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The crosstalk between ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2Q1 and p53 in colorectal cancer: An in vitro analysis

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Abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a prevalent gastrointestinal neoplasm that ranks fourth in terms of cancer-related deaths worldwide. In the process of CRC progression, multiple ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes (E2s) are involved; UBE2Q1 is one of those newly identified E2s that is markedly expressed in human colorectal tumors. Since p53 is a well-known tumor suppressor and defined as a key factor to be targeted by the ubiquitin–proteasome system, we hypothesized that UBE2Q1 might contribute to CRC progression through the modulation of p53. Using the lipofection method, the cultured SW480 and LS180 cells were transfected with the UBE2Q1 ORF-containing pCMV6-AN-GFP vector. Then, quantitative RT-PCR was used to assay the mRNA expression levels of p53’s target genes, i.e., Mdm2, Bcl2, and Cyclin E. Moreover, Western blot analysis was performed to confirm the cellular overexpression of UBE2Q1 and assess the protein levels of p53, pre- and post-transfection. The expression of p53’s target genes were cell line-dependent except for Mdm2 that was consistent with the findings of p53. The results of Western blotting demonstrated that the protein levels of p53 were greatly lower in UBE2Q1-transfected SW480 cells compared to the control SW480 cells. However, the reduced levels of p53 protein were not remarkable in the transfected LS180 cells compared to the control cells. The suppression of p53 is believed to be the result of UBE2Q1-dependent ubiquitination and its subsequent proteasomal degradation. Furthermore, the ubiquitination of p53 can act as a signal for degradation-independent functions, such as nuclear export and suppressing the p53’s transcriptional activities. In this context, the decreased Mdm2 levels can moderate the proteasome-independent mono-ubiquitination of p53. The ubiquitinated p53 modulates the transcriptional levels of target genes. Therefore, the up-modulation of UBE2Q1 may influence the transcriptional activities depending on p53, and thereby contributes to CRC progression through regulating the p53.

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Data availability

All datasets analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This research has been extracted from the M. Sc. thesis of Maryam Rasouli and was supported by the Grant Number 93-05-29-7123 from the Vice-chancellor for Research Affairs of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

Funding

This study was supported by the Vice-chancellor for Research Affairs of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (Grant number: 93-05-29-7123).

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Author notes

  1. Maryam Rasouli and Sara Khakshournia have equally contributed to this study as first authors.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

    Maryam Rasouli, Sara Khakshournia & Atefeh Seghatoleslam

  2. Autophagy Research Center, Department of Clinical Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Zand Street, Shiraz, 71348-14336, Iran

    Sara Khakshournia, Omid Vakili & Sayed Mohammad Shafiee

  3. Department of Clinical Biochemistry, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

    Omid Vakili

  4. Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

    Sanaz Dastghaib

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  1. Maryam Rasouli
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Contributions

The authors declare that all data were generated in-house and that no paper mill was used. All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analyses were performed by MR, SK, OV, SD, and AS. The first draft of the manuscript was written by MR, SK, and OV, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. Supervision and project administration was conducted by SMS. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Sayed Mohammad Shafiee.

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Rasouli, M., Khakshournia, S., Vakili, O. et al. The crosstalk between ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2Q1 and p53 in colorectal cancer: An in vitro analysis. Med Oncol 40, 199 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-023-02039-0

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