Browsing by Author "Sheraj, I."

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Open Access
Enhanced expression of HNF4α during intestinal epithelial differentiation is involved in the activation of ER stress
(Wiley, 2020) Tunçer, S.; Sade-Memişoğlu, A.; Keşküş, Ayşe Gökçe; Sheraj, I.; Sheraj, G.; Akyol, G.; Banerjee, S.
Intestinal epithelial cells are derived from stem cells at the crypts that undergo differentiation into transit‐amplifying cells, which in turn form terminally differentiated enterocytes as these cells reach the villus. Extensive alterations in both transcriptional and translational programs occur during differentiation, which can induce the activation of cellular stress responses such as ER stress‐related unfolded protein response (UPR) and autophagy, particularly in the cells that are already committed to becoming absorptive cells. Using an epithelial cell model of enterocyte differentiation, we report a mechanistic study connecting enterocyte differentiation to UPR and autophagy. We report that differentiated colon epithelial cells showed increased cytosolic Ca2+ levels and activation of all three pathways of UPR: inositol‐requiring enzyme 1 (IRE1), protein kinase RNA‐like ER kinase, and activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6) compared to the undifferentiated cells. Enhanced UPR in the differentiated cells was accompanied by the induction of autophagy as evidenced by increased ratio of light chain 3 II/I, upregulation of Beclin‐1, and downregulation of p62. We show for the first time that mechanistically, the upregulation of hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α (HNF4α) during differentiation led to increased promoter binding and transcriptional upregulation of two major proteins of UPR: X‐box binding protein‐1 and ATF6, implicating HNF4α as a key regulator of UPR response during differentiation. Integrating wet‐lab with in silico analyses, the present study links differentiation to cellular stress responses, and highlights the importance of transcription factor signaling and cross‐talk between the cellular events in the regulation of intestinal cell differentiation.
Open Access
Evaluation of an aldo-keto reductase gene signature with prognostic significance in colon cancer via activation of epithelial to mesenchymal transition and the p70S6K pathway
(Oxford University Press, 2020-07) Demirkol Canlı, S.; Seza, E. G.; Sheraj, I.; Gömçeli, İ.; Turhan, N.; Carberry, S.; Prehn, J. H. M.; Güre, Ali Osmay; Banerjee, S.
AKR1B1 and AKR1B10, members of the aldo-keto reductase family of enzymes that participate in the polyol pathway of aldehyde metabolism, are aberrantly expressed in colon cancer. We previously showed that high expression of AKR1B1 (AKR1B1HIGH) was associated with enhanced motility, inflammation and poor clinical outcome in colon cancer patients. Using publicly available datasets and ex vivo gene expression analysis (n = 51, Ankara cohort), we have validated our previous in silico finding that AKR1B1HIGH was associated with worse overall survival (OS) compared with patients with low expression of AKR1B1 (AKR1B1LOW) samples. A combined signature of AKR1B1HIGH and AKR1B10LOW was significantly associated with worse recurrence-free survival (RFS) in microsatellite stable (MSS) patients and in patients with distal colon tumors as well as a higher mesenchymal signature when compared with AKR1B1LOW/AKR1B10HIGH tumors. When the patients were stratified according to consensus molecular subtypes (CMS), AKR1B1HIGH/AKR1B10LOW samples were primarily classified as CMS4 with predominantly mesenchymal characteristics while AKR1B1LOW/AKR1B10HIGH samples were primarily classified as CMS3 which is associated with metabolic deregulation. Reverse Phase Protein Array carried out using protein samples from the Ankara cohort indicated that AKR1B1HIGH/AKR1B10LOW tumors showed aberrant activation of metabolic pathways. Western blot analysis of AKR1B1HIGH/AKR1B10LOW colon cancer cell lines also suggested aberrant activation of nutrient-sensing pathways. Collectively, our data suggest that the AKR1B1HIGH/AKR1B10LOW signature may be predictive of poor prognosis, aberrant activation of metabolic pathways, and can be considered as a novel biomarker for colon cancer prognostication.