BackgroundInflammatory breast cancer (IBC), a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer, is characterized by cancer stem cell (CSC) phenotype. Due to a lack of targeted therapies, the identification of molecular markers of IBC is of major importance. The heparan sulfate proteoglycan Syndecan-1 acts as a coreceptor for growth factors and chemokines, modulating inflammation, tumor progression, and cancer stemness, thus it may emerge as a molecular marker for IBC.MethodsWe characterized expression of Syndecan-1 and the CSC marker CD44, Notch-1 & -3 and EGFR in carcinoma tissues of triple negative IBC (n = 13) and non-IBC (n = 17) patients using qPCR and immunohistochemistry. Impact of siRNA-mediated Syndecan-1 knockdown on the CSC phenotype of the human triple negative IBC cell line SUM-149 and HER-2-overexpressing non-IBC SKBR3 cells employing qPCR, flow cytometry, Western blotting, secretome profiling and Notch pharmacological inhibition experiments. Data were statistically analyzed using Student’s t-test/Mann-Whitney U-test or one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s multiple comparison tests.ResultsOur data indicate upregulation and a significant positive correlation of Syndecan-1 with CD44 protein, and Notch-1 & -3 and EGFR mRNA in IBC vs non-IBC. ALDH1 activity and the CD44(+)CD24(-/low) subset as readout of a CSC phenotype were reduced upon Syndecan-1 knockdown. Functionally, Syndecan-1 silencing significantly reduced 3D spheroid and colony formation. Intriguingly, qPCR results indicate downregulation of the IL-6, IL-8, CCL20, gp130 and EGFR mRNA upon Syndecan-1 suppression in both cell lines. Moreover, Syndecan-1 silencing significantly downregulated Notch-1, -3, -4 and Hey-1 in SUM-149 cells, and downregulated only Notch-3 and Gli-1 mRNA in SKBR3 cells. Secretome profiling unveiled reduced IL-6, IL-8, GRO-alpha and GRO a/b/g cytokines in conditioned media of Syndecan-1 knockdown SUM-149 cells compared to controls. The constitutively activated STAT3 and NFκB, and expression of gp130, Notch-1 & -2, and EGFR proteins were suppressed upon Syndecan-1 ablation. Mechanistically, gamma-secretase inhibition experiments suggested that Syndecan-1 may regulate the expression of IL-6, IL-8, gp130, Hey-1, EGFR and p-Akt via Notch signaling.ConclusionsSyndecan-1 acts as a novel tissue biomarker and a modulator of CSC phenotype of triple negative IBC via the IL-6/STAT3, Notch and EGFR signaling pathways, thus emerging as a promising therapeutic target for IBC.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12943-017-0621-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Syndecan-1 is a cell surface heparan sulfate proteoglycan with various biological functions relevant to tumor progression and inflammation, including cell-cell adhesion, cell-matrix interaction, and cytokine signaling driving cell proliferation and motility. Syndecan-1 is a prognostic factor in breast cancer, and has a predicitive value for neodadjuvant chemotherapy. It is still poorly understood how syndecan-1 integrates matrix-dependent and cytokine-dependent signaling processes in the tumor microenvironment. Here, we evaluated the potential role of syndecan-1 in modulating matrix-dependent breast cancer cell migration in the presence of interleukin-6, and its potential involvement in resistance to irradiation in vitro. MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells were transiently transfected with syndecan-1 small interfering RNA or control reagents, and this was followed by stimulation with interleukin-6 or irradiation. Cellular responses were monitored by adhesion, migration and colony formation assays, as well as analysis of cell signaling. Syndecan-1 depletion increased cell adhesion to fibronectin. Increased migration on fibronectin was significantly suppressed by interleukin-6, and GRGDSP peptides inhibited both adhesion and migration. Interleukin-6-induced activation of focal adhesion kinase and reduction of constitutive nuclear factor kappaB signaling were decreased in syndecan-1-deficient cells. Focal adhesion kinase hyperactivation in syndecan-1-depleted cells was associated with dramatically reduced radiation sensitivity. We conclude that loss of syndecan-1 leads to enhanced activation of b 1 -integrins and focal adhesion kinase, thus increasing breast cancer cell adhesion, migration, and resistance to irradiation. Syndecan-1 deficiency also attenuates the modulatory effect of the inflammatory microenvironment constituent interleukin-6 on cancer cell migration.

Syndecan-1 (CD138), a heparan sulfate proteoglycan, acts as a coreceptor for growth factors and chemokines and is a molecular marker associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition during development and carcinogenesis. Resistance of Syndecan-1-deficient mice to experimentally-induced tumorigenesis has been linked to altered Wnt-responsive precursor cell pools, suggesting a potential role of Syndecan-1 in breast cancer cell stem function. However, the precise molecular mechanism is still elusive. Here, we decipher the functional impact of Syndecan-1 knockdown using RNA interference on the breast cancer stem cell phenotype of human triple-negative MDA-MB-231 and hormone receptor-positive MCF-7 cells in vitro employing an analytical flow cytometric approach. Successful Syndecan-1 siRNA knockdown was confirmed by flow cytometry. Side population measurement by Hoechst dye exclusion and Aldehyde dehydrogenase-1 activity revealed that Syndecan-1 knockdown in MDA-MB-231 cells significantly reduced putative cancer stem cell pools by 60% and 27%, respectively, compared to controls. In MCF-7 cells, Syndecan-1 depletion reduced the side population by 40% and Aldehyde dehydrogenase-1 by 50%, repectively. In MDA-MB-231 cells, the CD44(+)CD24(-/low) phenotype decreased significantly by 6% upon siRNA-mediated Syndecan-1 depletion. Intriguingly, IL-6, its receptor sIL-6R, and the chemokine CCL20, implicated in regulating stemness-associated pathways, were downregulated by >40% in Syndecan-1-silenced MDA-MB-231 cells, which showed a dysregulated response to IL-6-induced shifts in E-cadherin and vimentin expression. Furthermore, activation of STAT-3 and NFkB transcription factors and expression of a coreceptor for Wnt signaling, LRP-6, were reduced by >45% in Syndecan-1-depleted cells compared to controls. At the functional level, Syndecan-1 siRNA reduced the formation of spheres and cysts in MCF-7 cells grown in suspension culture. Our study demonstrates the viability of flow cytometric approaches in analyzing cancer stem cell function. As Syndecan-1 modulates the cancer stem cell phenotype via regulation of the Wnt and IL-6/STAT3 signaling pathways, it emerges as a promising novel target for therapeutic approaches.

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MicroRNAs are small noncoding RNAs acting as physiological regulators of gene expression at the post‐transcriptional level. In cancer, the expression of microRNAs is dysregulated compared to healthy tissue, suggesting a mechanistic role in disease progression. Recent experimental evidence supports the important molecular role of proteoglycans as microRNA targets in this process. Misexpression of specific microRNAs results in aberrant expression patterns of proteoglycans, as well as their biosynthetic enzymes. Consequently, cell proliferation and apoptosis, adhesion, migration, invasiveness, epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition and cancer stem cell properties are affected as a result of the multifunctional properties of proteoglycans. A pharmacological targeting of the microRNA–proteoglycan axis emerges as a new therapeutic concept in cancer.

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