Correlative clinical evidence and experimental observations indicate that integrin adhesion receptors, in particular those of the αV family, are relevant to cancer cell features, including proliferation, survival, migration, invasion, and metastasis. In addition, integrins promote events in the tumor microenvironment that are critical for tumor progression and metastasis, including tumor angiogenesis, matrix remodeling, and the recruitment of immune and inflammatory cells. In spite of compelling preclinical results demonstrating that the inhibition of integrin αVβ3/αVβ5 and α5β1 has therapeutic potential, clinical trials with integrin inhibitors targeting those integrins have repeatedly failed to demonstrate therapeutic benefits in cancer patients. Here, we review emerging integrin functions and their proposed contribution to tumor progression, discuss preclinical evidence of therapeutic significance, revisit clinical trial results, and consider alternative approaches for their therapeutic targeting in oncology, including targeting integrins in the other cells of the tumor microenvironment, e.g., cancer-associated fibroblasts and immune/inflammatory cells. We conclude that integrins remain a valid target for cancer therapy; however, agents with better pharmacological properties, alternative models for their preclinical evaluation, and innovative combination strategies for clinical testing (e.g., together with immuno-oncology agents) are needed.

Fluid shear stress stimulates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activation and nitric oxide (NO) production through multiple kinases, including protein kinase A (PKA), AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), AKT and Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII). Membrane-associated guanylate kinase (MAGUK) with inverted domain structure-1 (MAGI1) is an adaptor protein that stabilizes epithelial and endothelial cell-cell contacts. The aim of this study was to assess the unknown role of endothelial cell MAGI1 in response to fluid shear stress. We show constitutive expression and co-localization of MAGI1 with vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin) in endothelial cells at cellular junctions under static and laminar flow conditions. Fluid shear stress increases MAGI1 expression. MAGI1 silencing perturbed flow-dependent responses, specifically, Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) expression, endothelial cell alignment, eNOS phosphorylation and NO production. MAGI1 overexpression had opposite effects and induced phosphorylation of PKA, AMPK, and CAMKII. Pharmacological inhibition of PKA and AMPK prevented MAGI1-mediated eNOS phosphorylation. Consistently, MAGI1 silencing and PKA inhibition suppressed the flow-induced NO production. Endothelial cell-specific transgenic expression of MAGI1 induced PKA and eNOS phosphorylation in vivo and increased NO production ex vivo in isolated endothelial cells. In conclusion, we have identified endothelial cell MAGI1 as a previously unrecognized mediator of fluid shear stress-induced and PKA/AMPK dependent eNOS activation and NO production.

Membrane-associated guanylate kinase (MAGUK) with inverted domain structure-1 (MAGI1) is an intracellular adaptor protein that stabilizes epithelial junctions consistent with a tumor suppressive function in several cancers of epithelial origin. Here we report, based on experimental results and human breast cancer (BC) patients’ gene expression data, that MAGI1 is highly expressed and acts as tumor suppressor in estrogen receptor (ER)+/HER2− but not in HER2+ or triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). Within the ER+/HER2− subset, high MAGI1 expression associates with ESR1 and luminal genes GATA3 and FOXA1 expression and better prognosis, while low MAGI1 levels correlates with higher histological grade, more aggressive phenotype and worse prognosis. Experimentally, MAGI1 downregulation in the ER+ human BC cells MCF7 impairs ER expression and signaling, promotes cell proliferation, and reduces apoptosis and epithelial differentiation. MAGI1 downregulation in the ER+ murine BC cell line 67NR accelerates primary tumor growth and enhances experimental lung metastasis formation. MAGI1 expression is upregulated by estrogen/ER, downregulated by prostaglandin E2/COX-2axis, and negatively correlates with inflammation in ER+/HER2− BC patients. Taken together, we show that MAGI1 is a new potential tumor suppressor in ER+/HER2− breast cancer with possible prognostic value for the identification of patients at high-risk of relapse within this subset.

MAGI1 is an intracellular adaptor protein that stabilizes cell junctions and regulates epithelial and endothelial integrity. Here, we report that that in endothelial cells MAGI1 colocalizes with paxillin, β3-integrin, talin 1, tensin 3 and α-4-actinin at mature focal adhesions and actin stress fibers, and regulates their dynamics. Downregulation of MAGI1 reduces focal adhesion formation and maturation, cell spreading, actin stress fiber formation and RhoA/Rac1 activation. MAGI1 silencing increases phosphorylation of paxillin at Y118, an indicator of focal adhesion turnover. MAGI1 promotes integrin-dependent endothelial cells adhesion to ECM, reduces invasion and tubulogenesisin vitro and suppresses angiogenesis in vivo. Our results identify MAGI1 as anovel component of focal adhesions, and regulator of focal adhesion dynamics, cell adhesion, invasion and angiogenesis.