Inhibition of Cell Proliferation through Regulated Intramembrane Proteolysis of CREB3L1

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2012-07-10

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CREB3L1/OASIS is a cellular transcription factor synthesized as a membrane- bound precursor and activated by regulated intramembrane proteolysis in response to stimuli like ER stress. By comparing gene expression between Huh7 subclones that are permissive for hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication versus the non-permissive parental Huh7 cells, we identified CREB3L1 as a host factor that inhibits proliferation of virus-infected cells. Upon infection with diverse DNA and RNA viruses, including murine gamma-herpesvirus 68, HCV, West Nile virus (WNV), and Sendai virus, CREB3L1 was proteolytically cleaved, allowing its NH2 terminus to enter the nucleus and induce multiple genes encoding inhibitors of the cell cycle to block cell proliferation. Consistent with this, we observed a necessity for CREB3L1 expression to be silenced in proliferating cells that harbor replicons of HCV or WNV. Our results indicate that CREB3L1 may play an important role in limiting virus spread by inhibiting proliferation of virus-infected cells.

Doxorubicin is used extensively for chemotherapy of diverse types of cancer, yet the mechanism through which it inhibits proliferation of cancer cells remains unclear. Here we report that doxorubicin stimulates de novo synthesis of ceramide, which in turn activates CREB3L1, a transcription factor synthesized as a membrane-bound precursor. Doxorubicin stimulates proteolytic cleavage of CREB3L1 by Site-1 Protease and Site-2 Protease, allowing the NH2-terminal domain of CREB3L1 to enter the nucleus where it activates transcription of genes encoding inhibitors of the cell cycle, including p21. Knockdown of CREB3L1 mRNA in human hepatoma Huh7 cells and immortalized human fibroblast SV589 cells conferred increased resistance to doxorubicin, whereas overexpression of CREB3L1 in human breast cancer MCF-7 cells markedly enhanced the sensitivity of these cells to doxorubicin. These results suggest that measurement of CREB3L1 expression may be a useful biomarker in identifying cancer cells sensitive to doxorubicin. [Keywords: CRE34, HCV, RIP, Doxorubicin, ceramide, myriocin, proliferation, virus, p21, collagen]

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