PRMT5 promotes cancer cell migration and invasion through the E2F pathway.

Barczak W., Jin L., Carr SM., Munro S., Ward S., Kanapin A., Samsonova A., La Thangue NB.

The pRb-E2F pathway is a critical point of regulation in the cell cycle and loss of control of the pathway is a hallmark of cancer. E2F1 is the major target through which pRb exerts its effects and arginine methylation by PRMT5 plays a key role in dictating E2F1 activity. Here we have explored the functional role of the PRMT5-E2F1 axis and highlight its influence on different aspects of cancer cell biology including viability, migration, invasion and adherence. Through a genome-wide expression analysis, we identified a distinct set of genes under the control of PRMT5 and E2F1, including some highly regulated genes, which influence cell migration, invasio and adherence through a PRMT5-dependent mechanism. Most significantly, a coincidence was apparent between the expression of PRMT5 and E2F1 in human tumours, and elevated levels of PRMT5 and E2F1 correlated with poor prognosis disease. Our results suggest a causal relationship between PRMT5 and E2F1 in driving the malignant phenotype and thereby highlight an important pathway for therapeutic intervention.

DOI

10.1038/s41419-020-02771-9

Type

Journal article

Journal

Cell Death Dis

Publication Date

24/07/2020

Volume

11

Keywords

Cell Line, Tumor, Cell Movement, Cortactin, Down-Regulation, E2F1 Transcription Factor, Focal Adhesions, Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic, Genome, Human, Humans, Neoplasm Invasiveness, Neoplasms, Protein-Arginine N-Methyltransferases, Signal Transduction

Permalink Original publication