Renalase expression by melanoma and tumor associated-macrophages promotes tumor growth through a STAT3-mediated mechanism
Menée in vitro et in vivo, cette étude met en évidence des mécanismes par lesquels, lorsqu'elle est sécrétée par les cellules de mélanome et les macrophages associés aux tumeurs, une flavoprotéine favorise la croissance tumorale
To sustain their proliferation cancer cells overcome negative-acting signals that restrain their growth and promote senescence and cell death. Renalase (RNLS) is a secreted flavoprotein that functions as a survival factor after ischemic and toxic injury, signaling through the plasma calcium channel PMCA4b to activate the PI3K/AKT and MAPK pathways. We show that RNLS expression is increased markedly in primary melanomas and CD163+ tumor associated macrophages (TAM). In clinical specimens, RNLS expression in the tumor correlated inversely with disease-specific survival, suggesitng a pathogenic role for RNLS. Attenuation of RNLS by RNAi, blocking antibodies or an RNLS-derived inhibitory peptide decreased melanoma cell survival, and anti-RNLS therapy blocked tumor growth in vivo in murine xenograft assays. Mechanistic investigations showed that increased apoptosis in tumor cells was temporally related to p38 MAPK-mediated Bax activation and that increased cell growth arrest was associated with elevated expression of the cell cycle inhibitor p21. Overall, our results established a role for the secreted flavoprotein RNLS in promoting melanoma cell growth and CD163+ TAM in the tumor microenvironment, with potential therapeutic implications for the management of melanoma.