An Ovol2-Zeb1 Mutual Inhibitory Circuit Governs Bidirectional and Multi-step Transition between Epithelial and Mesenchymal States

Autor: Catherine Ha Ta, Xing Dai, Qing Nie, Alvaro Villarreal-Ponce, Kazuhide Watanabe, Tian Hong
Přispěvatelé: Stumpf, Michael PH
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2015
Předmět:
Zdroj: Hong, T; Watanabe, K; Ta, CH; Villarreal-Ponce, A; Nie, Q; & Dai, X. (2015). An Ovol2-Zeb1 Mutual Inhibitory Circuit Governs Bidirectional and Multi-step Transition between Epithelial and Mesenchymal States. PLoS Computational Biology, 11(11). doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004569. UC Irvine: Retrieved from: http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/09b816dw
PLoS Computational Biology
PLoS computational biology, vol 11, iss 11
PLoS Computational Biology, Vol 11, Iss 11, p e1004569 (2015)
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004569.
Popis: Reversible epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is central to tissue development, epithelial stemness, and cancer metastasis. While many regulatory elements have been identified to induce EMT, the complex process underlying such cellular plasticity remains poorly understood. Utilizing a systems biology approach integrating modeling and experiments, we found multiple intermediate states contributing to EMT and that the robustness of the transitions is modulated by transcriptional factor Ovol2. In particular, we obtained evidence for a mutual inhibition relationship between Ovol2 and EMT inducer Zeb1, and observed that adding this regulation generates a novel four-state system consisting of two distinct intermediate phenotypes that differ in differentiation propensities and are favored in different environmental conditions. We identified epithelial cells that naturally exist in an intermediate state with bidirectional differentiation potential, and found the balance between EMT-promoting and -inhibiting factors to be critical in achieving and selecting between intermediate states. Our analysis suggests a new design principle in controlling cellular plasticity through multiple intermediate cell fates and underscores the critical involvement of Ovol2 and its associated molecular regulations.
Author Summary Cumulative evidence reveals remarkable lineage plasticity of somatic cells. Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) represents a prime example of such plasticity where an epithelial cell is converted into a mesenchymal cell. This process is used in normal development to generate crucial cell types, and is hijacked by cancer cells for invasion and metastasis. Recent studies also suggest the importance of EMT in generating stem cell properties. The reversibility of EMT and its sensitivity to varying environmental stimuli pose interesting challenges to understand the intricate regulatory networks that direct cellular state transitions and their dynamics. Here we use a systems biology approach to probe into the complexity of the EMT process. We report a new molecular regulation that expands the known regulatory network, and show that this new network is capable of generating multiple intermediate states, which we provide experimental evidence for. We present modeling and experimental results to highlight the significance of a delicate balance between EMT-promoting and -inhibiting factors for achieving and/or selecting an intermediate state, and to suggest the biological significance of the multiple intermediate states. This work further elucidates the complex strategies that control epithelial cell behavior and cancer/stem cell plasticity.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz: