Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29566768›Full record

ArticleBreast cancer research : BCR2018

Functional genomics identifies specific vulnerabilities in PTEN-deficient breast cancer.

Yew Chung Tang, Szu-Chi Ho, Elisabeth Tan, Alvin Wei Tian Ng, John R McPherson, Germaine Yen Lin Goh, Bin Tean Teh, Frederic Bard, Steven G Rozen

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Breast cancer research : BCR, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed
1.3field-weighted citation impact, top 20% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. NUAK: never underestimate a kinase.Essays in biochemistry · 2024
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Yew Chung TangProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
Szu-Chi HoProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
Elisabeth TanProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
Alvin Wei Tian NgProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
John R McPhersonProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
Germaine Yen Lin GohInstitute of Molecular and Cell Biology, 61 Biopolis Drive, Singapore, 138673, Singapore.
Bin Tean TehProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
Frederic BardInstitute of Molecular and Cell Biology, 61 Biopolis Drive, Singapore, 138673, Singapore.
Steven G RozenProgramme in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore. steve.rozen@duke-nus.edu.sg.
Duke-NUS Medical School · SGInstitute of Molecular and Cell Biology · SGNational Cancer Centre Singapore · SG

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPhosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) is one of the most frequently inactivated tumor suppressors in breast cancer. While PTEN itself is not considered a druggable target, PTEN synthetic-sick or synthetic-lethal (PTEN-SSL) genes are potential drug targets in PTEN-deficient breast cancers. Therefore, with the aim of identifying potential targets for precision breast cancer therapy, we sought to discover PTEN-SSL genes present in a broad spectrum of breast cancers.

methodsTo discover broad-spectrum PTEN-SSL genes in breast cancer, we used a multi-step approach that started with (1) a genome-wide short interfering RNA (siRNA) screen of ~ 21,000 genes in a pair of isogenic human mammary epithelial cell lines, followed by (2) a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) screen of ~ 1200 genes focused on hits from the first screen in a panel of 11 breast cancer cell lines; we then determined reproducibility of hits by (3) identification of overlaps between our results and reanalyzed data from 3 independent gene-essentiality screens, and finally, for selected candidate PTEN-SSL genes we (4) confirmed PTEN-SSL activity using either drug sensitivity experiments in a panel of 19 cell lines or mutual exclusivity analysis of publicly available pan-cancer somatic mutation data.

resultsThe screens (steps 1 and 2) and the reproducibility analysis (step 3) identified six candidate broad-spectrum PTEN-SSL genes (PIK3CB, ADAMTS20, AP1M2, HMMR, STK11, and NUAK1). PIK3CB was previously identified as PTEN-SSL, while the other five genes represent novel PTEN-SSL candidates. Confirmation studies (step 4) provided additional evidence that NUAK1 and STK11 have PTEN-SSL patterns of activity. Consistent with PTEN-SSL status, inhibition of the NUAK1 protein kinase by the small molecule drug HTH-01-015 selectively impaired viability in multiple PTEN-deficient breast cancer cell lines, while mutations affecting STK11 and PTEN were largely mutually exclusive across large pan-cancer data sets.

conclusionsSix genes showed PTEN-SSL patterns of activity in a large proportion of PTEN-deficient breast cancer cell lines and are potential specific vulnerabilities in PTEN-deficient breast cancer. Furthermore, the NUAK1 PTEN-SSL vulnerability identified by RNA interference techniques can be recapitulated and exploited using the small molecule kinase inhibitor HTH-01-015. Thus, NUAK1 inhibition may be an effective strategy for precision treatment of PTEN-deficient breast tumors.

Indexed as

AMP-Activated Protein Kinase KinasesBreast NeoplasmsCell Line, TumorFemaleGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticGenome, HumanGenomicsHumansMammary Glands, HumanNeoplasm ProteinsProtein KinasesProtein Serine-Threonine KinasesPTEN PhosphohydrolaseRepressor ProteinsRNA, Small InterferingSynthetic Lethal MutationsAMP-Activated Protein Kinase KinasesNeoplasm ProteinsNUAK1 protein, humanProtein KinasesProtein Serine-Threonine KinasesPTEN PhosphohydrolasePTEN protein, humanRepressor ProteinsRNA, Small InterferingSTK11 protein, humanBreast cancerLKB1NUAK1Precision medicinePTENSTK11Synthetic lethalitySynthetic sicknessTargeted cancer therapy

Identifiers

PMID29566768
PMCPMC5863852
OpenAlexW2792243488

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.