BACKGROUND: There is a lack of understanding of the processes that regulate differentiation in the prostate. OBJECTIVE: To determine localisation, activity, and regulation of cytodifferentiation-modulatory proteins in the human adult prostate. DESIGN, SETTINGS, AND PARTICIPANTS: Eighteen volunteering patients with organ-confined prostate cancer were prospectively enrolled at a single university hospital. INTERVENTION: All patients underwent radical prostatectomy, and normal/benign tissue was excised and obtained from the transition zone. MEASUREMENTS: Expression and activity of Notch-protein family members, including the Notch-homologous protein Delta-like 1 (Dlk-1/Pref1), were investigated immunohistochemically in normal/benign tissue and explant cultures. The effect of the Notch inhibitor L-685,458 on Dlk-1 expression and cell number was investigated in primary cell cultures, and data were analysed with Student t test. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: Mature luminal cells were found to co-express Notch-1 and its ligand Jagged1, but epithelia in normal/benign tissue showed no active Notch signalling. The basal cell layer, rare candidate epithelial stem cells, and a subpopulation of neuroendocrine cells expressed the differentiation protein Dlk-1. In explant cultures, luminal cells and Jagged1 expression were lost, whereas intermediate cells downregulated Dlk-1 concomitant with Notch-1 upregulation and activation. Notch inhibition in primary cell cultures led to lower cell densities (p<0.001) and suppressed downregulation of Dlk-1. This is a small study; current results need to be confirmed in larger investigations. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that Notch-1 is upregulated in differentiation of prostate epithelia, and that the novel prostate progenitor marker Dlk-1 is downregulated by Notch signalling in intermediate cells. The identification of Dlk-1-expressing candidate stem and neuroendocrine cells suggests a hierarchical relationship.
BACKGROUND: There is a lack of understanding of the processes that regulate differentiation in the prostate. OBJECTIVE: To determine localisation, activity, and regulation of cytodifferentiation-modulatory proteins in the human adult prostate. DESIGN, SETTINGS, AND PARTICIPANTS: Eighteen volunteering patients with organ-confined prostate cancer were prospectively enrolled at a single university hospital. INTERVENTION: All patients underwent radical prostatectomy, and normal/benign tissue was excised and obtained from the transition zone. MEASUREMENTS: Expression and activity of Notch-protein family members, including the Notch-homologous protein Delta-like 1 (Dlk-1/Pref1), were investigated immunohistochemically in normal/benign tissue and explant cultures. The effect of the Notch inhibitor L-685,458 on Dlk-1 expression and cell number was investigated in primary cell cultures, and data were analysed with Student t test. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: Mature luminal cells were found to co-express Notch-1 and its ligand Jagged1, but epithelia in normal/benign tissue showed no active Notch signalling. The basal cell layer, rare candidate epithelial stem cells, and a subpopulation of neuroendocrine cells expressed the differentiation protein Dlk-1. In explant cultures, luminal cells and Jagged1 expression were lost, whereas intermediate cells downregulated Dlk-1 concomitant with Notch-1 upregulation and activation. Notch inhibition in primary cell cultures led to lower cell densities (p<0.001) and suppressed downregulation of Dlk-1. This is a small study; current results need to be confirmed in larger investigations. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that Notch-1 is upregulated in differentiation of prostate epithelia, and that the novel prostate progenitor marker Dlk-1 is downregulated by Notch signalling in intermediate cells. The identification of Dlk-1-expressing candidate stem and neuroendocrine cells suggests a hierarchical relationship.
Authors: Vineet Agrawal; Scott A Johnson; Janet Reing; Li Zhang; Stephen Tottey; Gang Wang; Karen K Hirschi; Susan Braunhut; Lorraine J Gudas; Stephen F Badylak Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A Date: 2009-12-04 Impact factor: 11.205
Authors: Charlotte Svensson; Jens Ceder; Diego Iglesias-Gato; Yin-Choy Chuan; See Tong Pang; Anders Bjartell; Roxana Merino Martinez; Laura Bott; Leszek Helczynski; David Ulmert; Yuzhuo Wang; Yuanjie Niu; Colin Collins; Amilcar Flores-Morales Journal: Nucleic Acids Res Date: 2013-10-24 Impact factor: 16.971