AP-1 transcriptional activity is stimulated by the transformation promoters phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate ("12-0-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate," TPA) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) in promotion-sensitive (P+) but not in promotion-resistant (P-) JB6 mouse epidermal cell lines. Although TPA stimulates expression of the jun and fos family genes, only c-jun expression shows higher elevation in P+ cells than in P-cells. The present study tests the hypothesis that induced AP-1 activity is required for tumor promoter-induced transformation in JB6 P+ cells. Both retinoic acid and the glucocorticoid fluocinolone acetonide inhibited basal and TPAinduced AP-1 activities that were tested with a stromelysin promoter-chloramphenicol acetyltransferase reporter gene in P+ cells. Since both retinoic acid and fluocinolone acetonide are active in inhibiting TPA-induced anchorage-independent transformation of P+ cells in the dose range that blocks TPA-induced AP-1 activity, their antipromoting effects may occur through inhibition of AP-1 activity. To test the hypothesis with a more specific inhibitor, stable clonal transfectants of P+ cells expressing dominant negative c-jun mutant encoding a transcriptionally inactive product were analyzed. All transfectants showed a block in TPA and EGF induction of AP-1 activity. All transfectants also showed inhibition of TPAinduced transformation, and most transfectants showed a block in EGF-induced transformation. These results indicate that AP-1 activity is required for TPA-or EGF-induced transformation. This work demonstrates that a specific block in induced AP-1 activity inhibits tumor promoter-induced transformation.Chemical carcinogenesis is a multistep process that includes initiation, promotion, and progression (1-4). While the initiation step is short-term and irreversible, tumor promotion is a long-term process that is partially reversible and requires chronic exposure to tumor promoter. The rate-limiting steps in multistage carcinogenesis occur during the promotion and progression phases. The JB6 mouse epidermal cell system of clonal genetic variants that are promotion sensitive (P+) or promotion resistant (P-) has enabled the study of genetic susceptibility to transformation promotion at the molecular level. In P+ JB6 cells phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate ("12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate," TPA) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) induce the irreversible formation of large, tumorigenic, anchorage-independent colonies in soft agar at a high frequency. In contrast, the P-cells exhibit a response in soft agar that is 0.1-1% that of P+ cells and the colonies are considerably smaller (5, 6).
The mitogen activated protein (MAP) kinases or extracellular signal-regulated kinases (Erks) are activated in response to Ras expression or exposure to tumor promoters or to growth factors, and have been implicated in AP-1 transactivation in some models. We have shown that tumor promoter induced activation of the transcription factor AP-1 is required for induced neoplastic transformation in the Balb/C JB6 cell model. Jun and Fos family protein levels have been found not to be limiting for AP-1 response. The present study asks whether activation of Erks1 and 2 is required for AP-1 transactivation and transformation of JB6 cells and whether Erks might be targeted for cancer prevention. Expression of either of two dierent dominant negative kinase inactive Erk2 mutants in transformation sensitive (P+) JB6 cells substantially inhibited the tumor promoter induced activation of Erks1 and 2 and of AP-1 measured by a collagenase-luciferase reporter. Multiple mutant Erk2 expressing clonal lines were also rendered non-responsive to induced neoplastic transformation. These observations, together with our recent ®nding attributing AP-1 non-responsiveness to Erk de®ciency in a clonal line of transformation resistant (P7) cells, argue for a requirement for Erks1 and/or 2 activation in AP-1 transactivation in the mouse JB6 neoplastic progression model, and suggest the utility of Erks as a prevention target.
We previously reported that induced activator protein-1 (AP-1) transcriptional activity appears to be required for tumor promoter-induced transformation in mouse epidermal JB6 cells. To extend this investigation to a keratinocyte culture model and a transgenic mouse model, we constructed K14TAM67, a keratin 14 promoter-controlled version of the dominant negative jun mutant to directly block AP-1 activity and possibly indirectly block NF kappa B activity in basal squamous epithelia. This study was directed at characterizing TAM67 expression and biological activity in the mouse cell line 308, a keratinocyte model for studying carcinogenesis. Cotransfection of K14TAM67 with luciferase plasmid reporter DNAs produced inhibition of basal and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced AP-1 and NF kappa B activity but had no effect on p53-dependent transcriptional activity. In an in vitro invasion assay, stable expression of TAM67 in 308 cells blocked TPA-induced Matrigel invasion. This suggests that blocking TPA-induced AP-1- or NF kappa B-regulated gene expression by TAM67 inhibits TPA-induced progression. Recombinant tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 1 reduced TPA-induced in vitro invasion, thus implicating metalloproteinases at least in part in the transcription factor-dependent process. Analysis of mRNA levels for members of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family, however, revealed that the expression of any single MMP family member did not correlate with regulation of AP-1 or NF kappa B activity. However, the combination of substantial levels of mRNA for stromelysin-1, stromelysin-2, collagenase, membrane type 1 MMP, and gelatinase A occurred only in TPA-treated cells in the absence of TAM67. These results suggest that the action of the dominant negative jun mutant on AP-1 and NF kappa B gene regulation results in complex alterations in the levels of downstream effector genes, such as the metalloproteinases, that effect TPA-induced cellular invasion.
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