RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 ST6GAL1 sialyltransferase promotes acinar to ductal metaplasia and pancreatic cancer progression
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2022.04.28.489561
DO 10.1101/2022.04.28.489561
A1 Asmi Chakraborty
A1 Nikita Bhalerao
A1 Michael P. Marciel
A1 Jihye Hwang
A1 Colleen M. Britain
A1 Isam E. Eltoum
A1 Robert B. Jones
A1 Katie L. Alexander
A1 Lesley E. Smythies
A1 Phillip D. Smith
A1 David K. Crossman
A1 Michael R. Crowley
A1 Boyoung Shin
A1 Laurie E. Harrington
A1 Zhaoqi Yan
A1 Maigen M. Bethea
A1 Chad S. Hunter
A1 Christopher A. Klug
A1 Donald J. Buchsbaum
A1 Susan L. Bellis
YR 2022
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2022/04/28/2022.04.28.489561.abstract
AB The role of aberrant glycosylation in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains an under-investigated area of research. In this study, we determined that the ST6GAL1 sialyltransferase, which adds α2,6-linked sialic acids to N-glycosylated proteins, is upregulated in patients with early-stage PDAC, and further increased in advanced disease. A tumor-promoting function for ST6GAL1 was elucidated using tumor xenograft models with human PDAC cells. Additionally, we developed a genetically-engineered mouse (GEM) with transgenic expression of ST6GAL1 in the pancreas, and found that mice with dual expression of ST6GAL1 and oncogenic KRASG12D have greatly accelerated PDAC progression and mortality compared with mice expressing KRASG12D alone. As ST6GAL1 imparts progenitor-like characteristics, we interrogated ST6GAL1’s role in acinar to ductal metaplasia (ADM), a process that fosters neoplasia by reprogramming acinar cells into ductal, progenitor-like cells. We confirmed that ST6GAL1 promotes ADM using multiple models including the 266-6 cell line, GEM-derived organoids and tissues, and an in vivo model of inflammation-induced ADM. EGFR is a key driver of ADM and is known to be activated by ST6GAL1-mediated sialylation. Importantly, EGFR activation was dramatically increased in acinar cells and organoids from mice with transgenic ST6GAL1 expression. These collective results highlight a novel glycosylation-dependent mechanism involved in early stages of pancreatic neoplasia.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.