Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 21, 2025

The Soft Agar Colony Formation Assay
08:01

The Soft Agar Colony Formation Assay

Published on: October 27, 2014

112.3K

Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Directly Regulates VTCN1 Gene Expression in MCF-7 Cells

Naoya Yamashita1, Kyoko Yoshida1, Noriko Sanada1

  • 1Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts.

Biological & Pharmaceutical Bulletin
|June 1, 2022
PubMed

Insights

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) directly upregulates V-set domain containing T cell activation inhibitor 1 (VTCN1) in breast cancer cells. This finding reveals a novel mechanism influencing cancer immunity via AhR regulation of immune checkpoints.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cancer Research

Background:

  • The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a transcription factor known for mediating dioxin toxicity.
  • Emerging evidence suggests AhR's role in cancer immunity.
  • Immune checkpoint genes are critical regulators of anti-tumor immune responses.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) regulates immune checkpoint gene expression in breast cancer.
  • To determine the specific immune checkpoint gene(s) affected by AhR activation.
  • To elucidate the mechanism of AhR-mediated regulation of these genes.

Main Methods:

  • Treatment of breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7, T47D) with AhR agonists.
  • AhR knockout and knockdown experiments to assess gene regulation.
  • Luciferase reporter assays to confirm promoter activity.
  • Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays to identify AhR binding sites.

Main Results:

  • AhR agonists upregulated V-set domain containing T cell activation inhibitor 1 (VTCN1) mRNA expression in MCF-7 and T47D cells.
  • Upregulation of VTCN1 by 3-methylcholanthrene was dependent on AhR presence.
  • AhR was recruited to the AhR responsive element in the VTCN1 promoter, confirming direct regulation.

Conclusions:

  • The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) directly upregulates VTCN1 gene expression in breast cancer cells.
  • AhR-mediated regulation of VTCN1 represents a novel mechanism in cancer immunity.
  • Targeting AhR could potentially modulate immune checkpoint expression in breast cancer therapy.
Keywords:
V-set domain containing T cell activation inhibitor 1aryl hydrocarbon receptorbreast cancer

More Related Videos

Efficient Transcriptionally Controlled Plasmid Expression System for Investigation of the Stability of mRNA Transcripts in Primary Alveolar Epithelial Cells10:49

Efficient Transcriptionally Controlled Plasmid Expression System for Investigation of the Stability of mRNA Transcripts in Primary Alveolar Epithelial Cells

Published on: March 6, 2020

6.1K
A Competent Hepatocyte Model Examining Hepatitis B Virus Entry through Sodium Taurocholate Cotransporting Polypeptide as a Therapeutic Target11:34

A Competent Hepatocyte Model Examining Hepatitis B Virus Entry through Sodium Taurocholate Cotransporting Polypeptide as a Therapeutic Target

Published on: May 10, 2022

2.3K

Related Concept Videos

Cell Specific Gene Expression01:58

Cell Specific Gene Expression

Multicellular organisms contain a variety of structurally and functionally distinct cell types, but the DNA in all the cells originated from the same parent cells. The differences in the cells can be attributed to the differential gene expression. Liver cells, whose functions include detoxification of blood, production of bile to metabolize fats, and synthesis of proteins essential for metabolism, must express a specific set of genes to perform their functions. Gene expression also varies with...
14.0K
Receptor Downregulation in MVBs01:15

Receptor Downregulation in MVBs

Multivesicular bodies (MVBs) are mature endosomes that sort ubiquitinated proteins and then fuse with lysosomes to degrade the sorted proteins. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) and its receptor (EGFR) form a complex that can be internalized through endocytosis, sorted into an MVB, and later degraded.
The EGFR can initiate signaling pathways that  lead to cell proliferation, migration, and differentiation. Overexpression of EGFR  stimulates cells to proliferate. Excessive  EGFR...
2.2K
Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply01:24

Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply

Rapidly dividing tumors, embryos, and wounded tissues require more oxygen than usual, lowering the oxygen concentration in the blood. At low oxygen or hypoxic conditions, an oxygen-sensitive transcription factor called the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 or HIF1 is activated. HIF1 is a dimeric protein of alpha (ɑ) and beta (β) subunits.  Under optimal oxygen conditions, HIF1β is present in the nucleus while HIF1ɑ remains in the cytosol. HIF1ɑ is hydroxylated by prolyl...
2.7K
Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway02:54

Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway

The gene encoding the main signaling molecules of the Wnt signaling pathways (the Wnt proteins) was discovered almost four decades ago by Nüsslein-Volhard and Wieschaus. They identified and originally named the gene "wingless" (wg) after a phenotype discovered during their landmark genetic screen in Drosophila for body pattern defects. At around the same time, another researcher named Harold Varmus found that a murine tumor virus activates the mammalian wg homolog, Int-1, which...
9.0K
GPCRs Regulate Adenylyl Cylase Activity01:09

GPCRs Regulate Adenylyl Cylase Activity

Some GPCRs transmit signals through adenylyl cyclase (AC), a transmembrane enzyme. AC helps synthesize second messenger cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). AC catalyzes cyclization reaction and converts ATP to cAMP by releasing a pyrophosphate. The pyrophosphate is further hydrolyzed to phosphate by the enzyme pyrophosphatase, which drives cAMP synthesis to completion. However, cAMP is rapidly degraded to 5′ AMP by the enzymes phosphodiesterase (PDE), preventing overstimulation of...
6.0K
Co-activators and Co-repressors02:04

Co-activators and Co-repressors

Gene transcription is regulated by the synergistic action of several proteins that form a complex at a gene regulatory site. This is observed in eukaryotes, where the regulation of gene expression is a complex process. Regulatory proteins in eukaryotes can broadly be classified into two types – regulators that bind directly to specific DNA sequences and co-regulators that associate with regulatory proteins but cannot directly bind to the DNA. These co-regulators are further divided into...
7.6K