Targeted expression of suicide gene by tissue-specific promoter and microRNA regulation for cancer gene therapy

PLoS One. 2013 Dec 31;8(12):e83398. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0083398. eCollection 2013.

Abstract

In order to realise the full potential of cancer suicide gene therapy that allows the precise expression of suicide gene in cancer cells, we used a tissue specific Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) promoter (EGP-2) that directs transgene Herpes simplex virus-thymidine kinase (HSV-TK) expression preferentially in EpCAM over expressing cancer cells. EpCAM levels are considerably higher in retinoblastoma (RB), a childhood eye cancer with limited expression in normal cells. Use of miRNA regulation, adjacent to the use of the tissue-specific promoter, would provide the second layer of control to the transgene expression only in the tumor cells while sparing the normal cells. To test this hypothesis we cloned let-7b miRNA targets in the 3'UTR region of HSV-TK suicide gene driven by EpCAM promoter because let-7 family miRNAs, including let-7b, were found to be down regulated in the RB tumors and cell lines. We used EpCAM over expressing and let-7 down regulated RB cell lines Y79, WERI-Rb1 (EpCAM (+ve)/let-7b(down-regulated)), EpCAM down regulated, let-7 over expressing normal retinal Müller glial cell line MIO-M1(EpCAM (-ve)/let-7b(up-regulated)), and EpCAM up regulated, let-7b up-regulated normal thyroid cell line N-Thy-Ori-3.1(EpCAM (+ve)/let-7b(up-regulated)) in the study. The cell proliferation was measured by MTT assay, apoptosis was measured by probing cleaved Caspase3, EpCAM and TK expression were quantified by Western blot. Our results showed that the EGP2-promoter HSV-TK (EGP2-TK) construct with 2 or 4 copies of let-7b miRNA targets expressed TK gene only in Y79, WERI-Rb-1, while the TK gene did not express in MIO-M1. In summary, we have developed a tissue-specific, miRNA-regulated dual control vector, which selectively expresses the suicide gene in EpCAM over expressing cells.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antigens, Neoplasm / genetics
  • Breast Neoplasms / genetics
  • Breast Neoplasms / pathology
  • Breast Neoplasms / therapy
  • Cell Adhesion Molecules / genetics
  • Cell Death / drug effects
  • Cell Death / genetics
  • Cell Line
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Ependymoglial Cells / metabolism
  • Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule
  • Eye Neoplasms / genetics*
  • Eye Neoplasms / pathology
  • Eye Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Female
  • Ganciclovir / pharmacology
  • Gene Expression
  • Gene Targeting / methods
  • Genes, Transgenic, Suicide*
  • Genetic Therapy / methods*
  • Humans
  • MCF-7 Cells
  • MicroRNAs / genetics*
  • Middle Aged
  • Promoter Regions, Genetic
  • RNA, Neoplasm / genetics
  • Retinoblastoma / genetics*
  • Retinoblastoma / pathology
  • Retinoblastoma / therapy*
  • Simplexvirus / enzymology
  • Simplexvirus / genetics
  • Thymidine Kinase / genetics
  • Tissue Distribution

Substances

  • Antigens, Neoplasm
  • Cell Adhesion Molecules
  • EPCAM protein, human
  • Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule
  • MicroRNAs
  • RNA, Neoplasm
  • mirnlet7 microRNA, human
  • Thymidine Kinase
  • Ganciclovir

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Indian Council of Medical Research, Grant no 35/6/2010/-BMS Nano for performing cloning, transfection, and functional analysis. In part this work was supported by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, Grant no BT/01/CE1B/11/V/16 for performing the let-7miRNA family profile. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.