The Long Noncoding RNA CCAT2 induces chromosomal instability through BOP1 - AURKB signaling

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Chromosomal instability (CIN) is a carcinogenesis event that promotes metastasis and resistance to therapy, by unclear mechanisms. Expression of the colon cancer associated transcript 2 gene (CCAT2), which encodes a long noncoding RNA (lncRNA), associates with CIN, but little is known about how CCAT2 lncRNA regulates this cancer enabling characteristic.

METHODS: We performed cytogenetic analysis of colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines (HCT116, KM12C/SM, and HT29) overexpressing CCAT2 and colon organoids from C57BL/6N mice with the CCAT2 transgene and without (controls). CRC cells were also analyzed by immunofluorescence microscopy, γ-H2AX, and senescence assays. CCAT2 transgene and control mice were given azoxymethane and dextran sulphate sodium (DSS) to induce colon tumors. We performed gene expression array and mass spectrometry to detect downstream targets of CCAT2 lncRNA. We characterized interactions between CCAT2 with downstream proteins using MS2 pulldown, RNA immunoprecipitation, and SHAPE analyses. Downstream proteins were overexpressed in CRC cells and analyzed for CIN. Gene expression levels were measured in CRC and non-tumor tissues from 5 cohorts, comprising more than 900 patients.

RESULTS: High expression of CCAT2 induced CIN in CRC cell lines and increased resistance to 5-fluorouracil and oxaliplatin. Mice that expressed the CCAT2 transgene developed chromosome abnormalities, and colon organoids derived from crypt cells of these mice had a higher percentage of chromosome abnormalities compared to organoids from control mice. The transgenic mice given azoxymethane and DSS developed more and larger colon polyps than control mice given these agents. Microarray analysis and mass spectrometry indicated that expression of CCAT2 increased expression of genes involved in ribosome biogenesis and protein synthesis. CCAT2 lncRNA interacted directly with and stabilized BOP1 ribosomal biogenesis factor (BOP1). CCAT2 also increased expression of MYC, which activated expression of BOP1. Overexpression of BOP1 in CRC cell lines resulted in chromosomal missegregation errors, and increased colony formation, and invasiveness, whereas BOP1 knockdown reduced viability. BOP1 promoted CIN by increasing the active form of aurora kinase B (AURKB), which regulates chromosomal segregation. BOP1 was overexpressed in polyp tissues from CCAT2 transgenic mice, compared to healthy tissue. CCAT2 lncRNA and BOP1 mRNA or protein were all increased in microsatellite stable tumors (characterized by CIN), but not in tumors with microsatellite instability, compared with non-tumor tissues. Increased levels of CCAT2 lncRNA and BOP1 mRNA correlated with each other and with shorter survival times of patients.

CONCLUSIONS: We found that overexpression of CCAT2 in colon cells promotes CIN and carcinogenesis, by stabilizing and inducing expression of BOP1 an activator of AURKB. Strategies to target this pathway might be developed for treatment of patients with microsatellite stable colorectal tumors.