GPCR pathways was also supported by gene expression profiling and further verified in patient tumor samples. In vitro overexpression of GNAI2 mutants led to the upregulation of pERK1/2, a member of MEK-ERK pathway. Notably, inhibitors of both JAK-STAT and MEK-ERK pathways effectively reduced viability of patient-derived primary EITL cells, indicating potential therapeutic strategies for this neoplasm with no effective treatment currently available.

Chen J, Dong S, Hu J, et al.
Guanine nucleotide binding protein-like 3 is a potential prognosis indicator of gastric cancer.
Int J Clin Exp Pathol. 2015; 8(10):13273-8 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Guanine nucleotide binding protein-like 3 (GNL3) is a GIP-binding nuclear protein that has been reported to be involved in various biological processes, including cell proliferation, cellular senescence and tumorigenesis. This study aimed to investigate the expression level of GNL3 in gastric cancer and to evaluate the relationship between its expression and clinical variables and overall survival of gastric cancer patients. The expression level of GNL3 was examined in 89 human gastric cancer samples using immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining. GNL3 in gastric cancer tissues was significantly upregulated compared with paracancerous tissues. GNL3 expression in adjacent non-cancerous tissues was associated with sex and tumor size. Survival analyses showed that GNL3 expression in both gastric cancer and adjacent non-cancerous tissues were not related to overall survival. However, in the subgroup of patients with larger tumor size (≥ 6 cm), a close association was found between GNL3 expression in gastric cancer tissues and overall survival. GNL3-positive patients had a shorter survival than GNL3-negative patients. Our study suggests that GNL3 might play an important role in the progression of gastric cancer and serve as a biomarker for poor prognosis in gastric cancer patients.

Čokić VP, Mossuz P, Han J, et al.
Microarray and Proteomic Analyses of Myeloproliferative Neoplasms with a Highlight on the mTOR Signaling Pathway.
PLoS One. 2015; 10(8):e0135463 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
The gene and protein expression profiles in myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) may reveal gene and protein markers of a potential clinical relevance in diagnosis, treatment and prediction of response to therapy. Using cDNA microarray analysis of 25,100 unique genes, we studied the gene expression profile of CD34+ cells and granulocytes obtained from peripheral blood of subjects with essential thrombocythemia (ET), polycythemia vera (PV) and primary myelofibrosis (PMF). The microarray analyses of the CD34+ cells and granulocytes were performed from 20 de novo MPN subjects: JAK2 positive ET, PV, PMF subjects, and JAK2 negative ET/PMF subjects. The granulocytes for proteomic studies were pooled in 4 groups: PV with JAK2 mutant allele burden above 80%, ET with JAK2 mutation, PMF with JAK2 mutation and ET/PMF with no JAK2 mutation. The number of differentially regulated genes was about two fold larger in CD34+ cells compared to granulocytes. Thirty-six genes (including RUNX1, TNFRSF19) were persistently highly expressed, while 42 genes (including FOXD4, PDE4A) were underexpressed both in CD34+ cells and granulocytes. Using proteomic studies, significant up-regulation was observed for MAPK and PI3K/AKT signaling regulators that control myeloid cell apoptosis and proliferation: RAC2, MNDA, S100A8/9, CORO1A, and GNAI2. When the status of the mTOR signaling pathway related genes was analyzed, PI3K/AKT regulators were preferentially up-regulated in CD34+ cells of MPNs, with down-regulated major components of the protein complex EIF4F. Molecular profiling of CD34+ cells and granulocytes of MPN determined gene expression patterns beyond their recognized function in disease pathogenesis that included dominant up-regulation of PI3K/AKT signaling.

Pérès EA, Gérault AN, Valable S, et al.
Silencing erythropoietin receptor on glioma cells reinforces efficacy of temozolomide and X-rays through senescence and mitotic catastrophe.
Oncotarget. 2015; 6(4):2101-19 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Hypoxia-inducible genes may contribute to therapy resistance in glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive and hypoxic brain tumours. It has been recently reported that erythropoietin (EPO) and its receptor (EPOR) are involved in glioma growth. We now investigated whether EPOR signalling may modulate the efficacy of the GBM current treatment based on chemotherapy (temozolomide, TMZ) and radiotherapy (X-rays). Using RNA interference, we showed on glioma cell lines (U87 and U251) that EPOR silencing induces a G2/M cell cycle arrest, consistent with the slowdown of glioma growth induced by EPOR knock-down. In vivo, we also reported that EPOR silencing combined with TMZ treatment is more efficient to delay tumour recurrence and to prolong animal survival compared to TMZ alone. In vitro, we showed that EPOR silencing not only increases the sensitivity of glioma cells to TMZ as well as X-rays but also counteracts the hypoxia-induced chemo- and radioresistance. Silencing EPOR on glioma cells exposed to conventional treatments enhances senescence and induces a robust genomic instability that leads to caspase-dependent mitotic death by increasing the number of polyploid cells and cyclin B1 expression. Overall these data suggest that EPOR could be an attractive target to overcome therapeutic resistance toward ionising radiation or temozolomide.

Figarella-Branger D, Mokhtari K, Colin C, et al.
Prognostic Relevance of Histomolecular Classification of Diffuse Adult High-Grade Gliomas with Necrosis.
Brain Pathol. 2015; 25(4):418-28 [PubMed] Related Publications
Diffuse adult high-grade gliomas (HGGs) with necrosis encompass anaplastic oligodendrogliomas (AOs) with necrosis (grade III), glioblastomas (GBM, grade IV) and glioblastomas with an oligodendroglial component (GBMO, grade IV). Here, we aimed to search for prognostic relevance of histological classification and molecular alterations of these tumors. About 210 patients were included (63 AO, 56 GBM and 91 GBMO). GBMO group was split into "anaplastic oligoastrocytoma (AOA) with necrosis grade IV/GBMO," restricted to tumors showing intermingled astrocytic and oligodendroglial component, and "GBM/GBMO" based on tumors presenting oligodendroglial foci and features of GBM. Genomic arrays, IDH1 R132H expression analyses and IDH direct sequencing were performed. 1p/19q co-deletion characterized AO, whereas no IDH1 R132H expression and intact 1p/19q characterized both GBM and GBM/GBMO. AOA with necrosis/GBMO mainly demonstrated IDH1 R132H expression and intact 1p/19q. Other IDH1 or IDH2 mutations were extremely rare. Both histological and molecular classifications were predictive of progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) (P < 10(-4) ). Diffuse adult HGGs with necrosis can be split into three histomolecular groups of prognostic relevance: 1p/19q co-deleted AO, IDH1 R132H-GBM and 1p/19q intact IDH1 R132H+ gliomas that might be classified as IDH1 R132H+ GBM. Because of histomolecular heterogeneity, we suggest to remove the name GBMO.

Demir H, Donner I, Kivipelto L, et al.
Mutation analysis of inhibitory guanine nucleotide binding protein alpha (GNAI) loci in young and familial pituitary adenomas.
PLoS One. 2014; 9(10):e109897 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Pituitary adenomas are neoplasms of the anterior pituitary lobe and account for 15-20% of all intracranial tumors. Although most pituitary tumors are benign they can cause severe symptoms related to tumor size as well as hypopituitarism and/or hypersecretion of one or more pituitary hormones. Most pituitary adenomas are sporadic, but it has been estimated that 5% of patients have a familial background. Germline mutations of the tumor suppressor gene aryl hydrocarbon receptor-interacting protein (AIP) predispose to hereditary pituitary neoplasia. Recently, it has been demonstrated that AIP mutations predispose to pituitary tumorigenesis through defective inhibitory GTP binding protein (Gαi) signaling. This finding prompted us to examine whether germline loss-of-function mutations in inhibitory guanine nucleotide (GTP) binding protein alpha (GNAI) loci are involved in genetic predisposition of pituitary tumors. To our knowledge, this is the first time GNAI genes are sequenced in order to examine the occurrence of inactivating germline mutations. Thus far, only somatic gain-of-function hot-spot mutations have been studied in these loci. Here, we have analyzed the coding regions of GNAI1, GNAI2, and GNAI3 in a set of young sporadic somatotropinoma patients (n = 32; mean age of diagnosis 32 years) and familial index cases (n = 14), thus in patients with a disease phenotype similar to that observed in AIP mutation carriers. In addition, expression of Gαi proteins was studied in human growth hormone (GH), prolactin (PRL), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)-secreting and non-functional pituitary tumors. No pathogenic germline mutations affecting the Gαi proteins were detected. The result suggests that loss-of-function mutations of GNAI loci are rare or nonexistent in familial pituitary adenomas.

Bordji K, Grandval A, Cuhna-Alves L, et al.
Hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α), but not HIF-1α, is essential for hypoxic induction of class III β-tubulin expression in human glioblastoma cells.
FEBS J. 2014; 281(23):5220-36 [PubMed] Related Publications
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the deadliest form of primary brain cancer. Several reports have indicated aberrant levels of βIII-tubulin (βIII-t) in human GBM. βIII-t overexpression was linked to increasing malignancy in glial tumors and described to determine the onset of resistance to chemotherapy. Furthermore, a linkage was suggested between the induction of βIII-t expression and hypoxia, a hallmark of GBM. We investigated the role of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α and HIF-2α in the regulation of the βIII-t gene (TUBB3) in GBM cells cultured in either normoxia or hypoxia. We report for the first time that HIF-2α, but not HIF-1α, is involved in hypoxia-induced βIII-t expression in GBM cells. By gene-reporter experiments and site-directed mutagenesis, we found that two overlapping hypoxia response elements located in the 3' UTR of the gene were involved in the activation of TUBB3. This occurred through an enhanced binding of HIF-2α to the 3' region, as revealed by an electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Conversely, the promoter of TUBB3 was shown to be inactive. In addition, we observed that HIF-1α exhibits a repressive effect on βIII-t expression in cells cultured in normoxia. These results show that both HIF-α isoforms have opposing effects on βIII-t expression in GBM cells. Finally, we observed that hypoxia-induced βIII-t expression is well correlated with the kinetics of HIF-2α protein stabilization. The evidence for a direct linkage between HIF-2α and increased expression of βIII-t by hypoxia suggests that an anti-HIF-2α strategy (i.e. by downregulating βIII-t) could be of potential interest for improving the treatment of GBM.

Bai W, Chen Y, Yang J, et al.
Aberrant miRNA profiles associated with chronic benzene poisoning.
Exp Mol Pathol. 2014; 96(3):426-30 [PubMed] Related Publications
Chronic occupational benzene exposure is associated with an increased risk of hematological malignancies. To gain an insight into the new biomarkers and molecular mechanisms of chronic benzene poisoning, miRNA profiles and mRNA expression pattern from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of chronic benzene poisoning patients and health controls matched age and gender without benzene exposure were performed using the Exiqon miRNA PCR ARRAY and Gene Chip Human Gene 2.0ST Arrays, respectively. Totally, 6 up-regulated miRNAs (miR-34a, miR-205, miR-10b, let-7d, miR-185 and miR-423-5p-2) and 7 down-regulated miRNAs (miR-133a, miR-543, hsa-miR-130a, miR-27b,miR-223, miR-142-5p and miR-320b) were found in chronic benzene poisoning group compared to health controls (P ≤ 0.05). By integrating miRNA and mRNA expression data, these differential miRNAs were mainly involved in regulation of transcription from RNA polymerase II promoter, axon guidance, regulation of transcription, DNA-dependent, nervous system development, and regulation of actin cytoskeleton organization. Further, pathway analysis indicated that SMAD4, PLCB1, NFAT5, GNAI2, PTEN, VEGFA, BCL2, CTNNB1 and CCND1 were key target genes of differential miRNAs which were implicated in Adherens junction, TGF-beta signaling pathway, Wnt signaling pathway, tight junction and Pathways in cancer. In conclusion, the aberrant miRNAs might be a potential biomarker of chronic benzene poisoning.

Calipel A, Landreville S, De La Fouchardière A, et al.
Mechanisms of resistance to imatinib mesylate in KIT-positive metastatic uveal melanoma.
Clin Exp Metastasis. 2014; 31(5):553-64 [PubMed] Related Publications
Imatinib mesylate is used in targeted therapy of cancer to inhibit type III tyrosine kinase receptors, such as KIT and platelet-derived growth factor receptors (PDGFRs). Expression of KIT in uveal melanoma (UM) suggests that this receptor may be the target of imatinib mesylate therapy. However, phase II multicenter clinical studies have shown no effect of imatinib mesylate in patients with unresectable liver metastases of UM. We therefore investigated which molecular mechanisms promote imatinib mesylate-resistance in metastatic UM. Expression of KIT, stem cell factor (SCF), PDGFRα and PDGFRβ, was analyzed by RT-PCR, immunostaining, and Western blot in twenty-four samples of UM liver metastases, as well as UM primary tumor and metastatic cell lines. Soluble SCF was quantified in UM cell lines using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cell viability of UM cell lines treated with imatinib mesylate and grown in SCF-supplemented medium or in microvascular endothelial cells-conditioned medium was studied by MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5 diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assays. UM liver metastases and cell lines expressed KIT and SCF, but not the PDGFRs. Ninety-five percent of liver metastases expressed KIT at the protein level, but PDGFRs were not detected in these samples. Imatinib mesylate reduced the viability of UM metastatic cell lines in a concentration-dependent manner, but an increased resistance to this drug was observed when cells were incubated in SCF-supplemented or microvascular endothelial cells-conditioned medium. This study provides evidence that tumor microenvironment cytokines such as SCF may promote resistance to imatinib mesylate in metastatic UM.

Raymond JR, Appleton KM, Pierce JY, Peterson YK
Suppression of GNAI2 message in ovarian cancer.
J Ovarian Res. 2014; 7:6 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
BACKGROUND: Understanding the integration of hormone signaling and how it impacts oncogenesis is critical for improved cancer treatments. Here we elucidate GNAI2 message alterations in ovarian cancer (OvCa). GNAI2 is a heterotrimeric G protein which couples cell surface hormone receptors to intracellular enzymes, and is best characterized for its direct role in regulating cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) function by decreasing intracellular cAMP through inhibiting adenylyl cyclase.
METHODS: We probed the Origene human OvCa array for the presence of polymorphisms and gene expression alterations of GNAI2 using directing sequencing and qPCR. These data were supported by database mining of the [NCBI NIH GSE:6008, GSE:14764, GSE:29450, GDS:4066, GDS:3297, GSE:32474, and GSE:2003] datasets.
RESULTS: No significant polymorphisms were found, including an absence of the gip2 oncogene. However, 85.9% of (506 of 589) OvCa patients had decreased GNAI2 message. Further characterization demonstrated that the GNAI2 message was on average decreased 54% and maximally decreased by 2.8 fold in clear cell carcinoma. GNAI2 message decreased in early stage cancer while message was increased compared to normal in advanced cancers. The changes in GNAI2 also correlated to deregulation of CREB, Fos, Myc, cyclins, Arf, the transition from estrogen dependence to independence, and metastatic potential.
CONCLUSION: These data strongly implicate GNAI2 as a critical regulator of oncogenesis and an upstream driver of cancer progression in OvCa.

Morin RD, Mungall K, Pleasance E, et al.
Mutational and structural analysis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma using whole-genome sequencing.
Blood. 2013; 122(7):1256-65 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a genetically heterogeneous cancer composed of at least 2 molecular subtypes that differ in gene expression and distribution of mutations. Recently, application of genome/exome sequencing and RNA-seq to DLBCL has revealed numerous genes that are recurrent targets of somatic point mutation in this disease. Here we provide a whole-genome-sequencing-based perspective of DLBCL mutational complexity by characterizing 40 de novo DLBCL cases and 13 DLBCL cell lines and combining these data with DNA copy number analysis and RNA-seq from an extended cohort of 96 cases. Our analysis identified widespread genomic rearrangements including evidence for chromothripsis as well as the presence of known and novel fusion transcripts. We uncovered new gene targets of recurrent somatic point mutations and genes that are targeted by focal somatic deletions in this disease. We highlight the recurrence of germinal center B-cell-restricted mutations affecting genes that encode the S1P receptor and 2 small GTPases (GNA13 and GNAI2) that together converge on regulation of B-cell homing. We further analyzed our data to approximate the relative temporal order in which some recurrent mutations were acquired and demonstrate that ongoing acquisition of mutations and intratumoral clonal heterogeneity are common features of DLBCL. This study further improves our understanding of the processes and pathways involved in lymphomagenesis, and some of the pathways mutated here may indicate new avenues for therapeutic intervention.

Zhong M, Clarke S, Vo BT, Khan SA
The essential role of Giα2 in prostate cancer cell migration.
Mol Cancer Res. 2012; 10(10):1380-8 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Cell- and receptor-specific regulation of cell migration by Gi/oα-proteins remains unknown in prostate cancer cells. In the present study, oxytocin (OXT) receptor was detected at the protein level in total cell lysates from C81 (an androgen-independent subline of LNCaP), DU145 and PC3 prostate cancer cells, but not in immortalized normal prostate luminal epithelial cells (RWPE1), and OXT-induced migration of PC3 cells. This effect of OXT has been shown to be mediated by Gi/oα-dependent signaling. Accordingly, OXT inhibited forskolin-induced luciferase activity in PC3 cells that were transfected with a luciferase reporter for cyclic AMP activity. Although mRNAs for all three Giα isoforms were present in PC3 cells, Giα2 was the most abundant isoform that was detected at the protein level. Pertussis toxin (PTx) inhibited the OXT-induced migration of PC3 cells. Ectopic expression of the PTx-resistant Giα2-C352G, but not wild-type Giα2, abolished this effect of PTx on OXT-induced cell migration. The Giα2-targeting siRNA was shown to specifically reduce Giα2 mRNA and protein in prostate cancer cells. The Giα2-targeting siRNA eliminated OXT-induced migration of PC3 cells. These data suggest that Giα2 plays an important role in the effects of OXT on PC3 cell migration. The Giα2-targeting siRNA also inhibited EGF-induced migration of PC3 and DU145 cells. Expression of the siRNA-resistant Giα2, but not wild type Giα2, restored the effects of EGF in PC3 cells transfected with the Giα2-targeting siRNA. In conclusion, Giα2 plays an essential role in OXT and EGF signaling to induce prostate cancer cell migration.

Dmitriev AA, Kashuba VI, Haraldson K, et al.
Genetic and epigenetic analysis of non-small cell lung cancer with NotI-microarrays.
Epigenetics. 2012; 7(5):502-13 [PubMed] Related Publications
This study aimed to clarify genetic and epigenetic alterations that occur during lung carcinogenesis and to design perspective sets of newly identified biomarkers. The original method includes chromosome 3 specific NotI-microarrays containing 180 NotI clones associated with genes for hybridization with 40 paired normal/tumor DNA samples of primary lung tumors: 28 squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) and 12 adenocarcinomas (ADC). The NotI-microarray data were confirmed by qPCR and bisulfite sequencing analyses. Forty-four genes showed methylation and/or deletions in more than 15% of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) samples. In general, SCC samples were more frequently methylated/deleted than ADC. Moreover, the SCC alterations were observed already at stage I of tumor development, whereas in ADC many genes showed tumor progression specific methylation/deletions. Among genes frequently methylated/deleted in NSCLC, only a few were already known tumor suppressor genes: RBSP3 (CTDSPL), VHL and THRB. The RPL32, LOC285205, FGD5 and other genes were previously not shown to be involved in lung carcinogenesis. Ten methylated genes, i.e., IQSEC1, RBSP3, ITGA 9, FOXP1, LRRN1, GNAI2, VHL, FGD5, ALDH1L1 and BCL6 were tested for expression by qPCR and were found downregulated in the majority of cases. Three genes (RBSP3, FBLN2 and ITGA9) demonstrated strong cell growth inhibition activity. A comprehensive statistical analysis suggested the set of 19 gene markers, ANKRD28, BHLHE40, CGGBP1, RBSP3, EPHB1, FGD5, FOXP1, GORASP1/TTC21, IQSEC1, ITGA9, LOC285375, LRRC3B, LRRN1, MITF, NKIRAS1/RPL15, TRH, UBE2E2, VHL, WNT7A, to allow early detection, tumor progression, metastases and to discriminate between SCC and ADC with sensitivity and specificity of 80-100%.

Waser B, Rehmann R, Sanchez C, et al.
Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptors in most gastroenteropancreatic and bronchial neuroendocrine tumors.
J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2012; 97(2):482-8 [PubMed] Related Publications
CONTEXT: Gastrointestinal peptide hormone receptors overexpressed in neuroendocrine tumors (NET), such as somatostatin or glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptors, are used for in vivo tumor targeting. Unfortunately, not all NET express these receptors sufficiently.
OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to evaluate in vitro the expression of another incretin receptor, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor, in human tumors and compare it with that in adjacent nonneoplastic tissues and also with somatostatin and GLP-1 receptor expression.
METHODS: GIP receptor protein expression was qualitatively and quantitatively investigated in 260 human tumors and in nonneoplastic human tissues with receptor autoradiography using [(125)I]GIP(1-30). Pharmacological competition experiments and mRNA analysis were performed to provide proof of specificity. Somatostatin receptor and GLP-1 receptor autoradiography were performed in adjacent sections.
RESULTS: GIP receptors are expressed in the majority of pancreatic, ileal, and bronchial NET. Importantly, most of the somatostatin receptor-negative NET and GLP-1 receptor-negative malignant insulinomas are GIP receptor positive. Conversely, the epithelial and stromal gastrointestinal tumors, including gastric, colonic, and hepatocellular carcinomas, cholangiocarcinomas, and gastrointestinal stromal tumors as well as lung adenocarcinomas are usually GIP receptor negative, except for 26% of pancreatic adenocarcinomas. Pancreatic islets, but not acini, are GIP receptor positive. The rank order of potencies for receptor binding and mRNA analysis by PCR reveal specific GIP receptors.
CONCLUSIONS: The numerous GIP receptors in gastroenteropancreatic and bronchial NET represent novel universal molecular targets for clinical applications, in particular for in vivo scintigraphy and targeted radiotherapy. These results may also be the basis for multiple targeting, with concomitant use of GIP, somatostatin, and GLP-1 analogs as radiotracers.

Occhi G, Losa M, Albiger N, et al.
The glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor is overexpressed amongst GNAS1 mutation-negative somatotropinomas and drives growth hormone (GH)-promoter activity in GH3 cells.
J Neuroendocrinol. 2011; 23(7):641-9 [PubMed] Related Publications
Somatic mutations in the GNAS1 gene, encoding the α-subunit of the heterotrimeric stimulatory G protein (Gαs), occur in approximately 40% of growth hormone (GH)-secreting pituitary tumours. By altering the adenylate cyclase-cAMP-protein kinase A pathway, they unequivocally give somatotroph cells a growth advantage. Hence, the pathogenesis of somatotropinomas could be linked to anomalies in receptors coupled to the cAMP second-messenger cascade. Among them, the glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor (GIPR) is already known to play a primary role in the impaired cAMP-dependent cortisol secretion in patients affected by food-dependent Cushing's syndrome. In the present study, 43 somatotropinomas and 12 normal pituitary glands were investigated for GIPR expression by quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, western blotting and immunohistochemistry. Tumoural specimens were also evaluated for GNAS1 mutational status. The effect of GIPR overexpression on cAMP levels and GH transcription was evaluated in an in vitro model of somatotropinomas, the GH-secreting pituitary cell line GH3. GIPR was expressed at higher levels compared to normal pituitaries in 13 GNAS1 mutation-negative somatotropinomas. GIP stimulated adenylyl cyclase and GH-promoter activity in GIPR-transfected GH3 cells, confirming a correct coupling of GIPR to Gαs. In a proportion of acromegalic patients, GIPR overexpression appeared to be associated with a paradoxical increase in GH after an oral glucose tolerance test. Whether GIPR overexpression in acromegalic patients may be associated with this paradoxical response or more generally involved in the pathogenesis of acromegaly, as suggested by the mutually exclusive high GIPR levels and GNAS1 mutations, remains an open question.

Yoshida M, Hiroi M, Imai T, et al.
A case of ACTH-independent macronodular adrenal hyperplasia associated with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1.
Endocr J. 2011; 58(4):269-77 [PubMed] Related Publications
Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) is an autosomal dominant neoplasia syndrome characterized by the occurrence of tumors in the parathyroid glands, pancreas, and anterior pituitary. Approximately 30-40% of MEN1 patients also have adrenal lesions, such as hyperplasia, benign adenoma, and adrenocortical carcinoma. Most of the cases are hormonally silent. We describe the case of a 60-year-old man with bilateral macronodular adrenal lesions, in addition to parathyroid tumors, multiple insulinomas, and non-functioning pituitary microadenoma. Endocrinological tests revealed subclinical hypercortisolism; midnight cortisol level rose slightly (8.0 µg/dL), although basal plasma ACTH and cortisol levels were within the normal range (19.5 pg/mL and 12.0 µg/dL, respectively). One and 8 mg dexamethasone suppression tests showed cortisol levels of 2.3 and 9.8 µg/dL, respectively. (131)I-adosterol scintigraphy under dexamethasone suppression revealed bilateral adrenal uptake with right-sided predominance. The histological features of the removed right adrenal gland were consistent with ACTH-independent macronodular adrenal hyperplasia (AIMAH): immunoreactivity of 17α-hydroxylase was predominantly observed in the small compact cells, while that of 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase was exclusively expressed in the large clear cells. The glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor was expressed at high levels in compact cells, suggesting that GIP is responsible for the development of AIMAH. Unilateral small adrenal lesions were detected in the patient's 2 children, who also presented with MEN1 symptoms. Genetic abnormalities in the MEN1, p27, and p18 genes were not found, however, the present case may provide a clue to the understanding of the etiology of MEN1 and AIMAH.

Garcia-Marcos M, Ghosh P, Farquhar MG
Molecular basis of a novel oncogenic mutation in GNAO1.
Oncogene. 2011; 30(23):2691-6 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
Heterotrimeric G proteins are molecular switches that control signal transduction, and their dysregulation can promote oncogenesis. Somatic mutations in GNAS, GNAI2 and GNAQ genes induce oncogenesis by rendering Gα subunits constitutively activated. Recently the first somatic mutation, arginine(243) → histidine (R243H) in the GNAO1 (Gαo) gene was identified in breast carcinomas and shown to promote oncogenic transformation when introduced into cells. Here, we provide the molecular basis for the oncogenic properties of the Gαo R243H mutant. Using limited proteolysis assays, nucleotide-binding assays, and single-turnover and steady-state GTPase assays, we demonstrate that the oncogenic R234H mutation renders Gαo constitutively active by accelerating the rate of nucleotide exchange; however, this mutation does not affect Gαo's ability to become deactivated by GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs) or by its intrinsic GTPase activity. This mechanism differs from that of previously reported oncogenic mutations that impair GTPase activity and GAP sensitivity without affecting nucleotide exchange. The constitutively active Gαo R243H mutant also enhances Src-STAT3 signaling in NIH-3T3 cells, a pathway previously shown to be directly triggered by active Gαo proteins to promote cellular transformation. Based on structural analyses, we propose that the enhanced rate of nucleotide exchange in Gαo R243H results from loss of the highly conserved electrostatic interaction of R243 with E43, located in the in the P-loop that represents the binding site for the α- and β-phosphates of the nucleotide. We conclude that the novel R234H mutation imparts oncogenic properties to Gαo by accelerating nucleotide exchange and rendering it constitutively active, thereby enhancing signaling pathways, for example, src-STAT3, responsible for neoplastic transformation.

Jiang L, Dai Y, Liu X, et al.
Identification and experimental validation of G protein alpha inhibiting activity polypeptide 2 (GNAI2) as a microRNA-138 target in tongue squamous cell carcinoma.
Hum Genet. 2011; 129(2):189-97 [PubMed] Free Access to Full Article Related Publications
MicroRNA deregulation is a critical event in tumor initiation and progression. The down-regulation of microRNA-138 has been frequently observed in various cancers, including tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC). Our previous studies suggest that deregulation of miR-138 is associated with the enhanced proliferation and invasion in TSCC cells. Here, we seek to identify the targets of miR-138 in TSCC, and explore their functional relevance in tumorigenesis. Our genome-wide expression profiling experiments identified a panel of 194 unique transcripts that were significantly down-regulated in TSCC cells transfected with miR-138. A comprehensive screening using six different sequence-based microRNA target prediction algorithms revealed that 51 out of these 194 down-regulated transcripts are potential direct targets for miR-138. These targets include: chloride channel, nucleotide-sensitive, 1A (CLNS1A), G protein alpha inhibiting activity polypeptide 2 (GNAI2), solute carrier family 20, member 1 (SLC20A1), eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E binding protein 1 (EIF4EBP1), and Rho-related GTP-binding protein C (RhoC). GNAI2 is a known proto-oncogene that is involved in the initiation and progression of several different types of tumors. Direct targeting of miR-138 to two candidate binding sequences located in the 3'-untranslated region of GNAI2 mRNA was confirmed using luciferase reporter gene assays. Knockdown of miR-138 in TSCC cells enhanced the expression of GNAI2 at both mRNA and protein levels. In contrast, ectopic transfection of miR-138 reduced the expression of GNAI2, which, in consequence, led to reduced proliferation, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. In summary, we identified a number of high-confident miR-138 target genes, including proto-oncogene GNAI2, which may play an important role in TSCC initiation and progression.

Hoo RL, Chu JY, Yuan Y, et al.
Functional identification of an intronic promoter of the human glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide gene.
Gene. 2010; 463(1-2):29-40 [PubMed] Related Publications
Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), a physiological incretin and enterogastrone, plays a vital role in regulating glucose-dependent insulin release from the pancreas and gastric acid secretion from the stomach. By using a transgenic mouse approach, we previously reported that the distal 1.2kb promoter region of the human GIP (hGIP) gene (-2545/-346, relative to the ATG) was able to target the transgene expression in the stomach but not in the small intestine where the majority of GIP-producing cells are located. In the present study, in order to identify the cis-acting element(s) that is/are required for intestinal expression, a 1.6kb (-1580/-) DNA fragment within the first intron of the hGIP gene was isolated and characterized in three GIP-expressing cell lines including HuTu80 (duodenal cells), PANC-1 (pancreatic ductal cells) and Hs746T (stomach cells). By 5' and 3' deletion analysis, a proximal promoter element was confined within the nucleotides -102/-1. This promoter element, functions in an orientation-dependent manner, was able to drive 15.1 and 18.3 fold increases in promoter activities in HuTu80 and PANC-1 cells, respectively. Site-directed mutation analysis indicated that the region -54/-23 was essential for promoter function while the region -22/-1 might possess opposite effects in HuTu80 and PANC-1 cells. In competitive and antibody supershift assays, interactions of the progesterone receptor (PR) and some unknown protein factors from HuTu80 and PANC-1 with the motif(s) at -54/-23 were evident. Consistent with this finding, we demonstrated the transcriptional regulation of the hGIP promoter by progesterone via the PR-B isoform and that progesterone treatment in both HuTu80 and PANC-1 cells resulted in an increase in hGIP transcript level. In addition, a sequence motif (ACATGT) residing -48/-43 was found to be responsible for the binding of potential TFII regulator(s). Taken together, our results suggest that the proximal intronic sequences contain essential cis-acting elements for the cell-specific expression of the hGIP gene.

Ruggeri RM, Santarpia L, Curtò L, et al.
Non-functioning pituitary adenomas infrequently harbor G-protein gene mutations.
J Endocrinol Invest. 2008; 31(11):946-9 [PubMed] Related Publications
BACKGROUND: Mutations of the genes encoding the alpha subunit of the stimulatory G protein (Gs) and of the inhibiting Gi2 protein (GNAS1 and GNAI2 genes, respectively) have been described in various endocrine neoplasias, including pituitary tumors.
AIM: To search for mutations of GNAS1 and GNAI2 in a continuous series of non-functioning pituitary adenoma (NFPA) patients neurosurgically treated.
SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The surgical samples of 22 patients who have been defined and characterized on a clinical, biochemical, histological, and immunohistochemical point of view have been processed for investigating the presence of the above mutations by PCR amplification of the hot spots exons 8 and 9 of GNAS1, and exons 5 and 6 of GNAI2, followed by direct sequencing. Moreover, the promoter region of GNAI2, in order to assess the prevalence of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP), was investigated in the same series.
RESULTS: A CGT>TGT mutation at codon 201 of GNAS1 gene in a single case of NFPA was found, but no mutation of GNAI2A was demonstrated.
CONCLUSIONS: This finding suggests and confirms that G-protein mutations are rare and not crucial in NFPA development. Additionally, we found a silent SNP at codon 318 in the promoter of the Gi2alpha gene in one out of the 22 NFPA.

Specht K, Harbeck N, Smida J, et al.
Expression profiling identifies genes that predict recurrence of breast cancer after adjuvant CMF-based chemotherapy.
Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2009; 118(1):45-56 [PubMed] Related Publications
Cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and 5-fluorouracile (CMF)-based chemotherapy for adjuvant treatment of breast cancer reduces the risk of relapse. In this exploratory study, we tested the feasibility of identifying molecular markers of recurrence in CMF-treated patients. Using Affymetrix U133A GeneChips, RNA samples from 19 patients with primary breast cancer who had been uniformly treated with adjuvant CMF chemotherapy were analyzed. Two supervised class prediction approaches were used to identify gene markers that can best discriminate between patients who would experience relapse and patients who would remain disease-free. An additional independent validation set of 51 patients and 21 genes were analyzed by quantitative RT-PCR. Applying different algorithms to evaluate our microarray data, we identified two gene expression signatures of 21 and 12 genes containing eight overlapping genes, that predict recurrence in 19 cases with high accuracy (94%). Quantitative RT-PCR demonstrated that six genes from the combined signatures (CXCL9, ITSN2, GNAI2, H2AFX, INDO, and MGC10986) were significantly differentially expressed in the recurrence versus the non-recurrence group of the 19 cases and the independent breast cancer patient cohort (n = 51) treated with CMF. High expression levels of CXCL9, ITSN2, and GNAI2 were associated with prolonged disease-free survival (DFS) (P = 0.029, 0.018 and 0.032, respectively). When patients were stratified by combined CXCL9/ITSN2 or CXCL9/FLJ22028 tumor levels, they exhibited significantly different disease-free survival curves (P = 0.0073 and P = 0.005, respectively). Finally, the CXCL9/ITSN2 and CXCL9/FLJ22028 ratio was an independent prognostic factor (P = 0.034 and P = 0.003, respectively) for DFS by multivariate Cox analysis in the 70-patient cohort. Our data highlight the feasibility of a prognostic assay that is applicable to therapeutic decision-making for breast cancer. Whether the biomarker profile is chemotherapy-specific or whether it is a more general indicator of bad prognosis of breast cancer patients remains to be explored.

Mazzuco TL, Chabre O, Feige JJ, Thomas M
Aberrant GPCR expression is a sufficient genetic event to trigger adrenocortical tumorigenesis.
Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2007; 265-266:23-8 [PubMed] Related Publications
Aberrant expression of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) in the adrenal cortex is observed in some cases of ACTH-independent macronodular adrenal hyperplasias and adenomas associated with Cushing syndrome (CS). Although there is clinical evidence for the implication of these receptors in abnormal regulation of cortisol secretion, whether this aberrant expression also directly causes the development of a benign adrenocortical tumor is an open question. Cell transplantation provides a way to study genes that may be important in human tumor development. The system we developed uses genetically modified adrenocortical cells transplanted into adrenalectomized immunodeficient mice, which form a functional tissue structure. We observed that enforcing expression of the gastric inhibitory polypeptide (GIP) receptor or the luteinizing hormone (LH) receptor genes (taken as canonical examples of aberrantly expressed GPCRs) in adrenocortical cells resulted in the formation of hyperplastic tissues and the development of Cushing syndrome features in transplanted mice.

Peters DG, Kudla DM, Deloia JA, et al.
Comparative gene expression analysis of ovarian carcinoma and normal ovarian epithelium by serial analysis of gene expression.
Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2005; 14(7):1717-23 [PubMed] Related Publications
Despite the poor prognosis of ovarian cancer and the importance of early diagnosis, there are no reliable noninvasive biomarkers for detection in the early stages of disease. Therefore, to identify novel ovarian cancer markers with potential utility in early-stage screening protocols, we have undertaken an unbiased and comprehensive analysis of gene expression in primary ovarian tumors and normal human ovarian surface epithelium (HOSE) using Serial Analysis of Gene Expression (SAGE). Specifically, we have generated SAGE libraries from three serous adenocarcinomas of the ovary and, using novel statistical tools, have compared these to SAGE data derived from two pools of normal HOSE. Significantly, in contrast to previous SAGE-based studies, our normal SAGE libraries are not derived from cultured cell lines. We have also compared our data with publicly available SAGE data obtained from primary tumors and "normal" HOSE-derived cell lines. We have thus identified several known and novel genes whose expressions are elevated in ovarian cancer. These include but are not limited to CLDN3, WFDC2, FOLR1, COL18A1, CCND1, and FLJ12988. Furthermore, we found marked differences in gene expression patterns in primary HOSE tissue compared with cultured HOSE. The use of HOSE tissue as a control for these experiments, along with hierarchical clustering analysis, identified several potentially novel biomarkers of ovarian cancer, including TACC3, CD9, GNAI2, AHCY, CCT3, and HMGA1. In summary, these data identify several genes whose elevated expressions have not been observed previously in ovarian cancer, confirm the validity of several existing markers, and provide a foundation for future studies in the understanding and management of this disease.

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