CDK4/6 inhibition blocks cancer metastasis through a USP51-ZEB1-dependent deubiquitination mechanism

Tumor metastasis is the most common cause of cancer-related deaths, yet it remains poorly understood. The transcription factor zinc-finger E-box binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1) is involved in the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and plays a pivotal role in tumor metastasis. However, the underlying mechanisms of the posttranslational modification of ZEB1 remain largely unknown. Herein, we demonstrated that specific inhibition of CDK4/6 was able to block tumor metastasis of breast cancer by destabilizing the ZEB1 protein in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, we determined that the deubiquitinase USP51 is a bona fide target of CDK4/6. The phosphorylation and activation of USP51 by CDK4/6 is necessary to deubiquitinate and stabilize ZEB1. Moreover, we found a strong positive correlation between the expression of p-RB (an indicator of CDK4/6 activity), p-USP51 and ZEB1 in metastatic human breast cancer samples. Notably, the high expression of p-RB, p-USP51, and ZEB1 was significantly correlated with a poor clinical outcome. Taken together, our results provide evidence that the CDK4/6-USP51-ZEB1 axis plays a key role in breast cancer metastasis and could be a viable therapeutic target for the treatment of advanced human cancers.