PARP-1 and DDX21 in Breast Cancer Images
Description
These are the original microscopy images associated with Kim et al. "Activation of PARP-1 by snoRNAs Controls Ribosome Biogenesis and Cell Growth via the RNA Helices DDX21," published in Molecular Cell in 2019. These are IHC or IF images of DDX21, PARP-1, and related factors in MCF-7 cells, xenograft tumors from mice, and human breast cancer samples. These images are from Figure 6A-B; Figure 7K, N, P; Supplemental Figure S6A, D; and Supplemental Figure S7F). Summary PARP inhibitors (PARPi) prevent cancer cell growth by inducing synthetic lethality with DNA repair defects (e.g., in BRCA1/2 mutant cells). We have identified an alternate pathway for PARPi-mediated growth control in BRCA1/2-intact breast cancer cells involving rDNA transcription and ribosome biogenesis. PARP-1 binds to snoRNAs, which stimulate PARP-1 catalytic activity in the nucleolus independent of DNA damage. Activated PARP-1 ADP-ribosylates DDX21, an RNA helicase that localizes to nucleoli and promotes rDNA transcription when ADP-ribosylated. Treatment with PARPi or mutation of the ADP-ribosylation sites reduce DDX21 nucleolar localization, rDNA transcription, ribosome biogenesis, protein translation, and cell growth. The salient features of this pathway are evident in xenografts in mice and human breast cancer patient samples. Elevated levels of PARP-1 and nucleolar DDX21 are associated with cancer-related outcomes. Our studies provide a mechanistic rationale for efficacy of PARPi in cancer cells lacking defects in DNA repair whose growth is inhibited by PARPi.