10395

DLC1

DLC1 Rho GTPase activating protein;DLC1;DLC1 Rho GTPase activating protein

Rho-GTPase-activating protein 7|START domain-containing protein 12|StAR-related lipid transfer (START) domain containing 12|deleted in liver cancer 1 protein|deleted in liver cancer 1 variant 2|rho GTPase-activating protein 7|rho-type GTPase-activating pr

8p22

protein-coding

Several years after the isolation of deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC-1), a gene that encodes a Rho GTPase activating protein, the closely related DLC-2 gene was identified. DLC-1 and DLC-2 are approximately 50% identical and share the same SAM-RhoGAP-START domain organization. Since DLC-1 and -2 are located at chromosome regions that are commonly deleted in cancer cells and have been found to function as tumor suppressor genes, we sought to compare their expression profiles in several common types of cancer and to determine whether dlc1 and dlc2 proteins cooperate in tumor development. Using cancer-profiling arrays, we detected for the first time down-regulation of DLC-1 expression in renal, uterine and rectal cancers and down-regulation of DLC-2 expression in lung, ovarian, renal, breast, uterine, gastric, colon and rectal tumors. Since DLC-1 also functions as a metastasis suppressor gene in breast cancer, DLC-1 and DLC-2 expression were examined in a series of primary ductal carcinomas derived from patients with regional lymph node metastases. Using quantitative RT-PCR we detected a significantly lower expression of DLC-1 and DLC-2 in high percentage of tumors, suggesting that deficiency of either DLC gene facilitates dissemination of breast carcinoma cells to secondary sites. We examined DLC-2 expression in DLC-1-negative cell lines derived from human breast, non-small cell lung, and hepatocellular carcinomas, that could be rendered less or non-tumorigenic by ectopic expression of DLC-1. DLC-2 transcripts were detected in all cell lines, indicating that none of the cells were deficient in both members of the DLC family. This comparative expression analysis of DLC-1 and -2 identifies down-regulation of the two emerging bona fide tumor suppressor genes in additional types of solid tumors. The large spectrum of cancers with dysregulated DLC genes underlines the involvement of this family of genes in cancer development.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the expression of deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC1) and phosphorelated focal adhesion kinase (p-FAK) in breast cancer tissue to further understand the molecular mechanisms of the carcinogenesis and metastasis of breast cancer. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was employed to determine the protein level of DLC1 and p-FAK in 61 breast cancer, 30 benign breast disease and the adjacent normal breast tissues. RESULTS: The positivity rates of DLC1 differed significantly between breast cancer, benign and normal tissues (34.43%, 80.00% and 76.67%, respectively, P<0.001). The positivity rates of p-FAK in the 3 tissues were 77.05%, 33.33% and 26.67%, also showing significant differences (P<0.001). The aberrant expression of DLC1 showed an inverse correlation to p-FAK (kappa=-0.4591). Both DLC1 and p-FAK were closely correlated to the carcinogenesis, clinical stage, PR and lymphatic metastasis of breast cancer (P<0.05), but not to the patients age, pathological subtype, familial history, ER or CerbB-2 (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: The abnormal expression of DLC1 and p-FAK might participate in the carcinogenesis, progression, and metastasis of breast cancer. The role of DLC1 and p-FAK might be related to the regulation of progestone. DLC1 and p-FAK may serve as candidate markers for early diagnosis, prognostic evaluation and target treatment of breast cancer.

Bone metastasis is a frequent complication of breast cancer that is often accelerated by TGF-beta signaling; however, little is known about how the TGF-beta pathway is regulated during bone metastasis. Here we report that deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC1) is an important regulator of TGF-beta responses and osteolytic metastasis of breast cancer cells. In murine models, breast cancer cells lacking DLC1 expression exhibited enhanced capabilities of bone metastasis. Knockdown of DLC1 in cancer cells promoted bone metastasis, leading to manifested osteolysis and accelerated death in mice, while DLC1 overexpression suppressed bone metastasis. Activation of Rho-ROCK signaling in the absence of DLC1 mediated SMAD3 linker region phosphorylation and TGF-beta-induced expression of parathyroid hormone-like hormone (PTHLH), leading to osteoclast maturation for osteolytic colonization. Furthermore, pharmacological inhibition of Rho-ROCK effectively reduced PTHLH production and breast cancer bone metastasis in vitro and in vivo. Evaluation of clinical breast tumor samples revealed that reduced DLC1 expression was linked to elevated PTHLH expression and organ-specific metastasis to bone. Overall, our findings define a stroma-dependent paradigm of Rho signaling in cancer and implicate Rho-TGF-beta crosstalk in osteolytic bone metastasis.

Several years after the isolation of deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC-1), a gene that encodes a Rho GTPase activating protein, the closely related DLC-2 gene was identified. DLC-1 and DLC-2 are approximately 50% identical and share the same SAM-RhoGAP-START domain organization. Since DLC-1 and -2 are located at chromosome regions that are commonly deleted in cancer cells and have been found to function as tumor suppressor genes, we sought to compare their expression profiles in several common types of cancer and to determine whether dlc1 and dlc2 proteins cooperate in tumor development. Using cancer-profiling arrays, we detected for the first time down-regulation of DLC-1 expression in renal, uterine and rectal cancers and down-regulation of DLC-2 expression in lung, ovarian, renal, breast, uterine, gastric, colon and rectal tumors. Since DLC-1 also functions as a metastasis suppressor gene in breast cancer, DLC-1 and DLC-2 expression were examined in a series of primary ductal carcinomas derived from patients with regional lymph node metastases. Using quantitative RT-PCR we detected a significantly lower expression of DLC-1 and DLC-2 in high percentage of tumors, suggesting that deficiency of either DLC gene facilitates dissemination of breast carcinoma cells to secondary sites. We examined DLC-2 expression in DLC-1-negative cell lines derived from human breast, non-small cell lung, and hepatocellular carcinomas, that could be rendered less or non-tumorigenic by ectopic expression of DLC-1. DLC-2 transcripts were detected in all cell lines, indicating that none of the cells were deficient in both members of the DLC family. This comparative expression analysis of DLC-1 and -2 identifies down-regulation of the two emerging bona fide tumor suppressor genes in additional types of solid tumors. The large spectrum of cancers with dysregulated DLC genes underlines the involvement of this family of genes in cancer development.

The epithelial growth factor receptor plays an important role in cell migration and cancer metastasis, but the underlying molecular mechanism is not fully understood. We show here that differential regulation of the Ras-homology-GTPase-activating protein [corrected] (Rho-GAP) activity of deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC1) by tensin3 and COOH-terminal tensin-like protein (cten) controls EGF-driven cell migration and transformation. Tensin3 binds DLC1 through its actin-binding domain, a region that is missing in cten, and thereby releases an autoinhibitory interaction between the sterile alpha motif and Rho-GAP domains of DLC1. Consequently, tensin3, but not cten, promotes the activation of DLC1, which, in turn, leads to inactivation of RhoA and decreased cell migration. Depletion of endogenous tensin3, but not cten, augmented the formation of actin stress fibers and focal adhesions and enhanced cell motility. These effects were, however, ablated by an inhibitor of the Rho-associated protein kinase. Importantly, activation of DLC1 by tensin3 or its actin-binding domain drastically reduced the anchorage-independent growth of transformed cells. Our study therefore links dynamic regulation of tensin family members by EGF to Rho-GAP through DLC1 and suggests that the tensin-DLC1-RhoA signaling axis plays an important role in tumorigenesis and cancer metastasis, and may be explored for cancer intervention.

While significant progress continues to be made in the early detection and therapeutic management of primary tumors, the incidence of metastatic disease remains the major cause of mortality. Accordingly, the development of novel effective therapies that can ameliorate dissemination and secondary tumor growth are a clinical priority. The identification of genetic and functional alterations in cancer cells that affect factors implicated in the metastatic process is critical for designing preventive and therapeutic strategies. Evidence implicating the protein deleted in liver cancer-1 (DLC1), a Rho GTPase activator, in metastasis has accumulated to a point where DLC1 may be considered as a metastasis suppressor gene. This review presents evidence supporting an anti-metastatic role for DLC1 in several human cancers and discusses the mechanisms contributing to its inhibitory effects. In addition, promising opportunities for therapeutic interventions based on DLC1 function and downstream pathways involved in the metastatic process are considered.

BACKGROUND: The deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC1) and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) are known to be closely associated with tumor growth and metastasis in several kinds of human tumors. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of DLC1 and PAI-1 in ovarian carcinoma, and evaluate their relations with the prognosis of ovarian carcinoma. METHODS: Immunohistochemical staining and Western blot were used to examine the expressions of DLC1 and PAI-1 protein in 25 specimens normal ovarian tissues, 52 specimens of serous cystadenocarcinoma tissues and 23 specimens of mucinous cystadenocarcinoma tissues. Chi-square test, Logistic regression and Partial Correlate analysis were performed to evaluate the association between DLC1 and PAI-1 with clinicopathological characteristics. Overall survival was estimated by Kaplan-Meier curves and multivariate Cox analysis. The relationships between DLC1 and PAI-1 protein expression were analyzed by Pearsons correlation coefficient. RESULTS: The expression of DLC1 protein in ovarian carcinoma tissues was significantly lower than that in normal ovarian tissues, but it was converse for PAI-1. In ovarian carcinoma, the expression of DLC1 was significantly associated with advanced FIGO stage, ascites and positive lymph node metastasis, whereas PAI-1 protein was closely related with advanced FIGO stage, poor histological differentiation and lymph node metastasis. The expression of DLC1 was negatively correlated with PAI-1 in ovarian carcinoma. Ovarian cancer patients with negative expression of DLC1 and positive expression of PAI-1 had the worst overall survival time compared to other patients. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of DLC1 and PAI-1 were closely related with the metastasis and invasion of ovarian carcinoma, only the combination of DLC1 and PAI-1 could serve as an independent prognostic factor of ovarian carcinoma.

Several years after the isolation of deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC-1), a gene that encodes a Rho GTPase activating protein, the closely related DLC-2 gene was identified. DLC-1 and DLC-2 are approximately 50% identical and share the same SAM-RhoGAP-START domain organization. Since DLC-1 and -2 are located at chromosome regions that are commonly deleted in cancer cells and have been found to function as tumor suppressor genes, we sought to compare their expression profiles in several common types of cancer and to determine whether dlc1 and dlc2 proteins cooperate in tumor development. Using cancer-profiling arrays, we detected for the first time down-regulation of DLC-1 expression in renal, uterine and rectal cancers and down-regulation of DLC-2 expression in lung, ovarian, renal, breast, uterine, gastric, colon and rectal tumors. Since DLC-1 also functions as a metastasis suppressor gene in breast cancer, DLC-1 and DLC-2 expression were examined in a series of primary ductal carcinomas derived from patients with regional lymph node metastases. Using quantitative RT-PCR we detected a significantly lower expression of DLC-1 and DLC-2 in high percentage of tumors, suggesting that deficiency of either DLC gene facilitates dissemination of breast carcinoma cells to secondary sites. We examined DLC-2 expression in DLC-1-negative cell lines derived from human breast, non-small cell lung, and hepatocellular carcinomas, that could be rendered less or non-tumorigenic by ectopic expression of DLC-1. DLC-2 transcripts were detected in all cell lines, indicating that none of the cells were deficient in both members of the DLC family. This comparative expression analysis of DLC-1 and -2 identifies down-regulation of the two emerging bona fide tumor suppressor genes in additional types of solid tumors. The large spectrum of cancers with dysregulated DLC genes underlines the involvement of this family of genes in cancer development.

Several years after the isolation of deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC-1), a gene that encodes a Rho GTPase activating protein, the closely related DLC-2 gene was identified. DLC-1 and DLC-2 are approximately 50% identical and share the same SAM-RhoGAP-START domain organization. Since DLC-1 and -2 are located at chromosome regions that are commonly deleted in cancer cells and have been found to function as tumor suppressor genes, we sought to compare their expression profiles in several common types of cancer and to determine whether dlc1 and dlc2 proteins cooperate in tumor development. Using cancer-profiling arrays, we detected for the first time down-regulation of DLC-1 expression in renal, uterine and rectal cancers and down-regulation of DLC-2 expression in lung, ovarian, renal, breast, uterine, gastric, colon and rectal tumors. Since DLC-1 also functions as a metastasis suppressor gene in breast cancer, DLC-1 and DLC-2 expression were examined in a series of primary ductal carcinomas derived from patients with regional lymph node metastases. Using quantitative RT-PCR we detected a significantly lower expression of DLC-1 and DLC-2 in high percentage of tumors, suggesting that deficiency of either DLC gene facilitates dissemination of breast carcinoma cells to secondary sites. We examined DLC-2 expression in DLC-1-negative cell lines derived from human breast, non-small cell lung, and hepatocellular carcinomas, that could be rendered less or non-tumorigenic by ectopic expression of DLC-1. DLC-2 transcripts were detected in all cell lines, indicating that none of the cells were deficient in both members of the DLC family. This comparative expression analysis of DLC-1 and -2 identifies down-regulation of the two emerging bona fide tumor suppressor genes in additional types of solid tumors. The large spectrum of cancers with dysregulated DLC genes underlines the involvement of this family of genes in cancer development.