title: Inhibition of CDK-mediated phosphorylation of Smad3 results in decreased oncogenesis in triple negative breast cancer cells.
abstract: Breast cancer onset and disease progression have been linked to members of the TGFβ superfamily and their downstream signaling components, the Smads. Alterations in Smad3 signaling are associated with the dichotomous role of TGFβ in malignancy, mediating both tumor suppressant and pro-metastatic behaviors. Overexpression of cell cycle regulators, cyclins D and E, renders cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) 4/2 hyperactive. Noncanonical phosphorylation of Smad3 by CDK4/2 inhibits tumor suppressant actions of Smad3. We hypothesized that CDK inhibition (CDKi) would restore Smad3 action and help promote cancer cell regression. Treatment of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cell lines (MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-436, Hs578T) with CDK2i or CDK4i resulted in increased Smad3 activity and decreased cell migration. Transfection with a 5M Smad3 construct containing inhibitory mutations in 5 CDK phosphorylation sites also resulted in decreased TNBC cell migration and invasion. MDA-MB-231 cells treated with CDK2i or CDK4i resulted in decreased Smad3 protein phosphorylation at the CDK phosphorylation T179 site, decreased MMP2 and c-myc expression, and increased p15 and p21 expression. Using a novel transfected cell array, we found that CDK2i treatment decreased activity of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition related transcription factors Snail and Twist. In vivo studies in an MDA-MB-231 tumor model showed that individual and combination treatment with paclitaxel and CDK2i resulted in decreased tumor volume and Ki67 staining. Collectively, these data support further investigation of targeted CDK inhibitors as a promising therapeutic strategy for TNBC, a breast cancer subtype with limited treatment options.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Surgery ; Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine ; Chicago , IL USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tarasewicz
authors.forename: Lisbi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rivas
authors.forename: Randala
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hamdan
authors.forename: Danijela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dokic
authors.forename: Vamsi
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Parimi
authors.forename: Beatriz Penalver
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Bernabe
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Lonnie D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Shea
authors.forename: Jacqueline S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Jeruss
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D018844:Cyclin-Dependent Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D017239:Paclitaxel / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010766:Phosphorylation / Q000187:drug effects*; D051900:Smad3 Protein / Q000378:metabolism*; D064726:Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms
chemical_list: D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; C497790:SMAD3 protein, human; D051900:Smad3 Protein; D018844:Cyclin-Dependent Kinases; D017239:Paclitaxel
keywords: BCSC, breast cancer stem cells; CDK; CDK, cyclin dependent kinase; CDKi, cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor; CK, cytokeratin; EGFR, epidermal growth factor receptor; EMT, epithelial-mesenchymal transition; ER, estrogen receptor; HER2, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2; PR, progesterone receptor; Pin1, peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase NIMA-interacting 1; Smad3; TNBC, triple negative breast cancer; cyclin; paclitaxel; triple negative breast cancer