A Novel Physiological Glycosaminoglycan-Deficient Splice Variant of Neuropilin-1 Is Anti-Tumorigenic In Vitro and In Vivo

PLoS One. 2016 Oct 31;11(10):e0165153. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0165153. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Neuropilin-1 (NRP1) is a transmembrane protein acting as a co-receptor for several growth factors and interacting with other proteins such as integrins and plexins/semaphorins. It is involved in axonal development, angiogenesis and cancer progression. Its primary mRNA is subjected to alternative splicing mechanisms generating different isoforms, some of which lack the transmembrane domain and display antagonist properties to NRP1 full size (FS). NRP1 is further post-translationally modified by the addition of glycosaminoglycans (GAG) side chains through an O-glycosylation site at serine612. Here, we characterized a novel splice variant which has never been investigated, NRP1-Δ7, differing from the NRP1-FS by a deletion of 7 amino acids occurring two residues downstream of the O-glycosylation site. This short sequence contains two aspartic residues critical for efficient glycosylation. As expected, the high molecular weight products appearing as a smear in SDS-PAGE and reflecting the presence of GAG in NRP1-FS were undetectable in the NRP1-Δ7 protein. NRP1-Δ7 mRNA was found expressed at an appreciable level, between 10 and 30% of the total NRP1, by various cells lines and tissues from human and murine origin. To investigate the biological properties of this isoform, we generated prostatic (PC3) and breast (MDA-MB-231) cancer cells able to express recombinant NRP1-FS or NRP1-Δ7 in a doxycycline-inducible manner. Cells with increased expression of NRP1-Δ7 were characterized in vitro by a significant reduction of proliferation, migration and anchorage-independent growth, while NRP1-FS had the expected opposite "pro-tumoral" effects. Upon VEGF-A165 treatment, a lower internalization rate was observed for NRP1-Δ7 than for NRP1-FS. Finally, we showed that NRP1-Δ7 inhibited growth of prostatic tumors and their vascularization in vivo. This report identifies NRP1-Δ7 as a splice variant displaying anti-tumorigenic properties in vitro and in vivo, emphasizing the need to consider this isoform in future studies.

MeSH terms

  • Alternative Splicing*
  • Animals
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / genetics*
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / metabolism*
  • Gene Expression Regulation / drug effects
  • Glycosaminoglycans / deficiency*
  • Glycosylation
  • Heterografts
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Models, Animal
  • Neovascularization, Pathologic / genetics
  • Neuropilin-1 / genetics*
  • Organ Specificity / genetics
  • RNA, Messenger / genetics
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / pharmacology

Substances

  • Glycosaminoglycans
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
  • Neuropilin-1

Grants and funding

This work was supported by grants from the National Fund for Scientific Research, Belgium (F.N.R.S-Télévie, #7.4544.13F (CH) and #7.4546.15 (LB); http://www.fnrs.be/en/), from the Centre Anticancéreux of the University of Liège, Belgium (http://www.fondsleonfredericq.be/) and from Research Concerted Actions of the University of Liège (ARC, #10/15-02 (YD); https://www.ulg.ac.be/cms/c_337341/fr/actions-de-recherche-concertees-arc). AC is a Senior Research Associate and CD a Research Associate, both at the Belgian F.R.S.-FNRS. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.