MicroRNA-26a/b and their host genes cooperate to inhibit the G1/S transition by activating the pRb protein
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
Authors: Zhu, Ying; Lu, Yang; Zhang, Qi; Liu, Jing-Jing; Li, Tuan-Jie; Yang, Jian-Rong; Zeng, Chunxian; Zhuang, Shi-Mei
Abstract
The functional association between intronic miRNAs and their host genes is still largely unknown. We found that three gene loci, which produced miR-26a and miR-26b, were embedded within introns of genes coding for the proteins of carboxy-terminal domain RNA polymerase II polypeptide A small phosphatase (CTDSP) family, including CTDSPL, CTDSP2 and CTDSP1. We conducted serum starvation-stimulation assays in primary fibroblasts and two-thirds partial-hepatectomies in mice, which revealed that miR-26a/b and CTDSP1/2/L were expressed concomitantly during the cell cycle process. Specifically, they were increased in quiescent cells and decreased during cell proliferation. Furthermore, both miR-26 and CTDSP family members were frequently downregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues. Gain- and loss-of-function studies showed that miR-26a/b and CTDSP1/2/L synergistically decreased the phosphorylated form of pRb (ppRb), and blocked G1/S-phase progression. Further investigation disclosed that miR-26a/b directly suppressed the expression of CDK6 and cyclin E1, which resulted in reduced phosphorylation of pRb. Moreover, c-Myc, which is often upregulated in cancer cells, diminished the expression of both miR-26 and CTDSP family members, enhanced the ppRb level and promoted the G1/S-phase transition. Our findings highlight the functional association of miR-26a/b and their host genes and provide new insight into the regulatory network of the G1/S-phase transition.
Palmitoylated SCP1 is targeted to the plasma membrane and negatively regulates angiogenesis
ELIFE
Authors: Liao, Peng; Wang, Weichao; Li, Yu; Wang, Rui; Jin, Jaili; Pang, Weijuan; Chen, Yunfei; Shen, Mingyue; Wang, Xinbo; Jiang, Dongyang; Pang, Jinjiang; Liu, Mingyao; Lin, Xia; Feng, Xin-Hua; Wang, Ping; Ge, Xin
Abstract
SCP1 as a nuclear transcriptional regulator acts globally to silence neuronal genes and to affect the dephosphorylation of RNA Pol ll. However, we report the first finding and description of SCP1 as a plasma membrane-localized protein in various cancer cells using EGFP- or other epitope-fused SCP1. Membrane-located SCP1 dephosphorylates AKT at serine 473, leading to the abolishment of serine 473 phosphorylation that results in suppressed angiogenesis and a decreased risk of tumorigenesis. Consistently, we observed increased AKT phosphorylation and angiogenesis followed by enhanced tumorigenesis in Ctdsp1 (which encodes SCP1) gene - knockout mice. Importantly, we discovered that the membrane localization of SCP1 is crucial for impeding angiogenesis and tumor growth, and this localization depends on palmitoylation of a conserved cysteine motif within its NH2 terminus. Thus, our study discovers a novel mechanism underlying SCP1 shuttling between the plasma membrane and nucleus, which constitutes a unique pathway in transducing AKT signaling that is closely linked to angiogenesis and tumorigenesis.