Cross‐signaling among phosphinositide‐3 kinase,mitogen‐activated protein kinase and sonic hedgehog pathways exists in esophageal cancer

The hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway is essential for the development of tissues and organs. Hyperactive Hh signaling has been implicated in many gastric cancers, including esophageal cancer. However, the interaction between the Hh pathway and other potential signaling pathways in primary esophageal tumorigenesis has not been well investigated. In our study, we found that esophageal cancer cells expressed Hh signaling molecules and that the hyperexpression of Hh target genes was related to protein kinase B (AKT) activation but not extracellular signal‐regulated kinase activation. We analyzed the relationship between Gli1 or p‐AKT expression and clinicopathological features in esophageal carcinoma samples and found that Gli1 expression was associated with lymph vessel invasion (p = 0.016), blood vessel invasion (p = 0.006) and a poor prognosis (p = 0.003), and p‐AKT expression was associated with blood vessel invasion (p = 0.031) and a poor prognosis (p = 0.031). We also studied the relationship between Hh and phosphinositide‐3 kinase (PI3K)/AKT or mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways in both TE‐1 and TE‐10 cell lines. We found that the PI3K/AKT pathway played a critical role in Hh signaling after stimulation with epidermal growth factor, Gβγ and N‐Shh. Conversely, PI3K/AKT and MAPK signaling cooperated with the Shh pathway to promote esophageal cancer cell survival and proliferation. The results from esophageal cancer cells shed light on the significance of Hh signaling in esophageal tumor formation and the crosstalk of the Hh pathway with other basic signaling pathways, which is consistent with that observed in human tumor samples.     

TAK‐441, a novel investigational smoothened antagonist,delays castration‐resistant progression in prostate cancer by disrupting paracrine hedgehog signaling

Hedgehog (Hh) signaling is a highly conserved intercellular and intracellular communication mechanism that governs organogenesis and is dysregulated in cancers of numerous tissues, including prostate. Up‐regulated expression of the Hh ligands, Sonic (Shh) and Desert (Dhh), has been reported in androgen‐deprived and castration‐resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). In a cohort of therapy naive, short‐ and long‐term neoadjuvant hormone therapy‐treated (NHT), and CRPC specimens, we observed elevated Dhh expression predominantly in long‐term NHT specimens and elevated Shh expression predominantly in CRPC specimens. Together with previously demonstrated reciprocal signaling between Shh‐producing prostate cancer (PCa) cells and urogenital mesenchymal fibroblasts, these results suggest that castration‐induced Hh expression promotes CRPC progression through reciprocal paracrine signaling within the tumor microenvironment. We tested whether the orally available Smoothened (Smo) antagonist, TAK‐441, could impair castration‐resistant progression of LNCaP PCa xenografts by disrupting paracrine Hh signaling. Although TAK‐441 or cyclopamine did not affect androgen withdrawal‐induced Shh up‐regulation or viability of LNCaP cells, castration‐resistant progression of LNCaP xenografts was significantly delayed in animals treated with TAK‐441. In TAK‐441‐treated xenografts, expression of murine orthologs of the Hh‐activated genes, Gli1, Gli2 and Ptch1, was substantially suppressed, while expression of the corresponding human orthologs was unaffected. As androgen‐deprived LNCaP cells up‐regulate Shh expression, but are not sensitive to Smo antagonists, these studies indicate that TAK‐441 leads to delayed castration‐resistant progression of LNCaP xenografts by disrupting paracrine Hh signaling with the tumor stroma. Thus, paracrine Hh signaling may offer unique opportunities for prognostic biomarker development, drug targeting and therapeutic response monitoring of PCa progression.     

Crosstalk between Desmoglein 2 and Patched 1 accelerates chemical-induced skin tumorigenesis

Aberrant activation of Hedgehog (Hh) signaling is causative of BCCs and has been associated with a fraction of SCCs. Desmoglein 2 (Dsg2) is an adhesion protein that is upregulated in many cancers and overexpression of Dsg2 in the epidermis renders mice more susceptible to squamous-derived neoplasia. Here we examined a potential crosstalk between Dsg2 and Hh signaling in skin tumorigenesis. Our findings show that Dsg2 modulates Gli1 expression, in vitro and in vivo. Ectopic expression of Dsg2 on Ptc1^+/lacZ background enhanced epidermal proliferation and interfollicular activation of the Hh pathway. Furthermore, in response to DMBA/TPA, the Dsg2/Ptc1^+/lacZ mice developed squamous lessons earlier than the WT, Ptc1^+/lacZ, and Inv-Dsg2 littermates. Additionally, DMBA/TPA induced BCC formation in all mice harboring the Ptc1^+/lacZ gene and the presence of Dsg2 in Dsg2/Ptc1^+/lacZ mice doubled the BCC tumor burden. Reporter analysis revealed activation of the Hh pathway in the BCC tumors. However, in the SCCs we observed Hh activity only in the underlying dermis of the tumors. Furthermore, Dsg2/Ptc1^+/lacZ mice demonstrated enhanced MEK/Erk1/2 activation within the tumors and expression of Shh in the dermis. In summary, our results demonstrate that Dsg2 modulates Hh signaling, and this synergy may accelerate skin tumor development by different mechanisms.     

Shh在消化系肿瘤中的研究进展

Sonic hedgehog（Shh）基因为人体胚胎发育中具有调节细胞增殖与分化作用的一类基因.先前的研究主要集中在胚胎发育,器官发生以及细胞增殖等,随着研究的深入发现Shh基因在人类多种恶性肿瘤中异常激活,导致细胞异常增生,直接参与肿瘤的发生与发展过程.同时Shh信号通路的异常激活可能直接或间接的影响到食管癌,胃癌,胰腺癌,肝细胞癌,大肠癌等多种消化系统恶性肿瘤的发生.     

Targeting the Hedgehog pathway in cancer

The Hedgehog (Hh) pathway is a major regulator of many fundamental processes in vertebrate embryonic development including stem cell maintenance, cell differentiation, tissue polarity and cell proliferation. Constitutive activation of the Hh pathway leading to tumorigenesis is seen in basal cell carcinomas and medulloblastoma. A variety of other human cancers, including brain, gastrointestinal, lung, breast and prostate cancers, also demonstrate inappropriate activation of this pathway. Paracrine Hh signaling from the tumor to the surrounding stroma was recently shown to promote tumorigenesis. This pathway has also been shown to regulate proliferation of cancer stem cells and to increase tumor invasiveness. Targeted inhibition of Hh signaling may be effective in the treatment and prevention of many types of human cancers. The discovery and synthesis of specific Hh pathway inhibitors have significant clinical implications in novel cancer therapeutics. Several synthetic Hh antagonists are now available, several of which are undergoing clinical evaluation. The orally available compound, GDC-0449, is the farthest along in clinical development. Initial clinical trials in basal cell carcinoma and treatment of select patients with medulloblastoma have shown good efficacy and safety. We review the molecular basis of Hh signaling, the current understanding of pathway activation in different types of human cancers and we discuss the clinical development of Hh pathway inhibitors in human cancer therapy.     

New therapeutic strategy for cancer targeting the hedgehog signaling pathway

The hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway was originally found as an organizer in embryonic development. The pathway is now implicated in the development of various tumors. Recently, it has been reported that the pathway activation is resulted from aberrant expression of the ligand, Sonic Hh (Shh), in pancreatic cancer and breast cancer. Here we developed a new strategy to control the activation of the Hh signaling pathway in cancer cells, which have ectopic and ligand dependent activation of the Hh signaling pathway. Our strategy may contribute to the development of a new cancer treatment.     

Notch信号通路与消化系统肿瘤相关性的研究进展

Notch信号是一种遗传进化上高度保守,反映相邻细胞间通信作用的一种信号通路,其不仅在细胞正常发育、分化增殖和凋亡中起着重要的作用,而且与多种肿瘤的发生和发展具有相关性.食管鳞状细胞癌的发生常伴随Notch-1的低表达,但食管腺癌的发生却与Notch信号的高表达相关,且高表达的Notch信号对胃癌形成具有促进作用,其表达量提高的程度预示胃癌形成风险的高低.结肠癌中Notch-1表达的升高与病理分级、淋巴转移和病程相关,而Nctch配体Dll-4可促进结肠癌中新生血管的生成有助于癌细胞的转移和远端浸润,与之相反的是Notch-2却可能起到抑制结肠癌生长的作用.总之,目前Notch信号多被视为致癌因素,可促进肿瘤的生长,但在某些肿瘤中也能够诱导肿瘤细胞分化、抑制肿瘤细胞的增殖,表现为致癌与抑癌两种截然相反的作用.应用γ-分泌酶抑制剂(γ-secretase inhibitor,GSI)、小RNA干扰技术和单克隆抗体等方法阻断Notch信号通路,将成为肿瘤治疗的一个新方向.     

Hedgehog信号通路在食管癌中的异常活化

  目的   探讨Hedgehog（Hh）信号通路与食管鳞状细胞癌（ESCC）的关系。   方法   采用免疫组织化学随机分析30例ESCC及癌旁组织样本的Hh信号通路中主要组分Smo和Gli2及靶蛋白CyclinD1表达。构建分泌型配体ShhN的条件培养液,利用条件培养液及Hh信号通路激动剂Purmorphamine或Hh通路抑制剂环杷明及GANT61处理CaEs-17细胞后,MTT法检测细胞生存率的变化。   结果   ESCC组织中的Smo、Gli2和CyclinD1表达普遍高于癌旁组织。含有ShhN的条件培养液能有效激活Hh信号通路下游靶基因CCND1的表达并明显促进食管癌CaEs-17细胞的生存率,提示食管癌中Hh信号通路以配体依赖的方式激活。直接作用于Smo的Hh信号通路激动剂Purmorphamine促进食管癌CaEs-17细胞的生长;而Smo特异性抑制剂环杷明有效地抑制CaEs-17细胞生存率。Gli1/Gli2的抑制剂GANT61比环杷明更为有效地抑制CaEs-17细胞生存率。   结论   Hh信号通路在ESCC中异常活化,将可能成为新的治疗食管癌的药物靶点。      

p53-Independent negative regulation of p21/cyclin-dependent kinase-interacting protein 1 by the sonic hedgehog-glioma-associated oncogene 1 pathway in gastric carcinoma cells

The activation of Hedgehog (Hh) signaling has been implicated in the growth of various tumor types, including gastric carcinoma. However, the precise mechanisms of Hh activation and suppression of tumor growth by the blockade of Hh signaling in gastric carcinoma cells remain unknown. The aim of this study was to elucidate the mechanism of abnormal Hh signaling and the key molecules contributing to dysregulated growth of gastric carcinoma. The Sonic hedgehog (Shh) ligand and its receptor Patched were expressed in all five gastric carcinoma cell lines examined (MKN1, MKN7, MKN45, MKN74, and AGS cells). The blockade of Hh signaling with anti-Shh antibody inhibited the growth of all five gastric carcinoma cell lines. Shh was overexpressed (mean, 12.8-fold) in 8 of 14 (57.0%) cancerous tissue samples from patients with gastric carcinoma as compared with expression in the surrounding noncancerous tissues. The disruption of glioma-associated oncogene 1 (Gli1) by small interfering RNA induced an increase in p21/cyclin-dependent kinase-interacting protein 1 (CIP1), interfered with the G1-S transition, and suppressed cell proliferation. The stimulation or inhibition of Hh signaling did not affect p53 activity and the induction of p21/CIP1 expression and the G1 arrest by inhibition of Hh signaling were not affected by the p53 status. These findings suggest that the overexpression of Shh contributes to constitutive Hh activation and that this signaling pathway negatively regulates p21/CIP1 through a Gli1-dependent and p53-independent mechanism in gastric carcinoma cells.     

Hedgehog signal pathway is activated in ovarian carcinomas, correlating with cell proliferation: it's inhibition leads to growth suppression and apoptosis

The hedgehog (Hh) signal pathway has recently been shown to be activated in human malignancies. However, little is known about its role in the development or patient prognosis of epithelial ovarian carcinoma. In the present study, we examined in vivo and in vitro the expression and functional role of Hh signal molecules in epithelial ovarian tumors and normal ovarian surface epithelial (OSE) cells. The expression of Shh, Dhh, Ptch, Smo and Gli1 proteins was not observed in normal OSE, but was increased stepwise in benign, borderline and malignant neoplasms. In addition, immunoreactivity for Shh, Dhh, Ptch, Smo and Gli1 was highly correlated with cell proliferation assessed by Ki-67. Blocking the Hh signal using either the Hh pathway inhibitor cyclopamine or Gli1 siRNA led to remarkably decreased cell proliferation in ovarian carcinoma cells. Treatment with cyclopamine induced not only G, arrest but also apoptosis along with the downregulation of cyclin A and cyclin D1, and the upregulation of p21 and p27. Among the Hh signal molecules, Dhh expression was correlated with poor prognosis of ovarian carcinoma patients. These findings suggest that the Hh signal pathway plays an important role in ovarian tumorigenesis as well as in the activation of cell proliferation in ovarian carcinomas. Thus, the Hh signal pathway is a possible molecular target of new treatment strategies for ovarian carcinoma.     

GLI inhibitor GANT-61 diminishes embryonal and alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma growth by inhibiting Shh/AKT-mTOR axis

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) typically arises from skeletal muscle. Currently, RMS in patients with recurrent and metastatic disease have no successful treatment. The molecular pathogenesis of RMS varies based on cancer sub-types. Some embryonal RMS but not other sub-types are driven by sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway. However, Shh pathway inhibitors particularly smoothened inhibitors are not highly effective in animals. Here, we show that Shh pathway effectors GLI1 and/or GLI2 are over-expressed in the majority of RMS cells and that GANT-61, a specific GLI1/2 inhibitor dampens the proliferation of both embryonal and alveolar RMS cells-derived xenograft tumors thereby blocking their growth. As compared to vehicle-treated control, about 50% tumor growth inhibition occurs in mice receiving GANT-61 treatment. The proliferation inhibition was associated with slowing of cell cycle progression which was mediated by the reduced expression of cyclins D1/2/3 & E and the concomitant induction of p21. GANT-61 not only reduced expression of GLI1/2 in these RMS but also significantly diminished AKT/mTOR signaling. The therapeutic action of GANT-61 was significantly augmented when combined with chemotherapeutic agents employed for RMS therapy such as temsirolimus or vincristine. Finally, reduced expression of proteins driving epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) characterized the residual tumors.