Senescence, a permanent form of growth arrest following oncogene activation or telomere attrition, is generally considered a tumor-suppressive mechanism active in vitro and in vivo. However, senescent fibroblasts that are near epithelial cancer cells may promote tumor formation, although in vivo evidence for the existence of such cells and how they act to promote tumor formation remains elusive. Also unknown is how cancer cells communicate with tumor-promoting fibroblasts, if such fibroblasts do exist in vivo. We may have found a novel means for this communication: in the course of profiling RAS-transformed ovarian surface epithelial cells and their isogenic immortalized counterparts, we identified a chemokine, Gro-1, that is up-regulated in RAS- transformed ovarian cancer cell lines and is critical for transformation of ovarian epithelial cells. Unexpectedly, we found that Gro-1 induced senescence in ovarian stromal fibroblasts. Knockdown of the receptor for Gro-1, CXCR2, abrogates the senescence and leads to uncontrolled proliferation of the fibroblasts. We further demonstrated that Gro-1-induced senescent fibroblasts have an increased proangiogenic factor vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A) and decreased antiangiogenic factor thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1). The ratio of VEGF-A:TSP-1 in senescent fibroblasts is 80 fold higher than that in control fibroblasts, suggesting that senescent fibroblasts provide critically needed factors to enhance tumor angiogenesis. We also observed, in the human ovarian cancer specimens, that the stromal fibroblasts near epithelial ovarian cancer cells are senescent. Because Gro-1 is a secreted molecule activated by RAS and can diffuse from epithelial cancer cells to neighboring fibroblasts, Gro-1 may be a signaling molecule by which cancer cells use to accelerate the senescence of neighboring fibroblasts. Our central hypothesis is that RAS activates Gro-1 expression in ovarian tumor cells. Gro-1 signaling through its receptor CXCR2 activates multiple downstream effectors to create a senescent phenotype. Senescent fibroblasts upregulate their VEGF-A:TSP-1 ratio to act on endothelial cells to induce an angiogenic switch, which in turn leads to tumor promotion. We propose the following two specific aims:
Specific Aim 1. Define the mechanisms by which Gro-1 induces senescence and creates an angiogenic phenotype of senescent fibroblasts.
Specific Aim 2. Determine the mechanisms by which senescent fibroblasts promote the tumor growth.

Public Health Relevance

Development of cancer requires not only genetic alterations in epithelial cells but also changes in the stroma, a heterogeneous group of cells interacting with cancer cells. The predominant component of the stroma is fibroblasts. We have found that the RAS oncogene can send a signaling molecule, Gro-1, a small secreted protein, to fibroblasts to accelerate their aging process (senescence) and that this process promotes tumor formation. This project aims to define the molecular mechanisms by which aged fibroblasts initiate ovarian tumor growth and the signaling involved in the aging process. The improved understanding of the molecular mechanisms will be required for an eventual exploration of the therapeutic relevance of this observation. ? ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
1R01CA131183-01A2
Application #
7534226
Study Section
Tumor Microenvironment Study Section (TME)
Program Officer
Sathyamoorthy, Neeraja
Project Start
2008-07-01
Project End
2013-04-30
Budget Start
2008-07-01
Budget End
2009-04-30
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2008
Total Cost
$255,640
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Department
Pathology
Type
Other Domestic Higher Education
DUNS #
800772139
City
Houston
State
TX
Country
United States
Zip Code
77030
Xiao, Xue; Yang, Gong; Bai, Peng et al. (2016) Inhibition of nuclear factor-kappa B enhances the tumor growth of ovarian cancer cell line derived from a low-grade papillary serous carcinoma in p53-independent pathway. BMC Cancer 16:582
Caruso, Joseph A; Karakas, Cansu; Zhang, Jing et al. (2014) Elafin is downregulated during breast and ovarian tumorigenesis but its residual expression predicts recurrence. Breast Cancer Res 16:3417
Zhang, Shiwu; Mercado-Uribe, Imelda; Liu, Jinsong (2014) Tumor stroma and differentiated cancer cells can be originated directly from polyploid giant cancer cells induced by paclitaxel. Int J Cancer 134:508-18
Zhang, S; Mercado-Uribe, I; Xing, Z et al. (2014) Generation of cancer stem-like cells through the formation of polyploid giant cancer cells. Oncogene 33:116-28
Shan, Weiwei; Liu, Jinsong (2013) Transformation of the human ovarian surface epithelium with genetically defined elements. Methods Mol Biol 1049:377-92
Chen, Xiaoxiang; Zhang, Jing; Cheng, Wenjun et al. (2013) CA-125 level as a prognostic indicator in type I and type II epithelial ovarian cancer. Int J Gynecol Cancer 23:815-22
Zhang, Shiwu; Mercado-Uribe, Imelda; Liu, Jinsong (2013) Generation of erythroid cells from fibroblasts and cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. Cancer Lett 333:205-12
Yang, Gong; Mercado-Uribe, Imelda; Multani, Asha S et al. (2013) RAS promotes tumorigenesis through genomic instability induced by imbalanced expression of Aurora-A and BRCA2 in midbody during cytokinesis. Int J Cancer 133:275-85
Zhang, Shiwu; Mercado-Uribe, Imelda; Hanash, Samir et al. (2013) iTRAQ-based proteomic analysis of polyploid giant cancer cells and budding progeny cells reveals several distinct pathways for ovarian cancer development. PLoS One 8:e80120
Schauer, Isaiah Gregory; Zhang, Jing; Xing, Zhen et al. (2013) Interleukin-1? promotes ovarian tumorigenesis through a p53/NF-?B-mediated inflammatory response in stromal fibroblasts. Neoplasia 15:409-20

Showing the most recent 10 out of 44 publications