The cancer stem cell (CSC) hypothesis suggests that tumours are maintained by a subpopulation of cells with stem cell properties. Although the existence of CSCs was initially described in human leukaemia, less evidence exists for CSCs in solid tumours. Recently, a CD133+ cell subpopulation was isolated from human brain tumours exhibiting stem cell properties in vitro as well as the capacity to initiate tumours in vivo. In the present work, we try to summarize the data showing that some elements of the Phosphoinositide 3-kinase Class I (PI3K)/ Thymoma viral oncogene protein kinase (Akt) pathway, such the activity of PI3K Class I or Akt2, are necessary to maintain the CSC-like phenotype as well as survival of CSCs (also denoted as tumour-initiating cells (TICs)). Our data and other laboratory data permit a working hypothesis in which each Akt isoform plays an important and specific role in CSC/TIC growth, self-renewal, maintaining survival, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype, not only in breast cancer, but also in glioma. We suggest that a more complete understanding is needed of the possible roles of isoforms in human tumours (iso-signalling determination). Thus, a comprehensive analysis of how hierarchical signalling is assembled during oncogenesis, how cancer landmarks are interconnected to favour CSC and tumour growth, and how some protein isoforms play a specific role in CSCs to ensure that survival and proliferation must be done in order to propose/generate new therapeutic approaches (alone or in combination with existing ones) to use against cancer.

Wild-type p53 (wtp53) is described as a tumour suppressor gene, and mutations in p53 occur in many human cancers. Indeed, in high-grade malignant glioma, numerous molecular genetics studies have established central roles of RTK-PI3K-PTEN and ARF-MDM2-p53 INK4a-RB pathways in promoting oncogenic capacity. Deregulation of these signalling pathways, among others, drives changes in the glial/stem cell state and environment that permit autonomous growth. The initially transformed cell may undergo subsequent modifications, acquiring a more complete tumour-initiating phenotype responsible for disease advancement to stages that are more aggressive. We recently established that the oncogenic activity of mutant p53 (mtp53) is driven by the actin cytoskeleton-associated protein WIP (WASP-interacting protein), correlated with tumour growth, and more importantly that both proteins are responsible for the tumour-initiating cell phenotype. We reported that WIP knockdown in mtp53-expressing glioblastoma greatly reduced proliferation and growth capacity of cancer stem cell (CSC)-like cells and decreased CSC-like markers, such as hyaluronic acid receptor (CD44), prominin-1 (CD133), yes-associated protein (YAP) and transcriptional co-activator with PDZ-binding motif (TAZ). We thus propose a new CSC signalling pathway downstream of mtp53 in which Akt regulates WIP and controls YAP/TAZ stability. WIP drives a mechanism that stimulates growth signals, promoting YAP/TAZ and β-catenin stability in a Hippo-independent fashion, which allows cells to coordinate processes such as proliferation, stemness and invasiveness, which are key factors in cancer progression. Based on this multistep tumourigenic model, it is tantalizing to propose that WIP inhibitors may be applied as an effective anti-cancer therapy.

Members of the lysyl oxidase (LOX) family catalyze the oxidative deamination of lysine and hydroxylysine residues in collagen and elastin in the initiation step of the formation of covalent cross-links, an essential process for connective tissue maturation. Proteolysis has emerged as an important level of regulation of LOX enzymes with the cleavage of the LOX isoform by metalloproteinases of the BMP1 (bone morphogenetic protein 1) and ADAMTS (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs) families as a model example. Lysyl oxidase-like 1 (LOXL1), an isoform associated with pelvic organ prolapse and pseudoexfoliation (PEX) glaucoma, has also been reported to be proteolytically processed by these proteases. However, precise molecular information on these proteolytic events is not available. In this study, using genetic cellular models, along with proteomic analyses, we describe that LOXL1 is processed by BMP1 and ADAMTS14 and identify the processing sites in the LOXL1 protein sequence. Our data show that BMP1 cleaves LOXL1 in a unique location within the pro-peptide region, whereas ADAMTS14 processes LOXL1 in at least three different sites located within the pro-peptide and in the first residues of the catalytic domain. Taken together, these results suggest a complex regulation of LOXL1 function by BMP1- and ADAMTS14-mediated proteolysis where LOXL1 enzymes retaining variable fragments of N-terminal region may display different capabilities.

Through actin-binding proteins such as the neural Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein (N-WASP) and WASP-interacting protein (WIP), the Rho family GTPases RhoA, Rac1 and Cdc42 are major modulators of the cytoskeleton. (N-)WASP and WIP control Rho GTPase activity in various cell types, either by direct WIP/(N-)WASP/Cdc42 or potential WIP/RhoA binding, or through secondary links that regulate GTPase distribution and/or transcription levels. WIP helps to regulate filopodium generation and participates in the Rac1-mediated ruffle formation that determines cell motility. In neurons, lack of WIP increases dendritic spine size and filamentous actin content in a RhoA-dependent manner. In contrast, WIP deficiency in an adenocarcinoma cell line significantly reduces RhoA levels. These data support a role for WIP in the GTPase-mediated regulation of numerous actin-related cell functions; we discuss the possibility that this WIP effect is linked to cell proliferative status.

Introduction: Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is an autoimmune disorder in which both increased platelet destruction and insufficient platelet production are involved. Patients can have a range of bleeding manifestations from none to severe at a similar platelet count. In some cases, patients have fewer bleeding symptoms than expected considering the low platelet count that they might have. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the procoagulant profile of platelets from ITP patients in order to determine whether any of their features may explain this observation. Methods: Twenty-five patients with chronic ITP [(68±100)x10⁹ platelets/L, mean age: 59.6 ± 16.1 years old, 56% female)] and thirty-five healthy controls [(256±36)x10⁹ platelets/L, mean age: 41.6 ± 13.5 years old, 51% female) were included. Platelet counts were determined with a Coulter Ac. T Diff cell counter (Beckman Coulter, Madrid, Spain). Citrated blood was centrifuged at 152 g 10 min at 23°C for obtaining platelet rich plasma (PRP). To obtain washed platelets, the top two-thirds volumes of PRP were collected and centrifuged (650 g for 10 min at 23°C) after the addition of acid-citrate-dextrose (ACD, 1:10) and the pellet was resuspended in an equal volume of HEPES buffer. Platelet activation was determined by flow cytometry through binding of FITC-PAC1 (a mAb that recognizes activated conformation of fibrinogen receptor) to quiescent and 100 micromol/L thrombin receptor-activating peptide 6 (TRAP, Bachem, Switzerland) or 20 micromol/L ADP. Apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry analysis through FITC-annexin V binding to phosphatidylserine (PS) exposed on platelet membrane under basal conditions. To characterize platelet ability to bind coagulation factors, washed platelets (1x10⁸/mL) were activated with 100 micromol/L TRAP and then incubated with FVa and/or FXa (5nM each, 10 min, ambient temperature). After fixation with 2% paraformaldehyde to cross-link the platelet-bound factors Va and Xa, platelets were washed two times with Hepes Buffer. Non-specific binding sites were blocked with 8% bovine serum albumin (30 min, room temperature). Following centrifugation, platelets were first incubated with anti-CD41-PE, anti-FVa and/or anti-FXa and then with a secondary FITC-goat anti-mouse IgG and stored at 4°C until flow cytometry analyses. Results: Platelets from ITP patients showed a basal expression of activated fibrinogen receptor similar to controls and a reduced ability for being activated by agonists (% of positive platelets for TRAP-induced PAC1 binding: 60±20 % in controls and 35±23 % in ITP, p<0.01; ADP-induced PAC1 binding: 63±14 % in controls and 50±23 % in ITP, p<0.05). Diminished responses to activation were not due to a reduction in surface expression of fibrinogen receptor in platelets from ITP patients. Platelets from ITP patients expressed more PS than controls under basal conditions [mean fluorescence (MF) for FITC-annexin V binding was: 336±128 in controls, 588±25 in ITP, p<0.05]. Since the PS is the anchor site of the prothrombinase complex, we studied the binding of FVa and FXa at baseline and after activating platelets with TRAP. The binding of these factors in both conditions was higher in the group of patients with ITP (MF for basal FVa binding: 41.4±14.4 in controls, 58.1±24 in ITP, p <0.02; MF for TRAP-induced FVa binding: 44.1±11.4 in controls, 81.4±38 in ITP, p<0.001; MF for basal FXa binding: 45.7±18.4 in controls, 58.1±24 in ITP, p <0.005; MF for TRAP-induced FXa binding: 46.1±16.4 in controls, 72.0±24 in ITP, p<0.05). The lower the platelet count the higher increase in PS exposure (Spearman r =-0,518, p <0.001) and the union of FVa (Spearman r = -0.8571, p <0.001) and FXa (Spearman r = -0.7455, p<0.05). Conclusions: Platelets from ITP patients, despite having less capacity of activation by agonist stimulation, have an increased procoagulant surface with greater ability to bind prothrombinase complex (FXaVa) than those from healthy controls. This feature might be a procoagulant compensatory mechanism that could reduce the risk of bleeding in patients with ITP. This work was supported by a grants from the FIS-FEDER, PI12/01831 and PI15/01457