@article{WuenschRiesHeinzelmannetal.2023, author = {W{\"u}nsch, Anna Chiara and Ries, Elena and Heinzelmann, Sina and Frabschka, Andrea and Wagner, Peter Christoph and Rauch, Theresa and Koderer, Corinna and El-Mesery, Mohamed and Volland, Julian Manuel and K{\"u}bler, Alexander Christian and Hartmann, Stefan and Seher, Axel}, title = {Metabolic silencing via methionine-based amino acid restriction in head and neck cancer}, series = {Current Issues in Molecular Biology}, volume = {45}, journal = {Current Issues in Molecular Biology}, number = {6}, issn = {1467-3045}, doi = {10.3390/cimb45060289}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-319257}, pages = {4557 -- 4573}, year = {2023}, abstract = {In recent years, various forms of caloric restriction (CR) and amino acid or protein restriction (AAR or PR) have shown not only success in preventing age-associated diseases, such as type II diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, but also potential for cancer therapy. These strategies not only reprogram metabolism to low-energy metabolism (LEM), which is disadvantageous for neoplastic cells, but also significantly inhibit proliferation. Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is one of the most common tumour types, with over 600,000 new cases diagnosed annually worldwide. With a 5-year survival rate of approximately 55\%, the poor prognosis has not improved despite extensive research and new adjuvant therapies. Therefore, for the first time, we analysed the potential of methionine restriction (MetR) in selected HNSCC cell lines. We investigated the influence of MetR on cell proliferation and vitality, the compensation for MetR by homocysteine, the gene regulation of different amino acid transporters, and the influence of cisplatin on cell proliferation in different HNSCC cell lines.}, language = {en} } @article{BoschertTeuschAljasemetal.2020, author = {Boschert, Verena and Teusch, Jonas and Aljasem, Anwar and Schmucker, Philipp and Klenk, Nicola and Straub, Anton and Bittrich, Max and Seher, Axel and Linz, Christian and M{\"u}ller-Richter, Urs D. A. and Hartmann, Stefan}, title = {HGF-induced PD-L1 expression in head and neck cancer: preclinical and clinical findings}, series = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, volume = {21}, journal = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, number = {20}, issn = {1422-0067}, doi = {10.3390/ijms21228770}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-236220}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a widespread disease with a low survival rate and a high risk of recurrence. Nowadays, immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) treatment is approved for HNSCC as a first-line treatment in recurrent and metastatic disease. ICI treatment yields a clear survival benefit, but overall response rates are still unsatisfactory. As shown in different cancer models, hepatocyte growth factor/mesenchymal-epithelial transition (HGF/Met) signaling contributes to an immunosuppressive microenvironment. Therefore, we investigated the relationship between HGF and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-L1) expression in HNSCC cell lines. The preclinical data show a robust PD-L1 induction upon HGF stimulation. Further analysis revealed that the HGF-mediated upregulation of PD-L1 is MAP kinase-dependent. We then hypothesized that serum levels of HGF and soluble programmed cell death protein 1 (sPD-L1) could be potential markers of ICI treatment failure. Thus, we determined serum levels of these proteins in 20 HNSCC patients before ICI treatment and correlated them with treatment outcomes. Importantly, the clinical data showed a positive correlation of both serum proteins (HGF and sPD-L1) in HNSCC patient's sera. Moreover, the serum concentration of sPD-L1 was significantly higher in ICI non-responsive patients. Our findings indicate a potential role for sPD-L1 as a prognostic marker for ICI treatment in HNSCC.}, language = {en} } @article{BoschertKlenkAbtetal.2020, author = {Boschert, Verena and Klenk, Nicola and Abt, Alexander and Raman, Sudha Janaki and Fischer, Markus and Brands, Roman C. and Seher, Axel and Linz, Christian and M{\"u}ller-Richter, Urs D. A. and Bischler, Thorsten and Hartmann, Stefan}, title = {The influence of Met receptor level on HGF-induced glycolytic reprogramming in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma}, series = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, volume = {21}, journal = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, number = {2}, issn = {1422-0067}, doi = {10.3390/ijms21020471}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-235995}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is known to overexpress a variety of receptor tyrosine kinases, such as the HGF receptor Met. Like other malignancies, HNSCC involves a mutual interaction between the tumor cells and surrounding tissues and cells. We hypothesized that activation of HGF/Met signaling in HNSCC influences glucose metabolism and therefore substantially changes the tumor microenvironment. To determine the effect of HGF, we submitted three established HNSCC cell lines to mRNA sequencing. Dynamic changes in glucose metabolism were measured in real time by an extracellular flux analyzer. As expected, the cell lines exhibited different levels of Met and responded differently to HGF stimulation. As confirmed by mRNA sequencing, the level of Met expression was associated with the number of upregulated HGF-dependent genes. Overall, Met stimulation by HGF leads to increased glycolysis, presumably mediated by higher expression of three key enzymes of glycolysis. These effects appear to be stronger in Met\(^{high}\)-expressing HNSCC cells. Collectively, our data support the hypothesized role of HGF/Met signaling in metabolic reprogramming of HNSCC.}, language = {en} } @article{ScheurerBrandsElMeseryetal.2019, author = {Scheurer, Mario Joachim Johannes and Brands, Roman Camillus and El-Mesery, Mohamed and Hartmann, Stefan and M{\"u}ller-Richter, Urs Dietmar Achim and K{\"u}bler, Alexander Christian and Seher, Axel}, title = {The selection of NFκB inhibitors to block inflammation and induce sensitisation to FasL-induced apoptosis in HNSCC cell lines is critical for their use as a prospective cancer therapy}, series = {International Journal of Molecular Science}, volume = {20}, journal = {International Journal of Molecular Science}, number = {6}, issn = {1422-0067}, doi = {10.3390/ijms20061306}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-201524}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Inflammation is a central aspect of tumour biology and can contribute significantly to both the origination and progression of tumours. The NFκB pathway is one of the most important signal transduction pathways in inflammation and is, therefore, an excellent target for cancer therapy. In this work, we examined the influence of four NFκB inhibitors — Cortisol, MLN4924, QNZ and TPCA1 — on proliferation, inflammation and sensitisation to apoptosis mediated by the death ligand FasL in the HNSCC cell lines PCI1, PCI9, PCI13, PCI52 and SCC25 and in the human dermal keratinocyte cell line HaCaT. We found that the selection of the inhibitor is critical to ensure that cells do not respond by inducing counteracting activities in the context of cancer therapy, e.g., the extreme IL-8 induction mediated by MLN4924 or FasL resistance mediated by Cortisol. However, TPCA1 was qualified by this in vitro study as an excellent therapeutic mediator in HNSCC by four positive qualities: (1) proliferation was inhibited at low μM-range concentrations; (2) TNFα-induced IL-8 secretion was blocked; (3) HNSCC cells were sensitized to TNFα-induced cell death; and (4) FasL-mediated apoptosis was not disrupted.}, language = {en} }