The 40S ribosomal S6 kinase 1 (S6K1) is an important regulator of cell growth. Expression of S6K1 is often elevated in breast cancer cells. However, the transcriptional mechanism of S6K1 overexpression is not understood. In this report, we demonstrate that estrogen activates expression of S6K1 via Estrogen Receptor (ER) α in ER-positive breast cancer cells. We also show that estrogen acts on the proximal promoter of the S6K1 gene in a mechanism involving the transcriptional factor GATA-3. Finally, we provide data that support the importance of estrogenic regulation of S6K1 expression in breast cancer cell proliferation. S6K1 directly phosphorylates and regulates ligand-independent activity of ERα, while ERα upregulates S6K1 expression. This S6K1-ERα relationship creates a positive feed-forward loop in control of breast cancer cell proliferation. Furthermore, the co-dependent association between S6K1 and ERα may be exploited in the development of targeted breast cancer therapies.
ERα mediates the proliferative effects of estrogen and represents an important clinical target in treatment of breast cancer. Tamoxifen is an anti-estrogen that has become the standard agent for the treatment of ER-positive breast cancer, where it acts as an antagonist. However, resistance to tamoxifen, and other endocrine or anti-estrogen therapies develops in many cases. One mechanism by which resistance develops is through phosphorylation of ERα, allowing it to act in estrogen-independent manner. Phosphorylation of Ser118 and Ser167 is important for transcriptional activity of ERα. The regulation of these sites is complex, involving inputs from the mTOR and MAPK signaling pathways. Importantly, ERα phosphorylation correlates with resistance to tamoxifen, and is a prognostic marker for disease progression and survival. Thus, the mechanism of these phosphorylation events, as well as the identity of the kinases responsible may have important clinical consequences. In this study we demonstrate that the mTOR/S6K1 pathway controls activation of ERα by phopshorylating it on these two critical residues. Chromosomal region 17q23 containing the RPS6KB1 gene is frequently amplified in breast cancer cells, and S6K1 is overexpressed in about 30% of cases. Overexpression of S6K1 correlates with increased rapamycin sensitivity. The role of S6K1 in disease development and progression is supported by the observation that S6K1 overexpression is associated with poor prognosis in breast cancer patients. However, the reason for high-level amplification of the RPS6KB1 gene specifically in breast cancer, and not other cancer types is not well understood. In this study, we demonstrate that in response to estrogen activation, ERα activates expression of S6K1 by upregulating transcription of the RPS6KB1 gene. Increased levels of S6K1 promote further phosphorylation and activation of ERα, creating a positive feed-forward loop. We hypothesize that this relationship promotes breast cancer cell growth, thus providing a selective advantage to S6K1- and ERα-overexpressing cells. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2894. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-2894
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