FOXM1 mediates Dox resistance in breast cancer by enhancing DNA repair

Abstract

Transcription factors are direct effectors of altered signaling pathways in cancer and frequently determine clinical outcomes in cancer patients. To uncover new transcription factors that would determine clinical outcomes in breast cancer, we systematically analyzed gene expression data from breast cancer patients. Our results revealed that Forkhead box protein M1 (FOXM1) is the top-ranked survival-associated transcription factor in patients with triple-negative breast cancer. Surprisingly, silencing FOXM1 expression led breast cancer cells to become more sensitive to doxorubicin (Dox). We found that FOXM1-dependent resistance to Dox is mediated by regulating DNA repair genes. We further demonstrated that NFκB1 interacts with FOXM1 in the presence of Dox to protect breast cancer cells from DNA damage. Finally, silencing FOXM1 expression in breast cancer cells in a mouse xenograft model significantly sensitized the cells to Dox. Our systematic approaches identified an unexpected role of FOXM1 in Dox resistance by regulating DNA repair genes, and our findings provide mechanistic insights into how FOXM1 mediates resistance to Dox and evidence that FOXM1 may be a promising therapeutic target for sensitizing breast cancer cells to Dox.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
May 10, 2012
Source ID
10.1093/carcin/bgs167

Entities

People

  • Anil K. Sood
  • Cristian Rodriguez-Aguayo
  • Gabriel Lopez-berestein
  • Guang Peng
  • Ju-Seog Lee
  • Kyounghyun Kim
  • Nicholas B. Jennings
  • Sang Bae Kim
  • Se-ran Lee
  • Shiaw-Yih Lin
  • Sun-hee Leem
  • Sung Yun Jung
  • Yun-yong Park

Organizations

  • Baylor College of Medicine
  • Dong-A University
  • National Institutes of Health
  • Texas A&M University
  • United States Department of Defense
  • University of Texas at Austin

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology
  • Medicine

Readers

  • Breast cancer cell signaling and growth regulation.
  • Molecular and genetic basis of cancer.
  • Oncology (Cancer Research).

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology
  • Biotechnology - Cancer Biotech