Identification of an integrated SV40 T/t-antigen cancer signature in aggressive human breast, prostate, and lung carcinomas with poor prognosis

• Published in: Cancer research (Chicago, Ill.) Vol. 67; no. 17; pp. 8065 - 8080
• Main Authors: DEEB, Kristin K, MICHALOWSKA, Aleksandra M, LEE, Eva Y. H. P, MEDINA, Daniel, SHIH, Joanna H, GREEN, Jeffrey E, YOON, Cheol-Yong, KRUMMEY, Scott M, HOENERHOFF, Mark J, KAVANAUGH, Claudine, LI, Ming-Chung, DEMAYO, Francesco J, LINNOILA, Ilona, DENG, Chu-Xia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia, PA American Association for Cancer Research 01-09-2007
• Subjects: Animals; Antigens, Polyomavirus Transforming - genetics; Antineoplastic agents; Biological and medical sciences; Breast Neoplasms - diagnosis; Breast Neoplasms - genetics; Breast Neoplasms - pathology; Carcinoma - diagnosis; Carcinoma - genetics; Carcinoma - pathology; Cluster Analysis; Female; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Gene Regulatory Networks; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Humans; Lung Neoplasms - diagnosis; Lung Neoplasms - genetics; Lung Neoplasms - pathology; Male; Male genital diseases; Mammary Neoplasms, Animal - diagnosis; Mammary Neoplasms, Animal - genetics; Mammary Neoplasms, Animal - pathology; Medical sciences; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mice, Transgenic; Nephrology. Urinary tract diseases; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Prognosis; Prostatic Neoplasms - diagnosis; Prostatic Neoplasms - genetics; Prostatic Neoplasms - pathology; Simian virus 40; Tumors; Tumors of the urinary system; Urinary tract. Prostate gland; Human; Lung disease; Prostate carcinoma; Urinary system disease; Prognosis; Prostate disease; Respiratory disease; Lung cancer; Polyomavirus; Papovaviridae; Malignant tumor; Simian virus 40; Bronchopulmonary carcinoma; Bronchopulmonary; Virus; Bronchus disease; Mammary gland; Male genital diseases; T antigen; Prostate cancer; High malignancy
• ISSN: 0008-5472; 1538-7445
• DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-07-1515

Understanding the genetic architecture of cancer pathways that distinguishes subsets of human cancer is critical to developing new therapies that better target tumors based on their molecular expression profiles. In this study, we identify an integrated gene signature from multiple transgenic models of epithelial cancers intrinsic to the functions of the Simian virus 40 T/t-antigens that is associated with the biological behavior and prognosis for several human epithelial tumors. This genetic signature, composed primarily of genes regulating cell replication, proliferation, DNA repair, and apoptosis, is not a general cancer signature. Rather, it is uniquely activated primarily in tumors with aberrant p53, Rb, or BRCA1 expression but not in tumors initiated through the overexpression of myc, ras, her2/neu, or polyoma middle T oncogenes. Importantly, human breast, lung, and prostate tumors expressing this set of genes represent subsets of tumors with the most aggressive phenotype and with poor prognosis. The T/t-antigen signature is highly predictive of human breast cancer prognosis. Because this class of epithelial tumors is generally intractable to currently existing standard therapies, this genetic signature identifies potential targets for novel therapies directed against these lethal forms of cancer. Because these genetic targets have been discovered using mammary, prostate, and lung T/t-antigen mouse cancer models, these models are rationale candidates for use in preclinical testing of therapies focused on these biologically important targets.