title: Expression of estrogen receptor-related receptors, a subfamily of orphan nuclear receptors, as new tumor biomarkers in ovarian cancer cells.
abstract: A subfamily of orphan receptors, estrogen receptor-related receptors (ERRs), has been demonstrated to modulate the transcription of some estrogen responsive genes via variant estrogen response elements (EREs). This study was conducted to determine whether human ERRalpha, ERRbeta, and ERRgamma might be involved in the tumorigenesis of ovarian cancer. RT-PCR was performed to analyze the expression of hERRalpha, hERRbeta, hERRbeta-2, and hERRgamma mRNA in five ovarian cancer cell lines as well as 33 samples of ovarian cancer and 12 samples of normal ovary. Serum CA-125 levels were also analyzed in all samples by ELISA. Progression-free survival and overall survival of patients with different expression of ERRs were analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method. To analyze the subcellular localization of ERRalpha, a green fluorescent protein (GFP)-reporter plasmid of hERRalpha was constructed and transfected into the ovarian cancer cell line OVCAR-3. Expression of hERRalpha-GFP fusion protein was observed in the nucleus of OVCAR-3 ovarian cancer cell lines. We observed increased expression of hERRalpha mRNA (P = 0.020) and hERRgamma mRNA (P = 0.045) in ovarian cancers compared to normal ovaries. In contrast, hERRbeta was only observed in 9.1% of ovarian cancers. We found a positive correlation between the serum CA-125 levels and hERRalpha expression (P = 0.012), but not hERRbeta and hERRgamma expression. Survival analysis showed that the hERRalpha-positive group has a reduced overall survival (P = 0.015), and the ERRgamma-positive group has a longer progression-free survival (P = 0.020). In multivariate analysis, expression of hERRalpha was an independent prognostic factor for poor survival (relative risk, 3.032; 95% CI, 1.27-6.06). Based on our results, ERRs may play an important role in ovarian cancer. hERRalpha may represent a biomarker of poor prognosis, and hERRgamma may be a new therapeutic target in ovarian cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking University People's Hospital, Peking University Health Science Center, 100044, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Pengming
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Jalid
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sehouli
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Denkert
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mustea
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Könsgen
authors.forename: Ines
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Koch
authors.forename: Lihui
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Werner
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lichtenegger
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D020033:Protein Isoforms / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D018160:Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000235:genetics*; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D015996:Survival Rate; D000097983:ERRalpha Estrogen-Related Receptor
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D011506:Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D018160:Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D000097983:ERRalpha Estrogen-Related Receptor; C490918:ESRRB protein, human; C490917:ESRRG protein, human; C549756:NBR1 protein, human