The histone demethylase KDM3A is a microRNA-22-regulated tumor promoter in Ewing Sarcoma

Ewing Sarcoma is a biologically aggressive bone and soft tissue malignancy affecting children and young adults. Ewing Sarcoma pathogenesis is driven by EWS/Ets fusion oncoproteins, of which EWS/Fli1 is the most common. We have previously shown that microRNAs (miRs) regulated by EWS/Fli1 contribute to the pro-oncogenic program in Ewing Sarcoma. Here we show that miR-22, an EWS/Fli1-repressed miR, is inhibitory to Ewing Sarcoma clonogenic and anchorage-independent cell growth, even at modest overexpression levels. Our studies further identify the H3K9me1/2 histone demethylase KDM3A (JMJD1A/JHDM2A) as a new miR-22-regulated gene. We show that KDM3A is overexpressed in Ewing Sarcoma, and that its depletion inhibits clonogenic and anchorage-independent growth in multiple patient-derived cell lines, and tumorigenesis in a xenograft model. KDM3A depletion further results in augmentation of the levels of the repressive H3K9me2 histone mark, and downregulation of pro-oncogenic factors in Ewing Sarcoma. Together, our studies identify the histone demethylase KDM3A as a new, miR-regulated, tumor promoter in Ewing Sarcoma.