Yang Qiwei, Diamond Michael P, Al-Hendy Ayman
Division of Translation Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta GA, USA.
Front Pharmacol. 2016 Mar 1;7:40. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2016.00040. eCollection 2016.
Uterine Fibroids [UF(s), AKA: leiomyoma] are the most important benign neoplastic threat to women's health. They are the most common cause of hysterectomy imposing untold personal consequences and 100s of billions of healthcare dollars, worldwide. Currently, there is no long term effective FDA-approved medical treatment available, and surgery is the mainstay. The etiology of UFs is not fully understood. In this regard, we and others have recently reported that somatic mutations in the gene encoding the transcriptional mediator subunit Med12 are found to occur at a high frequency (∼85%) in UFs. UFs likely originate when a Med12 mutation occurs in a myometrial stem cell converting it into a tumor-forming stem cell leading to a clonal fibroid lesion. Although the molecular attributes underlying the mechanistic formation of UFs is largely unknown, a growing body of literature implicates unfavorable early life environmental exposures as potentially important contributors. Early life exposure to EDCs during sensitive windows of development can reprogram normal physiological responses and alter disease susceptibility later in life. Neonatal exposure to the EDCs such as diethylstilbestrol (DES) and genistein during reproductive tract development has been shown to increase the incidence, multiplicity and overall size of UFs in the Eker rat model, concomitantly reprogramming estrogen-responsive gene expression. Importantly, EDC exposure represses enhancer of zeste 2 (EZH2) and reduces levels of histone 3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) repressive mark through Estrogen receptor/Phosphatidylinositide 3-kinases/Protein kinase B non-genomic signaling in the developing uterus. Considering the fact that distinct Mediator Complex Subunit 12 (Med12) mutations are detected in different fibroid lesions in the same uterus, the emergence of each Med12 mutation is likely an independent event in an altered myometrial stem cell. It is therefore possible that a chronic reduction in DNA repair capacity eventually causes the emergence of mutations such as Med12 in myometrial stem cells converting them into fibroid tumor-forming stem cells, and thereby leads to the development of UFs. Advancing our understanding of the mechanistic role epigenetic regulation of stem cells plays in mediating risk and tumorigenesis will help in pointing the way toward the development of novel therapeutic options.
子宫肌瘤[UF(s),又称平滑肌瘤]是对女性健康最重要的良性肿瘤威胁。它们是子宫切除术最常见的原因,在全球范围内造成了无数个人后果和数千亿美元的医疗费用。目前,美国食品药品监督管理局(FDA)尚未批准长期有效的药物治疗,手术是主要治疗手段。子宫肌瘤的病因尚未完全明确。在这方面,我们和其他研究团队最近报告称,编码转录调节因子亚基Med12的基因中的体细胞突变在子宫肌瘤中高频出现(约85%)。子宫肌瘤可能起源于子宫肌层干细胞中发生的Med12突变,使其转变为形成肿瘤的干细胞,进而导致克隆性肌瘤病变。尽管子宫肌瘤形成机制背后的分子特性在很大程度上尚不清楚,但越来越多的文献表明,早期生活中不利的环境暴露可能是重要的促成因素。在发育的敏感窗口期早期接触环境内分泌干扰物(EDC)会重新编程正常的生理反应,并改变日后生活中的疾病易感性。在Eker大鼠模型中,已证明在生殖道发育期间新生儿接触二乙基己烯雌酚(DES)和染料木黄酮等EDC会增加子宫肌瘤的发病率、数量和总体大小,同时重新编程雌激素反应性基因表达。重要的是,EDC暴露通过发育中的子宫中的雌激素受体/磷脂酰肌醇3激酶/蛋白激酶B非基因组信号传导抑制zeste 2增强子(EZH2)并降低组蛋白3赖氨酸27三甲基化(H3K27me3)抑制标记的水平。考虑到在同一子宫的不同肌瘤病变中检测到不同的中介体复合物亚基12(Med12)突变,每个Med12突变的出现可能是子宫肌层干细胞改变中的一个独立事件。因此,DNA修复能力的慢性下降最终可能导致子宫肌层干细胞中出现Med12等突变,将它们转变为形成肌瘤肿瘤的干细胞,从而导致子宫肌瘤的发生。深入了解干细胞表观遗传调控在介导风险和肿瘤发生中的机制作用,将有助于为开发新的治疗方案指明方向。