Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UNIPROT:P06889 (Mol)
630,302 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Muscle satellite cells are believed to form a stable, self-renewing pool of stem cells in adult muscle where they function in tissue growth and repair. A regulatory disruption of growth and differentiation of these cells is assumed to result in tumor formation. Here we provide for the first time evidence that sonic hedgehog (Shh) regulates the cell fate of adult muscle satellite cells in mammals. Shh promotes cell division of satellite cells (and of the related model C2C12 cells) and prevents their differentiation into multinucleated myotubes. In addition, Shh inhibits caspase-3 activation and apoptosis induced by serum deprivation. These effects of Shh are reversed by simultaneous administration of cyclopamine, a specific inhibitor of the Shh pathway. Taken together, Shh acts as a proliferation and survival factor of satellite cells in the adult muscle. Our results support the hypothesis of the rhabdomyosarcoma origin from satellite cells and suggest a role for Shh in this process.
Cell Mol Life Sci 2005 Aug
PMID:Pleiotropic effects of sonic hedgehog on muscle satellite cells. 1600 93

Caveolin-3 (Cav-3) is a principal structural protein of caveolae membrane domains. Animal studies have revealed that Cav-3 is expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes but absent in other types of cells. Recent studies have shown that abnormalities in the Cav-3 gene are associated with some forms of muscular dystrophy, while skeletal muscle abnormalities have been observed in Cav-3 transgenic and knockout mice. In this study the authors evaluated the distribution of Cav-3 in normal human tissues and compared the expression of Cav-3 with that of myogenin and myoD1 in rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), malignant mixed mullerian tumor (MMMT), and an array of neoplasms that mimic RMS to assess the utility of Cav-3 as a diagnostic marker for tumors with skeletal muscle differentiation. In nonneoplastic human tissues, crisp membrane staining for Cav-3 was present in cardiac and skeletal myocytes and occasionally in arterial smooth muscle cells and prostatic stromal cells, while other cell types were negative for Cav-3. Eighty-eight percent (21/24) of RMS studied were positive for Cav-3. Positive staining was generally observed in the more maturely differentiated tumor cells but not the primitive tumor cells. Eight of nine cases of MMMT stained strongly with Cav-3 in their rhabdomyosarcomatous component but not in other components. Fifty-four other neoplasms (13 leiomyosarcomas, 8 neuroblastomas, 5 lymphomas, 6 Wilms tumors without skeletal muscle differentiation, 5 Ewing sarcomas, 4 malignant fibrous histiocytomas, 4 angiosarcomas, 6 malignant melanomas, and 3 synovial sarcomas) were negative for Cav-3 expression. Nearly all (96% [23/24]) cases of RMS were positive for myogenin, while 88% (21/24) were positive for myoD1. Primitive tumor cells showed significantly increased expression of myoD1 and myogenin; conversely, more differentiated tumor cells were negative or weakly stained. The rhabdomyosarcomatous component of MMMT stained focally with myogenin and myoD1, in contrast to the strong Cav-3 labeling in these cells. These results demonstrate that Cav-3 is specifically expressed in human cardiac and skeletal myocytes. Furthermore, its high specificity and relatively high sensitivity (88%) for tumors with skeletal muscle differentiation suggest that Cav-3 is a valuable marker for these tumors and may be used to assess the degree of differentiation of RMS and to identify residual tumor cells in post-chemotherapy specimens.
Appl Immunohistochem Mol Morphol 2005 Sep
PMID:Caveolin-3 is a sensitive and specific marker for rhabdomyosarcoma. 1608 47

FGFRL1 is a novel member of the FGF receptor family. It is expressed at very low levels in a great variety of cell lines and at relatively high levels in SW1353 chondrosarcoma cells, MG63 osteosarcoma cells and A204 rhabdomyosarcoma cells. Screening of 241 different human tumors with the help of a cancer profiling array suggested major alterations in the relative expression of FGFRL1 in ovarian tumors. Five distinct ovary tumors were therefore analyzed by quantitative and competitive PCR. Several tumors were found to exhibit a significant decrease in the expression of FGFRL1 in the tumor tissue relative to the matched control tissue. One ovarian tumor showed a 25-fold increase in the relative expression. Since FGFRL1 appears to be involved in the control of cell proliferation and differentiation, its aberrant expression might contribute to the development and progression of ovarian tumors.
Int J Mol Med 2005 Dec
PMID:Aberrant expression of FGFRL1, a novel FGF receptor, in ovarian tumors. 1627 2

The genes of the piwi family are defined by conserved PAZ and Piwi domains and play important roles in stem-cell self-renewal, RNA silencing and translational regulation in various organisms. Both, mouse and human Piwil2 genes, members of the piwi gene family, are specifically expressed in testis. We report here enhanced expression of the human Piwil2 gene in testicular seminomas, but not in testicular non-seminomatous tumors. Expression of the Piwil2 gene was also found in different tumors examined, including prostate, breast, gastrointestinal, ovarian and endometrial cancer of human and in breast tumors, rhabdomyosarcoma and medulloblastoma of mouse. Therefore, Piwil2 can be categorized as a novel member of cancer/testis antigens. To identify genes activated by Piwil2, RNA isolated from NIH-3T3 cells expressing constitutively Piwil2 were compared with RNA samples from control NIH-3T3 cells using a cancer gene array. Induction of high-level expression of the antiapoptotic gene Bcl-X(L) was observed in cells expressing Piwil2. Furthermore, increased Bcl-X(L) expression correlated with increase of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) expression. Gene silencing of Piwil2 with its small interference RNA suppressed Stat3 and Bcl-X(L) expression and induced apoptosis. A causal link between Piwil2 expression and inhibition of apoptosis and enhanced proliferation was demonstrated in cells expressing Piwil2. Furthermore, results of soft agar assay indicated that Piwil2 overexpression induced transformation of fibroblast cells. In summary, our results demonstrate that Piwil2 is widely expressed in tumors and acts as an oncogene by inhibition of apoptosis and promotion of proliferation via Stat3/Bcl-X(L) signaling pathway. Expression of Piwil2 in a wide variety of tumors could be a useful prognostic factor that could have also diagnostic and therapeutic implications.
Hum Mol Genet 2006 Jan 15
PMID:Stem-cell protein Piwil2 is widely expressed in tumors and inhibits apoptosis through activation of Stat3/Bcl-XL pathway. 1637 60

Hedgehog, FGF, VEGF, and Notch signaling pathways network together for vascular remodeling during embryogenesis and carcinogenesis. HHIP1 (HHIP) is an endogenous antagonist for SHH, IHH, and DHH. Here, comparative integromics analyses on HHIP family members were performed by using bioinformatics and human intelligence. HHIP1, HHIP2 (HHIPL1 or KIAA1822) and HHIP3 (HHIPL2 or KIAA1822L) constitute human HHIP gene family. Rat Hhip1, Hhip2, and Hhip3 genes were identified within AC107504.4, AC094820.6, and AC134264.2 genome sequences, respectively. HHIP-homologous (HIPH) domain with conserved 18 Cys residues was identified as the novel domain conserved among mammalian HHIP1, HHIP2, and HHIP3 orthologs. HHIP1 mRNA was expressed in coronary artery endothelial cells, prostate, and rhabdomyosarcoma. HHIP2 mRNA was expressed in trabecular bone cells. HHIP3 mRNA was expressed in testis, thyroid gland, osteoarthritic cartilarge, pancreatic cancer, and lung cancer. Promoters of HHIP family genes were not well conserved between human and rodents. Although GLI-, CSL-, and HES/HEY-binding sites were not identified, eleven bHLH-binding sites were identified within human HHIP1 promoter. Expression of HES/HEY family members, including HES1, HES2, HES3, HES4, HES5, HES6, HES7, HEY1, HEY2 and HEYL, in coronary artery endothelial cells was not detected in silico. Up-regulation of HHIP1 due to down-regulation of Notch-CSL-HES/HEY signaling cascade repressing bHLH transcription factors results in down-regulation of the Hedgehog-VEGF-Notch signaling cascade. On the other hand, down-regulation of HHIP1 due to up-regulation of Notch signaling in vascular endothelial cells during angiogenesis results in up-regulation of the Hedgehog-VEGF-Notch signaling cascade. Because HHIP1 is the key molecule for vascular remodeling, HHIP1 is the pharmacogenomics target in the fields of oncology and vascular medicine.
Int J Mol Med 2006 Feb
PMID:Comparative genomics on HHIP family orthologs. 1639 42

Alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (ARMS) is a soft tissue cancer in which chromosomal translocations generate PAX3-FKHR and PAX7-FKHR gene fusions. To improve the approach for fusion detection in archival samples, we developed a real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction assay for these fusion transcripts. By incorporating consensus primers and gene-specific probes, both presence and subtype of the fusion were determined in one assay. We applied this approach to a convenience sample of 78 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded ARMS tumors from the Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study (IRS)-III clinical trial and obtained satisfactory results in 59 (76%) cases. The distribution of fusion types was 35 (59%) PAX3-FKHR, 11 (19%) PAX7-FKHR, and 13 fusion-negative (22%). In a subsequent clinical analysis, we found that IRS-III ARMS cases analyzed for fusion status had a significantly improved outcome compared to IRS-III ARMS cases that were not available for fusion analysis. The basis of this outcome could not be explained by known prognostic clinical factors, and multivariate analysis confirmed that our convenience sample was not representative of the whole IRS-III cohort. In conclusion, although these robust assays provide new opportunities for correlative studies of archival material, our first application illustrates an important limitation of using a convenience sample for molecular-clinical correlative studies.
J Mol Diagn 2006 May
PMID:Examination of gene fusion status in archival samples of alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma entered on the Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study-III trial: a report from the Children's Oncology Group. 1664 6

Myoblast cell cycle exit and differentiation are mediated in part by down-regulation of cyclin D1 and associated cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) activity. Because rhabdomyosarcoma may represent a malignant tumor composed of myoblast-like cells failing to exit the cell cycle and differentiate, we considered whether excess Cdk activity might contribute to this biology. Cyclin D-dependent Cdk4 and Cdk6 were expressed in most of a panel of six human rhabdomyosarcoma-derived cell lines. Cdk4 was expressed in 73% of alveolar and embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma tumors evaluated using a human tissue microarray. When challenged to differentiate by mitogen deprivation in vitro, mouse C2C12 myoblasts arrested in G(1) phase of the cell cycle, whereas four in the panel of rhabdomyosarcoma cell lines failed to do so. C2C12 myoblasts maintained in mitogen-rich media and exposed to a Cdk4/Cdk6 inhibitor PD 0332991 accumulated in G(1) cell cycle phase. Similar treatment of rhabdomyosarcoma cell lines caused G(1) arrest and prevented cell accumulation in vitro, and it delayed growth of rhabdomyosarcoma xenografts in vivo. Consistent with a role for Cdk4/Cdk6 activity as a regulator of myogenic differentiation, we observed that PD 0332991 exposure promoted morphologic changes and enhanced the expression of muscle-specific proteins in cultured myoblasts and in the Rh30 cell line. Our findings support the concept that pharmacologic inhibition of Cdk4/Cdk6 may represent a useful therapeutic strategy to control cell proliferation and possibly promote myogenic differentiation in rhabdomyosarcoma.
Mol Cancer Ther 2006 May
PMID:Pharmacologic inhibition of cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 activity arrests proliferation in myoblasts and rhabdomyosarcoma-derived cells. 1673 63

Cytogenetic and molecular studies have shown that approximately 80% of cases of alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (ARMS) have consistent chromosomal translocation of either t(2;13) or t(1;13), resulting in either PAX3-FKHR or PAX7-FKHR gene fusions. However, 20% of the cases diagnosed histologically are negative for these fusion genes. The clinical and pathological properties of the so-called fusion gene negative tumors remain to be defined. We present an unusual case of a 7-year-old boy who developed three separate primary ARMS over a 5-year period, with the first tumor diagnosed at the age of 12 months. The tumors were negative for the characteristic translocations, t(2;13) or t(1;13), but showed evidence of low-level chromosomal instability and a reciprocal chromosomal translocation t(6;11)(q27;q13). PCR amplification of the p53 gene, exons 2-11, followed by DNA sequencing did not detect any germline p53 mutation. These clinical and cytogenetic features have not been reported previously in ARMS. The findings suggest that cytogenetic abnormalities of chromosome 6 may be associated with the development of early onset multiple ARMS in a subgroup of pediatric patients as seen in this case.
Exp Mol Pathol 2007 Feb
PMID:Cytogenetic and molecular studies of an unusual case of multiple primary alveolar rhabdomyosarcomas: low-level chromosomal instability and reciprocal translocation t(6;11). 1709 83

A number of solid tumors, such as alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, synovial sarcoma, and myxoid liposarcoma, are associated with recurrent translocation events that encode fusion proteins. Ewing's sarcoma is a pediatric tumor that serves as a prototype for this tumor class. Ewing's sarcomas usually harbor the (11;22)(q24;q12) translocation. The t(11;22) encodes the EWS/FLI fusion oncoprotein. EWS/FLI functions as an aberrant transcription factor, but the key target genes that are involved in oncogenesis are largely unknown. Although some target genes have been defined, many of these have been identified in heterologous model systems with uncertain relevance to the human disease. To understand the function of EWS/FLI and its targets in a more clinically relevant system, we used retroviral-mediated RNAi to "knock-down" the fusion protein in patient-derived Ewing's sarcoma cell lines. By combining transcriptional profiling data from three of these lines, we identified a conserved transcriptional response to EWS/FLI. The gene that was most reproducibly up-regulated by EWS/FLI was NR0B1. NR0B1 is a developmentally important orphan nuclear receptor with no previously defined role in oncogenesis. We validated NR0B1 as an EWS/FLI-dysregulated gene and confirmed its expression in primary human tumor samples. Functional studies revealed that ongoing NR0B1 expression is required for the transformed phenotype of Ewing's sarcoma. These studies define a new role for NR0B1 in oncogenic transformation and emphasize the utility of analyzing the function of EWS/FLI in Ewing's sarcoma cells.
Mol Cancer Res 2006 Nov
PMID:NR0B1 is required for the oncogenic phenotype mediated by EWS/FLI in Ewing's sarcoma. 1711 43

The small round blue cell tumors of childhood, which include neuroblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and the Ewing's family of tumors, are so called because of their similar appearance on routine histology. Using cDNA microarray gene expression profiles and artificial neural networks (ANNs), we previously identified 93 genes capable of diagnosing these cancers. Using a subset of these, together with some additional genes (total 39), we developed a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay to diagnose these cancer types. Blinded testing of 96 new samples (26 Ewing's family of tumors, 29 rhabdomyosarcomas, 24 neuroblastomas, and 17 lymphomas) using ANNs in a complete leave-one-out analysis demonstrated that all except one sample were accurately diagnosed as their respective category. Moreover, using an ANN-based gene minimization strategy in a separate analysis, we found that the top 31 genes could correctly diagnose all 96 tumors. Our results suggest that this molecular test based on a multiplex PCR reaction may assist the physician in the rapid confirmation of the diagnosis of these cancers.
J Mol Diagn 2007 Feb
PMID:Diagnosis of the small round blue cell tumors using multiplex polymerase chain reaction. 1725 39


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>