Hongjiao Ouyang, Ph.D. - US grants

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Osteoporosis is a leading public health problem that is characterized by reduced bone mass and bone mineral density. Wnt signaling promotes postnatal bone mass accrual. Our long-term goal is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying the anabolic effects of Wnt signaling pathway on bone. We hypothesize that, in osteoblasts, 1) Wnt signaling regulates mTOR (mammalian homolog of target of rapamycin) activity, an essential serine/threonine kinase that plays a central role in regulating protein synthesis and cell growth; and 2) mTOR plays a critical role in mediating Wnt's anabolic effects on bone. These hypotheses are based on: 1) our biochemical analyses have demonstrated that the Wnt signaling pathway regulates mTOR activity in non-osteoblasts both in vivo and in vitro; and 2) both autosomal dominant high bone mass disease (HBM) and tuberous sclerosing bone dysplasia (TSC) are featured by osteoblastic and osteosclerotic changes in skeletal and craniofacial bones, thus both having being classified to sclerosing bone dysplasia; in these two diseases, hyperactivity of Wnt and mTOR signaling are implicated, respectively. The similar clinical and pathohistological features of these two diseases suggest a possible functional linkage between Wnt and mTOR signaling. The Specific Aims are: [unreadable] [unreadable] Aim 1: Determine whether Wnt signaling promotes mTOR activity in bone, both in vivo and in vitro. [unreadable] Aim 2: Elucidate the underlying mechanisms by which Wnt signaling regulates mTOR activity. [unreadable] Aim 3. Determine whether mTOR is required for Wnt anabolic effects on bone. [unreadable] [unreadable] Successful completion of these specific aims will 1) shed critical insight into the molecular mechanism of Wnt signaling' anabolic effects on bone, 2) provide a logical explanation for the similar clinical and pathohistological features shared by two subtypes of sclerosing bone dysplasias, i.e. HBM and TSC bone lesions, and 3) implicates rapamycin, a specific mTOR inhibitor, and the derivatives in treating sclerosing bone diseases caused by hyperactive Wnt signaling. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Disrupting the supportive effects of the multiple myeloma (MM) microenvironment is of major clinical significance since the interactions between MM cells and the microenvironment enhance tumor growth and bone destruction. Bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) are considered a key player in the microenvironmental support of MM cell growth and bone destruction. The X-box-binding protein 1 (XBP1) signaling is the most ancient Unfolded Protein Response signaling branch. Recently, we found that XBP1s was strongly induced in BMSCs from MM patients' compared with normal donors' BMSCs. Further, SIRT1 and Resveratrol, a pharmacological activator of SIRT1 and a bioactive dietary component of red wine, strongly inhibited the transcriptional activity of XBP1s. Therefore, we propose that MM cells induce XBP1s signaling in BMSCs. XBP1s signaling plays an important role in regulating BMSCs' support of MM cell growth and osteoclast (OCL) differentiation in MM bone diseases. Further, Resveratrol represses XBP1s signaling in BMSCs and markedly reduces the capacity of BMSCs to support MM cell growth and osteoclastogenesis. To test these hypotheses, we will 1) determine if modulating XBP1s signaling in human BMSCs impacts hBMSCs' support of MM cell growth and osteoclast differentiation via both gain-of-function and loss-of-function strategies, 2) elucidate the molecular mechanisms by which XBP1s protein levels are induced in BMSCs in MM bone disease, and 3) determine if Resveratrol represses XBP1s signaling in BMSCs and compromises their support of MM growth and osteoclastogenesis both in vitro and in vivo. These studies will shed novel insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying the protective effects of BMSCs on MM cells and reveal the novel molecular target(s) that Resveratrol may acts upon to achieve its anti-tumor effects. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The primary goals of this research proposal are to determine 1) if XBP1s signaling plays a critical role in regulating the capacity of bone marrow stromal cells to support MM cell growth and osteoclastogenesis, and 2) if Resveratrol, an activator of SIRT1 and a bioactive dietary component of red wine, represses XBP1s signaling in BMSCs and compromises their support of MM growth and osteoclastogenesis. These studies will provide important information to develop nutritional and pharmacological strategies involving Resveratrol to reduce MM in humans.

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Multiple myeloma (MM) is the most frequent cancer to involve the skeleton and induces osteolytic lesions that rarely heal in both axial and craniofacial bones. Multiple myeloma bone disease (MMBD) is responsible for some of the most devastating complications of MM and is the major source of morbidity associated with MM. Bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) are a major type of cells that reside within the MM microenvironment. It has been shown that in MMBD, BMSC produce many growth factors and inflammatory cytokines. These factors can boost the growth of the myeloma tumor cells and activate osteoclasts, the bone resorbing cells, to induce osteolytic lesions in bone. Thus, disrupting the BMSC support of MM cell growth and osteoclast formation is of major clinical significance in treating MMBD. Our long-term goal is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that regulate BMSC support of MM cell growth and bone destruction in MMBD and identify the potential therapeutic targets for disrupting BMSC support of MMBD. Towards this goal, we have found that a cellular stress molecule spliced X-box-binding protein 1 (XBP1s) is induced in the BMSC derived from MM patients, compared with those from the healthy donors. XBP1s has been shown to control gene expression and/or protein secretion of inflammatory cytokines in other organs and disease models, such as inflammatory bowel disease. We showed recently that elevation of XBP1s protein levels in healthy donor BMSC induced the pathological behavior that are usually present in MM patient BMSCs, such as, heightened inflammatory cytokine secretion, enhanced support of MM cell growth and OCL formation both in vitro and in vivo. Conversely, knockdown of XBP1s in MM patient BMSC largely corrected their pathological behavior to the levels that are comparable to healthy donor BMSC. In this RO1 grant application, we hypothesize that IRE1?/XBP1s signaling is an essential pathophysiological factor that regulates the BMSC inflammatory signature and BMSC support of MM cell growth and osteoclastogenesis. Thus, the IRE1/XBP1s signaling in BMSC is a potential therapeutic target for disrupting BMSC support of MM cell growth and bone destruction in treating MMBD. The Specific Aims are: Aim 1: To determine the pathophysiological significance of p38-induced phosphorylation of human XBP1s (hXBP1s) in BMSC support of MM cell growth and osteoclastogenesis both in vitro and in vivo. Aim 2: To determine whether RANKL is a novel transcriptional target of XBP1s. Aim 3: To determine whether deletion of Xbp1 in BMSC blunts MM cell growth and bone resorption in vivo using a novel immunocompetent BMSC-specific Xbp1 KO mouse model. Aim 4: To determine if the IRE1??endoribonuclease activity in BMSC represents a potential therapeutic target to repress generation of XBP1s and disrupt BMSC support of MM cell growth and OCL formation. These studies have multiple biological, pathological and clinical implications. First, our studies will provide important information and related animal models for developing and employing therapeutic strategies that target the IRE1?/XBP1s signaling, such as the existing IRE1??inhibitors, and/or inflammation kinases-induced phosphorylation of XBP1s to disrupt the protective effects of the MM microenvironment on MM cells and OCL as a means to treat MMBD. Secondly, these studies will not only advance our understanding of basic biology of XBP1s but also provide important information on potential impact of an IRE1?/XBP1s inhibitor on bone microenvironment homeostasis of MM patients. Thirdly, since heightened stromal inflammatory cytokine secretion is a common pathological feature of many inflammatory bone diseases, such as rheumatoid osteoarthritis and tumor bone metastases (e.g., prostate, breast and lung cancers), our studies will provide important information and related animal models to investigate if the IRE1?/XBP1s signaling in BMSC is also a critical pathological factor in regulating the stromal cells support of progress of these inflammatory bone diseases, and thus represents a potential therapeutic targets for treating these inflammatory bone diseases.