DGCR8 is essential for tumor progression following PTEN loss in the prostate.
In human prostate cancer, the microRNA biogenesis machinery increases with prostate cancer progression. Here, we show that deletion of the Dgcr8 gene, a critical component of this complex, inhibits tumor progression in a Pten-knockout mouse model of prostate cancer. Early stages of tumor development were unaffected, but progression to advanced prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia was severely inhibited. Dgcr8 loss blocked Pten null-induced expansion of the basal-like, but not luminal, cellular compartment. Furthermore, while late-stage Pten knockout tumors exhibit decreased senescence-associated beta-galactosidase activity and increased proliferation, the simultaneous deletion of Dgcr8 blocked these changes resulting in levels similar to wild type. Sequencing of small RNAs in isolated epithelial cells uncovered numerous miRNA changes associated with PTEN loss. Consistent with a Pten-Dgcr8 association, analysis of a large cohort of human prostate tumors shows a strong correlation between Akt activation and increased Dgcr8 mRNA levels. Together, these findings uncover a critical role for microRNAs in enhancing proliferation and enabling the expansion of the basal cell compartment associated with tumor progression following Pten loss.
['Belair|Cassandra D|CD|', 'Paikari|Alireza|A|', 'Moltzahn|Felix|F|', 'Shenoy|Archana|A|', 'Yau|Christina|C|', "Dall'Era|Marc|M|", 'Simko|Jeff|J|', 'Benz|Christopher|C|', 'Blelloch|Robert|R|']
D000818:Animals D018450:Disease Progression D017353:Gene Deletion D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic D006801:Humans D008297:Male D051379:Mice D018345:Mice, Knockout D035683:MicroRNAs D051059:PTEN Phosphohydrolase D011467:Prostate D019048:Prostatic Intraepithelial Neoplasia D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins
DGCR8 PTEN prostate cancer microRNA microRNA biogenesis