Arsenic Alters Exosome Quantity and Cargo to Mediate Stem Cell Recruitment Into a Cancer Stem Cell-Like Phenotype

Toxicol Sci. 2018 Sep 1;165(1):40-49. doi: 10.1093/toxsci/kfy176.

Abstract

Inorganic arsenic is a human carcinogen that can target the prostate. Accumulating evidence suggests arsenic can disrupt stem cell (SC) dynamics during the carcinogenic process. Previous work demonstrated arsenic-transformed prostate epithelial (CAsE-PE) cells can recruit prostate SCs into rapidly acquiring a cancer SC (CSC) phenotype via the secretion of soluble factors. Exosomes are small, membrane-derived vesicles that contain lipids, RNA, and proteins, and actively contribute to cancer initiation and progression when taken up by target cells. Here we hypothesized that CAsE-PE cells are recruiting SCs to a CSC-like phenotype via exosomal signaling. CAsE-PE cells secreted 700% more exosomes than parental RWPE-1 cells. CAsE-PE exosomes were enriched with oncogenic factors, including oncogenes (KRAS, NRAS, VEFGA, MYB, and EGFR), inflammation-related (cyclooxygenase-2, interleukin 1B (IL1B), IL6, transforming growth factor-β, and tumor necrosis factor-A), and apoptosis-related (CASP7, CASP9, and BCL2) transcripts, and oncogenesis-associated microRNAs. When compared with SCs cultured in exosome-depleted conditioned medium (CM), SCs cultured in CM containing CAsE-PE-derived exosomes showed increased (198%) matrix metalloproteinase activity and underwent an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in morphology, suggesting an exosome-mediated transformation. KRAS plays an important role in arsenic carcinogenesis. Although KRAS transcript (>24 000%) and protein (866%) levels were elevated in CAsE-PE exosomes, knock-down of KRAS in these cells only partially mitigated the CSC-like phenotype in cocultured SCs. Collectively, these results suggest arsenic impacts both exosomal quantity and cargo. Exosomal KRAS is only minimally involved in this recruitment, and additional factors (eg, cancer-associated miRNAs) likely also play a role. This work furthers our mechanistic understanding of how arsenic disrupts SC dynamics and influences the tumor microenvironment during carcinogenesis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Arsenic / toxicity*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / drug effects*
  • Environmental Pollutants / toxicity*
  • Epithelial Cells / drug effects
  • Epithelial Cells / metabolism
  • Epithelial Cells / pathology
  • Exosomes / drug effects*
  • Exosomes / genetics
  • Exosomes / metabolism
  • Gene Expression / drug effects
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Neoplastic Stem Cells / drug effects*
  • Neoplastic Stem Cells / pathology
  • Prostate / drug effects*
  • Prostate / metabolism
  • Prostate / pathology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras) / genetics
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras) / metabolism
  • Signal Transduction

Substances

  • Environmental Pollutants
  • KRAS protein, human
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)
  • Arsenic