Biomedical subjects

Sumitra Deb

Publications and source records attributed to Sumitra Deb.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

The growth arrest function of the human oncoprotein mouse double minute-2 is disabled by downstream mutation in cancer cells.

We have reported earlier that ectopic expression of mouse double minute-2 (MDM2) induces G1 arrest in normal cells. To explain occasional overexpression of MDM2 in cancer cells, we searched for deletion or substitution mutation in the growth suppressor domains of MDM2 in several breast cancer cell lines that overexpress the oncoprotein. Our results suggest the absence of alteration (deletion or substitution) in the open reading frame of MDM2 transcripts in such cells. Because the breast cancer cell line MCF-7 overexpresses MDM2, we isolated the full-length MDM2 transcript from this cell line. The MDM2 cDNA synthesized from transcripts isolated from MCF-7 cells induced inhibition of G1 to S phase transition in normal human diploid cells such as WI38, suggesting that the genetic alterations in breast cancer cells that overexpress MDM2 disable the growth arrest function of the oncoprotein. Consistently, overexpression of full-length MDM2 in MCF-7 cells over its high endogenous level did not inhibit G1-S transition efficiently. Although MDM2 overexpression was accompanied by CDK4 overexpression or absence of cdk4 inhibitor p16 in most breast cancer cells, we found remarkably high levels of cyclin A rather than cyclin E in these cells. Ectopic expression of cyclin A released MDM2-mediated inhibition of G1-S transition in normal human diploid WI38 cells. We propose that cancer cells expressing high levels of cyclin A escape MDM2-mediated G1 arrest, which may account for a selective growth advantage over normal cells.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2005

Tumor-derived p53 mutants induce NF-kappaB2 gene expression.

Overexpression of mutant p53 is a common theme in tumors, suggesting a selective pressure for p53 mutation in cancer development and progression. To determine how mutant p53 expression may lead to survival advantage in human cancer cells, we generated stable cell lines expressing p53 mutants p53-R175H, -R273H, and -D281G by use of p53-null human H1299 (lung carcinoma) cells. Compared to vector-transfected cells, H1299 cells expressing mutant p53 showed a survival advantage when treated with etoposide, a common chemotherapeutic agent; however, cells expressing the transactivation-deficient triple mutant p53-D281G (L22Q/W23S) had significantly lower resistance to etoposide. Gene expression profiling of cells expressing transcriptionally active mutant p53 proteins revealed the striking pattern that all three p53 mutants induced expression of approximately 100 genes involved in cell growth, survival, and adhesion. The gene NF-kappaB2 is a prominent member of this group, whose overexpression in H1299 cells also leads to chemoresistance. Treatment of H1299 cells expressing p53-R175H with small interfering RNA specific for NF-kappaB2 made these cells more sensitive to etoposide. We have also observed activation of the NF-kappaB2 pathway in mutant p53-expressing cells. Thus, one possible pathway through which mutants of p53 may induce loss of drug sensitivity is via the NF-kappaB2 pathway.

Adenoviridae↗

PubMed2004

Modulation of gene expression by tumor-derived p53 mutants.

p53 mutants with a single amino acid substitution are overexpressed in a majority of human cancers containing a p53 mutation. Overexpression of the mutant protein suggests that there is a selection pressure on the cell indicative of an active functional role for mutant p53. Indeed, H1299 cells expressing mutant p53-R175H, p53-R273H or p53-D281G grow at a faster rate compared with a control cell line. Using p53-specific small interfering RNA, we show that the growth rate of mutant p53-expressing cells decreases as mutant p53 level decreases, demonstrating that the increased cellular growth is dependent on p53 expression. Increased growth rate is not observed for H1299 cell clones expressing mutant p53-D281G (L22Q/W23S), which has been shown to be defective in transactivation in transient transcriptional assays. This shows that the increased growth rate imparted by mutant p53 in H1299 cells requires the transactivation function of mutant p53. By performing microarray hybridization analyses, we show that constitutive expression of three common p53 mutants (p53-R175H, p53-R273H, and p53-D281G) in H1299 human lung carcinoma cells evokes regulation of a common set of genes, a significant number of which are involved in cell growth regulation. Predictably, H1299 cells expressing p53-D281G (L22Q/W23S) are defective in up-regulating a number of these genes. The differences in expression profiles induced by individual p53 mutants in the cells may be representative of the p53 mutants and how they can affect gene expression resulting in the observed "gain of function" phenotypes (i.e., increased growth rate, decreased sensitivity to chemotherapeutic agents, and so forth).

Cell Growth Processes↗

PubMed2004

Tumor-derived p53 mutants induce oncogenesis by transactivating growth-promoting genes.

We have studied the mechanism of mutant p53-mediated oncogenesis using several tumor-derived mutants. Using a colony formation assay, we found that the majority of the mutants increased the number of colonies formed compared to the vector. Expression of tumor-derived p53 mutants increases the rate of cell growth, suggesting that the p53 mutants have 'gain of function' properties. We have studied the gene expression profile of cells expressing tumor-derived p53-D281G to identify genes transactivated by mutant p53. We report the transactivation of two genes, asparagine synthetase and human telomerase reverse transcriptase. Quantitative real-time PCR confirms this upregulation. Transient transfection promoter assays verify that tumor-derived p53 mutants transactivate these promoters significantly. An electrophoretic mobility shift assay shows that tumor-derived p53-mutants cannot bind to the wild-type p53 consensus sequence. The results presented here provide some evidence of a possible mechanism for mutant p53-mediated transactivation.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

PubMed2003

Real-time polymerase chain reaction quantitation of relative expression of genes modulated by p53 using SYBR Green I.

Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) using the Roche LightCycler was used to verify the expression of asparagine synthetase (ASNS) identified by microarray analysis as a target of p53 transrepression and mutant p53 transactivation. A p53-null cell line derived from lung carcinoma, H1299, was infected with recombinant adenovirus expressing wild-type (WT) p53, mutant p53-D281G, or beta-galactosidase as a control. After 24 h of infection, RNA was harvested and used for microarray analysis. ASNS was one of several genes whose expression was down-regulated by WT p53 and up-regulated in the presence of mutant p53. Expression levels of ASNS were measured relative to an exogenously applied quality-control nucleic acid template. Real-time PCR product accumulation was monitored using the intercalating dye, SYBR Green I, which exhibits a higher fluorescence upon binding of double-stranded DNA. Relative gene expression was calculated using conditions at the early stages of PCR, when amplification was logarithmic and, thus, could be correlated to initial copy number of gene transcripts. ASNS was found to be down-regulated in the presence of WT p53 and up-regulated by mutant p53.

Benzothiazoles↗

PubMed2003

Transactivation and transrepression studies with p53.

The methods outlined in this chapter are designed to facilitate the study of the transactivation and transrepression properties of p53 (as well as p63 and p73). Once a gene of interest is identified, its presumptive promoter region can be cloned upstream of a luciferase gene in a plasmid. The most common reason for transfection experiments is to study gene expression patterns in the presence or absence of a particular gene product (e.g., p53). Three methods of transfection are outlined in this chapter: (i) cationic lipofection; (ii) calcium phosphate precipitation; and (iii) BES precipitation. The first method is ideal for the study of transactivation and transrepression properties of p53 (or other transcription factors). The last two are more suited for experiments where larger numbers of transfected cells are needed. Several examples of transfections and their respective results are provided.

Cell Line, Tumor↗

PubMed2002

Hetero-oligomerization does not compromise 'gain of function' of tumor-derived p53 mutants.

Tumor-derived p53 mutants activate transcription from promoters of various growth-related genes. We tested whether this transactivation function of the mutant protein is sufficient to induce tumorigenesis ('gain of function'). Tumor-derived mutant p53-281G transactivates the promoters of human epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and human multiple drug resistance gene (MDR-1). To determine whether the C-terminal domain functions only as an oligomerization domain in mutant p53-mediated transactivation, we have replaced the tetramerization domain of p53 by a heterologous tetramerization domain; although this mutant protein formed tetramers in solution, it failed to transactivate significantly. Therefore, for successful mutant p53-mediated transactivation, sequences near the C-terminus of mutant p53 are required to perform functions in addition to tetramerization. We also demonstrate that co-expression of a deletion mutant of p53 (p53 del 1-293), which retains the p53 oligomerization domain, inhibits this transactivation. p53 del 1-293 co-immunoprecipitates with p53-281G suggesting that hetero-oligomers of p53-281G and p53 del 1-293 are defective in transactivation. We also show that a cell line stably transfected with p53-281G expresses higher levels of endogenous NF-kappaB and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) compared to that transfected with vector alone. On co-expression, p53 del 1-293 lowered the levels of NF-kappaB and PCNA in p53-281G-expressing cells. However, on co-expression, p53 del 1-293 did not inhibit the tumorigenicity and colony forming ability of p53-281G expressing cells. Our earlier work showed that a deletion of the C-terminal sequences of p53-281G overlapping the oligomerization domain obliterates 'gain of function'. Taken together, the above information suggests that the C-terminal sequences have some critical role in 'gain of function' in addition to transactivation.

ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Mem↗