| 1. |
- Borenäs, Marcus, et al.
(författare)
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ALK ligand ALKAL2 potentiates MYCN-driven neuroblastoma in the absence of ALK mutation
- 2021
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Ingår i: EMBO Journal. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0261-4189 .- 1460-2075. ; 40:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- High‐risk neuroblastoma (NB) is responsible for a disproportionate number of childhood deaths due to cancer. One indicator of high‐risk NB is amplification of the neural MYC (MYCN) oncogene, which is currently therapeutically intractable. Identification of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) as an NB oncogene raised the possibility of using ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in treatment of patients with activating ALK mutations. 8–10% of primary NB patients are ALK‐positive, a figure that increases in the relapsed population. ALK is activated by the ALKAL2 ligand located on chromosome 2p, along with ALK and MYCN, in the “2p‐gain” region associated with NB. Dysregulation of ALK ligand in NB has not been addressed, although one of the first oncogenes described was v‐sis that shares > 90% homology with PDGF. Therefore, we tested whether ALKAL2 ligand could potentiate NB progression in the absence of ALK mutation. We show that ALKAL2 overexpression in mice drives ALK TKI‐sensitive NB in the absence of ALK mutation, suggesting that additional NB patients, such as those exhibiting 2p‐gain, may benefit from ALK TKI‐based therapeutic intervention.
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| 2. |
- Guan, Jikui, et al.
(författare)
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FAM150A and FAM150B are activating ligands for anaplastic lymphoma kinase
- 2015
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Ingår i: eLIFE. - Cambridge : eLife Sciences Publications. - 2050-084X. ; 4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aberrant activation of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) has been described in a range of human cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer and neuroblastoma (Hallberg and Palmer, 2013). Vertebrate ALK has been considered to be an orphan receptor and the identity of the ALK ligand(s) is a critical issue. Here we show that FAM150A and FAM150B are potent ligands for human ALK that bind to the extracellular domain of ALK and in addition to activation of wild-type ALK are able to drive 'superactivation' of activated ALK mutants from neuroblastoma. In conclusion, our data show that ALK is robustly activated by the FAM150A/B ligands and provide an opportunity to develop ALK-targeted therapies in situations where ALK is overexpressed/activated or mutated in the context of the full length receptor.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Mendoza-Garcia, Patricia, 1988-
(författare)
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Harnessing the power of model systems to investigate regulation of Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase function
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK), initially identified as a translocation partner in anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), has been described in a number of tumors such as neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is a neural crest derived malignancy of the sympathetic nervous system. Therefore, understanding regulation of ALK transcription and activity in the context of normal neural crest development might highlight abnormal events contributing to neuroblastoma initiation. The use of vertebrate model systems has been very important for studying in detail the pathways activated during neural crest development, their contribution to neuroblastoma and the identification of therapeutic targets.Using a yeast one-hybrid approach, we identified Odd-paired (Opa) as a potential transcription factor modulating Alk expression in the Drosophila visceral mesoderm (VM) (Paper I). Opa promotes Alk expression in the VM in combination with Bagpipe (Bap) and Biniou (Bin) through binding to the here identified AlkEB9 enhancer region.In a subsequent paper, we identified ALKAL1 and ALKAL2 as the activating ligands for the human ALK (Paper II). Using a combination of in vitro and cell culture assays we show that the ALKAL proteins can bind and activate human ALK. Moreover, ALKAL proteins can “super-activate” mutant ALK, highlighting a putative role for the ALKALs/ALK axis in neuroblastoma.The third paper shows in vivo evidence of ALKAL activity during zebrafish neural crest development (Paper III). We identified and characterized three zebrafish Alkal proteins and demonstrated their ability to activate human and zebrafish ALK family RTKs. Zebrafish Alkals activate the ALK-related receptor leukocyte tyrosine kinase (LTK) in the neural crest to promote iridophore development.In the last paper, we employed the DamID approach on the Drosophila VM and identified the transcription factor Kahuli (Kah) as an Alk transcriptional target in this tissue (Paper IV). We also addressed the in vivo iv Kah role during embryogenesis and showed that Kah is required for normal midgut invaginations and formation of the body wall musculature.Together, this thesis highlights the importance of ALK receptor signaling during development in vertebrate and invertebrate models. Further, it shows that ALKAL signaling via the activation of the ALK family receptors are involved in neural crest development.
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| 5. |
- Mendoza-Garcia, Patricia, 1988-, et al.
(författare)
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The Zic family homologue Odd-paired regulates Alk expression in Drosophila.
- 2017
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Ingår i: PLoS genetics. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1553-7404 .- 1553-7390. ; 13:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (Alk) receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) plays a critical role in the specification of founder cells (FCs) in the Drosophila visceral mesoderm (VM) during embryogenesis. Reporter gene and CRISPR/Cas9 deletion analysis reveals enhancer regions in and upstream of the Alk locus that influence tissue-specific expression in the amnioserosa (AS), the VM and the epidermis. By performing high throughput yeast one-hybrid screens (Y1H) with a library of Drosophila transcription factors (TFs) we identify Odd-paired (Opa), the Drosophila homologue of the vertebrate Zic family of TFs, as a novel regulator of embryonic Alk expression. Further characterization identifies evolutionarily conserved Opa-binding cis-regulatory motifs in one of the Alk associated enhancer elements. Employing Alk reporter lines as well as CRISPR/Cas9-mediated removal of regulatory elements in the Alk locus, we show modulation of Alk expression by Opa in the embryonic AS, epidermis and VM. In addition, we identify enhancer elements that integrate input from additional TFs, such as Binou (Bin) and Bagpipe (Bap), to regulate VM expression of Alk in a combinatorial manner. Taken together, our data show that the Opa zinc finger TF is a novel regulator of embryonic Alk expression.
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