| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Regular Articles |
3ß3
2) Expression in Prostate Cancer



From the Departments of Pathology*
and
Surgery
and the Arizona Cancer
Center,
University of Arizona,
Tucson, Arizona
| Abstract |
|---|
|
|
|---|
3, ß3, and
2
chains of laminin 5 were investigated in normal and invasive prostate
carcinoma using immunohistochemistry, Northern
analysis, and in situ hybridization. Laser
capture microdissection of normal and carcinomatous glands, in
conjunction with RNA amplification and reverse Northern
analysis, were used to confirm the gene expression data.
Protein and mRNA expression of all three laminin 5 chains were detected
in the basal cells of normal glands. In contrast, invasive
prostate carcinoma showed a loss of ß3 and
2 protein expression
with variable expression of
3 chains. Despite the loss of protein
expression, there was retention of ß3 and
2 mRNA
expression as detected by in situ hybridization,
Northern and reverse Northern analysis. Our findings imply that an
altered mechanism of translation of ß3 or
2 mRNAs into functional
proteins contributes to failure of anchoring filaments and
hemidesmosomal formation. The resultant hemidesmosome instability or
loss would suggest a less stable epithelial-stromal junction,
increased invasion and migration of malignant cells, and
disruption of normal integrin signaling pathways.
| Introduction |
|---|
|
|
|---|
, ß, and
chains. Given the existence of 11
genetically distinct chain forms (
1 to
5, ß1 to ß3, and
1
to
3),2-4
different combinations of chains could
result in up to 45 different heterotrimeric isoforms. Only 13 laminin
isoforms (laminins 1, 2, 4 to 12, 14, 15), however, have thus far been
convincingly demonstrated.3-6
Some laminins, such as
laminin 10 (
5ß1
1), are ubiquitously present in BL, whereas
other laminins demonstrate considerable tissue specificity. Laminin 5
(
3ß3
2), for example, is restricted to the BL of stratified and
certain other epithelia, and is one of the primary hemidesmosomal
proteins.2
The N-terminus of the
3 chain serves as the
collagen VII attachment site for anchoring fibril
formation.7
The globular domain of the laminin 5
3
chain is the putative binding site for the
6ß4 and
3ß1
integrin receptors. The
6ß4 integrin/laminin 5 complex is
essential for signal transduction.8-11
In addition to
monomeric molecules, laminin 5 is frequently found covalently
associated with laminin 6 (
3ß1
1) and laminin 7
(
3ß2
1).12 Direct evidence for the crucial role of laminin 5 in maintaining the integrity of the BL has come from the identification of mutations in the laminin 5 genes observed in the Herlitzs variant of junctional epidermolysis bullosa, a blistering and usually lethal skin disease caused by disruption of the epidermal-dermal junction. In Herlitzs variant of junctional epidermolysis bullosa, genetic disruptions associated with the observed pathology have been associated with the presence of premature stop codons, or frameshift mutations on both alleles of any of the three genes encoding the chains of laminin 5.13,14 Mutations resulting in the failure of expression of any of these three chains results in a complete absence of laminin 5 immunoreactivity and to ultrastructural changes in hemidesmosomes.15
Laminin 5 has revealed variable patterns of expression in tumors derived from different tissues. In gliomas and carcinomas of the colon, stomach, and squamous epithelium, laminin 5 has been observed to be highly expressed and located at the invasive edge of the tumor.16-19 In sharp contrast, laminin 5 expression is down-regulated in basal cell and squamous carcinomas, as well as in carcinomas of breast and prostate.20-25
We have shown that the BL circumscribing normal prostate glands
differs from the BL surrounding prostate carcinoma in that several
extracellular matrix proteins are not detected in
carcinoma.26,27
Prostate tumor progression probably
involves changes that occur within the de novo synthesized
extracellular matrix of the BL of prostate carcinoma. These changes
include the loss of laminin 5 expression,23,26
which leads
to cytoplasmic membrane instability of its integrin receptor
6ß4,28
and to alterations in cell signaling. We
have shown a simultaneous loss of laminin 5, collagen VII, and
ß4-integrin protein expression in prostate carcinoma.28
We conducted this study to clarify the mechanism explaining the loss of
laminin 5 protein expression in prostate carcinoma.
Immunohistochemistry, Northern analysis, and in situ
hybridization were used to investigate gene expression. Moreover,
individual selected normal and carcinoma glands underwent LCM. RNA
isolated from these glands was amplified and examined by reverse
Northern analysis.
| Materials and Methods |
|---|
|
|
|---|
Freshly obtained surgical samples of normal and malignant human
prostate tissue were snap-frozen in an isopentane bath cooled by Freon,
sectioned, and examined using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining to
select normal areas and invasive carcinoma. Frozen 5-µm sections of
human prostate samples containing both normal tissue and carcinomas
were reacted with primary antibodies followed by binding with secondary
antibodies conjugated to biotin. Streptavidin-diaminobenzidine
was subsequently used to detect the antibody complex. Sources and
dilutions of antibodies against the
3, ß3, and
2 chains of
laminin 5 are listed in Table 1
.
|
Normal human prostate epithelial cells (PrE4428) were obtained from Clonetics Corp. (San Diego, CA). The cultured cells were maintained in PrEGM medium from Clonetics Corp. at 37°C in a humidified atmosphere of 95% air, 5% CO2.
Preparation of Riboprobes
To construct sense and antisense probes for the
3, ß3, and
2 chains of laminin 5, chain-specific cDNA clones (Table 2)
were subcloned into the pBluescript
SKII transcription vector (Stratagene, La Jolla, CA). The sequences of
the subclones were confirmed by DNA sequencing. The plasmids were then
linearized and sense and antisense probes were synthesized using either
T3 or T7 RNA polymerase, respectively. For in situ
hybridization, the antisense and sense probes were labeled with
digoxigenin-UTP (Boehringer Mannheim, Indianapolis, IN) as previously
described.23
|
In situ hybridization with digoxigenin-labeled RNA probes was performed as previously described.23
Northern Analysis
Total RNA was isolated from PrEC4428 cells as well as from
microdissected areas of primary prostate carcinoma and adjacent normal
prostate from three different patients. RNA was isolated using TRIzol
reagent (Life Technologies, Inc, Gaithersburg, MD). Approximately 20
µg of total RNA was loaded in each lane, separated on a 1.2%
agarose/formaldehyde gel, and transferred to nylon membrane (Life
Technologies, Inc.). The blots were probed with
32P-dCTP-labeled cDNA probes specific for the
ß3 and
2 chains of laminin 5, and GAPDH
(glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase). Total RNA from PrEC4428 was
used as a positive control for probe specificity, and GAPDH
hybridization was used as a loading control. Hybridization was
performed at 42°C in 50% formamide, 2x standard saline citrate
(SSC), 5x Denhardts, and 20 µg/ml of salmon sperm DNA.
Posthybridization washes were performed in 2x SSC/0.1% sodium dodecyl
sulfate (SDS) at 50°C for 30 minutes, followed by 0.1x SSC/0.1% SDS
at 55°C for 30 minutes.
Laser Capture Microdissection (LCM) and Reverse Northern Analysis LCM and RNA Isolation
Five-micron cryostat sections of snap-frozen prostate tissue
samples were applied to positively charged glass slides. Sections were
stained by H&E according to slightly modified National Institutes of
Health protocols (http://www.arctur.com for hematoxylin and eosin
staining protocols; http://dir.nichd.nih.gov/lcm/LCMTAP.htm for
LCM preparation and analysis). Laser capture of target cells was
performed using the PixCell II image archiving system (Arcturus
Engineering, Mountain View, CA) as previously described.29
Total RNA was extracted from laser-captured cells using the Micro RNA
isolation kit (Stratagene, San Diego, CA).30
Image
archiving and LCM recovery of
1500 cells per sample from prostatic
carcinoma and adjacent normal glandular epithelium was found to provide
sufficient mRNA to detect, using two rounds of amplification.
RNA Amplification and Reverse Northern Blot Analysis
The purified RNA sample underwent amplification using 0.5 µg/µl of T7-oligo dT primer, Superscript II reverse transcriptase (Life Technologies, Inc.), and Ampliscribe T7 transcription kit (Epicentre Technologies, Madison, WI) as previously described.30 Ten µl of purified, resultant amplified RNA (aRNA) underwent second-round amplification using pdN6 random hexamers (1 µg/µl; Pharmacia, Piscataway, NJ) during first-strand synthesis, and T7-oligo dT primer for the second-strand reaction, as previously described.30
Second-round aRNA specimens were synthesized into randomly labeled
32P-dCTP probes using pdN6 random hexamers (1
µg/µl; Pharmacia) and the Superscript preamplification system
reagents (Life Technologies, Inc.) as previously
described.31
Target cDNA (0.5 µg) was cross-linked to
the blot membrane with a UV Stratalinker 2400 (Stratagene). The
positive control for each blot consisted of 0.5 µg of GAPDH. The
negative control was single-strand antisense laminin 5 ß3 cDNA.
Reverse Northern blots were performed as previously described.31 In brief, 500 ng of target cDNAs including controls were denatured, combined with 111 µl of sterile water, 80 µl of 1 mol/L NaOH, and 4 µl of 0.5 mol/L ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, and cross-linked to an Ambion Bright Star Plus positively charged nylon membrane (Ambion Inc., Austin, TX) using a Minifold II slot-blot apparatus (Schleicher and Schuell, Keene, NH). The membranes were prehybridized at 68°C for 45 minutes in Perfect Hyb Plus solution (Sigma, St. Louis, MO). Radiolabeled cDNA probe was denatured at 100°C for 10 minutes, added to the prehybridization mixture, and hybridized overnight at 68°C in Perfect Hyb Plus solution. The membrane was washed twice for 20 minutes each in 2x SSC/0.1% SDS at 68°C for 15 minutes. Higher stringency washes were performed in sequence as necessary to remove background signals from the membrane, including two 0.2x SSC/0.1% SDS washes at 68°C for 15 minutes, and two 0.1x SSC/0.1% SDS washes at 68°C for 15 minutes. The blots were then exposed on phosphorimaging screens (Molecular Dynamics, Sunnyvale, CA). Each blot was measured and plotted with a Phosphorimage 445SI scanner (Molecular Dynamics). Blots were stripped and reprobed up to four times.
| Results |
|---|
|
|
|---|
Twenty-five surgical specimens containing invasive
carcinomas and adjacent nonmalignant glands were examined by
immunohistochemistry. Monoclonal antibodies BM165 and 6F12, and
polyclonal antibody J20 enabled the detection of
3, ß3, and
2
chains of laminin 5, respectively. An additional five cases were
stained with the g2 chain-specific antibody (Chemicon, Temecula,
CA). The results showed variable protein expression of the
3 chain
in both normal and neoplastic prostate epithelium, but the ß3 and
2 chains were not detected in invasive carcinoma (Figure 1)
.
|
In situ hybridization experiments performed on
six cases of prostate carcinoma showed the presence of mRNAs for the
3, ß3, and
2 chains of laminin 5. The mRNAs were present in all
of the carcinomas studied, as well as in the basal cells of normal
glands (Figure 2
; AC). The level of
expression of the
2 message seemed to be higher in the carcinoma
cells than in normal glandular epithelium (Figure 2, C and D)
. Adjacent
serial sections reacted with control sense probes were consistently
negative. Northern analysis confirmed the presence of the ß3 and
2
mRNAs of laminin 5 in both normal prostate and prostate carcinomas
(Figure 3)
.
|
|
|
|
3, ß3, and
2 chains,
6 and ß4 integrins, and GAPDH were
present in both the normal and malignant prostate glands studied. These
findings were consistent with in situ and Northern data. The
data also shows that the band intensities of laminin 5 chains and
6
integrin were comparable between normal and malignant tissue samples,
suggesting that each maintained a low level of synthesis of these
chains in vivo at the time of tissue sampling. The
interesting exception was the ß4 integrin that exhibited consistently
higher band intensity than the other cDNAs. These results were
substantiated by the dominant intensity of the positive control GAPDH,
a ubiquitous housekeeping gene, in each blot. Negative control findings
were also significant, because they indicated that data distortion
because of nonspecific binding of radiolabeled materials on each blot
had minimal effect on sample measurements. | Discussion |
|---|
|
|
|---|
6ß4 integrin expression may be dependent on the presence of
its extracellular ligand. The loss of laminin 5 expression may be
functionally important for tumor progression in the prostate and could
lead to cytoplasmic membrane instability of its integrin receptors
3ß1 and
6ß4 and altered signaling.28
This study used four independent techniques to explore the mechanism of
loss of laminin 5 expression in the prostate. Immunohistochemistry
showed that the protein for the
3 chain of laminin 5 is variably
expressed by both normal and neoplastic prostate epithelium. The ß3
and
2 chains, however, were not detected in invasive carcinoma. It
is known that the
3 chain can persist by trimer formation with the
ß1 or ß2 and
1 laminin chains (laminin 6 or 7) in the absence of
ß3 and
2,12
which most likely explains the continuing
expression of the
3 chain observed in this study.
Despite the absence of the ß3 and
2 proteins, the carcinoma cells
expressed substantial amounts of both messages for these genes. The
ß3 and
2 mRNAs were detected by in situ hybridization
and Northern analysis, and their presence in neoplastic glands was
confirmed using LCM coupled with RNA amplification and reverse Northern
analysis. Although we reported that certain prostate cell lines
synthesize but fail to secrete individual laminin
chains,36
at that time we did not examine specific laminin
5 chains. Recently, we have shown that LNCaP cells fail to synthesize
the ß3 chain of laminin 5 (unpublished result). These data
suggest that human prostate carcinoma cells exhibit posttranscriptional
defect(s) in protein translation of the ß3 and
2 chains of laminin
5.
The loss of laminin 5 is not simply because of the loss of basal
cells because the mRNAs for the ß4 integrin and the three chains of
laminin 5 are made by the carcinoma cells. The loss of laminin 5 is not
universal because other tumors continue to express laminin 5
chains.16-21
Several studies have correlated prognostic
significance of laminin 5
2 chain expression in
tumors.25,37
Ono and colleagues25
have shown
that laminin 5
2 chain expression was a significant factor
associated with poor prognosis in squamous cell carcinoma of the
tongue. The amount of the
2 chain expressed in pancreatic
adenocarcinomas, however, was not associated with the patients
prognosis.37
The
2 chain of laminin 5 has been shown to
be up-regulated in gliomas and colonic, gastric, and squamous cell
carcinomas.33
In contrast, decreased expression of the
2 chain has been observed in other types of
carcinomas.22-24,26,33
The
2 chain of laminin 5 has in
fact been proposed as a marker of increased invasiveness of certain
tumor types.18
The nature of the laminin 5 defect in
prostate carcinoma is currently unknown. It is apparent that prostate
carcinoma is different from other tumors in which
2 expression is
up-regulated. Whether the loss of
2 expression in prostate carcinoma
explains its slow progression remains to be studied. Invasive prostate
cancer creates a new BL and presumably, reestablishes survival
signaling contact through
6ß1 and other adhesion molecules, which
react with the components of the de novo synthesized BL. The
nature of these signaling pathways and their effects on gene
transcription are unknown but will require further investigation and
will possibly reveal new therapeutic applications.
One question addressed by this study is whether or not the loss
of protein expression in prostate carcinoma is a posttranscriptional
event. Analysis of mRNAs and proteins from carcinoma and adjacent
normal glands, supports the idea that constitutive production of mRNA
occurs, but with altered translation into protein under conditions of
malignancy. The loss of laminin 5 expression in prostate carcinoma
apparently is a posttranscriptional event. There are several ways in
which translation may be affected including mutations that result in
premature stop codons or frame-shifts, or failure of initiation or
elongation of protein synthesis. Interestingly, the presence of a
defect in an elongation factor in prostate carcinoma has been
found,38,39
suggesting a more general defect in protein
translation. Regardless of the mechanism, the altered translation of
ß3 or
2 mRNAs into functional proteins contributes to failure of
anchoring filament and hemidesmosomal formation. The resulting
hemidesmosome loss would predict a less stable epithelial-stromal
junction, increased invasion and migration of malignant cells, and
disruption of normal integrin signaling pathways.
In summary, protein and mRNA expression of the
3, ß3, and
2 chains of laminin 5 were investigated in normal prostate and
invasive prostate carcinoma using immunohistochemistry, in
situ hybridization, LCM, and Northern and reverse Northern
analysis. Protein and mRNA expression of all three laminin 5 chains
were detected in the basal cells of normal glands. In contrast,
invasive prostate carcinoma showed a loss of ß3 and
2 protein
expression with variable expression of
3 chains, but retention of
ß3 and
2 mRNAs as detected by in situ hybridization,
and Northern and reverse Northern analysis. The loss of laminin 5
protein expression in prostate carcinoma thus seems to be a
posttranscriptional event.
| Acknowledgements |
|---|
| Footnotes |
|---|
Supported by the National Institutes of Health grant 2PO1 CA 56666.
J. H. and L. J. contributed equally to this article.
Accepted for publication December 12, 2000.
| References |
|---|
|
|
|---|
3 chain: a novel non-basement membrane-associated, laminin chain. J Cell Biol 1999, 145:605-617
6ß4 to laminin 5 (epiligrin) regulates tyrosine phosphorylation of a membrane-associated 80-kD protein. J Cell Biol 1996, 132:727-740
6ß4 integrin: charting the path between laminin binding and nuclear events. J Cell Sci 1996, 109:1165-1172[Medline]
3ß1 in epithelial basement membranes. Cell 1991, 65:599-610[Medline]
3ß1 integrin, and mitogen-activated protein kinase can regulate epithelial cell proliferation. Mol Biol Cell 1999, 10:259-270
3ß3
2) by human malignant and normal prostate. Am J Pathol 1996, 149:1341-1349[Abstract]
6ß4 and BM-600/Nicein. J Invest Dermatol 1993, 101:352-358[Medline]
2 chain expression in squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue. Cancer 1999, 85:2315-2321[Medline]
6-integrins in the normal and neoplastic prostate. Am J Pathol 1994, 145:167-173[Abstract]
6ß1 and
6ß4 integrins in human prostate cancer progression. Cancer Metastasis Rev 1995, 14:219-228[Medline]
2 chain in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. J Pathol 1996, 180:290-294[Medline]
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
J.-Z. Shou, N. Hu, M. Takikita, M. J. Roth, L. L. Johnson, C. Giffen, Q.-H. Wang, C. Wang, Y. Wang, H. Su, et al. Overexpression of CDC25B and LAMC2 mRNA and Protein in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinomas and Premalignant Lesions in Subjects from a High-Risk Population in China Cancer Epidemiol. Biomarkers Prev., June 1, 2008; 17(6): 1424 - 1435. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
E. C. Dietze, M. L. Bowie, K. Mrozek, L. E. Caldwell, C. Neal, R. J. Marjoram, M. M. Troch, G. R. Bean, K. K. Yokoyama, C. A. Ibarra, et al. CREB-binding protein regulates apoptosis and growth of HMECs grown in reconstituted ECM via laminin-5 J. Cell Sci., November 1, 2005; 118(21): 5005 - 5022. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
T. Kurita, R. T. Medina, A. A. Mills, and G. R. Cunha Role of p63 and basal cells in the prostate Development, October 15, 2004; 131(20): 4955 - 4964. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
U. G. Sathyanarayana, A. Padar, M. Suzuki, R. Maruyama, H. Shigematsu, J.-T. Hsieh, E. P. Frenkel, and A. F. Gazdar Aberrant Promoter Methylation of Laminin-5-Encoding Genes in Prostate Cancers and Its Relationship to Clinicopathological Features Clin. Cancer Res., December 15, 2003; 9(17): 6395 - 6400. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
T. S. Udayakumar, M. L. Chen, E. L. Bair, D. C. von Bredow, A. E. Cress, R. B. Nagle, and G. T. Bowden Membrane Type-1-Matrix Metalloproteinase Expressed by Prostate Carcinoma Cells Cleaves Human Laminin-5 {beta}3 Chain and Induces Cell Migration Cancer Res., May 1, 2003; 63(9): 2292 - 2299. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
R. B. Nagle New Molecular Approaches to Tissue Analysis J. Histochem. Cytochem., August 1, 2001; 49(8): 1063 - 1064. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |