The Role of Transcription Factors in Driving Aggressive Phenotype in Non-Invasive Bladder Cancer

项目摘要 膀胱癌最常见的诊断在早期阶段，它还没有侵入膀胱壁 或者已经最低限度地这样做了。治疗方法是切除肿瘤，将其粉碎并通过 尿道早期膀胱癌患者很少死于这种疾病，尽管肿瘤通常 复发，需要额外切除。一部分患者进展到晚期疾病， 往往是致命的早期膀胱癌的治疗旨在减少复发和进展， 晚期疾病但是，很难预测哪些患者会复发和进展。可用 治疗也主要限于经尿道切除术和滴注减毒杆菌（一种细菌） 进入膀胱引起炎症后一种治疗方法降低了复发的风险， 进展，但疼痛，并可能导致严重的排尿困难和偶尔的败血症。更好 需要方法来证实和治疗这种疾病。 在正在进行的实验中，我们发现进展在早期膀胱癌中更常见， 表达高水平的Spalt-like-4（SALL 4）。该基因通常不在成体组织中表达，而是在 在发育中的胚胎中表达它是一种转录因子，可结合DNA并改变其他转录因子的表达。 基因.先前的研究表明，SALL 4在许多癌症类型中表达，并且表达驱动肿瘤发生。 生长和增殖，以及其他肿瘤类型的侵袭行为。我们的实验同样 显示SALL 4可能驱动膀胱癌中的细胞增殖，这是与膀胱癌风险增加相关的特征。 其他研究中的复发和进展。我们也有证据表明SALL 4直接激活细胞周期， 细胞增殖的潜在过程。膀胱癌患者将受益于了解SALL 4 在这种疾病中，因为它可以用来预测哪些患者会复发和进展，并可能成为治疗的目标。 疗法 鉴于这些发现，我们假设SALL 4驱动早期膀胱癌中的细胞增殖， 从而特别是通过直接激活细胞周期程序来驱动阶段进展。我们会解决这个问题 该假说具有以下特定目的：（1）建立参与基因表达之间的关系， 细胞周期和SALL 4在调节其表达的DNA区域的结合;和（2）确定细胞周期的直接影响。 降低或增加细胞系和小鼠异种移植模型中SALL 4表达的作用，特别是 对细胞周期活性、细胞增殖、肿瘤生长和侵袭的影响。

Project summary Bladder cancer is most commonly diagnosed at an early stage, where it has not invaded into the bladder wall or has done so minimally. Treatment is resection of the tumor, by fragmenting it and removing through the urethra. Patients with early stage bladder cancer uncommonly die from the disease, though the tumor usually recurs, requiring additional resections. A subset of patients progresses to advanced stage disease, with is often lethal. Treatment of early stage bladder cancer is aimed at reducing recurrence and progression to advanced stage disease. However, it is difficult to predict which patients will recur and progress. Available treatments are also largely limited to transurethral resection and instillation of attenuated bacillus (a bacterium) into the bladder, which induces inflammation. This latter treatment reduces risk of recurrence and likely progression, but is painful and can cause profound difficulties with urination and occasional sepsis. Better methods are needed to prognosticate and treat this disease. In ongoing experiments, we have found that progression is more common in early stage bladder cancers that express high levels of Spalt-like-4 (SALL4). This gene is typically not expressed in adult tissues, but is rather expressed in developing embryos. It is a transcription factor, which binds DNA and alters expression of other genes. Prior studies have shown SALL4 is expressed in many cancer types, and expression drives tumor growth and proliferation, as well as aggressive behavior in other tumor types. Our experiments have likewise shown SALL4 may drive cellular proliferation in bladder cancer, a feature associated with increased risk of recurrence and progression in other studies. We also have evidence SALL4 directly activates the cell cycle, the process underlying cellular proliferation. Patients with bladder cancer would benefit from understanding SALL4 in this disease, as it could be used to predict which patients will recur and progression, and could be a target of therapy. Given these findings, We hypothesize that SALL4 drives cellular proliferation in early stage bladder cancer, thereby driving stage progression, specifically by directly activating cell cycle programs. We will address this hypothesis with these Specific Aims: (1) establish the relationship between expression of genes involved in the cell cycle, and SALL4 binding at DNA regions that regulate their expression; and (2) determine the direct effects of reducing or increasing SALL4 expression in cell lines and mouse xenograft models, specifically the effects on activity of the cell cycle, cellular proliferation, tumor growth, and invasion.