Elevated expression of TMEM205, a hypothetical membrane protein, is associated with cisplatin resistance

Development of cisplatin resistance in cancer cells appears to be a consequence of multiple epigenetic alterations in genes involved in DNA damage repair, proto-oncogenes, apoptosis, transporters, transcription factors, etc. In this study, we found that expression of the hypothetical transmembrane protein TMEM205 (previously known as MBC3205) is associated with cisplatin resistance. TMEM205 was first detected by functional cloning from a retroviral cDNA library made from human cisplatin-resistant (CP-r) cells. TMEM205 is predicted to be a transmembrane protein, but its expression, localization, and function have not previously been investigated. A polyclonal antibody directed to the TMEM205 protein was raised in our laboratory. Using this antibody, it was demonstrated that this protein is located at the cell surface. Its expression is increased in our cisplatin-selected CP-r cell lines, as demonstrated by immunoblotting, confocal examination, and immuno-electron microscopy. Stable transfection of the TMEM205 gene confers resistance to cisplatin by approximately 2.5-fold. Uptake assays with Alexa Fluor-cisplatin showed reduced accumulation in CP-r KB-CP.3 and KB-CP.5 cells, and in TMEM205-transfected cells. Analysis of TMEM205 expression profiles in normal human tissues indicates a differential expression pattern with higher expression levels in the liver, pancreas, and adrenal glands. These results indicate that a novel mechanism for cisplatin resistance is mediated by TMEM205, and also suggest that overexpression of TMEM205 in CP-r cells may be valuable as a biomarker or target in cancer chemotherapy.