SPHK1 promotes bladder cancer metastasis via PD-L2/c-Src/FAK signaling cascade

SPHK1 (sphingosine kinase type 1) is characterized as a rate-limiting enzyme in sphingolipid metabolism to phosphorylate sphingosine into sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) that can bind to S1P receptors (S1PRs) to initiate several signal transductions leading to cell proliferation and survival of normal cell. Many studies have indicated that SPHK1 is involved in several types of cancer development, however, a little is known in bladder cancer. The TCGA database analysis was utilized for analyzing the clinical relevance of SPHK1 in bladder cancer. Through CRISPR/Cas9 knockout (KO) and constitutive activation (CA) strategies on SPHK1 in the bladder cancer cells, we demonstrated the potential downstream target could be programmed cell death 1 ligand 2 (PD-L2). On the other hand, we demonstrated that FDA-approved SPHK1 inhibitor Gilenya® (FTY720) can successfully suppress bladder cancer metastasis by in vitro and in vivo approaches. This finding indicated that SPHK1 as a potent therapeutic target for metastatic bladder cancer by dissecting the mechanism of action, SPHK1/S1P-elicited Akt/β-catenin activation promoted the induction of PD-L2 that is a downstream effector in facilitating bladder cancer invasion and migration. Notably, PD-L2 interacted with c-Src that further activates FAK. Here, we unveil the clinical relevance of SPHK1 in bladder cancer progression and the driver role in bladder cancer metastasis. Moreover, we demonstrated the inhibitory effect of FDA-approved SPHK1 inhibitor FTY720 on bladder cancer metastasis from both in vitro and in vivo models.