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Published online before print May 8, 2008
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From the Growth Factor* and Pathology
Divisions and the Central Animal Laboratory,
National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan
| Abstract |
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6.4 kb in length. Further studies report that CDCP1 mRNA is expressed on hematopoietic stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, neuronal progenitor cells,2,3
human epidermoid carcinoma cell lines,4,5
lung, breast, and prostate carcinoma cell lines.1,6
The CDCP1 protein, also described as SIMA135 and Trask,4,6
is a type I transmembrane protein containing three putative CUB (complement protein subcomponents Clr/Cls, urchin embryonic growth factor, and bone morphogenic protein 1) domains that are characterized by immunoglobulin-like folds and are involved in protein-protein interaction.7,8
CDCP1 is phosphorylated by Src family kinases (SFKs) and previous studies have suggested possible roles of CDCP1 in cellular adhesion and cell-cycle regulation.5,6,9
We recently purified a major phosphoprotein detected in the suspension culture of anchorage-independent lung cancer cells and identified it as the CDCP1 protein by mass spectrometry. We revealed that tyrosine phosphorylated CDCP1 has a novel role in regulating the anchorage independence of lung cancer cells by linking cell signaling from SFKs to protein kinase C
.10
Scirrhous gastric carcinoma diffusely infiltrates a broad region of the stomach and frequently associates with metastasis to lymph nodes and peritoneal dissemination. The process of peritoneal dissemination involves several steps, including invasion, migration, anchorage-independent growth, and proliferation in the peritoneum. Signaling mediated by tyrosine phosphorylation of some transmembrane proteins, including ephrin-B1 and fibroblast growth factor receptor II is reported to be involved in the progression of scirrhous gastric cancer cells.11,12
CDCP1 is frequently expressed in gastric cancer cells, and expression and tyrosine phosphorylation levels of CDCP1 are associated with high invasiveness of tumors. These observations led us to examine in this study whether disruption of CDCP1-mediated signaling suppresses invasion and peritoneal dissemination of scirrhous gastric carcinoma. We show in this study that reduction of CDCP1 expression suppresses the migration and anchorage independence of highly invasive gastric cancer cell lines, and inhibits the peritoneal dissemination of these cells. Our results suggest that CDCP1 represents a rational therapeutic target and suppression of its phosphorylation is a strategy for modulating the metastasis of some types of cancers.
| Materials and Methods |
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Plasmids encoding full-length cDNAs of human CDCP1, and the cytoplasmic domain mutant of CDCP1 Y734F (Tyr734 to Phe) have already been described.10
The pan-Src antibody (Src2) was purchased from Santa Cruz Biotechnology (Santa Cruz, CA). The phospho-Src family (pY416) antibody was purchased from Cell Signaling (Beverly, MA). The FLAG M2 antibody and the
-tubulin antibody were purchased from Sigma (St. Louis, MO). The monoclonal antibody for phosphotyrosine (4G10) was purchased from Upstate Biotechnology (Lake Placid, NY). Polyclonal antibody against CDCP1 and tyrosine-phosphorylated CDCP1 [p-CDCP1 (Tyr734)] were obtained from MBL Co., Ltd. (Woburn, MA) as described previously.10
Fibronectin (bovine), collagen type I, and Matrigel basement membrane matrix were purchased from Sigma, Nitta Gelatin Inc. (Osaka, Japan), and BD Biosciences (San Jose, CA), respectively.
Cell Culture and Transfection
Gastric carcinoma cell lines (HSC-59, HSC-60, 44PE, 44As3, 58, 58As1, 58As9) were cultured in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum at 37°C with 5% CO2. In suspension culture, cells were seeded on a 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine-coated plate (Nunc, Roskilde, Denmark). For transfection, cells were seeded on a cell culture plate at 1.5 x 105 cells per six-well plate and transfection was performed after 14 hours. Expression plasmids were transfected by Lipofectamine 2000 according to the manufacturers instructions (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA).
Short Interfering RNA (siRNA) Treatment
Two sets of siRNAs of CDCP1 were synthesized as follows (Invitrogen). CDCP1 sense no. 1: 5'-UAAUGUUGCUUUCUCGUGGCAGAGC-3'; CDCP1 antisense no. 1: 5'-GCUCUGCCACGAGAAAGCAACAUUA-3'; CDCP1 sense no. 2: 5'-AUAGAUGAGCGGUUUGCAAUGCUGA-3'; CDCP1 antisense no. 2: 5'-UCAGCAUUGCAAACCGCUCAUCUAU-3'. The control siRNA (scramble II duplex: 5'-GCGCGCUUUGUAGGAUUCGdTdT-3') was purchased from Dharmacon (Lafayette, CO). siRNAs were incorporated into cells using Lipofectamine 2000 according to the manufacturers instructions (Invitrogen). Assays were performed 72 hours after treatment.
To generate a stably expressing siRNA system, the BLOCK-iT Pol II miR RNAi expression vector kit (Invitrogen) was used. The target sequence of CDCP1 has been described previously.10 Cells stably expressing the CDCP1 siRNA (miCDCP1) and the control LacZ siRNA (miLacZ) were established through transfection of miR RNAi vectors that holds these sequence and selection in medium containing blasticidin S (Invivogen) at a concentration of 10 µg/ml.
Western Blotting
Cell lysates were prepared with protease inhibitors in PLC buffer [10 mmol/L Tris-HCl (pH 7.5), 5 mmol/L EGTA, 150 mmol/L NaCl, 1% Triton X-100, 10% glycerol, 10 µg/ml aprotinin, 1 mmol/L sodium orthovanadate (Na3VO4), and 100 µg/ml leupeptin]. Protein concentration was measured by BCA protein assay (Pierce, Rockford, IL). Samples were separated on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and transferred to polyvinylidene difluoride membrane (Immobilon-P; Millipore, Billerica, MA). After the blocking of the membrane with blocking buffer (Blocking One; Nakarai Tesque, Kyoto, Japan), the membrane was probed with antibodies for detection. The membrane was further probed with horseradish peroxidase-conjugated anti-mouse and anti-rabbit IgG (1:4000) to visualize the antibody. The images were captured by molecular imager GS-800 (Bio-Rad, Hercules, CA).
Cell Attachment Assay
Cancer cells were detached by phosphate-buffered saline (–) [PBS(-)] containing EDTA (2 mmol/L) and replated onto the chamber slides coated with either collagen type I (100 µg/ml; Nitta Gelatin, Inc.), fibronectin (50 µg/ml, Sigma), or Matrigel (85 µg/ml, BD Biosciences). After incubation for 30 minutes, unattached cells were removed by washing the slides in PBS(–) several times, and the remaining cells were stained with Giemsas solution. The number of attached cells on each substrate was counted.
Cell Migration Assay
Migration assay was performed using modified transwell chambers with a polycarbonate nucleopore membrane (BD Falcon, Franklin Lakes, NJ). Precoated filters (6.5 mm in diameter, 8-µm pore size, fibronectin 10 µg/ml) were rehydrated with 100 µl of medium. Then, 4 x 104 cells (HSC-59, 44As3, and 58As9) and 8 x 104 cells (HSC-60) in 100 µl of serum-free RPMI 1640 were seeded onto the upper part of each chamber, whereas the lower compartments were filled with 600 µl of the same medium with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS). After incubation for 14 hours at 37°C, nonmigrated cells on the upper surface of the filter were wiped out with a cotton swab, and the migrated cells on the lower surface of the filter were fixed and stained with Giemsas stain solution (azur-eosin-methylene blue solution; Muto Pure Chemical, Co., Tokyo, Japan). The totals of migrated cells were determined by counting cells in five microscopic fields per well at a magnification of ]times]100, and the extent of migration was expressed as the average number of cells per microscopic field. Cell migration assay were performed three times.
Matrigel Invasion Assay
Invasion of tumor cells into the Matrigel was monitored as described previously.13 Gastric cancer cells treated with CDCP1 siRNA or control siRNA for high invasion potential were detached with Hanks balanced salt solutions (HBSS–) containing 2 mmol/L of EDTA and seeded on the Matrigel (100 µg/cm2). After being cultured in the RPIM 1640 medium with 10% FBS for 17 hours, the cells were fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde in PBS and stained with Giemsas stain solution. The number of invaded cells were counted in five microscopic fields per well at a magnification of x100, and the extent of invasion was expressed as the average number of cells per microscopic field. Matrigel invasion assays were performed three times.
Soft Agar Colony Assay
Six-well culture plates were coated with a layer of RPMI 1640 and 10% FBS containing 0.5% UltraPure agarose (Invitrogen). Subconfluent 44As3 cells transfected the miR RNAi vector expressing clones were treated with EDTA, washed in PBS twice, and resuspended in RPMI 1640, 10% FBS at 6 x 103 cells/ml. Then, a 500-µl cell sample was added to 1 ml of RPMI 1640, 10% FBS containing 0.5% UltraPure agarose (final 0.33%). The cells were plated onto the coated tissue culture plates, allowed to solidify, and then placed in a 37°C incubator. After 30 days, colonies were scanned using GS-800 calibrated densitometer (Bio-Rad) and the numbers of colonies/well were counted. Soft agar assays were performed three times.
In Vivo Tumor Cell Invasion Assay
The animal experimental protocols were approved by the Committee for Ethics of Animal Experimentation, and the experiments were conducted in accordance with the guidelines for animal experiments in the National Cancer Center. Peritoneal dissemination of tumors was examined by intraperitoneal injection of 5 x 106 gastric cancer cells suspended in 0.3 ml of RPMI 1640 medium into 6-week-old BALB/c nude mice (Clea Japan, Inc., Tokyo, Japan). The mice (n = 6) were sacrificed 2 weeks after injection, and peritoneal dissemination was evaluated. Orthotopic implantation of gastric cancer cells into BALB/c nude mice has been described previously.11 Briefly, 1 x 106 cells were inoculated into the middle wall of the greater curvature of the glandular stomach using a 30-gauge needle. The mice (n = 12) were sacrificed at 15 to 16 days after the orthotopic transplantation of the cancer cells, and the tumors were examined macroscopically. To determine the effect on the tumor growth in nude mice, 44As3 clones (3 x 106 cells/0.3 ml of serum-free medium) were subcutaneously injected into the right flank of mice. Mice were euthanized at 30 days. The results are expressed as the mean weight of tumors (g) from three mice ± SE.
Tissue Samples and Immunohistochemical Analysis
We obtained 10 paraffin-embedded tumor tissues of gastric scirrhous carcinoma in 2006 at the National Cancer Center Hospital. The study population consisted of five men (50%) and five women (50%). Paraffin blocks were sectioned in slices and subjected for immunohistochemical stains using the indirect polymer method with Envision reagent (DAKO, Carpinteria, CA). Antigen retrieval was performed by placing sections in the citrate buffer and heating in a microwave pressure cooker according to the manufacturers instructions. All sections were incubated with specific antibodies against CDCP1 (rabbit polyclonal antibody; dilution, 1:100) and tyrosine-phosphorylated CDCP1 [p-CDCP1 (Tyr734): rabbit polyclonal antibody; dilution, 1:400].
| Results |
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To examine the involvement of CDCP1 for progression of tumors, we analyzed cell lines of scirrhous gastric carcinoma. HSC-59, HSC-60, HSC-44PE, and HSC-58 were originally established from the patients of scirrhous gastric carcinoma, and highly invasive sublines were further selected from these parent cells (44As3 from HSC-44PE; 58As1 and 58As9 from HSC-58).14,15
Expression of CDCP1 was remarkably elevated in highly invasive HSC-44PE, HSC-58 cells, whereas higher expression and phosphorylation levels of CDCP1 was observed in invasive sublines compared with less invasive HSC-59 and HSC-60 cells (Figure 1A)
.14
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Interestingly, reducing the amount of CDCP1 protein by siRNA inhibited migration and invasion of 44As3 and 58As9 cells by in vitro transwell assay (Figure 2A)
. On the other hand, overexpression of CDCP1 in less invasive HSC-59 and HSC-60 cells increased cell migration (Figure 2C)
. In this case, Y734F mutant of CDCP1, which lacks the phosphorylation site by SFKs5,10
did not affect cell migration (Figure 2, B and C)
. These results suggest that signaling mediated by tyrosine phosphorylation of CDCP1 regulates the invasion of gastric cancer cells via cell migration.
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Gastric scirrhous carcinoma frequently associates with peritoneal dissemination through a process by which cancer cells perforate the gastric serosa and become exfoliated and free, then attach on the surface of the peritoneum and start to invade. We further examined the effect of CDCP1 on tumor progression in vivo using a model system of peritoneal dissemination.14,15
When control clones (miLacZ-1, -2) were injected intraperitoneally into nude mice, severe carcinomatous peritonitis was observed in miLacZ clones as previously described (Figure 4A
; a–c).15
Innumerable whitish nodules were observed in the mesentery of almost all mice injected with miLacZ clones (Figure 4Ac)
. In addition, many tumor nodules of miLacZ clone were observed in the peritoneal cavity, including the omentum (Figure 4Ac)
. On the other hand, when the miCDCP1 clones (miCDCP1-1, -2) in which the expression of CDCP1 is stably suppressed by siRNA, was injected, dissemination of cancer cells was apparently modest (Figure 4A; d–f)
. Large numbers of tumor nodules of control clones were observed in the mesentery, whereas, miCDCP1-1 and miCDCP1-2 clones formed smaller numbers of colonies in the mesentery (Figure 4B)
. On the contrary, no significant change in the tumor growth was observed in any 44As3 clone subcutaneously implanted in nude mice (Figure 4C)
.
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When 44As3 cells were intraperitoneally injected, many tumor nodules were observed not only in the mesentery sheets, but also in the parietal and visceral peritoneum, which leads to carcinomatous peritonitis (Figure 6A
, dissemination).11
To further evaluate the involvement of CDCP1 in the formation of peritoneal dissemination of cancer cells, the expression and phosphorylation level of CDCP1 in the disseminated tumor nodules was monitored through immunohistochemical analysis. Antibodies against CDCP1 and against phospho-Tyr734 of CDCP1 revealed that CDCP1 was exclusively expressed and phosphorylated at Tyr734 in the invaded cancer cells, but not in stromal cells derived from mice including fibroblasts (Figure 6A)
. We and other researchers previously observed that CDCP1 is tyrosine phosphorylated at Tyr734 by SFKs.5,10
Compared to 44As3 cells cultured in vitro under normal tissue plate culture, elevation in the activity of SFK was detected in tumor nodules formed by the same 44As3 cells in nude mice, as judged by the antibody recognizing the phosphorylation of Tyr416 of SFK [Figure 6B
; p-Src (pY416)]. Moreover, an outstanding elevation of the phosphorylation level of CDCP1 was observed in 44As3 tumor nodules in nude mice (Figure 6B
; 44As3-i.p.–1, –2), suggesting a possible role of CDCP1 phosphorylation in scirrhous carcinoma cells with the peritoneal dissemination.
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30% of the scirrhous-type gastric cancer tissues (n = 10) as compared with normal tissue. In addition, the expression of CDCP1 was also observed in some of human nonscirrhous gastric cancer tissue (see Supplemental Figure S2 at http://ajp.amjpathol.org). Further analysis of the expression and phosphorylation of CDCP1 is required to elucidate the role of CDCP1 in the nonscirrhous gastric cancer.
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| Discussion |
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From the original identification, CDCP1 was estimated to be important in the progression of human tumors. Using cDNA chip hybridization techniques to search for genes preferentially expressed in solid tumors relative to normal tissues, Scherl-Mostageer and colleagues1
identified Est sequences corresponding to CDCP1 cDNA. In another approach to identify tumor-associated proteins, Hooper and colleagues4
used subtractive immunization techniques to generate antibodies toward cell surface epitopes preferentially expressed by highly metastatic relative to nonmetastatic carcinomas, and identified a cell surface glycoprotein named SIMA135, identical to CDCP1. We recently discovered a novel function of CDCP1 in cancer progression. It was revealed that CDCP1 is a SFK-binding phosphoprotein that regulates the anoikis resistance of human lung adenocarcinoma. In suspension culture, CDCP1-SFK complex is required for the phosphorylation of PKC
, which was shown to be a key molecule for anoikis resistance downstream of CDCP1 signaling. Moreover, CDCP1 affects the late phase of metastasis of lung adenocarcinoma in vivo, possibly through regulation of anoikis resistance.10
Scirrhous gastric carcinoma diffusely infiltrates a broad region of the stomach and is frequently associated with metastasis to lymph nodes and peritoneal dissemination. In this study, we found that the expression levels of CDCP1 were higher in the cells of invasive scirrhous gastric carcinoma than in the cells of less invasive type (Figure 1A)
. This expression pattern of CDCP1 prompted us to examine the involvement of CDCP1 in the invasion and dissemination of scirrhous gastric cancer cells.
It was also shown for the first time that CDCP1 regulates cell migration using gastric cancer cells (Figure 2, A and C)
. Cell migration mediates some of the functions in the process of cancer cell invasion and is generally presumed to be regulated by cell adhesion molecules. For example, integrins bind extracellular matrix and link to the signaling pathway inside the cells16
and the turnover of integrin contacts may promote cell migration.17
CDCP1 contains three CUB domains, which are thought to play biological roles by mediating protein-protein interaction, in various molecules such as galectins, DMBT1,18
sperm adhesine,19
neuropilin,20
and proteases including Bmp1/C-proteinase, Tolloid, and MASP.7
Recently, it is reported that some type of CUB domain binds to fibronectin and modulates interaction of the other matrix components.21
Moreover, CDCP1 interacts with a number of adhesion and matrix proteins including cadherins and syndecans.6
It is also proposed that special subsets of integrin affect phosphorylation of CDCP1.22
Thus, CDCP1 may modulate cell adhesion. Actually, overexpressions of CDCP1 in MDA-468 cells develop a rounded shape and grow in a loose cell adhesion6
and we show that the loss of CDCP1 increases the attachment of 44As3 and 58As9 cells on fibronectin (Figure 1C)
. Therefore, CDCP1 might regulate cell migration by affecting the cell adhesion to extracellular matrix in the cell invasion assay in vitro and in the process of stromal invasion of tumors in vivo.
In this study, the requirement of tyrosine phosphorylation site, Y734, in cell migration, is strongly suggested because wild-type CDCP1, but not Y734 mutant, promoted cell migration when expressed in less invasive gastric cells (Figure 2C)
. This result may be consistent with the observation that the phosphorylation levels of CDCP1 correlated with the levels of cell motility in gastric cancer cells between 44As3 and 58As9 of invasive type and HSC-59 and HSC-60 of less invasive type (Figure 1A
; and Figure 2, A and C
). Moreover, phosphorylated CDCP1 was identified in a screen for adhesion-dependent phosphorylation in an epithelial wound model.22
Based on these findings, tyrosine phosphorylation of CDCP1 might have a critical role in cell migration, although the precise molecular mechanism of regulation needs to be clarified.
We recently reported that tumor cells expressing CDCP1 regulate anchorage-independent growth in lung cancer cells and the phosphorylation of CDCP1 is important for the signal of resistance to detachment-induced apoptosis.10
CDCP1 is one of the major phosphotyrosine-containing proteins in suspension condition as well in the adherent condition in both gastric cancer cells and in lung cancer cells. Anchorage-independent growth was also regulated by CDCP1 in the invasive gastric cancer cells 44As3 and 58As9 by siRNA experiments (Figure 3, B and C)
. Several theories have been proposed to explain the mechanism of peritoneal dissemination in human gastric cancer.23-25
It has been suggested that cancer cells are detached from primary lesions and freed into the peritoneal cavity, to colonize the peritoneum and induce cancerous peritoneum. Anchorage-independent growth is a form of resistance to apoptosis induced by the loss of cell signals generated from interaction with extracellular matrix. Therefore, CDCP1 might be required for cell detachment from primary lesions and survival in the peritoneal cavity of scirrhous gastric cancer cells.
Loss of CDCP1 attenuates invasion and dissemination of highly invasive gastric cancer cells in vivo (Figure 4, A and B
; and Figure 5A
). Moreover, we found that the phosphorylation level of CDCP1 in tumor nodules disseminated to mesentery is much higher than in cells growing in cell culture plate (Figure 6B)
. These results indicate that cancer cells expressing phosphorylated CDCP1 might be involved in the process of peritoneal dissemination of cancer cells via cell migration and anchorage-independent growth. It might be important to examine the phosphorylation state of CDCP1 in vivo in a wide range of cancers other than gastric cancers and lung cancers to determine the organ-specific roles of CDCP1 in cancer progression.
Because early clinical diagnosis of scirrhous gastric carcinoma is difficult, peritoneal dissemination or invasion to lymph nodes has frequently occurred before diagnosis. Histological analysis revealed that expression and phosphorylation of CDCP1 was detected in the invasive site of human scirrhous tissues (Figure 7)
. It might be useful to examine the expression and phosphorylation level of CDCP1 in a surgical specimen of scirrhous gastric carcinomas to predict the prognosis of the tumors. Dissemination is a frequent form of the recurrence of scirrhous gastric carcinoma, which serves as a major factor determining the prognosis. In addition, our study shows that disruption of CDCP1 suppresses the infiltration of cancer cells into liver and the peritoneal dissemination in animal models. CDCP1 is considered to be a prognosis factor of gastric scirrhous carcinoma, and the inhibition of a specific cellular signal originating from CDCP1 phosphorylation might be a good candidate for regulating its invasion and dissemination.
| Footnotes |
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Supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology of Japan (grant-in aid for cancer research and grant-in-aid for young scientists); and the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare of Japan (grant-in-aid for the third-term comprehensive 10-year strategy for cancer control).
Supplemental material for this article can be found on http://ajp.amjpathol.org.
Accepted for publication February 20, 2008.
| References |
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K, Grünebach F, Scherl-Mostageer M, Brümmendorf TH, Schweifer N, Lammers R: CDCP1 identifies a broad spectrum of normal and malignant stem/progenitor cell subsets of hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic origin. Stem Cells 2004, 22:334-343
6β4 as a suppressor and a predictive marker for peritoneal dissemination in human gastric cancer. Gastroenterology 2000, 118:497-506[CrossRef][Medline]This article has been cited by other articles:
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D. S. Spassov, F. L. Baehner, C. H. Wong, S. McDonough, and M. M. Moasser The Transmembrane src Substrate Trask Is an Epithelial Protein that Signals during Anchorage Deprivation Am. J. Pathol., May 1, 2009; 174(5): 1756 - 1765. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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