Upregulated LMO1 in prostate cancer acts as a novel coactivator of the androgen receptor.

LMO1, a nuclear transcription coregulator, is implicated in the pathogenesis of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and neuroblastoma. However, the role of LMO1 in human prostate cancer (PCa) is still unknown. Androgen receptor (AR) plays a critical role in the progression of prostate cancer. The activation of AR signaling pathway could be modulated by AR cofactors. In the present study, we discovered that LMO1 could bind to AR and co-localize with AR in the nucleus. In addition, the expression of LMO1 in human PCa tissues was significantly higher than that in benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) tissues. Moreover, LMO1 appeared to be a novel coactivator to enhance AR transcriptional activities, followed by the elevation of expression of P21 and PSA, downstream targets of AR. Taken together, LMO1 appears to be a coactivator of AR involved in the progression of prostate cancer, and could be a promising molecular target for treating prostate cancer.