EDD enhances cell survival and cisplatin resistance and is a therapeutic target for epithelial ovarian cancer

Carcinogenesis. 2014 May;35(5):1100-9. doi: 10.1093/carcin/bgt489. Epub 2013 Dec 30.

Abstract

The E3 ubiquitin ligase EDD is overexpressed in recurrent, platinum-resistant ovarian cancers, suggesting a role in tumor survival and/or platinum resistance. EDD knockdown by small interfering RNA (siRNA) induced apoptosis in A2780ip2, OVCAR5 and ES-2 ovarian cancer cells, correlating with loss of the prosurvival protein myeloid cell leukemia sequence 1 (Mcl-1) through a glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta-independent mechanism. SiRNA to EDD or Mcl-1 induced comparable levels of apoptosis in A2780ip2 and ES-2 cells. Stable overexpression of Mcl-1 protected cells from apoptosis following EDD knockdown, accompanied by a loss of endogenous, but not exogenous, Mcl-1 protein, suggesting that EDD regulated Mcl-1 synthesis. Indeed, EDD knockdown induced a 1.87-fold decrease in Mcl-1 messenger RNA and EDD transfection enhanced murine Mcl-1 promoter-driven luciferase expression 5-fold. To separate EDD survival and potential cisplatin resistance functions, we generated EDD shRNA stable cell lines that could survive initial EDD knockdown and showed that these cells were 4- to 21-fold more sensitive to cisplatin. Moreover, transient EDD overexpression in COS-7 cells was sufficient to promote cisplatin resistance 2.4-fold, dependent upon its E3 ligase activity. In vivo, mouse intraperitoneal ES-2 and A2780ip2 xenograft experiments showed that mice treated with EDD siRNA by nanoliposomal delivery [1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phophatidylcholine (DOPC)] and cisplatin had significantly less tumor burden than those treated with control siRNA/DOPC alone (ES-2, 77.9% reduction, P = 0.004; A2780ip2, 75.9% reduction, P = 0.042) or control siRNA/DOPC with cisplatin in ES-2 (64.4% reduction, P = 0.035), with a trend in A2780ip2 (60.3% reduction, P = 0.168). These results identify EDD as a dual regulator of cell survival and cisplatin resistance and suggest that EDD is a therapeutic target for ovarian cancer.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / administration & dosage
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology*
  • Apoptosis / drug effects
  • Apoptosis / genetics
  • Carcinoma, Ovarian Epithelial
  • Cell Line
  • Cell Survival / drug effects
  • Cell Survival / genetics
  • Cisplatin / administration & dosage
  • Cisplatin / pharmacology*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Drug Resistance, Neoplasm / genetics*
  • Female
  • Gene Expression
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic
  • Gene Knockdown Techniques
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein / genetics
  • Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein / metabolism
  • Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial / drug therapy
  • Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial / genetics*
  • Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial / metabolism
  • Ovarian Neoplasms / drug therapy
  • Ovarian Neoplasms / genetics*
  • Ovarian Neoplasms / metabolism
  • Proteolysis
  • Transcription, Genetic
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / genetics*
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein
  • UBR5 protein, human
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
  • Cisplatin