First Author | Yoshino S | Year | 2021 |
Journal | Blood | Volume | 137 |
Issue | 1 | Pages | 75-88 |
PubMed ID | 32730594 | Mgi Jnum | J:303716 |
Mgi Id | MGI:6508927 | Doi | 10.1182/blood.2019004586 |
Citation | Yoshino S, et al. (2021) Trib1 promotes acute myeloid leukemia progression by modulating the transcriptional programs of Hoxa9. Blood 137(1):75-88 |
abstractText | The pseudokinase Trib1 functions as a myeloid oncogene that recruits the E3 ubiquitin ligase COP1 to C/EBPalpha and interacts with MEK1 to enhance extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation. A close genetic effect of Trib1 on Hoxa9 has been observed in myeloid leukemogenesis, where Trib1 overexpression significantly accelerates Hoxa9-induced leukemia onset. However, the mechanism underlying how Trib1 functionally modulates Hoxa9 transcription activity is unclear. Herein, we provide evidence that Trib1 modulates Hoxa9-associated super-enhancers. Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing analysis identified increased histone H3K27Ac signals at super-enhancers of the Erg, Spns2, Rgl1, and Pik3cd loci, as well as increased messenger RNA expression of these genes. Modification of super-enhancer activity was mostly achieved via the degradation of C/EBPalpha p42 by Trib1, with a slight contribution from the MEK/ERK pathway. Silencing of Erg abrogated the growth advantage acquired by Trib1 overexpression, indicating that Erg is a critical downstream target of the Trib1/Hoxa9 axis. Moreover, treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells with the BRD4 inhibitor JQ1 showed growth inhibition in a Trib1/Erg-dependent manner both in vitro and in vivo. Upregulation of ERG by TRIB1 was also observed in human AML cell lines, suggesting that Trib1 is a potential therapeutic target of Hoxa9-associated AML. Taken together, our study demonstrates a novel mechanism by which Trib1 modulates chromatin and Hoxa9-driven transcription in myeloid leukemogenesis. |